Night had fallen, but a faint light still lingered, allowing a barely clear view of the guards stationed around the camp.
“The Elf King God’s Oracle…” Jenfenny sighed, hesitating to speak further.
At that moment, a male Elf standing nearby glanced coldly at the situation outside.
“I took a rough count; the remaining guards number about a hundred.”
“To plan an attack on an Empire Princess and yet not mobilize everyone, and still send this many to watch over us—do they really have such confidence?”
Karo Mama’s face showed a trace of helplessness. “Or perhaps they have enough manpower to carry out the assassination, and these hundred are insignificant?”
Hearing this, Winnie quickly asked the weakened Jenfenny, “Jenfenny, you said earlier that someone inside the Empire is helping these people? Is that true?”
Jenfenny shook her head. “It’s just speculation.”
She explained, “On the surface, the Storm Revolutionary Army deliberately exposed to the Empire’s spies numbers over three hundred. That’s to mislead the Empire.”
“And the number they gave us was over a thousand, intended to mislead us.”
“But from what you just saw, the enemy must have at least two thousand five hundred troops. At such a scale, if there wasn’t someone inside the Empire helping to hide them, how could they have infiltrated so quietly?”
Karo Mama agreed. “Jenfenny’s right. Only this explains why these forces weren’t discovered earlier.”
“If there were no insiders, then the strength of the Storm Revolutionary Army is terrifying.”
The group fell silent for about ten seconds.
Winnie asked again, “Jenfenny, is the Elf King God’s Oracle still the same?”
Jenfenny nodded with a worried expression. After a few seconds, she said, “It’s the same.”
“Though it only lasted for three seconds, the images flashed rapidly, enough for me to understand our danger and who the culprit is.”
At this, the group breathed a sigh of relief.
“Since joining this attack means casualties, if we withdraw now, does that mean we’re safe?”
Winnie asked.
“Unfortunately, it’s not that simple…” Jenfenny gave a bitter smile.
She analyzed, “Since what I saw was the Revolutionary Army collaborating with the Glorious Restoration Church to target us, that means they still want to extract value from us.”
“Right now, their focus is on the plan to attack the Princess, so they temporarily neglect us and only sent these hundred to guard.”
“If they return victorious tomorrow, this stronghold will surely be abandoned. That will be the moment we get slaughtered or captured.”
After Jenfenny spoke, the group exchanged determined glances.
“In that case, let’s take advantage of their weak guard tonight and break out in one strike! Use the darkness to scatter and escape!”
“Maybe we can also check if the Water of the Sacred Tree is here, and grab all the supplies they left behind.”
Though Elves advocated peace and friendship, they were not submissive or easily crushed.
Besides…
Words are one thing, but actions another.
“Since it’s decided, let’s start the operation. Winnie, go notify the other Elves.”
Karo Mama took a deep breath and began to plan.
“The timing is just right, and the King God’s prophecy is confirmed… No need to worry about reputation. Strike first, strike hard!”
They all nodded and then dispersed to spread the word.
Under the hazy night sky, a fierce battle was about to erupt.
Yet, there was one thing none of the Elves had noticed.
In a dark corner nearby, Kebo and his team watched coldly at the Elf thatched huts.
“Heh heh heh, we deliberately gathered the people here to split their forces, just to make these suspicious Elves see…”
“Don’t disappoint us. After all, the trap is set. If the prey doesn’t take the bait, it’ll be troublesome.”
***
The sound of hooves slowed to a clip-clop.
Inside the luxurious carriage, Willis Egbert held Ophelia Laiensi, watching the view outside.
The girl in her arms was restless, shifting about, her angry eyes seeming to contemplate where to strike first.
Willis sighed and gently pushed Ophelia away.
At that moment, Normankev rode up to the carriage window, respectfully asking again, “Your Highness, Yufeng Valley is just ahead. Are we really going to stay here overnight?”
Willis glanced at the sky. The sun had fully dipped below the horizon, and the remaining light would vanish soon.
Above, stars twinkled, and a massive bright moon hung in the firmament.
Willis leaned out to look forward, seeing towering mountains on both sides of Yufeng Valley.
The mountain ridges stretched endlessly, their destinations unknown. Taking a detour would cost much more time.
A broad avenue ran through the valley; they had left the Main Road and entered the Gezeer Branch Road.
Though a branch of the Main Road, this route was still wide and well-maintained under Empire control.
The lead of the caravan had already entered Yufeng Valley. Under the faint night, ancient trees soared, a deep shade of green.
The valley’s road was clean from frequent passage, but beyond it, dense forests rose, with wild birds gathering.
Just one glance revealed its depth and mystery.
From afar, Willis could even hear countless insects chirping and the rustling of wind in the thick woods.
“Let’s camp here. According to the map, Blue Lake is nearby, perfect for fetching water for cooking and replenishing supplies.”
Hearing this, Normankev gave a bitter smile. “For ordinary folks, camping here would be fine, but… very well, Your Highness.”
Considering the caravan had traveled for hours since afternoon, marching through Yufeng Valley overnight would tire both men and horses.
Moreover, at night, resting was necessary, and enemy movements were hard to discern.
Normankev thought that camping here, as Willis suggested, wasn’t a bad plan.
No one could guarantee that attackers wouldn’t strike late at night, when their guard was down after hurriedly passing through the valley exhausted.
Resting inside the valley was a sensible countermeasure.
Finding a reason to accept this himself, Normankev agreed, “As Your Highness commands, we will camp here tonight and depart at dawn.”
“Good. Proceed.”
Normankev left to lead his men in scouting the surroundings.
Strangely, there were few farmhouses nearby, only a handful in the distance still lit.
No pedestrians were seen on the road; only Willis’s caravan was here.
Ophelia sensed something unusual, her worried gaze sweeping over the dim landscape.
Willis said nothing. As the carriage entered the valley, Normankev had already found a suitable campsite.
It was a large clearing beside the valley’s main road.
By the time Willis stepped down from the carriage, the soldiers had already set up cooking fires and pitched tents.
“Your Highness, I have sent men to scout the surrounding woods; nothing unusual was found. The other Church of Judicature personnel have been assigned to the hilltops for lookout duty.”
Normankev reported respectfully. Willis nodded, looking up at the sky.
From outside the valley, nothing seemed amiss, but looking around now, towering trees loomed on both sides, and the hills were at least five hundred meters high.
The mountains blocked views from other angles, giving a sense of confinement, like looking at stars from inside a well.
“Very well, Principal Justice, you will be responsible for security on both sides of the valley. You may reassign part of the thousand soldiers for patrol.”
“If I may be so bold, Your Highness.”
With that, Normankev assembled about a hundred men, splitting them into ten-man squads for patrol.
Behind him, Ophelia, full of resentment, was helped by several soldiers to unload equipment from the supply wagon, preparing to set up a large tent for Willis.