Chapter 137 - The Wall

Asmodeus stood on the ground, watching as the wizards used magic to build themselves temporary homes, although in this era in which they found themselves, such temporary structures would already be considered a good and expensive home for a peasant.

It was already night outside, but torches and various illumination spells helped people see through the darkness.

After observing for a couple of minutes, a member of the Order of Flames approached him.

"Is it ready?"

"Yes, Lord Morningstar. Your chambers are already built; you can move in at any time."

"Good, thank you, Jack. Please convey my gratitude to everyone who participated in the construction. Although I told you it wasn't necessary, you still worked for my benefit."

"Lord, we cannot allow you to handle such matters yourself. Living in a tent is not suitable. We might stay here for some time, and we cannot allow our emperor to sleep in a tent for the Quidditch championship."

"Alright, thank you."

Asmodeus sighed and walked to the center of the camp, where stood a three-story building in the shape of a hexagon, resembling a miniature version of the Elysium Academy.

Initially, Asmodeus simply wanted to pitch his tent and go to sleep, but as soon as his people saw it, they immediately began to dissuade him, saying that he should not sleep like an ordinary soldier because of his status.

Asmodeus tried to explain that there was no need for them to build a three-story building for him, but the soldiers were as stubborn as mules.

They said that the emperor of the magic empire should constantly sleep in a tent or temporary housing like the rest of the soldiers.

So, four kilometers away from the red castle, another castle appeared in just a few hours.

Asmodeus entered the building and saw inside the typical interior of a hunting lodge belonging to some nobleman.

Without further considering the castle's decorations, Asmodeus simply went upstairs to the bedroom.

After changing clothes and taking a shower, Asmodeus went to sleep.

He wasn't physically tired, but rather emotionally drained. The work of coordinating three armies and arranging accommodations was very taxing. Asmodeus would prefer to fight someone than engage in this activity.

"Poor Rowena, she must be very tired every day dealing with these matters at the academy and council..." - With such thoughts, he drifted off to sleep.

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The next morning, Asmodeus was awakened by a knock on the door.

"Lord Morningstar, your food is ready, and Her Majesty Daenerys's army has already landed on the shore. They await you in their camp."

Half-asleep, Asmodeus replied, "Yes, yes, I'm coming..."

Fifteen minutes later, still groggy but now refreshed from washing his face, Asmodeus went to have breakfast.

After enjoying an omelet with bacon and washing it down with a glass of orange juice, he stepped outside.

"Lord Morningstar, shall I summon Athena, or will you visit her yourself?"

"No need, let the little one sleep. She flew all day yesterday at a slow pace; it's tiring. I'll fly there myself."

With that, Asmodeus instantly shot up into the sky at full power, heading northeast toward the bay of Darkwater.

Flying overhead, he saw hundreds of ships moored along the banks of the river of the Royal Forest, in the channel between the Spears Of The Merling King and the lands of the Royal Forest.

Seeing the ships, Asmodeus realized that Daenerys's detachment and the others were somewhere in the forest, and he should lower his altitude.

So he began to gradually descend and try to find people in the forest.

It's not that Daenerys's people were hiding; the forest just provided natural cover.

Because of this, Asmodeus flew quite a long time unsuccessfully until he noticed a dragon that seemed tired of the forest. Drogon emerged from the woods and began flying over the treetops, which caught Asmodeus's attention.

Realizing where his destination was, Asmodeus dove down.

Seeing the approaching Asmodeus, Drogon initially thought it was a bird and was about to open his mouth, but Asmodeus opened his mouth and spat a small ball of flame at him.

Drogon, struck by the attack, realized it was a human and made a sound, "Gugugugu," before turning around and flying away.

Meanwhile, Asmodeus continued his descent and swiftly found himself near the ground. Flying through the thickets, he spotted the camp set up in the forest.

Initially, the guards aimed their weapons at him, but upon realizing he was a wizard, they immediately lowered them. The wizards in the camp also showed respect when they saw him flying by.

Asmodeus flew through the camp until he found the central structure. Apparently, some members of the Order of Flames had built something similar to what they had constructed for him, although smaller in size, for Dumbledore and Grindelwald.

Identifying his target, Asmodeus quickly landed at the entrance. As he landed, he saw the doors of the house open, and Dumbledore and Daenerys emerged.

"Your Majesty Morningstar, it's a pleasure to see you," greeted Dumbledore.

"And to see you, Queen Daenerys. Dumbledore," replied Asmodeus.

"Hello, Asmodeus. Well, let's go inside; we should discuss our next steps," said Dumbledore.

Asmodeus nodded and followed Dumbledore and Daenerys inside. Upon entering, he saw a large table with Tyrion, Varys, Grey Worm, Missandei, Jon Snow, and Grindelwald seated around it.

After exchanging greetings with everyone, Asmodeus took out his map and began to speak.

"All present here already know our approximate plan. To surround the Royal Harbor and force the people inside to kill each other. After the wall is built, we will leave minimal personnel for guarding, and the rest will head north, where the real battle awaits us. As you can see, I have already marked the locations of our troops at the moment.

I propose that your squad advances another 15 kilometers toward the Royal Harbor to narrow the circle. Additionally, we need to block all rivers flowing into the Darkwater Bay to prevent possible supplies from entering the city, as well as potential evacuation. The tension between the authorities and the residents in the city is already high, but it's not enough. I want the city's residents to start attacking anyone who obeys Cersei directly.

Let them start killing the soldiers who are still in the city, let Cersei chop heads left and right until she finds herself with no allies."

At this moment, Varys, who had been listening to Asmodeus and his approach, couldn't help but speak up.

"Lord Morningstar, I understand that from a military tactical standpoint, this approach is the most effective and safest plan..."

Asmodeus roughly understood what Varys wanted to say, so he interrupted him and said, "But...?"

"But can't you, with your powers, simply take the city quickly...? Why make the people inside suffer? They are innocent. Your approach will lead to tens of thousands dying of hunger, thousands will die in clashes with Cersei, and these people are not soldiers; they will just be the unlucky ones who happened to be in the Royal Harbor when the wall appears."

Upon hearing Varys's words, the people had various reactions. Tyrion lowered his head as if bidding farewell to a friend who once saved him. Daenerys, Missandei, and Grey Worm remained somewhat indifferent to these words, as did Grindelwald. However, Dumbledore looked at Varys with a peculiar gaze.

Dumbledore thought to say something, but then everyone heard Asmodeus's voice.

"Lord Varys, I understand you, and your concern for the common people only earns my respect. But unfortunately, my approach is currently the most advantageous for us. It may seem extremely cruel, but there are certain reasons for it. For example, we cannot enter the city at the moment. More precisely, except for me and the other members of the Supreme Council, everyone else will likely perish, even wizards, if they enter the city in large numbers."

"???"

This time, a questioning expression appeared on the faces of everyone present. Honestly, witnessing the wonders performed by wizards time and again, the locals subconsciously consider them invincible, immortal, akin to gods in myths. But Asmodeus said that except for 13 people, everyone else, even wizards, would be in danger if they entered the city.

"What do you mean, Lord Morningstar?"

Tyrion asked, unable to understand why Asmodeus believed that Cersei had something that could harm wizards.

"Do you know about the explosion at the Sept of Baelor? Although how could you not know, Lord Tyrion, as you yourself used wildfire in the Battle of Blackwater."

Upon hearing about the Sept, everyone fell silent. Although apart from reports and accounts, none of those present today had seen the event, but the spies of everyone present described very well how the explosion looked, destroying several districts of the city. Furthermore, today they were accompanied by Tyrion, who once used wildfire to sink an enemy fleet.

"Now that you all understand what wildfire is, allow me to explain. As I have already said, for me and the other members of the Supreme Council, such attacks pose no threat. For me and Dumbledore, such a stoppage will, on the contrary, strengthen us, but that's thanks to our affinity with fire. But this does not apply to other wizards. Perhaps wizards of Grand Wizard level may also not suffer if they find themselves at the epicenter of the explosion, but that's assuming they are prepared. Other wizards, however, will most likely not be able to defend themselves in case of such an attack, and they may not necessarily be able to leave the affected area using apparition or gates."

"Lord Morningstar, what are you trying to say? Are you saying that Cersei will blow up the city if you enter it?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying now. I have reason to suspect that Cersei has already rigged the entire city, and as soon as our forces enter it, the entire Royal Harbor will explode."

"You could just teleport to Cersei and kill her before she has a chance to give the order, what's so difficult about that? The likelihood of an actual city detonation is minimal."

"Lord Varys, although this probability is minimal, and even if there were minimal casualties among my people in the event of an explosion, I would prefer everyone in the city to die rather than have my soldiers injured. That's why I'm using this approach. My people follow me because I can value them. For me, the lives of everyone in the Royal Harbor mean less than the life of one of my soldiers. If to avoid unjustified danger to them, I have to condemn at least half of the city's population to death, I am ready to take that step."

"But you could go there yourself. You don't necessarily have to send hundreds of your people there."

"And what do you suggest I do? Take the 13 strongest wizards and escort the commoners out of the city one by one? That's foolish and pointless. I understand your desire to save everyone, but that's not how the world works, Lord Varys. This topic is closed; I suggest we return to discussing the construction of the wall."

They all fell silent for a moment, understanding why Varys spoke so fervently about the Royal Harbor and its inhabitants, but they also understood Asmodeus.

"Guys, we can't sit here forever, and the sooner we resolve all the issues, the sooner we'll finish here and head north, so I suggest we continue after all."

Upon hearing this, surprisingly, Dumbledore was the first to say, "Yes, I suggest we continue our discussion. Unfortunately, we cannot risk our people to save the commoners in the Royal Harbor. I'm sorry, Lord Varys, but I agree with Asmodeus. Let's move on to the construction of the wall."