Double Joy

In front of the palace, the long stone steps had collapsed and shattered under immense force, and the broken corpses scattered across the ground told the tale of a fierce battle.

"Is he the king of the northern barbarians?"

Looking at the bloodied and mangled corpse before her, clad in black armor, Selene clicked her tongue twice and then turned to her adjutant for confirmation.

"Reporting to the General: Yes, this is the old king of the northern barbarians, the Empire's greatest foe in the northern territories... but that's all in the past. With this victory, the northern barbarians will be annihilated!"

"Hmm... quite resolute," Selene nodded, acknowledging the fallen king's refusal to surrender even in the face of death.

But in the next moment...

"Cut off his head, preserve it, and send it to the capital as a trophy... Oh, and remember, credit this to Hak Foo and the vanguard. This is their achievement," Selene said casually.

Indeed, she recognized his valor, but his head still needed to be taken!

Selene was not the type to hypocritically suggest burying him properly, erecting a monument, or sending someone to tend his grave.

She knew her place—this was her lowest standard for herself. As one of the highest-ranking leaders of the Imperial army, her duty was to ensure glory for her subordinates.

Some rulers, after defeating an enemy, might show mercy to demonstrate kindness, or even elevate the enemy to a high-ranking position to win them over. Some might even honor dead enemies.

But this was clearly not Selene's style. She had a different philosophy—enemies are enemies. Mercy and honor after the battle are not to be given lightly!

You can't ignore the thoughts of your own people. Have you ever considered how those who fought and died for you would feel if their former enemies were elevated above them? What about the warriors who perished—how would their sacrifice be valued?

Your soldiers fought to the death to secure your position, and now, to appear merciful, you elevate the very enemy who once threatened them? If you're going to show mercy, why not show it to your own people?

Of course, with Selene's strength and the influence of her "Ideological Branding," she didn't have to care about the opinions of her subordinates. But Selene was a greedy and unsatisfied person.

She wanted it all!

Setting aside the subtle influence of the "Ideological Branding," her daily actions and words had to demonstrate that she was someone worth following! She wanted her people to willingly, eagerly fight and die for her.

This was the double control Selene pursued!

Unlike cold, detached expansion in the dimension of collapse.

The feeling of seeing her domain expand visibly, in the cheers of her followers, through their admiring gazes, filled with life and growing power—this was what truly intoxicated Selene.

"Yes!" the adjutant responded passionately, placing a hand over his heart.

He was Hak Foo's adjutant, and naturally part of the vanguard, which meant he shared in the credit for slaying the northern barbarian king!

They continued forward, entering the palace interior, where a grand, circular hall greeted them.

Selene carefully examined the surroundings. The style of the interior wasn't much different from that of the Empire. Were the artisans taken from the Empire?

Hmm... this fortress city could be developed into a new industrial base. It could be completely rebuilt. According to the World Chronicle, the mineral resources here are quite rich...

As Selene was calculating how to manage the fortress city, a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"My Master, while pursuing the remaining enemies, I made a new discovery."

She turned toward the voice and saw Hak Foo, drenched in blood but with a joyful expression, walking out from the rear hall, leaving bloody footprints with every step. He knelt before her, speaking respectfully.

"Master, beneath the palace lies a sizeable underground chamber. There, I found a large quantity of special ore..."

"Special ore..." The mention of ore immediately piqued Selene's interest. Could it really be Orichalcum?

"Lead the way," she said, a hint of excitement in her voice.

"Yes!"

Following Hak Foo, Selene and her party passed through the rear hall and entered a long corridor. Soon, what came into view was—

A glowing mineral vein emitting a faint phosphorescence!

At first glance, it looked like ordinary limestone, similar to what Selene had often seen outside, but she wasn't about to dismiss it as common rock.

Upon closer inspection, the rocks emitted a soft white light and shimmered with a beautiful golden hue, taking various shapes... they seemed to have formed naturally.

Stepping into the man-made cave, Selene reached out and touched the rocks. The texture was smooth, completely at odds with their rough appearance.

"Let me test it..." she said, snapping off a small piece with her bare hands as a faint purple glow flickered in her palm.

As she felt the familiar energy amplification from the ore, Selene's face lit up with joy. "It really is... Orichalcum!"

"This is quite a find! Someone... go notify Leiva and have him bring Dr. Stylish over!"

"Order—seal off the entire palace with heavy guard!"

"Yes!"

...

"The amount of weaponry in the fortress city's arsenal exceeds our expectations. It seems these damn—uh, I mean, these barbarians had prepared in advance for a large-scale war against us."

Gensa flipped through the report compiled by the quartermaster, his expression neutral as he briefed Selene.

"Although there are only about five thousand sets of iron armor, they have over sixty thousand sets of leather armor, and the stockpile of swords, spears, and arrows is even greater..."

At that moment, just as Selene was enjoying the success of this campaign—

"Report: General, General Leiva and Dr. Stylish have arrived..."

"Good, let them in."

"General, congratulations on your complete annihilation of the northern barbarians..." Before the men had even entered, Dr. Stylish's distinctive voice rang out.

"Congratulations to you as well, Doctor. You'll be getting plenty of new experimental subjects," Selene nodded in return.

"But more importantly, we've discovered an Orichalcum vein beneath the palace—a material long thought extinct within the Empire!"

"Orichalcum?!"

Orichalcum was one of the key materials used in the creation of Imperial Arms! Could this mean there was now a chance to revive the lost art of forging Imperial Arms?!

Thinking of this, the research-obsessed Dr. Stylish could no longer contain his excitement. "General, please allow me to see it! I beg you!"

As he spoke, Dr. Stylish looked as though he might kneel down before Selene on the spot.

"Don't worry, you will..."

Suddenly, Selene's shadow rippled, and a ninja soldier dressed in pitch-black emerged, holding a letter in both hands.

Seeing the letter, Selene immediately had a hunch about its contents.

"Sebas reports that he has found traces of the super-danger beast Tyrant and is currently tracking it! Dr. Stylish, it looks like you'll have more experiments to conduct soon!"

"Today is truly a day of double joy..."

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