Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 267 War Demon
Conrad had withstood the pressure from the Arcane Empire and faced Isildur head-on, but who could have imagined that a demon army would suddenly appear and harass them on the border?

The situation of the Northern Demon invasion is more serious than expected. Many cities have been attacked, whether they were previously occupied by the fortress or human settlements. Without exception, they have all been attacked by the forces of Hell.

The knight commander was puzzled; there were clearly no forces from Hell around, so why were there so many troops?

According to reports from scouts, each city has thousands of hellish legions, mainly composed of three-headed hounds and long-horned demons. These are no small monster legions; they are extremely powerful and spread the smell of sulfur everywhere, polluting the land.

With the Frost Fortress still undergoing basic repairs and the Knight Commander also needing to guard against the Arcane Empire to the north, he couldn't spare any attention to deal with these demons. Therefore, he unleashed his powerful magic.

Conrad knew that Sumu had been working towards Congress, and although Sumu was still far from receiving a knighthood, he had been consistently working on accumulating boundary stones. So he first explained the situation to Congress and requested assistance from Bear Castle, on the condition that the plains be granted boundary stones.

There's currently war raging in the heart of the kingdom, and gold and resources are scarce. Using territory magic also consumes boundary stones, so the kingdom isn't wealthy. But compared to retaining leverage in negotiations with the North, these boundary stones are insignificant.

To appease the generals of the Xilin Plain, the kingdom plans to bestow titles upon the remaining generals of Kuraki in due course and will provide several cartloads of boundary stones.

Su Mu also understood that the implementation of these rewards was largely due to Conrad's efforts. Given his current status, titles like "Kingdom Twins" or "Lord of the Plains" were insignificant in Congress. Many high-ranking nobles still looked down on them, even though Su Mu had participated in several wars and repeatedly repelled enemies—something Congress considered perfectly deserved.

Can it fight? Is it useful? No problem, it's suitable as a weapon, but it's still a long way from getting into the core circle of the kingdom. If it wants to climb the ranks, it must have a pledge of allegiance.

This is the current terrible political environment of the kingdom, which is deeply entrenched and difficult to change. Even though the walls have pushed them into the heartland, the nobles are still unwilling to give up their interests.

Su Mu didn't expect to get any unexpected surprises from Congress. Competing under the rules set by others would naturally leave him completely at their mercy. To break through, he had to break out of this environment.

His support for the North was purely out of respect for the Knight Commander and to do his best to maintain stability in the North.

With a major battle looming, at least temporary peace must be maintained around the plains.

……

The snow on the border had been cleared away, and there were burning fires and corpses everywhere.

Three-headed hounds, their bodies reeking of sulfur, were tearing apart a living elf, gnawing at his head, arms, and thighs. After a series of mournful howls, they fell into complete silence.

Hearing the melodious howls, the other hounds and demons all wore expressions of pleasure, as if they were enjoying a wonderful concert.

One of the essences of hell is desire, and its methods are diverse. Torturing the enemy often boosts the morale of the troops and soothes the hearts of the demons.

Grima Reynolds is the commander of this diverse hellish force.

He currently commands multiple armies, including monsters, three-headed hounds, horned demons, and a small number of evil god kings.

The reason the troops were such a mixed bunch was because these soldiers all came from that guy Karl.

Karl heard the call of the abyss demons, connected to an unknown and mysterious land through an underground passage, made a sacrifice, and gained the approval of the abyss lord.

This time, it was Eros, a tyrannical king under the War Demon, who responded to Karl, giving him several high-level treasures and granting him powerful demonic skills.

In return, Karl needs to continue expanding his territory, stabilizing the underground tunnels, and instigating wars. He also sends two heroes from a distant otherworldly demon realm, one of whom is Grima.

When Grima saw the fertile territory surrounding the camp and the chaotic, lawless area, he was overjoyed. This was absolutely the perfect place to spread chaos and instigate war. Surrounding them were the Arcane Empire and the Kingdom of Eldon, and the kingdom to the south was still at war, its territory threatened by the ramparts' army that had breached its borders.

It was a golden opportunity, and even Grima couldn't understand why Karl didn't seize it to launch an attack and further expand his power. Although he looked down on this good-for-nothing, Karl's diplomatic skills were indeed very useful, allowing him to rapidly expand his Hell army and build a powerful legion.

Even in the treacherous Sulfur Realm, possessing this skill alone would allow one to roam freely. Karl, however, is so unambitious, only daring to secretly convert it in the peripheral areas. He's simply a fool.

So Grima, using the name of a tyrannical king, directly transferred a large number of troops to his own command and led them south, into the human kingdom.

He wasn't a reckless man either. Through special means, he bribed thieves and learned that the capital of the Kingdom of Eldon was about to be breached by Leven, and that humanity couldn't afford to bother with the northern lands. Meanwhile, Conrad, who had just captured Frostholdt, was locked in a stalemate with the Arcane Empire and couldn't spare any resources to deal with him.

Grima even secretly sent a message to the Arcane Empire, saying that disrupting the northern territories would be very helpful to the Empire's next plan, and that he was willing to help the Empire achieve its goal, in exchange for a place to live.

Because of Karl's previous incompetent policies, the Arcane Empire genuinely felt that the Hell forces in the no-man's-land posed no threat, and thus agreed to their request.

With a legitimate claim to a powerful ally, Grimar led his army on a campaign, directly attacking the northern lands.

He has already conquered three cities, and war is raging everywhere. He has also built a transformation altar, where both the bastion troops and human civilians are corrupted and transformed, and he has quickly built a powerful army.

【Grimar Reynolds (War Demon): Attack 8, Defense 7, Spell Power 4, Knowledge 4.

Characteristics: Fanatic, Vicious Overlord, Evil Investigator.

Advanced Dog Trainer: For every 4 points of attack and defense attributes a hero has, the Hellhound (including upgraded units) will have its attack power increased by 1 point and its defense power increased by 1 point.

Evil Altar: You can sacrifice enemies to gain the favor of the Abyss Lord and open the Evil Altar (which corrupts beings into units of level 4 or lower and grants them the baptism of flesh and blood; requires resources).
Intermediate Logistics, Advanced Fire Element Mastery, Intermediate Air Element Mastery, Intermediate Resistance.

Commentary: War is the devil's revelry.

Unlike the soul-summoning rituals used to summon the dead, the conversion to evil requires tormenting the will of the living, corrupting their minds, and leading them to depravity.

The more powerful and pure a person is, the greater the spoils for the devils when they fall into depravity.

But Grimma couldn't care less about that now. He hastily corrupted the captured bastion troops. Although the conversion efficiency was low, it provided them with immediate combat power, and the snowball effect made them stronger and stronger. He would then consider converting them into powerful creatures.

He passed a blood-soaked platform where a emaciated dwarf lay sprawled on the ground, gnawing on the blood-streaked bones of his companion, his eyes gradually turning bloodshot. His body began to mutate, two viscous heads sprouting from his neck, revealing sharp teeth. His skin was worn away, and thick fur began to grow, transforming him in moments into a terrifying three-headed hound.

"Hahaha! That's it!"

He gazed at the vast snowfields to the south, his ambition growing.

Even though Karl reminded him that there were still powerful heroes in the human kingdom, Grima was blinded by immediate gains and had long forgotten about it.

Now, it is time to build the city of hell and summon the War Lord!

(End of this chapter)