Become their wicked yet gentle lord.

"A corpse...a corpse!"

Monica glanced at her incompetent subordinate and said disdainfully:

"He's been dead for over a decade, what's there to be afraid of!"

There's nothing to be surprised about. This is a fortress; battles have taken place here, and it's normal for soldiers to have died. The deep interior of the fortress probably contains even more skeletons, which might be a good place for adventurers and scavengers. They might find some useful items inside, but judging from how long the fortress has been abandoned, there's probably not much left. Even if there is, Monica doesn't plan to enter the inner fortress; she only intends to stay on the outer perimeter. They're not here for exploration.

"Gather firewood, find some dry, smokeless kindling. You few, go to the high ground of the fortress to stand guard. If any Ottus soldiers search, do not expose yourselves, and report to me immediately."

After saying this, Monica waved her staff, and pebbles and vines sealed the door, forming a trapdoor that could be locked from the inside.

"A great mage specializing in rock and plant magic, he's very good at positional warfare, but he's a bit less agile."

Seeing this from a distance, Ryusha immediately went around to the back of the watchtower, where there was a small window high up, leading to Monica's room.

Peeping... no, she was spying on the enemy. Ryuka silently climbed onto the window and peered inside.

The room wasn't large, resembling a guard's quarters. The ground floor and several outposts outside were used as lodgings by Monica's men. Monica was even more particular than Ryūka had imagined. Although she had cleaned the room completely, she used a few spells, and vines spreading from the cracks in the walls wove into a simple set of furniture. The green vines even divided the space into small cubicles.

The magical communicator was also placed by Monica's bedside, but instead of immediately contacting her homeland, she walked towards the small cubicle she had created. The vine-covered walls weren't entirely invisible. Through the mesh, Ryuga watched as Monica reached for her waist…

"Hiss... I haven't ridden a horse for this long since I graduated from the academy..."

Monica untied the corset around her waist, pulling the skirt up to her hips. Beneath the skirt were loose, desert-style capri trousers. Monica pulled the trousers down to her knees, gently rubbing her inner thighs, which were slightly red and swollen from the saddle. Unlike Melanie, a mage skilled in both magic and martial arts, Monica was clearly a pure mage, possessing strong bursts of power and formidable combat strength, but her physical constitution was inferior to that of an average knight. Perhaps because no one was around, Monica disregarded her ladylike image. She slightly lowered her hips, adopting a half-squatting posture to further open her thighs, then took out a small bottle of ointment from her bosom, poured some onto her hand, and applied it to the redness and swelling on her thighs.

"Hiss~~~Whoosh—"

Hearing Monica let out a groan that was both painful and pleasurable, Ryuka couldn't help but curse inwardly, secretly feeling like he was about to take off.

This isn't her body's fault for not responding. Monica's current posture is quite bizarre: thighs half-squatting open, hands tucked into the back of her legs, head tilted back comfortably, and an expression of both pain and pleasure on her face. Those who know her understand she's applying medicine; those who don't might mistake her for a young beauty masturbating while standing!

But simply applying the ointment was not enough. After applying the ointment to her delicate inner thighs, Monica seemed to remember something and said with annoyance, then went out to get her staff again. Too lazy to pull up her pants, she walked out with her pants slipping down to her calves, swaying her fair, plump buttocks from side to side.

"That's why I don't want to come on any of those damn missions!"

Monica muttered to herself, waving her staff again to weave a toilet out of vines in the cubicle. Then, this time, she pulled off the last white panties clinging to her crotch...

This made Ryuka click her tongue in disapproval.

Damn, a white tiger, and a natural one at that.

Chapter 14: Leaving the territory is the key to becoming stronger.

It was loud, very loud.

The sound was so loud that even Ryuka felt a little embarrassed.

Ryuka wondered how much Monica had been holding in after traveling all night, and she was a little worried about whether her magically made toilet was sturdy enough. Monica pursed her lips, panting for a full minute before finally letting out a long sigh, pulling out a tissue from her pocket to wipe herself, then tossing it into the bucket, blushing as she manipulated the soil to bury it…

Like a cat.

After letting loose and having a good time, Monica finally activated her communication crystal and attempted to contact her home country.

“'Flower garden,' here are dandelions, here are dandelions.”

For some reason, there was no response from the other end. After repeating it twice, a hoarse male voice finally came from the crystal:

"I am here……"

Although her voice was somewhat muffled, Monica visibly relaxed and then reported the situation:

"We have escaped the first layer of encirclement by the troops stationed at Crow Ridge and are now taking refuge in some ruins. The location is about 20 kilometers northeast of Crow Ridge. We expect to arrive at the next rendezvous point on time. We hope you can arrange for someone to meet us."

"Do you have any news about Greg and the others?"

"No, we've split up. Otus has already noticed us. You'd better use your spies in Otus, otherwise it will be difficult for us to stop the delegation in the next territory."

"Understood, I'll arrange it. You'd better...shh...shh..."

"Hello? Hello? Damn it! What's going on?"

Suddenly, Monica's communication crystal seemed to malfunction, experiencing severe magical interference. Her expression instantly tensed, and she immediately shut down the crystal, getting up to check the situation.

"Oh, damn it!"

Just as they were about to hear something important, they were suddenly interrupted. Southwest of Raven Ridge lie the territories of Linze Fortress and Shadowless Forest, each belonging to a viscount. However, this area is no longer part of eastern Otus, but rather extends into the southeast, so Ryusha's understanding of it is limited.

These two territories were adjacent, both within a five-day journey. The next rendezvous point Monica and the others mentioned was unknown. Judging from the 'flower garden' man's words, they likely had henchmen in the area, which greatly concerned Ryūka. Not only had she missed this crucial detail, but Monica had also become wary. Seeing the danger, Ryūka immediately hid by the window, her mind racing with suspicion…

Because this magical interference wasn't emitted by him, it seemed more like...

"Miss! Rhys is missing!"

Almost at the same time Monica felt the magical interference, heavy footsteps came from downstairs. A knight rushed up, looking anxious, and said that a companion who had gone to keep watch on the high ground had disappeared without a trace!

“Report, Miss! Kron too! We were just on guard duty at the northwest corner of the city wall, and he disappeared the moment I turned around!”

"Miss! Something's not right with these ruins! I think I just saw something in the shadows!"

Are they pursuers from Raven Ridge?! How could they be so fast? Monica bit her lip. Although hailed as a genius of the younger generation of the Bauhinia, she was only twenty-one years old. She didn't have much experience in leading troops, especially deep in foreign territory. But she still tried to remain calm in front of her subordinates and gave them her orders:

"All personnel on high alert! Call everyone back! Don't panic!"

Seeing Monica and the others in disarray, Ryuga didn't gloat. Instead, his expression hardened as he looked towards the center of the fortress ruins. If he wasn't mistaken, the strange magical fluctuations were indeed coming from there.

Monica, who had just rushed out of the watchtower, also noticed this, but before she could react, one of her subordinates pointed tremblingly behind her.

"Skull, skeleton..."

The scattered skeletons that Monica had previously swept out of the watchtower now revealed a wisp of black mist, black pus flowing out of the eye sockets of the skulls, and the jaws, which were not covered by muscles, creaked and groaned as if the bones were grinding together!

“Protect… Your Excellency… Guard… the altar…”

The skeleton was incomplete, consisting only of the upper body, and lacked armor and weapons. Yet, with only one arm, it struggled to crawl towards Monica and her companions, its eerie voice carrying an unyielding obsession that sent chills down the spines of all who beheld it. At its call, more commotion arose within the fortress. Bones creaked, rusty swords rubbed together, and the persistent groans echoed from behind every stone wall!

Dark clouds gathered in the valley, obscuring the towering fortress at the heart of the stronghold. They stole away the first rays of dawn, turning the lush green forests into a chilling, deep green…

"Damn it!"

As if in response, Monica immediately swung her staff at the skeleton! Two large slabs of rock on the ground rose up from either side of the skeleton with a roar! The force of hundreds of kilograms crushed the skeleton in the middle like a slap!

Monsters? Necromancy? No! Monica's magical expertise and intuition told her things weren't that simple! She immediately gave orders to her subordinates:

"Get out of here right now!"

"But, Reis and the others..."

Ignoring the missing people, Monica pointed her staff at the watchtower behind her before she finished speaking! With a chant, the watchtower, more than ten meters high, collapsed like sand in the direction she pointed, blocking the road connecting to the fortress center! Her luggage and the communication crystal, controlled by her magic, flew out from the cracks in the stone bricks before the watchtower collapsed, and were caught in mid-air by a stone slab controlled by Monica.

Amidst the swirling dust and ruins of the fallen watchtower, more hoarse growls echoed:

"Guard...the altar...kill without mercy..."

Monica's expression changed, and without caring about anything else, she shouted one last thing to her subordinates:

"go!"

After saying that, she quickly mounted her horse, took the communication crystal, and fled into the mountains without looking back!

Her subordinates quickly followed, screaming as they fled the death fortress...

As if sensing the departure of the intruders, the sounds inside the fortress gradually subsided, which made Ryuka's eyes widen.

What does this mean? I'm still here. Why did it suddenly go silent?

He glanced at the direction Monica and the others had fled, then at the ruins of the fortress behind him, and stood frozen in place, lost in thought.

"Oh! Give me a break! I can go wherever I want!"

After thinking for a while, Ryuka muttered something and strode towards the fortress behind her.

“Melanie? Monica and her group are twenty kilometers northeast of Black Rook Castle, heading in that direction. They're exhausted and their horses were just frightened, so they shouldn't have gone far. Have Tipalotura send a few people to follow them; I know she has quite a few capable witches.”

Melanie didn't seem surprised as she listened to Ryūka's mental communication:

"Tell me, you naughty boy, how did you bully her?"

"It has nothing to do with me. Do you know Viscount Nur Antony's Rose Fortress? It was the last battle of the Heretic Expedition more than ten years ago. It's haunted."

Ryūka briefly explained what had just happened, and soon received Melanie's concern:

"Wait, you don't mean you want to go in, do you?"

"I am a Celestial."

After saying this, Ryuuya severed her connection with Melanie. Her shrewish daughter was clever enough to know what to do. And now, it was time to satisfy her curiosity.

"I've been in this world for many years, either making a living or building my own territory, never leaving my little corner of Sochi. To be honest, I'm really looking forward to this trip south. Adventure, exotic scenery, beautiful foreign women, and of course, the fun along the way..."

As Liu Xia spoke, he stretched his limbs, then punched the stone wall beside him, sending bricks flying everywhere! He turned and picked up a millstone-sized rock, tossed it around like a basketball a couple of times, and then threw it towards the main fortress tower above the mountain...

Boom!!! The moment Ryuka pushed out her arm, a massive shockwave erupted from her palm! The stone, like a cannonball, crashed into the fortress without even a discernible trajectory!

boom!!!

The fortress's massive tower was smashed open! Wall fragments kept falling off like debris. It was hard to imagine that this was the fortress that held out for months during the final battle against the heretics, absorbing the blood and flesh of countless young men from eastern Otus.

If Liu Xia were to strike a few more times, this fortress would be razed to the ground. This is the difference between a Celestial Rank and a Grand Master. If the Holy See hadn't insisted on leading that war against heretics, Otus could have easily subdued a rebellious viscount in a few days by sending a Celestial Rank general, no matter what kind of demonic sword he possessed.

After all, even Atina, who had gained the Demon Sword's approval, had to avoid the sharp edge of the Grand Master, Hinatil. This thing clearly had a growth period, and even when Nur Anthony was alive, he hadn't fully controlled the Demon Sword Iduniel before being defeated. If it was this weak while alive, Ryūka has even less to fear after it's dead.

Especially since Ryūka is no ordinary Heavenly Rank cultivator; he is also a Earthly Rank Authority Holder with the power of order, having already awakened the power of divine rules. Even after leaving Sochi, Ryūka could still sense that the evil spiritual energy surging within the fortress was far from being a match for him.

As if bullying the weak and fearing the strong, this fortress, which had just scared Monica and the others to death, was now completely silent in the face of Ryūka, which made Ryūka curl her lips.

"If you don't come over, I'm going to go over there."

He wanted to see what the familiar power the Emperor had mentioned was, and whether he could find more information about Carmela and the Demon Sword in this fortress.

“Anthony, Anthony, we have no grudge against each other. If you could speak like that skeleton from before, that would be wonderful.”

And so, without even bothering to draw his sword, Ryūsha strolled leisurely toward the center of the fortress. There he found a fresh corpse, one of Monica's missing henchmen. He had pulled down his pants, seemingly looking for a quiet, secluded spot to relieve himself, but unfortunately, he had walked too close to the fortress. At that moment, he lay sprawled in his own excrement, his exposed buttocks riddled with thorns from several rusty spears and swords, dying in a comical, farcical manner on foreign soil.

Didn't see the skeleton soldiers from before? Were they hiding? Ryuga flicked her finger, and a blazing fireball shot towards the unfortunate fellow, quickly burning him to ashes, which could be considered a proper burial for him.

As Ryūka continued to approach, the hoarse roar that had been heard earlier echoed from the deep fortress gates:

"Leave...or die!"

"Death! Die! Die..."

Like roars on a battlefield, countless hoarse howls echoed from within the fortress. But this did nothing to frighten Ryuga. If the forces within were truly capable, they would have already attacked him, just as they had done to Monica and her group. Why wait until he was close to intimidate him?

"All bark and no bite, all strength and no substance. No, I've become stronger."

Ryuu's lips curled into a smile. During his time as a regular and high-ranking official, even with the blessing of the Leader's Certificate and the power of the witch, he still had to be cautious when facing powerful enemies. But now, he had rapidly mastered the top-tier cultivation methods of ordinary people in this world, becoming a Celestial-rank cultivator who excelled in both magic and martial arts.

Especially now that he has left his own territory, he doesn't need to worry about harming his territory and people. For Ryūka, his territory is both his source of power and his constraint. If he is not careful, he will risk losing the hearts of his people, and consequently, the power of his leader's certificate will weaken.

And the rest of the journey south was a fantastic experience where I could do whatever I wanted!

Looking at the fortress's iron gates covered in moss and vines, Ryuka gently raised her arm. Without using any magic, pure magical power gradually condensed into an energy ball in her palm, and then she gently pushed it towards the gate...

Boom!!! Not only the fortress gate, but the entire front wall collapsed! Flying bricks rained down. As if responding to the earlier warning, Ryuka tilted her head slightly towards the inside:

"Try calling it again?"

Chapter 15 The Sleeping Fortress

Entering through the main gate, the fortress itself was unremarkable. Like a dark castle from a classic fantasy game, with spider webs, extinguished torches, scattered armor and corpses... these elements were so classic that they reminded Ryuka of the various games she played as a child, making her feel incredibly comfortable.

Though the corpses on the ground were reduced to bones, their allegiances could still be discerned from their decaying attire. There were Antony family knights, Inquisition knights, Harvey family knights… and of course, a large number of militiamen brought in to fill gaps and deplete the Antony family knights' fighting spirit. The Antony family knights' corpses were few, almost a ten-to-one ratio. It was said that their power had been enhanced by heretical evil forces, to the point that they could rival those of high-ranking officials. This was also the reason why the war was so brutal back then…

As Ryūka stepped inside, the malevolent spirits within the fortress finally reached their breaking point. The skeletons of the Anthony family knights began to creak and groan once more, black malevolent energy and viscous pus appearing out of thin air. Ryūka didn't rush to attack, but instead observed with great interest, channeling his spiritual power. In his unique vision, the malevolent spirits, invisible to ordinary people, swarmed onto the corpses of the dead like insects, manifesting as malevolent energy and pus. This viscous pus quickly enveloped the bare bones clad in rotting armor, and the spiritual power flowing within transformed the pus into a special kind of 'muscle,' causing the dead, who had slumbered for over a decade, to once again wield their weapons.

Soon, the fortress's hall became a paradise for the dead, who bared their fangs and roared at Ryūsha, refusing any outsiders access to the 'altar' they spoke of. It seemed the altar lay deeper within the fortress…

“Interesting, no wonder Monica was scared…”

For Ryūka, battle aura, magic, and spiritual power were all special and extraordinary abilities, but they weren't for the locals. Magic and battle aura were known and learnable powers. But spiritual power wasn't... Monica sensed the vengeful spirit's spiritual power, just like someone in the ordinary world seeing a ghost...

This more primal power is the fundamental logic of this world: all things possess spiritual power, whether living or dead. This is true of the natural spirits and vengeful spirits that Ryūka can see, the power of order, the power of witches… these are all different manifestations of spiritual power, and even the faith of the people can generate spiritual power. Spiritual power can be freely transformed into battle aura and magic power, and when the ability to wield spiritual power reaches a higher level, it acquires another name…

Divine power!

In a sense, Ryūka can now be called a demigod. Although he has not yet reached the point of immortality, possessing his own godhood and rules, the proof of leadership, or rather, the fragment of order, has given him a starting point that surpasses that of ordinary people from the very beginning.

But where did this starting point come from? Was it truly, as Crowell claimed, fragmented from Carmela's order? Why did it form the framework of the Leader's Token order, and where did the Imperial Guard originate...?

Ryūka hoped to find the answers in this ancient fortress.

Each of the skeletons before them possessed strength no less than that of a full-fledged knight. Death and decay had not diminished the intimidating power of these slumbering warriors; rusted longswords and iron spears were tainted by vengeful spirits, and warhammers and axes once again sang the symphony of battle. The still restless soldiers charged toward Ryūka like an unstoppable chariot!

"A promise...for, Your Excellency!!!"

Boom!!! A towering skeleton instantly rushed in front of Ryūka, its warhammer raised high and slamming down on the boy before it! The dust on the hammer vanished along with the cracked stone slabs! Ryūka merely shifted half a step to the side, dodging the heavy blow that was enough to smash a man and his horse to pieces!

Although the armor on its body was long since decayed and broken, Ryuga could still clearly see the golden rose crest on its chest. It was said to be the emblem of the Anthony family, and although the gold had been covered in dust, the shape of the rose remained noble and beautiful despite the passage of time.