Siegfried’s revelation threw the high-level Adventurers into chaos.

“What the hell! I heard this elixir has some serious side effects!”

“Who’s going to compensate us for this?!”

“What if I blow up later?!”

“I demand an explanation!”

“Bring me the person in charge! Now!”

The high-level Adventurers rushed at the knights of the Marchioni Empire, demanding answers.

“Those are nothing more than baseless accusations. There have been no side effects reported.”

The knights handing out the Elixir of Transcendence repeated the same answer as if rehearsed.

“Did Siegfried lie?”

“But why would he lie?”

“I’m not sure... But no one’s actually had any side effects yet, no?”

The Adventurers could no longer tell what was true.

“Maybe Han Tae-Sung spread that rumor to destabilize the Marchioni Empire?”

“What? So you’re saying he did all this just for his own benefit?”

“Yeah, that greedy bastard could’ve definitely done that.”

Some even speculated that Siegfried had made up this whole thing just to win the power struggle against the Marchioni Empire. As a result, the Adventurers split into two camps. One side believed Siegfried and the other did not.

These two sides began to quarrel among themselves.

Naturally, news of this had reached the ears of Emperor Stuttgart.

“There’s no such thing as an eternal secret. The time has finally come...” Emperor Stuttgart muttered. His face was still flushed red from yet another day of harsh scrubbing. With the secret of the Elixir of Transcendence out in the open, the emperor judged that the moment to strike had finally come.

He could, of course, try to endure a little longer and paint Siegfried as a liar, but the truth was that he had already endured for far too long.

Emperor Stuttgart’s patience had worn so thin that he could no longer stand the thought of Siegfried.

Click!

He pressed a button under his desk.

Click... Clack!

Then, a hidden door to a secret chamber opened.

Following the passage, Emperor Stuttgart arrived at the end of the chamber.

There, waiting for him, were a group of people, each one looking strikingly similar to him.

“So the time has finally come.”

“At long last...”

“Are we putting things in motion now?”

“Perfect. I was getting bored.”

Though their gender and age were different, their faces looked eerily similar to Emperor Stuttgart’s. In fact, they looked so similar that they could easily be mistaken for his brothers and sisters.

“The time has come to act, my fragments. All our enemies have revealed themselves. Now is the time to crush them all,” Emperor Stuttgart declared.

The reason he decided to pull the trigger now was clear. The current crisis sweeping throughout the Marchioni Empire had laid bare who was truly loyal to the empire and who stood against it.

Rebellions had broken out everywhere due to the plague, the Adventurers were growing powerful enough to threaten the NPCs, and the Proatine Empire was challenging the Marchioni Empire for the continent’s hegemony.

After all, there was even a popular saying, "one's true allies and enemies will appear during one's darkest times."

“Good.”

“Time to sweep away the vermin.”

“Let’s go.”

“I suppose the hour of destruction has come.”

The four men and women began moving at the emperor’s words.

They were artificial beings created from Emperor Stuttgart’s DNA, and they were the ones pulling the strings of the Marchioni Empire from behind the scenes.

The Four Heavenly Kings.

Until now, they had been supporting Emperor Stuttgart from the shadows, but the time had come for them to be revealed to the world.

***

The Marchioni Empire began to move with the appearance of the Four Heavenly Kings.

First, the Marchioni Empire officially declared war on the Proatine Empire while simultaneously applying pressure on the nearby nations.

They were essentially threatening them to either cooperate with the Marchioni Empire or perish alongside the Proatine Empire.

The nations allied with the Proatine Empire stood their ground while the rest either chose to side with the Marchioni Empire or remain neutral.

Thus, the continent was split in half as the thundering boots of the Marchioni Imperial Army resounded throughout the lands.

A staggering one million five hundred thousand troops were mobilized for the invasion.

The sheer number of the Marchioni Imperial Army was so overwhelming that neighboring states were on the verge of capitulating to the Marchioni Empire and joining their side.

Upon hearing the news, Siegfried rushed to convene an emergency council.

The Marchioni Empire, which was still plagued by the plagues, had suddenly mobilized its imperial army.

“It is highly likely that they have developed a vaccine or treatment for the plagues,” Michele speculated.

“I think so, too. Otherwise, they would have no reason to start a war when there were plagues ravaging their lands,” Siegfried replied with a nod.

“Then this means...”

“We are at war.”

Siegfried acknowledged there was no way to avoid the war and accepted the reality with composure.

This was inevitable.

Now that the Marchioni Empire was on the move, there was no way to stop war from breaking out.

Rather than thinking of ways to stop the war, it was time to fight.

“Summon our allies. We will prepare for war,” Siegfried ordered.

“As you command, sire,” Michele replied with a bow.

“How long will it take?”

“Our imperial army and our allies have been maintaining combat readiness at all times. A week is enough to prepare for war.”

“Good.”

“If I may ask, what do you intend to do with the powers of the Ten Calamities?”

“I will unleash them during the war.”

Siegfried was in no hurry. He could release the Ten Calamities now if he wanted to do so, but doing so would not be dealing the decisive blow to the Marchioni Empire. If he unleashed the calamities before the war started, then the Marchioni Empire would just focus entirely on defense while dealing with the Ten Calamities.

To maximize the benefits he could get out of the Ten Calamities, Siegfried intended to unleash them during the war.

That way, the Marchioni Empire would be thrown into even greater chaos.

“Hansen.”

“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”

At Siegfried’s call, the man who had once been a poor slash-and-burn farmer now turned into the Proatine Empire’s chief strategist, Hansen, came to his side.

“This will not be an easy war.”

“I agree, sire.”

“I will entrust the strategizing to you, Hansen.”

“Please rest assured. I will not fail you, my lord.”

Having risen from a mere conscript to the position of the Chief Strategist of the Proatine Imperial Army, Hansen resolved once again to prove worthy of Siegfried’s faith.

Just as he had displayed strategic brilliance in the last war, he swore to lead the Proatine Empire to victory this time again.

Then, Siegfried looked at the others and commanded, “This is the war that will decide the fate of our empire. Steel your resolve and prepare for what’s to come.”

“As you command, Your Imperial Majesty!”

At Siegfried’s command, the ministers and officials of the Proatine Empire answered in unison with a resounding shout.

***

Before long, two weeks had already passed since then.

The Proatine Empire and the Marchioni Empire mobilized their troops and began marching to the border.

Along with their massive armies, the nations allied with them marched on, too.

In the capital of the Marchioni Empire, a massive tower was erected. The tower stuck out from underground, which was most likely some sort of underground facility, as it climbed up to an astounding height of two kilometers.

At its very peak was an antenna so colossal that it was visible to the naked eye even at great distances.

Siegfried decided to ask the Guardians regarding the purpose of this tower, but they could only observe it through satellite surveillance.

Even though he had no idea what it could do, he knew that the tower was trouble.

Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it; the Marchioni Empire's capital city was also blanketed by layers upon layers of defensive barriers, so a bombardment was not an option.

— Unidentified signals are being transmitted from the antenna, but we cannot analyze the frequency. It appears they are plotting something, but we cannot determine what it is at present.

“Okay. Got it.”

Siegfried ended the call with the Guardians and fell into deep thought.

“What in the world is that tower? What are they going to do with it...?”

He couldn’t help but feel uneasy, as a colossal structure of that scale was bound to do something big. Though they couldn’t determine what the signals were for, it was highly likely that it was some sort of weapon prepared against the Proatine Empire.

“I guess all we can do is wait and see what happens...” Siegfried muttered under his breath.

Since there was no way to determine its function, Siegfried decided to focus entirely on preparing for the war.

The full-scale clash against the Marchioni Imperial Army was inevitable, and the first clash would happen within a week at most.

Thus, he needed to be prepared.

Meanwhile, Seung-Gu was in Verdandi’s laboratory.

Just as Siegfried had suggested, he volunteered to participate in her research in search of a cure or an antidote to the side effects of the Elixir of Transcendence.

“Do not worry, Uncle Seung-Gu! I will cure you!” Verdandi said confidently.

“O-Okay... Sniff! I’ll leave it to you,” Seung-Gu replied emotionally.

Seung-Gu had been feeling anxious these days. When was the side effect going to hit? Would his level be reduced? Would his account be deleted forever? It was only normal for him to be anxious, as he had nurtured his character since the beginning of the game.

He poured time, effort, and money into it, so the thought of losing it was simply unbearable.

“Don’t worry, uncle!” Verdandi reassured him as she continued her research.

It was then.

“H-Huh...?”

Seung-Gu suddenly staggered. He swayed back and forth for a few seconds before collapsing to the ground.

Thud!

“Uncle Seung-Gu!”

“Sir Seung-Gu!”

“Are you all right, Sir Seung-Gu? Can you hear me?”

The knights present in the laboratory hurried over to his side.

“...”

However, Seung-Gu lay unconscious, showing no signs of being awake.

“Call the healers! Summon the healers!”

“Sir Seung-Gu has collapsed!”

“Uncle Seung-Gu! Wake up, uncle!”

Verdandi tried shaking Seung-Gu, but soon realized it was futile.

Thus, she pulled out a stimulant from her inventory and brought it to his lips.

“Drink this—”

Flash!

Seung-Gu’s eyes suddenly snapped wide open.

Kwachik!

Then, his hand shot out and grabbed Verdandi by the throat.

“U-Uncle Seung—argh!”

“Enemy... Enemy must... be destroyed...” Seung-Gu growled in a low, guttural tone.

“Arghhk...!”

“For the glory... of the Marchioni Empire...”

The knights were dumbstruck at the shocking sight, but they quickly regained their composure and threw themselves forward. Figuring out what was happening to Seung-Gu could come later. Right now, protecting the princess was their top priority.

***

“Your Imperial Majesty! We have received a call from the rebel leader, Neighdelberg.”

“Huh? Really?”

Siegfried was perplexed after hearing that Neighdelberg had called, but he immediately made his way to the communications chamber.

‘What’s that old geezer scheming this time? Is he calling to beg for something?’

Siegfried loathed Neighdelberg just as much as he loathed Emperor Stuttgart, but he was willing to hear him out at least.

Neighdelberg was now openly hostile to the Marchioni Empire, after all.

In a way, they shared a common enemy, making them somewhat allies.

There was also this popular saying, "the enemy of my enemy could be my ally."

‘But if that old geezer starts spouting a bunch of nonsense, then I’m marching over there first and chopping his damn head off.’

Kaboom!

A deafening blast shook the entire imperial palace.

And that was only the beginning...

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Kaboom! Boom! Boom!

The sound of continuous explosions filled the air, as if a bombardment was raining down upon the imperial palace.

‘No way? Already?’

Siegfried’s mind raced.

Was this a surprise air raid from the Marchioni Empire?

Aside from that, nothing else could explain how the Proatine Empire’s imperial palace, which was supposedly the safest and most secure place in the whole empire, was suddenly under siege.

Unless, perhaps...

‘Ah... Did Quandt blow something up again?’

Siegfried concluded that Quandt had caused yet another massive accident while crafting the Universal-rated weapon.

Unfortunately, he was off by a mile this time.

“Your Imperial Majesty!”

A knight came rushing in.

“Sir Seung-Gu has attacked Princess Verdandi! And he is bombarding the imperial palace as we speak!”