Last Ruler Of The Empty Throne-Chapter 149: New changes I

Just seconds after the dust of battle settled, a new group emerged, dropping like shadows from the sky and landing atop the fortress wall. Their appearance caused a ripple of silence among the defenders below.

"They are..." Laura’s voice faltered, her eyes widening in recognition.

"Yes," Jenny affirmed, her gaze sharp and unwavering. "The Stargazers. They’ve grown too strong. Their only promotion comes under that monster."

Laura blinked in surprise, then chuckled softly. "You just called Jon a monster."

"What?" Jenny replied with a pout. "I’m allowed to complain too."

Though spoken with jest, her words carried a weight of respect. Jon, the enigmatic leader, was a mystery even to those closest to him. His strength and methods often bordered on the inhuman, and even Jenny, his close ally, sometimes found herself disturbed by the sheer intensity of his growth and the expectations he placed on others.

As the group gathered atop the wall, Jenny’s eyes scanned each of the Stargazers.

Ronald stood as always, trembling under the pressure, his body quivering like a leaf. Yet beneath that cowardly exterior was an unyielding core of strength. His growth had been silent, unnoticed by many, but the power housed in his frame was nothing short of terrifying.

Gar’al, the man-beast, radiated primal energy. His shaggy hair now reached his shoulders, and his bare, scarred body told tales of countless battles. Savage in appearance, yet composed in demeanor, he was a beast only restrained by will. If ever released without restraint, even seasoned second-realm evolvers would struggle to withstand him.

And then there was Luna, the newest member of the Stargazers. Her journey began with hesitation and doubt. She had once sought guidance from Jenny and Cynthia, confused and unsure. It wasn’t until Jon rewarded them that day that her path truly shifted.

Among the rewards was a skill, Empty Eyes. Luna, after much contemplation, accepted it. But fate had other plans. The skill mutated unnaturally, fusing with one of her existing techniques that disoriented enemies. The result was a terrifying sub-power known as Killing Eyes—an evolved, twisted vision that allowed her to analyze and determine the most efficient way to end any life she stared into. One glance was all she needed to see how to kill.

From that moment, Jenny saw her potential and quietly placed her among the Stargazers.

As the tension eased, Jenny turned her attention to a man who looked completely out of place, the Mayor, still observing the scene with confusion etched into his face.

"Oh, the Mayor. He’s the leader of this camp," Laura explained with a pleasant smile.

Jenny’s own smile sharpened. "Nice. Well, we can’t have you anywhere close to danger, can we?"

The Mayor flinched. Something about her words struck him with déjà vu. ’Wait, that girl said the same thing before... What do they want now?’ He took a step back, suspicion flickering in his eyes.

Before he could retreat any farther, Jenny stepped forward. Her voice cut through the air, calm but piercing. "But I am curious. How was it that a powerful evolver and his child died, and nothing was done about it?"

She referred to the man Jon had killed, an incident cloaked in silence. Laura, like others, had heard fragments of the tale but never the aftermath. The way it was handled... it was almost as though it had never happened at all.

The Mayor’s expression darkened. He clenched his fists. "That bastard was General Jul’s strongest backer. It was because of his death that Jul went off to make deals with those bastards."

Jenny tilted her head. "So, his death... actually benefited you? And where is this prince Jul made the deal with?"

Laura responded casually, "He hasn’t shown up, he didn’t show up the last time either."

A spark lit in Jenny’s eyes. ’If we keep killing them, he’ll have to come out, right?’ She smirked and said aloud, "Well, time to fight."

Without hesitation, Jenny, Laura, and the Stargazers leaped from the wall, plunging into the fray below. After a few moments of inner turmoil, the Mayor gritted his teeth and followed them.

On the battlefield, chaos reigned—but this time, it was the sea creatures who struggled. The tide of battle had shifted.

Thanks to the training initiative known as ’Piece’, the evolvers had grown immensely.

They weren’t just stronger, they were more versatile, more strategic. Unlike the outside world, where evolution was born in death and desperation, there, they could refine their skills, understand their treasures, and even unlock better abilities without risking immediate death.

The result was clear, their collective strength now exceeded all their previous outings combined.

Boom. Boom. Boom.

One might assume the battlefield’s thunder was due to destructive melee clashes, but the source of the explosions was far more precise arrows.

Alexa, Tim, and Cathy—each commanding their own regiments—had honed a strategy rooted in marksmanship. Though Tim and Cathy had once been at odds, their current closeness as a ’secret’ couple, a secret well known by their troops, hadn’t dulled their combat prowess.

Each had trained their squads to specialize in long-range support—sniper rifles, bows, anything that could pierce and precision kill.

They weren’t backup, they were force multipliers.

As Cathy moved, her sharp eyes caught a massive shark—level 52—lunging toward a struggling evolver.

’Mind Eye,’ she activated. Her iris glowed crimson.

An arrow manifested in her hand and loosed it with a snap.

Twang.

The arrow shot forward like a beam of wrath, striking the shark dead in its weak spot—the eye.

BOOM.

The blast ruptured the shark’s ocular cavity in a gory display, but it didn’t fall. Screeching and flailing in agony, it thrashed wildly until two more arrows buried themselves in its side. Then, it collapsed.

Cathy exhaled, chest heaving. That had been her second ultimate skill use in under a minute, but it was worth it.

A message flickered before her eyes:

[YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 50...]

There was no time to celebrate. She turned her focus to a jellyfish creature gliding through the air, electrocuting any evolver in range.

On the other side of the battlefield, Tim’s fingers danced like a pianist.

"Rain of Fire," he muttered.

Arrows lit the sky in burning arcs. Where they landed, fire bloomed. His goal wasn’t just to kill, but to change the terrain. The sea creatures thrived in the scattered floods across the battlefield. Tim was reducing their advantage by burning the water and creating fiery barriers.

Elsewhere, a thick red mist rolled across a segment of the warzone. Confusion rippled through the ranks of the sea creatures.

The assassins had arrived.

Led by Trudy, they slithered through the chaos like silent death. Among them was Mia, unrecognizable in her red mage’s robe and armed with a slender staff.

Her transformation was stunning.

Surrounded by Trudy’s assassins—mages and killers alike—Mia had questioned her own identity. If she remained static, merely casting mist, someone would eventually surpass her.

So, she experimented.

With the training scheme from ’Piece’, she dared to blend roles—mage and assassin and the gamble paid off.

She gained a passive skill: Lingering Dread.

Its effect was insidious—any enemy within her mist would slowly lose stamina. Drained of strength, they’d become easy prey.

Mia added fire magic to her repertoire, using her staff to launch flames and condense mist into sharp fangs that struck from shadows.

No longer a static caster, she moved freely, danced between roles, and killed with terrifying precision.

She had found her cheat skill.

And then there was Trudy. Though not quite as gifted as Robin, she wielded poison like a maestro. Always alone, always surrounded by her lethal mist, she cut down enemies in silence.

Her allies could not approach her, her poison spared no one.

And yet, heads fell like rain wherever she went. With minimal casualties and ruthless efficiency, they cleared their sector.

The battlefield, though vast and brutal, now bent under the might of a well-prepared force. New powers, new strategies, new evolvers.

And this... was only the beginning.