Masteria Online: Shattering the Dark God's Grand Scheme-Chapter 65 - Consideration

On the day of the operation, the Resistance began their part of the plan, revealing themselves, executing Wing leaders and occupying buildings. When it came time for Herene to fulfill their part of the promise, they never came. The Aria Knights had been forced to defend their home, leaving the Resistance to fight alone.

This occurred because on the day of the attack, Herene itself suffered a large-scale assault. They were barely able to defend themselves, much less deliver the promised reinforcements.

The operation failed catastrophically.

The Resistance lost many good people.

Fighters, mages, civilians who’d volunteered to help.

The Wings consolidated their control, making future liberation efforts even harder. It was a tragedy, a setback that cost years of progress.

To an extent, Renan understood their frustration. However, instead of recognizing they’d been outmaneuvered, that there must have been an information leak, the Resistance had instead blamed Herene.

They called them traitors and accused them of deliberately abandoning their allies. They had cut off all communication in a rage that had never cooled.

Every attempt by the Aria Knights to reestablish contact had been rebuffed. Envoys were turned away at best, attacked at worst.

The Resistance had gone so far as to indoctrinate their children to hate Herene and the Knights. There were even songs about Empress Aria’s betrayal, stories painting the Knights as cowards who’d left brave fighters to die. The Resistance was paranoid, unreasonable, and absolutely convinced of their own righteousness.

Grand Tactician Azir had probably lost years of his life dealing with their stubbornness. Renan knew the man had kept giving his best attempts to communicate with them.

He had sent countless careful letters explaining the attack on Herene, offers to share intelligence, and proposals for renewed cooperation. All were rejected, most unopened.

All that being said, Entei would be perfect for Renan’s needs.

There were areas where the level range was right for grinding. It would be very easy to get up to level forty or so there. Just as importantly, there were numerous Wings operations to disrupt. There were supply lines, recruitment centers, and magical research facilities. The city itself offered opportunities for information gathering and resource acquisition. And if he was very careful, very lucky, he might be able to start changing the Resistance’s stance.

He just had to avoid being identified as connected to Herene. That meant he couldn’t be caught receiving Knight support, which was completely counterintuitive to his current situation.

Wait a minute...

In the original timeline, Beryllium’s ’perfect android’, Equinor, had eventually defected to the Resistance.

So had one of the Dark One’s former commanders. The demon known as Darius, disillusioned with his master’s methods.

If I can intercept them and convince them to join Herene instead...

No.

Renan shook his head.

I’m getting ahead of myself. There’s too many variables, too many ways for that to go wrong. It’s best to focus on something else.

The Resistance was flawed, but they weren’t evil. Just misguided and stubborn. They truly believed they were the only ones standing against darkness, that everyone else had failed or betrayed them. In the right circumstances, with the right approach, maybe that could change.

That said, there were so many variables. The Resistance’s paranoia meant they investigated every new arrival thoroughly. If they discovered his connection to Herene, to the Knights...

His mind drifted to another option. The Ancient Heroes. There were six legendary figures who’d stood against the Dark One in ages past. They are gone now.

Supposedly. Allegedly. Or so everyone thinks.

The perfect idea popped into his mind. He smiled to himself.

Perhaps, there was a way to solve the Resistance issue after all.

With the decision made, Renan was able to go to sleep with a smile. He knew what he would do now.

...

The next day, Renan headed for his game pod.

It was time to return to Masteria.

He materialized in his palace chambers, the luxurious surroundings feeling rather surreal.

It was meaningless in the grand scheme of things, but it made him feel out of place. Everything was crafted with such care, precision, and skill. This simple guest room in the palace would easily cost over a million dollars in real life.

It was true that in his past life, he had achieved such power that under normal circumstances, such riches would have been normal for him. However, by that point, the situation had devolved to such a degree that no one had any care for luxuries.

He still had no care for them.

He shook his head. No time for such thoughts.

First things first. He had to prepare for the day ahead. He made sure his equipment was on properly, he looked decent, then he set out to find Grand Tactician Azir.

The palace halls were busy as always. Herene wasn’t just a military power, but the de facto capital of civilized Masteria.

More of the guards recognized him now, confirmed by how sometimes a stare of two was thrown his way. His reputation was growing.

He followed along the path to Azir’s office. While he had no memory of where it was, it wasn’t important. What palace wouldn’t have proper directions?

No one could possibly expect everyone to memorize the palace layout. As he arrived at Azir’s office, the guard outside verified he carried the communication crystal and waved him through with professional courtesy.

When Lumi entered, Azir looked up from a massive tactical map. The map showed the known world in exquisite detail. There were cities marked with colored pins, trade routes traced in silver thread, and areas of Wings influence shaded in ominous red. There were even miniature figures representing military units, their positions updated by intelligence reports.

"Good morning." Azir greeted, his tone neutral as always. "A bit longer than a night’s rest. That’s an interesting timeframe to be gone for. I had wondered how long you’d take to adjust to your new circumstances."

Lumi shook his head. "There’s work to be done, and discomfort is just another obstacle to overcome."

Azir let out a small smile. "Indeed."