Will of a Prince

Jacob’s heart dropped. Iron Kingdom was very close to the ocean, and that was somewhere they desperately needed to go. After discovering the blood of Zalo was hiding underneath their kingdom, that was something he did not want the Epigones to get a hold of, especially if reviving Zalo was their one true goal.

"But... what does this mean? Are you saying we need to attack?"

"I’m simply saying it would be wise. If the Monlo’s are truly as weak as we think, we need to make our final assault as soon as possible."

Maria sat back in her chair and sipped her tea.

"You said, ’we’. Does that include yourself?"

Enny slowly put down her cup in response to Maria’s question.

"That’s the other thing I want to talk to you about. I think I want to fight with you all."

Maria’s eyes widened.

"But... you would be fighting your home you came from, no?"

"I cannot bring myself to call that place home. I don’t really want to kill anyone, but Lidia visited me the other day and told me what the Epigones were planning. If winning means saving the human race, how can I sit back quietly and do nothing about it?"

Enny sighed.

"It’s just... when you have powers like us and there’s evil in the world that you can prevent, letting it happen is no better than helping the evil itself. That’s what I think at least."

Jacob poured himself an extra cup of tea.

"That’s very admirable of you. I’m sure we can use all the help we can get in this final assault."

Maria raised a hand.

"That’s the thing though, isn’t this kind of a big deal? Shouldn’t we meet with everyone else first?"

Enny nodded her head.

"I’m sorry, but I would prefer if you two kept my involvement a secret until the last possible moment. Well, at least as long as that man Lee is in leagues with you all."

Jacob had not realized he didn’t process hearing that Lee attacked someone, and Maria’s sister no less. Hearing him do such a behavior was extremely abnormal.

"Let me talk to mom about it and we’ll see if we can get him to stay behind. Would that make you feel safer?"

Enny nodded.

"Much safer. But isn’t his power going to be necessary in the upcoming battle?"

"Maybe if he pairs with Steel or Lucy, but they already seemed to have found really strong partners to level their skills."

"I see. Then let’s do that if we can, please."

Jacob drank his cup greedily and slammed his empty cup on the table with a smile.

"Man, this is great tasting tea! Welp, let’s all get going!"

Enny and Maria hesitated hearing Jacob’s proclamation.

"Y-You mean, now?!"

"Of course I do! Do we really have much time to waste? If what you said is true, we need to act as soon as we possibly can. A chance like this falling at our feet is incredible luck. We would be fools to simply ignore it!"

Maria and Enny scrambled to their feet. Enny began pacing around her house trying to find stuff for her to bring. Jacob coughed into his fist to get her attention.

"Pack light. The lighter we pack, the faster we can travel."

Enny nodded her head and simply ran upstairs to change her clothes. She came back down the stairs a few moments later in an azure metal suit. The plates looked flexible but sturdy beyond belief. Jacob wondered if, whatever this metal was, was stronger than Lucy’s black iron. However, something told him it was not. It is very hard to get stronger than Zalo-reinforced metal, after all.

They all began running toward the palace as fast as they could. The final battle for humanity was on the horizon, and they could not afford to lose.

"I wish we were able to take out more Epigone camps before this battle. I hope this doesn’t make our lives harder in the long run."

Jacob thought to himself for a few moments.

’I wonder if I took out any of those camps in my transformation.’

Upon reaching the palace, Lidia was already running out the doors with a sunken expression on her face. She saw Jacob and the others and immediately stopped to talk.

"My kids, we need you inside this instant. I was just coming out to find you."

Maria’s heart dropped hearing Lidia’s rushed tone.

"Is everything okay?"

Lidia clenched her teeth.

"Just hurry inside. Lee is still out, but I’ll explain why when you all come in. We’ll need your help too, Enny. Is that okay?"

Enny nodded her head.

"Actually, I want to help you all fight. I think my information will give you all some good intel to use against the Monlo Empire. There’s also something urgent I need to discuss with everyone else. I have already shared the news to Maria and Jacob."

"Then what are we standing out here for?! Let’s go!"

They all rushed inside and barged into a large room with a long royal table. Emperor Pelo was sitting at the head with his arms crossed while every other person in their group, Avala, and Orvo were already sat waiting for them.

Jacob stayed standing for a moment seeing the scared expressions on everyone’s faces. As he sat down, he shouted out to the whole group.

"What’s wrong? Did something happen?"

Slimo was the first one to speak.

"While you were out, we discovered these pillars brimming with corruption. The feeling of dread emanating from them was so strong, no one could withstand it enough to get close to see what they were. However, Lee, Orvo, and Luna had just discovered on a recent scouting expedition that the pillars have completely disappeared without a trace, along with the Epigone outpost that was surrounding them."

Jacob scratched his head.

"I’m a little confused. How is that urgent news?"

"It has to do with how powerful the pillars are. We are worried that they can someone make them a weapon of some sort and we will all be hopeless to stop its destructive power. We need to discuss how to track the pillars before it’s too late. Lee volunteered to stay out and search for any clue that might help Harold run after them."

Slimo slammed his fist into the table.

"Damn it... why did it have to be right when we were finally ready to siege it and get a closer look?!"

Maria raised her hand and began to speak.

"Actually, I think our news may be more pressing than that."

Everyone went silent and studied Maria intently.

"We got intel of the situation inside of Monlo Empire. It is possible that they are currently on the brink of defeat due to some sort of unknown threat close to them. Apparently, there was a powerful monster by the ocean that has taken out a large portion of their military. They are in their weakest state right now."

The emporer himself stood up and threw his hands on the table.

"T-Then... that must mean-!"

"That’s right. We can win."

Everyone began to mumble amongst each other.

"However, we need to act fast. There’s no telling when they will be able to recover from this fault. We have been blessed with this sudden advantage, and we need to act quickly to secure something beneficial from it."

The Emperor’s sudden excitement dulled slightly.

"Where did you hear this information from?"

Maria gestured towards Enny.

"Enny here is a child of war. She had a communication chip planted inside of her that she removed. However, it allowed her to listen into military conversations, with some level of restriction of course."

Enny pulled Maria back and stood up. She bowed her head towards Pelo.

"My true status and name was Commander Enlil of the 3rd Frontier. I left the Monlo Empire after a bitter defeat by the hands of your soldiers. I never even wanted to fight the war against your people, but being blessed with a Zalo, I had little choice. It was either fight or die. I came to Paria to escape war. However, it seems it cruelly likes to find its way back to me. Therefore, I’ve decided to aid the once enemies who I now call family."

She protruded the broken shards of the charm behind her.

"This was the communication device. Others can only hear my conversations when I choose, so I never gave up any Paria information to them. In fact, I abused this device to steal as much information form them as possible before the charms network was cut."

She lifted up her axure armor slightly, revealing a nasty scar across her stomach.

"This is where I removed it."

Everyone stayed silent for a moment, including the emperor. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"So, we are trusting the word of a former Monlo Commander?"

Even hearing the truthful claim, Enny stood forward confidently, her expression determined and serious. Pelo sighed.

"I hope you understand that if this information is in any sort of way incorrect or a trap, you will deal with the consequences first-hand. You do understand that, correct?"

Enny nodded her head.

"I will be the first to take my own life if you feel I have let you down. Please allow me to aid you all."

Pelo hesitated but reluctantly agreed.

"Very well. I will have Lidia and Maria keep an eye on you in case you try anything funny."

Pelo raised his hand across the table.

"Everyone, gather in Harolds cart! Orvo, before you join them, inform every able-bodied solider of this blitz! This is humanity’s very existence on the line! Losing is not an option!"

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