966 Rising Hardships
When Fairies attacked discarding all logic and common sense, Abyssals were surprised to the point of disbelief.
But the Fairies didn't care about their feelings. They fought, just as they were instructed to do so.
Since they already breached the Abyss and conquered the Blood Province, they had two adjacent targets.
Spirit Province, famous for its mental attack legions and formations. In the not-so-distant past when the Abyssals were still a mighty civilization, this province gave birth to a Spirit Awakener—the Celestial Rank that Mind Awakeners grow into.
And then there was Light Province. It had an elite army of light abyssals. And it produced a Light Celestial Ranker a thousand years ago.
Now, these provinces only had their names.
Spirit Province's formidable psychic and telekinetic legions were ill-equipped. Good armor was the number priority for any mind awakener, especially psychics.
But with the poverty and decline of their empire, it became a luxury for Spirit province. This put the famous legions at a direct disadvantage.
Of course, Blood Province fighters also had a disadvantage. To complement their fierce fighting methods, they needed lots of healing potions. They couldn't afford enough and it led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of abyssals.
This was in stark contrast to the Fairies who were nicely geared up by the Zions.
Even under such circumstances, Fairies needed to use a precious death strand and even then, their losses were 70% of the abyssals.
It went to show just how formidable the abyssals were. Despite rising quickly under the Zion's grooming, Fairies were decades away from Abyssals.
The only reason they could invade and succeed was the crazy spending by Zions and the Fairies ignoring the massive losses that would've made any sane commander withdraw.
The Fairies didn't attack the Light Province. It had only a couple of light awakeners, but they were all powerful and would be hard to kill. Moreover, Light Awakeners could be a real pain in large battles.
The Spirit Province was their choice.
Like an unstoppable tsunami, the Fairies struck the boundary of the Spirit Province.
Tens of millions of Fairy soldiers marched on the yellow plains toward the silver fortress at the border.
But before they could even open an attack, their army slowed down and began moving like zombies. Their eyes stared into the sky blankly.
"Break! Break! Break it!"
Following the commander's shout, dozens of elemental swords rose into the sky and hit some inconspicuous locations near the fortress.
The hidden illusion formations came into view as the attacks broke them into pieces. But before the Fairies could sigh in relief, a huge wave of mind power, like a raging flood washed over the soldiers and pulled them into a collective illusion.
Like drug addicts, half of the Fairies widened their eyes and waved their hands. Their world split into brilliant colors and everything turned 'alive'.
The remaining half that couldn't be trapped in the illusion raised their weapons and attacked.
Invisible explosions rang in the air as shockwaves spread for miles. The invisible telekinetic attacks were effectively neutralized. But it's only the first wave.
"Wake up!"
"Idiots!"
"Get out of it!"
The illusioned Fairy soldiers paid no heed to the shouts of their comrades.
Worse, even the level 9s and Sovereigns stood in place as they fought against the illusions. From time to time, they had to punch out or dodge to deal with the telekinetic attacks that kept coming.
For the next three days, Fairies kept fighting but they couldn't advance an inch. Their ranged attacks couldn't penetrate the high-defense fortress. Nor could their space awakeners teleport inside that controlled space.
Despite trying their best, Fairies failed to make any breakthroughs and retreated.
The abyssals finally breathed a sigh of relief.
A week later, the Fairies attacked the Light Province. Thanks to the special formations and strong fortresses, the abyssals managed to block off the Fairies.
It's unlike the Spirit Province where the Fairies couldn't even advance. Abyssals and Fairies fought here. But due to the arrangements made in advance, Abyssals always had the upper hand.
Unwillingly, Fairies withdrew again.
Fairy Emperor who was fighting Haedon also retreated, signaling that the Fairies were seriously taking a step back.
"Phew~" Abyss Emperor breathed out and felt the burden on his shoulders lighten.
Thankfully, they succeeded in defense. If not…
Shaking his head, Haedon hurried to post-war work. He checked the reports, readjusted the forces, and allocated appropriate resources.
But there came a problem.
"Y-Your majesty, there aren't enough funds to repair the damaged formations and fortresses." The finance minister bowed and said in a quivering voice.
"Use the royal family's vault," Haedon replied without thinking.
"I…" The finance minister opened his mouth but immediately bowed his head with a pale face.
"What is it?"
Taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders as if he was preparing for death, the finance minister stared at the ground. "There are only heirlooms left in the vault. E-Everything else was already used up."
Haedon paused and blinked. Then he blinked again as if he was still processing that news.
"Oh," A dull sound leaked out of his mouth, causing the finance minister to shudder. He had never seen the Emperor like that. Now, he sounded like…sounded like…
"Y-Your majesty, we…can request a loan from the Duchy."
"Duchy?" A dry voice rang in the air. "They'll suck our blood. Those bastards! We'll be hard-pressed to pay the interest, forget the principal."
The finance minister froze and remained silent.
Only the sound of his heart thrashing against his chest sounded in the room.
"Go…go sell the heirlooms." Haedon closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.
"As you wish."
A few minutes after the minister left, Haedon opened his eyes and blankly stared at the sky.
How long had it been?
The prosperous abyss empire which was once the richest in not just the duchy but the entire kingdom had to now sell the royal family heirlooms to sustain itself.
"No, this is war. War burns money. It's normal. It's okay. It's—" Haedon slammed the desk and it split into two.
The defense formations stopped the shockwaves from the room in the palace and only a few rooms nearby sensed the disturbance.
And out of those few, there were two important rooms.
A little girl ran into the room, skipping the guards that tried to block her, and hugged Haedon. She was still young and was only able to reach his stomach.
Looking up at him with worried eyes, she asked. "What happened? Are you fine?"
"I…" Haedon took a deep breath and turned his gaze away from his daughter. His eyes must have looked scary and he didn't want his daughter to see that side of him.
He just…
"We survived and pushed them back. That's all that matters." The Empress walked into the room with a pale face and a limp arm. But she carried a bright smile on her face.
"Why aren't you resting…" Haedon glared.
"I was. Until I felt your restlessness." The Empress replied with a helpless smile.
"…Sor—."
"Don't." She placed her finger on his lips and stopped him from finishing the world. "The Emperor shouldn't apologize even if he's in the wrong. You always do what you thought is right. And even if you really do something wrong, it's because you can't help yourself."
Haedon felt his restless heart calm down as he stared at his loving wife and cute daughter.
Maybe…it's not really that terrible. Sure, he's selling the heirlooms now and it's the most shameful thing for any royal family. But at least, his race could continue to survive. Once they rise up again, they could purchase back the heirlooms.
Haedon's thoughts finally grew positive and he lifted his daughter up.
"Eh, don't! I'm grown up now! I'm not a kid anymore!" She waved her arms around and protested.
Haedon laughed out loud and pinched her cheeks. "You're always a little girl for me. Always."
"I don't want to be little. I want to grow up and…and fight like everyone else."
Her words caused Haedon's expression to freeze before he shook his head with a gentle smile. "That won't happen."
"W-Why?! I can fight! I'm the best student in the academy!"
"By the time you graduate, this will all be over." Haedon kissed her forehead and whispered. "You will live in peace."
