The Herb King

After the feast, General Gilbert asked while looking at Aethelwolf. "Do you want to see the prisoners from the Ford Empire?" He knew that the Ford Empire was an enemy of the Leone Empire so he wanted to offer the prisoners as a gift to their ally.

Aethelwolf narrowed his eyes when he heard this, but he shook his head. "There's no need for that. I'll let my subordinates handle the prisoners." If it weren't for him becoming a Level 5 Esper and entering the Heavenly Might Rankings, he believed that the Zion Empire wouldn't be so friendly to them now. Perhaps they might have even attacked them to gain possession of the Two Lion Sword.

"Alright. We'll stay here for the time being and observe Lion City. I hope you don't mind, Sir Aethelwolf." General Gilbert wanted to learn more about the Leone Empire before going back home.

Hearing this, Aethelwolf nodded his head and said. "Not at all. You are welcome to stay here any time, Sir Gilbert. I'll have my people arrange your accommodations. For now, please stay in the estate for the time being and take a rest."

"Thanks for having us." The old general and the other envoys were taken by the servants to their temporary rooms.

Meanwhile, Aethelwolf went back to his study and summoned Albert and Ramiel.

At this moment, the intelligence force under Aethelwolf's command was already numbering in ten thousand and he has about seventy thousand soldiers including the new recruits!

Albert and Ramiel sat calmly in front of Aethelwolf. The former was already a late stage Level 4 Esper, while Ramiel was a mid stage Level 4 Esper. Both men's power increased substantially after consuming the pills they got from Aethelwolf.

"The Grand General of the Ford Empire is now in our prison. Without his presence, the army of the Ford Empire will be in chaos. It's a good chance to get rid of the Ford Empire. They attacked us before so they should be ready for our retaliation!" Aethelwolf muttered coldly.

Hearing this, the faces of Albert and Ramiel turned serious.

"I want you guys to cooperate with the Imperial Family in dealing with the Ford Empire. The members of the Ford Imperial Family must be killed! If they surrender, capture them and take them back here!" Aethelwolf said. The new soldiers they recruited had already turned into true warriors, but they were yet to experience a large-scale war. It was time to test their skills!

"Yes, King Aethelwolf!" Ramiel and Albert acknowledged his command. Everything they had now was given to them by this man and the only thing they could do to repay him was to serve him loyally.

"You two may leave and start making preparations right away. I give you the authority to mobilize our army. You can also bring our advanced weapons." Aethelwolf dismissed them.

Recently, he gave a blueprint to their Blacksmiths to create an advanced weapon that was similar to the artillery in his old world. It was a very destructive weapon on the battlefield and if it is used well, it would be a deadly weapon that would be comparable to Divine-Rated artifacts!

In fact, Aethelwolf could also give the blueprints for making battle tanks and rifles, but those weapons needed a lot of time to be created because of the lack of technology in this world so he prioritized the production of artillery.

One week later, Aethelwolf's armed force and the Leone Empire's army were mobilized in the direction of the Ford Empire.

Many noble households were eager to participate in the battle since they knew that victory was already guaranteed because of the presence of Aethelwolf's soldiers. When they saw the huge army of Espers, they were shocked. The army in Aethelwolf's hands was already stronger than the army of the empire!

The Ford Empire was in a state of anxiety after their scouts reported that an army of three hundred thousand soldiers was marching toward them. Their Grand General had gone missing and their soldiers were restless without him. Lexter Ford was the strongest expert in the empire. Without him, they were like a headless tigers.

Emperor Ludwig Ford was forced to command the army in person to restore the morale of their troops. He was also a peak stage Level 4 Esper, but he was already old and he wasn't as strong as he was in his younger years.

Even with the emperor's presence, the soldiers were still nervous because of a shocking rumor.

A Level 5 Esper emerged in the Leone Empire!

This rumor was intentionally spread by the spies that Albert sent to the Ford Empire.

Soon, the two armies met on the battlefield. The morale of the Leone Empire's army was sky high and they rushed towards the enemy soldiers ferociously!

The fearsome generals of the Leone Empire led their troops to carve a path of blood, decimating the formation of the Ford Empire's army.

It was a one-sided massacre and no one could stop the fearless warriors of the Leone Empire. The Ford Empire was forced to send their strongest troops, but they were only murdered by the battalion led by Einar.

Looking at the massacre, Emperor Ludwig's heart turned cold. He never would have thought that the Leone Empire whom he treated lightly before could actually summon a fearsome army.

He turned his gaze at the shivering soldiers beside him and then toward the sky. "It looks like I'm destined to die today." He muttered in a calm voice.

Emperor Ludwig gripped the reins of his mount tightly. He took a deep breath and pulled out his sword as he bellowed. "Soldiers of my Ford Empire, show these fools your valiance! Behind us are our families and friends! If we die here today, the people we left behind will be in danger! Charge with me and kill the enemies!"

Emperor Ludwig's earth-shaking roar echoed in all directions, igniting the morale of his soldiers.

"Follow His Majesty! Charge! Kill the enemies!"

The Ford Empire's army erupted with power and they fearlessly fought with the soldiers of the Leone Empire.

The sounds of weapons clashing and the valiant cries of men echoed on the battlefield. From time to time, many brave soldiers would fall, but they were soon replaced by more soldiers.

When Emperor Ludwig joined the battle, the pressure on the frontline soldiers of the Ford Empire was reduced.

The battle entered a short period of stalemate, but it was soon destroyed when Ramiel and Prince Renz entered the fray.

Both men led their troops to mercilessly kill their enemies!

The tired Emperor Ludwig immediately led his remaining elite warriors to stop the two experts when he saw the dire situation. However, he had already expended a lot of world essence and he didn't last a few moves against Ramiel.

Ramiel chopped off Emperor Ludwig's head and raised it into the sky as he roared. "Your emperor is dead! Surrender or you will be killed!"

"Surrender or you will be killed!"

The soldiers of the Ford Empire stared at the decapitated head of their emperor in disbelief.

"His Majesty is dead!"

"Avenge His Majesty!" A few loyal supporters of the Ford Imperial Family bravely charge toward Ramiel only to be decimated by the troops under him.

With the death of their leader, many soldiers of the Ford Empire threw down their weapons and surrendered. A few chose to die along with the emperor.

The battle concluded after half a day of intense fighting.

Ramiel commanded his soldiers to tie up the enemies who surrendered, while Prince Renz led his troops to capture the Ford Empire's capital city.

It only took them a day to force the Ford Empire to surrender. The members of the Ford Imperial Family were killed and those who surrendered were taken by Ramiel's soldiers.

"Victory! Ahhh!"

The soldiers of the Leone Empire roared mightily, expressing their joy over their victory. They had killed the enemy emperor and even captured the empire! They were bound to receive a lot of benefits following this victory.

***

Aethelwolf received a report about the victory of their army. He had already expected this so he looked extremely calm.

Emperor Ragnar also received the news and he immediately summoned his trusted aides to deal with the aftermath of the battle.

Now that the Ford Empire was leaderless, Emperor Ragnar had to think of a way to stabilize the situation since the Ford Empire would become their vassal empire. After absorbing the Ford Empire, the Leone Empire's might would increase, but they had to suppress the anxious civilians first.

Emperor Ragnar didn't want to disturb Aethelwolf for this matter since their victory was largely attributed to the Lassiter Household's army. "With Aethelwolf's presence in our Leone Empire, we have a high chance of becoming a huge empire!" The emperor laughed joyfully.

Emperor Ragnar scanned his subordinates and said. "I'll personally go to the Ford Empire to appease the citizens. Immediately arrange for a flying carriage for me!"