The Last King of Darkness

tion may bring us more unexpected things. ”

Cross was a huge fat man.
When he was angry, his body swelled up like a balloon:

”A pile of junk toys, some useless materials, and you want our soldiers to die for it? ”

The legion commander of the expedition army, Lohart, was a standard muscular man with scars all over his face.
One eye was blind, leaving only a big black hole.

He said coldly: ”When it comes to sacrifice, no one can speak in front of the expedition army.
Do you think it ’s just an ordinary relic? A pile of historical dust? ”He turned around and shouted with a louder voice, ”No! The Star City has the highest quality Sunstone mines, perfect Soul Crystal mines, and the highest quality True Silver mines.
Are those cold materials? No, they are the fuel of the Holy Fire, the life and strength of warriors, and the warm light! ”

Logistics manager Harvey added, ”We urgently need Sunstone mines, and the Holy Fire fuel must use Sunstone.
Our inventory is running low. ”

This statement played a decisive role.

Cros ’s tone calmed down slightly, ”Then shrink the defense line, retreat to the position twelve years ago, and abandon Mushroom City, Mountain City, and Beast City. ”

This suggestion was agreed upon by most governors and elders.

However, some guardians and governors of these three cities expressed their opposition.

”Mushroom City and Beast City produce one-third of our food, as well as many material resources.
Mountain City is our largest iron-copper mining base.
If we abandon it, many people ’s lives will be in trouble, and there won ’t be enough food! ”

Talynas, one of the three chief governors, said impatiently, ”What ’s the point of talking so much? The commoners who failed to become Flamekeepers are worthless.
Let them die. ”

The atmosphere in the hall cooled down a bit, and many people cast disgusted looks at him, but Talynas didn ’t care.
He said loudly, ”I have always believed that we must do whatever it takes to survive.
The Black Mist will not stop corroding because of our mercy, and the monsters will not show us any mercy because of our kindness.
We must be more severe and ruthless than them to truly defeat this world and win a place to survive. ”

Manolobana, one of the four High Judges with an iron mask, also stood up and said, ”I ’ll speak fairly.
Lord Talynas ’s words are not pleasant, but they make sense.
Kindness and mercy cannot defeat the enemy.
A harsh world should have harsh survival rules.
The commoners are pitiful, but people without value should not waste resources.
The protection we provide has a price. ”

”Nonsense! ”

Golden-haired Mibor almost jumped up.

”No warrior will fight with such beliefs! If home is no longer home, why should they sacrifice their lives? ”

Manolobana, wearing an iron mask, sneered, ”So, you can drown in your kindness! ”

”If the end of this path is death, then I would rather die! ”

”Heh, if you want to die, go ahead and die.
Don ’t drag everyone down with you. ”

As before, the hall fell into endless arguments.Only the seven sons of fire and the four knight commanders sat still, not joining the quarrel.
Their status was beyond dispute, and they only followed the king ’s orders, without expressing their opinions.

The king stroked his chin and looked at the map of Thalorian Kingdom in front of him, lost in thought.

Thalorian Kingdom was actually just a customary name, and its main component was Thalorian Royal City.

When the human hero Thalorian placed the Holy Fire in this city built by giants, the City of Thalorian, the City of the Fire King, was established.

It is located halfway up the Dead Ash Mountains.
Initially, only the upper city area existed, and the lower city area was expanded in countless years to come.

As humans prospered, Thalorian began to lack food and supplies.
They had to leave the protection of the high walls and the Holy Fire and venture out to develop new cities and strongholds.

This was also the source of many towns in Thalorian.

To protect their safety, people had to build more castles and fortresses, forming a line of defense that eventually became today ’s defensive circle.

Over the long years, the human territory has undergone many changes, but no matter what, humans have never left the Red Soil Plain.

This is because the terrain of the Red Soil Plain is excellent.
Its north and east are blocked by the Dead Ash Mountains.
By setting up defenses on the west and south, they can resist the roaming monsters in the Black Mist and have a relatively safe environment.

Then purify the land, clean the water sources, and sow the seeds of the Holy White Tree.
Soon, they had output.

By setting up defense zones, establishing patrol teams, forming combat groups and battle clusters, and eliminating threats that slipped through the defensive network, they could basically ensure the production and transportation of supplies.

This land of less than six hundred miles in radius is the entirety of Thalorian Kingdom.

If they want to expand further outward, with the turning of the eastern mountains, they would go from defending two sides to defending three sides, and the pressure of defense would sharply increase.
The contact with the Black Mist would expand, and it might even alarm the indescribable existence deep in the Black Mist, increasing the danger exponentially.

However, if they do not expand, the existing resources are not enough to meet people ’s needs.

Since his ascension to the throne, Thalorian has expanded to the limit, controlling an area larger than the past hundred years.

But it still cannot satisfy the skyrocketing population.

The most critical issue is that in order to ensure the survival of the outer city area, the Holy Fire has been running at the highest intensity, requiring three times more fuel than in a stable state.

This naturally sparked disputes and dissatisfaction.
Within the Royal City, there were roughly two factions, one in favor of expansion and the other in favor of contraction.There are also many subtle differences between the two factions, such as Talynas and Manolobana advocating for the iron faction that creates a harsh environment, and there are also moderate factions like Mibole.

Although there are many cracks, they can all be compensated as long as victory is achieved.

The king stood up, intending to end their argument.

He said, ”I remember when I was a child, there was a shortage of supplies, and there was very little food, especially the white and green sugar cubes that children love to eat. ”

The hall quieted down, and everyone listened quietly to the king ’s speech.

The king smiled a little, as if reminiscing, and seemed to like the atmosphere without argument.

”But every child only had one piece, and parents often liked to put their hands behind their backs and ask us if we wanted the left or right one. ”

The white-robed Archbishop Horus shouted, ”I understand! The king means that we have to make a choice, either shrink the defense circle or give up the Star City. ”

Cross shouted, ”Shrink the defense circle! ”

Lohart said, ”Give up the Star City. ”

Manolobana said, ”To be honest, let ’s give up both… ”

”No. ”

The king smiled.

”My point is that only children make choices, and adults should all do it. ”

As soon as he finished speaking, the hall fell silent.

Suddenly, Lohart shouted, ”King! We don ’t have enough personnel! ”

The city defense army corps commander Cross also shouted, ”Our defense area is too large! Once the Dark Tide comes, we will suffer heavy losses! ”

The king said lightly, ”The defense force of the royal city can support going out and can share a lot of pressure. ”

Horus refused decisively, ”Then what about the royal city? ”

The king smiled, ”I am in the royal city, don ’t you trust me? ”

Everyone looked at each other, and a governor stuttered, ”But, Your Majesty, you can guard the Holy Fire, but you can ’t patrol the entire royal city.
Roaming monsters will greatly disrupt our order. ”

The king smiled slightly, ”Did you forget that we have a strong reserve force? ”

Several corps commanders pricked up their ears in an instant, ”What? ”

”Kimberly ’s students. ”

The king smiled and revealed the answer.

”Our reserve combat personnel. ”