NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2: A New World
The empire had prospered for a thousand years, but behind its glorious facade, its essence had transformed into a corrupt hell on earth. Countless beasts wearing human masks acted recklessly, as if justice had vanished.
The rise and fall of dynasties were the truths of the world, and the thousand-year-old empire was about to usher in a day of change, but not yet.
Though the empire was corrupt, it was still supported by powerful forces.
Facing war-torn borders everywhere, the Empire dispatched one of its greatest armies—General Esdeath.
The battlefield between the northern foreign tribes was nearly over. Confronted with Esdeath's overwhelming power, they were helpless to resist. The might of the Imperial Arms (Teigu), Demon God Manifestation: Demon's Extract, was displayed perfectly in her hands.
And now, an uninvited guest had entered the battlefield that was about to conclude.
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Emiya Shirou opened his eyes, shook his dizzy head, and looked around.
The smell of blood and the clashing of swords.
This was a battlefield!
Shirou had been active on battlefields many times before, immediately confirming the location.
However, the next second, he raised his hand and stared at his body.
"Is this flesh?"
The body of a Heroic Spirit had been transformed into a physical body.
Moreover, the magic power within his body was vastly different from before.
If his previous magic power was like a flowing stream, now it was like a raging river, seemingly endless.
A flash of surprise appeared in Shirou's eyes.
"Magic circuits are gone. What happened?"
The 27 magic circuits in his body, which were like precision circuit boards, had completely vanished, replaced by a surging orb of magic power.
"What's going on? I have a physical body, but my magic circuits are gone. Yet, my Magecraft seems unaffected."
He waved his hand and dispersed a weapon he had just projected.
"Forget it, let's talk about it later. The problem now is figuring out what kind of world I've entered."
Suppressing all the thoughts in his mind, Shirou once again observed his surroundings.
Currently, he was on a not-too-high cliff, and his sensitive senses told him that there was a battlefield below.
After walking a few steps forward and standing at the edge of the cliff, Shirou looked down.
His vision, far superior to that of an ordinary person, allowed him to clearly see every detail below.
The war was almost over, and the outcome had been decided. The army in standard armor had defeated the other side's forces, who wore costumes with strong ethnic characteristics, and was now cleaning up the battlefield.
The current situation could no longer be described as a war but rather as a one-sided massacre. Countless soldiers stormed civilian homes, slaughtering villagers and soldiers, raping and humiliating women, while the other side's soldiers could only watch helplessly or await their own fate.
Numa Seika witnessed all of this with red eyes. His sharp nails dug into his palms, and drops of blood flowed out, leaving a series of bright red marks on the white snow. Yet, he was powerless. After all, he was now a prisoner and could do nothing to change the situation.
As the prince of the northern ethnic group, he was said to have never been defeated in battle, and he possessed impressive situational strategies. He was highly trusted by his people. He used his own fortress city as a base to resist the empire's invasion. His plan was very feasible, but he overlooked one thing.
Although the empire was in decline, the powerful military force brought by the 48 unique Imperial Arms developed by the empire's founder had become the cornerstone supporting this decadent empire. The isolated northern tribes and southern nations had recklessly raised the banner of rebellion. Even with Numa Seika's command and step-by-step strategy, it was still difficult to balance the overwhelming personal strength of Esdeath and other Imperial Arms users. Thus, this war was doomed to fail from the start, but not without fault.
Seika turned and looked in one direction with a gaze full of hatred. There stood his enemy, the leader of the Imperial Army in this war, and the strongest person in the Empire—Esdeath.
As if sensing Seika's hateful gaze, Esdeath glanced back but quickly averted her eyes, as if Seika were just an inconspicuous stone by the roadside.
In fact, this was true. As the daughter of the chief of the Partas tribe, a race specialized in hunting dangerous species, the concept of survival of the fittest had been deeply ingrained in her since childhood. If she had been interested in the foreign prince famous on the northern border of the empire before the expedition, then after she swiftly concluded the war, she lost interest in this prince. To her, the defeated were merely the weak, and the weak could only allow themselves to be trampled by the strong and submit obediently.
However, for her, this prince of a foreign race had another function—to provide her with amusement.
As the strongest person in the empire, Esdeath was interested in interrogating people besides fighting powerful enemies. But for her, interrogating people to extract unknown information was secondary. What mattered most was that she enjoyed interrogating people. A strong and merciless enemy could crush someone's mind, turning them into a helpless dog.
In other words, she was a person with a sadistic queen's personality.
"This is how it looks. As expected, the title of Brave of the North is still quite impressive. It's very interesting to make such an enemy surrender."
As she was thinking about how to deal with her prey, Esdeath suddenly turned her head and looked into the distance. In that direction, a man in a red coat stood calmly on the cliff, observing the entire battlefield. Suddenly, the man seemed to notice something and looked toward Esdeath.
Esdeath was startled when her icy blue pupils met the gaze of a hawk.
"Interesting, is that someone from another ethnic group?"
Esdeath slightly raised her lips. She thought this war would no longer bring her any amusement, but she didn't expect to encounter a man who piqued her interest.
"Continue cleaning up the battlefield. I'll go over there and take a look."
"Yes!"
Esdeath turned, mounted the warhorse brought by her subordinate, pulled the reins, and galloped toward the place where the man in the red coat stood. Whether the other party was from a foreign tribe was irrelevant in her mind. She was only pursuing her own amusement. Besides, the appearance of the other party on this battlefield was reason enough for her to thoroughly investigate him. Esdeath was very clear about whether the other party could make her feel happy.
Because, when their eyes met, she understood.
The other party had similar experiences to her.
Also tough in battle.
Also felt pain.
Also dominated the battlefield.
How could such a person not pique her interest?