Solomon narrowed his eyes as the pressure he gave off skyrocketed. There was a solemn expression on his face as he stood up from his seat and approached Soothing Smoke.
At that moment, Soothing Smoke felt a cold chill run down his spine.
"It's easy to forget due to the way he presents himself, but… I can understand why this man is marked as one of the three individuals most likely to attain the rank of Warlord in the future." Soothing Smoke thought to themselves.
For a split second, Soothing Smoke lost every ounce of strength in their body, and their first instinct was to run. But, at the last second, the pressure subsided. However, Soothing Smoke was firmly reminded that the man before them was not like other Generals in the War Brigade.
"Do you realize the risk of carelessly making such heavy accusations against a member of one of the top noble families in an allied kingdom? Not just any ally, mind you, but one that shares a strong bond with our Amaharpe kingdom." Solomon stated.
If word got out that a member of Proximus' Jestal family betrayed the alliance, whether it was true or false, it would plant a seed of distrust deep into the hearts of everyone. After that, it may not be in a day or even a week, but eventually, a spark would ignite the flames. At that point, this war would be entirely within Tempest's grasp.
In truth, Solomon knew that Soothing Smoke would not have approached him unless they had some form of concrete evidence; however, he could not take any chances after the previous mishaps made by the War Intelligence Group.
"I understand the weight of my words well, General. Dolos Jestal—I had a few of my men keeping a close eye on him as a precautionary measure, but none of them have checked in." Soothing Smoke said.
"Your men are late? That hardly counts as grounds for betrayal." Solomon responded.
"My men are well trained never to be late, General. However, it is as you say, this alone is not enough, though perhaps this is." Soothing Smoke answered as he reached for a small pouch attached to his lower back.
Solomon kept close track of every movement Soothing Smoke made as he did so.
The next moment, Soothing Smoke removed a black chain approximately thirty centimeters in length with exactly ten miniature skulls latched onto the chain links. An aura of death lingered around the skulls. Nine of the skulls were purple, and the tenth one located at the top was golden.
"The Ten-Headed Demon Nether Idol..!" Solomon would recognize that chain anywhere. It represented one's loyalty to the Monarch of the Netherworld!
But, this Nether Idol was unlike the others of its kind. A Ten-Headed Demon Nether Idol symbolized a high standing among those who worshiped the Monarch of the Netherworld; however, only one organization in the Mortal Realm possessed them—the League of the Eidolon.
"With his family's Spatial Tempus magic, it would be a simple task to slip in and out of camp undetected. I had an odd feeling about him from the first day, but I never had the chance to prove it—until now. I personally paid a visit to his campsite and confirmed that Dolos Jestal is no longer present. I found this Nether Idol after searching through his belongings. Whether it belongs to Dolos Jestal or not, if anyone can discover the truth, it is you, General Solomon. One gaze from your Absolute Symmetry and you will receive your answer, will you not?" Soothing Smoke affirmed.
"You've broken more rules than I can count. Even the Head of the War Intelligence Group will not be able to save you if you're wrong about this. You will spend the rest of your life rotting away in a dungeon." Solomon said; however, Soothing Smoke did not falter in their choice.
Solomon used his Absolute Symmetry to inspect the Ten-Headed Demon Nether Idol. After doing so for about half a minute and checking over the results multiple times, the General had come to a conclusion.
"Locate Prince Yan and inform him of the situation. We need to be prepared to keep this under the radar. In the meantime, I will apprehend Dolos." Solomon commanded. He made sure to refer to Yan as Prince instead of Captain because there was nothing Captain Yan could do, but Prince Yan was another story. With his status, even if the Jestal family came demanding answers after Dolos was captured, unless they wanted to cut ties with Amaharpe, they would have to go through official channels. However, by the time they received an answer, Solomon would have already gotten everything he needed.
Of course, that was only if it was not the worst-case scenario that Solomon feared. The best case, given the circ.u.mstances, was that Dolos decided to act on his own. But, if the Jestal family as a whole sided with the Nether Realm and the League of the Eidolon, then it showed no one in the Mortal Realm was above suspicion.
Though what Solomon feared the most was something he silently hoped would never come to pass.
Solomon stepped out of the canopy as he extended his right arm. At the same time, he crushed a small golden orb with countless tiny magic symbols carved into it. The orb dissolved and erupted into a burst of azure flames as the ear-piercing cry of a red-tailed hawk filled the atmosphere. Seconds later, a two-meter high azure flaming bird gripped onto Solomon's arm with its talons. The flaming bird then flapped its wings as it took off into the sky, carrying Solomon along with it!
"If all three sides are working together, then this conflict—I'm afraid the odds will be stacked against us," Solomon said to himself.
…
A few moments ago…
"I have never seen the lightning element reach a form so pure. Where did that woman find someone like him?" Aurie internalized. While it was not the highest in terms of raw strength, in terms of quality, the purple lightning Izroth displayed was in a league of its own. That sword skill was also nothing to scoff at as even she was not absolutely confident in surviving that attack head-on!
Izroth's Sword Arts: Four Steps of Death connected to Dolos and the effects of Death In One Step were activated. In total, Izroth's damage output was more than 500,000, and thanks to his 6% lifesteal, he immediately regained the 15% HP he lost from executing the skill. But, even after that devastating blow, to Izroth's surprise, Dolos was still standing!
'He's still alive?'
As an NPC and glass cannon, Dolos should not have possessed enough HP to survive that blow just now; however, it appeared that Dolos' magic was not the sole thing to be improved by his transformation.
Nevertheless, Izroth did not walk away empty-handed. Sprawled out on the ground next to Dolos' feet was a motionless red arm with sharp fingernails!
But, before Izroth could follow up with his next attack, an aura drenched in the stench of death exploded outward from Dolos, forcing him to withdraw back to a safe distance.
'This aura… Strange.'
Woosh!
Izroth landed next to Aurie as she warned, "The surrounding space is starting to fold in on itself. At this rate, everything within 200 meters will be flattened and erased—including us. We have to end this now. Can you interrupt his Spatial Tempus magic again?"
Izroth consumed a mana potion and answered, "No, he seems to have ignored the effects this time around. There is no evidence, but we should assume that he somehow gained the Shadahi's ability to adapt along with his transformation."
"I see. Then, it is all the more reason we cannot allow this fight to go on any longer." Aurie responded.
She then continued, "You've done well to shift his attention to you; however, Dolos is not a complete fool. He will not be blinded by rage; therefore, he will still be expecting me to deal the finishing blow. That's why I need to ask you a serious question, Captain Izroth. If I provide you with an opening, how confident are you in succeeding?"
"If it were a few moments ago, at least 80%. But now, it may be closer to 30%." Izroth replied calmly.
"Why the sudden difference?" Aurie questioned.
"His aura has changed to one I have seen and experienced firsthand. This deathly energy—it resembles the one found in creatures of the Nether Realm." Izroth revealed.
"The Nether Realm…?!" Aurie was taken aback. Could he be mistaken? After all, Dolos was clearly working with the Shadahi, and they nor Tempest ever had a connection to the Nether Realm!
