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<Palace of Durcia Kingdom, center of government>

The king was not sitting on his throne. That old man with a thin body and tired face was at a big round table with fifteen high council members. Those men and women were nobles selected from all over the country.

One of the councilors, short and bald, rose from his chair. "With all due respect, your majesty. We must act again before Vorn runs rampant. The rumors regarding the spread of his beliefs are getting stronger…."

"Those are just rumors, Rufus." The king interrupted, wearing a sinister smile. "We have very little evidence of their movements."

"But their existence is so real, your majesty." Rufus looked even more frustrated. "The proof is that we fought them back then. Many demons managed to defeat our kingdom\'s troops."

The king leaned forward. "How many humans died during that war? There are thousands! For the umpteenth time, I say, we have no chance if the prophet does not lead our troops!"

Another council member raised his hand, then stood at the king\'s signal.

"I don\'t think we can rely on other countries for this. We must be independent in dealing with the demons. We just need a special strategy for that, and I\'m sure we can work it out, your majesty." The man with shoulder-length black hair and a bushy mustache added.

Several other members of the council raised their hands, and the king massaged his forehead. "Anyone has any ideas to persuade our beloved neighboring country to send their prophet to us?"

The councilors lowered their hands, triggering the king to laugh. "As expected, this hearing is useless. You guys are just trying to convince me to send troops to fight the demons again… Shut up! I\'m still talking!"

Rufus, who raised his hand for the second time, immediately looked down at the sight of the fuming king.

The ruler of the kingdom of Durcia sighed. "I don\'t want to send our troops to their death with no chance of victory! Only the prophet is the answer! So, you guys just shut up! My envoys are still trying to persuade our neighboring country to lend us the prophet!"

The council members raised their hands again, but the king waved at the two soldiers guarding the door. "Bring him in!"

One of the soldiers came out and brought in a man with long blond hair.

"He is Henry Kensington II, the commander who led the army that attacked the demons." The king explained. "He was kidnapped by the demons but managed to escape. At first, he wanted to resign, but I refused his request. He should be held responsible for his failure by serving the country until death."

"Good day, great king Julius Durciann. Good day too, the Durcia Kingdom high councilor members." Henry bowed before them. "I already know the reason for my coming here. So, I will immediately say about what I found in that fight."

The man was silent for a moment, looking at the council members waiting for him to speak again.

"We have absolutely no chance against them, ladies and gentlemen," Henry explained with trembling lips. "I am very sad to admit this. Even with the larger number of troops, we barely dealt any damage to them. They truly decimate us."

"Isn\'t it because your troops are incompetent!?" Rufus snapped at the commander.

Henry bowed again. "With all due respect. The troops sent are the elites we have. And we also have to remember that the demons have destroyed shadow, the organization we are proud of. So, with this, I conclude, fighting them is futile."

"Therefore, we need the prophet. We need her to win battle after battle. We can\'t do anything without the help of that daughter of god." The king rose from his seat. "Let\'s end this meeting. We have nothing more to discuss."

The council members protested, but the king ignored them and kept walking.

"You know what you\'re doing?" Rufus snorted at the commander right after the king exited. "It\'s been a long time since we requested to discuss this matter with the king, and finally, we got this opportunity. But you destroyed everything. Imagine, it\'s been months since that battle, and we\'re just having a hearing now!"

It wasn\'t because of Henry, but the king believed too much in the holy book of the prophet Lyra. However, Henry could not argue with them. Their position is much higher.

"I didn\'t know our soldiers were cowards." One of the other members added. "You don\'t care about the safety of this country, so you don\'t want to go to war. Even without the prophet, you should be ready to fight. Your job is to win, no matter what."

Rufus took a deep breath. "Go. You are no longer needed here."

"I\'ll take my leave then, ladies and gentlemen" Henry bowed a third time, then left. At the same time, the council members started chatting amongst themselves.

Henry\'s two aides followed behind the commander as he walked briskly away from the scene. As the king said, it was just a waste of time. From the start, it was clear they wouldn\'t be able to persuade the king.

This made Henry unable to answer Lord Vorn\'s call earlier, even though maybe it was something urgent.

So, now he\'s walking so fast to go to a private place. He had to contact Lord Vorn right away.

However, the king\'s entourage awaited him after an intersection.

"Relax." The king smiled and approached the commander. "Those councilors must have said some annoying things to you, right? As an apology, I will invite you to have dinner with us today."

Henry paused for a moment because of the surprising invitation. "Thank you, your majesty. I am very honored by your invitation."

He couldn\'t refuse, of course.

The king started walking again, and Henry followed him.

"I will give you a special task." The king continued his words. "We will discuss it in detail at dinner tonight. Either way, I will send you in negotiations to borrow the prophet. You are the one who knows best about the horrors of fighting demons. I think your experience will make them think."

Henry didn\'t know how to respond. He was just a shapeshifter disguised as a commander, after all.