Chapter 484: Reward (1/2)

The group traveled for a couple of weeks, but the travel time back to the Empire wasn't as long as their travel to the invasion. A couple of level three Lords had died in the invasion, while the remainder became level four Lords due to the manta ray's corpse. Because of that, everyone could travel faster.

Surprisingly, the group didn't stop even once during the travel. The small cat had said that she would inform the Kingdoms on their path back, but apparently, it was enough to do that in passing. Kings had a far greater reach with their sense than Gravis. Even with their speed, the cat probably had enough time to inform the relevant Kings.

The fact that a lot of Kings started moving around quickly as soon as they passed a Kingdom also showed that the cat had already informed them. All those Kings were probably preparing to set off. No one knew how the sea beasts would react to one of their defensive lines collapsing. However, one thing was true: A bloody battle between the two camps was imminent.

After some weeks, the group finally arrived at the borders of the Icy Pride Empire. As soon as they arrived, the cat stopped for the first time and turned to the beasts. ”Alright, we're back. Everyone, go back to your relevant commanders and tell them of your accomplishments. I will inform one of the elders about what has transpired.”

The beasts released a collective sigh. They all wanted to become more powerful and had fought wildly in the invasion, but they also wanted to rest in their homes. Finally, they were back home!

All the beasts scattered in all directions while the cat shot off into the distance with much more speed than before. Now, she didn't have to throttle her speed anymore, and in nearly no time at all, she left all the beasts behind.

Gravis remained hovering at the borders of the Icy Pride Empire and narrowed his eyes. On the way back, he had had plenty of time to decide his next course of action. For that, he needed to go to the Empress. Gravis only hoped that she would agree to his offer.

After some seconds, Gravis also shot into the distance, right towards the Mountain of Pride. Of course, the Empire was still absolutely gigantic, and it took him quite some time to get to the Mountain of Pride.

Yet, even before he reached the Mountain of Pride, he received a voice transmission. ”Gravis, come to the Mountain of Pride,” the voice of the Grand Elder resonated inside Gravis' mind.

”I was planning on going there anyway,” Gravis simply commented as he continued flying.

Some minutes later, Gravis arrived at the Mountain of Pride. The white ape was already waiting for him at its foot. ”Come, the Empress wants to see you,” he said, ”and, by the way, you're welcome.”

Gravis furrowed his brows. ”What do you mean?” he asked.

The white ape smiled calmly. ”I've sent Team Leader Par to the defensive line south of yours, just in case. I didn't want the possibility of a traitor to be your downfall. Yet, who would have expected that there actually was a traitor there? I sure didn't,” the Grand Elder commented.

”Team Leader Par?” Gravis asked. Then he remembered the badger. ”Do you mean that badger?”

”Yes, that's Team Leader Par,” the Grand Elder confirmed. ”I already knew that as soon as you revealed your power, you would force the sea beasts' defensive line to overextend. The commander of your defensive line is very trustworthy, but the commander of the one south to that wasn't as trustworthy.”

Gravis listened to the Grand Elder as he continued explaining with a calm smile on his face. ”Team Leader Par has also given instructions to your defensive line and told them about my worries and suspicions. That's why their commander has always been close to your group during the invasion.”

Then, the white ape chuckled a bit. ”Of course, they wouldn't have gotten involved as long as the enemies' defensive line didn't get involved themselves. After all, I don't want to stand in the way of your tempering.”