The Medallion

"Your Royal Highness, please don't say that. It's all my fault. I'm the one that failed to help you," Gilbert insisted reassuringly as he shook his head.

"That's enough, you two. You act as if somebody died," Rocky teased the two, which didn't sit well with Gilbert.

"Odin, how can you even joke at a time like this?" Gilbert burst out and glared at Rocky.

"Well, I believe it might not be a bad thing that Layla's royal identity has been abolished!" Rocky explained as a matter of fact.

"What do you mean?" His words puzzled Gilbert and Layla, and the two sent him confused looks at the same time.

"Surely some members of the royal family must have objected to the king's questionable decision of appointing Zain as his successor, right? And since the king has abolished Layla's royal identity, everyone has found out what is on the king's mind, and that will inevitably start some talks within the royal family. Once the royal family loses the support of the people, it will be in big trouble." Rocky calmly shared his analysis of the situation.

"But without her royal identity, how can she make a comeback?" Gilbert asked dubiously, shaking his head with a sigh. He thought that Layla couldn't get the support of the royal family's members if she didn't have any royal identity.

"The royal identity is just a nominal label. If the majority of the people place their support on her, the royal family will be helpless to stop her," Rocky replied assuredly.

"Are you saying she should rebel like Enoch?" Gilbert asked. He was stunned by Rocky's suggestion because it was too daring. If they did that, they would literally have no way back.

"Yes, but not right now. The war between the royal family and Enoch won't end so soon. And besides, there's a saying that if two tigers fight, one of them might die, but the other one will surely be maimed. We can just sit around, recuperating and accumulating energy, while the two sides fight it out. We will bide our time and rebel against the royal family when the time is ripe," Rocky told them with a steely gaze.

"I understand, Odin. Leader Gilbert, if you are still willing to support me even when I have lost my royal identity, I won't let you down!" Layla understood what Ricky meant, so she immediately turned to Gilbert to confirm his support.

"Since I already chose to side with you, I will never go back on my word. You don't have to worry about me, Your Royal Highness," Gilbert reassured her of his loyalty.

"Listen, I have a plan. Leader Gilbert, you should approach the king in a few days, and tell him that you are willing to help Prince Zain fight against Enoch. Ask him to allow you to lead a group of elite spirit warriors," Rocky continued.

"You want me to lead a group of elite spirit warriors for him?" Gilbert asked, looking utterly perplexed by Rocky's instructions.

"That's right. I'm sure the king is planning to let Zain lead the army in the battle against Enoch. So we must do everything we can to meddle and ensure that Zain will lose that battle," Rocky explained as a sly smirk played on his lips.

"But if we do that, Enoch might win."

"Don't worry, Leader Gilbert. Enoch will never have the chance to take advantage of us. And he can help us get rid of Zain later." A tenacious smile flashed quickly on Rocky's lips.

"How do you plan to do that?" From his words, Gilbert could tell that he already had a plan at hand.

"Let me keep it a secret for now. I promise to tell you when the time comes," Rocky insisted, keeping his cards close to his chest.

Gilbert could tell that whatever plan he had, he seemed confident about it, so he decided to let him be instead of asking more questions. After all, they were in a precarious situation right now, and they needed Rocky if they want to surpass this obstacle.

Once they agreed, Rocky left and went back to the Ghost Palace.

'This is lucky. I think Esteban's research on the living dead may come in handy this time, ' Rocky thought, nodding to himself.

Esteban had previously given Rocky his report about the research he made regarding the living dead, which he painstakingly worked on his whole life. However, it was still in the experimental stage, and no successful case had been recorded yet.

Rocky had read his research report earlier. It showed how deep Esteban's research on the living dead had gotten. However, it had plateaued because of the limited information available.

But for Rocky, this lull in productivity wasn't a big deal, for he believed the problem could be resolved through his gene technology. However, there was still one big problem. He didn't have enough samples. Undoubtedly, it would be difficult to find samples because he couldn't use ordinary samples. What he needed were spirit warriors with spiritual power.

That was the reason Rocky asked Gilbert to send troops to the battlefield. After all, where else was the perfect place to get the samples he needed besides the battlefield?

Rocky stayed in the Ghost Palace and then left the very next day. He headed straight for the independent military camp on the border of the Shura Race.

He fully expected the war between the royal family and Enoch to cause turmoil in the nine fiefs, and that would give the independent army an excellent opening to take advantage of. Thus, he had to plan in advance, so he could profit much from it.

Rocky soon arrived at the independent military camp, but he didn't see Eunice or the other women. So he went to the camp of the commander-in-chief, where he found the four women discussing something around the sand table.

"What are you talking about behind my back, girls?" Rocky asked them with a teasing smile.

The four women looked up in surprise, and smiles broke out on their lips when they saw it was Rocky. After all, they hadn't seen him for over two months.

"We heard that the Shura Race's royal family is going to war against Enoch, so we were discussing if we can take advantage of this opportunity. We might be able to destroy the defenses of their border, which would create more trouble for them," Eunice revealed with a cunning smile.

"That sounds great! You seem ready to finish your apprenticeship!" It surprised Rocky but pleased him at the same time, knowing that the four women had become so independent now.

"Were you thinking of the same thing?" Michelle asked.

"Ha-ha, yeah! Why else would I be here? I have a task for you," Rocky laughed and answered.

"Oh? What do you want us to do?" The four girls immediately looked at Rocky with much curiosity.

"Before that, I want to hear your thoughts about the current situation of the Shura Race," Rocky insisted, eliciting the girls' opinions first and foremost.

"All right. Let me go first," Michelle volunteered.

With a nod, Rocky gave his permission for Michelle to start telling her opinion.

"I think the battle between the royal family and Enoch would likely happen in the Wind Plain. With the Wind Plain at the center, the royal family will probably dispatch troops from the defensive position, which is at the east of the Shura Race. They would leave the defensive position empty in favor of making a pincer attack. That is where we will come in. We will break through the opening they leave behind," Michelle explained, occasionally using the sand table to illustrate her point.

"Yes, you are right." Rocky agreed with her.

"But the royal family might find the Wind Plain's terrain unfavorable. They might transfer the battlefield to this position, as it is more favorable for them." Carla pointed at the sand table as she raised an objection.

"But this is a terrible position for Enoch's army. I doubt he will be stupid enough to fight against the royal family there, right?" Michelle asked with a frown, folding her arms across her chest defensively.

"I think Carla has a point. The royal family won't choose the Wind Plain," Eunice chimed in.

"Commander in Chief Basil, what do you think?" Michelle turned to Rocky expectantly.

"Actually, both of your analysis is right. Either of these two positions may become a battlefield. But you guys forget one thing." A small smirk flashed across Rocky's lips.

"What is it?" the four women asked with perplexed expressions.

"No matter which position becomes a battlefield, each side will always have a route for their reinforcements. What I want you to do is to stand guard on these routes and ambush their reinforcements," Rocky explained matter-of-factly. Of course, he saw the big picture and spotted what the girls had missed.

"But how will we cross the Shura Race's border?" Michelle couldn't help but ask.☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐