Chapter 939: The Admiral and the Octopus

On the third-floor balcony of the palace, Ava and the blood elf race’s Grand Elder Lireesa watched as Delilah received a report from a tiny raven that had landed on her arm.

Delilah offered a devastatingly charming smile, her allure undeniable. Both Ava and Lireesa had to admit, the grand steward of the Stoneheart Horde possessed a magnetism that could easily captivate the King of Giants.

“War is coming.”

Delilah didn’t offer any specifics. Instead, she adopted a look of grave, statesmanlike concern, her gaze shifting between Ava and Lireesa. It lingered on Ava.

The human kingdom’s defeat in the dwarven lands had caused all of Ava’s previous assurances to evaporate like mist.

Hearing Delilah’s words, both Ava and Lireesa frowned.

“Your Excellency,” Lireesa began, her age affording her the right to speak first, her tone polite but firm. “Has there been some trouble in the dwarven lands?”

Delilah nodded slowly, her eyes fixed on Ava. “Torin’s Avenger Armies,” she said, her voice laced with a strange theatricality, “have attacked the forces of the human kingdom deep within dwarven territory.”

“The details of the battle are still unknown, but the power behind Torin has officially engaged with your Saint.”

She watched them process the bombshell, a ghost of a smile touching her lips before she added, “The outcome is, as of yet, undecided.”

Even without a clear result, Ava and Lireesa knew exactly what this meant. The appearance of a new, unknown arch lord, combined with such an aggressive move, was a clear play for territory. A declaration of intent.

“Your Excellency, are you saying the North-South War is about to begin again?” Grand Elder Lireesa’s voice trembled slightly.

Delilah could hear the note of desperate hope in her tone.

The war had broken out in the dwarven lands. For the blood elf race, this was a stroke of luck. To their north sat the impassable Stoneheart Horde, and to their east, their traditional allies, the human kingdom. They were, for all intents and purposes, completely shielded from the front lines of this new conflict.

Grand Elder Lireesa couldn’t help but offer a silent prayer of thanks. The decision to forge an alliance with the Stoneheart Horde through Lycanor’s marriage now seemed like a stroke of pure genius.

“Princess Ava,” Delilah said, her smile returning as she looked at the human royal. “This situation is now far beyond your ability to delay or decide. I suggest we all wait a few days. I’m sure new intelligence will be arriving from your kingdom shortly.”

Delilah savored the moment. She had held power over Ava when she was a captive, and she still held it now.

Ava nodded. While she was far from calm, she showed no outward signs of agitation. “Perhaps you’re right.”

With a slight bow, she turned and left the balcony. She hadn’t come to Soaring Bird City alone, and she had her own means of contacting King Harold. She had to confirm this intelligence, to find out exactly what had happened.

“Lady Lireesa,” Delilah said casually, noticing the Grand Elder hadn’t left, a thoughtful expression on her face. “You, of all people, should be pleased.”

“You jest, Your Excellency,” Lireesa replied cautiously. “If it is truly a continental war, the blood elf race cannot possibly stand aside.”

Delilah’s smile widened, but she said nothing. The Grand Elder was correct. If a full-scale war broke out, neither the stoneheart horde nor the human kingdom would allow the blood elves to remain neutral. As part of the southern alliance, they would be expected to contribute resources and troops. The silver lining, of course, was that the war itself wouldn’t burn its way to their doorstep.

“You speak the truth,” Delilah mused. “And it won’t just be the blood elves. The dragons won’t be able to sit this one out, either. I imagine this three-way summit will soon become a four-way one.”

She leaned against the railing, letting the cool breeze play with her elaborate hairstyle and her light silk robes. From where Lireesa stood, Delilah radiated an effortless grace, the poise of a woman who felt the great currents of the world turning at her command.

The times are changing, Lireesa murmured to herself, bowing her head. The great tide is turning.

She could almost see a fragment of the prophecy once given by the Divine Tree.

Emerald Dream Realm, the Kasenna Sea.

The war on the front lines raged on. Isabella and Makareth had not yet returned.

Orion and Leonidas were lounging under a parasol, back to drinking and eating as usual. As for Alexander, he had vanished the moment he returned.

“Heh, so bro,” Leonidas started, a greedy glint in his eye. “Get any good drops?”

“A skill book,” Orion replied flatly.

“Hah! My RNG was better! Scored a piece of legendary equipment.”

Leonidas had slain the black dragon, while Orion had dealt the killing blow to the white dragon’s physical form. Of course, the dragon’s body of faith had been destroyed by the combined efforts of Leonidas and Alexander, but will projections didn’t drop survivor chests. Only Orion, who had shattered its corporeal body, was rewarded with loot.

An unspoken understanding passed between them. Neither asked for specifics about what the other had received. Items like these were trump cards, lifelines. The less people knew about them, the better.

Just as Leonidas was about to launch into another boastful tirade, the space beside them rippled. The figures of Arthas and Kraken appeared.

Arthas was merely a will projection, but Kraken… Kraken was different.

He had taken on the appearance of a human naval captain. He wore a tattered admiral’s uniform, a high-collared black cape, and a neatly trimmed Twilight Viper beard. His eyes were steady and resolute, giving him an air of class.

The most jarring detail, of course, was that instead of hair or a captain’s hat, a massive octopus with a dense thicket of tentacles was perched atop his head.

“Kraken, you broke through?” Orion exclaimed, sensing the change in his aura.

“Hahaha! That’s my boy, Squiddy! Your timing couldn’t be better!” Leonidas leaped from his lounge chair and threw an arm around Kraken’s shoulders, looking him over with intense curiosity. “Whoa, Squiddy, your aura feels… weird.”

Up close, Leonidas could clearly feel the anomaly in Kraken’s energy.

“This body is a lord avatar I acquired long ago,” Kraken explained. “By chance, I came upon a special potion. After the avatar drank it, it allowed my true form to merge with it. Essentially, my true form can now inhabit this avatar.”

When Kraken spoke, it was unnerving. The voice emerged from both the admiral’s mouth and the beak of the massive octopus simultaneously, creating a layered, stereophonic duet.

“The primary benefit is that I can not only use my own racial abilities, but I can also use skills through the avatar that were impossible for me in my massive octopus form,” he continued. “And this avatar has excellent potential for future growth.”