Chapter 234: The Twelfth Emperor’s Decision

The Twelfth Emperor almost choked on the tea he had sipped when he heard Max’s words.

He almost thought his ears were playing tricks on him, but seeing Max’s indifferent attitude confirmed that he had indeed heard what he had said.

Conquer a Demon Lord’s territory? How many decades has it been since the Empire attempted the same feat?

As far as the Twelfth Emperor was aware, even during his reign, they had continued to fail to expand into the Ashen Expanse.

Environment-wise, they couldn’t even survive there, much less reach the territory of a Demon Lord.

The army would have been scared long before they even stepped into the Ashen Expanse, let alone thought about attacking the territory of a Demon Lord.

It was precisely why the Empire had become more of a refuge than a human territory competing for resources with other kingdoms and races.

Hell, the Twelfth Emperor even remembered how the Second Emperor had formed a diplomatic relationship with a dwarven kingdom in the far east, only to lose contact with them after the Empire barely progressed for the last few centuries.

Staring at Max, the Twelfth Emperor didn’t know whether to believe him or not.

But I want to.

The Twelfth Emperor thought.

As the Guild Master’s office fell into deathly silence, the Twelfth Emperor’s eyes, which had been staring at Max, gradually returned to clarity.

The Twelfth Emperor stood up and said, "If you succeed in defending against the retaliation of the Demon Lord’s army, I will join your Guild."

Before Max could even respond, the Twelfth Emperor turned around and left.

Max couldn’t even see him off personally as he watched the door fully open, with Danny and Matilda staring at the Twelfth Emperor with widened eyes.

After exchanging a glance with Max, they watched as the door closed behind the Twelfth Emperor before hurriedly escorting him out of the Guild’s premises.

Max was left alone in his personal room, lost in thought.

His hand grasped the armrest of his chair tightly, and a smile broke across his face.

An S-rank Tactician!

Joining my Guild!

Damn!

Max felt exhilarated.

For an S-rank to join a Guild—and a former Emperor of the Empire at that—would definitely solidify his Guild’s reputation as the number one Guild in the Empire.

At the same time, it would make it even easier for the Demon Hunters to travel through the Ashen Expanse under his leadership.

Now, all Max had to do was survive against a Demon Lord’s army.

A week, huh?

Truth be told, Max was not quite confident.

But together with Jeremiah, he had learned a lot of tactics when engaging in warfare against demons.

Furthermore, he was not alone.

He had the whole Guild behind him...

...

In the evening, Max, Enzo, and Auntie Sarah dined together at a restaurant that Enzo had chosen.

After all, Enzo had personally told them that he would treat them to dinner at one of the finest restaurants near their residence.

Max came to learn that Enzo had earned a lot after selling various monster materials he had accumulated during the first world event.

The value of monster and demon materials had significantly dropped during the first world event, but many players still chose to buy them in large quantities to complete the quests given by their commanders.

All they had to do was buy the materials and present them to the NPCs to receive the rewards they needed.

Such a strategy was only possible for rich players.

Enzo specifically targeted those players when selling his materials, especially since what he auctioned was Rare-rank and above.

Enzo earned so much that he didn’t even look at the prices. He encouraged Auntie Sarah and Max to choose whatever they liked without concerning themselves with the prices either.

While they were waiting, Enzo asked, "Brother, I just heard that a Demon Lord is retaliating against you. Is that true?"

Max’s lips curled upward.

"Straight to the point, huh?"

Enzo smiled awkwardly.

It would be hard to deny that the main reason he had invited them to dinner was because he was curious about the drama between the Demon Lord and his elder brother.

A Demon Lord couldn’t be treated lightly.

They had tens or perhaps hundreds of demons under their command, along with millions of demon soldiers ready to be deployed, according to the knowledge he had gained from NPCs.

Furthermore, it was a Demon Lord from the Kingdom of Endless War.

The Demon Lord of Wrath.

It was expected that unless Max died and the Empire suffered terribly to satisfy the Demon Lord’s anger, the Demon Lord of Wrath would not stop his assault.

There was even a high possibility that he would personally attack the Empire if his army continued to fail.

In other words, the war between the Demon Hunters Guild and the Demon Lord would officially begin in a week.

Enzo was even curious whether it could cause the duration of the first world event to extend, since it would definitely be affected by the war.

"It’s true," said Max.

"Then, if it lasts for a year, does that mean the first world event will last for a year?"

Max shook his head.

"I don’t know."

"But one thing is for sure. The System will adjust based on the events in the game."

"In other words, the duration of the first world event might be extended."

Enzo was surprised.

"But I don’t think it will last for a year," Max said.

Enzo nodded.

After all, there were only three provinces affected by the war, and given that demons preferred to settle every battle as quickly as they could, the extension of the first world event might not be significant.

"How is it on your side?" Max asked. "Have you already thought of a way to steal the treasure of an Ice Mythic Dragon?"

Enzo sighed helplessly.

"I don’t even want to, Brother."

"I’ll try doing so if I can defend the Northern Province from the wrath of an Ice Mythic Dragon."

"I heard from our Commander that an Ice Mythic Dragon could easily fight against a party of S-rank humans."

"And I don’t want to bring destruction to the Empire, so..."