Chapter 2032 - 546: Birds of a Feather (Part 3)

The Ratmen could never be completely wiped out, but Merc's family was finished, and this was a pain that Soul Shatterer Merc could not bear.

Mice are very clever creatures.

It's one thing to bully merchant caravans, adventurers, and defenseless farmers, but actively attacking the human Kingdoms or Duchies is quite another.

Especially notorious is the Holy Sis Sect, which often surprises others with a Divine Chosen Hero in battle, such as the "Rock Sword Saint" Gunter Steinengrabe they encountered in Twilight Province.

Seeing Edgar, who seemed still unconvinced, Merc added another sentence to bolster his argument.

"I heard that some Demon King over in Thunder City recently poked his head out just to be speared to death by Duke Aaron. That Demon King's power is not inferior to mine, and he was a Demon with tough skin... Even such a fierce character died without understanding why, how could my meager flesh be enough to provoke such enemies?"

The chubby rat, looking aggrieved, made Edgar pause, pondering silently.

While scholars from the Academic State are often seen as unworldly, only true fools think these extremely clever individuals are just straightforward.

The truly straightforward ones are all busy building bricks in the Mage Tower, and Edgar was not without wit to be dispatched to the Ten Thousand Ridges Mountain Range to collaborate with the Ratmen.

Especially since his homeland was the Ryan Kingdom, he was no stranger to the political dynamics of the Ryan Kingdom.

Considering the chaos recently unfolding in Roland City, he deduced some of the King's intentions, most likely wanting to use the chaos in Spinor Earl's Domain to trouble the Campbell Duchy.

However, this guy must be out of his mind, or it's like he's fighting with himself... you don't use a glass cup to smash a dog, do you?

The soul experiments they were conducting deep in the Ten Thousand Ridges Mountain Range were forbidden among forbidden, and such research could never be made known to the people of the Holy City, nor detected by the demons of Hell.

Though ordinary people might perceive Hell's demons and Holy Light Nobles as enemies, the clever people of the Academic State aren't that naive.

"What a fool..."

Edgar cursed under his breath, eyes locked firmly on the plump rat sitting on the throne, squeezing out the latter half of his sentence through clenched teeth.

"Was it the King who ordered you? Or his subordinates?"

Merc hastily revealed.

"Marinus! It was the Gravekeeper's boss, Lord Marinus! You know that gentleman! He's the King's contact, our supplier!"

"I'll ask him to clarify the situation."

Edgar turned around, his grey robe drawing a chilling arc through the air, scaring the nearby small rats back a few steps.

"Moreover, be more restrained recently, regardless of whatever task Ryan has given you. I do not wish for my experiments to be disturbed again. If you bring trouble here that shouldn't come..."

He didn't finish his words, merely giving Merc a meaningful glance, like looking at a corpse.

"You know the consequences."

Merc's entire body trembled with his fatty flesh, narrowing his slender eyes to slits. Though he glared back defiantly, deep in those seemingly fierce but inwardly timid eyes, a trace of fear gradually emerged.

The Kingdom might crush them if angered, and the Academic State, fierce as they can be, could do the same. While a demigod couldn't eradicate the Ratmen in the Ten Thousand Ridges Mountain Range, eliminating him, the plump rat, was more than possible.

For this rat hiding in the deep mountains, deciding who to offend and who to appease was a dilemma that needed to be pondered with its life at stake.

Watching Edgar's figure completely vanish into the shadows, Merc let out a long sigh of relief, wiping the greasy sweat from his forehead with a paw.

Whispers of unease and terror spread around the throne.

High Priest Ska silently emerged from the shadows behind the throne, observing the sweating Monarch with a hoarse yet gentle voice.

"These human creatures are such a nuisance... killing them won't do, nor will sparing them. Can't they finish fighting among themselves before coming to us?"

"Lord Gerro above! Now it's not just the human creatures, why are skeleton creatures and lizard creatures also emerging? Has the Dragon God returned? Or are they joining forces with the Netherworld God? Damn, this is just... blasphemous!"

Merc spat a saliva mixed with meat residue onto the ground viciously and grabbed the unfinished meat leg, tearing into it savagely as if venting his frustration.

High Priest Ska glanced lightly at Your Majesty.

"Your Majesty, for now, let's not worry about the skeletons and Lizardmen... what do we do about Burial Peak? The Earls and Barons there are waiting for orders from the Royal Court. If we don't give instructions soon, they might start fighting amongst themselves."

Merc's small eyes shifted.

"Remove our altar and give the Earl of Burial Peak a banner! From today onwards, they are independent!"

Ska looked at Your Majesty in surprise, then respectfully nodded.

"That's a good idea... However, what about the runaway sacrifice? They did escape from the altar, I'm worried they know something and might blabber about what they've seen."

Merc's expression fluctuated, finally delivering the order after much hesitation.

"Send my Plague Tooth assassins!"

Ska nodded respectfully.

"Yes."

...

Generally speaking, sacrifices placed on the altar can't escape, but the Ratmen always work clumsily, inevitably letting one or two slip through the cracks.