The northern part of the Kingdom of Thrace, the North Aysir Plain.

The land here is flat, with vast fertile fields and dense vegetation. The wide Logan River flows down from the snow-capped mountains in the north, bringing abundant water to the riverbanks on both sides.

The former North Aysel Plain was considered the rear area of ​​the Fadland Empire, where people lived in peace and plenty.

But the good times did not last long. After the collapse of the Fadlan Empire, many Aesir people left their homes and were forced to be involved in the brutal war in the south, and died on the battlefield near the holy city.

At the same time, the Burning Empire from the Far North was pressing forward step by step, constantly encroaching on the territory of the Thracian Kingdom. Before anyone knew it, this place had become the front line.

At this critical moment, Walter Graham was temporarily conferred the title of "Duke of North Aithel" by His Majesty Wilham, and was given full authority over all affairs in the territory.

This surprised countless Thracians and even made them doubt their own ears.

After all, several years ago, Duke Walter led his army in an uprising, openly resisting the rule of the Thracian Kingdom, and repelled the Thracian army that came to attack him several times, and even called His Majesty Wilham "the one who has forgotten honor."

But there were also people with discerning eyes who could see that the Thracian Kingdom had no way to deal with the divine duke entrenched in the north and had long since given up on suppressing the rebellion.

The so-called "reward" this time was just the addition of some insignificant land to Duke Walter's original territory, which made him a barrier for Thrace to resist the invasion from the north.

In the North IJssel Plain, in the city of Collins, ships of all sizes were entering the city along the Logan River, creating a very lively scene.

This city is known as the "Lion City". The residents of the city use the majestic lion as their symbol. Bravery, straightforwardness and justice have been the qualities of the Corinthians since ancient times.

This is also the territory of Walter Graham, the "Duke of North Ethel", who led Collins' army and repelled Thracian attacks in this city several times.

At the gate of Collins City, there are several majestic stone lions, looking down at those entering the city like the most loyal guards.

And on the top of the towering city wall, a man who looked particularly special stood tall with a serious face, like a marble sculpture.

He was tall, more than two meters tall, and even the heavy silver armor could not hide his strong body.

The face looked as if it had been carved by a knife or an axe, revealing the toughness of someone who had been through many battles. But what was even more eye-catching was the man's back, where two huge wings were folded together, making him look like a celestial being who had descended to the mortal world.

He is the newly appointed "Duke of North Ethel", a rebel of the Thracian Kingdom, and a former Fadlan Inquisition Knight - Walter Graham.

At this moment, Walter looked into the distance, his golden pupils, which still retained the glory of the sun god, showed an incomparable solemnity.

"The Burning Empire?"

He murmured to himself in a low voice. In the era of the Fadlan Empire, he had shot down the magic ship of the Githyanki in the astral plane, cut off the head of the devil in Avernus, and even stopped the tide of demons alone in the Abyssal Plains.
Logically speaking, after experiencing all this, Walter Graham should have been brave and fearless, not afraid of any challenges in the world.

But now, facing the Burning Empire from the north, he felt a little worried, even scared.

This was not only due to the terrible enemies in the north, but also because of his confusion about the future.

——The Holy Fadlan Empire, which had once been his solid backing, collapsed, the sun god who had bestowed them with power fell into a deep sleep, and his own power remained less than 60% of what it was in its heyday.

What made Walter feel disheartened and even desperate was that he discovered that the old emperor's second son, Wilham, who called himself the "King of Thrace", had completely abandoned Amaunator and joined the forces of darkness.

Where will Fadlan go?

Where will he go?
Walter shook his head and smiled bitterly, then sighed softly, “If His Majesty Aragorn were to be resurrected and see his sons turning to evil and fighting each other for power, how would he feel?

I never thought that the once-prosperous Holy Fadlan would become like this."

"Your Majesty the Duke."

I saw a young angel flapping his wings and slowly landing on the city wall. He half-knelt in front of Walter and lowered his head respectfully.

"Tell me, Ian, what are the conditions in those cities?"

"My Lord Duke, the rebels in Thrace did abide by the agreement and withdrew all their garrisons. Now the cities of Milet and Darend are in an undefended state."

Walter sneered: "Oh, that Majesty Wilham really didn't surprise me. He is as sinister and vicious as ever. No wonder he would go to hell."

Ian was a little confused: "Isn't it a good thing that they voluntarily withdrew? Now we can integrate the resources of the entire North Ethel to fight those rebels."

Walter looked toward the undulating Katpa Hills in the north and said in a deep voice, “Don’t you understand yet?
This means that the Burning Embers Empire is about to move south, and the scum of the Thracian Kingdom wants to make both me and the Burning Embers lose, so that they can have a chance to breathe. "

Ian thought for a moment, then became indignant and stood up with his sword.

"Sir, why should we defend these scums who have surrendered to the devil against foreign enemies? From what you said, we cannot take these cities!"

"No, Ian."

Walter shook his head again with a wry smile on his face, but his eyes were particularly determined.

He turned around and looked at Ian. "Can you abandon the citizens of a dozen cities and let them become slaves of the Burning Empire?"

"I"

Ian hesitated for a long time, but still shook his head silently.

Walter continued, "This is the conspiracy of His Majesty Wilham. He is betting that we still have some conscience and are not like him and his subjects who have no bottom line and regard human life as worthless."

Ian gritted his teeth and said, "I never thought that His Majesty Aragorn would have such a son!"

"Ian, we have no choice but to take over the mess they left behind and resist the southward advance of the Burning Empire. This is only for the people of North Ethel."

Walter slowly pulled out the nearly three-meter-long giant sword, his tone was sonorous and powerful, and his golden eyes shone with a shining light.

"grown ups."

Ian put the silver sword in his hand against him and said with a choked voice: "I will always stand behind you and be your sword."

Then, several more angels appeared here and put their swords against Walter's giant sword, making them intertwined.

The angels who followed Walter to the north were basically complete idealists. They could not stand the darkness of Thrace and longed to embrace the glory of Amaunator again and return to the glorious and holy Fadran. But their wishes were doomed to be hopeless.

Seeing all the high-ranking military officers present, Walter's face finally showed the usual confidence of the Fadlans.

“Everyone, immediately lead your respective armies to the cities left by the Thracian Kingdom and set up city defenses as soon as possible. The attack from the Burning Empire could come at any time.

Ian, you will be stationed in Collins City. You should be most familiar with the city's defense situation here."

The descendants of angels obeyed the order one after another, but Ian felt a little confused and couldn't help asking questions.

"Sir, what about you?"

"I have seen the battle footage of the Red Emperor and have carefully studied the weapons of the Burning Empire. We are not able to compete with them with our own strength."

Walter raised his head and looked towards the sky, gazing at the sun that was still hanging high in the sky. His golden pupils seemed to reflect the brilliant light.

"Eighty-seven years ago, I followed His Majesty Aragorn into Hell and rescued many Archon gods. A great man in Mount Heaven promised to give me help that would not violate the camp."

"Sixty-five years ago, I sneaked into the fortress of the Five-Colored Dragon Queen and released an ancient golden dragon that had been trapped in the dungeon for hundreds of years. The Golden Dragon Council also regarded me as a friend."

"Now, it is time for them to fulfill their promise. Comrades, I will return with allies of justice.

Walter slowly raised the giant sword in his hand, and suddenly, a dazzling white beam of light shot up into the sky, dispersing the clouds and causing violent vibrations in the sky.

"boom!"

His voice was like thunder, echoing for a long time in the North Issel Plain, making people's hearts surge. "The Fadlanders will not become the followers of the evil dragon, nor will they become the slaves of the devil. We will never surrender!"

Walter flapped his broad wings, soared into the air, and climbed rapidly, finally disappearing into the clouds together with the dazzling beam of light, leaving only white feathers fluttering like snow.

At this moment, both the descendants of angels and the many citizens of the city looked up, their eyes filled with reverence and admiration.

"Long live!"

"Fadlanders will never be slaves!"

People shouted loudly with excitement, as if they had returned to that glorious and great era, when they were still the glorious citizens of the sacred Fadland.

The first layer of the Heavenly Mountains is Lunya, also known as the "Silver Heaven". The sky here is always dark, but it is dotted with stars that sparkle with silver light, enough to illuminate the Silver Sea coast that connects the mountains.

Portals to other planes connect to the edge of the wine-dark silver sea, a huge bay filled with holy water.

The coast is dotted with castles and fortresses of polished white stone of various styles and inhabitants, many of which are open to trade with sea elves from the Material Plane.

On the coast of Star Coast, the most spectacular building is a huge fortress with towering stone walls made of glittering marble, which looks like a night sky dotted with stars. Therefore, it is called the "Star Castle".

In this castle, countless trumpeter messengers pour in and out for their interdimensional missions. At the same time, this is also the residence of the Lord of Heaven on the first floor.

High up in the castle, a lithe and beautiful woman with skin as white and smooth as marble was flapping her white wings, and the horn in her hand emitted a calming light.

——This is the Messenger of the Horn, the messenger of the inhabitants of heaven and the gods, and the forerunner of the holy army.

The trumpeter said respectfully, "Sir, the descendant of Fadlan has left. It is said that he is going to Mochulia to find the palace of His Majesty Bahamut."

"I understand. Please continue to complete your task."

A neutral, emotionless voice sounded, and on the towering city wall that overlooked the entire sea of ​​stars, there was a tall figure.

"Walter Graham, I remember him. Eighty-seven years ago, he rescued thirty-four Horn Messengers from the dungeon of Avernus. In return, I made him a promise."

This tall figure looked to be a three-meter-tall human with silver skin and dark purple eyes, and his gender could not be determined.

He wears a flowing violet robe embellished with motes of light that sparkle like stars, and his shoulders are graced by huge wings covered in white feathers.

In His right hand He held a long sword that was bursting with lightning, and on His waist was a shining silver horn.

——He is the Lord of Silver Heaven, Barachiel, the "Messenger" who rules over Lucia. He commands the defense forces of Heaven against invasion, leads the trumpeter messengers, and is also the protector of the messengers on earth.

As a member of the Seven Fierce Orders of Heaven, Barachiel is immortal and can be called a quasi-god.

If killed, he releases a divine energy that forever brands the killer, making him instantly recognizable to all lawful good outsiders as the murderer of one of the Seven Paragons.

And in Lunya, Barachiel is comparable to weak divine powers because he is recognized by the plane of Mount Heaven.

"Cassius Klauber Norichius, it's him." Barachiel whispered the name.

As the messenger between Heaven and all planes, He had certainly heard of this name which had become quite famous and attracted much attention in recent years.

He is the emperor of the Burning Empire, a red dragon who rose like a meteor and stirred up the situation in the continent of Feanso with his own power.

He once defeated Bahamut's followers, devoured the Pasha of the Fire Giant Empire, and even killed an abyss lord who descended into the material world.

In the eyes of the Archons, Cassius is an undoubted dangerous element, but it seems that there is also the possibility of purification.

Barachiel spread out his left hand, and a vivid image of the red dragon appeared in his palm, and he observed it carefully. "Greedy, violent, and never satisfied.
Soon after establishing the country, he wanted to invade and expand southwards to plunder wealth. It seemed that he still could not suppress the nature of the red dragon.

In this case, let me tell him in person the importance of justice and order!"

"Boom!"

Barachiel suddenly raised his right hand and swung the long sword that was bursting with lightning. A dull thunder sounded in the air, and the dazzling thunder illuminated the night sky of the Silver Heaven like day.

All of a sudden, all the Celestials near the sea of ​​stars raised their heads and looked at the lightning in the sky with serious expressions. The members of the Seven Fierce Society of Heaven would lead a Celestial army to the battle.

They knew that this meant they could be recruited at any time and become part of the war. (End of this chapter)