CHAPTER 49: CHAPTER49-THE CROSSBRIDGE EMPIRE MIGHT NO LONGER BELONG TO THE VEYNAR FAMILY?

Upon hearing Gaia’s reprimanding shout, Jacoff’s face turned as dark as night.

"Since you’re determined to bury this decaying, rotten Empire, I won’t hold back any longer," he spat. "I’ll make you taste death."

Upon hearing this, Gaia’s face twisted into a sneer.

"Don’t speak too soon; it’s not certain who will die!" Gaia retorted coldly.

"Jacoff, if you surrender now, perhaps His Majesty will show mercy and spare your family. But I swear to the gods, you will die without a doubt," Gaia warned.

"Then why waste words? Kill them!" Jacoff shouted.

The battle between the two sides erupted once again.

As Jacoff led his 50,000-strong army into Valoria Palace, the gates behind him slammed shut with a loud bang.

Jacoff instinctively turned around and glanced at his trusted confidant, asking, "What’s going on?"

Almost immediately, those hidden in every corner of the palace sprang into action, surrounding Jacoff’s 50,000 troops. Some held spears, while many others hid behind the palace walls, armed with crossbows.

The situation was dire—if Gaia gave the order, Jacoff’s elite force would be turned into pincushions in an instant!

How could this be? How could there be so many people here?

Normally, the Imperial Guard operated in shifts, so it would be impossible for this many of them to be gathered here at once.

Could it be... Aurek knew about his plan in advance and had already prepared for it?

A sense of unease began to settle in Jacoff’s heart.

Meanwhile, in front of him, Gaia’s face revealed a cold smile.

"Jacoff, did you really think that His Majesty Aurek knows nothing?" Gaia said with a smirk.

"Let me tell you the truth—since you first planned your rebellion, every one of your moves has been under His Majesty’s watch."

"Now that you’ve entered Valoria Palace, you can die here with no hope of escape."

Gaia’s words caused Jacoff’s spirits to plummet. However, after a brief pause, his eyes regained their firmness.

At this point, there was no retreat—he had only one choice: to charge into the Emperor’s chambers and take Aurek’s head!

A brutal battle erupted inside Valoria Palace.

Crossbow bolts rained down like a storm, and Jacoff’s elite troops fell in waves, like wheat being cut down.

In the midst of this desperate situation, a series of blood-red figures suddenly rushed out of the shadows and quickly made their way to the nearby Imperial Guards, swiftly slaying the soldiers holding crossbows.

Upon seeing reinforcements arrive, Jacoff’s face lit up with joy. He knew immediately that these were the mercenaries sent by the Killer Guild.

Moreover, these assassins were incredibly strong—far stronger than the Imperial Guards, who were no match for them.

"Let the hunt begin!" a wild growl echoed through the palace as the Killer Guild’s assassins quickly sprang into action.

The leader of the Killer Guild, their strongest captain, stepped forward.

"We’re going to make this a competition—whoever kills the most will receive a reward from the Guildmaster," the captain declared.

Upon hearing the promise of a reward, the assassins present all became fired up, eager to take the first place.

At that moment, the Guild’s elder added, "Whoever manages to take Aurek’s head will be directly promoted to the next rank of captain."

Hearing this, the assassins were filled with madness. They were willing to do anything to claim that prize.

This time, the Killer Guild had sent many powerful individuals—50 Elite Rank assassins, 20 Expert Rank assassins, and 3 Hero Rank assassins!

This was in part due to the lessons learned from the Dark Order, so they had sent three Hero Rank assassins, a force of truly terrifying strength.

Upon seeing this display of power, Gaia’s face grew grim.

"It seems the Killer Guild is truly pulling out all the stops this time," Gaia muttered.

On the other side, the scholars and Longsword Mercenaries, who had just arrived, were also taken aback by the sheer strength of the Killer Guild’s forces. The enemies this time seemed to be a whole different level of power!

It seemed that the Killer Guild was committed to reaping their share of the Crossbridge Empire’s downfall.

Within the Imperial City, countless pairs of eyes were watching Valoria Palace’s every move. Some factions were even considering taking advantage of the chaos to plunder the riches inside.

Everyone hoped to grab a piece of the Empire’s corpse, but due to the presence of the Ordon Theocracy, these large factions only dared to think about it and didn’t act. They could only hide in the shadows and cooperate with certain officials.

However, the Killer Guild’s intervention today had disrupted this unspoken agreement.

It seemed that the events unfolding in Valoria Palace tonight were far more complicated than they appeared on the surface.

Especially the silence from the Church—it was still unclear whether Aurek had a trump card up his sleeve.

At Clover Auction House, Guildmaster Kafka stood at the top of the tower, gazing toward Valoria Palace.

Everything would be decided when the morning light arrived.

Yet, Kafka hadn’t expected the Killer Guild to send so many strong fighters. This was at least a third of their total power!

Would the Church continue to stay silent?

And what of Aurek? Did he have any hidden means left?

Perhaps tonight, all the secrets would be revealed.

In the Cathedral, Bishop Ramos White-robed stood before a group of Church officials.

"Bishop Ramos, should we just let this go?" one of the officials asked.

"Those Killer Guild dogs are becoming increasingly audacious—they dare to ignore the authority of our Church!"

Other Church officials also spoke up, expressing their displeasure at the Guild’s actions.

But Ramos, speaking slowly, replied, "Wait for now. Don’t rush."

"I believe Sir Austin must already be aware of the situation. Since he hasn’t spoken, we should continue to observe."

"Many things are not as simple as they seem. Perhaps Sir Austin also wants to see what tricks Aurek has left up his sleeve."

Hearing Ramos’s cryptic words, the other officials were unsure of how to respond.

"Don’t worry. We’ll keep watching Aurek, and see what he’s hiding," Ramos added.

...

In House Tascher, Yule frowned upon hearing the report from his subordinate.

"I never expected the Ordon Theocracy to remain silent. Could they really be planning to abandon the Crossbridge Empire?" Yule muttered.

"This matter isn’t so simple," another advisor replied. "Perhaps they’ve already reached some kind of agreement."

"The Crossbridge Empire might no longer belong to the Veynar family!"