Chapter 364: My fault

The Elemental Mages, the Summoner, Knights, Berserkers...all of them died.

Not even the scouting teams - except the main team that stayed back to scout the territory had survived.

A meticulously trained army with nearly 2,000 combatants dwindled down to less than 500 fighters in the blink of an eye. All of a sudden, the vast majority of Michael's hard work went down the drain.

Realization struck him hard. He slumped down to the ground as his legs went limp, staring at the collapsed entrance to the Elementals cave. Michael couldn't believe how his glorious conquest turned out to be nothing but a trap, an illusion.

One moment they had been killing everyone, gaining a foothold in the enemy's territory, and in the next moment almost everyone was dead.

It was his fault.

He should have been more stubborn, forcing his people to stay behind like he planned initially. But he gave in. He listened to their pleads and allowed them to come with him. He ordered them to rescue the Lesser Elementals instead of getting rid of the potential threats first. He was gullible and didn't even verify the authenticity of the claims of the Baron of Fire. He was blinded by greed and the desire to play hero trying to save the Elemental Empress.

He...killed them all...

Staring at Michael on the ground, the Elemental Empress pressed her lips in a thin line. Despite knowing that everything was her fault to a certain extent, the Elemental Empress remained silent. She just wanted to be saved, and the Elementals she created also knew that. They did their duty and sacrificed themselves for her. It wouldn't be fair to give excuses and apologize for their actions either. After all, she was glad to have escaped the Elementals Cave, and the Kitsun Lord's grasp.

Apologizing and pleading for forgiveness might console Michael, but it wouldn't be sincere. The Elemental Empress knew that her Elementals would do the same again even if they were given a second chance. They didn't want Michael to leave in fright so they intentionally left out some information to make sure that he would stay behind and rescue her. That was not nice, but it had been necessary - or so did the Baron of Fire think.

At the end of the day, the Elemental Empress had no excuses. The Elementals did all of this for her, after all. They died to rescue her and give her back the freedom she deserved.

But even then, the Elemental Empress didn't feel good. She felt worse physically and mentally with every passing second. However, the worst was that the True Link of Loyalty created between the Elemental Empress and Michael allowed her to feel Michael's emotions like they were her own.

The True Link of Loyalty allowed him to sense the Elemental Empress' turmoil as well. She was on the verge of death. But Michael couldn't care less about that at this moment. He was far from reasonable at this point. The sudden death of 1,500 combatants, all of whom had firm Links of Loyalty with him, hit Michael extremely hard. He couldn't protect his people. He led them straight into hell.

He should have gone alone.

Michael got up from the ground after a while. His eyes were focused on the entrance of the Elementals Cave, almost like he was hoping to witness a miracle. Deep inside his heart, he hoped that his subjects would emerge from the collapsed cavern entrance. However, he knew that it wouldn't happen. It was nothing but wishful thinking.

At some point, familiar voices reached him from behind.

"That explosion was terrifying. What actually happened here?" Tiara's voice resounded in Michael's ears, followed by Mika asking curiously, "And who is this little girl...or Spirit...or is she an Elemental?"

Michael turned around to see Tiara and the five Forest Elven Adventurers. Seeing them felt like a thousand hot needles pierced in his heart.

He didn't want them to find out what had happened. However, he also knew that it was impossible to hide his failure, his idiocy.

"Everyone died," Michael revealed slowly.

Lilica, who had just approached the Elemental Empress with a few potions in her hand, stopped in her tracks. Her eyes widened and her head flicked to Michael. The disbelief and shock in Lilica's eyes was intense. It felt like her gaze was burning holes in his body.

"How?" Liopham asked, stepping past Lilica to force Michael to look at him.

Michael's eyes moved to the Elemental Empress, but he couldn't say anything. He wanted to say that it had been the Elemental Empress' fault and that the Elementals loyal to her were at fault. But was that really the case?

At that moment, the Elemental Empress' weak voice reached their ears as she attempted to answer, "The Kitsun Lord...tortured us all. He is obsessed with us...because we can give him what he needs...power...and wealth... He would never allow anyone other than himself to possess us...to possess me... He killed everyone..."

While listening to the Elemental Empress' voice grew weaker with every word she said, Michael cursed himself inwardly. He knew that all of this was actually the Kitsun Lord's fault. In fact, calling anything a 'fault' during war was foolish. It was a war act of Michael to attack his main settlement and conquer the Elementals Cave. The Kitsun Lord's meticulous preparations resulted in the destruction of the Elementals Cave, and the deaths of both most of the Elementals and Michael's army.

Michael took a deep breath and clutched his chest for a second or two before he began summarizing what happened.

"After reading the memories and thoughts of the Kitsun Awakened Tiara brought back as a prey, I felt like we could make use of the Elementals. It would have been the easiest to rescue them and combine our forces. That was also why I came up with the plan. So, while you guys acted as a distraction, I decided to...."

Michael was not sure how much time he spent summarizing the events of the last few hours, but he was very detailed. It was already noon when he finished - which was not further surprising because Michael spent the entire night and morning in the Elementals Cave.

"Finally, my people are free. They don't have to be tortured and chained until the end of their days," The Elemental Empress said all of a sudden, ignoring the fact that 'free' meant death.

Everyone turned to her, unsure what to think about the Elemental Empress and her attitude.

'Liberation through death.' Michael thought gloomily.

He hated the fact that so many of his people died, but he was also fully aware that he couldn't change anything about it anymore. He had known that the Kitsun Lord was sly and cunning so he should have expected a trap to be laid out for him.

He didn't expect this kind of retaliation, but it was not further surprising. The Kitsun race was considered treacherous, sly, and merciless. They would sacrifice their own people if it provided benefits. Killing the vast majority of Michael's army could be considered a benefit - even if the Kitsun Lord lost one of the most important resources in his possession in exchange.

The Kitsun Lord lost a lot, and Michael was fully aware that someone as possessive as the Kitsun Lord wouldn't stop before he killed him for good.

That meant he had to change his way of thinking, and his attitude while facing the Kitsun Lord.

"We have to leave."

Tiara was the first to speak after Michael finished summarizing the events. She was still shocked about what happened, especially since she had been out hunting with most of the fighters over the course of several months. Tiara might not have been extremely close to any of the subjects, but she had trained all of them and trusted them a lot.

Their death shocked her, but she couldn't allow it to affect her. Not here, not right now.

"We had to kill a few dozen Awakened, and hundreds of Kitsun Summons while you were busy rescuing the Elemental Empress. The Kitsun Lord should have returned to the Origin Expanse as well at this point. I doubt he will remain silent now that the Elementals Cave is destroyed. Let's retreat and come up with a new plan," Lilica suggested to Michael, who nodded absentmindedly.

"We attacked his main settlement as well. He will definitely respond to our provocation," Mika said, trying hard to suppress the sadness and guilt caused by the death of 1,500 combatants.

Mika - just like most people in Michael's territory, including Michael - had been too naive about the danger of the Origin Expanse. Since Michael became a Lord, he faced many dangerous situations. One problem after another was thrown at him, yet he survived all of them, with little to no casualties at that.

However, the Origin Expanse was merciless, and war and death were always following them like a shadow. Listening to Michael's summary made him, and the other Forest Elven Adventurers recall how they lost their territory back in the days. Their time as Lords had been short...and it had been one of the most terrifying periods in their lives.

Recalling their short stint as Lords, the Forest Elves sighed deeply. Fighting side-by-side with Michael made them forget the dangers of the Origin Expanse, and the difficulties of being a Lord. A Lord was not only responsible for himself but also his territory and subjects. Their freedom was restricted as well. They couldn't travel through the Origin Expanse, and selfishly escape their enemies alone.

No. As a Lord, you had to face your enemies head-on, otherwise, you would lose your territory.

"No, we cannot leave," Michael said, looking at Tiara, who was already ready to leave.

"Why? Are you—..." Tiara was just about to confront Michael when she saw the hatred and the thirst for blood in his eyes.

However, that wasn't what caused her to shut her mouth. Other than the hatred and thirst for blood, Michael's eyes were also filled with determination.

"We cannot leave because the Kitsun Lord will probably open gates to the beast ranches with bloodthirsty monsters soon. He should have already realized that the majority of my army died in the Elementals Cave. The Kitsun might be weaker than others, but he won't hesitate to combine his forces and charge at my territory. We have to restrain them and attack now," Michael pointed out, knowing damn well that his words made him seem suicidal.

So what? He was tired of being the reasonable one.

Tiara looked at Michael for a while and ended up nodding, "They won't expect an attack now that they've struck us heavily. Master is right."

"It might be worth a try, probably?" Lilica asked, a lot more uncertain about what was going to happen in the next few hours.

She fed the Elemental Empress with a few potions to tend to her wounds. Meanwhile, Michael began to strategize.

"But before we attack, let's gear up," he said, retrieving the corpses of the Awakened he'd killed in the Elementals Cave.

It was time to get stronger and take revenge on those sly bastards!