Abyssal Chronicles

Chapter 757 - 758: The Gamble

"Are we going to take action? My Lord, are you serious?!"

After receiving instructions from Xiao, Wanya was stunned. She couldn’t help but look at her duke with disbelief.

Undoubtedly,

The capture of their lady by humans and being imprisoned in the sky prison completely exceeded the Black Rose family’s plans. Although the Duke was adept at preparing various contingencies, none were ready for the current situation. After all... who would have thought that Yumo would be captured?!

This unexpected event completely disrupted their existing plans and arrangements.

Although the Black Rose family had intended to head north to eliminate the Red Leaf Empire and the Asumos Church in one fell swoop to put an end to future troubles, Wanya was well aware. The Black Rose family, while powerful, facing these two top forces and a multitude of Holy War participants, was undoubtedly a tall tale. Even with the assistance of Lady Kalina’s Ghostly Flame mercenaries, it was the same.

Whether in terms of strong individual numbers or army size, the opponents had an overwhelming advantage.

Their planned northward movement was to launch an attack when Yumo and a group of human strongholds clashed! Taking advantage of the outbreak of a great war within Anvika, most of the human forces would be tied down by Yumo! Of course, it wasn’t just the Black Rose family and the Ghostly Flame mercenaries that would take action, but also the abyssal demon groups prepared by Liyu and Shuoyue in the North.

They attempted to completely crush human forces through a pincer movement and by surprise, to fully incorporate the Red Leaf Empire into the dominion of the Black Rose.

This way, the main forces of the human empire would fall under their control, allowing them to freely manipulate and erase all hostility on this vast land towards the abyssal demons and Yumo.

But now?

The situation is clearly very different from what they expected.

Yumo being captured means that there might not be a direct confrontation with human forces. Those from the Asumos Church and the Holy Tower, not only would they not be much delayed, but they could also retain their full combat strength. The hundreds of thousands of troops gathered near Anvika could be instantly deployed to the battlefield.

Under these circumstances, launching a direct attack on the Red Leaf Empire?!

Perhaps that’s not a wise decision.

Thus, after receiving Xiao’s instructions, Wanya stood there stunned. After confirming she hadn’t misheard, Wanya once again questioned Xiao:

"My Lord, are you serious? In this situation, taking the initiative carries huge risks! And... without a direct outbreak of conflict, we also don’t have a justified reason to strike..."

"How could there not be one? Wanya."

After settling the young wolf girl on a sofa nearby, Xiao responded calmly.

He had to admit, Yumo’s actions had completely disrupted his original plans. But as an experienced strategist, Xiao had seen all sorts of situations. After a brainstorming session, he roughly figured out a strategy.

"Mother is threatened, and Limo is so agitated. Shouldn’t we help alleviate their worries? Besides, Mother has been captured, so what if we get a bit impulsive?"

"But, Lady Yumo, she... she was captured on purpose, wasn’t she? She didn’t instruct us to take action..."

"No, no, no, how could we possibly know whether she was captured on purpose?"

"What do you mean?"

Wanya frowned, seeming to grasp Xiao’s idea in that moment.

"What’s the news from the Red Leaf Empire? It couldn’t possibly be that Bloody Butterfly has surrendered voluntarily, right?"

"No... according to their official statement, a master attending the Saintes’s coronation ceremony detected something amiss and captured Blood Butterfly."

"Isn’t that enough?"

Xiao clapped his hands together with a playful tone.

"Our Black Rose family is just a small force in the southern part of the continent, and Nightingale is a ’newly’ developed intelligence organization. How could we possibly clarify what’s happening thousands of miles away in Anvika? So, Mother was captured by the humans and is in danger. Don’t we, as her children, have a duty to rescue her?"

"I understand you now, My Lord"

Wanya nodded solemnly.

However, the hesitation in the Secretary’s eyes remained:

"But with our current strength, if we clash head-on, I’m afraid..."

"No, now is the right time to act."

Xiao directly interrupted Wanya’s words, "Although Mother was captured intentionally, with their Holy War target so readily walking into their net, the likes of Kael will surely be uneasy. In the short term, those guys will focus all their attention on Mother, with the enemy’s military might undoubtedly concentrated near Anvika, guarding against Bloody Butterfly’s ’conspiracy’. Wouldn’t that mean defenses in other areas are weakened? Now is the perfect time for us to strike unexpectedly and launch our attack."

Saying this,

Xiao slowly turned his head to look out the window.

"Besides, if we don’t step up now, will those outside be convinced?"

"This…"

Following Xiao’s gaze, Wanya also turned her attention to the square outside, which had become unusually bustling. With the news of Yumo’s capture spreading, the members of the Black Rose family had entered a state of full readiness, eager and ready to march north at Xiao’s command.

In the hearts of the core members of the Black Rose family, Yumo’s safety was of utmost importance. The mere thought of Yumo being captured and possibly facing life-threatening danger was enough to uncontrollably spread a murderous intent within them. Even without the danger, the mere thought of Yumo being imprisoned in the sky prison was enough to escalate their anger.

After all, in their hearts, Yumo was always to be cherished, respected, and protected...

Daring to put Yumo in a place as terrible as the sky prison?!

It was simply intolerable!!!

Thus, within just a few dozen minutes, the entire Black Rose family had entered a frenzied state of preparation for war, determined to rescue Yumo from Anvika and then to chop up the Pope!

Noticing those from the Black Rose gathering outside, waiting for Xiao’s signal to march, Wanya’s brow twitched slightly.

Xiao, however, showed a wry smile:

"Our Black Rose family is not linked by blood; what links us is actually Mother. With her ’in trouble,’ they won’t just sit by. In this situation, I can’t stop them. After all, not everyone understands Mother’s strength as you and I do. To many, she is seen as a slightly stronger but naively gentle and sweet mother."

"It seems like there’s no stopping them."

Looking at the angry faces, Wanya frowned slightly in difficulty.

To this, Xiao simply smiled calmly.

"So, let’s not stop them. In this state, their combat effectiveness should increase quite a bit."

"Powered by anger... But, My Lord. Even if we can make it to Anvika. Facing the joint forces of top experts from various powers, it would be hard for us to win, right?"

"Yes, we can’t win."

Xiao admitted straightforwardly.

Then, the Black Rose Duke gazed thoughtfully into the distance, towards Anvika:

"Anyway, my goal isn’t to win."

As he spoke, Xiao clenched his fists tightly.

Upon learning of Yumo’s capture,

Though he still maintained a calm demeanor on the surface, Xiao’s heart, like all those in the Black Rose family, was sinking into a quagmire of anxiety. Indeed, he knew Yumo wasn’t defeated by humans but had allowed herself to be captured. But precisely because of this, he felt even more uneasy.

After all, Xiao was well aware, Yumo, the troublesome mother, always had a tendency towards self-sacrifice.

Her voluntary surrender couldn’t be because she suddenly had a death wish, Hoping to end it all through human hands?! Even though Yumo was powerful, recklessly seeking death and enduring attacks could still pose a life-threatening danger...

Xiao couldn’t tolerate such a thing happening.

Thus, He decided to take a gamble, risking it all.

Betting their very lives...

He had hoped to use the Holy War to force those fools from the Asumos Church to compel Yumo to act. But now it seems... they would have to do it themselves.