Prime Minister Fuller was hiding behind a bright red curtain as he snuck a glance out the window. As it turned out, Onean had already arrived outside his manor. His informants had already notified him from the moment Onean entered through the city gates of Sarus, so he wasn't surprised by her visit, but what did come as quite a surprise to him was that she had managed to return from the front lines alive.

Looking at her ashen complexion and hollow eyes, he knew that the outcome of the war was exactly as he had predicted.

The butler of the manor knocked on the door before entering the room, and he was just about to report the arrival of Onean when Fuller raised a hand, gesturing for him to be quiet.

At this moment, he was thinking about how he should treat the princess in order to not arouse suspicions from Prince Lazaar. In the wake of the war that had just transpired, it was clear that Prince Lazaar was going to be the future king of the Effer Kingdom, and he didn't want Lazaar to suspect the role that he had played in the Pillow Sword Tournament incident.

This is something that I have to think carefully about. If I lead the remaining soldiers in the city to oppose Lazaar's army to the death, he'll be convinced that I've always been a firm supporter of Jenkins. In that case, he won't suspect me of any involvement in the Pillow Sword Tournament incident, but he may kill me for my perceived loyalty to Jenkins's faction, Fuller thought to himself. However, if I put up too little resistance and hand over Sarus to Lazaar without any opposition, then he'll be sure to suspect my identity. If I want to survive, I really do have to come up with a sound plan. I also have to hide my involvement with Sirius, so he won't be able to help me, which means I have to rely solely on myself. If Sirius tries to say something in my favor, Lazaar will definitely suspect that it was Sirius and me who poisoned Jeff during the Pillow Sword Tournament.

After a brief period of contemplation, he hurriedly rushed into the guest hall.

"Your Highness, what brings you here?" Fuller asked as he extended a respectful bow. 

"Prime Minister Fuller, are you aware that Prince Lazaar has betrayed the kingdom?" Onean asked in a straightforward manner as she looked directly at Fuller.

"Your Highness, haven't you been recovering from your injuries in the royal palace? How did you receive news that Prince Lazaar betrayed the kingdom?" Fuller asked in a perplexed manner.

"I just returned from the front lines in Burmen," Onean said in a cold voice.

Fuller's brows furrowed tightly with unease as he looked at Onean, then asked, "If Prince Lazaar has betrayed the kingdom, how is the war on the front lines going? Is His Majesty alright?"

"Lazaar has colluded with the Skycourt Kingdom, and my father and General Jenkins have already both perished to the soldiers of Burmen and the Skycourt Kingdom. The 100,000 troops that my father took with him to the front lines have also been entirely decimated," Onean replied in an indifferent voice, not expressing any overt grief or sorrow.

"What?!" An incredulous look appeared on Fuller's face as he stared at Onean, and he collapsed back onto the sofa behind him.

"Also, Aiden Lazaar is currently leading the soldiers of Burmen to Sarus right as we speak," Onean continued as she looked directly at Fuller.

Fuller was at a complete loss for words, seemingly overwhelmed by this sudden bombshell.

Onean paid no heed to Fuller's reaction as she asked, "How many soldiers do we have left in the city?"

"We have 10,000 city guards and 2,000 royal guards," Fuller replied after a brief moment of contemplation. "Are you planning to defend Sarus against the army of Burmen, Your Highness?"

Instead of answering Fuller's question, Onean began to rattle off a string of orders. "Release a royal decree on my behalf right away. Inform everyone within the borders of our kingdom that Prince Lazaar has betrayed the kingdom and that my father has fallen in battle. Summon all of our troops across the kingdom to reinforce Sarus as quickly as they can, then lock all of the city gates and encourage all of the city's citizens to defend Sarus with our soldiers. Also, direct all of the royal guards to defend the city walls as well. Our top priority right now is to defend Sarus with our lives."

Fuller was still rooted to the spot, failing to immediately react to these instructions.

A perplexed look appeared on Onean's face as she cast her gaze toward Fuller. "What are you hesitating for, Prime Minister Fuller?"

"Your Highness, with all due respect, no news has come back from the front lines yet. Could it be that there's been some type of miscommunication here?" Fuller asked as he took a glance at Onean, then immediately lowered his head again.

"Are you doubting me?" Onean asked as an authoritative look appeared in her golden eyes. "If Father hadn't sacrificed himself to save me, I would already be one of the corpses lying on the Marrod Plain right now. For the past few days, I've been traveling non-stop, weathering countless hardships before I finally returned to Sarus, yet you're doubting the authenticity of the news I've brought back from the front lines? Have you defected to Lazaar's side as well, Prime Minister Fuller?"

Fuller immediately fell to his knees with a panicked expression. "Please forgive me, Your Highness. This is an extremely important matter that concerns the welfare of His Majesty and General Jenkins, as well as the stance of Prince Lazaar, so I have to be more meticulous and careful than usual. Once I release the royal decree on your behalf, there will be no going back."

"There's no time to waste, Prime Minister Fuller. With each passing moment, the soldiers of Burmen are drawing closer and closer to the city. If Sarus falls, then the fall of the entire kingdom won't be far away. Do you want to go down in history as someone who indirectly brought about the downfall of the kingdom through your inaction?" Onean asked in a cold voice.

"My sincerest apologies, Your Highness," Fuller hurriedly said as he kowtowed over and over again.

Onean watched him with a dark expression, then said, "If you've made up your mind, then go and do what needs to be done."

"Yes, Your Highness," Fuller replied as he hurriedly rose to his feet, and he was in such a hurry to leave the room that he almost knocked over the table beside him on his way out.

...

As soon as the royal decree was released, all of the citizens of Sarus erupted into a frenzy. Many of them hadn't even had a chance to eat breakfast yet, and they were so shocked by the contents of the royal decree that breakfast became the last thing on their minds.

"What?! His Majesty is dead?!" someone yelled while standing in front of a royal bulletin board.

"My god, is the royal family about to be dethroned? Prince Lazaar has already betrayed the kingdom!"

"Hey, have you guys heard? The city gates have already been locked, and no one is allowed to enter or exit the city."

"Does that mean Prince Lazaar is leading his troops to attack the city? Otherwise, why would they lock all of the city gates?"

"Prince my arse! I knew from the moment I saw him that he was a piece of traitorous scum. I'm gonna go see if the city guards need more help."

"I can't believe he betrayed our kingdom and colluded with the enemy in the middle of a war! There's no way he's going to get away with doing something so heinous!"

"Quiet down, you two! Who knows if the soldiers in the city will be able to defend Sarus? If Sarus gets conquered by Prince Lazaar, you two could end up getting reported for what you just said," someone cautioned in a low voice.

"I ain't scared of him! Lazaar? More like Lick-my-arse! I will forever be loyal to..." Before the man had a chance to finish, he was grabbed by the ear by his wife and dragged away.

"Do you think Her Highness will be able to defend the city from Lazaar? All of the soldiers of the kingdom were taken by His Majesty to the front lines. Do we even have any troops left to defend the city?" someone else asked in a concerned voice.

"I reckon it'll be very difficult. Her Highness is a powerful magician, but Lazaar has way too many troops under his control. Even His Majesty is dead, I don't think she'll be able to defend Sarus on her own."

"Don't we still have the city guards? I heard that they have 10,000 men..."

"Ptui! Screw those city guards! All they do is extort small businesses for protection fees! They won't be able to beat anyone! Prince Lazaar's army was able to wipe out even His Majesty's Royal Guard and Royal Cavalry Brigade, there's no way those good-for-nothing city guards will stand any chance," someone in the crowd yelled in a furious voice.

"I can attest to that. My nephew works in the city guard, and I've heard him mention on more than one occasion that the so-called city guard is just a bunch of glorified bandits in disguise. All they think about is how to extort common folk like us as much as possible without losing their jobs. In a real battle, they don't even qualify as cannon fodder," an elderly man grumbled in a disgruntled voice.

"Looks like there are going to be some rough days ahead for all of us. If you ask me, we should all just bunker down in our homes and wait until the storm blows over."

Many people in the crowd nodded in agreement with this sentiment.

"Do you guys think Prince Lazaar betrayed His Majesty because of the Pillow Sword Tournament? I can see him developing a grudge there before deciding to take advantage of the war in Burmen to stage a rebellion."

"When it comes to things like this, it's very hard to say. If you ask me, I feel like Prince Lazaar has already been plotting this for a long time, and has been waiting for an opportunity to enact his plan."

"Wasn't there an investigation launched into the Pillow Sword Tournament incident? I recall that the result of the investigation was that someone from the Skycourt Kingdom was responsible for the incident. Could it be that the Skycourt Kingdom screwed over Prince Lazaar's son?" someone speculated. "Or could it be that he's willing to sacrifice his own son for the throne?"

The man who had volunteered to help out the city guards earlier was still hanging around, and he said, "He's a slimy bastard who colluded with the enemy and killed the king! I certainly wouldn't put it past him to sacrifice his own son. In fact, I struggle to think of anything he won't stoop to in his deranged quest for power."

"In times of uncertainty like this, there are some things that are better left unsaid. Who knows what could happen? Maybe the royal family will be dethroned by Prince Lazaar in the next few days. If that happens, we'll be completely at his mercy, so we should be extra careful with what we say right now."

"That's true..."

Many people were eager to agree with this viewpoint.

Of course, there were also quite a few people who continued to insist on verbally denouncing Prince Lazaar while expressing their support of the royal family. However, as for whether they were actually going to join the city guard, that was a different matter entirely.

Perhaps in the near future, Prince Lazaar could seize control over the entire kingdom, but he could never control what people thought about him. A similar sentiment could be applied to King Cameron as well. As he was exiting the city from Phoenix Street, all of the common folk had sent him off with joy and reverence, but in the wake of his death, there was no outpouring of grief from the common folk, only concern for their own futures.

...

In the afternoon, Onean led Erwin to the top of the city wall to inspect the city's defenses.

Sarus had been expanded on several occasions during the past century, and the outer city had already expanded outward by several dozen kilometers compared with 100 years ago. As a place with a population in excess of 1,000,000, it naturally had to be an enormous and majestic city.

Hence, it really was a very difficult task for 12,000 men to defend such a massive city.