Chapter 173. The Beginning of an Empire
Several days later, Darwin’s shadow swept over a chain of mountains, and the border of the Dragon Kingdom could already be seen clearly below.
Just as William was about to have Darwin descend, two figures suddenly leaped out from the forest beneath them and landed steadily atop a massive boulder.
On the left stood a Barbarian Shaman draped in animal pelts, his face painted with red markings, a scepter inlaid with a skull clutched in his hand.
On the right was a white-haired old orc with protruding tusks. His eyes were clouded, yet they still carried a vicious edge.
“Heh heh, boy, turn back,” the Barbarian Shaman said with a grin, tapping his scepter against the ground.
“You want to carve out a way for the Kroll Kingdom to survive? Keep dreaming. As long as we’re here today, don’t think about setting foot in the Dragon Kingdom.”
The old orc echoed him in a muffled voice.
“Human schemes won’t fool us.”
Sitting on the dragon’s back, William remained calm and said nothing.
He was waiting. He did not believe for a second that the Dragon Kingdom would fail to send someone to receive him.
Sure enough, before long, a booming laugh rang out from the sky, tinged with mockery.
“Hahaha, aren’t the two of you meddling a little too broadly? What do the affairs of human kingdoms have to do with foreign races?”
As the words fell, a figure clad in silver armor rode in on a giant dragon and came to a halt between William and the two non-humans.
The newcomer was Prince Pedro of the Dragon Kingdom. He gave William a slight nod, then turned toward the two intruders, his expression darkening.
“This is Dragon Kingdom territory. Since when was it your place to run wild here?”
The Barbarian Shaman’s face shifted slightly. “Is the Dragon Kingdom really planning to go to war? If you don’t want war, then send this boy away...”
“He is a guest of the Dragon Kingdom.”
Pedro cut him off, his tone hard and unyielding.
“On Dragon Kingdom soil, it is not the place of outsiders to point fingers. Either get lost, or don’t blame me for being rude.”
The old orc still wanted to argue, but the shaman stopped him.
The two exchanged a look. It was obvious that the Dragon Kingdom had already made up its mind to allow William Kroll to enter. There was no point in saying anything more.
Without another word, they turned and left.
Only after the two had completely disappeared did Prince Pedro turn back to William.
“Your Highness has come from afar, and Dragon Kingdom regrets not receiving you properly. His Majesty has already received word and ordered me to wait here. Please, come with me.”
William nodded. “My thanks, Your Highness.”
Darwin let out a low growl and followed Pedro’s giant dragon as they flew toward the heartland of the Dragon Kingdom.
This time, they did not head for the royal capital. Pedro took William straight to the Teleportation Array within the Royal Family Secret Realm, and the two figures vanished into the array.
In the days that followed, the entire Eastern Continent was dragged into the eye of the storm.
As though they had received a unified command, the barbarian tribes and the Orc Kingdom sent out their legions in full force, arraying them all along the Dragon Kingdom’s border. Their banners blotted out the sky, and the war drums made even the earth tremble, their gleaming spearheads aimed directly at the Dragon Kingdom’s heartland.
This sudden pressure was like a massive stone crashing into an already turbulent lake.
The surrounding human kingdoms could no longer remain still. If the Dragon Kingdom fell, the next to suffer might well be them.
For a time, several human kingdoms declared war one after another, either openly or in secret sending troops to support the Dragon Kingdom.
Even the small kingdoms that had originally remained neutral were forced to mobilize their legions to defend their borders. The nerves of the entire Eastern Continent were stretched to the breaking point.
What was even more unexpected was that the non-human kingdoms were also dragged into the vortex.
Among the elven branches, the Dark Whisper Forest Defensive Line quietly tightened.
The Gnome Merchant Guild began hoarding food and recruiting legions. Even the troll tribes, which had long lain dormant, began showing signs of mobilization, as though a catastrophe that would sweep across every race was brewing.
Amid this chaos, the Reinhardt Kingdom and the Kadiya Kingdom suddenly forged an alliance. The two kingdoms combined their armies and jointly resisted the steadily advancing Dwarf Kingdom and Lizardfolk Kingdom.
The battlefield spread from Kadiya’s Northern Frontier to the plains of Reinhardt. The thunder of iron armor colliding with battle axes, and the savage roar of magic interwoven with beastly howls, became the unchanging background of each day on the Eastern Continent.
William, who had returned to the Kroll Kingdom only a few days earlier, now stood inside the palace of the royal capital, gazing at the enormous war map before him as his fingertips brushed across the markers representing the various powers.
The orcs were pressing at the borders, humanity was closing ranks, and the non-human races were stirring...
This game of chess was even more chaotic than he had expected, yet it also suited Kroll’s interests all the more.
Inside the Council Hall, candlelight flickered across Kroll II’s grave face.
He looked at William, who stood beside the war map.
“Dragon Mother Daenerys has already advanced into the Domain. Even more unexpectedly, the Dragon Island Grand Elder directly granted her five Domain-level giant dragons.”
At that point, he jabbed a finger heavily onto the map.
“William, I think we can find the right moment to make our move. With Dragon Mother’s strength keeping them in check, the pressure on our eastern front will be cut by more than half.”
William nodded, his eyes resting on the marker representing Dragon Island.
“Dragon Mother’s rise is indeed an opportunity, but we still need to wait a little longer. The Dragon Kingdom’s position has not yet become fully clear. Acting rashly could easily leave us in a passive position.”
His tone shifted as he asked, “Father, have there been any new developments from those four non-human kingdoms?”
Kroll II shook his head, his tone carrying a trace of impatience.
“What else could they say? They sent people again. They still want you to help test the aptitude of members of their clans.”
“I already rejected them clearly, but judging from their attitude, they have no intention of giving up. They even resorted to threats. I’m afraid they will keep pestering us.”
William’s brows rose slightly.
“There is no need to concern ourselves with them. The situation on the Eastern Continent is in chaos right now. They do not dare truly tear things apart. Once we stabilize the western front, it will not be too late to deal with them afterward.”
Kroll II drew a deep breath and nodded.
“That works. You’ve just returned from the Dragon Kingdom, so rest for a few days first. In a few days, Reinhardt’s envoy will arrive. We still need you to decide on the deployment of the allied forces.”
“Yes, Father.”
William turned and left the Council Hall. The night was already deep, and only the wall lamps along the palace corridor cast a dim yellow glow.
As he looked at the waning moon hanging in the sky, he knew very well that whether the Kroll Kingdom could advance into an empire would depend on this very moment.
In the days that followed, William devoted almost all of his energy to military expansion and reorganization.
Kroll II had already handed over most of the kingdom’s military and administrative authority to him, allowing him to fully implement his own military doctrine.
His core idea was clear and sharp: concentrate resources and forge elites.
As for the Monster Legions and the Royal Legions, William ordered a sweeping reduction and restructuring.
Those soldiers and knights with mediocre aptitude and stagnant combat power, no matter how long they had served, were all transferred out of the core legions and reassigned to the newly formed Eleventh through Twentieth Royal Legions.
These ten legions would not take on front-line combat duties. Their main responsibilities were training recruits and guarding the borders, under the command of seasoned veteran generals.
“The battlefield is not a place to keep idle men,” William declared at the military council, his words striking the floor like iron.
“The First through Tenth Royal Legions must become Kroll’s sharpest sword. Every single soldier in them must be an elite chosen from a hundred.”
He personally set harsh selection standards. Every month, he would make time to visit the various legion garrisons to conduct aptitude testing and live-combat assessments.
Those soldiers who distinguished themselves during the evaluations would be promoted swiftly and transferred into the core legions.
And anyone in the core legions who showed the slightest slackness or decline in combat power would be reassigned without mercy to the newly formed legions.
The distribution of resources was also heavily tilted toward the core legions.
The finest armor, the most well-crafted weapons, and the rarest magic potions were all supplied first to the First through Tenth Royal Legions.
The Monster Legions received special attention as well. William transferred multiple high-tier magical beast eggs from the royal treasury vault and personally supervised their hatching and bonding in order to raise the overall combat power of the legions.
The Eleventh through Twentieth Royal Legions, meanwhile, became a “talent reserve pool.”
Veterans trained new recruits, tempering them through practical drills as they waited for the next round of selection.
This system of promotion and demotion was like a whip lashing every soldier, forcing them never to slack off.
Naturally, such reforms touched the interests of certain people, and opposition never ceased.
Some old noble houses believed the move was too radical and would easily chill the hearts of the old troops.
But William’s attitude was resolute.
“In chaotic times, softness is irresponsibility toward the entire kingdom.”
“Rather than letting mediocrities occupy resources, it is better to let those with real potential step forward. They can defend Kroll’s lands, and they can let more people survive.”
Kroll II fully supported his son’s measures and even personally took charge of suppressing every dissenting voice.
The flames of war across the Eastern Continent were still spreading, and this was precisely the best possible time for drilling troops and carrying out the reorganization.