Chapter 446: Onward to war

After the Chief declared that he was willing to go to war, the elders felt like they no longer had a choice but to follow. Seeing that he had finally convinced the beastkin to join him in battle, he wanted to call Ren and Lara back.

'Hmm, knowing those two they must be hiding their presence. Even with my skill, I wouldn't be able to find Lara much less, Ren.'

Knowing that he wouldn't be able to find Ren and Lara even if he searched, Valdel thought of another way to call them over.

The surrounding beastkin who were busying themselves by calling their subordinates to prepare for war suddenly stopped. They noticed a terrifying surge of mana coming from Valdel. When they felt that massive amount of mana, the group of warriors started to sweat profusely. They now understood that Valdel was just playing with them when they battled, he wasn't even trying when he fought them. It was already obvious but feeling the strength of his mana made their thoughts real.

'Is this his full strength, or is he hiding something more?' The head warrior was amazed by how much mana Valdel had. The head warrior then suddenly remembered the two companions that came with Valdel.

'Are they as strong as Valdel, or is Valdel the strongest?' The head warrior didn't even want to think about the possibility that the other two were stronger than Valdel. Yet at the back of his mind, he remembered the arrogant look on Ren's face. The head warrior shook his head trying to get the thought out of his head. It was at that moment Valdel's mana which he was accumulating burst out and made a sound as if a wolf was howling.

Valdel's mighty mana was felt throughout the whole underground city. Mages and Warriors alike shivered when they felt that massive mana burst out. On the other hand, the ordinary citizens only felt a little bit uncomfortable, but they were surprised that someone was howling so loudly.

Ren who was listening to Lara's story felt the mana fluctuation that spread throughout the entire underground city. He and Lara obviously knew whose mana fluctuation this was from. Ren's lips curved up a little.

'That guy telling us to leave when he wants to, and calling us back like this. I guess he has more guts now that he got his memories as Kir. I would really want not to respond to his call like I'm some kind of servent, but... I really am curious as to what happened with those descendants of his.'

Ren thought about it for a little while before shrugging his shoulders and sighing. "Lara let's continue this conversation later, for now, let's meet our old friend Val and see what's he's doing."

Lara nodded her head and both she and Ren stood up from their positions. The two then disappeared from the roof of the house they were at.

...

A few minutes after Valdel released his burst of mana, Ren and Lara appeared before him. The warriors and elders who haven't seen Ren and Lara before were surprised by their sudden appearance. They didn't even notice the two as they arrived. If the two wanted to they could've killed them before anyone noticed.

The warriors and elders quickly got their weapons out and surrounded Ren and Lara. When Ren saw the reaction of the beastkin before him he couldn't help but show his vicious smile.

"Do you guys wanna play with me?" Ren asked before he suddenly disappeared from everyone's sight. Not one beastkin was able to follow Ren's movement when he suddenly appeared before a nearby warrior. As Ren's fist struck, Valdel appeared and blocked it.

"Ren, please."

"Tsk, are you going to ruin my fun?" The warrior who was supposed to get hit by Ren fell. Everyone was surprised by what Ren did. Valdel sighed as he saw the displeasure on Ren's face. If this continued Ren would most likely attack everyone on sight including him.

"Don't worry Ren we're about to do something you would enjoy even more."

"Oh, is that so? Then what are we going to do?"

"We're going to war with the Holy Kingdom." The moment those words left Valdel's lips, Ren's expression had some dramatic changes. At first, he showed a shocked expression, then it slowly changed to a happy one and then into a ferocious-looking facial expression.

As his excitement rose Ren couldn't hold back his mana. The moment Ren's mana started to leak, all the beastkin present knelt onto the ground unable to breathe. This was so much worse than when Valdel was releasing his mana. Unlike Valdel's mana that had simply forced them to kneel, this one could kill them.

"Ren!"

When Ren heard Valdel's shout he finally noticed what was happening around him and controlled his mana. He had forgotten that with how weak the people of this era were, his current mana leaking out could potentially kill them. When the oppressive force of Ren's mana disappeared all of the beastkin looked at Ren in a new light.

This guy was obviously someone they should never mess with. He was quick to attack, and the power he wielded could literally crush them and he need not lift a finger. The beastkin couldn't help but look at Lara, was that girl even more of a monster than the other two? Unaware of what the surrounding beastkin were feeling Ren shrugged his shoulders.

"Sorry about that, I got way too excited. So we're going to war, what's the plan?"

"We'll do it the way you have always done things, attacking at the front in full force."

"Now that's what I want to hear! When are we heading out?"

"Right this moment."

"Yes!... Oh right, are we bringing these weaklings with us?" Ren looked at the beastkin warriors and elders. When they saw Ren looking at them, the group of beastkin unconsciously lowered their heads in fear. When Ren saw their reaction he felt disappointed.

"We're bringing them, I need to baptize them with steel and spells. They need to learn how to be true warriors through battle."

When the beastkin heard what Valdel said they clenched their fists and gritted their teeth. On the other hand, Ren nodded his head before speaking.

"Many of them are going to die."

"That's alright, this is a cleansing, I need to instill pride and honor into my descendants' very souls. Those that survive this ordeal will become true warriors, who will then teach the next generation."

...

It took the beastkin half a day to gather their fighting force. The army that would head out to battle wasn't just filled with beastkin, they were other demi-humans in their ranks. There were the dwarves, half-demons, and the half-dragons.

The equipment of each race was of varying quality. The dwarves were wearing heavy armor, while the beastkin were wearing light armor, and the half-demons were wearing different quality of armor, ranging from poor to pretty good. On the other hand, the half-dragons weren't wearing any armor and wore everyday clothing instead.

When Valdel saw this sight he couldn't help but sigh. The difference between the army of the Holy Kingdom and the underground city was like heaven and earth. On the other hand, Ren was getting even more excited knowing that they were at a disadvantage in this war.

As they were about to march out of the city, somebody blocked their path and shouted.

"STOP!" The head warrior was the first to react upon seeing the person who was blocking their path. "Big Brother..."