Chapter 696: The Planner

Henwell forces his army back toward camp. On the way, the cavalry battalions of the Fearless Sword Legion and the First Guard Legion try to cut him off.

But two cavalry battalions from the Formation Breaker troops intercept them immediately.

The kingdom cavalry suffers a small loss in that brief clash.

In formation movement, Peace Haven's troops are among the fastest on the continent.

The two closest Fearless Sword warbands try to accelerate and block Henwell's route, but after chasing for less than a kilometer, they have no choice but to give up.

Their formations begin to scatter as they run.

At the same time, the Formation Breaker troops warband on Henwell's left suddenly accelerates, looking as if it is about to strike them.

The commander of the Fearless Sword Legion can only order his soldiers to stop and reform.

That left-side warband brushes past them without fighting.

When Jonathan's main force arrives, Henwell's three warbands have already returned safely to the camp.

The Peace Haven camp, built with baggage carts as barriers, has been reinforced again.

Cart-mounted ballistae stand throughout the camp, and the surrounding armies no longer dare to approach rashly.

That night, Jonathan summons the leaders of every army.

"Henwell has gone mad," Jonathan says coldly. "He publicly executed a grand duke of the kingdom. As king of Vorry, I hereby strip Henwell of all titles, remove all legal protection from him, and order the seizure of his territory. His army is now in rebellion. All Vorry nobles must join the encirclement against him."

Duke Marcus says calmly, "My troops and siege engines will not be provided."

Jonathan looks at him.

"Duke Marcus, do you intend to disobey the king's order?"

Duke Marcus replies, "Not helping Henwell is already the greatest help I can offer. Do not force me to fight my own son-in-law."

Jonathan says, "I am the king of Vorry."

Duke Marcus says, "Then wait until your formal coronation."

After saying this, Duke Marcus turns and leaves.

Duke Obiken stands as well.

"I am old and tired. I should go rest."

With Duke Obiken taking the lead, the other nobles and legion commanders leave one after another.

No one wants to be the first to charge at Henwell.

After all, Grand Duke Quinns has just died at his hands.

Jonathan flies into a rage in the tent and orders the armies to continue the encirclement tomorrow.

After everyone leaves, the rage on Jonathan's face vanishes.

He calmly tidies the items on the table, then whistles a light tune.

A voice comes from the shadows.

"Was that performance just now the act, or is this the act?"

Jonathan smiles.

"Why can it not be both?"

A shadow slowly emerges.

"You should either fear Henwell, or fear being forced to work with me."

Jonathan looks at the shadow.

"Dramatist, which one do you think I should fear?"

The Dramatist flips the coin in his hand.

"Of course, you should fear me. After all, I am an evil villain. But Henwell is also evil, and he can fight, so you should fear him even more."

Jonathan says calmly, "What I see is a beast trapped in a cage. He is dangerous, yes, but he is also ruled by emotion."

The Dramatist laughs softly.

"He is contradictory. Sometimes clever, sometimes foolish. That is what gives him depth. I like this role, but since we must cooperate, I still need to wake you up. You are worse than King Amir. That old lion feared Henwell. Why do you underestimate him?"

Jonathan's expression remains unchanged.

The Dramatist continues, "Until Henwell is dead, keep your guard up. If the plan fails, there will still be other chances. But Jonathan, my king, if you ruin my drama, I will turn you into a soul-retaining puppet. Judging by the screams in my collection room, being one of those puppets is not pleasant."

Jonathan says, "I know Henwell is difficult to handle."

"I am not reminding you," the Dramatist says. "I am threatening you."

A tall man in Church armor says in a low voice, "Enough. I am already restraining the urge to kill you."

The Dramatist turns and looks at him.

"Senar, do you intend to defy the Church's will? You may be called the Eye of the Holy Spirit, but you are not a saint. If the Church and your superior permit it, you can kill me."

Senar says coldly, "We can deal with Henwell without you."

The Dramatist slowly circles him.

"If you go find Henwell now, your head will be sent back to the Western Federation. Invincible beneath Glory? Have you fought Henwell? If the Church treats this so lightly, then I need to prepare a retreat path for myself."