Silas turned and saw Draven was still just watching him.
"Drav," Silas said quietly, "I think I should tell you some of the secrets I've been holding until now."
Draven nodded. For him, it didn't matter what secrets Silas kept. He could tell him if he wanted to, and if he didn't, that was okay too.
Silas grabbed the hem of the t-shirt Draven wore under his armor, twisting the fabric in his fingers. He couldn't quite meet his eyes.
"I... I am not from here, Draven. I was from a planet called Earth. One day..."
And he told him everything from the start. How he had been a well known author. How his family owned a famous library, and the book they carried through generations. How he found the book written in an ancient language. How he died clutching it to his chest, and how he woke up here, transmigrated into this world, into a beautiful family.
By the time he got to that part, his voice was shaking. He started sobbing, afraid Draven wouldn't believe him, afraid this secret would be the crack that broke them apart.
Draven didn't say a word at first. He just took Silas's face in both of his hands, leaned in, and kissed him. He deepened the kiss slowly while his thumb wiped the tears from Silas's cheeks.
He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against Silas's, chuckling softly.
"Babe. I already fell for you. Even if you were an alien, I'd love you like this forever."
Silas looked up at him, eyes still wet. Draven pulled him into a hard hug that squished him against his armor.
"And I'm really happy that book chose you," Draven continued. "No matter what, you deserve that recognition. Otherwise, how would I have met you?"
Silas just made a small sound against his chest. "Mmm."
Draven grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him in the eyes again, serious now. "And about your family, the one you haven't told me about yet. Don't worry about that. No matter which family you belong to, I'll stand by your side."
Silas hugged him tighter and didn't let go.
After a few seconds, a dungeon vortex swirled open in the middle of the boss room, green light spinning. The dungeon was telling them the problem inside was solved.
Draven laced his fingers with Silas's.
They both stepped through and left the C-level dungeon together.
In the Red Fort Margraviate — a small land, barely big enough for a baron.
Aleric was seated on the throne in the main hall. The castle itself was small for a margrave, but it was the only castle this poor borderland had.
They were the border of the Valerius Archduchy. Because of that, 20,000 to 30,000 Valerius soldiers were permanently stationed here, along with a level 70 general to oversee the frontier.
This land also touched a vast desert that led straight into the Beast Imperium. After receiving the emperor's letter, Aleric had become even more alert. Their territory was going to be invaded by the beastmen. But he still hadn't asked his family for help.
The general, known as general Kaelen Varrus stepped forward and bowed slightly toward the margrave.
"My lord, if you do not send an envoy to ask for help from the Archduchy, it will be too late to fight the enemy."
Aleric was still turning the consequences over in his head. He frowned.
"I can't. If I ask Father for help, and the Archduchy sends its troops here to fight the beastmen, the Imperium will attack the Archduchy immediately from the other side. I don't think the Emperor hasn't thought of that..."
Torin, standing beside him, clenched his fists hard. It was all because of their village.
"Then why don't we surrender?" Torin said. "If the villagers and I surrender, at least you'd be able to stop this war."
Aleric looked at Torin and sighed. No matter how many times he told Torin to stop blaming himself, that they were not responsible for this situation, he never stopped thinking about it.
"Torin, it is not that simple," Aleric said. "Do you think even if you surrender they'd let us live?"
The general nodded. "The Margrave is right. They won't let us live even if you surrender with your people. The Imperium wants us dead."
Torin's face went pale.
Aleric chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "Don't worry about it. I know someone who won't stop, even if my family can't send help here. He'll take revenge for my death. If today I need to sacrifice myself, I will stand against the enemy."
At that moment, a soldier suddenly burst into the hall, gasping for breath.
"My lord! My lord... something... something terrible has happened..." He was heaving, clearly having run for several minutes to reach the hall.
Aleric stood up from his throne and looked at the soldier, confusion flashing in his eyes. "Tell me. What happened?"
The soldier dropped to one knee. "My lord! A huge army is heading toward our land through the desert."
Aleric, Torin, and the general all went wide-eyed at the same time.
Aleric's voice dropped. "How many are they?"
The soldier gulped, his voice shaking. "Near... nearly 400,000 of them. Kobolds, wolves, and hyenas, all in their half-human forms. And... Two generals are leading them."
A beat of silence fell over the hall. Everyone could feel their hearts hammering against their chests.
Aleric let out a short, mocking laugh. "So, they really do want me dead."
He glanced at the general. "Four hundred thousand against our thirty thousand. The Emperor is really playing hard to control my family...." He chuckled.
The general's jaw tightened and he slammed a fist to his chest. "Then we will make them pay for every inch, my lord."
Torin stepped closer to Aleric, voice low but fierce. "If we die, we'll die fighting, standing against our enemies. Not cowering from fear."
Both of them looked at Aleric, their expressions grim but resolved. They were sad for him, but neither would leave his side no matter what.
Aleric's gaze sharpened until it was like an eagle's. His voice was firm, cutting through the tension.
"Inform the soldiers. Sound the war horns. We'll meet the enemy at the Red Wall. If this is to be our last stand, then let the Beast Imperium remember the name Valerius."
The soldier nodded sharply and left the room with steady steps. He was a Valerius soldier. And Valerius soldiers did not know what fear was. They would fight beside their lord until their last breath.
After the soldier left, the air in the void shook. A figure stepped out of it and dropped to one knee before Aleric.
Torin and the general were alert in an instant, hands moving to their weapons, but when they saw that Aleric recognized the man, they stopped.
Aleric stared at him, surprised. "Zephiron?"
Zephiron bowed his head. "Yes, my lord. What is your order?"
Aleric frowned, confused. "Weren't you missing from the day I lost consciousness?"
Zephiron shook his head. "No, my lord. I was instructed by the Archduke not to interfere unless your life was truly in danger. I guided you through the forest and left you where only the villagers could find you. Then I withdrew."
Now Aleric understood why he had woken up near Little Tiger Village. "So it was you..."
Aleric's expression darkened. "But why are you following me now? I've already lost my title. The family cast me out."
Zephiron's voice was steady as he declared, "That is another rule of the Valerius Archduchy, my lord. No matter if the person you guard is disowned or abandoned by the family, a guardian must follow his lord until death. That is the oath."
Aleric's brow furrowed. He took a step forward. "I release you, Zephiron. You are powerful and talented. I'm facing a life-threatening situation right now. You don't have to die for me. Leave my territory and live your life."
Zephiron shook his head again, his gaze unwavering. "My lord. No matter what, even if I must stand against the Emperor himself, I will not leave your side until I die. I was appointed as your guardian by the Archduke himself. I will not abandon my post."
The hall went quiet. Even Torin and the general looked at Zephiron, and a deep respect welled up in their hearts for him.
Aleric closed his eyes for a moment, then gave a tired smile. "Then stand, Zephiron. If we're to die, we'll die together."
Their resolve set, they prepared for what was coming.
On a mountaintop overlooking the desert, the Luminus Emperor's force had also arrived.
Hadrian stood at the edge, and beside him stood an imperial general — General Darius Kaine. were at level 70, but Hadrian was the commander of the Red Cloaks so he is the main commander in this team. He had brought 30,000 Red Cloaks with him. General Kaine commanded 200,000 Luminus soldiers.
They all stood above the ridge, looking down at the vast desert. Below them, the huge beast army of the Beast Imperium was marching straight toward the Red Fort.
A captain stepped forward, unable to hold back. "Aren't we going to help the Red Fort? No matter what, they are still part of our Imperium."
General Kaine looked at him coldly and sneered. "So what? Even if they are from our Imperium, they are still from that Valerius family. They dared to disrespect His Majesty. They deserve to die."
Hadrian said nothing. He just clenched his fist behind his back. He had already sent a message to his master, Selene, but looking at the sea of beastmen below, he was still nervous. Four hundred thousand... and the Red Fort only had twenty to thirty thousand.
The captain and the other soldiers shot contemptuous glances at their general. To them, every human in the Imperium was under the Emperor's protection, and the Emperor should keep them safe. But their emperor was a cruel beast who didn't even care for his own people.
They couldn't say it out loud. So they just turned their eyes back to the desert below, watching death march toward the Red Fort.
Aleric, Zephiron, General Kaelen Varrus, and Torin all appeared atop the border wall.
In the distance, a sea of beastmen was surging toward them across the desert, kicking up a storm of sand.
General Varrus was famous throughout the Valerius army. He narrowed his eyes and looked ahead. Two figures were leading the beast army, both looking human at first glance, but their rough, bestial builds immediately gave them away.
In this world, beasts could take human forms. The higher the bloodline, the more perfect the transformation. Torin, for example, could take a full human form, but his tiger ears and tail could never be hidden. That marked him as a low-ranking beast.