The human and demon military caravans were standing face-to-face. On the human side, the caravan looked much larger and more prepared, just in numbers alone, they had almost ten times the demons.
The demons had one thousand soldiers, and the humans had ten thousand soldiers for this exchange. That alone showed how important this exchange was to the humans.
Daniel could understand the reason. After all, that girl was a Saint, and the Edea and Kaisa families would never allow anything to happen to her under any circumstances.
If anything happened to her, it could turn into a disaster.
At the front of the demons, Orsuis stepped forward with the same emotionless face everyone knew him for, cold eyes, calm steps, and an aura that unconsciously made people’s breaths shorten.
From the humans’ side, a tall commander walked forward; a man named Sir Kaldravan, around forty years old, with graying hair, sharp eyes, and a kind of anger hidden under a layer of military discipline.
The two sides stood in front of each other.
"Where is what we came for?" Orsuis said without any politeness.
"First tell me where the girl is." Kaldravan clenched his teeth.
The auras on both sides slowly started rising. The soldiers instinctively gripped their weapons tighter. Both sides looked at each other with hostile eyes and killing intent.
They were clearly ready to fight at any moment. The stronger figures among the humans released their auras to intimidate the demons.
But Wargon burst into laughter and shut down all their auras instantly, an act that made the humans frown in surprise.
"Human, know your place. It’s better for you not to cause trouble." Orsuis said with a harsh tone.
Several human soldiers trembled from the pressure of his aura, but the commander didn’t move. His jaw was locked from anger, but he stood firm.
"Bring him." Then without adding another word, he commanded one of the knights beside him.
Moments later, two human knights dragged a chained prisoner forward, a thin boy with light brown hair and an extremely simple, innocent, untouched face.
His skin was pale, his eyes innocent and confused, like someone who still didn’t understand the disaster he was in the middle of. There was no sign of power, destiny, or even violence in him.
"This is the one you wanted..." Kaldravan said.
Daniel instinctively looked at Wargon. He stepped forward, and when his eyes fell on the boy, a loud, ugly laugh burst from his mouth.
"Hahaha... that’s him!"
"Bring Lyra." Daniel nodded slightly, then ordered.
He let out a breath of relief that the humans apparently didn’t do anything stupid. Until this moment he had still been worried that some variable might ruin his plan.
But on second thought, maybe he was being too paranoid. After all, humans would never have the courage to do something stupid or brave in a situation like this.
The heavy carriage holding Lyra was pulled forward. But when it was about to move toward the humans—
"Stop!" Wargon shouted in the roughest tone possible.
The carriage stopped.
Wargon gave the imprisoned girl a dangerous look and growled under his breath:
"Maybe we should kill them all right here. And keep the girl for ourselves. She could become a threat in the future."
"You demon... you trying to test our patience? Are you looking for a war?" Kaldravan stepped forward and growled, releasing his aura completely, causing the air around them to tremble.
The tension exploded instantly, and the thin layer of calm disappeared completely.
"And if I want to? What are you going to do?" Wargon said with a savage grin.
Auras burst out from both sides. Swords were drawn. Mages got ready to move. Demon soldiers grabbed their axes and claws. A single moment was enough for the entire field to turn into blood.
But—
"Now is not the time for stupidity. We must deliver what we came for to His Majesty as fast as possible." Orsuis raised his hand.
He was truly angry. This bastard demon really wanted to do something that stupid. Was he insane and brainless? The humans were clearly fully prepared, and any stupid move could easily turn into a full-scale war.
Wargon frowned. He locked eyes with Orsuis. A few seconds of heavy silence passed between them... then he let out a rough sigh and stepped back.
"Fine. But their day will come..."
The exchange was made.
Lyra’s carriage was taken by the humans. And the chained human boy, the innocent-looking kid, was handed to the demons.
The two sides stared at each other for a few moments.
"The revenge for the blood you’ve spilled... will be taken in due time." Kaldravan said coldly.
It wasn’t a threat, and it wasn’t a shout, yet for a moment it sent a chill down the demons’ spines.
Wargon growled and Orsuis said nothing. The demons turned back.
The chained boy was thrown inside an iron carriage. Daniel gave him a short glance.
"This is the human born with divine power? He looks... extremely ordinary." His curiosity peaked.
He didn’t expect such an ordinary kid to be born with divine power. Was it even logical? He looked like a completely normal person.
Maybe he should take a closer look? He expanded his spiritual senses—
And in that moment, he felt death.
Not fear, and not pressure but death.
As if the heavens and the gods were warning him not to do anything stupid, or he would pay a heavy price.
Daniel pulled back in shock. His breath caught. It felt like his heart stopped for a moment.
Wargon, who had seen Daniel’s reaction, started laughing.
"Hah! That kid was born with divine power. He’s loved by the heavens. Even killing him is harder than you think."
Daniel only nodded. From the experience he just had, he understood that anyone who tried to harm this kid would be punished by the heavens in a horrifying way.
The caravan moved, and time passed. They slowly entered demon territory; not much was left until they reached the base.
"It’s time to execute my plan..." Daniel looked around and said to himself. This was the best place to start the attack.
But right at that moment—
The caravan slowed down and then stopped completely.
Daniel frowned. The soldiers climbed down one by one. Their breaths grew heavy and the sounds stopped.
Slowly... very slowly... a circle formed around Daniel.
Daniel stood still. His eyes narrowed.
"Commander... what are you doing?" Orsuis said in a harsh tone.
"Who are you?" Wargon stepped toward him with an angry, cold expression.