Overgeared

"We're back."

There were concepts that increased in value over time. Reputation was one of them.

The Red Knights of the golden age, led by Piaro—they brought countless glories to the Saharan Empire and became legends of the empire. It had been like this since they were cleared of their unfair charges. The story spread so rapidly that it seemed to surpass the greatness of the Undefeated King who caused Lubana to rise.

"......"

The heroes that their homeland gave birth to only to abandon.

After a fierce battle, the knights and soldiers watched the successful capture of the dark elf king and their eyes became wet.

Thrills and sorrows intersected. The final emotion was shame. Why did they, who devoted themselves to their nation all their lives, have to be kicked out? They, who deserved praise, were deprived of their honor, lives, and families, and suffered. Why couldn't their nation trust them? Why weren't they protected?

The history of the great empire, which should've lasted for thousands of years, might've disappeared the moment it turned its back on these people. No... it wasn't too late even now. The empire changed with the coronation of a new ruler. Empress Basara was carrying out various reforms. They were convinced that the empire that expelled the former Red Knights was completely different from the current empire...

"You've struggled."

"......"

The imperial knights shook off their thoughts. They stared blankly at Piaro and the heroes who were turning away. It was because there were no shadows on the heroes' faces that they dared to ask to go back together. These people were laughing in the battle against the dark elves, who were more powerful than imagined. Their steps were light as they thought about returning 'home.'

In the silence, Resh shouted, "You've worked hard!"

The knights and soldiers belatedly saluted. The heroes carried the Overgeared Kingdom's flag on their shoulders. The imperial flag had once been there. Wouldn't it have flapped without losing its momentum anywhere on the continent?

The expressions of the knights and soldiers gradually calmed down. The status of the empire might not be as good as before, but there was an ally called the Overgeared Kingdom. The surface and hell were on the brink of a great human and demon war. They weren't afraid of the chaos and storm that were approaching.

The Overgeared Kingdom was with them and the heroes were in the Overgeared Kingdom.

***

the current state, we will only accumulate damages.

the east. The warp gates might've been recently introduced by the Overgeared Kingdom, but it wasn't sufficient to cover all regions. There were only a few warp gates in full operation. It

battlefield. Let's evacuate the people to

hometowns, but

might run out while supporting the refugees. However, we can't just sit

"Please understand!"

in unison. They shared their

and villages were taken away by the demonic humans. The demonic humans' momentum was overwhelming. The damage grew dramatically the further away it was from a big city. There were limits to the troops operated by the imperial family and nobles. It was impossible to

having millions of troops? The number of people they had to defend was in the hundreds of millions and the landmass of the empire was too large. It was impossible to take care

the ability to take responsibility for and protect their territories. The number of

of people to the greatest extent. Don't spare the resources and manpower." Basara stood up from the throne and took off the golden crown. This was a treasure that was handed down from generation to generation. This crown had symbolized her since her days as a duke and it had replaced the imperial crown. Basara handed it over to the finance minister. "The imperial vault will be opened. Use

"Y-Your Majesty...!"

empire without the people. Please do your

favor is immeasurable. I will

imperial favor is

empire had invested a lot in the future. It was the future of the continent, not the future of the empire. It was in the belief that they would became a force leading the empire's long history. The damage suffered immediately was great. It

Basara's mind wasn't shaken at all. She was from a collateral bloodline and rose to the throne. The former Emperor Juander gave up on his children and personally gave

will continue setting an example so the local families won't just sit back. The bureaucrats have finally

she had to adapt. Basara spread open a large map and along with the officials, she looked at the areas where people would be evacuated.

Some time passed.

in the south have died out." The messengers arrived one after another. Most

so it wasn't monopolized by one or two big nobles. Rather, it was ruled separately by the imperial family and various nobles. The nobles didn't have private soldiers. Their military power was weak compared to the population. It was most urgent to send troops to the

account is the same. It is said that a big man and

one other man destroyed the powerful demonic humans. Then they soon calmed down. The continent was vast. It wouldn't be strange if a transcendent with

that erased the name of the Undefeated King from history? Some of the names that the empire hid and erased were such big names. For example, the Great Robber of the Red Night wasn't known to the public. He had stolen so many imperial treasures, but he was hidden due to the strict orders of the emperors. They were afraid the imperial family would

were benefiting the empire.

to the world, Juander wasn't dead. He left the palace and declared he would spend the rest of his life helping

covered her mouth