"Are they really going all out?"
Though Dean Bruce was confident in his strength, he wasn't about to let his enemies gather their energy and launch a powerful attack right in front of him. With a quick thought, he activated the Blue Shadow Ring, turning himself invisible while sending his decoy charging straight at the group.
"Something's off!"
At that moment, one of the mages' eyes gleamed with realization as he shouted, "That's not his real body! He knows how to use a decoy spell, and his real body has gone invisible! Karoni, use True Sight, now!"
Upon his command, another mage clasped their hands together and floated into the air.
Buzz—
The next moment, a silvery light burst from the mage's body, illuminating the entire area in a flash.
Dean Bruce's real body was exposed by the light.
You had to give them credit—the team sent on this mission from the empire might not have had the highest individual levels, but their collective combat abilities were far from weak.
"Awooo!"
The sound of a wolf's howl echoed as another mage swung their staff, summoning over twenty massive wolves with blue fur. They all lunged toward Dean Bruce's revealed form.
With a quick glance, Dean Bruce saw that Richard Kenneck was almost done reciting his incantation. He decided not to waste any more time and quickly retrieved an Incendiary Grenade from his system inventory.
The Incendiary Grenade was one of the first rewards he had drawn, designed for crowd control with an area-of-effect explosion. Its only limitation was that it could only damage beasts or enemies below tier six, which is why Dean Bruce hadn't found much use for it until now.
But this time, with the group's relatively low levels, Dean Bruce figured the grenade was perfect for the situation. Why waste time on a prolonged fight when he could finish it in seconds?
Without a second thought, he tossed the red Incendiary Grenade into the center of the group. The moment it hit the ground, a massive burst of flames erupted, spreading rapidly in all directions and engulfing everyone within range.
"Ahhh!"
Screams and cries of agony rang out but quickly died down. Under the effect of the grenade, they didn't last more than a few seconds before being burned to ashes.
Even after incinerating the entire group, the flames from the Incendiary Grenade surged toward Richard Kenneck.
"Damn it!"
The sight of his companions being burned alive in mere moments terrified Richard Kenneck, causing him to abandon his spell mid-cast and flee as fast as he could.
Of course, while making his escape, he leapt onto the carriage, hoping to take Hannah Fields with him.
While top-tier power certainly plays a role in wars, the real difference is made by the basic forces on the ground.
No matter how famous Saint Laurent City is, it's still just one city. If the empire decided to attack, without help from other forces, it would be a struggle for them to hold out for even a month.
Hannah Fields was dangerously underestimating the situation.
Despite her youth, Hannah had a sharp sense of people's emotions. She quietly asked, "You think I'm... a fool, don't you?"
"Maybe," Dean Bruce responded, not bothering to elaborate. He closed his eyes and added, "Get some sleep. We have a long journey ahead tomorrow. Even though there's a city nearby with a teleportation array, it'll still take some time to get there."
Hannah's expression turned curious as she looked at Dean. "So many people died here, and yet you can sleep so easily? You must have seen plenty of battles. You don't seem as young as you appear, do you?"
Dean Bruce chuckled. "Who said that youth means inexperience? Don't use age as an excuse. I've heard stories of people from ancient times who became chancellors of empires at the age of seven, leading armies into battle before they were even teenagers."
Hannah nodded thoughtfully. "I've read about such figures in old texts as well, but many of them became gods later on. They were likely divine beings reincarnated, not regular humans like us."
She paused for a moment, sensing the underlying irritation in Dean Bruce. Blinking, she spoke softly, "Do you dislike me because... I buried him?"
"Well... I have my reasons for doing what I did."
Perhaps it had been a long time since Dean Bruce had talked to anyone, and even though he thought Hannah was naive and foolish, he found himself engaging with her. With a shrug, he replied, "No matter the reason, if you had left, the entire continent could be plunged into war."
He wasn't exaggerating. Despite Hannah's simplicity, her status couldn't be ignored. If she disappeared, the Dragonrock Empire, the Church of Light, and Saint Laurent City would all be on the verge of conflict. Once those three powerful factions clashed, countless nations and forces across the continent would be dragged into chaos.
Hannah Fields fell silent for a moment, then sighed. "I've been too naive. I was just thinking that the Dragonrock Empire is already obsessed with war, and our current pope is a war fanatic as well. If I marry into the Dragonrock Empire, they'll join forces without hesitation and start aggressively annexing nearby nations and powers."
"So, when I met those people, I had no choice but to trust them and escape."
"As long as I don't marry into the Dragonrock Empire, the Church of Light won't collaborate with them. Without an overwhelming advantage, they probably wouldn't start a war."
Hearing this, Dean Bruce shook his head slightly and replied in a soft voice, "If they want war, any excuse will do. Whether you marry into the empire or not, it won't stop them."
"If you go missing, they can easily claim they're searching for you, using it as a pretext to invade neighboring countries and territories, and no one would be able to question them."
Hearing these words, Hannah's breath caught, her face filled with despair.
After a long pause, she whispered, "Is there really no way to prevent the war from happening?"
Sensing the sincerity in her voice, Dean Bruce sat up straighter, taking a closer look at the young girl in front of him.
She was so young, and her thinking was simple, yet her heart carried the kind of vision you'd expect from someone much older, someone who had weathered many storms. No, more than that—her thoughts seemed saintly.
Narrowing his eyes slightly, Dean Bruce asked in a serious tone, "Are all your actions really just for one purpose? To prevent war from breaking out? To bring peace to this world?"