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In Ilinor, at the royal palace, Queen Yuffie organized several intelligence reports on her desk and turned her head to consult the seemingly empty space behind her.
The shadows there flickered momentarily. Every high-ranking human in Ilinor was assigned a Shadow Demon for inspection, and the Queen was no exception.
However, as Yuffie was a key human cultivated by the Demon King, the Shadow Demon's primary role was to facilitate the exchange of information between Yuffie and the demon race.
After five or six seconds, a teleportation array flashed in the study. And Eileen was the first to step out.
As the secretary, the Succubus used a prepared scroll to summon a Demon King's throne in the Queen's study before respectfully inviting Reji, who emerged from the teleportation, to take a seat.
During the construction of the Demon Tower and the support of the Elf race, Reji had given additional tasks to the new Ilinor Queen, who was supported by the demon race in the real world.
Yuffie handed a stack of documents to Eileen, who then passed them to Reji on the throne. These documents contained recent intelligence about the "Syndicate" that Yuffie had collected using Ilinor's national resources.
The Syndicate was a difficult place to gather intelligence due to its mixture of criminals and refugees, as well as its location in a desert region that was periodically covered by sandstorms lasting from a few days to several weeks, completely isolating it from the outside world.
The information Reji now held was obtained by Yuffie through channels from a group of merchants who had recently returned from doing business in the Syndicate.
Reji read through the reports carefully.
From the reports, it seemed that the merchants were not optimistic about the Syndicate.
The vast desert of the Syndicate was able to develop thanks to the oases that provided shelter for the people there.
Therefore, the characteristic forces of the Syndicate, the various tribes and gangs, were organized around the oases, and the battles between them were all for the purpose of gaining more oasis territory.
However, in recent years, the internal strife within the Syndicate had intensified, and the degree of chaos had worsened year by year. The fundamental reason was that...
The oases in the desert were disappearing.
Oases were not ordinary resources, but the root of survival for the people of the Syndicate. The shrinking of the oases was tantamount to shaking the foundation of the entire Syndicate.
It was no wonder that the merchants in the report took a pessimistic view of the Syndicate's future and no longer planned to take this trade route.
Even the local people of the Syndicate seemed to have a tendency to flee. Before Ilinor, there had been similar reports of surrounding small countries being attacked by thugs and bandits from the Syndicate.
The reduction of survival resources led to more intense and cruel competition. The small gangs and tribes that had originally been hiding in remote corners were now forced to join the ranks of big fish eating small fish.
What caught Reji's attention the most was...
"Teacher, there is indeed a tribe in the Syndicate called Ghost."
They could jump back and forth in the shadows.
If Shermen, as the Shadow Demon Apostle, were to rush at full speed, she should be able to reach the Syndicate in just half a day.
"As you wish, My king"
Shermen immediately accepted the order and took the intelligence report handed over by Reji, which had a portrait of a woman in her early twenties, the leader of the Ghost tribe.
After all, this was a solo mission, so Reji couldn't help but give an extra reminder, "Also, remember, no matter what happens along the way, your own safety is always the top priority. Anything beyond the plan, wait until we arrive to discuss."
"Yes, my King."
Next, Reji turned to the Wisdom Demon.
"Leo, you are responsible for the follow-up investigation and monitoring the movements of the Imperial Army. If possible, the Syndicate would be a good place for a funeral."
Reji had no intention of letting go of the fish that was sent to him like this. At least he had to actively try, after all, the previous Envoy had dropped a life-saving relic like the Atlas. Maybe this time the Imperial Army could also drop some gold coins.
However, this mission had a high risk factor, so Reji handed it over to the most capable Apostle to handle.
"As you command, my King." Leo stood up to accept the order.
It was not possible to only focus on the Syndicate. Ilinor, which belonged to his own base, also needed to have Apostles left behind. After much thought, it had to be...
When Reji's gaze fell on her, Eileen already understood. As a Succubus, her role was to manage internal affairs for the Demon King.
"My King, please rest assured. I Eileen will guard Ilinor and ensure that Your Majesty's policy of enslaving humans is strictly implemented."
After Reji nodded, he seemed to know what to say next. This time, it was another Apostle, the newcomer Vielsia, who took the initiative to speak.
"My King, for this mission in the Syndicate, Vielsia begs Your Majesty to give the main force position to the Elf race. We have received Your Majesty's grace and wish to offer our strength. The Elves will not disappoint you."
The other Apostles, including Eileen, acquiesced to Vielsia's words and did not say much. The Elves indeed needed solid battle achievements to demonstrate their value and loyalty.
Reji naturally knew this and nodded, approving Vielsia.
As for the remaining Apostles, there was no need for a large-scale mobilization. Pierre and Hektor continued to train troops in the Demon Tower, Eris was responsible for handling the garbage transformation of the Demon Tower, and Sorcery Demon Dian controlled the Demon Tower to fly towards the Syndicate.
Shermen had already set out first.
Reji and Vielsia, unable to wait for the speed of the Demon Tower, led a small portion of the Elves and a large number of monster troops as the second batch, stepping onto the backs of the Chimeras.
The blue-purple three-headed giant birds flapped their wings and soared high, rushing into the clouds, carrying the Elf army on their backs, bringing bursts of whistling sounds as they flew straight towards the distant desert region - the Syndicate.