“Find him!” Maladin yelled, his voice laced with panic, commanding his men with growing desperation.Yet, one by one, his people were struck down, their agonized moans echoing through the forest.“All of you are useless! How can you lose to just one person?” Maladin’s anger flared as he barked out his frustration.“But he moves so fast,” one of his men stammered.“He’s hiding between the trees,” another added, fear evident in his tone.Suddenly, a man was hit squarely by a stone, the impact sending him crashing to the ground.The confusion spread like wildfire, and from the initial 200 soldiers, their numbers dwindled rapidly, until only about 80 were left standing.The rest, nearly 120 men, lay on the ground, groaning in pain.In the midst of what was supposed to be a straightforward battle, Maladin began to realize that even 200 men might not be enough.“He’s ex-military,” Maladin muttered. “He must’ve learned how to fight in the forest. We must get out from the forest.”Just as des
Eva’s breath caught in her throat, but she nodded quickly. “All right, I’ll give you 2,000. Just stop hitting Alex.”“Deal,” Maladin laughed, a cruel grin spreading across his face. Each bottle could be worth at least $200,000. If he has 2,000 of them, that means he’s already pocketed $400 million!“Stop, all of you! He’ll die if you keep hitting him.”The men halted their assault, stepping back as Alex crumpled to the ground, his body battered and bruised.Eva rushed to his side, her hands trembling as she touched his bloodied face.“Take him,” Maladin commanded, and two men moved forward to drag Alex away.“Wait,” Eva called out desperately. “You promised me.”Maladin turned to her. “Yes, I promised. But you’ll have to send me the 2,000 bottles of the best wine first before I release him to you,” he said, his voice dripping with smug confidence.“I’ll have my aircraft parked outside the Academy. You have four hours to get the wine. If I don’t get it in time, Alex will die.”With a w
Alex was locked in the aircraft’s basement, confined to a small prisoner room near the stacked wine boxes.The air felt cold, and the hum of the engines vibrated through the metal floor.“Open screen,” he commanded, his voice low but firm.A transparent screen materialized in front of him, seemingly from nowhere.“Where am I?” he glanced at the display, which showed they were already two hours into their journey, with about five more hours to go before reaching Novara, the capital city of Nova.In 40 minutes, they would cross the border, where Nova’s military forces stood vigilant.The airspace was heavily guarded, with countless defense missiles ready to intercept any unauthorized aircraft.Alex closed his eyes, focusing deeply as he let his soul ability project his consciousness out of his body.He could sense Maladin and his men lounging in the central cockpit, drinking the expensive wine they had stashed.He then turned his attention to the guard monitoring the CCTV feed of the pr
"Wake up!"The sharp command sliced through as the prisoner door creaked open with a loud crank.Alex barely had time to register what was happening before a rough kick jolted him awake.The ropes around his wrists were still tightly secured, binding him.He was roughly yanked to his feet by the guards and pushed toward the cargo door, where others were still unloading the wine crates.The cool morning air hit him as he stumbled, trying to keep his balance. Without a word, they shoved him into a waiting truck.“Father,” Maladin called out, his voice dripping with arrogance. “What do you think we should do with this Alexander Kingsley?”Saladin’s voice responded through the phone. “Play with him in the youth streaming video or podcast. Let the people know they shouldn't be afraid of the Empire.”“Yes, Father,” Maladin replied, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth.He knew exactly what his father wanted—to use Alexander as a tool to gain favor with the younger generation, to inci
“You’re lying!” Maladin screamed, his fury boiling over as he delivered a vicious kick to Alex.“You’re just a fake Alexander Kingsley! Don’t think I didn’t check your identity. You’re just an ex-military nobody who married Crystal Gavin, the traitor of the Empire, waiting to be killed!”Alex winced in pain but managed to smirk through it. “I am the real Alexander Kingsley.”“What do you mean rea!” Maladin’s face drained of color, a cold fear creeping into his eyes.“Check your border now,” Alex said. “And you’ll understand exactly what I mean.”Panic flashed across Maladin’s face.He quickly barked orders, “Check any news from the border and connect it to us, now!”The room buzzed with activity as people began frantically using their smartwatches, trying to confirm Alex’s claim.One of the men managed to link his smartwatch to the large screen on the wall, and the room fell into a stunned silence as the live feed appeared.“The Empire’s military is attacking our border!” someone shou
Nova descended into chaos.Fear and confusion buzzed through the streets as news of the Empire’s invasion spread like wildfire.Alex understood that victory in war wasn’t just about military strength—it was about winning the hearts and minds of the people.If the Empire had attacked Nova without cause, the citizens would have condemned them as greedy tyrants, eager to expand their dominion.But by allowing himself to be kidnapped, Alex had shifted the narrative.Now, the blame fell squarely on Saladin, whose reckless actions had provoked the Empire’s response.The citizens of Nova had no choice but to direct their anger at Saladin.The Empire was merely responding to an act of provoked aggression.And it was Saladin, the marshal who had brought ruin upon them.As Alex was guided with respect toward the King’s palace.Inside the grand hall of the palace, the atmosphere was tense.Ministers and important figures of Nova gathered, all eyes on Alexander Kingsley as he entered.They bowed
On the outskirts of Southerland Country, chaos erupted as news spread of a sudden, devastating attack on three of their main military bases.King Arthur, stunned by the reports, demanded answers from his generals.“What happened?” the king asked, his eyes darting around the room at his assembled generals.Nelson, the Supreme General, stepped forward, his face pale.“We detected drones heading towards each of our main base four hours ago. We didn’t anticipate this at all.” His voice was filled with a mixture of disbelief and regret.“Is it an Archlion Empire drone?” King Arthur asked.“No,” Nelson responded, shaking his head. “Our latest radar detected the frequency. It's usually used by Nova aircraft.”“So, it’s Nova?” The king’s voice wavered with confusion. “Then why is an Archlion Empire aircraft coming to our territory?”“They claim they’re coming in peace, just to protect us from any attack by Nova,” Nelson replied.But both men knew better. It was all just a pretext.With their
“What kind of logic is that?!” Saladin yelled, his voice echoing through the grand hall.His fists clenched tightly as his eyes darted between the Empire soldiers. “If the Empire attacked us, wouldn’t we already be dead? What more is there to ask?”Yet, the Empire soldier raised his weapon aiming it straight at Saladin, ready to strike.“I will not ask for the second time,” Christopher growled.“You will follow us to interrogation willingly. I promise we will not kill those who are innocent. But... if you resist, we don’t need to talk anymore, do we?”“I am the king!” King Arthur shouted with anger and fear. “You cannot do this to me!”“Not anymore,” Christopher sneered, raising his hand lazily, as if dismissing Arthur’s claim entirely.“Take them to the interrogation room. If they refuse to cooperate, you know what to do.”Without hesitation, the Empire soldiers surged forward, their boots pounding against the stone floor as they grabbed Saladin, King Arthur, and the others, dragging