Years ago, Adrian was a soldier serving under Zeke. He was a military genius, with untold potential ahead of him.
But beneath the tactical genius, Zeke had found Adrian’s true personality to be unsavory and banished him from his forces.
Ever since then, Adrian had nursed a grudge against Zeke for banishing him.
Somewhere along the way, Adrian had fallen in with Chris Black of the Prince’s staff. Working together, Chris did everything in his power to ensure Adrian managed to sit on the position of the Director of Law Enforcement.
And now, with a disheartened Zeke having fallen from grace and lost everything, a thriving Adrian decided it was more than time to gloat about his success.
Seeing Adrian’s arrival, Zeke snapped an impatient word. “Let’s cut straight to the point. The Dragon King Sword was bestowed upon me by the Supreme Leader. If you’re questioning about who’s the legitimate owner of the Dragon King Sword is, you’re questioning the decision of the Supreme Leader.”
Adrian shook his head. “You misunderstand me, Great Marshal. According to the laws enforced by our department, the Dragon King Sword is the symbol of the Great Marshal. Now that you’ve been stripped of the title, it wouldn’t be appropriate for you to carry the sword any longer. Please cooperate with us and hand over the sword.”
Zeke smiled coldly, dignified as ever. “My stance remains the same. Julian Thisleton is not worthy of the title of Great Marshal.”
“And that’s none of my concern,” Adrian shot back. “All I know is that Julian is now the acting Great Marshal and that the law is on his side. Zeke Williams, you will hand over the Dragon King Sword immediately or face the consequences.”
Zeke sighed. “Tell me, how many benefits did Julian have to offer you to make you cover for him so unconditionally?”
Clenching his fists, Adrian spat. “That’s a load of bullshit.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I’m warning you, if you insist on being recalcitrant, you have only yourself to blame for the result.”
There was a chilling hiss of metal on leather as Adrian unsheathed his sword. Glittering coldly under the lights, the shining blade inspired both fear and awe in the people who saw it.
Instantly, the tension in the atmosphere tightened tenfold.
The gathered crowd murmured in nervous voices, all of their worries were focused on Zeke, who was but an ordinary citizen like any of them, he was a normal man, and yet here he was, dead set on going toe to toe with both the new Great Marshal and Adrian Payne.
They wondered what could have given him such limitless courage.
It was at this moment that the air was suddenly split by a low rumble.
The deep sound grew louder and louder until it shook the ground with the force of its vibrations, making the ears of everyone present ring painfully.
Unable to withstand the quake, an ancient electric pole nearby toppled under the onslaught. As it broke into pieces, large plumes of gray dust were kicked into the air.
Coughing and wiping away dust from their faces, the crowd turned to look upwards.
Tens of sonic fighter jets spontaneously appeared, circling in the air above the crowd at high speed. Their exhaust formed long trails as they flew by.
Whispers of confusion raced through the crowd like wildfire. Why are the fighter jets here? Who are the fighter jets after?
There were more than ten sonic fighter jets here. Whoever was masterminding this operation not only had deep pockets but extensive power as well.
Wary of the sudden situation, Julian exchanged a questioning glance with Adrian, who shook his head curtly. The answer was clear. None of them had a hand in this fighter jet business.
Before the crowd could truly recover from the shock of the fighter jets, the ground beneath their feet started to pitch and shake vigorously again.
The loud, low rumble of high-powered engines could be heard coming from the direction of the eastern street.
It caught the crowd’s attention immediately and they saw rows upon rows of military trucks roaring down the street at speeds beyond a hundred miles an hour. The trucks stopped before the crowd, arranged in orderly formations.
There were too many trucks to count. They spread as far as the eye could see, leaving one to imagine the sheer scale of this military.
Once the trucks had stopped completely, swarms of soldiers flooded out of them, locking down the eastern street with unbelievable speed.
The eastern street was now completely dominated by the soldiers. There were truly too many of them, a veritable sea of people as far as the eye could see. At the very least, a hundred thousand soldiers had just appeared out of nowhere.
Standing tall and unafraid at the front of all the soldiers was their leader, Lone Wolf of the Alpha Suicide Squad.
He jumped onto a nearby truck, languidly surveying the scene below him.
“Lone Wolf of the Alpha Suicide Squad reporting for duty,” he declared. “The Lone Elites are here to protect the Dragon King Sword!”
The crowd rioted loudly in response, but the action was far from over.
From the west, the sound of a thousand engines and numerous feet marching in sync could be heard.
Once again, the crowd turned to look westwards as one.
A hundred thousand soldiers had once again appeared at the western street, locking down as quickly as the eastern street had been.
As imposing as a storm cloud blotting out a sunny sky, their momentum as they advanced forwards easily intimidated everyone present.
Sole Wolf, the General North, was leading the charge.
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