Primordial Villain With A Slave Harem - Chapter 1211

Chapter 1211: Exchange

Felicity’s tone was quiet, amused even.

Quinlan didn’t answer. The sly curve of his lips and the glint in his eyes was all the response she got – and needed.

It didn’t take more than a few minutes for the call to come.

The king was ready.

…

Alexios didn’t appear in person.

Instead, it was his Aegis Vanguard standing in formation, the best of the best, commanded by Stormlord, one of his most trusted generals.

Quinlan, of course, wasn’t foolish enough to open his portal right before their faces. He might’ve acted with no respect toward the king, but it was because there was a great deal of distance between the two.

If Quinlan were to be forced to meet face to face with the man, Alexios would not be called an old bastard. Indeed, Alexios was a powerful warrior and a cunning king. He deserved to be feared by Quinlan.

So, instead, the rift opened quietly in the slums, far from the palace’s wards, in a district where the guards barely patrolled, let alone the Aegis Vanguard.

It was the perfect stage for them to collect themselves.

The first to emerge was Scar. Behind her, thirteen elite souls followed. They moved with military precision, their spectral steps soundless on the dirt.

And behind them… came the army.

Five hundred Fujimori souls, each one a fallen warrior, once loyal to the clan, now bound to Quinlan’s command.

The slum dwellers froze. Some dropped what they were holding, others ran, tripping over one another as the legion of the dead began to march toward the palace.

By the time the procession reached the capital gates, a loud murmur had spread across the city; The Devil’s army walks their streets again.

The Valorian citizens were still reeling from the terrorist attack Quinlan had conducted on their city.

Scar led them through the main road. The citizens lining the streets could only stare as the thirteen elites followed, flanking her like generals of the underworld.

At the palace gates, Stormlord awaited.

Scar stopped a few paces away, raised her hand, and from within her palm, the [Veil of Aetherius] materialized, wrapped in dull cloth.

“The item, as agreed.” She tossed the artifact, and the man caught it.

He then handed it over to an artificer with glasses who began casting magic upon it, checking its properties with shaky hands and trembling eyes.

Legendary-rarity artifacts were on the level of national treasures. Even having the chance to observe one from a far distance was an incredible privilege.

“It is the real deal.”

Stormlord nodded. His voice rumbled like thunder. “Accepted.”

He turned his head and gestured.

From behind him, a carriage rolled forward, its wheels creaking beneath a load far heavier than it should have borne. Eight purebred stallions strained against the harness, snorting and stamping as the vehicle jolted into view.

Two pale-faced figures sat atop it, Naomi and Gideon. They had their wrists bound while confusion and exhaustion clouded their faces.

Around them, heavy iron chests gleamed, each brimming with coin. The sheer weight made the wood groan.

Scar didn’t move a step. She simply raised her hand again.

The five hundred lesser souls obeyed instantly.

They moved in unison. Some stepped forward and lifted the chests, each motion smooth and coordinated. Others surrounded the pair of humans, who looked one moment away from suffering a panic attack – gently guiding them down from the carriage as if afraid they’d crumble under their own fear.

Scar turned her gaze toward Stormlord and his soldiers. “Step back.”

Stormlord’s eyes narrowed, but he was forced to accept. Scar had already given the artifact, and the other part of their deal, namely, Quinlan telling the king about the gods, would be done later.

Thus, the man had no grounds to deny Scar’s request.

“Form perimeter,” he commanded.

The Aegis Vanguard hesitated, then took several steps backward.

“Circle,” Scar demanded, and her five hundred soldiers closed ranks.

In a perfect display of discipline, the Fujimori dead moved together, forming a circular wall around Scar, the chests, and the two alchemists. But it didn’t stop there.

They began to rise and layer, spectral bodies overlapping like armored plates. The circle grew into a sphere, a seamless dome of blue.

Some soldiers crawled atop the others to create a ceiling; others sank into the ground to forge a floor. In moments, they were completely enclosed, a living barrier sealing them from all sides.

Stormlord frowned. “A defensive cocoon?”

Then came the portal.

A slit of black light tore open within the dome’s center.

Scar didn’t waste a second. With a motion faster than her lithe body had any right to handle such immense weights, she hurled the chests through the rift. The sound of shifting gold echoed as they vanished into the void.

Next, she turned to Naomi and Gideon. Before either could react, Scar lifted them from the ground, and the world blurred.

They were gone.

The portal sealed shut instantly, cutting off any chance for pursuit.

Silence fell over the courtyard.

The Fujimori soul soldiers remained, still standing in perfect ranks. Then, one by one, they turned their heads. Their hollow blue eyes stared blankly at the human vanguard around them.

The living soldiers looked back, weapons half-raised, unsure if they were about to be attacked.

But nothing happened.

Scar’s orders had been specific. There were no follow-up commands.

And so, the undead army… stood there.

An eerie stillness settled over the palace gates with two forces staring at one another, both waiting for someone else to move.

For a long, tense moment, the air itself seemed to hold its breath. Then…

*fwshhh.*

One by one, the soul soldiers began to dissolve into pale blue motes of light. They faded soundlessly, like embers in reverse, leaving not even footprints behind. Within seconds, the courtyard was barren once more, except for a single stone dais that now stood where Scar had been.

Upon it rested a sealed letter. Its wax was black and stamped with an intricate sigil of intertwining souls.

Stormlord shifted uneasily. The massive man’s armor crackled with electricity as he took a cautious step forward.

He picked up the letter, weighing it in his gauntleted hand. “For King Alexios Valorian’s eyes only,” he read aloud.