Re: Evolution Online Chapter 328: Between rock and a hard place

Chapter 328: Between rock and a hard place

Liam was surprised because though the demon looked anxious and nervous he did not look worried. Instead, he seemed very thrilled.
"Garrison leader!" The demon stopped, clenched his fists in excitement, and spoke slowly. "We have received 20 war scrolls this time!"
"Huh? War scrolls?" Liam did not immediately understand what the demon was blabbering about.
"Yes, leader. Not 2 like the other small towns and cities! We have received 20! A total of 20!" The demon explained with big round eyes.
All the other demons standing around Liam also looked shocked and gasped loudly, exchanging looks with each other.
They all looked visibly excited and stared at the dozen scrolls in the demon's hands as if they were seeing a great treasure.
Liam, on the other hand, was on a different page. Now he finally understood what was going on!
This was why Nyaka hadn't retaliated just yet.
This was also why all the guilds and players were busy and did not notice the huge war and the disturbance in the southern zone of the Gresh Kingdom.
It looked like the nether event had officially begun!
But unlike the demons, he was not really visibly excited.
This was because the last time around, he had been on the other side of this event, the side of the humans while this time, he was on the side of the demons.
And the 20 war scrolls the demon was currently holding in his hand might as well be a death sentence!
Liam frowned and asked the demon. "Has any of you participated in these wars before?" He pointed at the scrolls.
The demon scratched his head, wondering what the leader was asking him, but then he remembered that their leader was actually very young and inexperienced.
So he cleared his throat and quickly explained.
"Yes, leader. I have participated in one a few years ago when we were at war with the Giga realm."
"Ok." Liam nodded. "Tell me about your experience."
"Yes, leader."
"These war scrolls can be activated only by the garrison leader of a city and when a scroll is activated, the entire garrison is teleported to a new terrain."
"These terrains are called war zones. Here we can find humans!" The demon pumped his fist up into the air in excitement.
Immediately, all the demons standing around roared together in excitement.
"We can fight with them and we can kill them!
ROAR!
"We can loot and plunder!"
ROAR!
"We can take their women and make them slaves!"
ROAR!
"All hail the Demon King!"
ROAR!
"All hail the Demon Lords!"
ROAR!
"All hail the Garrison Leader!"
ROAR!
Even forgetting about Liam's presence momentarily, the demons started shouting and chanting in a craze.
It was clear that they were very happy with this development and were in a highly festive mood.
However, Liam silently walked out with a sigh.
He stood on the balcony of the red tower and looked outside at the small city that was sprawled in front of him.
The war scrolls were indeed good news.
The more minor invasions where they had fought against a few groups of humans had now escalated to these war zones.
This was the start of the nether realm event where the humans and the demons clashed.
Both the humans and the demons would be teleported to spacial rifts where they would clash with each other for resources and treasures in the rift.
This was an experience point treasure trove and not to mention the fastest and most efficient way to obtain loot and valuable resources.
It was indeed a good thing for humans and the various guilds, but when it came to demons…
At least the last time around, in Liam's previous life, the demons had suffered a crushing defeat.
And his garrison has not been handed 1 or 2 of these war scrolls. They had been given a total of 20!
If this was not a death sentence, then what was.
Especially considering the size, the population, and the resources in their city, they should have also only been allocated two of these war scrolls just like the other towns.
So why was it increased to 20?
Was it because of the recent buzz he had created by awarding high rewards to the invasion missions?
Or perhaps was it because someone else was pulling some strings in the background?
Considering that the Itaka city lord hadn't yet retaliated for losing his treasured herbs and also his treasured wife and daughter, Liam doubted him the most.
If their small city and garrison participated in these war zones in the spatial rifts, they would inevitably lose a few men in each fight.
Unlike the players, the NPCs don't resurrect. He had also lost quite a few demons in the battle against the dark elves.
So in this state, if they pushed themselves and participated in all the war zones one after the other, they would only become weaker and weaker.
Then in the end, not only will their garrison be reduced to nothing, but they would also be completely annihilated.
Now, Liam could always avoid this situation by returning the rest of the war scrolls but there might be some other troublesome issues if he did that.
Perhaps he would be branded as a traitor or a coward for not serving the Demon King adequately.
This might also be the actual trap that was intended for him to walk into. The minute he disappointed the King, anything could happen to him.
Just like his two 'wives' and the city Lord Nyaka, all the other demons at the top, even several squad leaders and platoon leaders in his own garrison, all had very high levels, at least nearing 100.
And he hadn't even touched 50 yet.
His level might be high and he was still at the top of the leaderboard but he was still far too low when compared to the other demons.
It was too risky for him to do something like this and step into an unknown trap.
So no matter what he decided, both his choices were dead ends that could give him severe losses.
Mulling over this, Liam rubbed his temples as he was still slightly affected by the dark elf's unexpected attack when he released all the souls.
It was as if the aftereffect was continuing to ring loudly in his ears, along with the pain and the cry of the numerous souls that had been trapped in the bead.
Liam let out a deep breath and decided to think about these war scrolls and war zones issues after taking some rest.
He was not able to think clearly now.
Irrespective of this huge problem looming over his head, the beginning of the nether realm event was still a big deal!
He could gain a lot, and he could also lose a lot. Everything had to be carefully planned and thought out.
"I need to make some preparations quickly."
He turned to look at the demons who were still celebrating wildly without any care in the world.
Ignorance was bliss. Liam smiled bitterly, shaking his head, and then returned back to the Xion realm.