With everyone giving it their all, the soldiers of the Dark King’s Army quickly put up tents, turning the area into a temporary meeting place.

Beastkin could even lie down and sleep right on the ground out in the wilderness;

Even as high-ranking beastkin, Bai Shui and Bai Xiong considered themselves lucky just to have somewhere that could shield them from the sun.

Their expectations were so modest that it was undoubtedly good news for the Dark King’s Army’s core members, led by Wang Yafu.

After skipping a few unnecessary formalities, Bai Xiong, who had been the one to start the conversation, asked about something that had been on his mind:

“Pardon me for asking, but what is Wang Xiaole to you?”

One of his eyebrows twitched, then rose.

He reacted that way because not long ago, his sense of smell—sharper than that of any canine—had picked up a familiar scent.

There was no doubt that the scent came from Wang Yafu. It wasn’t some kind of unpleasant odor, either, and humans generally couldn’t smell it at all.

Wang Yafu had been psyching herself up, doing her best not to lose her nerve. But the moment she heard her brother’s name, she perked right up.

A gentle light shone from her eyes;

Bai Xiong would never be able to understand how that worked.

“You know my brother?”

“He’s your brother? No way!”

Before meeting Wang Yafu, Bai Xiong had always assumed—thanks to the prejudice born of his dislike for Wang Xiaole—

that if that annoying brat really did have a little sister, she’d be the kind of person who looked down on everyone, acted outrageously, and picked her nose with her pinky to show her disdain.

But after seeing Wang Yafu with his own eyes, Bai Xiong thought:

This little sister was surprisingly normal. Was this what people meant by siblings complementing each other’s personalities?

The world really did have no shortage of surprises.

Surprised as he was, Bai Xiong at least understood that his deduction hadn’t been wrong.

He’d recognized the scent of someone he could never forget, then concluded that the girl in front of him might have some connection to that person;

Only beastkin with sharp noses could possibly pull off something like that.

“Since you two are siblings, that explains it.”

After all, Bai Xiong had never believed the vampires had any particular reason to help Dibiles.

The two sides weren’t even allies.

As the saying went, “When a wall is about to fall, everyone gives it a shove”;

And now that the ancient wall that was Dibiles was on the verge of collapsing, helping the country was downright abnormal. There was nothing to gain from it.

With self-interest set aside, only personal feelings could make someone help this empire at any cost.

That was true of Anliexi, and it was true of Bai Xiong too;

Wang Yafu, sitting across from him, had also chosen their side for a similar reason.

Bai Xiong was glad to understand what was motivating the person he was talking to.

Of course, plenty of details still eluded him. For instance, why weren’t the siblings together?

And how could a girl who looked so obviously human be the vampire king?

Bai Xiong couldn’t figure all that out just by imagining possible explanations.

Then again, he didn’t particularly want to know.

Aside from the satisfaction of getting business done, the only other thing that could make him happy now was an idea taking shape in his mind.

Just a moment ago, he’d realized:

Talking with Wang Yafu gave him a perfect opportunity!

He hated to admit it, but Bai Xiong really had no way to deal with that detestable guy.

Wang Xiaole wasn’t the softhearted type, and Bai Xiong had nothing on him;

If Bai Xiong wanted him to stop pestering his daughter, the best way was to use someone close to him as leverage.

He wasn’t sure if Wang Xiaole was a siscon, but he believed this:

If he told that little sister about all the “good deeds” her brother had done, then…

Once this dark, unspoken idea had taken root in his heart, Bai Xiong decided he had to get a chance to talk to Wang Yafu.

“Vampire king, once we’ve finished discussing business, would you mind coming somewhere private with me for a chat?”

Bai Xiong thought there was nothing wrong with what he’d just said;

He was the only one who thought so.

“Calling you scum would be an insult to the millions of other scumbags in this world.”

After all these years as her son-in-law, Bai Xiong knew his mother-in-law would never pass up a chance to take a jab at him.

Knowing what to expect made him used to it; being used to it meant he didn’t care.

But before long, he still found himself bothered. After all, Bai Shui wasn’t the only one who’d spoken up.

Dracula voiced her thoughts without holding back:

“Gross! You’re that old, and you’re still trying to hit on a kid?”

“No, I’ve been married for nearly twenty years. Why would I ever do something like that?”

Bai Xiong couldn’t accept that anyone would misunderstand him that way. Even harder to swallow was—

“Are you saying I look old? Sure, I’m not young anymore, but I still look pretty good, don’t I? Back home, my people call me the ‘baby-faced king.’”

“Ugh!”

Bai Shui made no effort to spare his feelings. She covered her mouth with her hand and gagged right there. Anyone who didn’t know better might’ve thought she was pregnant again.

“I’m sorry to have upset you. This son-in-law was in the wrong. Please take care of your health.”

Before his mother-in-law could give him an even more graphic reaction, Bai Xiong hurriedly put an end to the topic—and abandoned the brilliant idea he’d only just come up with.

They’d have to stick to business.

Once he learned that Wang Yafu was Wang Xiaole’s little sister, Bai Xiong more or less let down his guard around her and the Dark King’s Army.

What happened next might have been little more than going through the motions.

After that, the commanders of the beastkin army and the Dark King’s Army both made it clear that their sides had no intention of fighting;

They’d dealt with their common enemy, and there was no reason to keep fighting. Bai Xiong was sure

that as soon as he left this meeting place, the two armies could each return to where they belonged.

That was what he thought. But the little girl, who seemed so indecisive, indirectly told him afterward that she’d come up with a new idea.

“Since you and I are both helping the same person, doesn’t that mean we get along?”

As if we get along! I’m doing this for my daughter!

If she weren’t in Dibiles, I wouldn’t care if someone used that brat’s head as a drum.

As he screamed those two thoughts in his heart, Bai Xiong forced a stiff smile onto his face for Wang Yafu, doing his best not to let her see what he really thought.

“Since we get along, and we’ve helped each other before, the relationship between our two sides shouldn’t stop at merely being ‘not enemies.’”

“Vampire king, I’m not one to beat around the bush. Just say what you want to say.”

“I want to say: why don’t we form an alliance?”

An alliance would benefit both sides.

Given the beastkin kingdom’s current situation, it really needed to reduce the number of potential enemies;

And Wang Yafu, the “new king,” still hadn’t united all the vampires. Her most troublesome opponents were still watching her closely.

Even so, forming an alliance was a major decision.

Bai Xiong had indeed crossed the Dark King’s Army off his list of enemies, but that didn’t mean he considered Wang Yafu an ally.

He didn’t let it show on his face, but a cold snort echoed in his heart.

Who would sign an alliance after just a few words?

“We fully understand your side’s sincerity. There’s no time to lose—we’ll prepare the alliance documents for us to exchange.”

—And the person doing exactly that was standing right beside Bai Xiong!

“……”

Bai Xiong fell silent. He had nothing to say. At that moment, silence spoke louder than words.

One important step in forming an alliance was signing the document;

And if a signature alone wasn’t enough, they could add a seal as well.

Of course, a seal used for important occasions wasn’t some cheap trinket you could pick up on the street;

On the Western Continent, many rulers made a habit of carrying their jade seals—their national seals—with them, so they could stamp documents on the spot when signing them;

The Dark King’s Army had only recently been established, so it was no surprise that they didn’t have a precious seal;

But the beastkin kingdom had a long history. Bai Shui couldn’t very well fail to bring out her country’s national seal.

She ordered Bai Xiong:

“Bring me that thing you’re carrying.”

“Right away.”

Bai Xiong took the token he carried to prove he was king in his hand, then quickly passed it to his mother-in-law.

There was a reason he and Bai Shui had come here together;

Even if you ignored his disposable value as cannon fodder, he could at least serve as a “container.”

The national seal was an extremely important object, just like the one Isabella possessed.

Something so precious naturally needed a suitable “container” to keep it in—say, the king himself…

On this day, the beastkin kingdom and the Dark King’s Army became formal allies, and their relationship grew close in an instant.

After settling the alliance, neither Wang Yafu nor Bai Xiong wanted to keep their armies in the wasteland.

Both of them were mentally prepared to enter Dibiles proper and offer support through military action.

With those thoughts in mind, the two commanders ordered their armies to march;

They shared the same plan: enter a fortress within Dibiles that very night, let the troops rest properly there, and prepare for the battles tomorrow and beyond.

Unfortunately, neither of them knew they wouldn’t be able to help.

Before the day was over, the decisive war that would shape both the Western and Eastern Continents would reach its conclusion.

Before today, no one could have predicted

that the final battle between Inran and Dibiles would turn into a war between the Papal State and this ancient empire.

In this great battle, vampires and beastkin alike would be no more than supporting characters;

The ones who could bring this battle to its close were the true protagonists.