[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela":3,"chapter-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-100":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Exiled from the Start and Dominating the Wasteland with an Intelligence System",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1688700,2155,"Chapter 100 : Chapter 100","exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-100",100,"\u003Cp>Chapter 100. Heroes as Numerous as Crucian Carp\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sounds of slaughter upon Windrest Plain had completely faded, leaving only the mournful wail of the wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It swept across the ravaged earth, carrying with it the heavy stench of blood and scorched flesh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli walked silently through the mountains of corpses and seas of blood, the ground beneath his feet soaked through and churned into a foul, muddy mire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He watched the soldiers, numb yet practiced, separate the bodies of friend and foe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They stripped the enemy of armor and equipment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They gathered up the wounded who still had breath left in them, while piling together the lifeless shells of the dead in preparation for burning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Great funeral pyres were being built. Thin columns of black smoke had already begun to rise here and there, like monuments of shame erected for this victory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At last, his gaze came to rest upon two bodies laid side by side not far away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone had already roughly cleaned the blood from their faces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sabda’s eyes, once full of ambition and malice, were now closed, and there was even a strange trace of peace upon his features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli looked at him quietly, yet there was not the slightest joy of victory in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The deathly chill brought by Calvin’s earth-shattering final throw still seemed to linger at the side of his neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That had been the first time he had ever come so close to death...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and he had been able to do nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sabda’s hoarse final words before taking his own life—“You didn’t win either...”—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>also continued to echo again and again through his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Added to that were the cruelty of war and the fragility of life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Layer upon layer of pressure weighed down on his not especially strong body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All that remained within him was boundless heaviness, and a kind of near-numb calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Almost unconsciously, he raised his hand and looked at the dried, darkened blood caked on his palm and between his fingers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some of it was his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More of it belonged to his enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These hands had once held only pens and wine cups.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now they were already stained with countless lives’ blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He found himself wondering whether he was becoming colder and colder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Otherwise, after witnessing such a tragedy, why was the first thing to rise in his heart not pity—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but a weighing of the cost, and calculations for what came next?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heh...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He patted his stiff face lightly. Then the sound of footsteps broke his thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ron and Captain Buck walked over side by side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ron’s face still carried the weariness of fierce battle, but even more than that, it held a joy of victory that he could not quite suppress beneath the weight of it all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The golden lion-mane crest on his helmet was torn and stained with blood, swaying with each step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord baron!” Ron’s voice was hoarse from exhaustion, yet still carried a trace of excitement. “It’s over! That old man Calvin... I truly never imagined he would be that strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He was practically a monster! This time, it was all thanks to your plan that we were able to... win.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buck, standing beside him, gave a silent nod and continued in his place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, the preliminary casualty count is in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Our soldiers suffered forty-four dead, thirty-seven seriously wounded, and one hundred thirty lightly wounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Black Crow Knights lost five men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wolfgang’s wolf-kin warriors suffered no deaths, though several were wounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As the vanguard, Captain Ron’s Golden Lion Knights bore the heaviest pressure. Twenty-one were killed, and as for the rest... nearly every one of them is wounded.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His voice was low. Every number represented a price as heavy as iron.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli listened quietly, his face expressionless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He merely let his gaze pass over the bodies of the fallen soldiers being carried away in the distance, then gave a slight nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned to Ron and said, “Captain Ron, the Golden Lion Knights fought with valor and fully lived up to the name of the Western Frontier’s greatest martial force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Now that Sabda is dead, until an official order concerning the disposition of his territory is issued from Thorn City—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Runestone City shall temporarily be entrusted to your care.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The grief on Ron’s face was instantly replaced by immense astonishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could hardly believe his ears. His eyes fixed on Eli with burning intensity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord... are you certain?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like Lucerne, Runestone City was a complete city with an established foundation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its value far surpassed that of a frontier development point like the valley of the Obsidian Territory. It was true spoils of war, and a true symbol of power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am.” Eli’s answer held not the slightest hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Take the knights and depart at once. Go and take control of the city first, then stabilize the situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Once everything has settled down, come to the Obsidian Territory and meet us there. We will... set out together for Thorn City.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes! My lord baron! Ron will never fail the trust you have placed in me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, and those two bodies as well—I leave them to you. Find a good place in Runestone City and bury them together.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, my lord!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suppressing his excitement by force, Ron struck his right fist heavily against his chest in the most formal knightly salute, then turned and strode away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Ron’s retreating back, a trace of confusion appeared on Buck’s resolute face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped forward half a pace and lowered his voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, why...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Runestone City is also spoils won through our own blood and battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even if it is to be temporarily garrisoned by the Golden Lion Knights, it ought to be you who first sends men to take possession of it...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli turned around. A bitter smile touched his face, then quickly faded back into calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am leaving for Thorn City at once, Buck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We cannot leave behind the slightest pretext for anyone to accuse us of overstepping our station, or of greed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After all, Sir Lucius’s formal order... has yet to say anything at all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze turned toward the direction of Thorn City, as though it could pierce the distant horizon and look into the unfathomable eyes of that Governor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buck looked at the side of Eli’s face, where the signs of youth had already faded away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He remained silent for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He understood the caution and helplessness Eli had left unspoken, and he also saw the weight hidden beneath that calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, he merely nodded with quiet approval, and when he spoke, his tone carried a rare gentleness, almost like that of an elder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You should go find somewhere to rest for a while. Leave this place to us.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eli nodded and tried to force out an easy smile in answer to Buck’s kindness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that smile looked stiff and strained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cast one final glance over the plain, drenched in death and blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, in a low voice, he murmured,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The heroes under heaven truly are as numerous as crucian carp crossing the river...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, he turned and dragged his heavy steps toward the temporary camp tents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>......\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that same moment, in Thorn City, the capital of the Western Frontier, within La Roche Castle—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sir Lucius sat alone in his study. Outside the window hung the gray, overcast sky above Thorn City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his hand was a letter secretly sent out by Sabda through a trusted confidant before launching his final battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The handwriting on the page was somewhat hurried.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In it, Sabda went to great lengths to exaggerate the strength of Eli Pendragon’s forces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He claimed that Eli already commanded more than a thousand elite soldiers, controlled more than five thousand subjects, possessed solid city walls and a mysterious source of wealth, and that the speed of his development was unnaturally fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the letter, Sabda strongly implied that Eli’s ambitions were far from small, that he was fiercely ambitious and would never be content to remain beneath another man for long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He even hinted darkly that Eli might have ties to certain mysterious forces or hidden secrets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the end of the letter, he wrote:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If this man is not removed, he will inevitably become a mortal threat to the Western Frontier, and may one day prove impossible to restrain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For the long-term future of the Western Frontier, Sir, you must make your decision without delay and secretly eliminate him before his wings have fully grown...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sir Lucius calmly read every word of the letter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not the slightest ripple appeared on his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, he lifted the sheet of paper, rose slowly to his feet, and walked to the hearth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he cast that page, drenched in emotion, with perfect accuracy into the dancing flames.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The orange-red tongues of fire swiftly licked upward, greedily devouring the paper and reducing it to curling black ash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sir Lucius watched the whole process in silence until the last flicker of fire died away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did he slowly turn back around and cast his deep gaze once more out the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>......\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Far away in the Southern Frontier, within the central castle of House Medici, where the climate was warm and humid—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Duke Hackson Medici dismissed all his attendants and sat alone in a magnificent yet cold study.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He too held a letter in his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The paper was of fine quality, but only a single brief line had been written upon it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He recognized the handwriting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It belonged to his second son Sabda, the one whose heart had always been higher than the sky, the one who had never known how to yield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sabda Medici died by Eli Pendragon’s hand.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Duke Hackson’s gaze remained fixed upon that single line for a very long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fingers tightened unconsciously, nearly crushing the tough paper in his grip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The study was deathly silent. Only the occasional crackle of burning wood from the hearth could be heard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On that face, long accustomed to authority and majesty, there was not much visible grief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was only a fatigue and loneliness too deep to put into words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Foolish boy...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, within those deep-set eyes, there seemed to flash a trace of moisture—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but it vanished almost at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He simply sat there in silence, like a stone statue that had suddenly aged many years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Staring at the line that declared his son’s death,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he sank into boundless silence.\u003C\u002Fp>",1752,"2026-06-06T13:50:45.844Z",1,"novelbin.me","73d95f4c52801b1d380f4606fcd1ebac3ba4a4d707f3748161880029093036bc",null,"exiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-chapter-99",112,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fexiled-from-the-start-and-dominating-the-wastela-cover.jpg"]