William looked up at the gray sky that was covered with thick clouds. Ever since the Continental Spell was unleashed, the light of the sun had not appeared again within the Southern Continent.
'Too bad, I can't increase the level of my Sun Knight Job Class,' William thought as he closed his eyes. He then remembered the smug expression of the Sun God, Lugh, who had made things difficult for him back in the Temple of the Gods.
If possible, William didn't want to see him ever again.
The red-headed boy was currently lying on the highest point of the Ant Nest, while he arranged the information that he had gathered from the Ant Queen, as well as Princess Sidonie's own conclusion.
'Elves…' William didn't know how to feel about these invaders that had come from distant lands. For him, Elves were a complicated bunch. His mother, his Master, and the Dean of the Academy were the only three Elves that he knew so far.
If someone were to ask him if he hated the Elves, the answer would be "just a little". He was forced to part with his Mother because she was afraid that he would be targeted by his father's enemies. His master, on the other hand, had made sure that he learned things the hard way.
As for the Dean of the Academy, William didn't know him well enough to give his opinion. At the very least, the two of them were not at odds with each other.
'However, one thing is for sure…,' William mused as he opened his eyes. 'They didn't come here for peace. They came here with the intention to invade.'
According to the scouts that the Ant Queen had sent to the Zelan Dynasty, the Elves had either imprisoned or enslaved the teenagers that tried to resist their invasion. Although the Elves were clearly stronger, it doesn't change the fact that there were millions of inhabitants in each Kingdom.
Among them would be the prodigies that would stand out from the rest. The fastest way to eliminate all opposition would be to either capture or enslave them as soon as possible.
'Whoever is leading their expedition has a good head on their shoulders.' William had to admit that this was the most effective method available when conquering Kingdoms.
Aside from the Elven invasion, there was also the threat of The Organization in his own Kingdom. Although the Elves and The Organization seemed to be at odds with each other, William instinctively felt that trying to form an alliance with them was a very bad option.
There was also the matter with Kasogonaga. The moment the Anteater became aware that Elves had arrived, he had returned to the Thousand Beast Domain to fully absorb the two Millennial Ants that he had eaten a few days ago.
William could tell that the Deity of the Sky was focusing on getting as strong as it could. It was as if the rainbow-colored Anteater was setting up a Flag for an imminent battle with the Elves in the future.
He had already been in Antheilm for five days. The reason he hadn't left yet was because the Ant Queen's ability to gather information was amazing, to say the least.
She had employed a vast array of Information Gathering Ants that were no bigger than an inch long. Even at great distances, they could relay the information to the Ant Queen in real time, which saved William the trouble of sending Aethon, his little Wren, to gather information from all four Kingdoms on the Continent.
William was quite thankful for the fact that Princess Sidonie and him had agreed to form an alliance. Without her help, he would still be in the dark about the appearance of the Elves.
'What should I prioritize first?' William sighed as he propped himself up into a sitting position. 'Whatever happens to the Zelan and Anaesha Dynasties is none of my business. Princess Sidonie is worried about her family in the Kingdom of Freesia, so I can't count on her to help me deal with The Organization in my home turf.'
William thought of gathering the scattered members of his Knight Order in order to deal with The Organization. However, after getting information from Conner's subordinates, he found out that it would be very difficult to face them in a head-on battle.
'There's also the issue of the Crown Prince.' William frowned.
He still hadn't had the chance to smack Prince Lionel's face for trying to kidnap his Big Brother and Big Sister while they were returning to Lont. William had been itching to give the Bastard Prince a good thrashing once he got his hands on him.
"What are you thinking, Sir William?"
An angelic voice called out to the Half-Elf, while he was busy thinking of ways to deal with The Organization.
Princess Sidonie walked towards him with the veil covering her exceptional good looks, which had brought many men and women to their knees.
"I'm thinking about the problems I need to deal with within the Hellan Kingdom," William answered honestly. "How about you? Do you have any plans to go back to the Kingdom of Freesia to liberate your people?"
Princess Sidonie didn't answer. Instead, she sat beside William and stared at the massive Ant Colony in front of her.
"I have some good news and some bad news," Sidonie said after a minute of silence.
William scratched his head in a helpless manner, "Great. More bad news. Go on, tell me the bad news first."
Princess Sidonie turned her head to the side to look at William. Frankly, the Half-Elf didn't know why the Princess returned to wearing her veil after he had seen the face of the beauty that could bring down a nation.
What he didn't know was that Princess Sidonie didn't want to face him straight on and used the veil to hide her expression. She was still embarrassed by how Morgana had acted in front of the red-headed boy. The Princess of Freesia was afraid that William would think of her as a loose lady that would openly tell anyone that she wanted to have their babies".
"A new force has appeared and invaded our Kingdom," Princess Sidonie reported. "The good news is that they don't seem to be on hostile terms with our Kingdom. The flags of Freesia can still be seen in the capital. However, right next to it, another flag flutters in the breeze."
William nodded. He had already figured out that the Elves weren't the only invaders to come to the Southern Continent.
"Do you recognize the flag? Does it belong to the local forces in your Kingdom?" William inquired.
Princess Sidonie shook her head. "There are no local factions within our Kingdom. However, I guess you can say that I am related to them through my Mother."
William frowned, but didn't say anything because he knew that the Princess had not finished her explanation.
"The flags belong to the Kraetor Empire," Princess Sidonie continued.. "My grandfather, Leonidas Agis Val Kraetor, is the current Emperor of the Kraetor Empire."