Catastrophe Card King

Leonard Churchill murmured in his heart.

His intuition had been correct; the plot threads within the Alternate Dimension were interconnected.

Being addressed as the “Demon Hunting Warrior” by the Security Squad Leader confirmed his suspicion that the plot from “Outpost Battle” had continued.

At the same time, his heart lifted with joy.

This was the best outcome he could have expected.

Previously, when several fortresses in the Demon Mountain Range were conquered by Demons, and later reinforced by the Kingdom’s soldiers, Leonard was one of the few humans to survive in three fortresses.

And he was the only surviving Adventurer.

Moreover, his excellent Contribution Points for slaying countless Demons had been recorded in the annals of Delaney Kingdom.

Now that the Battle of Ironforge continued the previous plot development, Leonard’s identity was extended as well.

To an outsider, his ‘Demon Hunting Warrior’ status might have many logical flaws, but Leonard wasn’t concerned about that.

The Alternate Dimension would fill in these logical gaps for any Adventurer who entered.

Non-Player Characters wouldn’t notice, nor would they inquire into these issues.

Leonard’s current identity was that of a heroic and loyal Demon Hunting Warrior of the Delaney Kingdom.

…

The Security Squad Leader led the way, “Honorable Demon Hunting Warrior, this way, please.”

War heroes were always respected.

After presenting Mage Rolan’s Rune Token and exchanging a few simple words, Leonard entered the City Lord Manor for the first time, a place no other Adventurer had yet stepped into.

As he walked, he observed everything around him.

There was nothing particularly noteworthy about the City Lord Manor itself, styled after a medieval castle.

However, Leonard hadn’t been walking long before he noticed something unusual and murmured to himself, “Is there a big shot in Ironforge City…”

His perception was extremely sharp. Along the way, he clearly sensed several strong presences hiding in various parts of the manor.

It seemed that some powerful figures had also noticed his presence.

To another Hunter, there might not have been anything unusual.

But Leonard immediately sensed something was off.

Wearing a Clown mask, he activated an exemption from the Mysterious Techniques displayed by Enlightenment: a barely perceptible Mental Power field known as “Touch of Nothingness.”

Leonard had previously studied Mage Rowland’s manuscripts, which mentioned this spell.

This was high-level Magic that only a Grand Mage could cast.

And it wasn’t just the manuscripts—he had read all the Classic Books on the old Mage’s bookshelf as well.

His photographic memory allowed him now to become fluent in the language of Delaney Kingdom and through the books, he had learned many secrets of this world.

Leonard also knew that a city like Ironforge could at best be considered a second-tier city and would definitely not be guarded by a Grand Mage.

This was because there wasn’t even a Magic Tower, a symbol of a Grand Mage’s presence.

“Perhaps they were transferred here due to the war?”

Leonard guessed in his mind.

After waiting in a side hall for a few minutes, he was soon summoned by the City Lord.

…

The walls of Ironforge City’s buildings were incredibly thick, and the castle was dimly lit with torches illuminating dark corridors.

“Click, clack, click, clack, click, clack…”

The armored Security Squad Leader led Leonard upwards, and it wasn’t long before they arrived at the meeting hall of the City Lord Manor.

It seemed that an officers’ meeting had recently taken place as the hall’s thick table, marked with axe scars, still had a military map of the vast mountainous area around Ironforge on it.

Leonard glanced at the map and committed the details, which were even more comprehensive than the intelligence reports, to memory.

There was a ring on the table from a teacup bottom, a fresh smudge that hadn’t yet dried, indicating someone had recently wiped it up.

Were there about three people in a meeting before?

As soon as he entered, the brown-bearded strongman in Black Iron chainmail came up excitedly, “Oh, our kingdom’s Demon Hunting Warrior has returned!”

Leonard recognized the man at a glance, his expression gave nothing away as he calmly greeted, “I’ve met Lord Moissanite!”

As a war hero, Leonard was given due respect, with the Lord of Ironforge personally moving a chair for him.

Leonard didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point, “Lord Moissanite, the situation is urgent, I have important military intelligence to report. Thunderbolt Fortress has completely fallen, and now the Demon Legion is crossing the mountain range to gather. They will arrive here at Ironforge in no more than three days. I estimate there are at least three hundred thousand troops, possibly even more…”

At these words, Moissanite’s expression turned grave, “Is this information accurate?”

Leonard nodded, “Yes!”

This wasn’t something he was making up.

It was intelligence that had already been confirmed by the Lionheart Family during their C-grade mission.

Though reporting this directly wouldn’t earn him the Contribution points of the mission reward, Leonard couldn’t think of a better way to draw out the hidden plot.

Ironforge only had thirty thousand defenders.

If besieged by the Demon Legion, they would have almost no chance of victory.

But since this plot had turned into a War Mode in the Alternate Dimension, there were bound to be special hidden plots.

Ironforge certainly wouldn’t fall so easily.

By mentioning the “siege countdown,” Leonard was trying to see if he could trigger some hidden plots.

After all, he wasn’t concerned with a siege.

He wanted to investigate rumors about the Holy Grail.

Normally, Hunters speaking directly to NPCs like this would never be trusted, but Leonard’s words as a Demon Hunting Hero carried weight.

“This…”

City Lord Moissanite also realized immediately that the situation was critical.

He furrowed his brows and pondered for a moment, seemingly hesitant.

Not everyone is skilled at acting, and the troubled micro-expression on Moissanite’s face was something an experienced actor like Leonard could easily read.