Damn, I Have to Marry the Strongest Antagonist at the Start? - Chapter 136

Chapter 136: Chapter136-Army Approaching
As she looked at the divine stone Owen handed over, Leslie’s eyes lit up, and a rare expression of joy appeared on her face.

An item to stabilize the Dark Tower—this was something she had long sought but never obtained!

The Dark Tower was undoubtedly powerful, but the monsters imprisoned within it were too terrifying and ferocious, always posing a significant hidden threat in her heart.

After all, if the Dark Tower were to collapse, she, as the master of the Dark Tower, would be the first to die.

Even if she managed to survive the backlash from the Dark Tower’s collapse, those monsters, who had been imprisoned for countless ages and harbored intense fury, would immediately target her, the master of the Dark Tower, upon their escape.

Recently, she had sensed more than one wave of terrifying auras.

These auras had long since locked onto her. If it weren’t for the lingering power of the Dark Tower, she would have been torn to pieces by now.

“We shouldn’t delay. You should quickly stabilize the Dark Tower. Since we are to be husband and wife, what’s mine is yours; there’s no need to be formal with me.”

Just as Leslie was about to express her gratitude, Owen smiled calmly and stopped her.

Leslie recognized him in her heart, and he, too, acknowledged Leslie in his own.

Their eyes met, and it seemed as though they both understood each other’s innermost feelings.

Under the gentle white glow of the divine stone, the atmosphere grew intimate, like a candlelit dinner for two.

Leslie’s cheeks flushed slightly, and as if making a decision, she threw herself into Owen’s arms, pressing her cherry lips against his.

A soft and sweet scent enveloped him, and Owen felt an indescribable comfort and warmth.

Though he had accepted Leslie in his heart, and Leslie had clearly accepted him, they had been quite reserved before, only holding hands at most, without doing anything more.

But now, Leslie had taken the initiative to kiss him, catching Owen completely off guard and leaving his mind buzzing.

After a moment, when Owen realized what was happening and was about to embrace Leslie to deepen their connection…

Leslie had already dodged away to a distance, her flushed face turned away from Owen, her breathing slightly rapid as she said:

“I need to stabilize the Dark Tower. You should leave for now.”

Seeing this, Owen understood that Leslie had summoned a great deal of courage. The fact that she took the initiative to take this step was already significant.

So, he smacked his lips, savoring the lingering taste, and then, with a quick movement, he left the place.

Shortly after Owen returned to the courtyard, he saw Charlotte rushing in. Seeing only Owen in the courtyard and no sign of Leslie, she said anxiously:

“Master Owen, there’s an urgent report from the border. Where has Miss Leslie gone?”

“She’s in seclusion, cultivating, and is not available to see anyone right now. If there’s something urgent, you can tell me.”

Owen looked at Charlotte.

The Dark Tower was a secret between him and Leslie, and since Leslie hadn’t informed anyone else, Owen naturally covered for her.

Charlotte hesitated slightly but then remembered that Owen and Leslie were genuinely engaged, so it didn’t matter who she told. She quickly took out an urgent report from her pocket and swiftly reported:

“Sir, there’s an urgent war report. Kyrik has dispatched an army of 200,000 to capture the most important border fortress, Ironkeep. General Stanley is currently leading the remaining 70,000 troops in a desperate resistance and is requesting reinforcements!”

Upon hearing this, Owen frowned slightly, finding it strange.

The army that Stanley led to the frontier wasn’t 70,000 but 140,000!

These 140,000 were elite troops that he and Leslie had counted together. How could they have been reduced to this? It hadn’t been long, and half of them were already lost.

Especially with Stanley in command!

Charlotte immediately noticed the confusion on Owen’s face and quickly explained:

“Sir, according to the intelligence, Kyrik deployed their strongest spellbeast—the Crimson Dragon. A total of seventeen dragons are advancing relentlessly, and the regular army is no match for them. General Stanley is relying on military formations and Ironkeep as a natural barrier, but the defense is very difficult. According to General Stanley’s urgent report, they can only hold out for one more day at most…”

“Crimson Dragon?”

Upon hearing this, Owen’s expression became much more serious. He knew about the Crimson Dragon, Kyrik’s true trump card spellbeast legion. They were all descendants of dragons, with exceptional strength and bloodline, ranking among the best in spellbeasts.

No wonder General Stanley suffered heavy losses despite leading elite troops. It seemed that Kyrik intended to annex their Azure Kingdom, given they had deployed such a powerful spellbeast army.

“Alright! There’s no time to lose; we must set out immediately to reinforce General Stanley!”

Owen quickly decided and looked at Charlotte, then prepared to leave the courtyard and head to the border.

Seeing Owen like this, Charlotte was taken aback. Kyrik’s elite spellbeast legion was incredibly difficult to deal with. She had sought out Owen and Leslie to find reinforcements, not to request their direct involvement.

“Don’t worry, I have a plan.”

Owen knew Charlotte was concerned for his safety and worried about facing the spellbeast legion of seventeen Crimson Dragons.

However, he already had a strategy in mind.

Since discovering the secret development of mana stones, Owen, using knowledge from his previous life, had already instructed the undead to create a batch of weapons from mana stones and armed a thousand-strong mana stone legion with them.

This army was equipped with powerful armor and weapons such as bows and swords made from mana stones.

It could be described as a formidable force, both in close combat and ranged warfare.

However, because the weaponization of mana stones was still in development, the number of troops in the mana stone legion was very limited, but their combat power was already strong.

Moreover, since they relied on corpses, they were fearless in battle and easy to replenish. Once the experiment succeeded, the strength of the Azure Kingdom would experience a significant leap!

After all, the Azure Kingdom could not rely solely on him and Leslie. The lower and middle-level armies also needed a qualitative leap.

As for the weaponization of mana stones, this was something Owen had envisioned for a long time.

Since mana stones contained extremely abundant magical energy, simply selling them would be an insult to such treasures and wouldn’t maximize their value.

Additionally, Owen had always harbored some wariness towards Middle Earth.

Especially after the lifelong professor Alan from Academy City mentioned their interest in his Supreme Order, conducting mana stone business with them posed certain risks.

The key was that Owen himself wanted to develop the true value of mana stones rather than simply sell them.

This was where he differed from the old Azure royal family.

“Master Owen, should we summon the Dark Rose and the city defense army? They are the strongest troops besides those elite forces and can certainly play a significant role.”

Charlotte didn’t understand why Owen was rushing over alone and quickly asked.

After hearing this, Owen shook his head and said, “Why would we need them? I can handle this myself.”

After saying that, Owen activated the Fallen Angel clan’s Holy Token in his brow and contacted Oya.

“King Oya, are you there? Can I borrow nine of your Fallen Angels?”

Owen’s voice was transmitted to Oya through the Fallen Angel Holy Token.

Oya raised his eyebrows slightly, a bit puzzled.

The strength of each Fallen Angel was mostly at the diamond-tier level, making them quite powerful in this realm.

It was the first time he had heard of someone borrowing nine Fallen Angels at once.

Although he didn’t know why Owen needed so many Fallen Angels, he didn’t refuse outright and instead asked:

“What do you need so many Fallen Angels for? With your strength, is it really necessary?”

Owen replied directly, “To reinforce Ironkeep. Kyrik is attacking, and this time, we must teach them a lesson!”

As he spoke, Owen activated the wings of the Fallen Angel set, letting Seraphina coil around his arm, then shot toward Ironkeep with a sonic boom.

Hearing this, Oya shook his head slightly, “Young people are always in such a rush.”

Although he made a comment, Oya decided to follow Owen’s request and immediately ordered:

“Your strength has mostly recovered. Head to Ironkeep right away and assist Owen. Consider this our first true collaboration. Make sure to perform well.”

The nine Fallen Angels sitting together all twitched at the corners of their mouths, but even if they were reluctant, they had no choice but to obey the King’s command with a sigh.