At the Empire's border, a large Magic Source was located.
At this moment, the large Magic Source was radiating light, allowing several figures to leap forth from it and come ashore.
Around it, numerous demons guarding the vicinity of the Magic Source sensed this scene and immediately roared fiercely.
However, before long, a terrifying aura emitted from these figures, instilling a panic-like fright in the surrounding demons, causing them to scatter and flee.
These figures emitting a powerful aura turned a deaf ear to this and merely contemplated the world around them, making successive reflections.
"It has been a long time since we last came to the Human Realm."
"The environment here is really nice, much better than ours."
"There's no helping it. Although the Demon Realm is the largest world among the Three Realms, a thousand years ago, when the Demon King divided the world into three parts, the Human Realm was the center of Omni Potanssen."
"Unfortunately, the Demon King was defeated by the detestable Hero. Otherwise, how could such a prime locale be enjoyed by the mere Human Race?"
As they conversed in this manner, the identities of these figures were also revealed.
They were indeed from the Demon Clan of the Demon Realm, and all were formidable.
Their purpose in coming to the Human Realm was straightforward.
"Let's go, let's find out what's happening in the Imperial City of the Ragna Empire."
"I want to see what kind of abilities the Hero of a thousand years later possesses."
"This era does not need a Hero. We of the Demon Clan shall never allow a Hero to continue existing in this world."
"Kill the Hero and then see how the Divine Race reacts."
"Hero Summoning, this is definitely a prelude to some conspiracy by the Divine Race."
"Yes, we must stop it."
As they spoke these words, the people of the Demon Clan transformed into streaks of light, heading towards the direction of the Imperial City.
A similar scene was also unfolding around other large Magic Sources within the Empire's territory.
These past few days, individuals from the Demon Clan kept arriving in the Human Realm.
Some harbored immense hostility towards the Hero, others felt alarmed and threatened by the Hero's presence, some sat uneasy and decided to investigate, while others acted purely out of self-interest.
Nonetheless, the appearance of the Hero truly agitated the entire Demon Clan.
Based on various considerations, they all eventually decided to come to the Human Realm, encounter the Hero, and even—kill the Hero.
Naturally, the various powers of the Human Race could not have possibly missed this phenomenon.
Not just the Human Race, even the Divine Race responded.
Consequently, several powers began to make statements.
"The Hero is a treasure of the Human Race, and the Demon Clan must not harm him."
"The order of the Human Realm must not be disturbed; we ask the members of the Demon Clan to leave immediately."
"Before the truth of the matter is known, no one should be suspected."
"We strongly condemn the actions of certain radicals of the Demon Clan. Those from the Demon Clan who have come to the Human Realm should leave; otherwise, we will regard such actions as an invasion."
These were statements made by some nations that chose to stand with the Hero and share his adversities, including the Mitra Kingdom and the Elf Country, showing a very strong stance.
Other national powers were supporters of the Empire; panicking at the sight of the Demon Clan appearing freely within the Empire, recognizing that their intentions were not good.
Including the Beastman Priest Group, all entered into a state of alert and prepared to take action.
Naturally, where there are supporters, there are spectators.
Some countries and powers, seeing the aggressive momentum of the Demon Clan, commanded their armies and knight orders to guard their territories while also opting to watch how things unfolded.
After all, the Demon Clan was ultimately the strongest and most powerful of the Three Great Races. Since they were now conducive to peace, even considering future peace, it was not apt to aggravate the Demon Clan at this time.
For this reason, there were even some powers that suggested handing over the Hero to earn the Demon Clan's trust and peace of mind.
Other than these, there were also some purely coincidental nations and powers that had already allied with the Demon Clan.
In such circumstances, they were even less likely to support the Hero, and if not for fear of potential pursuit by the Human and Divine Races, they might have already spoken out in support of the Demon Clan.
In a nutshell, the current situation was extremely tense, feeling like a storm was approaching.
Across various locations, Temples had even begun to contact the Divine Race, requesting their involvement.
At first, the Goddesses of the Divine Race took the matter very seriously, and many Goddesses personally descended to the Human Realm.
However, for some unknown reason, after a while, the Divine Race suddenly disappeared without a trace, stopped any form of communication, and the Goddesses who had come to the Human Realm returned to the Divine World, as if they no longer cared about the matter, surprising many.
"What does the Divine Race mean by this?"
"Are they feeling guilty? Or have they decided to abandon the Hero?"
Many national powers of the Human Race were puzzled by the intentions of the Divine Race.
Mitra Kingdom and Elf Country felt the same, finding the actions of the Divine...
"Hand over the Hero!"
"Hand over the Hero!"
Such slogans had begun to resound dramatically around the Imperial City in recent days.
Countless warriors from the Demon Clan had gathered around the Imperial City, surrounding it completely.
Their momentum was overwhelming, like a mighty army bearing down.
They advanced fiercely, their dominance unmatched.
Most of them were high-level experts of the Demon Clan.
Those who dared to come to the Human Realm and challenge the Hero and the Ragnar Empire were certainly no ordinary people.
This time, the lowest level among the Demon Clan experts who had come to the Imperial City was not below eighty.
The presence of so many entities above Level 80 created an effect of a massive army, a force likely capable of crushing any country in the Human Realm.
This was the Demon Clan, a race stronger than the Divine Race and the Human Race combined, renowned for its strength, which had once suppressed the Divine and Human Races to the point of suffocation, only breaking the deadlock with the help of the Hero.
Together, they released a daunting aura that turned the skies overhead oppressive, causing everyone in the Imperial City to turn pale and tremble incessantly.
Even the Imperial Knight Order dared not deploy.
Even though they were furious, they knew that any reckless action would result in a catastrophic defeat.
If that happened, the Empire would truly be finished.
Therefore, Rocque ordered all the Imperial Knight Order to stay within the Imperial City, not allowing them to take a single step outside.
Inside the palace, in the royal quarters, Cappelen slammed her hand on the table, unable to contain her anger.
"This is outrageous!"
Cappelen was beyond furious.
Not just Cappelen, but Harvis, Rocque, and Tilly who were present felt a suffocating frustration and anger.
The pressing army was indeed very ominous.
Yet, the top military power in the Human Realm was being bullied to the extent of having its capital surrounded, and the entire populace was oppressed by the aura; even the Empire's pride, the Imperial Knight Order, couldn't step outside the Imperial City. This situation would be unbearable for any country.
Especially since the enemy planned to force the palace to hand over the Hero, which was infuriating.
Harvis looked at the parchment in his hand, his expression dark.
This was a warning letter from the representative of the Demon Clan that surrounded the Imperial City.
"Hand over the Hero, or else the Demon Clan army will flatten the entire Empire."
This was unmistakably a threat.
"Sister!" Cappelen couldn't help but stand up, looking at Harvis with passionate fury, "Please let me lead a team to fight the Demon Clan!"
Cappelen could no longer hold back.
It showed just how unacceptable this situation was.
But, despite Harvis's grim face, he decisively rejected the idea.
"No permission to go," Harvis said sternly. "The Empire cannot afford the cost of action."
Indeed, they could not bear it.
"Leaving aside the gap in combat strength, if we choose to act, it would mean declaring war on the Demon Clan," Rocque stated emotionlessly. "If it comes to that, regardless of the Hero's matter, the Demon Clan won't leave the Empire alone."
At that point, the Empire's situation would truly be precarious.
"What should we do then?" Tilly couldn't help but say. "Are we supposed to just watch the Demon Clan enter the Imperial City and slaughter, or hand over the Hero who saved our country?"
Saying this, Tilly involuntarily thought of the young noble from the Kingdom, feeling extremely conflicted.
After learning that Shane was the Hero, Tilly's heart was completely in turmoil, completely lost.
Meanwhile, she somewhat understood.
"Only a Hero could become a top Legendary fighter at such a young age, right?"
Tilly then felt reassured by Shane's strength.
This led Tilly's previous curiosity, unwillingness, and competitive spirit towards Shane to transform into admiration.
Moreover, since Shane had saved the Empire and annihilated Moro, Tilly definitely didn't want the Empire to choose to betray the Hero, to sacrifice him.
The others felt more or less the same.
"It is absolutely impossible to hand him over," Harvis said without hesitation. "Both emotionally and logically, the Empire cannot hand over Lord Bezut."
The Empire had already become one of Shane's backing forces.
As such, Harvis would not do something like pushing Shane away.
"What should we do then, Your Highness?"
Rocque asked, frowning deeply.
"Wait a bit longer," Harvis's eyes flickered as he said. "I have already asked the Temple Master to seek help from the Divine Race, and I believe that the Divine Race will not just watch idly as the Hero is persecuted by the Demon Clan."
At those words, those present eased their taut nerves somewhat.
However, not long after, someone rushed into the royal quarters in a panic.
The person shouted frantically.
"The Hero... The Hero has taken his people and left the city!"
At that declaration, Harvis and the others abruptly stood up.
"Go!" Harvis ordered without a second thought, "Command the Imperial Knight Order to deploy immediately!"
"Yes!" Everyone responded in succession.