The grand marshal of the Roth Empire is a very high rank. He is someone who can control the army of the Roth Empire. His status in the Roth Empire is only beneath the king’s, so his power and influence are far higher than the two princes’.

That was the reason why the position of the Roth Empire’s grand marshal had been empty for years. The king had been the one controlling the eight marshals, and thus the entire army, directly.

But right now, the king wanted to hand this powerful position over to Alex, which was a very strange move.

However, Mag was not an ignorant fool who just came to this world, after all. He could guess what the king of the Roth Empire was scheming.

So, even if Andre handed him the position of king right now to make him return to Rodu, he would not take it, either.

Although it had been ascertained that the assassination on that rainy night more than three years ago was a ploy set up by Josh, the orcs, and the elves, that place was Rodu, after all. With so many 10th-tier experts involved and the connection with the army completely cut, Mag thought that it would really be an insult to his IQ if he were to believe that Andre did not know about it at all.

Besides, the royal palace seemed to be involved in Sean’s collusion with the demons to kill Irina at Rodu the last time.

Sean and Josh might be fighting their heads off onstage, but what Mag really cared about was the king who did not show any emotions.

That old man was very vicious.

The reason why he suddenly announced the offer to make him the grand marshal of the army at this timing was not difficult to guess if one put some thought into it.

In order to save Irina previously, he killed the creator of spatial magic, and publicly announced his comeback, causing an uproar once again.

The title “Number One Knight of the Norland Continent” was not just an empty name. It represented absolute power and full command in the army.

In two months, there would be a peace negotiation held in the Norland Continent.

If the negotiations could proceed on the negotiation table, he would become the Roth Empire’s key bargaining chip.

And if the negotiations fell through, the war between the races would start again. When that happened, his existence would make them wary.

He would not even need to do anything. His name itself would suffice.

Judging from how much Sean and Josh hated him, they would never raise such a suggestion to the king.

That gave Mag a deeper insight into how crafty that old fox was.

Andre, who sat on the throne quietly for decades, was the real jackal who hid its teeth compared to his impatient sons.

That was a very good plan. According to his character, Alex would most likely silently agree to it on account of his affection for the Roth Empire.

But he was not Alex. He was Mag.

He would have to give those who made him unhappy their just desserts.

Mag threw the newspaper into the trash can and rushed into the kitchen.

“Gina, Firis, Anna, I’ll head out for a while,” he told the group as he pushed his bicycle out.

…

In a sealed meeting room in the city lord’s castle, three figures sat relatively far away from each other at a round table. The lights were dim and their faces were solemn.

“It seems like King Andre does not intend to continue with the original peace agreement. Even if he doesn’t start a war, he will most likely request to redraw the borders,” Michael said seriously.

“It’s not just Andre. The demons, the orcs, the forest trolls, and the elves. All the races that had risen in strength in the recent century would all want to redraw the borders. Back then, it was the demons who were the most aggressive. They only backed down after Benson and the other 10th-tier experts were killed by Alex and Irina,” Lord Rolan of the Gray Temple said in a low tone.

“We’ve already expected this, but we just didn’t think that he would push Alex into the limelight. We were all still guessing if Alex would return to the Roth Empire. After all, the king and the royal family wouldn’t be able to shirk off all responsibility for what happened back then,” Novan said with a frown, looking worried.

Michael also frowned. “That would have to depend on Alex—if he is willing to return to the Roth Empire. Once he returns, the split in the Roth Empire’s army because of his sudden death back then will be erased, and it will become terrifyingly united. That is not good news for the other races.”

“Judging from Alex’s character, he will most probably not speak out about it. If it’s a silent consent, the other races will have to consider him as part of the Roth Empire’s army. If that’s the case, other than the giant dragon tribe, no other race is stronger than the Roth Empire, and they will have the upper hand in the peace negotiations in two months’ time. That will become a very unfavorable situation to us,” Rolan said.

“Exactly. Although Alex is just an individual, judging from how the situation is in Norland Continent now, he has become an individual that can upset the balance between the different races,” Novan lamented.

“The goblins and the dwarves had already come to a secret alliance with us. They are currently the two weakest races in the Norland Continent. If the peace negotiations are unable to go on smoothly this time, they will be forced to give up their land, or even be in danger of being attacked. The laying of the steam train tracks is in fast progress with the combined efforts of the three races, but it’s still unknown how much bargaining power it can bring us,” Michael said.

Rolan nodded, and solemnly said, “Chaos City’s stand is to work hard to keep all parties on the negotiation table. Once the negotiations fall through and war breaks out, Chaos City might be the prime target.”

“Then all we can do now is to wait for Alex’s response. I hope he won’t let us down this time,” Novan said with a smile.

…

The response the entire Norland Continent was waiting for came way quicker than expected.

“Howl!!!”

A loud sound echoed throughout the Dragon Islands and attracted all the attention of the giant dragons on the various islands.

“This familiar sound is?”

“It’s Alex’s mount! Alex has appeared!”

Very quickly, a commotion rose on the Dragon Islands.

The entire Norland Continent was waiting for Alex’s response to the Roth King’s command, but he ended up appearing in the Dragon Islands.

The purple-striped griffin glided across the Dragon Islands proudly and landed at the central island, Glass Dragon Island.

Alex, who was sitting on the griffin’s back, held a sword in his hand as he carved out two rows of words on the Glass Dragon Pillar:

I’m not going to be the grand marshal!

I want this world to be peaceful!

—Alex

The great elder of the Glass Dragon Island only came running out angrily after that purple figure disappeared on the horizon, and pointed to the sky, scolding, “Alex, you f*cking carved words on my tribe’s holy relic again! Don’t run away if you have what it takes!!!”

“Great Elder, why didn’t you stop him when he was still here? He’s long gone now.”

“Fool, if he wasn’t long gone, would you dare to scold him?”

“I’ve always only listened to my heart…”