Rudra patiently waited for his turn to speak , one of the problems raised during the discussion was the role of the god's chosen ,( player ) in the upcoming war.

Some voices amongst the council wanted to use the players as cannon fodders , as they beleived the overall capabilities of players to be lacking and them being blessed with immortality , their deaths had a lesser weight attached to it.

The entire time the councilmen made a single mistake that Rudra knew in his heart , which was that they assumed that the players would be willing to listen to the state in the war and act upon the directions they were given. Which was not at all the case in reality.

The player population taking part in the war was nearly 6 million. This was a huge number , which was not easy to manage , much less under a single leader.

Rudra knew that it was best to appoint player leaders to lead a maximum of 250k players at once , and with a clear level bifercation to be made to use the appropriate level of players at the appropriate place.

Indeed Rudra did not think that the tier 0 players were in any way fit to play any role except that of cannon fodder in the war. But he was unwilling of making the truly strong player teams , like the Elites and some other first rate organizations fight a useless fight , when they were more capable than the royal forces.

Hence deciding to voice out his concerns Rudra spoke for the first time in the war council.

Rudra raising a hand immediately put a frown on the other Lieutenant's faces . It was an established fact at this point that Rudra was a tactical genius , who was highly valued by the king. Plus the fact that Purplehaze city was technically managed by him. Meaning that the city's defense equipment and walls were a contribution he had given to the state , greatly outshined the merits of the other Lieutenant's who paled in comparison. Rudra said " Your highness , being a chosen myself , i can speak for my kind , that we are not United by patriotism for the country by any means . We are very selfish people who work only in our own self interest , and currently working for the stability of the country is in alignment with our own interests , which is the only reason why you will see my kind participanting in the event.

Hence , i think that us thinking that the chosen would fight as instructed is a misunderstanding , the state has to provide appropriate rewards for war merit and properly bifercate the force in with leadership.

For the part of using the chosen as cannon fodder , i do think that you have to think twice , as some chosen like myself are extremely talented and powerful , and can serve a different purpose , a more critical part in the war.

Ultimately your majesty is more experienced than me , and this is only my humble opinion , ofcourse I would support the state with any thing it needs ".

Rudra's statements brought many frowns on the faces of the council , who could not understand how impudent the player masses were to not contribute towards the nation that they lived in , at such a time of crisis.

However , Rudra had spoken the naked truth , and it was a reality that the council had to realize , the earlier the better.

Although many people wanted to voice out their concerns , because of the stern warning by Cervantez before the court started , everyone was silent , as to not anger the emperor.

Cervantez went deep into thought , as he understood the reality behind Rudra 's words. The matter of giving rewards according to merit was not difficult , it was a system naturally in palce , but Rudra was correct in his concerns , and the state needed to highlight the benefits of joining this war.

Cervantez hence said " The concerns stated by first lieutenant requires us to put some thought into it. I expect a draft of a system of merit related benefits that the state can provide be made public for all those who voluntarily take part in this war. As for the structure in which the chosen are used in the war , i leave the matter to general Won Knight and her military judgement, onto the next topic ".

After which the discussions moved to other aspects of the war , although many were dissatisfied with the way the emperor handled things and envied the Won Knight's for their sway in the politics inside Hazelgroove court.

However Rudra and Patricia could care less on what the others thought of them. They worked wholeheartedly for the empire ( *cough* Patricia did) , and did not want personal glory .

------

( Meanwhile in the village of Thol)

Thol was a charred land now , scattered on which were the burnt fleshes of the inhabitants , whose naked bones were now exposed , as bones littered the ground.

If one was to say that this was a happy village just a mere hours ago , with children running across the streets and adults smiling and buisness blooming . The current scene would shock them .

Only vultures remained , tearing pieces of flesh off the bodies of the dead , as not even a single sound was being made in the village . Making it a ghost town , completely desolate.

Inside the desolate town , under the moon Mazikeen stood with her hair open , as she looked towards Purplehaze city . Her red eyes gleaming with hatred , as she waited for her entire force to assemble before marching towards the capital. action

Mazikeen had been imprisoned for centuries by the Hazelgroove Royal family . And she hated them to the bone , the Kingdom of Hazelgroove had to burn , no questions about it , and with Cervantez advancing to tier 5 , Lucifer himself gave the orders to neutralize the threat before it became any larger. Which was an added bonus for Mazikeen , who now had a huge force at her disposal to wage a grudge war.

She desperately waited for the day she crushed the neck of Cervantez under her feet!

/// Bonus chapter for hitting the Golden ticket target .... Good job everyone! ///