Lord of the Sky City-Chapter 874 - 856: Capture

After meeting with Lord Amuro, Karina introduced him to Rocky. There was no choice; other City Lords might not need an introduction, but this Lord Amuro definitely required one. He was one of Marshal Mannstein’s fiercest generals, renowned for both his loyalty and combat skills. Although his appearances in the Allied Forces’ operations were rare, every battle he participated in ended in overwhelming victory. The tough battles in the Myriad Snakes Region were all fought by him.

Karina greatly admired someone like him, so she gave Rocky a detailed introduction. Learning that he was a close confidant of Mannstein, Rocky was naturally very courteous. However, since the two were not particularly familiar with each other, their conversation was brief. Rocky simply inquired about the purpose of Amuro’s visit.

As Mannstein’s trusted subordinate, Amuro’s appearance in Rose City was certainly no coincidence. Once the two sides began discussing in depth, Rocky immediately understood the purpose of Amuro’s visit.

He was here to invite Rocky to Gulie City, which was Mannstein’s main city and also served as the Allied Forces’ headquarters in the Myriad Snakes Region. According to Amuro, Marshal Mannstein had heard of Rocky for quite some time and was eager to meet him. Of course, Amuro made it clear that he was only acting as a messenger to convey His Excellency the Marshal’s invitation. Whether or not Rocky decided to go to Gulie City was entirely up to him; there was no compulsion.

Once he delivered the message, Amuro didn’t linger and soon returned to Sky City. However, although he had left, the Kafka Empire’s Sky City remained stationed around Thunderhawk City. As long as Rocky wasn’t taken away, the patrol Sky Cities had no intention of leaving either. Both sides seemed to be in an impasse.

"Looks like His Excellency the Marshal is giving you quite a bit of face."

After Amuro left, Karina raised her arched brows at Rocky. As a fellow City Lord, she naturally understood the true purpose behind Amuro’s visit.

To put it plainly, Amuro was here for two reasons: first, to make it clear to Rocky that the Empire had no connection to those cities relentlessly pursuing him; he shouldn’t misunderstand because of that. Second, to provide both Mannstein and Gihren with an explanation.

The agreement between Mannstein and Gihren was that Gihren would recall his patrol squads pursuing Rocky, and Mannstein would deploy the Empire’s troops to capture him. But everyone knew this was impossible. All eyes were on Mannstein to see how he would handle the matter. His Excellency the Marshal’s solution was to have Amuro greet Rocky and extend an invitation to Gulie City.

This way, at least on the surface, Mannstein would appear to have done all he could. He had indeed deployed the Empire’s troops to "capture" Rocky. If Rocky went to Gulie City, all the better—they could chat and strengthen their cooperation. If Rocky didn’t go, that would be fine too; they could simply claim he refused to comply.

Even without knowing the full picture, both Rocky and Karina—being City Lords—could easily infer the situation given their positions.

"So, are you planning to go to Gulie City?"

After this realization, Karina asked directly.

"Not interested. I have zero interest in the Allied Forces."

Rocky shook his head and answered firmly. While he appreciated Mannstein’s goodwill, under different circumstances, he might have wanted to meet the so-called God of the Imperial Army. But for now, he had no interest. Moreover, the internal machinations within the Allied Forces were turbulent. From the moment he stepped into this warzone, people started using him as a pawn in their schemes and making him the subject of political maneuvering. If he allowed Thunderhawk City to fly into the Allied Forces headquarters, even if Mannstein bore him no ill will, there was no telling what others might do.

"Indeed, this is, after all, a place rife with trouble."

Karina found his reasoning understandable. With that, the two no longer dwelled on the topic and swiftly moved on to discussing more pressing matters.

"So, you’re saying you want to carve out your own little warzone?"

When Rocky shared his thoughts with Karina, she was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected his ambitions to be so grand.

But in truth, she’d underestimated just how ambitious Rocky really was.

"I don’t want to carve out a little warzone; I want to claim a piece of land."

When it came to Cyril, Rocky trusted her deeply, but he harbored doubts toward the rest of the Mairente Family. Thus, he kept some things to himself. With Karina, however, he held no such reservations and spoke frankly: "To be honest, I have little hope for the Allied Forces."

"The Allied Forces’ aim is far too grand—the idea of winning a single war to entirely reclaim the land. I think it’s impossible. The Demons didn’t take over the land with just one war either."

"I believe rather than pinning everything on one decisive counteroffensive, we should recapture the land step by step. Secure a stronghold first, then slowly build it up. I think that’s far more realistic than victory through one final battle."

"But I can’t accomplish this alone. I need your help."

This was Rocky’s true intention.

At first glance, it might seem as though his plan was to compete with the Allied Forces, acting as a rival power. They would attack here, and he would form his own "mini-allied force" on the side. But in reality, this was not the case. As he said, his approach fundamentally differed from that of the Allied Forces. They sought a one-time solution; he wanted to build methodically.

Hearing his vision, Karina furrowed her brows, thinking deeply for a long while before speaking. "I don’t have a problem with it—staying with you is definitely more comfortable than working with the Allied Forces. But..."

"Have you considered this? Do you think you can succeed where others have failed?"

She looked at Rocky and asked the most crucial question.

The same thing had been tried before, only to end in failure. freewebnøvel.coɱ

Those familiar with world history knew that ever since humanity was driven into the skies, there had been three major counteroffensive wars, including the current one. It might seem as if these were the only efforts humanity ever made. But in truth, between these three great wars, many individuals attempted other methods to reclaim the land, including Rocky’s step-by-step approach.

Yet, all of them failed. Without exception, they were defeated. The reason was simple: no matter how much land they reclaimed, they couldn’t withstand the Demons’ counterattacks. Over time, people stopped trying altogether. With so many failed precedents, what made Rocky believe he could succeed?