The two talked for a while longer when Laine pushed the door open and entered. His hair was still a bit wet, indicating he had just showered. Seeing Sylvia there, the Count smiled and said, "You've worked hard, Miss Sylvia."

"It's what I should do." The maid felt a bit uneasy facing Laine again. She nodded and quickly left, saying, "I'll take my leave now."

After the maid closed the door and left, Surya gently leaned on Laine's shoulder, asking, "Is Miss Teresa okay?"

"It's nothing serious, but she'll need to rest for at least half a year." Laine got into bed, embracing Surya's fragrant body. "We'll set off tomorrow morning, so be prepared since you're insistent."

"What exactly should we do?" Surya hugged her husband in return, gently stroking Laine's face. "You better not keep it from me!"

"Belgar's plan is for you, me, Belgar, and Demon Hunter Supreme Grandmaster Master Ernst to infiltrate the Skaven secret base along a small path, killing all the ratmen we encounter and destroying all visible ratmen structures to create chaos. Marshal Rick Heilberg will lead the Imperial and Dwarf alliance army to wait for the internal chaos among the ratmen and destroy their frontline base from within and without."

"Alright." Knowing Surya was also tired, Laine didn't have any further plans and held his wife before blowing out the candle to rest.

Who could have known that after the room fell silent, the lady knight suddenly lifted her head to offer Laine a kiss.

Her lips carried a faint sweetness, and Laine was stunned for a second before kissing her back.

After a long kiss, Surya, breathless, said, "You are not to intentionally keep things from me in the future! My husband."

"I understand." Laine admitted promptly, "I was worried you'd be too tired... and afraid you'd get hurt."

"Pfft~" Surya giggled, holding Laine, and whispered, "Judging by your look, you don't seem tired at all? Did you feel tired when you were treating Miss Teresa?"

Laine was speechless and could only express with actions that he was not tired.

... A dividing line where the Count wasn't tired ...

Early the next morning, the army assembled. The Great Swordsmen of the Empire and the Walking Knights formed a phalanx, following Belgar, preparing to engage in underground battle.

Fully armed, Belgar stood atop the ruins of the destroyed Hemgart City, looking at the ruins of the entire city and sighed lightly, "Destruction is always easier than creation. Are you ready?"

Emperor Carl Franz stood not far behind Belgar, holding the symbol of the Human Emperor, the warhammer "Skullcrusher" Gail-Malaz, with the Prince Rick Prince-Elector's Holy Sword "Dragon Tooth" hanging from his waist. He said somewhat helplessly to Marshal Rick Heilberg beside him, "If it weren't for you and Ludwig stopping me, I would want to go down and see what these Skaven rats are doing underground in the Empire."

"No, they can go down. We can go down, but you cannot go down, Your Majesty. You cannot be harmed. You are the Empire." Marshal Rick Heilberg looked at the city turned to ruins and told Emperor Carl Franz, "We can die in battle, but you cannot."

The Emperor smiled wryly at these words, having heard them more than once. Although he disliked it, the Emperor knew he had to accept it. He could lead the Rick Guard into battle as emperor, and could face off in a duel with the enemy's general amidst thousands of soldiers, but that didn't mean he could recklessly risk his life in an unclear situation at the front.

The nature was different; as the Emperor of the Empire, he could not do such foolish things.

"I will command from Hemgart, waiting for your signal." The Emperor told Demon Hunter Supreme Grandmaster Master Ernst, "If it really doesn't work, don't force it; retreat first. More reinforcements are already on the way."

"Since I'm involved this time, there won't be any accidents." The white-haired Ernst checked his weapons, "I take on one mission a year, I never fail."

"Dwarves do not fail." Belgar Iron Hammer looked at the somewhat gloomy sky and felt the cold wind, whispering, "At least not this time, I swear by my hammer and beard, I will bring victory."

At this time, the fully-equipped Laine and his wife also arrived. Seeing this, Belgar pulled out a map, "My Rangers have identified the Skaven secret base. It's in a cave behind an abandoned mine shaft beneath the Hemgart Mine. The ratmen have built crude structures there, and the escaped Skaven Warlord is leading a Storm Rat Legion and two Clan Rat Legions in defense. Besides that, strong guardians are sure to be near the teleportation gate."

"It's best not to assault the ratmen base head-on because if we fail to take it, Skaven reinforcements will keep arriving through the teleportation gate, turning it into a tug-of-war, which is very disadvantageous for us."

"So, my plan is for us to break in, create chaos, distract the ratmen towards the inside, and have Marshal Heilberg take his troops to completely destroy the ratmen outpost. Then use explosives to collapse the entire mine. This way, at least for the next twenty years, the Skaven Ratmen's forces will be temporarily cleared from here." Belgar finished explaining his plan.

"What about the future?" The Emperor was concerned about this issue.