Undead Beast Master: Living Solely for My Desires

Exiting out of her room with Vera not far behind her, Sofia observed with interest how her soldiers were acting and what their mood was.

They weren't being led by a seasoned general with years of experience, but by her—the young heir to the throne, unproven and recently reinstated. She hadn't yet built a reputation, so part of her expected their morale to be just as low as when she first entered the city and took command.

Even gaining that command was no small feat. She'd had to convince the council to hand her control over a portion of the empire's already stretched-thin forces.

She knew the request she had made had been unreasonable, and as expected, most of the members of the council were against the idea, with the exception of Bragan, who seemed keen on the idea—most likely because of their similar age. But one person wasn't able to sway their opinion… or at least Sofia thought, until Elysia said that she would like to see Sofia's skills as well.

At that point, even if the council members didn't like the idea, they had to respect Elysia's wishes, and as such, Sofia was assigned to this medium-sized city. It wasn't one of the most important locations—as the council members alongside the generals would be there—but Sofia was more than happy.

She had a chance to prove herself. And seeing that the mood the soldiers were in was good, unlike the first time they laid their eyes on her, meant that her being able to stop the attack on the city despite their inferior numbers made them respect her to an extent.

"We greet the heir to the throne—Princess Sofia!" the soldiers called out, bowing as she passed.

It wouldn't be a lie to say that Sofia found it a bit odd. After she was disowned by her father, few called her princess—but it seems that the opinion of her was slowly changing.

'It might just be the soldiers stationed here, but this is proof—proof that it can be done!' she thought as her fist clenched tightly.

"Report," she said, stopping before the city gates. The scout in charge of patrolling a few kilometers out stepped forward.

"A larger force than before is approaching," he said. "It was hard to count their numbers, but they're nothing to scoff at. What caught my eye, though, is that the general who led the previous attack wasn't at the front this time. Now, it's a woman with grey hair. If our information is accurate, that means we're facing one of their Council Members—Silver."

This was the first time the nearby soldiers heard the report, and as such, their expressions began to turn solemn. Their last fight had been hard enough as it was, and now a member of the enemy council was joining the fight.

"I heard Silver is one of their strongest," one man muttered.

"Does it matter if she's one of the strongest or the weakest? A member of the council is still much more deadly than any of us can hope to be!" another said.

"Do you think it's a better idea to desert the city? I don't see a chance for us to win."

"It's just a single woman—where did your balls go, you wimp?!"

Murmurs began to spread. Most of the soldiers present were worried. Some were outright scared, while others were cocky, sure that the rumors had been exaggerated.

Sofia wasn't surprised—of course, she had been informed about the matter by Vera.

As such, once the man had finished giving his report, they all noticed that Sofia didn't have a single worry in her expression. Quite the opposite—in fact, her eyes were filled with determination.

"Hey, hey! The princess doesn't look scared. Does that mean she's confident?"

"I'd say that she's most likely suicidal."

"How pathetic can you be? The princess acts like she has some balls, unlike you!"

"Of course I don't—I'm a woman too!"

"Hahaha! Really? It's just that you're so ugly that it's hard to say for sure."

There was still some worry lingering in the souls of the soldiers, but it wasn't as severe as before.

Looking from the side, Vera couldn't help but smile. 'Look at you. Slowly but surely, you are blossoming into a leader people are willing to follow. This will surely be a big stepping stone.'

Sofia took a deep breath and then turned to face the soldiers.

"These people—no, these pigs—have decided to team up with our other neighboring empire to attack us at the same time! It wasn't enough that they sneaked into our capital, killed so many of the innocent civilians, but now they are willing to exterminate us all. Tell me, how is one to find peace when it's their own neighbors?!" Her voice carried across the whole settlement, stirring something deep within the soldiers' souls.

"We kill them!"

"Make them regret they stood against us!"

"Exterminate them from the planet!"

"End their bloodline!"

More and more, the soldiers were beginning to rally up themselves. Seeing this, Sofia couldn't help but smile.

They were in a desperate situation—outnumbered, outmatched, and now facing a commander of the enemy council. But if they had to die, then they would take as many with them as possible.

If they were outnumbered one to two, then her men were simply going to kill two before dying.

If they were outnumbered three to one, they would kill three.

"One thing I was taught since I was a child was that a soldier fights not to kill what is ahead of him, but to protect what is behind him!" Her voice sounded more fearless as she continued.

"However! That is no more. We have lost them! So many have died—the ones that were behind us—the attack on the capital—so many innocents, not to mention the whole royal family as well. Now, because of their actions, I am the only heir to the throne!"

"The one that is meant to guide you all to victory! Lend me your strength—let's take revenge for the damage they have caused us! Let's pay them back tenfold!"

At the end of her speech, it was safe to say that the soldiers went crazy.

"SKIN THEM ALIVE!"

"BURN THEM ALL!"

"NOT EVEN THEIR GODS WILL HELP THEM!"

If before one could say that the soldiers were moving as fast as possible, now that wasn't the case—as all of them were nearly twice as fast as before.

In their eyes there was no fear, no doubt. Instead, they glimmered with the strongest feeling a human can possess—

The need for vengeance.

Seeing that her speech was enough, Sofia let out a sigh of relief.

"Good work," Vera spoke behind her.

"I know that you said that we will win, but I still can't deny I have doubts about it," Sofia admitted.

Vera chuckled once again as she gazed at how fast the soldiers were getting into position.

"There is always the chance we lose, but now—if we do—at least we would be able to kill as many of them as possible."

Clouds began to gather in the sky due to Sofia's influence. Just then, the enemy soldiers appeared out of the horizon.

Sofia gripped her sword tightly.

"Let the battle begin!"