Fang Zhen wasn’t particularly surprised by Maso’s declaration.

In an era of relatively low productivity like this one, supporting even a single soldier was extremely expensive. Only a Lord had the motivation to maintain such large armies and their Mages, their purpose being to protect their own interests while seizing the lands and wealth of other nobles when the opportunity arose.

After all, there weren’t many warmongers who fought simply for the sake of fighting; all wars were merely an extension of political and economic interests.

On the battlefield, it was now confirmed that Balenzuo was undoubtedly a demon. While not many soldiers and Mages had witnessed the close-quarters fight between Fang Zhen and the demon Balenzuo, even soldiers far away had seen his demonic transformation.

The Balenzuo Legion truly had no more reason to fight to the death.

As the Chief Mage of the Balenzuo Legion, Maso was quite clear-headed.

His boss was dead. As an employee, there was no need to fight to the death for him.

A Chief Mage’s salary was only a few dozen Gold Ropes a month. He was paid to work hard, not to die.

Besides, an army without a Lord or logistical support would quickly become a massive problem.

As a logical and clear-headed Mage, Maso could clearly weigh his priorities. He was now trying to find a new master for the Balenzuo Legion. Doing so would alleviate him of some responsibility. At the same time, a new employer would be very beneficial for Maso—at the very least, he could still draw a salary and avoid unemployment.

Fang Zhen nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "This war was started by the evil Demon Duke Balenzuo. His goal was to make us humans fight amongst ourselves."

"Now that Balenzuo, the root of all this evil, is dead, there is no need for further senseless sacrifice."

He announced in a clear, loud voice, "Very well! I, Fang Zhen, accept your surrender."

His voice, carried by his Origin Power, traveled far and wide.

His thunderous voice echoed across a vast stretch of the battlefield.

As his voice spread, the din of battle on the field gradually subsided.

Soon, the battlefield was filled with soldiers of the Balenzuo Legion, all laying down their weapons to surrender.

As Fang Zhen gazed upon the now silent battlefield, a sense of peace slowly settled over him.

’I’ve finally cleared this instance,’ he thought, ’and with a high rating, no less.’

’On top of the main quest, I’ve also completed a good number of optional side quests.’

’I even got an unexpected prize from this instance, too.’

’Balenzuo is dead, so ’its’ sub-space is now ownerless. With a little time, it can become mine.’

’I’m not sure exactly how big the space is, but since it was able to hold a demon’s body, it must be at least ten or twenty cubic meters, right?’

’At the very least, that’s a lot bigger than my King’s Belt.’

’With a storage sub-space of ten or twenty cubic meters, the number of things I’ll be able to pull off in the future will increase dramatically.’

’If it’s even bigger, I could purchase military supplies in bulk or bring over large-scale equipment and machinery. It might even be possible to bring over a war machine like a tank.’

’Of course, that’s just a possibility, so I shouldn’t get my hopes up. I’ll find out the exact size once I’ve fully mastered the sub-space.’

’With Balenzuo dead, the main objective is pretty much complete.’

Fang Zhen felt a wave of relief, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

He let out a long breath, savoring the tranquility that followed his victory.

It was like the calm of the ocean after a storm.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the distance.

"Augustus!"

Unlike the effortless, Origin Power-fueled boom of Fang Zhen’s voice, this was a raw shout, screamed with brute force. Still, it was loud enough for Fang Zhen to hear it clearly from such a distance.

The voice immediately brought a face to Fang Zhen’s mind: his subordinate, the Knight Tahar.

’Good grief,’ Fang Zhen thought. ’That guy is taking his role as the hype man way too seriously. He’s really giving it his all.’

Following Tahar’s cry, a chorus of shouts calling out Fang Zhen’s name in this land began to echo from the distance—

"Augustus!"

"Augustus! Augustus!"

The shouts rolled in from the distance, one wave after another, creating a tide of sound. Even some of the surrendered soldiers from Balenzuo’s army couldn’t help but follow the crowd, muttering the name "Augustus" under their breath.

Fang Zhen shook his head.

Although he didn’t like being too conspicuous, he had to admit that a victor’s glory was now echoing in his heart.

At the same time, the way the soldiers around him looked at him had changed. Whether they were Balenzuo’s soldiers, members of the Mage Corps, or the Mages Maso led, their gazes all seemed different. It was as if Fang Zhen had grown taller in their eyes, as if they were looking up at a giant.

Fang Zhen noticed this change in the atmosphere.

It was only to be expected.

Victors are always wreathed in a halo of glory. The winner takes all—honor, material wealth, and every other benefit.

The war was gradually drawing to a close.

From the beginning, Fang Zhen’s Augustus Army had held an absolute advantage. The Balenzuo army had fallen into an ambush, its vanguard suffering heavy casualties, and then its central army had been set on fire, putting them at a complete disadvantage.

A headcount taken during the surrender revealed the losses. Before the battle, the Balenzuo army had numbered close to seven thousand men, more than Fang Zhen’s own forces. By the end, however, only about five thousand remained, all of whom had now surrendered.