System's POV

Chapter 419  The Master Of Black Propaganda [Part 2]

After seeing that their Commander had knelt to the teenage boy, the soldiers who were accompanying Seth begrudgingly knelt as well.

This forced Allen and his own soldiers to follow suit.

Thirteen didn't order them to rise and simply looked down on them arrogantly, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Remember this, men—there won't be a next time," Thirteen warned. "All of you, rise."

After hearing the boy's orders, Seth, Allen, and their soldiers hurriedly rose to their feet and glared at him. Thirteen chuckled internally and spread his arms wide.

"Welcome to the Dvalinn Federation." Thirteen smiled evilly. "A place where only those who are seriously fighting for humanity belong."

Thirteen then turned around to return to where he came from.

Seth and Allen looked at the boy's retreating figure as they did their best to keep their calm.

They thought that once they arrived at the Dvalinn Federation, everything would go their way.

But after seeing the Supreme Commander of the Alliance, they had a feeling that things would not be as easy as they initially thought they would.

After escorting their guests to their temporary accommodations, Benedict headed to the Commander's Quarters, where Thirteen was staying.

"You little bastard. You really made me kneel, huh?" Benedict growled. "I just went along with the flow, so you won't be embarrassed, but you went too far… Um? What is this?"

Thirteen had handed a data chip to Benedict, which made the old man frown.

"That has the location of a small-sized Empyrium Mine the Leventis Family has discovered," Thirteen said. "Since I embarrassed Uncle earlier, that small mine is yours. I'm sure the Alliance won't mind."

"Hahaha, Zion, my boy. Your Uncle is not really offended by what happened earlier," Benedict replied as he hastily pocketed the data chip. "It's just a small matter. In the future, don't hesitate to ask me for help. I'll gladly help you."

"I know, uncle. You're the best," Thirteen smirked knowing that Benedict was just as greedy as his Grandfather when it came to resources and treasures.

"Still, are you sure that it is wise to offend them like that?" Benedict asked before looking at what Zion was doing. "Of course," Thirteen replied. "All of them must become aware that they are no longer in their backyard. They are in MY--errr, OUR backyard."

Little did Benedict know that right after the confrontation earlier ended, Thirteen's black propaganda to tarnish the reputation of the Ashford Clan and Stallard Clan had already begun.

Since the two Clans were using information warfare to fool the general public into thinking that they were the good guys, Thirteen planned to use the same weapon to make them look like the bad guys.

Unfortunately, no matter how great their connection to the media was, they were still too green compared to the System of Cannon Fodders, who had made Kings, Emperors, and Politicians fall from grace with his black propaganda.

As soon as Benedict left to share the happy news to his family about acquiring a small-sized Empyrium Mine, Thirteen began to hack the various TV Stations in the world and set his plans into motion.

While this was happening, Seth, who had been humiliated by the boy, was doing his best to stop himself from breaking things out of anger from what he had suffered earlier.

At that moment, his communicator began to ring.

When he saw that the caller was his Patriarch, he immediately reined in his anger and answered the call.

"Sir, we have a problem," Seth said. "Yes, we really have a problem," Aaron icily replied. "Check the news now."

Seth subconsciously shuddered after hearing the Monarch's command and immediately opened the TV to check the news.

"Breaking News! Seth Ashford and Norman Stallard started conflicts as soon as they arrived in the Dvalinn Federation!"

The breaking news immediately made Seth's face pale because he had ordered the reporters on their side to use the recording to paint Zion in a bad light.

However, before the reporters could even do that, Thirteen had beaten them to it and published the recordings that had been deliberately edited to turn the tables on them.

In the recording, Seth's defiance of Zion's orders was highlighted, and the caption below the screen was saying that he was being arrogant and refused to obey the Supreme Commander of the Alliance.

Of course, it was not only Seth being splashed with dirty water. Even Allen, who only said a few words, was painted as the bad guy, making the latter fume after he was also informed of what was happening on TV.

"Our reporter at the scene, Rein, has managed to book an exclusive interview with Zion Leventis to get his reaction on the disrespect he had received from the Commanders of the Ashford and Stallard Clan," the News Anchor said.

"Thank you." Rein nodded slightly. "This is Rein, reporting for BBCee."

The camera panned to her and Thirteen, who was wearing his Supreme Commander uniform.

Thirteen had a very pained expression on his face as if he was greatly affected by what happened earlier. "Sir, what did you feel when Seth Ashford and Allen Stallard refused to obey your orders and disrespected you in front of everyone?" Rein asked, her beautiful face slightly scrunched to match Thirteen's mood.

"It was a very mortifying experience," Thirteen replied. "They said that they came to help the Alliance fight against the Jinns, so I decided to test whether they were serious or not.

"On the battlefield, every order I make will decide the life and death of countless soldiers. I am forced to make hard decisions, which would force our soldiers to risk their lives in battle. "Fortunately, during the past expedition, everyone obeyed my orders without fail. Thanks to their faith in me, we succeeded in liberating the Northern Regions of the Continent.

"When the Ashford and the Stallard Clan arrived, I thought their help would increase our chances of winning—I believed that all of us were going to fight under one banner. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case.

"My simple test to see if they are willing to obey my orders and put their lives in my hands resulted in the video that you just saw earlier. Not only did they disregard my orders, but they also challenged my authority.

"I think it will be better for humanity if they just returned to where they came from. Soldiers like them who can't follow orders are not needed on the battlefield. They will only endanger the alliance because of their inability to work together as a team."

Arthur, Michael, and Hans looked at the TV with amused expressions on their faces.

If they hadn't known how black-bellied Zion truly was, they might have believed his acting and sympathized with him due to how raw and real his emotions looked on camera.

"It must have been a very disheartening experience." With furrowed brows, Rein distressedly gazed at the teenage boy in front of her, who looked very hurt.

"Yes, but I believe the rest of humanity will be able to move past this setback as long as we do our best to work together to have a peaceful world," Thirteen said. "A world where no one needs to suffer under the oppression of the Jinns and Majins. "The soldiers of the alliance will risk their lives to make this happen. Those who don't share the same determination and conviction should not take part in our struggles—they will only be deadweights dragging everyone down. "I am truly saddened that the Ashford and Stallard Clan do not share our views and only came in the Rigel Continent for show, even daring to disrespect our efforts in reclaiming the Rigel Continent from the hands of the Jinns and Majins."

Rein seemed moved by Zion's words, her eyes teary as she said a few more words to console the teenage boy who looked genuinely downcast. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Seth, who had watched everything from start to finish, almost coughed out blood then and there when the screen replayed the scene where he said, "Listen here, you brat…"

The camera had captured a burst of energy, which made the teenage boy wince, highlighting how Seth tried to harm the Supreme Commander of the Alliance in front of everyone.

Soon, angry comments from the netizens exploded on social media and other platforms.

All of them were badmouthing Seth and Allen, with some of them shouting that Seth must be punished for his attempted assault on Zion, which should be punishable by death.

Right now, no one was more important in the Alliance than their Supreme Commander, so the punishment for Seth's attempt to harm him must be severe.

"I don't know who is behind this, but it is too late to do anything," Aaron growled. "You better fix this now, or else…"

"Y-Yes, Sir." Seth, who knew how much was at stake, replied fearfully. "I will do my best to settle this as soon as possible!"

"Settle it now," Aaron said with finality, making Seth shudder.

"Yes, I will!" Seth answered. "I will go and find the Supreme Commander now!"

Just as soon as Seth left his quarters, he immediately came across Allen, whose face was just as flushed as his.

Clearly, the other Champion also received a good nagging from their Patriarch, making him feel wronged.

A glance was enough to tell them what they were supposed to do, so they hurried towards the Supreme Commander's quarters to ask for his audience.

However, Thirteen knew that they would be coming for him, so he went to the Order of the Apocalypse to talk to Evuvug and the newly born Brain Beetle, whom Thirteen had named Gwenn.

The teenage boy planned to use the Baby Brain Beetle to cause some havoc on the battlefield, making sure that things would fall under his control.

While he was away, Renz, who was watching the commotion from the top of the Dvalinn Federation, chuckled after his subordinates reported Seth's and Allen's movements.

"Time to play good cop and bad cop." Renz smirked as he left his quarters to talk to Seth and Allen.

His plan was to make them dependent on him and think that he was their only ally in the Dvalinn Federation.

This was part of Thirteen's scheme to let the two lower their guard and turn them into Renz's supporters during their stay in the Dvalinn Federation.