The War Room had never felt this small before.
Maps covered every table.
Tele-Stones crackled nonstop.
Messengers moved in and out so frequently that the guards had stopped announcing them.
And still—
The reports kept getting worse.
"Another movement confirmed near Blackwater Pass."
"Supply caravans crossing through the eastern Empire roads."
"We've identified three additional mage divisions."
"Estimated troop count now exceeds two hundred and fifty thousand."
Silence followed that last number.
Not because nobody heard it.
Because everyone did.
Two hundred and fifty thousand.
Even saying it aloud sounded impossible.
The room itself seemed heavier now.
Jax stood near the center table, both hands planted against the map.
He hadn't sat down in over an hour.
Lines marked roads.
Mountains.
Forests.
Towns.
Portals.
Every possible route the Empire could take.
And still—
There were too many.
Llandra watched him carefully.
Not speaking.
Just observing.
That usually meant he was close to something.
Or carrying something too heavy to say yet.
Around the room, the reactions varied wildly.
Some leaders looked pale.
Others angry.
Others simply exhausted.
Bunny sat unusually quiet.
No jokes.
No comments.
She was counting something under her breath again.
Numbers.
Trying to comprehend the scale.
Finally she stopped.
"...That's too many people."
Nobody answered her.
Because she was right.
Vaelrith moved another marker across the map.
"If they split evenly, each front will still face more troops than the Empire committed during the Five Front Assault."
The statement landed hard.
That battle had nearly broken entire cities.
And this force was exponentially larger.
The King of the Elves leaned back slowly in his chair.
"They aren't coming to intimidate us."
"No," Vaelrith agreed.
"They're coming to erase us."
Zee swallowed quietly.
She had been running healing calculations for the past twenty minutes.
Bandages.
Potions.
Mana exhaustion.
Field rotations.
Temporary hospitals.
It wasn't enough.
None of it was enough.
Not against this many.
Not against a prolonged siege.
Not if multiple cities burned simultaneously.
Her fingers tightened against her notebook.
"...I can't save everyone."
The words came out barely above a whisper.
Jax looked at her immediately.
Not disappointed.
Not angry.
Just honest.
"I know."
That hurt worse somehow.
Nyxian paced the room.
Normally she would have turned fear into sarcasm.
Or jokes.
Or flirting.
Today—
Nothing.
Even her wings stayed folded tightly behind her back.
"This is insane," she finally snapped.
"Two hundred and fifty thousand troops? Do they even have enough food to move that many people?"
"They do," Vaelrith answered grimly.
"The Empire has been stockpiling for months."
"How did we miss that?" Bunny asked.
"We didn't," Vaelrith replied.
"We underestimated what it meant."
That answer silenced several people.
Because they all knew it was true.
They had seen signs.
Movement.
Preparation.
Political shifts.
But nobody—
Not even Jax—
Had imagined this scale.
The room descended into overlapping arguments.
"We should abandon the outer towns."
"We can't defend this many fronts."
"Then consolidate the portals."
"We pull everyone back to Solmere."
"And leave entire territories undefended?"
"We don't have enough soldiers!"
"We never did!"
The shouting escalated.
Fear finally breaking through diplomacy.
Then—
Jax spoke.
"We move the portals."
Silence.
Every eye turned toward him.
That was it.
No explanation.
No strategy.
Just one sentence.
The King of the Elves narrowed his eyes.
"...Move them where?"
Jax didn't answer immediately.
He stared at the map.
Thinking.
Calculating.
Almost hearing something no one else could.
Then finally—
"I need more time."
Nyxian stared at him like he had lost his mind.
"More time?" she said.
"We don't have more time!"
"We have exactly one month," Jax replied calmly.
"And if we panic now, we lose before they even march."
Several leaders immediately objected.
"Move the portals where?"
"What does that accomplish?"
"That could isolate entire cities."
"If the Empire captures one—"
"It could destroy our trade network."
"You're talking about gambling the entire United Kingdoms!"
Jax listened to all of it.
Every complaint.
Every fear.
Every criticism.
And didn't argue once.
Because most of them were right.
This was a gamble.
A massive one.
Bunny looked at him nervously.
"You keep talking like this is something you plan to personally do."
Jax didn't answer.
Which was answer enough.
"No."
Nyxian's response came instantly.
Absolutely instantly.
"No. Whatever insane thing you're thinking, no."
"I agree," Zee added quietly.
Llandra didn't speak.
She kept studying the map.
Studying Jax.
Then slowly—
Very slowly—
She stepped closer.
"This could work."
The room turned toward her.
Llandra pointed toward several routes.
"If the timing is precise... and if coordination between portals is maintained..."
Her finger slid farther west.
"...then enemy movement becomes predictable."
The King of the Elves looked at the map.
Then at his daughter.
For a moment—
There wasn't a king in the room.
Just a father realizing his child had grown into someone formidable.
"...You understand the strategy already," he said quietly.
Llandra met his eyes evenly.
"I understand parts of it."
That alone told him enough.
His expression changed.
Not fear.
Not pride.
Something deeper.
Respect.
"Then your assessment?"
Llandra took a breath.
"It is extremely dangerous."
Several people nodded immediately.
"But..." she continued, "it may also be the only path that gives us a chance."
That shifted the room again.
Not confidence.
Hope.
A terrifying kind of hope.
The kind born only when every safe option is already dead.
The Canine representative growled softly.
"So that's it then? We bet the survival of our nations on timing?"
"No," Jax finally said.
"We bet it on the Empire believing they're stronger than they actually are."
Vaelrith looked up sharply at that.
Now he understood.
At least part of it.
And judging by his expression—
He didn't like how much sense it made.
The room fell quiet again.
Outside—
Rain began hitting the windows.
Soft at first.
Then harder.
Storm clouds rolled over Solmere.
Darkening the War Room further.
Jax finally straightened away from the map.
For the first time all meeting—
He looked tired.
Not physically.
Mentally.
Like the weight of every possible death was already sitting on his shoulders.
"They're going to come believing this war is already won."
Nobody interrupted him.
"And if we fight the war they expect..."
He looked around the room.
"...we die."
Silence.
Pure silence.
Then the King of the Elves spoke quietly.
"What do you need from us?"
Jax stared back at the map.
At the roads.
The cities.
The incoming storm.
Then finally answered—
"Everything."
And somehow—
That frightened the room more than anything else he had said.