Mistaken Match: Marrying the Enigmatic CEO
Chapter 2346; Getting Rid of the Enemy Within
“Yeah, I understand,” Ethan replied. “That bring me to the third thing I wanted to discuss with you both, how to quickly stabilize Zovince and all of Chanaea. The biggest headache is Dragonicus. He still holds 100,000 troops in the Fierce Claw Army in Zovince, and they’re fiercely loyal to him. If I order Emmanuel to lead Southern campaign right now, Dragonicus will definitely push back.”
The couple nodded slowly, slipping into deep thought.
Seeing their hesitation, Ethan continued, “Actually, before you here, I already discussed this with my advisors. The remnants of Teddy’s faction and the Zelinsky family still haven’t been fully wiped out, and the Lannister family also needs to be dealt with before we can guarantee long-term force-decisive, strategic force, and I need Commander Lowe to carry it out swiftly.”
“As for Dragonicus,” he went on, “from what I know of the man, he’d never openly rebel. But he’s eccentric, and if try to put Emmanuel in change of the southern campaign, he’s bound to throw a fit. Ms. Quillen, maybe a gentler approach would work better. If you handle him personally, it might settle things.”
“Well…”
Mackenzie and Emmanuel exchanged a glance.
Emmanuel’s concern was written all over his face. Not for himself, but for Mackenzie. Sending her to handle Dragonicus? That was like tossing a lamb into a lion’s den.
“Then, it’s settled,” she responded without missing a beat.
Emmanuel opened his mouth to object, but she gave him a soft smile before he could speak. “Mr. Hale’s right. It’s the best option we have. Things are urgent now. The global landscape is shifting fast. Chanaea and Zovince must stabilize quickly, and you’re the only one who can make that happen.”
Emmanuel let out a quiet sigh.
“With great power… comes great responsibility.” Ethan reached out, trying to ease the weight on Emmanuel’s shoulders. “Commander Lowe, I’m officially asking this of you, as the leader of this nation.”
With that, Ethan, the president of Chanaea gave a deep bow.
“Please, Mr. Hale – Don’t,” Emmanuel said quickly, stepping forward to steady him. “If the country trusts me this much, then I’ll give it everything. I’ve got, even if it costs me my life.”
“Thank you… Thank you!” Ethan was nearly in tears, gripping Emmanuel’s hands tightly with gratitude.
And just like that, the husband and wife were once again forced to part ways, two fronts, one mission.
Right before they parted ways, Emmanuel sought out Quintus. After two days of rest the guy had pretty much bounced back to full strength.
“Hah! Emmanuel, don’t even worry about it!” Quintus thumped his chest with exaggerated pride. “As long as I’m around, no one’s lying a finger on Mackenzie. That sickly Dragonicus? I’ll knock him around like a toy!”
“Don’t get cocky.” Emmanuel warned. “He’s injured, yeah, but I’ve already treated him with acupuncture. His strength’s no joke. If you go head-to-head, you might no walk away unscathed.”
Quintus was about to crack another line, but Mackenzie cut in, calm and composed. “I will tell Dragonicus that Quintus is my personal guard. He won’t say anything reckless. Right, Quintus?”
Her eyes met Quintus’, and for a second, the poor guy forgot everything else. He nodded like bobblehead. “Of course! Whether it’s Dragonicus or Snakeicus, if he dares try anything, I’ll beat the hell out of him.”
Emmanuel still looked worried, but Mackenzie gently reassured him again. “We have bigger things to worry about. Don’t waste your energy worrying about me.”
Left with no other choice, Emmanuel nodded and quickly led a small unit of soldiers to the Zelinsky Residence.
After Ezra’s attempted coup on Congress, the entire Zelinsky family of Zovince had been declared traitors. Ethan gave the order for their estate to be sealed off.
But Emmanuel wasn’t here to fight. His mission now was tactical. When he arrived at the mansion’s front gates. Hattie and Blake were already waiting for him.
“There you are, Emmanuel!” Blake waved him over, barely able to contain himself. “Come on, open the place up already!”
It wasn’t like he had anything left inside, nor was he loyal to the Zelinskys. Hattie had simply figured it out, Magnus was the kind of person who planned everything five steps ahead. If he expected Emmanuel to return after the chaos, odds were he had left behind some kind of clue.
She had already mentioned all this to Emmanuel over the phone. “Alright,” Emmanuel giveing a signal.
The soldiers moved in and began unsealing the estate. Hattie and Blake didn’t waste a second they bolted inside the moment the path cleared.
Emmanuel, however, didn’t follow them inside right away. He paused just outside scanning the perimeter like he was waiting for someone. However, when no one showed up, he finally stopped in.
“Found it!”
It didn’t take long. Hattie had gone straight to the backyard, to a familiar tree, one she and Magnus used to bury notes under as kids. It had been their secret “base”, a place only they ever knew about.
And sure enough, tucked beneath the roots, was a paper letter.
The letter read, “Hattie, by the time you’re reading this, I should be long gone from Zovince, I predicted Ezra and Gautier would fail in their attempt to take the Congress. If, by some miracle, they actually succeeded, I’d have returned to retrieve this letter myself.”
Blake, who was peering over Hattie’s shoulder, couldn’t help blurting out, “so that’s how Magnus the Genius got his title, huh? Making predictions like that is kinda cheating, don’t you think? He’s basically batting a hundred!”
Hattie and Emmanuel ignored him completely. They both knew better than to doubt Magnus’ intellect.
If Ezra fails, he’ll have no choice but to flee Zovince, and I’ll follow him. Based on what I’ve gathered, he’ll likely team up with Gautier and the remnants of the Tanner Family’s faction. With the help of foreign forces, they’ll try to spark another civil war in Chanaea. That’s why Emmanuel must strike first, wipe them out before they’re ready to move. If we let them gather strength, the consequences will be disastrous.”
Hattie and Emmanuel exchanged a look and nodded. The tension in the room thickened. With the country already teetering on the edge, another civil war would be the final nail in the coffin. If Chanaea imploded from the inside, there would be no hope of hoding back advancing forces of the Eagle Nation. The war of the centruty would be lost before it even began.
“Here’s what I know about the Tanner family’s private army.”
At that point, Hattie reached beneath the letter and pulled out a folded map. It was marked with dozens of red dots, each one respresenting a hidden militia site that Teddy had been preparing for years.
According to Magnus, estimates, they had at least 300,000 troops in place.
Emmanuel inhaled sharply. That number wasn’t just alarming, it was catastrophic. With the Holy Trinity already working hand-in-glove with the Eagle Nation. Ezra and Gautier teaming up with them would push Chanaea straight off a cliff.
“If my calculations are correct, their forces will converge at three key locations, circled on the map. The most likely staging ground is near the border with Kasango. You have to act fast.” That was the end of the letter.
Magnus hadn’t mentioned anything personal in the letter, but Hattie’s voice trembled as she looked up. “Please, Emmanuel, you have to find those locations fast. Take your troops and rescue brother. If Ezra no longer finds him useful, he’ll kill him without blinking.”
Emmanuel gave a firm nod. “I’ll send scouts right away to survey the area Magnus marked. The moment we confirm Ezra’s marked. The moment we confirm Ezra’s location, I’ll mobilize the army. Don’t worry, Hattie. Your brother’s too sharp to go down that easily.”
Truth be told, Emmanuel had always been wary of Magnus, the kind of man who could outthink everyone in the room and still smile politely while stabbing them in the back. Even now, he could’t fully trust him.
But with the Zelinsky family fractured and Chanaea’s fate hanging by a thread, both Magnus and Hattie had been pushed to Emmanuel’s side by sheer circumstance. Thereforce, Emmanuel wasn’t about to let Magnus die, not yet.
In fact, with the final battle looming on the horizon, Magnus might just the ace up their sleeve.
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