System vs Rebirth

"Hmm, I still don't quite understand what you mean." Paul frowned. 

"Then, I'll turn it into a question. If you are in his position and you lose enough people to make it look like you're going to fail and have your enemies prepare more traps for you, it means you're being pushed into the corner, right?"

Paul thought for a moment and nodded. "Yeah. I would become desperate at that time." 

"Then, what would you do?"

"Hmm… If I reach that situation, I might retreat."

"But you have to maintain your dignity. So, you should achieve something so that the mission is not a complete failure." 

"Ah!" Paul gasped. "I need to attack this city. After all, the city has the vice-captain of the Demon Barrier Army. In addition, killing all the people would increase the prestige of the Supreme Devil Organization, albeit in a bad way. But this way, the task is not a complete failure."

"Exactly. People always teach you that you can't corner your enemies too much because their desperation will cause a lot of problems. While I agree with a part of it, I still think there is one more possibility. "

"Since we know that they will become desperate and do something reckless, it means we have managed to limit their possible actions, right? All we need to know is what it is and make a plan to completely counter it." Noel explained it with a smile on his face.

There was a long silence after that explanation. Some of them agreed completely with Noel. But some of them felt a bit terrified. 

It was true that Noel's talent was monstrous. But the reason why they feared Noel was his intelligence. He didn't only think about what they should do, but what the others would probably do. 

And that kind of mind could only be achieved by learning from the master, Luke Ardagan.

"Terrifying…" Stella shook her head helplessly. "The way you can understand how people think and will do… is just… terrifying."

"I know right." Ben chuckled. 

"So, I'm still terrifying no matter what?" Noel rolled his eyes. 

"Hahaha." Rose laughed, though a bit proud. 

Damian listened to the entire plan and couldn't help but ask, "Say… do you have any woman you like?"

"Huh?" Noel's body shook, completely confused by the question. "What's with the question?"

"I am sincerely asking you that question. Or maybe do you have some preferences?"

Noel's eyebrows twitched. Though, he could understand why Damian asked this question. He must be thinking it was more beneficial if they could tie him down to the Greenwood Kingdom, especially with marriage. 

He had asked it once. Noel might've chosen a different option back then, but he never denied he wasn't interested in it. 

Though, it would be annoying if Damian was going to push it further. And the more he rejected it, the more adamant Damian would become. 

So, he thought about someone who would become the biggest hurdle for it to the point of making it impossible. 

Noel said with a smile. "Maybe someone like Anna… Anna Stargaze."

"…" There was an awkward silence when he heard about it. The entire group knew that Anna and Noel had a good relationship and even cooperated with each other. But Damian still believed that Anna was the one who killed his parents. 

So, he thought Noel considered Anna an annoyance. By giving him this chance, he could create an opportunity for Damian. 

Of course, Noel didn't plan to harm Anna by stating her name. That was why he added while looking up as if he was recounting something. "Though, my father once said that the best way to take revenge is to show them that you're living a good life."

"!!!" With that statement alone, Noel managed to shift Damian's thoughts. 

Damian looked down, contemplating the potential people. 'I see. He wants someone as strong and as beautiful Anna Stargaze. This way, he can show Anna Stargaze that his wife is more excellent than her, who took everything from him. But we shouldn't cause too many problems or the grudge between them will escalate to a whole new level.'

This statement was used only to stop Damian from thinking about killing him.

And Noel had achieved it. To avoid causing more misunderstanding, Noel said, "Since all of you have understood your assignment. Let's proceed with our plan, shall we?"

All of them nodded their heads. 

And this was the plan Noel had prepared to defeat Laufey with limited people.

There were nine people standing on top of the wall. Seven of them were the Demon Relief Squad's Zero Squad, including Noel. The other two were Damian as well as the vice-captain of the Demon Barrier Squad. 

With this, they had three Spirit Grandmasters and six Spirit Masters. In the opposite direction, there was Laufey, the demon pair and the serpent. They had four Spirit Grandmasters. 

They might be outnumbered, but it was still impossible to defeat a Spirit Grandmaster with only six Spirit Masters. That was why they still took advantage of the wall. 

This was a chance for Laufey to turn around the situation. But if he failed after all this, he could do nothing but retreat. 

Though, Noel noticed something. He couldn't help but whisper to the Demon Barrier Squad's vice-captain. 

"Did you see the bottle they used before coming here?"

"Yeah. What's wrong with it?"

"I'm assuming that's the bottle that confuses the demon's senses… the one they use to make normal people like bandits or their own people to control the demons."

"Ah!" The Vice-Captain frowned, understanding the importance of those bottles. 

"Two of them died before taking it, so if possible, we would like to procure the remaining bottles and bring them back to the headquarters. I want your people to send the information as well via bird and try to find the reinforcement to help us. We'll stall them here."

The Vice-Captain agreed with him. He immediately moved to one of his subordinates and whispered the order to him. 

With this, the preparation was finished. All that was left was the clash between the Supreme Devil Organization and the Demon Banner Army.