“Well, I can tell you that the strongest third of humanity has been placed into Squads in the army. In fact, many of the squads in my Division have now been changed to welcome the new human fighters. The remaining two-thirds will be housed and left to their own devices. We’ve discovered that humans will gradually reproduce and socialize as long as they’re kept in the same space, so your numbers will naturally increase over time. Your reproduction cycles are short and offspring are born quickly, which helps.”

Cassandra frowned. While it seemed like an ideal scenario, the truth was that they were little different from animals who had been left with some autonomy. There was also no guarantee that the Empire wouldn’t change its mind and decide to treat them like cattle. She felt deeply uncomfortable to be discussing such matters with one of her captors, but she had to do it.

“What about our strongest? A man who goes by the name of Liam Allister.”

“Ah, he was placed in one of Arimiar’s Elite Squads. He shouldn’t be able to survive for long. No human would be capable of fighting in one of our Elite Squads, that’s for sure.”

She started to get anxious, but pushed the emotion down. She needed to gather as much knowledge about humanity’s situation as she could. It wasn’t the time to be worried about anything else. Yet, even though she knew this, she couldn’t help but let a small number of her true feelings be revealed in her expression. Her face turned neutral once more in an instant, but she was sure the lizardman had noticed it.

“I apologize for telling you like this, but it’s the truth. It would be best to acknowledge it.”

The creature made no attempt to comfort her or take back what it said. Cassandra’s anxiety grew. She held her hands to keep herself from biting her nails. As she thought of a response, the whole ship trembled.

“Ah, we’ll be jumping soon. It’s quite an interesting scene from here.”

The Drakkhan spoke and looked towards the window behind the room’s black table. Cassandra followed his gaze. With shaking eyes, she watched the void bend over itself, distorting to the point it seemed to have gathered into a sphere. No, it would more accurate to describe it as a hole. A tear in the fabric of spacetime. The ship accelerated towards it as she tightly gripped the armchairs. The closer it got to the hole, the more it trembled. She couldn’t help but feel like they were marching into oblivion itself, never to return.

As the broken void enveloped the entire ship, its movement turned smooth. It was as if it weren’t even moving in the first place. Almost in a trance, she watched the surrounding darkness remain completely still. Then, after an unknown amount of time, it recoiled, cracking open. They had come out of the other side of the hole. In front of the ship, a large planet could be seen, bathed in golden light. Its surface was covered in different colors, but blue was the predominant one. Golden clouds floated far above it. The golden hue that surrounded the entire planet gave it an ethereal aura.

“Welcome to Inrillon, the Empire’s crown jewel.”

“…The whole planet?”

“Naturally. The Empire spans many planets. None of them can compare to our capital, however.”

As the ship got closer and closer to the surface, a chill crept up her back. She could feel an almost endless amount of Aura coming from the planet, even though she was so far away. She had underestimated the Empire; the goal of ridding humanity of its influence seemed to be getting further and further away by the minute.

She didn’t voice any of her thoughts, trying to look as impressed as possible. It seemed to have worked, seeing how the Commander suddenly became a bit more talkative.

“Of course, this is only possible because of His Majesty’s blessing. With his Aura, he can sustain the entire population of our capital. There is no place within this solar system that His Majesty can’t reach.”

The ship entered the planet’s atmosphere, revealing vast oceans with precious little landmass, but the closer they got to the capital, the more Cassandra realized that the planet’s population would be anything but insignificant. With a radius of 1000 kilometers and a circular shape, the city of Inrillon was as vertical as it was beautiful. Black buildings with neon lights rose to the skies, while lower areas had buildings with intricate designs the likes of which Cassandra had never seen. It was a stark contrast to the simplistic and streamlined military buildings in the ships.

The capital was colorful, but black was still the predominant color, likely as a homage to the royal family’s skin. Golden buildings were also found aplenty, with a few white ones here and there. Cassandra identified archways and curves to be staples of the Drakkhan architecture, but every large building could be considered to be unique. In its entirety, the city of Inrillon painted a landscape of almost indescribable, alien beauty, a technological metropolis superior to Kallipolis in every way.

“…What’s the population of the city?”

“If I remember correctly – which I do – the population should be around 30 billion as of this moment.”

It was a population density comparable to New York City’s.

“How many in the whole planet?”

The Commander rubbed his chin.

“Most of the population lives in the city, so overall there should be around 45 billion people in our capital.”

Reminding herself that the entire planet was the capital and not the city, Cassandra shivered. If the capital had 45 billion Drakkhan, how many of those would be soldiers in a battleground like the Convergence? It was incredibly likely that the number of soldiers in the Empire vastly surpassed humanity’s entire population, even back on Earth. 10 billion was a very conservative estimate.

‘Right now, we’re less than 300 million.’

Cassandra despaired. Oblivious to or uncaring about her feelings, the Commander continued to watch it through the window as the ship landed in the city’s outskirts.

“Let’s go. Her Highness is waiting for us. Follow me, please.”

The Commander left the room. Cassandra followed him with unsteady steps, her mind flooded with worry. The Empire was far bigger and greater than even her wildest expectations, making humanity’s future grim at best. The same feeling of being trapped surrounded her psyche. Was this fate? Were they fated to be under the Drakkhan Empire for the rest of their days, until they were killed off? If so, there was only one man who could change that fate.

‘Liam. Please be well.’

The two of them left the ship, dashing through the outskirts and into the city. The Commander leisurely strolled, while Cassandra ran at her top speed. Since she was accompanied by a Commander, she was granted access into the city without any questions, walking through a large black and gold archway guarded by tens of Drakkhan soldiers. The streets were tens of meters wide, but no vehicles could be seen. Using their Aura, the citizens dashed from place to place, running faster than moving cars, while those who wanted to move slower and enjoy the city’s views walked on the sidewalk. Above them, ships descended and ascended from the city’s outskirts, but none of them got into the city’s airspace. At the very heart of the city, a great palace touched the heavens and golden clouds. Completely black in color and with golden ornaments, it was the source of the golden light that covered the entire planet.

‘That should be the royal palace.’

It seemed to be the greatest marvel of Drakkhan architecture in the city. The typical archways and curves served a greater design of imposing fierceness, as if the palace represented the bulwark of civilization. Tall towers extended past the clouds, surrounding the palace’s grand body. It was an impossible structure, from a human’s standpoint. Building it would have taken millions of humans veritable centuries.

“Hm. We should be moving quicker. Please, allow me.”

The Drakkhan’s enormous hand lifted her up. Her body tensed up, her face a clear mask of discomfort, but he didn’t let go, coating her in his Aura. Every one of his steps crossed an unknown distance, to the point that the countless Drakkhan walking in the streets and looking at her became a mere blur. The beautiful buildings disappeared. Her mind shook as her eyes trembled. Then, she passed out.

Cassandra opened her eyes as a voice reached her ears.

“Awake, are we? Good. We’ve arrived.”

She was put down on the ground, stumbling dizzily. Gathering her bearings, she looked around. She was at a balcony in one of the Palace’s towers, having no idea how she’d gotten here. The balcony had the shape of a half-circle and a radius of tens of meters. Alien vegetation decorated its sides, while a large doorway led into a great bedroom. Inside, the lithe figure of a female Drakkhan wearing a black silk dress watched her attentively. Golden light flowed through the dress’ surface. The Commander got on one knee, bowing deeply.

“May the Empire’s Sun forever shine upon you, Your Highness.”

“May the Empire’s Sun forever shine upon you, Trakar. You’ve done a good job in bringing her to me.”

“I am undeserving of such praise, Your Highness.”

The princess stepped into the balcony with a walk that reminded Cassandra of that of a runway model. She was much smaller than the Commander, standing at a mere three meters tall, but towered over Cassandra all the same.

“Are all humans this small?”

She looked at the still bowing figure of Trakar.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“What a pitiful species.”

Her golden eyes locked into Cassandra’s, the snake-like pupils giving the young woman chills. Cassandra felt like she was naked, being completely seen through. Resisting the urge to cover her body, she met the female’s eyes with a steady gaze.

“I hope you were speaking the truth. For your sake.”

“I can see the future. I don’t know why it matters so much to you, but I know what my powers are.”

Cassandra’s voice was firm. A grin made its way to the female’s face before she turned around.

“Follow me. Trakar, you’re dismissed. Go back to your ship and your mission.”

The kneeling Commander stood up, bowed once more and then disappeared. Cassandra didn’t see him move and could neither feel the aftereffect of such movement. It was as if the air hadn’t even parted.

She entered the princess’ room. It was expansive, with various types of luxurious furniture decorating its insides. A magic chandelier hung from the ceiling, illuminating the room. It was as wide as the balcony, being the biggest bedroom Cassandra had ever seen. A large bed could be seen to her right, golden silk covering its sides. The pristine white floor reflected their walking frames as they left the room and went into an immense corridor.

Cassandra followed the princess through winding paths, stairways, and archways, passing by many Drakkhan on the way, who all bowed the moment they saw the princess. They were all dressed in luxurious but standardized clothing, making her think that they were the ones who took care of the palace grounds. Gradually, she felt the pressure on her body increase. It was very slight at first, but the closer they got to their destination, the more she felt it. As she started to heave, the princess glanced back and covered her in golden Aura. Cassandra coughed, finally managing to breathe normally again.

“Thank you.”

The princess remained silent, leading the way. After some time, they reached two gigantic doors, over fifteen meters tall each. The pressure coming from the inside washed over her in waves, each threatening to break every bone in her body. The princess’ Aura managed to offset a great amount of it, but it was still not enough. Gritting her teeth and circulating her Aura to the best of her ability, Cassandra looked at the female Drakkhan, who started to speak.

“This is the throne room. You will now meet His Majesty, my father. Try to survive.”

Cassandra gulped and looked at the doors.