[Vol. 9] Chapter 101: The Storm Begins
“Sounds like that prophecy is kind of similar to what the Holy Empire’s goddess once said, isn’t it? So how did all the delegates react back then?”
Gladys shook her head slightly.
“It was a bit different. The goddess did predict a coming world-ending disaster, but she never gave such a clear location or source. And many people believe that when the sky shattered and the creatures from other worlds invaded, the great barrier that rose up afterward was a miracle. A sign that the Goddess of Light herself acted to buy this world more time to prepare. That alone shows her power and mercy.”
“The Holy Empire has always been the strongest supporter of this belief. To them, following the goddess’s guidance to fight against the disasters is very different from being stirred up by some mysterious black cat that appeared out of nowhere and urged everyone to prepare for war. To the Goddess Church, such behavior is absolutely unacceptable.”
“So, when that strange black cat appeared,” Gladys continued, “the Judgment Saintess who was hosting the ceremony immediately ordered her people to capture it and declared its words as heresy and lies. But before anyone could even touch it, the black cat disappeared into thin air, as if it had never existed at all.”
At this point, a strange expression appeared on the young mercenary’s face.
“In any case, to prevent unnecessary panic and unrest, all the higher-ups from each country worked together to block the news. Honestly, I don’t really believe that a random cat could predict the future more accurately than the goddess of the Holy Empire. At least the goddess personally summoned her chosen heroes and even stopped the invaders herself. Compared to that, a talking cat’s words are hardly convincing. But…”
“But your new emperor, or maybe your Princess Carinvega, believed it, didn’t they?”
Seeing that the priestess had already guessed the truth, Gladys could only nod helplessly.
“Well, I wouldn’t say they believed it completely. It’s more like… they thought it was better to be cautious than careless. Whether what the cat said was true or not, the situation in the north, the so-called ‘Northern Calamity,’ the disasters, the growing chaos, none of that is made up. And since our Empire has long been an ally of the Snow Empire, it’s only right that we help them when they’re in trouble.”
“Of course, the Austre Empire also has many problems of its own right now, so it can’t afford to send too many troops or supplies far away. That’s why they decided to send a smaller, faster unit to deliver grain to the north, to help with disaster relief and defense if needed. As for us, the Silver Claw’s mission is to assist them as much as possible, and secretly investigate whether that black cat’s prophecy has any truth to it.”
“I see… so that’s how it is.”
The priestess nodded thoughtfully.
It was now clear that the fast-moving grain transport unit Gladys mentioned must have been the Imperial Navy’s Second Fleet, the same one they had encountered earlier.
With the continental war paused, the Sea Tribe Alliance might have grown stronger, but it still couldn’t directly challenge the mighty Austre Empire. Both sides needed time to recover, so peace talks were inevitable. That allowed the Imperial Navy, once stationed along the eastern coast, to take on new missions, like this one.
If Austre Empire wanted to transport massive amounts of grain to its northern allies, it had to deal with the natural barrier known as the Frozen Belt between north and south. Going by sea took longer but was far easier than crossing the frozen land, a clever and practical plan indeed.
Still… what was that black cat? And what did it really want? Surely Edwina must know somethingm so why hadn’t she mentioned it at all?
Just as Violet opened her mouth to ask more, a sudden series of soft knocks, “knock, knock, knock”, came from outside the lounge. Both women froze for a moment, and Gladys immediately frowned in irritation.
“What is it? Didn’t I say not to interrupt unless it was urgent?”
“Apologies, Vice Leader,” came a hurried voice from outside. “But it’s truly an emergency… it’s about the royal family.”
The two women looked at each other. The priestess didn’t seem to care much, she simply nodded slightly and said,
“Since it’s something urgent, I’ll take my leave for today. I’ll leave Tina with you, her team is still outside the city. You can have her go and bring them back. We’ll stay in Salzburg for about two or three days. If anything happens, just send her to deliver the message.”
“No problem. I’m really sorry about this…”
Gladys stood up awkwardly and quickly escorted Violet and her group to the main entrance.
Veranica and the others had already been waiting there for a while. After joining up, the priestess glanced down from the second-floor corridor and saw a rather chaotic crowd below.
Unlike before, the guild’s main hall was now surrounded by a large number of city guards. At the front were several figures dressed in embroidered cloaks and carrying sabers at their waists, talking to the guild’s staff. Judging from their unhappy faces, the discussion didn’t seem to be going well.
“Eh? Aren’t those the guys we met on the street earlier? What are they doing here?”
Miss Alexia, being a pure-blooded dragon, had a sharp sense of smell like Xiao Guang’s, and instantly recognized the uninvited guests below. Veranica, who had been standing guard outside, nodded and added,
“They’re the Ice Wolf Guards. In the Preston Kingdom, the Mercenary Guild holds a high status, and the only ones who dare to act so arrogantly here are them. I wonder what happened that made those royal dogs cause such a big scene.”
Meanwhile, Gladys had just finished listening to her subordinate’s quick report. Her expression looked a bit unpleasant, but she still stepped forward toward the priestess and gave a small apologetic bow.
“I’m very sorry for getting you all caught up in this mess. The Ice Wolf Guards are acting under royal orders to capture a fugitive. The guild doesn’t want to make things ugly with them, so I’ll have someone take you out through the back door. Otherwise, I’m afraid those idiots might offend our honored guests.”
Hearing this, Veranica frowned immediately, and Alexia glared angrily, clearly displeased.
“Hey, we’re not some fugitives! What can they do to us? Why do we have to sneak away through the back like we’re guilty of something?”
Gladys gave a helpless smile.
“I know, but some things are like... well, like what’s in a toilet. Even if it can’t hurt you, just seeing it and smelling it is enough to make you sick and you can’t destroy it either, because even if it’s gone, the stink will still linger for a long, long time.
Anyway, this is Preston, not Austre Empire. I don’t like certain things either, but I can’t afford to tear faces with the royal family. I still have to think about Silver Claw, the entire Mercenary Guild, and even relations between our two countries...”
“Alright, I understand.”
Violet raised her hand to stop the knight girl who was about to speak again. Her expression was calm as she shook her head.
“Alexia, the laws of human society are different from the law of the jungle. Don’t make things difficult for others. Let’s go.”
“Hmph!”
Though Miss Blue Dragon looked unhappy, since the priestess herself had spoken, she couldn’t go against her leader’s order.
Soon, under the guidance of one of Gladys’s trusted aides, the group circled around to the back door and slipped out while the city guards’ encirclement was still not fully formed.
Only after they had gone a long way did the escorting mercenary hurriedly take his leave. The group turned back and saw the entire street behind them completely blocked off by dense ranks of city guards, who were going door to door searching for something, or perhaps someone, whose existence was still uncertain.