326 Chapter 326: Which City District? (2/2)
He then swept his gaze across everyone.
”I'm assuming that none of us have been to Aurora City before?”
All of us exchanged glances, but no one said anything. Taking our silence as affirmation, Harrison continued with a smile.
”Aurora City is located in the north, one of the northernmost cities in the Federation. It's just below the North Pole, but it's still extremely cold. There are a few places, particularly the mountains, where the snow does not melt at all, even throughout the year. So make sure you have your winter gear ready. We're in for quite the cold experience.”
I rubbed absently at my cheek, smiling subconsciously. Winter was one of the weathers I could deal with. In my previous life, I spent several years in Minnesota, one of the coldest places in North America, while in graduate school. If that didn't prepare me for winter, I didn't know what would. I wasn't going to lie and say I love the snow and winter, but I had gotten used to it. Honestly, standing outside at negative twenty degrees was not an experience I would care to repeat, but by God I was ready to endure it if necessary.
”The most dangerous part isn't the cold, however. It's the monsters. As you know, the northern glacial areas are populated with monsters. High-ranking, low-ranking, they are all equally dangerous. We can't get complacent just because we run into rank F monsters. Remember, this is their home ground, their territory. We can't afford to underestimate them just because they are low-ranked.”
Good, at least Harrison wasn't falling to the usual trap of ”rank F = fodder.” He would do well.
”I heard that Aurora City has certain geomagnetic disturbances that will affect compasses and other navigation devices.” Theodore raised a hand. Harrison nodded.
”That is indeed correct. Navigation will be very difficult.”
”The monsters, though…” Craig mused to himself. ”There are restricted areas that are supposedly the habitats of high-ranking monsters.” He jabbed a finger at a specific sector that was colored an ominous blood red. ”This place…is the Den of Dragons. It's supposed to be inhabited by a nest of dragons.”
Everyone felt a chill, because we all knew how powerful a rank A dragon was. Maybe I could nuke the mountain, but if even one dragon escaped, it would destroy me right when I was out of juice. Damn it. Never mind the dragons, I would be vulnerable to all the other monsters hiding out in the icy wilderness after exhausting myself against the dragons.
Best to let sleeping dragons lie.
”If you are assigned an objective that ends up separating you from the rest of the team, then you should look for railroad tracks. There was a system of railroad tracks built by the Federation to link the different cities of the north together, and they are still in use. Follow the tracks and they will lead you to a city eventually. Don't worry about the mission or the qualifiers – your life is more important. Even if we don't pass the qualifiers, I want to ensure that all of us return home safe and sound, alive and well. Is that understood?”
”Yes, sir!”
All of us saluted at Harrison's instructions. The guy would make a great military officer in future, especially given his concern for the welfare of his men. Even Bu Fan said nothing, leaning to the side with his arms crossed, but he regarded Harrison with a respectful expression. The lone wolf recognized a good leader when he saw one. Not that he would openly admit it.
”If a train comes along, we can just hitch a ride on it,” Yue Chu remarked with a grin. Everyone nodded.
I glanced around for a moment, and then took a deep breath. Raising my hand, I reinforced the silence spell that Pearl had cast to shroud us. From the point of view of an outsider, it wasn't anything unusual. Most academy teams were currently doing the same thing, using identical or similar spells to conceal their discussions from other schools and teams. It was only natural, of course the myriad academies participating in the tournament had no intention of revealing their strategies to eavesdroppers or spies.
Also, unlike the hotel, we were free of bugs or listening devices that might have been implanted in every hotel room. Not unless the Assassins' spies laid out a mine of a million listening devices across the square (and they definitely had no way of predicting exactly which area in the square we would be standing in), we didn't have to worry about bugs.
”Before we go into the qualifiers, I have something I need to tell you guys.” I glanced around cautiously, to ensure that there was no one spying or eavesdropping on us. The walls had eyes and ears, which was why it was impractical to hold this conversation within the hotel or dormitory rooms we were being accommodated in, but out in the vast, open plaza, surrounded by other teams and concealed by spells, there were no walls where spies could hide behind. For now, I didn't see anyone, but if they were professionals, they would obviously not allow me to spot them.
I had to trust the protective spell for now.
”A few days ago, I was contacted by Cecilia Stuart…”
”Cecilia Stuart!? That Cecilia Stuart, the Invincible War Goddess from Crowley's Grand Arcane Academy?!” Yue Chu blurted out.
”Yeah,” I said with a nod, trying not to show my irritation at his interruption. ”Apparently, she says that the Assassins Guild and the Dark Church will be making their move during the qualifiers. It's the best opportunity for them to create chaos and inflict maximum damage on the Federation, with so many of the younger generation's brightest and best gathered in one place. The Stuart and Franklin Families' intelligence networks are certain that they will try something.”
”Not unusual,” Harrison agreed thoughtfully. ”That does sound like them.”
”Well, it gets worse,” I admitted. ”Apparently Cecilia and Kureha Franklin wish for us to act as bait, to draw these Assassins out of hiding so that we can defeat or capture them before they can do anthing significant.”
”We are not her tools,” Bu Fan declared coldly. ”We have no obligation to do what they ask us to do.”
”True, but the Assassins are coming for us anyway, whether we like it or not.”
”Why?” Pearl Pang asked, pushing a strand of blue hair away from her pretty face, her brow wrinkling. ”Why would they target us?”
”Oh…could it be…because we survived that attack from those Assassins a few months ago? When a bunch of monsters invaded our city?” Craig was sharp.
I nodded.
”That bald Assassin and his disciples? Who attacked us and Teacher Fielding?” Sheila Scarlet turned pale. ”Just because we survived their attack?”
”Sounds like those sneaky Assassins, all right,” Lily Liam muttered darkly. ”They have some sort of twisted Assassin's Pride. I'm not talking about that anime. I mean, their pride was bruised when they failed to assassinate anybody back then, and they will definitely want revenge.”
”Well…since you're raising the subject, I assume you have some sort of plan, Richie?” Yue Chu turned to me. I grinned in response. My good friend knew me so well.
”That's correct…” I pushed my glasses up my nose and reached for my smartphone, projecting a holographic screen for them to see. ”This is what I have planned for now…in order to counter them.”