90 Jolly Saints and Superweapons (1/2)
”You know, I don't remember ordering poisoned meat, Bernard. What in the hell did coat these wings in?! The devil's tears?!”
”Don't be a wuss, lad. If the she can handle it, so can you.”
She didn't reply at all. She hadn't even been paying attention in the first place. Although she physically present, her mind was not — she was gone.
Like a mindless automaton, Lu'um absentmindedly ate her wings in silence as she wrestled against her own thoughts.
”…Hm? Is she alright? Her eyes seem kind of… off.”
”Nothing in particular? She'll be fine, I think. But I sure as hell won't if you don't get me something to drink! My tongue's going to fall off at this rate!”
Ulbo stroked his chin in contemplation and said, ”These taste sweeter than when I last had them. Did you change the recipe, little crow?”
”I'd never tamper with something perfect, Gramps. I just double the amount of spice whenever she comes over — that's why it tastes sweeter to you compared to the last time you were here.”
”Ah… That does sound like Huani. She's always been a fiery pepper, that one…”
”My mouth!! Bring the milk, Bernard! Mercy, please!”
Bernard shook his head in disappointment and said, ”For shame, lad. Your ancestors are probably crying right now. A Mulian prince who can't handle spice. What's the world come to these days…?” He sighed and strolled back into his little kitchen.
Ulbo took a sip of his drink and said, ”How are you feeling, little sun? You don't need to push yourself — you're welcome to stay as long as you like. Why don't you take your time and rest here before you head back?”
”That's a tempting offer, but I can't. If I stick around, I'll never want to leave. I've also got urgent business I need to take care of back over there,” said Reed as he fanned his sweaty face.
Reed gazed at the empty street outside and said, ”I can't afford to play around anymore, after all. Don't worry though, we'll come visit again once I finish what I need to do.”
”And what might that be, little sun?” said Ulbo. He was slightly concerned about the dangerous, twinkling gleam hidden within the boy's distant gaze. He'd seen those eyes before, a long time ago in another life…
It was the dangerous gaze of someone who was out for blood.
Reed looked at Ulbo and calmly said, ”I'm just going to settle a little dispute that's been annoying me for the longest time.”
Ulbo felt his heart skip a beat when he witnessed Reed's expression. There was a terrifying, mechanical rigidity in his calm smile. The boy possessed unnatural aura of restrained composure befit only of something lifeless…
O Lady of Fate, how long must he continue to endure? When will you finally be satisfied? Are a thousand hearts and a million tears still not enough to prove his innocence…?
There were sins that could not be forgiven, no matter how hard one prayed and begged for forgiveness. Eternal punishment awaited him in the deepest layer of hell for what he done…
That much was certain. He would burn. They would all burn...…
The North had sealed itself away days after the abrupt destruction of Lei-en. It happened so quickly and that even the North's strongest conquerors had not been able to detect the attack. The range of the blast and the severity of the damage inflicted confounded them even more.
It could not have been done by a single person. No conqueror could have accomplished such a feat aside from the likes of the Four Sovereigns and even that was merely speculation. It had to have been the work of a group and a highly powerful one at that. That was the only logical conclusion.
But why annihilate a city of mortals? What would anyone that to gain from such an atrocity? Even the Underground, the largest criminal organization on the continent, did not possess enough manpower to have accomplished what had happened.
It was preposterous to even consider that one of the other three empires had been behind the attack. None of the royal families would ever dare to start another Unification War. The offending royal family would likely be torn to pieces by the other three families until nothing of them was left.
A swift and brutal death was all that'd await anyone who'd dare to disturb the peace.
The highest echelons of North and the East had different ideas about what had happened, though. They knew of the Ashborn-Dragoncrest conspiracy. Of the nefarious scheme that they had concocted along with the Holy Church, the only other true powerhouse on the continent aside from the Four Empires.
The recent attack on Fourth Heaven had astonished them when the first heard the whispers from their spies. That an unknown force had struck the Holy Church and caused widespread destruction in the city...
Only for the city of Lei-en to have disappeared… by the end of the same day.
A certain, unmistakable tension was felt across the empires after that fateful day. It did not take long for people to begin to make the possible connection between the two events. Many wondered if they'd become the spark that'd light the continent on fire.