178 An Agent Of God... He Was No (1/2)
For most, the sudden incident in Itroch had driven them into a state of complete pandemonium. People across the continent fled toward the nearest place of shelter they could find as the rode out what seemed to a sign of the end times.
In Itroch however, the situation had already run its course, much to the relief of everyone in the Spirit of Bountiful Charity. It'd been a hectic couple of minutes for the flagship and her crew as they scrambled around repairing what Reed had unintentionally broken in the process of pushing out his titanic haul of a fortune.
What seemed like an ice shelf of biblical proportions now hovered above the ancient city of Itroch. Needless to say, no one in the command deck knew what to say about it.
”...What do you reckon that might be, Lord Velvund?” said Prince Haydn, curiously as he eyed the floating slab of ice and quartz.
”In all likelihood, Prince Haydn, that is trouble. Far be it for us to know what sort of creations the Ancient Mulians have buried in our soil. Nevertheless, we won't know for certain what it is until we get an answer from my grandchildren,” said Velvund.
That was a damned lie.
The old Alf had already begun to brainstorm the moment it appeared, scheming on how he'd be able to take it away from the North. He knew better than to doubt his own grandchildren, or more specifically — his granddaughter-in-law — who was uncannily knowledgeable when it came to the Ancient Mulians and their oh-so-valuable relics.
If those two had pulled out that massive chunk of frozen quartz, it was likely because it had some value to it. Hopefully enough to justify the ridiculous length they had gone to pull the damn thing out of the fissure, thought Velvund.
He had definitely not treated his own grandchildren like glorified treasure detectors. Of course he hadn't done that. He'd never do that.
Perhaps another scummy, opportunistic man might've done that but not—
”If it comes down it, I'll make sure to have this... bizarre thing moved somewhere safe in the East and have it sealed away. It's the least I could do for the North, on behalf of my foolish grandchildren,” said Velvund as he subtly licked his lips in anticipation.
All things considered, it had been an earnest attempt, but Haydn had already caught on to his adversary's slimy proposal.
”Oh, that won't be necessary, Lord Velvund. We would not want to impose on the East with an unknown relic such as this. I cannot even begin to imagine what sort of danger might be slumbering in a relic from this city in particular. Therefore, I suggest that you let us shoulder the burden this time, as it was something buried in the North. Inconveniencing the East with our troubles any more than this would be a subject of national shame to us, I fear,” said Haydn, not permitting so much as an iota of desire escape his lips.
The two slimeballs smiled at each other and continued their cat and mouse game as they shamelessly tried to get their other to concede, to the dismay of the bridge crew around them.
They had been dealing with an endless torrent of communications requests from powers all across the continent. A wide variety of colorful messages continued to fill their comms channels as they fruitlessly attempted to get a hold of the two commanding authorities responsible for the operation in Itroch.
Unfortunately, they would never get a response back, at least not any time soon... for obvious reasons.
On the other hand, it was getting troublesome for the person in question who had created the mess in the first place. Reed found himself in a unique situation where there was no clear course to take.
In truth though, he had no clue how to proceed from this point forward. Such was the consequence of him relying on his natural intuition rather than on a carefully planned strategy.
A lonesome figure sat on the edge of the immense ice shelf in reflection as he stared down at the newly-ruined city beneath him. From his vantage point, it seemed as if someone had given the city another black eye, so to speak.
The poor, decrepit city looked even more miserable than when they had first entered it. His actions had not only affected Itroch but also the entire continent as well, even if only in a minor fashion. Some people might've even labeled what Reed had achieved a remarkable feat of destruction.
Prince Haydn himself was one such proponent.
He had already internalized Reed's capacity for destruction as something intrinsic to the young man. Rather than attributing it to mere coincidence, he was thoroughly convinced that Reed was in some form affected or possessed by a higher authority beyond mortal ken.