Chapter 846 A Series of Unfortunate Events <TOC> Chapter 848 The Broken Knight's Sword
Translator: SumTLMan
“Indeed, it pertains to the refugee matter,” Leon paused, “Speaking of which, your timing is impeccable, Angel. There is something I need to discuss with you.”
“What’s the matter?” Angel asked, puzzled.
“Do you remember suggesting the creation of an illusion outside Grud Town, a illusionary realm that would render the town forever elusive to commoners?” Leon gazed at Angel, “I hope you can indeed craft such an illusion around the periphery of Grud Town.”
Angel scrutinized him closely, noticing the grave seriousness on Leon’s face, no trace of jest was present. But just days ago, Leon had dismissed his proposal as a joke. Now he suddenly wished for the illusion to be set up. Had something unforeseen occurred in these past days?
Angel voiced his doubts.
Leon glanced around, ensuring they were alone before nodding, “General Monne fell in battle on the Northern Oil Coast. The current situation in the province of Elegant Plum is anything but optimistic.”
“General Monne?” Angel blinked, an image of a middle-aged man with a full beard flashed in his mind, “You’re referring to the father of the Alan siblings?”
Leon nodded, “Indeed, it’s Etienne Monne. His army, stationed in Elegant Plum, was the only force maintaining peace in the province. However, the latest news from Jordan reveals that he has fallen in battle. With the military leaderless and their spiritual pillar collapsed, the signs of an ensuing defeat are apparent. By now, it’s been half a month since we received the news of his death. I fear the frontline battles in Elegant Plum Province have already…”
Leon’s expression was tinged with sorrow. Ever since he had established a friendly relationship with the Monne family using the Morning Dew After Rain, along with Angel becoming a talent, the Monne family had been very optimistic about the future of the Pat family. As a result, General Monne had always taken good care of Grud Town.
Now with Monne’s death in battle, Leon couldn’t help but feel a sense of loss.
Upon hearing the news of Monne’s death, Angel fell silent. After a while, he spoke, “You believe that Elegant Plum Province will fall, hence you wish for me to set up the illusion around Grud Town?”
“It’s not that it will fall. It should be that it has already started to fall,” Leon’s tone was gravely serious.
Angel nodded, “Understood.”
After their conversation, they immediately headed to the home of George, the local Sheriff. Most of the townsfolk had already retired for the night, save for the flickering lights in his house.
When Angel saw George again after a month and a half, he could see the traces of weariness on the sheriff’s face.
Even Jordan the Knight, standing nearby, had a hint of worry in his eyes.
Upon entering, Angel wasted no time and headed directly to the sheriff’s office. There, a terrain sandbox model of Grud Town and its surroundings was present.
In order to establish an illusionary realm outside of Grud Town, it was only natural that Angel needed to understand the specific extent of the area that the illusion would cover. This sandbox was the most straightforward tool for that.
As George had always been meticulous in his work, the sandbox itself was his creation and was regularly updated. Just like in the upper left corner of the sandbox, there was a miniaturized cluster of huts marked with a circular, earth-toned flag. On the flat map below the sandbox, the location corresponding to this flag was marked as “refugee camp”. It was clear that this was a recent addition to the sandbox.
Moreover, Angel noticed several newly built wooden house models on the sandbox representation of Grud Town. Some models were still incomplete, with their materials laid out beside the sandbox.
“These are the houses built by the refugees who have recently agreed to become tenant farmers and decided to stay in Grud Town,” George said, shrugging. “However, not many refugees are willing to become tenant farmers. Most of them are still in the refugee camp, probably ready to flee as soon as they hear any news from the frontlines…”
The tenant farmers. Angel glanced at Leon, whose lips were tightly shut. Apparently, this was his solution for the issue at hand.
Angel took in the terrain of the sandbox, then said to Leon, “Brother, why don’t you delineate the area?”
Leon nodded, picked up a piece of chalk, and began to draw circles around certain locations on the sandbox.
While Leon was drawing, George, looking puzzled, said, “What are you two brothers up to? Do you have a plan? You should let me in on it.”
Angel relayed Leon’s words to George. After listening, George didn’t react, but the knight Jordan looked surprised. “Illusion formation? What’s that?”
During the last Moonlight Rain, Jordan had been sent to Watford by George. When he returned, George didn’t tell him about the changes in Pat Manor. So, like most of the townspeople, Jordan was completely clueless.
“An illusion is not a thing, but a trick,” Angel explained, taking the opportunity to impart some basic wizard knowledge, which even surprised George.
“But, I’m just a wizard’s apprentice. I can’t perform earth-shattering spells. I can only do some eye-deceiving tricks,” Angel said. “But it should be enough to fool ordinary people.”
Upon hearing this, George had an epiphany. If a spell could indeed create an illusion covering the entire Grud Town, it would certainly serve as a means to avoid conflict and protect the townsfolk.
However, Jordan asked, “If you have such an ability, shouldn’t you be able to help defeat Sea Wave? Wouldn’t that solve everything?”
Upon hearing this, George opened his mouth as if to say something but seemed at a loss for words. Leon, who had been drawing circles, also paused.
Angel said, “I don’t mind saving some people individually. But if my involvement were to sway the course of a war, it would go against the unspoken rules of the Wizarding World.”
Jordan was about to say something more, but George stopped him. For Angel to protect the residents of the town was kindness itself, but if he was asked to protect a whole country, even George felt that was a bit much. After all, they were dealing with an entire nation. If Angel made even a slight miscalculation, what could they possibly do?
Swiftly, Leon had established the parameters of his designated area.
Angel took a look. Leon’s demarcation was basically the usual activity range of the townsfolk. The far-off forest, he didn’t mark off too thoroughly.
“Once the illusion formation is set up, outsiders won’t be able to enter temporarily. If you want to leave, that’s not a problem, but I wouldn’t recommend that you do so,” Angel paused, turning towards Leon, “Do any of the townspeople have family members outside that need to be called back?”
“Except for Edgar, everyone is in town. No one is outside.”
Mentioning Edgar, everyone involuntarily sighed. Edgar was Little Sam’s father. Sam had ignored the warnings and trespassed into the Pat Manor, getting killed by the Owl Watcher. The day after Sam’s body was found, Edgar left Grud Town and his whereabouts remained unknown.
Edgar was a hunter. Most of the game on Angel’s dinner table in his younger days was hunted by Edgar.
“Since Edgar has chosen to leave, let’s not bother about him. With his hunting skills, he should be able to get by,” Angel paused, addressing George, “I’ll set up the illusion formation shortly. Remember to gather all the townsfolk tomorrow and ask them to avoid leaving town as much as possible.”
After Angel left, Leon walked towards the outskirts of town with him.
Halfway, Leon asked, “Are there no examples of the Wizarding World interfering with the governance?”
“There are, and quite a few,” Angel shrugged, “But most who interfere with governance do so for manpower. Those who are willing to walk the path of truth won’t get immersed in the power struggles of the mundane world. This goes against the core values of a wizard. Of course, if there’s profit involved, that’s a different matter. After all, these tacit rules are just a concept that everyone implicitly agrees upon, not a compulsory directive.”
Angel turned to look at Leon, “You want me to prevent this war?”
Leon shook his head, “Not really. I was just thinking that if the Province of Elegant Plum really fell, Grud Town would probably become a solitary island in the occupied territory. I don’t particularly like that feeling.”
From Leon’s perspective, Angel could understand his sentiments.
After all, to some extent, Grud Town was Leon’s responsibility.
After setting up the illusion formation, Angel and Leon returned to the manor. Angel continued his research into the Dream Entry spell, and the manor once again entered a period of tranquility.
A week later, the frontline battle report came through, the news of General Monne’s death spread like wildfire.
The refugee camp in Grud Town directly lost half its population that day. In the following days, refugees chose to leave every day.
However, another week elapsed, and contrary to their predictions, the province of Elegant Plum didn’t fall entirely to ruin – only a handful of peripheral cities were breached. This was due to the resurgence of the Goldfinch Empire, which, after months of retrenchment, amassed a new army and stationed it in the province.
According to the intelligence received by Jordan, this new force in Elegant Plum was personally led by a member of the Shannon royal family.
General Monne, a pillar of their force, had fallen. However, knowing that the royal family was personally involved, the once fragmented morale of the troops coalesced anew.
A situation initially marred by grand defeat gradually showed signs of rejuvenation.
The capricious nature of the warfare left Angel somewhat taken aback. Yet, what astonished him even more was the unexpected appearance of the Shannon royal, rumored to be leading the charge, in the vicinity of Grud Town days later.
…
During this period, the illusion Angel had arranged outside Grud Town was frequently disturbed, predominantly by refugees on the outskirts.
However, these refugees, upon encountering the illusion, would soon become disoriented and return to their original position. Repeated attempts to breach it invariably led to their resignation from entering Grud Town.
But to Angel’s surprise, one day, someone managed to penetrate his illusion and appeared in Grud Town.
Jordan was the first to notice the intruder. Ever since the illusion was put in place around Grud Town, his duty as a guard had become somewhat more relaxed. Perched in his lookout, he spent most of his time daydreaming, reminiscing about his classmates from the Knight Academy.
It was only when the stranger had walked right up to the outpost and intentionally caused his horse to neigh that Jordan jolted out of his reverie, astounded to find an outsider had infiltrated Grud Town.
He eyed the newcomer suspiciously – a female knight shrouded entirely in golden armor, astride a white horse, she emanated an air of nonchalant elegance.
“Who are you?” he queried.
“I’m Tavel Shannon,” she replied, “I’d like to see Viscount Pat. Could you possibly convey my message?”
Chapter 846 A Series of Unfortunate Events <TOC> Chapter 848 The Broken Knight's Sword