Translator: SumTLMan
Within the castle, the Head Maid Mana stepped out from the grand hall, casually drawing the resplendent curtains laden with tassels, thus obstructing the prying eyes of the other servants.
No sooner had Mana exited the corridor than a servant approached, inquiring about the circumstances of the visitor.
They had all heard, the visitor introduced herself as “Tavel Shannon”. They might not recognize the woman donned in golden armor, but they were certainly no stranger to the surname “Shannon”.
In the entire Goldfinch Empire, the only ones entitled to the surname Shannon were the royal family.
Connecting this with the news they received earlier about the royal family of Shannon personally leading an expedition to the Elegant Plum Province, could the woman inside be the one they spoke of?
Regardless of the surrounding inquiries, Mana remained silent from beginning to end, keeping everyone outside the grand hall, reserving the conversation space for those inside.
At this point, the atmosphere within the grand hall was somewhat delicate.
Angel sat on the couch, and on the table before him lay a knight’s sword, shattered into several pieces. The sword itself was quite lavish, adorned with pearls and gems, its craftsmanship was so exquisite that it was in no way inferior to the artistry of the Kulakuka clan, and the blade was exceedingly sharp.
Without a doubt, it was a mundane divine weapon crafted through the collaboration of a master craftsman and a weapons expert, and even in the Wizarding World, it could serve as a decent collectible.
Of course, all these premises hinge on it being intact.
Unfortunately, not long ago, this knight’s sword broke into several pieces. Its owner—Tavel Shannon, the seventh princess of the empire, regretfully gazed at the knight’s sword and sighed softly.
Angel’s gaze was also fixed on the broken knight’s sword, filled with puzzlement.
Although this knight’s sword was mundane, it was thanks to this sword that Princess Shannon was able to step into the illusion-enshrouded Grud Town just an hour ago.
The range of the illusion encircling Grud Town was vast, and for Angel, if he were to cast a high-level illusion, the sustaining energy would not hold, and the daily consumption would be counted in magic crystals. Therefore, he only set up the most basic and simplest foundational illusion.
It would easily repel ordinary people, but it could be easily broken from the inside if it encountered any offensive energy. Even Drew, with his slight water summoning talent, might potentially break the illusion.
The reason why Tavel Shannon was able to enter was precisely because there was a trace of fire elemental essence attached to this knight’s sword.
These fire elemental essences were usually concealed, but when Shannon entered the illusion, the illusion nodes stimulated the latent fire elemental essences, allowing her to smoothly step into the illusion. However, at the same time, her knight’s sword, being mundane, could not withstand the explosion of the micro fire elements and eventually shattered into several pieces.
The reason Angel had been staring at this sword was precisely because he was puzzled as to why there would be micro fire elements attached to it?
He examined it with the Eye of Nalda, but surprisingly, he didn’t find anything unusual.
Seeing the puzzled looks from Shannon and Leon, Angel sighed, and the air around him coalesced and dispersed like ripples on a pond. In an instant, he transformed into the appearance of a middle-aged man, downcast and dispirited.
When Angel had first encountered Shannon in the Black Crow Province, he wore this very face, so it was only natural that they didn’t recognize him immediately.
“Is it you?! Really you, Lord wizard!” Upon seeing Angel’s transformation, Shannon hesitated for a moment, then quickly identified him.
Angel glanced at Shannon’s deflated belly and the ample bosom that even the armor couldn’t hide, and said casually, “You’ve given birth just a month or two ago. Is it really appropriate to be running around like this?”
Shannon’s cheeks reddened. “The day after you left me in Menus, Lord, I gave birth to a son. It’s been two months since then, and it doesn’t affect my mobility now.”
Shannon finished, eager to explain her purpose for coming.
However, before she could begin, Angel asked, “How did you find me here?”
Angel had saved the pregnant Shannon in Black Crow Province, leaving her in the largest city of the Broken Gold Province, Menus. He was curious about how Shannon had managed to recognize him after he had used his illusion transformation spell.
Shannon replied, “I didn’t recognize you, Lord. However, when I returned to the capital, I told my father about meeting you. He told me that the Monne family had once sent him a message, saying that a talented individual had emerged from Pat Manor in Grud Town. I remembered you saying that you were going to the Elegant Plum Province, so my father told me that you might be that talented individual from Pat Manor.”
“After I arrived here and heard the refugees talking about how Grud Town had been haunted these past few days and nobody could enter, I thought that it must be your doing, Lord.”
So it was a message from the Monne family. Angel nodded in understanding. After all, General Monne had witnessed him leaving the Old Land Continent with Morrow.
“If you came to seek my help against the Sea Wave Dynasty, you can leave now. I won’t get involved,” Angel declared.
Shannon, who thought that she might have a chance given Angel’s seemingly mild attitude just now, was taken aback. Even before she could voice her request, Angel had preemptively turned her down.
Shannon looked anxious. “Lord, the Goldfinch Empire is at the brink of collapse. If you don’t help, the Elegant Plum Province will fall and the entire coastal area will be lost. We won’t have any chance to turn the situation around.”
“But how is that any of my concern? The history of a kingdom is always in flux due to wars. Who wins and who loses doesn’t matter to me.”
Shannon’s eyes were welling up with tears. “Lord, you saw it yourself. So many innocent civilians died at the hands of the Sea Wave Dynasty. They’re innocent, and they shouldn’t have to bear the brunt of the war.”
“I know you might think that people die in every war.”
“But this time it’s different. If the Goldfinch Empire doesn’t handle things well, if the royal family becomes corrupt, if rot sets in from within, if the people are oppressed, then I can accept the rise and fall of the Shannon Royal family. Yet, the strength of the Goldfinch has always been formidable, as Viscount Pat should know. The royal family has always been generous to its people, and although there are conflicts within the nobility, they have never reached the point of irreconciliation…”
Shannon’s words had Leon unconsciously nodding in agreement.
Angel knew that the old Pat had often praised the style of the Shannon royal family. This was one of the reasons why Angel had allowed Shannon to hitch a ride in the Black Crow province.
“In this war, if we were defeated in fair circumstances, I would have accepted it. But this war is not fair at all. Each victory of the Sea Wave Dynasty is due to the intervention of transcendent beings; we are simply powerless to resist.” Shannon narrated with a mournful expression.
“Transcendent beings? You mean wizards?” Leon asked in surprise.
Shannon nodded, “Viscount Pat, and wizard, do you know how General Monne died?”
Shannon posed the question, and without waiting for an answer, tremblingly revealed, “He didn’t die in battle as was widely reported, but was murdered in his home in Sandalwood Harbor.”
Sandalwood Harbor is a military port on the Northern Oil Coast, and also where General Monne was stationed.
“Seventeen members of his family, from the oldest to the youngest, were all brutally murdered. Their hearts were gouged out; their deaths were incredibly gruesome.” Shannon paused, “Among these seventeen, were all the direct descendants of Etienne Monne who remained on the Old Land Continent.”
Shannon’s words, though brief, were filled with an undertone of brutality and bloodshed.
“After this incident, the Monne family in the capital was furious, hence the deployment of troops.”
“Moreover, behind the Monne family, there are three wizards, all from the main lineage. If they return, the death of General Monne in this war would be hard for my father to face. The only way to satisfy the Monne family is to kill the murderer…but we, as ordinary people, are incapable of killing the culprit. That’s why I volunteered to find you.”
Angel had been paying attention to Shannon, who wasn’t lying in her statement. Moreover, the three wizards behind the Monne family were none other than Morrow, Alan, and Alana. The royal family’s statement was reasonable.
However…
“Why are you so sure that it was a transcendent being who killed General Monne?”