Chapter 1302: Buying Time
The Demonic Hand simply wanted to ’take out’ Evan from the scenario they were planning, because they knew that if Evan was involved, their plans would fail.
"But wait," Laurene said. "Evan said Ferrid’s Fate Manipulation can’t work on him and Irregulars in general."
"Yeah, but there’s nothing stopping him from seeing your possible fates," Abigail responded. "There’s nothing stopping him from viewing the general fates of the people across the continent, and when he sees that they’re still alive, and Evan isn’t present to influence their fates, he knows he’d succeed in taking Evan out of the scenario with the bomb!"
Abigail’s explanation put the last piece in place for Laurene. She leaned back in her seat, hands running through her chestnut hair as she tried to simulate the Demonic Hand’s next set of plans.
"Leoniel Franco!" she suddenly muttered. "Marquis Franco is in danger! Evan said he was the Demonic Hand’s next target for something he called the ’Basilisk’s Stone Festival’, that’s why Evan’s been sticking around with the Marquis these past months."
Laurene placed a lot of emphasis on the word ’Festival’ as she spoke, then leaned forward and continued, "Isolon’s Founding Festival is in 10 days!"
For the Transcendents whom Evan had not yet told about his plans, a lot was lost in translation, and even Zaos didn’t have the full picture.
But hearing Laurene’s deductions, especially her emphasis on the word ’Festival’, it wasn’t hard to figure out that the Demonic Hand meticulously plotted things to stop Evan from interfering with their plans for Isolon.
Just before Zaos could say anything about it, there was a burst of lightning in the centre of the room, and Kayla appeared from it, landing on the table and walking straight up to Zaos.
[Call your wife! Get her to contact Sylph and tell Sylph to check the forest!]
Kayla’s sudden appearance stunned everyone in the room, and the power she radiated made Altrishia and Vulwin reflexively go into combat mode as they felt a genuine threat from her presence.
But Kayla ignored them all, focusing on the confused Zaos.
"Forest? What forest?"
[For goodness’ sake! The northern forest! The one Evan said Sylph was watching over on Artemisia’s orders. That forest has a special spatial barrier around it. Evan could’ve fallen in there, and that’s why his signal is scrambled!
Call your wife and tell her to have Sylph check that forest for Evan!]
The moment she said that, she zapped to Eliza’s side, picked Kuro off the table and ordered
[Go to the Alpha Continent and bring that demoness here.]
[Which one of them?] Kuro asked.
[Pride,] Kayla replied instantly. [She’s the one who’d be most useful.]
Kayla dropped Kuro back on the table and was about to leave, but then she remembered something and turned around to look at the Transcendents.
[I don’t know what you’re discussing, but make sure to make do on your word and release the true details of everything that happened last night, with not a single bit of it missing.]
"You’re threatening us?" Altrishia asked, her expression dark and magic power rising.
Kayla turned her gaze to her, eyes cold as though she was looking at an insect and responded.
[Use your brain to figure out if that’s a threat or not.]
With those words, she turned around, grumbling loudly. [This is why I told him to stop sending me away!]
Her body burst into lightning that soon dissipated as she left, and immediately, Kuro jumped onto the table and spoke.
[Calm yourself, Dragon Lord. She’s not in a good mood due to the current situation, so her words may have been a bit harsh.]
"There’s no less harsh way to phrase a threat like that!"
[She wasn’t threatening you,] Kuro replied, correcting Altrishia. [She was simply telling you what she wants done.]
"And assuming we’d do as she wants because what? She’s a Great Spirit?"
Hearing Altrishia’s wording, Laurene silently shook her head, and Kuro exhaled softly.
[I normally wouldn’t disclose this without permission, but I have no choice but to prevent misunderstandings.
Spirit King Sinclair is a fallen Deity who rules only the spirits of this world, Aidos. He’s just one of many Spirit Kings across thousands of other worlds, who all answer to a higher authority.]
Magic power swirled around his feet as he activated his Shadow Movement skill, then added, [I’ll leave you to figure out who that higher authority is.]
With those words, he slipped into his shadow and vanished to carry Kayla’s order, leaving behind a silent room.
Rathal, seeing the ugly expression on Altrishia’s face, burst out laughing before speaking.
[Well, looks like we don’t have a choice. And besides, even if we somehow decided not to reveal the truth, just what sort of tale are you gonna spin that would convince people that massive explosion wasn’t a threat?
I don’t think there’s anything you can say that wouldn’t leave people in doubt, so you might as well just say it as it is.
The only thing we shouldn’t say is that Evan is missing. Just say he’s injured or something, just to make it look like we know where he is.]
After giving his suggestion, Rathal disconnected from the call, his hologram breaking into specks of light that slowly faded away.
◇ ◇ ◇
In the end, after several back-and-forth exchanges, the Transcendents finally issued the official statement explaining what had happened.
Minor details were left out, but the main story was told almost exactly as it occurred, with slight adjustments to make it clear who the heroes and villains of the situation were.
The Demonic Hand, the organisation behind the Undead Disaster of Cheverton in Year 1052, the Dungeon Outbreak in Lacertilia in Year 1053, and the Battle of the Wild Lands in Tarse in Year 1055, had discovered a relic of the Old World, something left behind by the invaders during the war a thousand years ago, and attempted to use it to destroy the Beta Continent. Three Heroes, Evan Eris, Laurene Hayes and Abigail Lowe, in the middle of conducting a military operation alongside Elven Emperor Zaos Lowe and the Elven Empire’s Army to neutralise a base of the Demonic Hand, discovered the device already activated. With little time remaining, Evan Eris flew the bomb into space to detonate it above the atmosphere, since it couldn’t be detonated on land or over the oceans.
That was the official statement released to explain the cause of the blast that had turned midnight into midday, and it went without saying that everyone who heard it was left in shock.
To those of the Alpha Continent, the Demonic Hand was already a familiar name, since it had been leaked to the public that they were a dangerous organisation posing a threat to the whole world, but for the people of the Beta Continent, it was a literal bolt from the blue.
It dawned on them that this was the kind of terror the Alpha Continent had been dealing with for years.
Naturally, some national leaders, including those of the Solaris Union, tried to shift the blame onto Evan, saying the Demonic Hand had only started attacking after Evan came to the Beta Continent, but their voices were quickly silenced by the Elven Emperor before they could gain any real traction.
All possible news outlets published the official statement. TV stations broadcast it, radio stations did the same, and newspaper companies printed it out.
The spirits, while still searching across the continent for any possible trace of Evan, carried this news and spread it to those living in remote villages and towns, so those without access to TVs and smartphones would still know what was happening.
Evan’s allies on the Alpha Continent, whom he’d already shared his Intercontinental Coalition plan with, also took action, calling for countries to unite to eliminate the Demonic Hand.
Of course, this all came with its own share of chaos, as there were people who began accusing political enemies of being Demonic Hand affiliates as a reason to get rid of them.
Some countries’ governments declared states of emergency to prevent riots that broke out and stop further panic-driven chaos, while others tried to reassure their citizens that there were no ongoing threats, refusing to impose travel bans or declare martial law in order to prevent unrest from growing further.
All governments needed time to restore order, properly assess the situation, and reassure the public that life could continue.
Amidst all this, people began to ask very important questions.
Where were the Heroes who had apparently discovered the Demonic Hand’s plans and activities? Where was Abigail? Where was Laurene, and most importantly, where was Evan?
Many were focused on analysing their actions, with some criticising them and saying they were the ones who had pushed the Demonic Hand that far and should’ve left them alone, while others viewed their actions as blessings, emphasising that they had prevented a disaster and that normal life should continue.
But soon, people began clamouring for the Heroes to make public appearances, and since it couldn’t be disclosed that Evan was currently missing in order to avoid increasing fear and lowering morale or making people believe there was still danger, the official response was that they were recuperating from injuries sustained while fighting the Demonic Hand.
This way, they were able to buy some time to search for Evan while also preventing mass panic.
Still, not everyone bought this story, as there were still those who began to speculate about potential death or that the whereabouts of the Heroes were completely unknown.
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