After Lord Stuart gave the order, he returned to the communication room and stood before Lola.
Throughout the entire process, Lola showed no reaction.
She knew that the man before her, the Lord of the Stuart family, was someone she would have to deal with soon.
On one hand, she wanted to speak with him directly to understand his character.
On the other hand, she knew he would surely find ways to curry favor with her.
After all, in the eyes of others, she was currently the favorite of the Saintess of the Moon.
"Hehe, it is a pleasure to meet you for the first time, Bishop Lola. I am Byron Stuart, the current Lord of the Stuart family. Please, I ask for your guidance. It was quite rude of me to meet you like this without a formal introduction."
Having said that, Byron's tone shifted, his face filled with a flattering smile.
"Please, rest assured. I will have my family members deliver a meeting gift to your residence later."
Lola pushed up the frame of her glasses and said nothing, merely giving a slight nod.
If Byron had not been observing the young girl closely, he might not have even noticed that tiny movement.
However, upon seeing it, Byron's eyes lit up.
"Hehe, Bishop Lola, I have a question, though I do not know if it is appropriate to ask."
"You want to ask why I had you search for the Kingdom of the Sun's navy, correct?"
Lola guessed Byron's thoughts with an expressionless face, and Byron immediately continued his flattery.
"Precisely, precisely. Er... actually, I was just a bit curious."
"There is no harm in telling you." Lola did not intentionally play hard to get; she wanted to carefully observe Byron's reaction to see if he would be easy to handle.
At least for now, based on his etiquette and personality, Lola had analyzed about seventy or eighty percent of him.
This Byron was clearly a small man who prioritized self-preservation.
That such a small man could become the head of a noble family was telling.
It was obvious.
The current Kingdom of the Moon was indeed rotten to the core.
When even the head of a noble family displayed such an attitude, it was hard to imagine just how much the Stuart family had declined.
"Her Highness suspects that the demons have mastered the ability for long-distance seafaring. It is very likely... they have already wiped out the Sun Kingdom's navy and are heading straight for the Kingdom of the Sun with the current."
"What!?"
Byron's jaw nearly hit the floor, his face filled with disbelief.
In contrast, Lola pushed up her gold-rimmed glasses and looked at Byron calmly.
"Lord Stuart, I hope you take this matter to heart. It would be best for you to supervise it personally. Do not forget that Moonrise City is also a coastal city. Once the demons truly master seafaring and conquer the Kingdom of the Sun, Moonrise City will inevitably become one of their primary targets."
Upon hearing this, Byron's face turned deathly pale in an instant. His entire body could not help but tremble, and he could not even utter a complete sentence.
"This... this, this..."
"Alright, calm down. This matter is not yet certain. Therefore, you must supervise this personally. No matter what, whether they are alive or dead, find clues regarding the Sun Kingdom's navy. It must be done as quickly as possible. Of course, I am not in a hurry."
Lola intentionally added that last sentence specifically to pressure Byron into moving faster.
At this moment, Byron could not care less whether Lola was rushing him. Even if she was not, he would have been driven mad with anxiety himself!
"I, I will go right now, right now! Please, rest assured. No matter where the Sun Kingdom's navy has gone, whether they are alive or dead, even if I have to turn the entire Eastern Sea upside down, I will find the clues for you!!"
While speaking, Byron turned to leave, but before his foot could step out of the communication room, he suddenly turned back with a flattering smile.
"That... Bishop Lola, I ask that you please put in a few good words for me before Her Highness. If my Moonrise City... truly... please, you must persuade Her Highness to deploy troops. My Moonrise City does not have the ability to withstand the demons."
Lola used her index finger to push up her gold-rimmed glasses, lowered her head in thought for a moment, and then suddenly revealed a slight smile.
"That will depend on how you show your sincerity."
"Please, rest assured! I understand, I understand everything! I will certainly not forget you. I shall head out now."
"Go on."
At this moment, Lola seemed to reveal a satisfied smile as if her greed had been satiated.
Seeing this, a smile also appeared on the corners of Byron's mouth, and the expression on his face was no longer as panicked as it was at the start.
He then backed out of the communication room with a beaming smile, not even daring to turn his back to her until he had fully departed.
Throughout the process, the smile on Lola's face never faded.
But the moment the communication screen vanished, Lola's expression changed instantly, and a flash of ruthlessness crossed her eyes.
"Hah... nobles!"
Three parts mockery, three parts disdain, and three parts contempt.
And one part hatred, hidden behind those lenses.
Even though Luo Li had helped her take revenge and had completely crushed the Garnet family with a single blow...
The seeds planted in her heart since childhood meant she did not have a shred of goodwill toward nobles.
"This Byron is cowardly and fearful, swaying with the wind and acting slippery. Dealing with him will not be difficult..."
She smoothly took out the pen and paper she carried and began to take notes.
After pondering for a moment, she put away the stationery and turned to leave.
As she left the communication room, she could be heard muttering in a low voice.
"It just so happens I have been short on money lately, and those little ones have been clamoring for meat every day..."
Her voice drifted away as her figure receded.
Meanwhile, Moonrise City had already fallen into total chaos.
An anxious Byron had temporarily requisitioned all vessels. Citizens who were unwilling to hand over their ships were given a beating before being handed a bit of money as a forced purchase.
Byron did not care what the people thought of him. The key was that if what Bishop Lola said was true...
Then Moonrise City was in real danger!!
He did not care about the commoners; he cared about his family. And compared to his family, he cared even more about his own life!
And right now, this matter concerned his life... and his wealth.
He did not want to lose his current lifestyle, and he certainly did not want to become a mindless beast like a demon.
Therefore, no matter what, he had to find the Sun Kingdom's navy.
To speed up the departure, he even brought out his own luxury tour boat.
For a time, the entire coastline of Moonrise City was covered with ships of all sizes, which began to sail south following the ocean currents and monsoons.
Standing on the shore, Byron stared blankly at the ships and could not help but grumble.
"What a waste. I was planning to take my newly acquired concubine on a boat trip. It seems it is best not to go to sea for a while."
Having said that, Byron returned home.
He did not need to do anything else, nor was he needed.
Whether it was going to sea or reporting the situation, he only needed to wait.
This was a noble.
Even if he knew how to do nothing, as long as he held the administrative rights over a vast territory, he could remain idle even when matters had reached such a troublesome state.
Events continued to unfold.
While Moonrise City had sent out ships to search for the Sun Kingdom's navy...
On the other side, at the border of Seaview City...
Yanagi Musashi sat powerlessly in the central command tent, his face dark and gloomy.
He never imagined that while leading an army to attack an ordinary noble, he would encounter an interception by a Demon Marshal.
If he had not reacted in time, he would likely be dead by now.
But even with his quick reaction, the entire army was completely unable to carry out an effective retreat.
For the period that followed, they were chased and slaughtered almost the entire way.
His hundred thousand infantry had been reduced by more than half in an instant.
As for the thirty thousand knights, they had directly lost over three thousand men!
A ten percent loss was equivalent to having gone through a major battle.
However, this battle was something Yanagi Musashi still could not understand.
Why would a Demon Marshal suddenly appear in Seaview City?
Even among the demons, a Demon Marshal above level sixty was an extremely rare existence. Did the demons not fear that he would report this to the Holy See, leading them to send a sacred knight to hunt them down?
For some reason, Yanagi Musashi felt a chill down his spine, as if something terrible was happening.
But he could not figure out what exactly it was. Consequently, his mood grew even more irritable, and he could not help but ask.
"Is the communication still not fixed!?"
Currently, Yanagi Musashi's camp was located thirty kilometers from the border of the province where Seaview City was located.
He did not dare to advance further because there was a Demon Marshal ahead, along with a large number of demon elites numbering at least fifty thousand.
With his strength alone, he could not possibly break through such an army.
Let alone emerge victorious.
"Reporting to the General, repairs are being rushed. The signal is intermittent and very weak."
"Hurry up!! Faster!"
"Yes! General!"
The guard outside the tent hurried away.
At a time like this, everyone knew better than to provoke the commander. Defeat... for them, it was a matter of life and death, and for the commander, it was a humiliating blow.
Currently, Yanagi Musashi's army was in a state of isolation. He was not even entirely sure where he was.
But he could not think about that much now.
Torrential rain was pouring from the sky. This downpour had lasted for six or seven days. The ground was so muddy it was difficult to move, let alone for a knight whose armor alone weighed a ton.
It had become a problem for them even to move around.
The heavy rain was simply too much of a debuff for the knights.
If this continued, his army would likely be completely trapped in this plain.
The current army could not even travel, let alone go on a campaign.
They did not dare to remove their armor for fear of a demon ambush.
But if they did not remove their armor, walking even a single step on this ground soaked into sludge became extremely difficult.
With every step, their feet would sink deep into the mud.
For a time, the entire army was unable to move an inch.
Now, because of the rout, a large portion of the army's supplies had been lost. The remaining portion would not even last ten days. If this continued, the entire army would likely die here.
The only two things they could hope for were that the communication equipment would be fixed or that the light cavalry sent out could find reinforcements and a city.
At the very least, if there was a city, they would not be so miserable as to have no supplies at all.
"Sigh... if only we had magic airships. Even an airdrop would be better than waiting like this."
Airdrops sometimes resulted in lost supplies due to distance and altitude, but even with losses, it was much better than waiting here to starve.
Just as he was gloomily thinking of a way out, the sound of hooves splashing through mud suddenly came from the distance.
Immediately after, a knight who had removed his heavy armor rushed into the tent.
"Reporting to the General! We have found the nearest town and contacted Stargaze City through their communication equipment! Stargaze City will immediately report the situation here to Brilliant City. At the same time, Stargaze City has sent a support force that will arrive at the camp in just three days!"
"Truly!?"
Upon hearing this, Yanagi Musashi jumped up from his seat in surprise, walking toward the knight with a face full of joy.
"Is what you say true?"
"Reporting to the General, it is indeed true. This is the receipt from Stargaze City."
As he spoke, he took out a letter.
With a glance, Yanagi Musashi knew this was the special paper used only in communication rooms. This paper could only be manufactured in the Kingdom of Signo and was specifically used for printing documents through communication equipment.
He grabbed the paper and scanned it from top to bottom, and a great sense of relief washed over him.
"Finally... there is a way out."
Yanagi Musashi shook his head helplessly.
Although the army now had supplies, this defeat could not be erased. The specific situation had likely already reached Brilliant City through Stargaze City's communication equipment, right?
He just did not know how this Saintess of the Moon would react to his defeat.
"I only hope she has half the kindness of Lady Momoka... then I will be satisfied."
And just as he thought.
After receiving this news, Stargaze City did not dare to hesitate for a moment.
The demons had actually managed to invade Seaview City without anyone noticing?
This was a major city in the southeast of the Kingdom of the Moon.
An invasion here was something that had never happened in a thousand years.
The news was transmitted directly to Brilliant City.
Who would dare to block such a major event?
Grannia, being a mage hired independently to work solo, did not like the atmosphere of the Mage Association, which did everything solely for profit.
Therefore, he had never thought of joining them.
He had originally thought that by coming to a city like Brilliant City that faced the demons directly, he could contribute his strength.
He never expected that he would somehow end up as a maintenance worker for the communication room.
However, Grannia was accustomed to this kind of easy-going life.
Therefore, he was quite content. He did not pick and choose but instead performed his duties with great diligence.
Even though he knew... such work did not even utilize one percent of his power.
He did not care.
He condensed a trace of mana fluctuation at his fingertips and lightly tapped the resonance node for the Kingdom of the Sun.
Watching the node fluctuate constantly without ever stabilizing, he could not help but furrow his flag-shaped eyebrows and rub his chin, his face full of confusion.
"Strange. I just cannot connect. Could it be that a massive storm has occurred over in the Kingdom of the Sun?"
Grannia scratched his head, feeling helpless in the face of this situation.
If he happened to be at the seaside, he might have been able to barely smooth out the mana elements, but he was currently in Brilliant City. At such a distance, no matter how strong he was, he could not interfere.
Just as he was preparing to continue tuning and stabilize the band as much as possible, the red gemstone at the node for Stargaze City suddenly trembled slightly.
"Emergency military report! A Demon Marshal has appeared at the border of Seaview City! The Sun Kingdom's thirty thousand knights have suffered a great defeat, losing over three thousand knights and fifty thousand infantry! Urgent notification for Her Highness!"
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