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Cecilia used Angel City's teleportation array and returned to Havenloch with her mind in disarray. Even when the teleportation array supervisor checked her identity, she remained sluggish, like an unconscious puppet.
Only after returning to the Full Moon Chamber of Commerce and seeing her father Kevin did she snap back to awareness.
"Father, war is coming!"
"War?" Kevin had been about to ask why she'd returned from the 'Aetherium Kingdom' so soon, but now he was stunned, "What war?"
"Come with me to the office!"
After entering, Cecilia told everything about her meeting with Haru and his warning to evacuate, which horrified Kevin as well. Though his statement was simple, both father and daughter understood it.
Although their chamber of commerce maintained trade with Haru's forces, fundamentally they were in 'hostile' relations. Not that the Chamber was Haru's enemy, as they didn't have that qualification. Haru's enemy was the Light Empire. A 'war' meant that Haru was about to attack the Light Empire, with Havenloch as the first target.
Kevin sucked in air, "Cecilia, this is no joke!"
"Father, I'm not joking! These are His Majesty's exact words. He warned us to withdraw from Havenloch, or even leave the Light Empire entirely."
Kevin said in disbelief, "Why so soon? Is that king confident enough to fight the empire's army now?"
"He should be. The Castle Lords develop extremely quickly, especially His Majesty's territory." Cecilia paused, "Father, you can't imagine, in less than a week, his strength has surpassed an early-stage Intermediate God! I presume he may even have become a High God!"
"Impossible!" Kevin exclaimed.
"It's true, Father! The Divine Power I sensed in him was many times stronger than the Imperial College's Dean!"
Kevin slumped back in his chair, his expression sullen, eyes full of envy. He'd been cultivating for hundreds of years and was only a Demigod. That king, a child not even twenty-five years old, had been in the Endless Continent for just over a month, and yet he became a High God! This speed was so shocking that he couldn't speak. He even had an urge to join a Castle Lord himself.
…
After a long silence, Kevin asked, "Cecilia, you're my smartest daughter. Do you think that king can defeat our Light Empire?"
"It's probably impossible!" In Cecilia's view, the Light Empire—one of the most powerful empires in the central region with tens of thousands of years of inheritance, a terrifying army, and most importantly, numerous gods. It should be something that couldn't be defeated by a newly rising Castle Lord.
"But even if they can't defeat the Light Empire, capturing Havenloch should be no problem. This city will surely fall."
"Makes sense." Kevin nodded, "What should we do?"
"According to His Majesty's advice, we should evacuate Havenloch as quickly as possible and head to the Imperial Capital. If they prove to be strong enough to defeat our empire's army, we continue retreating until we're far from the Light Empire!"
In a war between those two behemoths, small chambers of commerce were powerless. The only way for them to survive was to escape.
"Don't you think we should report this to the Empire?" Kevin asked, "If they send a large army to defend Havenloch, we won't have to evacuate. You know what evacuation means right? We'll lose great fortune!"
"Father, since His Majesty told us this news, it shows he's confident at capturing Havenloch and doesn't care if we reveal his intentions. Moreover, the army in Havenloch has been frequently mobilized recently with many unfamiliar faces appearing. This shows that the empire's leaders already foresee a war coming. So reporting doesn't matter."
Cecilia continued, "Most importantly, if we report this news, how do we explain our source to the empire's leadership? Could we perhaps reveal that we were trading partners with them?"
"You're right, we can't report it!" Kevin agreed. Once the empire's officials discovered those transactions, taking a layer of their skin would be lenient.
"Father, don't hesitate. Prepare for evacuation immediately. Liquidate the Chamber's assets by selling all of our real estate here."
"Understood." Kevin nodded. As an old businessman who had established the Full Moon Chamber of Commerce and led it to its current prosperous state, he naturally knew how to weigh pros and cons.
He sent men out to gather news and after summarizing everything, he reached a conclusion: war was truly coming! Not only had the Great Aetherium prepared, but even the Light Empire was also urgently preparing for war.
"We will immediately withdraw!" Kevin immediately called the Chamber's leadership and started a massive asset sale to liquidate funds and leave this dangerous place.
Cecilia packed her things. When alone, she sometimes whispered to herself, "I wonder if I'll have a chance to see His Majesty again in the future. Hopefully, there will be such a day!"
She admired Haru greatly and to be fair, it was not that difficult to understand as the so-called 'noble' Young Masters of the Light Empire weren't even 0.0001 percent as talented as Haru, who was already a High God at such a young age!
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