"So they were all called to the sky tower? How nice."
Swoosh!
A red ring was tossed across the room and landed on a certain antler sprouting deer girl's head.
Petra yawned.
She turned to Mell and asked, "Do you know why?"
Mell shook her head.
"It's not time for the main competition to begin, so it's likely just for some preparations."
Petra frowned, not quite feeling it.
"Why can't it be about the second calamity! They don't need to hold back the announcement for those at the top, right?"
The question was asked by Rose, or at least, the new Rose. Unlike before, where she still had a slightly androgynous face, Rose now had the most feminine face out of all the maids. It was so beautiful that it almost looked uncanny.
Of course, her face was also in a constant state of shame.
"Also! Brat! Stop tormenting the maids! Her antlers aren't for playing hoops!" Rose stomped over, her high-pitched voice surprisingly cute, and snatched the remaining rings away from Petra.
The deer maid just shook her head. "I don't mind…"
"You should!"
"Mm!"
Ring!
The front door was pushed open.
"Hm? Customer!"
Petra ignored the two and trotted over to the front desk.
A mouse-kin slowly entered the store, pamphlet in hand. He wore the outfit of a mercenary and looked very timid.
Petra poked her head out from behind the counter and called him over.
"Hi hi, little guy! What can I help you with?"
'Little guy?'
Mousa looked at the little head that was jumping up and down from behind the counter.
He walked over, slightly more relaxed.
"Little Miss,I- I came here for this, can you help me?" He pointed at the pamphlet that Petra had quickly written.
Petra pulled herself up and took a look. She had already forgotten what she wrote, so she had to remind herself.
"Ah, yes, ok!"
It was an offer to diagnose high level poisons.
Petra snatched the pamphlet and asked, "Who do you want treated?"
"Mm, I think, it was me…"
Petra looked at him with a weird gaze. She could tell from a glance that he was poisoned, but he shouldn't be able to tell.
Petra tried to imagine the situation.
Insert flashback noises~
She envisioned the poor mouse boy being pressed down by a leather bound bride and told something like 'if he did not submit', he would suffer and 'crawl his way back'.
End flashback noises~
Although not quite to that extreme, Petra was unfortunately on the right track.
Mousa had found himself an unlucky stalker.
To make things worse, she was a Tower Pillar. (Tower Elder)
Petra had Rose take him to the back for treatment. She felt that they were fellow sufferers, and she didn't want to touch the aphrodisiac that was secretly nailed in his body.
* * *
In another place, Rotell had been picked up by the tower's envoy and was driven to the Sky Tower.
Like the other leaders, she had been summoned for a meeting.
The carriage stopped at the base of the tower. When Rotell stepped out with her two guards, she couldn't help but look up in awe.
The Sky Tower stretched into the heavens like a single pillar that split the void apart. It reached endlessly upwards, so high that the top seemed to disappear into an even higher mist.
It was an unmovable monument that no one in the empire could ever replicate.
Rotell lowered her gaze and walked forward.
Two mages in white robes waited ahead. They bowed slightly, then turned and guided her inside.
After entering, she was led through the endless interior of the Sky Tower. Each floor was its own world. The first was a small city, alive with merchants and floating ships that belonged solely to the tower mages. The second was a vast academy filled with chanting apprentices. The third was a garden and a workshop that stretched under a false sun. The fourth, an endless library that reached far beyond one's line of sight. The fifth was an artificial sea filled with drifting pavilions.
The sixth was empty.
The seventh forbidden.
The eighth was another city, suspended in false clouds.
And the ninth…
The ninth floor was the Heavenly Hall.
Rotell stood before a towering golden gate that almost radiated spiritual light in a heart palpitating aura that could force one to their knees.
Beyond it, gathered in a great circle, were the faces of the continent's highest powers. She saw some she recognized, like Hexfill or the Tibon Family, the Heavens Chosen, and several great city lords, but others were strangers as well. Among them stood angels cloaked in scales of light, and a white-haired old man whose presence felt so plain that it was eerie.
After everyone entered, the golden doors closed.
The grand conference began.
* * *
Bang!
"What do you mean the second calamity will definitely be in the west!? Haven't we suffered enough?!" Hexfill roared, slamming his fist on the table.
"Lower your voice, White Wolf. You are not your father, and we will not tolerate such behavior," one of the Tower Pillars replied sharply from the head of the circular table.
The three Tower Pillars at the first seat were Sebastian and the twins, Coin and Nioc.
Sebastian sat cold and detached, while the twins half-white, half-blond hair caught the light, one draped in gold, the other in white. Despite their youth, they both hid an enormously powerful aura beneath their young facades.
"How can I stay calm!? Do you know what we endured? The western region barely survived the first calamity! Less than thirty percent remains already!" Hexfill's voice cracked with fury.
"Hexfill, calm yourself," the representative from the Black Tower said smoothly.
"Since you claim to know where it will strike…" Hexfill started.
"I'm afraid not. Two possibilities remain, the Capital of Oriest, or the Black Forest. It's too large to predict," another Tower Pillar interjected.
"Damn it!" Hexfill slammed the table again. Bang!
* * *
"The proposal for the United Army is approved. Who will lead?" Sebastian asked, his voice cold and precise.
"I will lead the United Army," called a representative from the Adventurers Guild.
"Absolutely not! Your guild cannot be trusted!" hissed Villina.
"What do you mean by that?" the man demanded.
"If you took this seriously, you would have brought your main forces to the Cross continent already!" Villina snapped.
"We are preparing for the later calamities. You need not worry, because unlike you, we have already prepared countermeasures that exceed the scope of any mere continent!" the guild representative replied with arrogance.
The room erupted into a heated discussion about the commander position.
* * *
"I worry about the seventh calamity. This has to do with the Church, no?" Rolilly spoke suddenly from the side.
Her calm expression was hit by a wave of bloodlust.
"The Divine Calamity may indeed be connected to the Church," one of the priests responded, "but it may also involve the other gods, we can't know for sure."
A male angel beside her added, "Tread carefully, human. We are aware of this."
Rolilly rolled her eyes, unimpressed.
* * *
"What has Pofellia said about the sixth calamity?" Hitrit asked, standing behind the Black Tower representatives.
"The 'cursed' could refer to many things," a woman from Solarin Castle replied. "As for the 'Living Forest,' it is undoubtedly the Green Wind Forest."
A wave of discussion followed.
* * *
"What of the Immortal sects? Have they been contacted? Will they emerge from isolation?"
"No. Almost all of them refused our offers, saying only 'when the time is right.'"
Bang!
"Useless people!" Hexfill bellowed.
He knew nothing of there might
* * *
"Are any foreign powers preparing to assist in the Sea Calamity?" Rotell asked, her voice crisp and sharp.
Rolilly sneered. "There are a few, good sister, just look!"
A man in the back stood up. He wore a white naval uniform with an unknown crest on his shoulder.
"I represent the Blue Sea Shipbuilders. Alongside the Magic Association, we are preparing to assist with the third calamity. I have also learned that the Dragon Clan and the Telltera have sent teams."
There was a flicker of reaction from the angels at the mention of the Telltera, but the loudest response came from Kilemin.
"The Dragon Clan!? Since when are they helpful?" Kilemin barked.
The room fell silent, stunned.
Kilemin sneered. "Those lizards move only for greed or revenge. Don't think for a moment that they're here to play heroes."
Mumbles filled the room.
Arthur adjusted his goggles and spoke.
"I heard a rumor from a passing sailor that the Dragon Clan is searching for the missing princess. I investigated further. While I couldn't find her exact location, I discovered something unusual. The Dragons, the Witches, the Demons, and the Hero's Family all began searching for something at the same time. I believe this person connects these four forces."
"Impossible!" scoffed the eastern representative, yet the room fell into an eerie silence.
Even he could feel the weight of the unspoken realization.
Could the Hero, Demon, Dragon, and Witches truly be connected?
Impossible!
* * *
"Then it is decided. Those willing from the northern and eastern regions will be brought to the south," Sebastian declared.
"We of the Royal Tower are willing to unseal some restricted technology to prepare for the third calamity," another Towers representative added.
* * *
Sebastian shifted the topic. "Next, the two remaining heroes."
"The Storm Tower has confirmed that these two are together," he continued, scanning the room.
The room grew quiet.
"I think you are familiar with the situation," he said slowly. "Dorothy Quella and Petra have refused their obligations and chosen to flee. Putting the questions about Petra's identity aside, the fact that she took one of the heroes is undeniable."
Sebastian leaned back. "This is a crime that cannot be underestimated."
He turned his gaze to Elena. "First, your opinion. After all, she is your sister." His eyes were cold, calculating.
Elena pursed her lips.
She could feel all eyes turn to her. She had wanted to help Petra, but now that Petra had taken Dorothy… This one could cause trouble, and she knew it.
'I don't know the full situation,' Elena thought. 'But I don't believe my sister has the power to abduct an unwilling Heaven's Chosen.'
Sebastian's gaze sharpened. "Do you wish to protect her?"
Elena remained silent.
"I'll take your silence as a quiet acquiescence," Sebastian said.
"No… let me speak with my sister first. I'll see what I can do," she replied finally.
Sebastian's eyes glinted. "You have until the third calamity. If you cannot bring both Dorothy and Petra to the Sky Tower by then, I will be forced to act myself."
Elena nodded reluctantly.
She had no time to worry about Petra. In her heart, she knew Petra would find a way.
* * *
"The Sea Clan will undoubtedly be involved in the third calamity. We sent negotiators, but they were hostile upon our approach," another representative stated.
"Could it be related to Dorothy?"
"It's possible, she is the Sea God's chosen, after all."
* * *
"Do we know why the High Elves appeared in the first calamity? Were they involved?"
"We can only confirm the first calamity used a High Elf as the core of the Ice Titan," another replied.
"That elf met the same description of a powerful figure in the Elfefalein Empire. Can he really be killed so easily?"
"It is unknown. His death was personally reported by Arthur, so he should be dead," came an answer.
"Will the rest of the calamities also use High Elves?"
"We suspect not."
* * *
"Adjourned!"
The meeting ended, and the leaders dispersed.
-
High above, in a room beyond the ninth floor, an old man in a pure white robe stood before a window, observing the departing leaders.
Behind him, the female angel watched silently.
He asked, "Are the preparations ready?"
"Are you sure? The Heavens Chosen are not weak." the angel warned.
"No matter, we must continue. Two have already disappeared, and we will not be the only one who's anxious."
"As long as you understand, I will help if I can," the angel replied.
The man continued without turning. "What about Celeste's injuries? Can you heal her?"
"No."
"No?"
"You said this was the work of the witch?"
"Yes. I suspect the child of Calamity and Destruction."
"Mm, I've examined her personally. The problem is that it isn't killing her, it's almost feeding off her."
"Ho? You mean…?"
"Are you certain this is a witch's doing? This is closer to an all-out attack from a Chaos God."
"Hmm…"
"I've already taken her to the church."
"Mm?"
For the first time, the old man turned slowly. His dagger-like gaze pierced the angel like a knife.
She, a fifth-order existence, flinched, then chuckled. "Heh, they were right. Whatever laws your building, it will be terrifying when you become an Arcanist," she muttered.
The master of the Sky Tower narrowed his eyes. "You've taken Celeste away? I don't recall allowing that…!"
-
The conference ended in a sea of frustration.