The meeting in the council lasted long into the next morning.
At the guest headquarters inside the Imperial Palace, Jin had been in one of the rooms since the night before.
...
Only a faint ray of the last sunlight before sunset reached the room.
He withdrew into a corner of the room, pressed against the wall, hidden in the darkness. His knees were pulled to his chest until they touched his chin, his arms embracing them tightly. His head was buried in that narrow void between his knees, curled up in a terrifying silence. He had remained in the same position for long hours.
The meetings, the visit, the characters, the goal of the alliance.
None of it was enough to make him move.
The door opened slowly. Bai Ryun entered quietly, pulled up a chair, and sat in front of the youth.
Even so… the young man did not move; he did not even raise his eyes.
Bai Ryun sat, pity evident in his gaze.
He was thinking: I have reached sixty years of age, I have become a grandfather… and now I come to speak with an extinguished youth.
He looked for a moment, waiting for a movement, an action, a sound. In the end… nothing.
Bai Ryun thought again: No, this is not a young man at all. He is… just a child in the end.
The elder said: "We did not tell you beforehand, but the goal of the visit was because a dimensional gate appeared in the far west."
.........
He continued: "Gates have not appeared on the continent for a long time. Anyway, that gate is classified as SS in the language of Planet Earth."
.........
"And why should that concern me?" The words came from the youth's mouth in an extremely faint voice.
The pity in the elder's eyes increased: "They have requested our help. You must fight as well."
"The Great Guardian alone is enough," he said with an extinguished coldness.
Bai Ryun went silent for moments before speaking: "There is no use in hiding things. I think you have already realized that the Guardian is a Constellation. He will not be able to fight with his full power; causal constraints will prevent him."
...
"The fighters are many."
Bai Ryun: "Involving anyone instead of those with experience will cause many losses. Aren't you the one who hates fake sacrifices?"
The youth interrupted him: "And why would I care about their lives?"
Shock appeared on the elder's features. This was the last response he expected.
He asked: "Will you allow one obstacle to stop you?"
"One?" The youth finally raised his gaze. He lifted his head very slowly!
"Lord Chairman of the Senate, what do you even know about obstacles?"
Bai Ryun said: "If I hadn't seen obstacles, would I be in my position today?"
The youth said coldly: "Political conspiracies, succession struggles, all those things… do you really think those are the true obstacles?"
The elder looked in wonder, and before he could speak, the youth interrupted him, speaking with a sharp tone and an even sharper gaze.
"Lord Elder, have you ever tasted hunger? Were you ever lost in a world that wasn't yours? Have you, have you… it seems you have forgotten something important. You are the son of the Heavenly Demon."
Bai Ryun did not speak. He stared for a long time. His expressions were ordinary; there was no possible expression other than this in such a situation.
He rose quietly, stood before the door, and looked back: "I am not the poetic type, but… I did not know this kind of talk or behavior from you."
"Do not forget, insulting one of the symbols of the Heavenly Demon Sect is an insult to the entire sect. When our role here ends, the Emperor will grant you permission to punish whoever you want… however you wish."
He closed the door behind him, and the youth returned to bury his head between the void of his arms and legs once more.
After a long period, at the beach of Gaimon province in the far west of Tinghai.
Only about fifty meters separated the gate from the city's shore, and behind it, the sea stretched to infinity.
A majestic gate, its diameter exceeding one hundred and twenty meters.
On the shore, there were hordes of monster and soldier corpses everywhere. Monsters were still emerging from the gate; all familiar races and sizes were present.
In the midst of the fray, Yuan emerged from among the piles of monster corpses, clutching his sword, his body drenched in their blood.
He moved backward until he reached the command tent.
He entered. The Tinghai Council and the Sect were inside, led by the Guardian, Araki, and Bai Ryun.
Yuan: "The number of monsters has decreased significantly. Scouts inside the gate expect the next swarm to be after eight hours at the earliest."
Silence fell for a while until Bai Ryun spoke: "What is the status of the rest of the army units?"
Araki: "It is difficult for more soldiers to arrive soon. Most forces are fighting outbreaks across the country, and the rest are performing their security roles."
Someone spoke: "Damn it, the gates stopped a long time ago. Does the Tower think we are Planet Earth now?"
Another spoke: "We will need to fight ourselves a lot. Many will die if we don't intervene soon."
Bai Ryun asked: "Where is the Guardian of the Throne currently?"
All attendees focused; everyone wanted to know his location.
Araki: "He is clearing an A+ rank gate three hundred kilometers from our location… alone."
Voices and discussions increased inside the room. Amidst all this, the Great Guardian was clasping his hands and resting his chin upon them, lost in thought in a strange scene. He did not speak at all.
Oshiro asked: "Why don't you fight yourself, Great Guardian?"
The Guardian looked, but he did not speak. Bai Ryun replied: "The Guardian will only fight upon the appearance of the Gate Boss or the beginning of our fall."
Voices flared up asking for the reason. Araki interrupted them with a sharp voice.
"If the Guardian intervenes now, it will only be a short time before he won't even have the strength to move."
Someone asked: "What is the meaning of this?"
The Guardian spoke in a sharp tone that sparked tension among the attendees: "There are things you are not authorized to know. It is better that you remain silent on this matter."
A long silence followed. Everyone knew that a threat from the Guardian was not something that could be ignored at all.
Hirano asked: "So… where is that 'Miracle'? Has cowardice struck him after he spoke out in the council?"
A terrifying silence fell among the attendees. Many looked at the head of the Hirano family in clear wonder, while Araki and Bai Ryun glanced at him with a gaze that reflected their feeling of his stupidity.
Bai Ryun: "I hope you keep those same words until the end… I cannot guarantee what will happen later."
...…
About two days before that time, in one of the areas of the forty-fourth floor of the Tower.
The floor was vast; the discovered area of it so far had reached nearly seven hundred and twenty thousand square kilometers. Its environment was green, between rainforests and hills. But in that specific area, there was a massive mountain, and at the foot of the mountain was the command tent of the European Hunters Union.
At one of the high points, two people were watching quietly, without anyone noticing them.
They were… Marco and Helena!
Marco: "Sister, why have we come to watch these hunters?"
Helena replied coldly: "Because they are idiots, and this floor is somewhat dangerous."
Marco narrowed his eyes slightly and scratched his chin, asking stupidly: "Why?"
Helena sighed in annoyance: "Don't worry about it, you'll know later."
A masked girl appeared behind Marco and placed her hand on his shoulder: "Hello!"
Marco jumped: "What is this? Why are you doing this?"
The girl laughed a little: "Ah, this is always fun."
Only her hair and eyes were visible. Her hair was a shiny black, and her eyes were a very dark blue. She was somewhat short, perhaps one hundred and seventy centimeters. The scarf was wrapped tightly over her face, her clothes were black, and two daggers were hung at the small of her back. This was the appearance of a master assassin.
Helena spoke: "What did you see?"
The girl: "Hmm, forget about this large number of hunters. In the command tent, there are six hunters between S and SS rank, and one of the National Level hunters is there."
Helena went silent for a moment as she looked at the hunters who were nearly a full kilometer away from them.
Helena: "Alright, that's enough. Let's leave now."