The most troublesome place in the El Dorado Continent at the moment was those who supported the Free City Alliance.
Beneath the lush canopy of the Grand Garden, the Semi-circular Assembly Hall was seething with anger and frustration.
About fifty councilors raised their voices, creating a clamor.
In the center, the symbol of the Free City Alliance, a winged scale, was emblazoned on the flag, and the emblems representing each city shone around it.
Free City Alliance.
Mayor Atilane of the Alliance sighed, pressing his temples.
Frost appeared on his Black Hair in patches, and the weight of the past ten years of pressure was heavily laid upon his straight back.
“Why hasn’t the White Church contacted us yet!”
Vice Mayor Reinel Hazel slammed his fist on the table and shouted.
His red face was contorted with anger, and his thick fingers nervously moved on the table.
Everyone reacted sensitively because it was right before the White Church classified the Free City Alliance as ‘heretics’.
If they were branded as heretics, all trade routes on the continent would be blocked, and all allied nations would inevitably turn their backs.
“Their prolonged silence is by no means a good sign,” said Councilor Caleb, fiddling with his sword.
His face, which had once been a soldier, bore deep scars.
“They have already passed judgment on us. They are just deciding on the sentence now.”
Everyone responded to Caleb’s words with heavy silence, knowing he was telling the truth.
The reason the White Church accused the Free City Alliance was simple.
The Eclipse, an organization of Warlocks, had appeared in the Free City Alliance in the past.
There was even an incident where Paladins dispatched by the Church were brutally murdered by the Warlocks.
The White Church identified not only the Eclipse but also the Free City Alliance as the masterminds of this incident.
The justification was that they supported the Warlocks.
“That’s all fabricated!”
One councilor stood up and shouted.
The Free City Alliance was not involved with nor did they support Warlocks.
Of course, the incident was fabricated by Celia and the group of Warlocks under her, the Eclipse, or rather, the newly reborn ‘Twilight Church.’ However, others had no way of knowing that.
The councilors of the Free City Alliance intuitively felt that this was someone’s scheme, but they were frustrated because they couldn’t find any evidence.
“If they declare us heretics…”
Mayor Atilane continued.
“A lot of blood will be shed.”
The White Church was moving to designate the Free City Alliance as a country that advocated for Warlocks, and the councilors of the Free City Alliance opposed it.
Because they were truly wronged.
It was the first alliance on the continent where citizens, not kings, directly elected their leaders.
For a long time, they had protected freedom of religion and freedom of expression. But now, the value of all those freedoms was on the verge of collapse with just one word: ‘heretic.’
However, with even Paladins dead, no one was willing to listen to the Free City Alliance.
Other countries on the continent also began to quietly distance themselves, watching the Church’s reaction.
“Is there no good plan for what we should do?”
Mayor Atilane looked out the window.
Coincidentally, raindrops began to fall outside, tapping and bouncing off the window.
“……”
Citizens still passed by peacefully on the street.
They did not yet know that their world was on the verge of collapse.
Naturally, the councilors were not doing nothing either.
The Alliance, in an effort to assert their innocence, opened their borders and brought in Paladins from the White Church, but the situation did not progress.
It was natural.
The Eclipse, which was in the Free City Alliance, had moved to the Sail Kingdom under the new name Twilight Church.
That’s why no matter how much the Alliance searched, they couldn’t find any evidence related to Warlocks.
Therefore, the councilors of the Alliance and the leadership of the White Church were forced into a battle of wits.
“I don’t know the reason either,”
An elderly councilor said with a tired voice. His beard had turned white, and deep wrinkles were etched around his eyes.
“There is no evidence that we hid cruel Warlocks… Tsk.”
Mayor Atilane slowly stood up and looked around at the councilors.
“I’ve heard that the Sail Kingdom is preparing for war as the Church’s proxy.”
“……”
Everyone fell silent at the Mayor’s words.
The situation was more serious than they had thought.
What is the Sail Kingdom?
Is not Queen Irena, who rules it, praised as a new Saintess?
Moreover, the Sail Kingdom and the Free City Alliance are adjacent.
In this situation, whose word would the White Church listen to?
The Sail Kingdom, with a Queen hailed as a new Saintess?
Or the Free City Alliance, suspected of supporting and advocating for Warlocks?
It was an obvious choice without having to think.
“What should we do in this situation?”
It was natural for the Mayor to say so.
Furthermore, there were rumors that even holy Crusaders were being organized for this war.
If all of this were to happen, the Free City Alliance would collapse.
“Rather than that, let’s entrust full authority to the Sail Kingdom and defend our innocence-”
“Are you going to give up so easily, Mr. Mayor! We must prepare our army at once! We must expel all the Paladins who are in our country and respond as well!”
Councilor Caleb, the head of national defense, said, gripping his sword. He disagreed with Mayor Atilane’s opinion.
To surrender the nation meekly?
That was equivalent to suppressing their own freedom.
However, the thoughts of other councilors seemed to be different.
“Then, Councilor Caleb, do you want innocent citizens to shed blood?”
Most councilors agreed with the Mayor’s statement.
Let’s escape the immediate crisis by handing over sovereignty.
However, they did not intend to hand over sovereignty forever.
As long as they could escape the current crisis.
If they responded as Councilor Caleb suggested, the situation would escalate immeasurably.
If that happened, it could even lead to the dispatch of Inquisitors.
“I will acknowledge it as such and send a notification to the Sail Kingdom. And I will make this fact public to the citizens.”
The Mayor had no intention of handing over sovereignty in a completely intact manner.
With his declaration, the councilors began to move busily.
***
The will of the Free City Alliance headed to the Sail Kingdom, and soon the news reached Celia.
Celia slowly read Queen Irena’s letter, brought by a Shadow.
As her pale fingers swept over the letters, a cold smile appeared on her lips.
“As expected, they are good at scheming,”
Celia said. Her voice was sweet, but venom was hidden beneath it.
The letter politely stated that the Free City Alliance was temporarily handing over its sovereignty to the Sail Kingdom to resolve the issue with the White Church.
It seemed like a perfect political reconciliation.
“Are they going to come out like this?”
Celia chuckled, lifting the letter slightly.
Handing over sovereignty.
Celia perfectly understood the meaning of this phrase.
If sovereignty was handed over, the Sail Kingdom would naturally have to thoroughly search the Free City Alliance for evidence of Warlocks.
The goal was to prove their innocence to the White Church.
However, Celia, who knew there was no evidence, had no intention of fulfilling their request.
Furthermore, if this were approved, another problem would arise.
The citizens of the Free City Alliance would not simply stand by.
They would undoubtedly spread discontent, claiming that the Sail Kingdom was infringing on their freedom.
That could become an obstacle to swallowing the Free City Alliance in the future.
She sat gracefully, resting her chin, lost in thought for a moment.
She naturally had no intention of refusing their request. However, Celia never refused outright.
Everything had to be within her calculations.
“Tell Queen Irena,”
Celia said to the Shadow.
“To accept their demand.”
She had a plan.
“At the same time, inform our ‘Adventurers’ dispatched to the Free City Alliance.”
Adventurers dispatched to the Free City Alliance.
To be precise, they were Banshees possessing Adventurers.
They were already scattered throughout the continent.
Some of them had settled in various cities of the Free City Alliance, living like ordinary Adventurers, awaiting only Celia’s command.
“I intend to offer the Free City Alliance to Master.”
Celia whispered. Her voice mingled loyalty and desire.
“It will be offered as a sacrificial offering of blood.”
She whispered as if in prayer.
“Everything is according to Master’s will.”
***
At dawn, the capital of the Free City Alliance, Libertas, was filled with tension.
The streets were busy early in the morning with the news of the arrival of an envoy from the Sail Kingdom.
The roadside, decorated with flags and garlands, was under strict guard, and citizens lined the streets.
Duke Eamond.
Duke Eamond, a noble of the Sail Kingdom, gazed out the window of his luxurious carriage indifferently.
His sharp eyes and neat beard exuded the dignity of a high-ranking noble.
Duke Eamond’s move was for one reason only.
“The streets of Libertas are more splendid than I thought. It’s even more interesting because it’s land that will soon be my territory.”
It was because of Queen Irena’s promise.
She had promised to hand over full authority of the Free City Alliance to Duke Eamond.
“Her Majesty has made a wise decision. Such a chaotic land needs a strong hand. I will prove that I am the right person for it.”
As the Duke’s power grew, the royal authority was bound to weaken.
That was the natural order.
The fact that this land was entrusted to him was probably because she didn’t have the confidence to rule it.
Duke Eamond chuckled lightly.
Although Queen Irena was the ruler of the Sail Kingdom, it seemed that he might be able to replace her if things went well.
There was only minimal security around the carriage he rode in.
The reason for not bringing an army was to show that this visit was for peacefully resolving the issue, but it was, of course, just a deception.
Rumors had already spread among the citizens that the Sail Kingdom intended to annex the Free City Alliance.
Thousands of citizens gathered on the main street leading to the Grand Garden.
The guards barely controlled the crowd, but the expressions of the crowd were twisted with anger and anxiety.
“Traitors, go back!”
“Defend our freedom!”
Shouts erupted from the crowd.
Duke Eamond simply responded with a smile.
This was also part of the plan devised by the Mayor and councilors.
To hand over sovereignty to the Sail Kingdom and simultaneously make them perceived as enemies.
Up to this point, the atmosphere was good.
But that was the moment.
Suddenly, an Adventurer emerged from the crowd. There was madness in his eyes, and he held a small crossbow in his hand.
Before the guards could react, the man aimed the crossbow at Duke Eamond.
“Long live the Free City Alliance! A blow to the invaders! Death to the guilty!”
An arrow split the air.
Duke Eamond’s eyes widened. He instinctively turned his body, but the arrow pierced his neck precisely.
Blood stained his formal attire.
“My Lord!”
A cry from his attendant echoed.
Eamond staggered a few steps, blood flowing from his mouth.
“Gak…”
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but he could only gasp in pain.
Finally, he collapsed to the ground.
Upon seeing the Duke fall, the Adventurer then pulled out a dagger and aimed it at his own neck.
“All of this is for Master…”
*Thwack-*
With the Adventurer’s whisper, he plunged the dagger into his neck.
Chaos had begun.
The Duke’s body was covered with a white cloth shortly after.
However, in just a few seconds, the peace of the continent was shattered.
Just then, the clock tower of Libertas began to chime.
The sound seemed to announce the prelude to war.
