Turning Chapter 1105

Chapter 1105

"My lord! We just received news that similar anomalous cracks to those that appeared on our side have appeared and disappeared in some other regions of the empire as well!"

The atmosphere changed instantly.

"What do you mean? Are you certain it's talking about other regions, not the North?"

"Yes. The Peletta Knights and informants dispatched to other regions sent magical tool signals for crack occurrence almost simultaneously. Since it's urgent news, no more detailed information has come in yet! The steward is currently continuing to receive updates."

The gentle aura completely drained from Kishiar's face. He broke free from Yuder's supporting hand and nodded with a face befitting the Duke of Peletta.

“I need to speak with Enk. Lead the way.”

"Yes!"

Yuder followed Kishiar, inwardly letting out a long sigh.

'There's not even time to catch our breath.'

Of course, he himself was fine, but Kishiar wasn't. It was quite concerning that Kishiar had to keep moving without even having his condition checked.

‘But the fact that cracks appeared in other regions... Could it really be true?’

The place where the soldier who delivered the news guided them was near the top of Peletta's outer castle. Yuder thought he had explored most of this castle, but this place was new to him.

It was a space for carrier pigeons. Countless long perches were hung in an open space without windows, and birds of various patterns and sizes repeatedly flew in and out through the empty window holes. They found Enk at the end after crossing through birds resting or eating food on the perches.

She was standing in front of a desk piled with mountains of letters. While the enormous pile of letters that almost hid the person was indeed impressive, Yuder's gaze was drawn more to the incredibly numerous magic stone beads displayed behind it.

'...I had already heard that Peletta exchanges communications with numerous regions using magical tools, but this is truly amazing.'

Emergency communication magical tools that emit light of a specific color when receiving a signal. Despite their simple function, they were extremely expensive, usually with only one equipped per territory, but here they were scattered like grains of sand. It was a sight that would make even the Imperial Army Central Management Department, known to have the first and largest such communication system in the empire, weep.

Perhaps it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call this place the most important stronghold and the very heart of the power that Kishiar had built in Peletta.

"Enk."

"Ah, my lord. You've come."

Enk, who had been reading while piling up mountains of letters, jumped up from her seat. Her face also looked much more tired than usual.

"I heard news that anomalous cracks occurred in other regions, and I'd like to hear what happened."

"Those whom you ordered to be dispatched recently sent signals for crack occurrence, my lord. According to a letter that just flew in from the nearest northwest area, a strange black crack suddenly appeared near the city without warning and then disappeared again without spewing out anything."

Kishiar turned his eyes towards Yuder. Yuder could tell without any exchange of words that he was thinking the same thing as himself.

'Is the sudden anomalous crack phenomenon that occurred in the North affecting other regions as well, or was there some other cause?'

"Did they say there was no damage?"

Enk answered Kishiar's question carefully.

"There was no mention of damage in the letter."

"It's highly likely they didn't write anything since the cracks merely appeared and disappeared as stated, but we should probably make sure to find out for certain."

At that moment, a new carrier pigeon flew in through the hole and landed in front of Enk.

"Excuse me for a moment."

Enk opened the tube tied to the pigeon's leg, took out a small letter, and read it very quickly.

"...This letter that just arrived also contains the story that black cracks were sighted and disappeared in several places in the East. There's no mention of damage here either. I think all the other news will probably say the same thing."

It was as Enk predicted. New letters that arrived over the next few hours also contained exactly the same words. Kishiar lined up the arrived letters side by side, stared at them, and gave an order.

"It's good that they reported quickly, but the information needed for assessment is still lacking. I feel the need to investigate further whether there really was no damage, and what the circumstances were before and after the discovered cracks, so please instruct them to look into those matters."

"Understood."

However, before Enk could write a new letter to carry out the order, they suddenly became able to know the answer they had hoped for.

"My lord. A great many letters addressed to the Commander have suddenly arrived at the Cavalry's Northern Branch. It seems you should check them directly."

It was news sent by Cavalry members who had gone to various places on their reward vacation. Yuder picked up one envelope that was first at hand from the pile of letters brought by the Northern Branch members and opened it. That letter, written by Gakane Bolunwald who had gone to the South to meet his family, contained a code used in the Cavalry, written in a handwriting unlike his usual self, as if scrawled in haste.

- I heard news that a black crack appeared and disappeared in a place called Matakam near Ulan. I went to see for myself, but it had already disappeared by then. At first I thought people might have been mistaken because there was no damage, but after listening to the witnesses' stories, I judged that it was very similar to 'that' which we saw in the South. So I am urgently sending a letter to inform the Commander...

Even in his hurry, Gakane had written in detail the location where the crack occurred, the number of witnesses, the size of the crack they testified to, and even the time of its disappearance. It was truly a collection of the information they needed.

And it was almost the same for the other Cavalry members who sent letters.

Some encountered news related to anomalous cracks in their hometowns or places where they were resting, or as soon as they witnessed it, they hurriedly investigated and wrote the results in letters. When he saw even young Jimmy's name among them, he was simply speechless.

'It's not strange that the knights dispatched from Peletta sent news quickly as soon as the incident occurred, since Kishiar had sent them to detect any anomalous phenomena that might occur elsewhere as quickly as possible. But these guys weren't like that, yet they sent news this quickly?...'

The end of all the letters was the same.

'- I will continue to investigate further, so please give your orders, Commander. I will move immediately upon confirmation.'

Yuder felt an emotion that was difficult to put into words. It was ridiculous, admirable, and on the other hand... strangely overwhelming.

Yes. Strangely overwhelming.

Even though they had gone on vacation, they didn't forget that they were part of the Cavalry. No one turned their eyes away from what they had to do, nor tried to run away because it was troublesome or scary.

It was unbelievable that they all acted exactly the same way as if they had planned it, even though they hadn't made a promise before leaving or been ordered by anyone.

'I never taught them this.'

"Hmm... I'll have to cancel the order I gave to Enk."

Kishiar, who had checked the Cavalry members' letters alongside Yuder, muttered while letting out a laugh that sounded like a sigh. Yuder nodded slightly.

"It's fortunate that thanks to these guys, we don't need to move immediately."

"Yes. It feels like unexpected reinforcements have appeared. I was thinking it would be difficult to move the Cavalry... but because they were all scattered on vacation, we actually have more cards to play in this situation."

A playful warmth returned to Kishiar's eyes.

"The situation is quite interesting."

According to the news sent by the Cavalry members, the places where anomalous cracks were discovered were truly diverse. They spanned east, west, south, and north, and the locations included cities, countryside, mountains, and seas.

And there was a common point that all cracks disappeared without spewing out monsters.

"I'm sorry to trouble those on vacation, but for now, I should tell them to stand by in their current regions, continue collecting news related to anomalous cracks, and respond. If any changes occur, prepare so that we can receive it immediately through the fastest news delivery route of each branch."

"Yes."

"With an incident this widespread, His Majesty the Emperor might withdraw his previous words and send me news... I wonder how that part will be."