Jenkins had an important reception to attend that evening, so he couldn't spend the whole night studying the black tower beneath the city square. The vision he'd seen with his Eye of Reality made him extrely wary of it. He didn't know what the black tower was, but he was certain it was connected to the Difference Engine.
Since he didn't know the exact size or appearance of the ancient intelligent machine, Jenkins couldn't guess the connection between the tower and the Difference Engine, nor its specific function.
But regardless, it shouldn't be allowed to remain on the surface. So, after getting a general understanding of the situation from Miss Bevanna, Jenkins proposed destroying the parts of the black tower that were above ground and just below the surface.
It was a rather reckless suggestion. For such a massive object of unknown size and function, destroying a part of it might not only be useless but could also trigger unforeseen chain reactions.
But since Jenkins was the one who proposed it, Miss Bevanna still reported it to the Church and discussed the feasibility of the idea with the other demigods present.
Few supported Jenkins's idea. Moreover, according to the Church of Creation and Machinery, the black tower was composed of a pure, high-strength tal of unknown composition. Currently, even normal thods couldn't leave a scratch on its surface.
The suggestion to destroy the black tower was temporarily shelved, but the investigation into it couldn't be halted. After completing the preliminary survey and confirming there were no discoveries about the tower itself, they had Miss Audrey of the Church of Destiny and Equilibrium perform a simple divination.
Fearing it might be a special Cursed Item that didn't affect its external environnt, Miss Audrey didn't divine the outco directly. Instead, she used an ancient hydromancy ritual to try and trace its origin. But the results of the divination were equally unsatisfactory. The black tower's past seed to be shrouded in a gray mist. Miss Audrey could perform the divination, but she couldn't discern what the results actually ant.
At this point, aside from clearing away the rubble of the original clock tower, the Church had done almost everything it could. The Church of the Sage searched its records but found no ntion of a similar tower. The investigation could thus be considered a complete failure.
"So we're planning to go inside and check things out."
As evening approached, Jenkins learned of the next step in their plan from Miss Bevanna.
"That's too risky."
Jenkins was naturally against it.
"But we're out of options right now, and we can't just let this tower stand here. Besides..."
Miss Bevanna lowered her voice.
"You know as well as I do, according to the Church of Destiny, the sealed object the Gearsmiths' Guild is looking for underground is likely related to the end-of-epoch cataclysm. We have to find out if this tower is connected to it. This concerns the future of the material world. Isn't that why the main combat forces of the Twelve Orthodox Churches have gathered in Nolan?"
Miss Bevanna had a point, but Jenkins still felt it was too great a risk. He knew he wouldn't be allowed to join the exploration team, so he decided to wait there for them to depart and return.
But both Miss Bevanna and Mr. Gilbert strongly advised Jenkins to attend Queen Isabella's reception.
"There's no point in you waiting here. And even if sothing did happen, what difference could one more person make?"
By now, over a hundred Enchanters had gathered around the city square at the base of the tower. To prevent any accidents, the Church had even decided to permanently blockade the street and the square for as long as the black tower remained.
More than ten demigods had assembled, and Jenkins wasn't the only Saint present. Therefore, on the surface, there was indeed little point in Jenkins staying.
"The exploration of that tower isn't sothing that will be over in a few dozen minutes. Look how tall it is—just walking through the above-ground portion and back would probably take an hour. Go on now. If we really need you, we'll send soone to find you."
Miss Bevanna urged him again. Seeing the situation, Jenkins had no choice but to agree to leave for the ti being.
It was getting late. He borrowed a carriage from the Church to first go ho and pick up the young ladies—his companions for the evening. But as the carriage pulled away from the street, Jenkins glanced back through the window at the silhouette of the black tower in the thick fog, a sense of unease about what was to co still lingering.
Jenkins spent the entire evening worrying about the black tower. At the reception, he rely stood with Hathaway and Briny, a glass of pear water in hand, speaking to the familiar and unfamiliar faces who constantly approached them to chat.
His absentmindedness was not hard to notice. Dolores, who had also been invited to the reception, was a little curious about what was wrong. Miss Windsor, however, guessed it was related to the black tower that had appeared after the earthquake that afternoon. But seeing that Jenkins was unwilling to elaborate, she didn't press the matter.
"So, how will tomorrow's papers explain the tower? Today's evening edition didn't ntion it at all."
Briny asked with interest.
"It's impossible to hide. As long as they're not blind, the citizens of Nolan will notice that the old clock tower has changed its shape and color. I imagine the papers will probably find so university geology professors to attribute the change in the tower's shape and color to geological shifts caused by the earthquake, or just bla it on Nolan's terrible air quality."
"That's a hard reason to believe, isn't it?"
"The City Hall and the Church don't need people to believe the explanation; they just need an explanation they can present. Take the 'underground steam pipe explosions' that happened repeatedly in the first half of this year and the second half of last year. How many people truly believed it every ti? The explanation itself isn't important. What's important is that they have one to give."
Jenkins explained, swirling the tall glass in his hand as if it were champagne. The cat perched on his shoulder stared intently at the juice in his glass, its small head turning with every swirl.
Just as he had anticipated, news of the breakthrough achieved in that afternoon's eting began to spread through the reception in the form of rumors.
The news that the war was about to end had reached nearly everyone's ears less than an hour after the reception began. It was clear that not everyone was pleased. The representatives from the Cheslan Kingdom, the surrendering party, looked particularly grim.
The fathers of Hathaway and Briny, the two naval commanders, were also in attendance. They hadn't participated in the closed-door eting that afternoon, so it was only at the reception that they heard the confird news that an agreent had truly been reached.
Soon after, they had a note passed to Jenkins, inviting him to a more private place to talk. Jenkins had a good idea of what they wanted to discuss, so when he excused himself from the ballroom, he brought along Miss Windsor, who had been standing beside him the whole ti.
The two of them ascended the spiral staircase, Jenkins leading and Miss Windsor following. They walked in silence. As Jenkins climbed, he took in the interior decor. This mansion was also royal property, and the gold adornnts found nearly everywhere were a symbol of the crown. While they couldn't all be solid gold, even if they were rely plated, their value combined with the antique oil paintings far exceeded that of the mansion itself.
The reception was being held on the first floor, but the second floor was also open to guests. However, apart from a few amorous young couples and those seeking a quiet place to converse, few others ventured upstairs.
Marquis Mikhail and Earl Hersha were waiting for Jenkins on the terrace behind the second-floor main hall. Each held a wine glass, standing at the railing and looking out at the manor grounds below and the smoke-wreathed city in the distance. The city's fog was exceptionally thick tonight, so much so that even the red and blue twin moons were re shimring outlines in the sky.
The only source of light on the terrace was an elegant brass floor-standing gas lamp placed near a corner, connected to a gas pipe that climbed the wall. The lamp's windproof shade was designed in the shape of a lotus flower. While not particularly rustic, it was exquisitely crafted.
"Marquis Mikhail, Earl Hersha."
Passing the lamp, which cast their enormous black shadows across the terrace before they vanished, Jenkins and Miss Windsor stepped out. Hearing his voice, the two naval commanders turned around, glasses in hand. Both Marquis Mikhail and Earl Hersha gave Jenkins a slight nod in greeting. They didn't object to Miss Windsor's presence; after all, they were partners, and if Jenkins trusted her, so did they.
The Marquis didn't allow for any small talk, getting straight to the point.
"The war is about to end. We've received Her Majesty's orders. The ships and sailors sent to the front lines are to remain temporarily in the southern continental waters to prevent the Cheslan Kingdom from going back on their word. The second wave of combat forces, currently preparing to depart, must set sail within a week and head north along the western coast of the continent, to guard against the Hamparvo Kingdom taking advantage of our relaxed state to launch a sneak attack from the south."
"Just as I thought."
Jenkins, also holding a glass, smiled.
"If I'm not mistaken, once these two forces are dispatched, all of the Kingdom's elite naval forces near Nolan will have been deployed."
The three major kingdoms all had long coastlines, and with the need to protect their overseas territories and islands, each maintained a powerful navy. The Fidektri Kingdom's navy was centered around Nolan, the most famous port city on the west coast. Even the naval headquarters was located there.
Under normal circumstances, the Royal Navy wouldn't deploy its entire fleet without regard for Nolan's defense. This was clearly not normal, especially right after having "defeated" Cheslan.
"She's guarding against us."
Earl Hersha, dressed in military attire, sneered. Of everyone present, he was the only one not in formal wear for the reception, stubbornly sticking to his uniform. It was no wonder Jenkins thought he had a much stronger military bearing than Marquis Mikhail.
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