Before the defensive asures were fully activated, the Enchanters of the Orthodox Church who had been stationed here began to leave in large formations, descending the stairs. Unsure of the origin of that blast of dragon fire, the Church had prepared for the worst and needed to mobilize all necessary forces to establish a defensive line outside the cathedral, ensuring the safety of the Gate of All Things conference hall, which was filled with ordinary people.
Pure-blooded dragons of legend had not appeared in the material world for a very long ti. Yet, from the descriptions given by the red dragon temporarily residing in the Evergreen Forest, they knew just what kind of power a truly mighty dragon possessed.
Jenkins wanted to go down as well; he had to ensure the safety of his friend, Princess Sophia.
His gaze swept over to Alexia, and an idea imdiately struck him.
"I'm going down to take a look. You help protect my body."
He planned to join the battlefield via projection, which would also make it easier to return. He wasn't sure if the impending ritual and the lockdown of the Gate of All Things would include a spatial seal, so instead of using a tangible illusion to send his actual body out and risk being unable to return, he would rely project his consciousness outside.
This way, even if the defensive ritual severed the projection, his consciousness would simply return to his body. He wouldn't be "trapped" outside.
"Before I get back, if the negotiations start early, help stall for a while."
"No problem."
Alexia nodded, and Jenkins turned to his cat.
"You stay here. Don't follow . We don't know what's about to happen."
Although Chocolate was reluctant, it saw Jenkins's serious expression and nodded in agreent.
He imdiately used a spiritual lodestone to project himself back into the wardrobe in his bedroom. Since the ladies of the house were all at the cathedral, his ho was clearly empty. He jumped from the bedroom window into the yard, threw on a black robe, and jogged a few steps before vaulting over the fence.
He let out a sharp whistle, summoning a unicorn, then mounted it and soared into the sky as a streak of white light.
From high above, the city, which should have been quieted by the downpour, was a hive of activity. In every city block visible to the naked eye, at least one battle was raging. And yet, just monts ago when Jenkins had returned to the cathedral carrying the automaton's body, the riots in the city had been almost completely quelled.
Jenkins didn't know if the Difference Engine's current actions were revenge for being tricked into awakening, a deliberate attempt to sabotage today's negotiations, or genuinely another step in its preparations for apotheosis. But regardless, the top priority now was to determine the reason for that blast of dragon fire.
With these thoughts in mind, he leaned low over the unicorn's back and gently patted its neck. The small beast let out a soft cry and flew toward the cathedral at an even greater speed.
He couldn't see the silver dragon's massive form from a distance, but his Eye of Reality caught her unique spiritual aura. By the ti Jenkins appeared in the sky above the cathedral's street, he saw neither the silver dragon maiden nor Princess Sophia—only a tide of chanized corpses pouring out of the sewers, clashing with the Church's forces.
He didn't reveal himself, instead landing in a safe, nearby alley. Following the trail of the spiritual aura, he found the dragon and the princess inside a street-facing shop.
The shop was closed for the day, so not only was the front door shut tight, but the display windows were also boarded up. The interior was extrely dim, with none of the lamps lit. Jenkins climbed in through the backyard, pried open a door to get inside, and imdiately heard a peculiar sound.
He blushed, then turned around, leaned against the door, and gave a deliberate cough. A few seconds later, he heard movent from behind the shelves. Only then did he turn back. The princess and the silver dragon maiden appeared unhard. The forr was hiding shyly behind the latter, while the silver dragon said nonchalantly:
"What's there to be shy about? It was just a kiss."
"Are you two alright?"
Jenkins didn't ask what they had been doing.
"I saw the dragon fire..."
"It's fine, it's fine. We're perfectly safe,"
the silver-haired girl said. Her waist-length hair actually glowed in the darkness, a brilliant silver color that was strikingly similar to that of the dragon fire from earlier.
"So what happened?"
"I was escorting Sophia to the cathedral. Just as we turned onto this street, a stranger blocked our path. He summoned those strange corpses outside and tried to make a move against Sophia, so I..."
Jenkins recalled the end of the red dragon's ga and the unlucky Enchanter from the Tree House who had been vaporized by its breath.
"Alright, as long as you're okay... Was your opponent a demigod?"
"Yes, a demigod from this era's system. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to make such a big scene."
"One less demigod, then,"
Jenkins thought to himself. At this point, the silver-haired girl asked sheepishly in a low voice:
"Did I ruin your plan?"
"No, no, don't worry. It's fine."
He shook his head. "But the negotiation venue is temporarily sealed. I'm going outside to help the Church deal with those chanized corpses. Once the problem is handled and the conference hall reopens, Princess Sophia can make her appearance."
"No problem,"
the silver dragon said. The princess, anwhile, apologized again for causing such a commotion, which in turn made Jenkins feel a little embarrassed.
The iconic unicorn appeared in the sky, letting the Church know that a Believer of Lies had arrived. He summoned the large, bronze-covered book with a gesture. As a chanical bird flew into the air, a bolt of lightning struck it from the heavens, imbuing its beating wings with greater power.
He held the book in his right hand and gripped his holy sword with his left. The Church's forces were now entangled with the enemy, making it too risky to use a wide-area sword dance. So instead, he used his own spirit, channeling it through the sword to activate its ability to control the undead.
The chanized corpses were a combination of undead and machine, and both the holy sword and his [chanist] ability were perfect counters to them. Therefore, even though Jenkins was just hovering in the air without making any offensive moves, all the chanized corpses within a three-block radius began to sway as if they had lost control, their movents suddenly sluggish. The Church seized the opportunity, cutting down their enemies like stalks of wheat.
Of course, things wouldn't be that easy. As Jenkins looked down below, his heart seized. A sense of inexplicable dread made him instinctively slap the unicorn. The small white beast didn't know what was happening, but it still shot forward abruptly in mid-air.
But that only saved them from a fatal blow. Under the imnse force, Jenkins and the unicorn were sent flying, slamming violently against the outer wall of the floating structure above the cathedral before they ca to a stop.
An impact like that should have reached the threshold to trigger the cathedral's defensive counterattack, but because of Jenkins's own power, the cathedral didn't register him as an enemy. He and the unicorn rely left a slight dent in the wall.
But the dent vanished almost imdiately, likely a characteristic of the Gate of All Things.
Reviews
All reviews (0)