Advent of the Three Calamities

Chapter 707: Central Meeting [4]

It was only for a brief moment.

However, the moment our eyes met, and seeing the subtle pull of her lip, I had a feeling that this meeting wasn’t going to be an easy one for me.

‘The fact that she knew I was coming and still said nothing about it makes things even worse.’

I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach as I turned my head away from her.

‘…I hope that I’m overthinking things.’

The noise across the hall was kept to a minimum as all gazes were fixed on the two individuals who had just walked in. As though an invisible pressure had veiled the venue, everyone’s faces grew tense.

“It appears that everyone is here.”

Orson spoke, a faint smile touching his lips as he cast a warm glance around. He wore a pristine white suit, sharply tailored to complement his white hair and strikingly well-proportioned features. Despite his age, he appeared no older than thirty.

But despite his appearance, he didn’t lose out to Delilah in terms of presence.

His gaze alone was enough to make one feel as though they were currently being squashed by a gigantic boulder.

“I know that a lot of you are busy managing your own territories, so I really do appreciate all of you for showing up today. Since I know everyone is busy, I’d like to keep things short and get started with the meeting. I’d like the representative of each Household to step forth and come with me to the meeting room. There is a lot that we’ll need to discuss.”

Following his words, Orson gestured towards a distant wooden door.

“Please.”

With another smile, he waited where he was while everyone snapped out of it and finally started moving.

The entire time, the place remained quiet, nobody saying a single word as they moved. It was clear that Delilah’s and his presence left a lot of the people unsettled.

Looking behind me, towards Evelyn and Kiera, I saw them both look at me.

“…You’re going to go?”

“I guess you two aren’t.”

I was here as a representative of the Evenus Household. There was no one else besides me. The case wasn’t the same for them.

“Nope.”

“…It’s a bit of a pity, though. I do know that your father caused quite a stir. I would’ve loved to see the meeting.”

Kiera muttered while looking a little disappointed. Thinking for a moment, Evelyn also nodded her head.

“Now that you mention it, that does sound fun.”

“…..”

Fun my ass.

I was already feeling a headache while thinking about how I’d have to handle those arrogant nobles.

Just thinking about it made me want to gag.

However, in the end, I didn’t have much of a choice and followed everyone into the main room. But just as I walked past Orson and Delilah, I felt a hand grasp my shoulder.

“Hm?”

Curious, I turned my head to see Orson staring at me.

Ba… Thump!

My heart nearly leaped out of my chest.

‘What? Shit… Did he figure something out? Could it be that Delilah has told him already? Shit, what do I do? How do I greet him? Do I…’

All sorts of thoughts swam in my mind in that moment. Feeling Orson’s gaze, I found myself unable to remain calm.

Despite being an Emotive Mage, I was suddenly finding myself unable to think properly.

And in the end…

“How can I help you, father-in—”

“It really is you. I was shocked when I heard that you were alive, and… Eh?”

Orson paused, and my heart dropped.

‘Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.’

I fucked up.

“What did you just say?”

Looking behind him, I could see Delilah staring at me, her brow raised. It almost felt as though she was saying, ‘That’s rather bold of you.’

My face grew hot, but I didn’t let it show.

If there was one thing that I was good at, it was keeping my poker face.

In the end, taking a small breath to calm myself down, I replied.

“Father is currently not able to attend the meeting. A situation has come up, so I’m here in his place.”

“…Oh, I’m well aware of that.”

With a laugh, Orson patted my shoulder.

“I’m not surprised that he didn’t come. What I’m most surprised by is how you’re still alive. I was there at the scene. I saw your body. It still amazes me to see that you’re alive. How did you do it?”

Although his question seemed light, and his smile appeared warm, the moment his eyes locked with mine and he asked the question, I felt an invisible pressure bear down on me, making it more difficult for me to breathe.

It was here that I realized.

He wasn’t just asking me out of curiosity.

He was… Interrogating me.

“It’s—”

“Stop.”

A soft voice suddenly echoed, cutting through the pressure and tension. Raising his brow, Orson turned back.

“Del? What’s—”

“Everyone is waiting. We should go.”

Cutting Orson off, Delilah turned her attention towards the door in the distance. By now, all representatives had entered, and it was just the three of us left.

Realizing this, Orson took a step back and nodded.

“You have a point.”

Fixing his clothes, Orson proceeded to move towards the meeting room. As he did, he spared me a glance.

“You should come as well. We can talk about it more later. I’m quite curious about your circumstances. Was this another one of your father’s plans? He’s been catching my interest lately.”

From the sound of his voice, he looked genuinely interested. The only thing I could offer him, however, was a smile as I prepared to follow him.

But just as I took a step forward, a voice whispered into my ear.

“…It’s good to see you.”

I slowly turned my head to see Delilah walking a few steps away from me, her gaze locked on her father’s back. From the way she appeared, it almost seemed like she held no interest in me at all.

But upon closer look, I could see her slowly inching closer to me with each step.

This girl…

Opening my mouth, I eventually smiled and shook my head.

“It’s good to see you, too.”

Despite it being a month since we hadn’t seen each other, it felt like it had been a very long time.

It was… indeed good to see her.

Delilah nodded faintly before picking up her pace.

As she did, she muttered another thing.

“Don’t worry about your father-in-law. Once the meeting ends, I’ll hold him back. You can leave as you wish.”

“Huh?”

In that moment, I almost tripped over my own feet as I looked at Delilah.

What did she just—

By the time I looked up, she had already entered the room, leaving me at a complete loss.

Blinking a couple of times, I shook my head in exasperation.

‘She’s becoming bolder and bolder.’

I was slowly starting to become afraid of what she could end up becoming.

In the end, however, I didn’t have much time to dwell on this. Given that I had been held back, I was now the last person to enter the room, and the moment I stepped into the place, I felt the gazes of everyone present lock onto me.

For a moment, my steps nearly faltered. However, I was able to quickly recompose myself as I looked around.

The room was relatively small.

At the very least, it was a lot smaller compared to the hall from before. In the middle of the room was a massive oval table where everyone was sitting, and looking around, I found an empty seat right next to Viscount Verlice.

I calmly walked towards the seat and sat down.

“Good, it looks like there’s no one missing.”

Orson sat at the head of the table, his face extremely calm in the face of the numerous high-ranking nobles.

Drumming his fingers against the table, he began to speak.

“There are a lot of things that I’d like to address in this meeting. From the recent movements of some of the Guilds, to the potential promotion of several members to higher-ranked noble titles. Today’s meeting might end up being a rather long one.”

As his hand paused, Orson settled his gaze onto me.

“But before we get into all of that, how about we start with the most important thing?”

The eyes of everyone present locked onto my direction.

“….There’s been a recent conflict between several of our members, including one of the newest members, the Evenus Viscounty. How should we handle the conflict?”

***

“….”

Noel stared blankly at his hand.

His hazel eyes stared deeply at it as his eyes rippled faintly.

Under the breeze of the sky, his clothes fluttered, and as he raised his head, he took a glance at the massive palace in the distance.

He wasn’t very far, but he wasn’t very close either. He stood just far enough to not be detected by the numerous sentinels placed all over the palace. Not that it particularly mattered to Noel.

He could tell where each and every one of them was placed.

‘It’s almost time.’

He took out his pocket watch and checked the time.

He nodded faintly.

Then—

Spurt!

He proceeded to cut off his hand.

The entire time, his face remained blank, devoid of emotion. It was as if the act itself stirred nothing in him, no pain, no feeling, just empty detachment.

Staring at the arm on the floor, and then his severed arm, Noel watched as his own hand started to repair itself.

A new hand formed a few moments later.

“Come.”

Tapping his foot onto the ground, the other hand started to wiggle.

The blood seeping from the hand came to a halt, and the arm began to twitch. Within a few breaths, a shape started to take form, slowly rising, molding itself into a figure that looked exactly like Noel.

…Or to be more precise, Aldric.

He stood before Noel, his gaze as detached and void as his.

Noel stared at his clone for a moment before raising his hand and placing it over its face. His fingers dug in, and with deliberate pressure, he began to mold its features, shifting bone and flesh until the face transformed completely, becoming that of an entirely different person.

This should do.

Noel nodded, staring at the figure before him.

With short black hair, a thin mustache, and a tall stature, he looked identical to the guard captain of the palace.

Noel snapped his finger, and the figure moved towards the palace in the distance.

Noel remained standing where he was, watching as the figure neared the palace, stopping right at the entrance.

Then—

BANG!

A terrifying explosion took place.

Bremmer shook.