Chapter 128: An Unconveyable Message
The Clock Tower Cathedral.
Queen Shaya was no longer at the conference table. She had, as if sensing something, looked towards a distant point, sneered, and then vanished.
Bai, following Princess Lilia’s instructions, had issued a summons to the Legendary Knights scattered throughout the capital.
Ara was now asleep in her lap, having woken up a few times, but now breathing softly, her snores a gentle, rhythmic sound.
Erlra stood nearby, her posture rigid, her expression unreadable.
Although only a Sixth-Order knight, her years as a mercenary had given her an aura no less imposing than a Knight of the Empire.
Of course, without her position as the princess’s personal guard and maid, she would never have had access to such high-ranking individuals as Bai.
Bai was slightly puzzled by Erlya’s presence; she should have returned to the princess’s side. But she didn’t ask.
Soon, the Legendary Knights began to arrive.
The first to return were Lin Yan and Leticia, both clad in heavy armor. Lin Yan, despite being younger, was taller, Leticia appearing almost petite beside her.
“Just the three of you?” Leticia asked, looking around the hall. “Has Queen Shaya left?”
“Queen Shaya?” Lin Yan’s eyes widened, and she looked at Leticia. “Auntie Shiya, are you talking about… the one from the Vampire clan?”
She had been unconscious when Shaya appeared.
And upon waking, she had been immediately assigned to patrol duty. The other Legendary Knights hadn’t thought to inform her, assuming Bai had already done so.
“She had… business to attend to,” Bai said, then looked at Lin Yan. “It seems you’ve recovered well.”
Lin Yan, after being taken away by her uncle, had made a remarkable recovery. Although still weaker than before, she was no longer on the verge of collapse.
“Bai, you and Queen Shaya… are you… involved?” Lin Yan asked, her voice tense, a flicker of a strange rumor in her mind.
Vampires, it was said, would sometimes… embrace humans, turning them into blood thralls… could Bai have become a demon in this way?
But when she had first met Bai, she hadn’t been a Vampire…
“We are… acquainted. But it’s not important,” Bai said, not wanting to discuss Shaya, to avoid any further awkwardness. She turned to Leticia. “Lady Leticia, where are the other Legendary Knights?”
“They’ve mostly arrived. They’re in the cathedral below, but they’re… reluctant to come up,” Leticia said, taking a seat at the conference table. Bai noticed her voice was clearer now, almost melodious, no longer the raspy voice from before.
If not for the familiar tone and aura, Bai would have thought she was an imposter.
Lin Yan, however, didn’t seem to notice. The Leticia she knew had always had this voice. The raspy voice from before had made her think her “Auntie Shiya” had a sore throat.
“Reluctant… I see,” Bai said.
They were likely still wary of Shaya, and by extension, of her.
But Bai had already explained the situation in her summons. It didn’t matter if they met face-to-face.
Just then, Erlya, as if sensing something, pulled out a device. “Miss Bai, Her Highness has left the palace and is on her way to the cathedral.”
“I see,” Bai said, recognizing the device as a locator for Princess Lilia.
It wasn’t surprising that Erlya, as her personal guard, would have such a thing.
“I’ll have them come up,” Leticia said. “If the princess requests a meeting, it shouldn’t be held in the main cathedral. And besides… Queen Shaya has already left.”
Although Bai’s identity was still… sensitive, it was less so than Shaya’s.
“Alright,” Bai nodded.
Lin Yan, having recovered from her earlier shock, was now staring at Bai.
She felt that Bai had changed, not just in appearance, but in some other, more fundamental way.
After Leticia’s summons, the other Legendary Knights entered the hall, their expressions grim, and silently took their seats.
Besides Kruse and Kweil, the others looked at Bai with a mixture of suspicion and hostility.
“How long until Her Highness arrives?” General Grant asked impatiently.
Erlra, who had been inseparable from Lilia for years, was a familiar face to the Legendary Knights.
“She should be here soon… hmm?” She looked at the device, her brow furrowed. “Why is she moving so fast? That’s the full speed of the royal carriage…”
Using the carriage at full speed would cause irreparable damage to its psychic core, a technology the North Empire couldn’t repair.
Lilia wouldn’t do this unless it was an emergency.
And the communication devices… they had been mostly useless since the riots. Azakana had specifically targeted the communications officers, disrupting their ability to coordinate.
That’s why Erlya had had to come in person to deliver the summons.
“Let’s go. We have to meet her,” Bai said, her expression serious.
The other Legendary Knights, understanding the gravity of the situation, agreed without question.
Without another word, they followed Erlya, heading towards the princess’s location.
…
On the road.
Princess Lilia frantically poured Psychic Energy Crystals into her beloved carriage’s engine, her expression a mixture of desperation and resolve.
“I have to make it in time…”
“I absolutely cannot let the Legendary Knights gather together…”
