Just a few hours ago, Scarlett was still awake—not that she needed any sleep anyway.Knowing that war was about to break out between the Kingdom of Victoria and the Kingdom of Almeida, she had to be ready for any unexpected news or situations that might arise.
And just as she had anticipated, something did happen, though not at all what she had expected.
She received news from Kroenen that Almeida's army had actually retreated.
It was difficult to believe for a moment. She had anticipated a war that would last at least a week, with both sides employing different tactics. If there were no clear winner, only then might Almeida try something new, possibly seeking help from the actual Holy Knights.
But what was this? Completely unexpected!
"Is there some new tactic hidden behind their retreat? Am I just too inexperienced to understand it?" Scarlett wondered, but no answers came to her mind. After all, she was just an eighteen-year-old who had been given the position of king/queen. How could she match the years of experience that the Holy Knights possessed?
She felt like smashing her head against the table several times but managed to restrain herself.
"Maybe panicking and doing something reckless is exactly what they want," she told herself, calming down by taking a deep breath.
"Tactics or not, it won't make much difference. We've already decided on roles and positions for each person. All I have left to do is go to the Armament Kingdom as Avion suggested," she thought to herself. Now that she considered it, she needed to teleport to Darwitz to take Aoto with her as well.
As she was busy with these anxious thoughts, pacing around her room back and forth, before she realized it, morning had already arrived.
Since everyone was already busy the moment sunlight poured over DreadHaven, new bunkers and underground caves were being rapidly constructed for normal citizens to hide in during the war.
Scarlett once again traveled around DreadHaven to oversee their progress, which somewhat boosted her confidence as well.
"It's been quite some time. Feyre's effect is weakening as well. At best, it'll last for two more days", She thought to herself.
She was sure that her body, which grew stronger constantly, would soon be immune to it.
After roaming around DreadHaven, she returned to the royal palace, which was mostly empty with just a few soldiers going in and out.
As she went further, she saw Lunatic, Reiza, and Irish coming toward her from the opposite direction in the hall.
The moment those three saw her, a look of realization came over them, as if they had actually been looking for her. They quickened their pace to approach her. No wonder she had only seen Li Feng, Cryptus, and others.
"You three are getting along well," Scarlett said with a soft smile.
Lunatic nodded with a light smile. "We just postponed our conflicts until the war ends."
"By the look of the situation, it's only a matter of weeks before the war starts," she added. The information about Almeida's army retreating had been shared with everyone after all. Everyone had come to the conclusion that something was definitely fishy.
Scarlett nodded in agreement. "Yes, but not just weeks—it might be days as well." After a pause, she added, "I was just getting ready to go to Armament as well."
"Yep, that's why we were looking for you too—to meet one last time before you go. Mr. Li Feng and the others were too busy to come," Irish said.
"Well then, I hope I return before the war starts," Scarlett replied with a cheerful smile.
One by one, she hugged all three of them and was ready to teleport away to Darwitz to take Aoto with her.
But all of a sudden, a light earthquake hit DreadHaven.
The ground started trembling, vibrations happening across the walls.
It wasn't too bad—just like an average earthquake.
But what made it suspicious was the timing. Who knows what tricks the Holy Knights might pull off, whether it's earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, etc.
And then, a sense of realization hit both Scarlett and Lunatic, turning their suspicions into certainty.
Scarlett looked at Lunatic in the eyes and asked, "You sensed it too, didn't you?"
Lunatic just nodded with a solemn face without saying anything.
A look of confusion appeared on both Irish and Reiza's faces, but Scarlett didn't bother to stay and explain to them.
She immediately spread her majestic six wings and flew high into the air.
She flew higher and higher in a matter of seconds, creating powerful shockwaves behind her wings.
In just a few seconds, she was soaring high above the clouds, her sharp eyes able to pierce through clouds to the entire giant continent below.
She could see the six kingdoms and the demon realm, which held territories belonging to six demon kings.
But something had changed. The kingdom that should have been parallel to DreadHaven now had towering buildings made entirely of glass walls.
Its structure felt meticulously planned, with bright lights shining from every window. The vast kingdom, surrounded by enormous, sturdy metal walls, The scenery appeared too futuristic—like something from a post-apocalyptic era of human civilization.
The area was mostly covered with snow, which was rarely seen in this region. Gwarga and DreadHaven rarely experienced any snowfall in years, let alone the vast amount that now blanketed the ground as if it were just another ordinary day for the people living there.
The answer was clearly obvious. This wasn't Gwarga. Nor was the kingdom beside it the Kingdom of Victoria. It was actually Mystveil.
"They flipped the entire continent?" Scarlett whispered to herself, feeling a wave of disbelief wash over her.
Of course, if Scarlett were to go all out, she had the strength to flip the entire continent in one go. But that would result in everyone on the continent dying, of course.
To accomplish something like this without causing any harm was definitely a significant feat.
"What can they not do?" she sighed to herself, shaking her head in amazement.
But another realization struck her. "Not the full continent, only half of it," she whispered to herself, her eyes narrowing behind the blindfold as she processed the implications.
They had only flipped half of the continent. Otherwise, only the direction would have changed—Gwarga would still be parallel to DreadHaven with Victoria as its neighbor.
Whatever the case, DreadHaven had now lost its ally Gwarga, with two enemy nations being closest to it now.
Any fool could realize their motive for doing this.
To solve the problem of distance.
Now they could launch a full assault of their forces on DreadHaven without the burden of long supply lines or difficult terrain.
"Is that why Avion was telling me to go to the Armament Kingdom? What if it was them who did it, not the Holy Knights?" A question rose in her mind, her brow furrowing with concern.
But she quickly shook her head. "No, there's no way. If someone is capable of doing something like this, it has to be them," she said to herself, her voice firm with conviction.
But this only made her decision to travel to Armament even more resolute. It felt like the situation would grow worse if she didn't go.
Because now, the attacks they were expecting in a few weeks might happen in mere days.
Not that she could do anything about it either.
Although one thing was certain—once the whole world realized that half the continent had been flipped, they would surely panic.
The entire map of the world would have to be changed, probably along with international routes and coordinates for teleportation.
"Doing all that just to get the upper hand on me? They sure consider me their biggest threat for sure!" Scarlett sighed again, but this time, a faint smirk played on her lips.
"Well then, I'll just let your fears come true. I'm definitely the biggest and last threat you'll ever face," thinking to herself, Scarlett finally decided to glide down.
Although this time, she restricted her speed, which made the journey back to the ground take a few minutes longer.
Once again, she was in the royal palace, where Reiza, Irish, and Lunatic were waiting for her, their faces etched with anxious.
By the looks on their faces, it seemed Lunatic had already explained the situation to them.
"Was our intuition right?" Lunatic asked, his voice tense.
Scarlett just nodded. "Yes."
Collective sighs escaped from all three of them, their shoulders slumping slightly.
"What now?" Reiza asks, her voice barely above a whisper.