Chapter 138: The Shadow Hand’s Report and Thetor’s Plight

After returning to the palace, Dion, still utilizing his Shadow Assassin persona, carried Luna back to the study and gently set her down in the chair right in front of the desk. He immediately set to work treating her injured ankle. Luna’s face flushed a bright crimson. Hek! She clutched Gina so tightly that the poor baby dragon looked utterly distressed and helpless, though she eventually wriggled free from Luna’s death grip, hopped onto the desk, and began munching on an apple sitting nearby.

As Luna watched Dion wrap her ankle with careful, tender precision to avoid causing her any pain, her face grew even redder than before.

"I love you, Dion," she whispered softly.

"Huh? What did you just say?" Dion asked, glancing up to meet her eyes.

"N-Nothing at all... hehehe," Luna stammered, quickly turning her head away.

"Huh? What’s going on?"

Dion, Luna, and Gina turned toward the doorway to see Sheila standing in the threshold, peering inside.

"She dove headfirst into a well," Dion explained, pointing at Luna.

"Hehe... yeah, a pretty ridiculous mistake," Luna admitted, rubbing the back of her neck with an embarrassed grin.

"Oh... so you twisted your ankle?" Sheila asked.

"Yup... landed wrong. I thought the well was super deep, but it wasn’t, so my foot took the brunt of it," Luna replied.

"How’s Greta doing?" Dion inquired.

"She’s sleeping in my room or rather, my old room, alongside Aria, who stayed behind to keep her company," Sheila answered.

"Greta?" Luna echoed.

Sheila recounted everything that had happened to Luna, who had missed the encounter. Luna’s expression shifted into one of deep seriousness as she listened intently. Once Dion finished bandaging her foot, he gently scooped Luna up and carried her over to the sofa so she could rest more comfortably.

"So she’s the little girl who survived last night... It must have been absolute hell for her, enduring all of that alone," Luna said, her voice heavy with sympathy.

"Indeed. When we entered the Aetherias trading company branch, she fired a rifle right at us because she was terrified out of her mind," Dion recalled, having already reverted to his original form.

"Last night’s nightmare was truly devastating for so many... The Kingdom of Northgard almost vanished completely from the map," Sheila murmured, lowering her gaze in a solemn reflection.

"Right. We have to get a handle on this crisis. I’m deeply worried about Lutherias, seeing as it borders Minatheras," Luna added anxiously.

A heavy silence settled over the room until a massive shadow swept across the window and faded away. Dion stood up, walked over to the glass, and looked out. He spotted a massive airship soaring past the palace before banking into a wide turn.

"Your Majesty."

"Whoaaaah!"

Startled by the voice directly behind him, Dion jumped. A Shadow Hand operative was kneeling on one knee right in the middle of the room. Luna and Sheila scrambled to their feet the moment they noticed him, and Sheila hurried over to steady Luna, guiding her back toward Dion as he tried to regain his composure.

"What is it? Did you fly in on that airship?" Dion asked.

"Yes, Your Majesty. The vessel is en route to the city of Millfrost. I was dispatched to deliver this missive directly to you on behalf of Lady Olga," the Shadow Hand answered, holding out a rolled parchment.

Dion took the scroll and unrolled it. Luna and Sheila leaned in close over his shoulders to read along with him. Their eyes darted rapidly across the text, and their expressions darkened instantly.

"Wait... the grand cathedral in Thetor has become an undead breeding ground, and we’ve already dispatched a hundred golem troops there?" Luna asked in disbelief.

"Oh no... It’s not just Northgard anymore," Sheila whispered.

"Hey!"

Everyone snapped their heads toward the door to see Aria standing in the entryway. Startled by the grim, heavy expressions on Dion, Luna, and Sheila’s faces, she rushed over to Dion’s side and snatched the letter. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she read, her face turning pale before darkening completely. She looked up at the Shadow Hand operative.

"I heard a low-flying airship and woke up... Is everything written in this letter true?" Aria demanded.

"It is, Your Royal Highness," the operative confirmed.

Aria covered her mouth with her hands. She turned back to Dion, Luna, and Sheila with shimmering, tear-filled eyes. Luna and Sheila immediately pulled her into a comforting embrace, while Dion stared out the window, watching the distant airship disappear into the jagged peaks of the mountains. He turned back to the Shadow Hand.

"Who is onboard that vessel?" Dion asked.

"Lord Johan, Lady Astrid, and Lord Makoto, accompanied by one hundred elite Eredor samurai and fifty battle mages," the operative replied.

"Hmm... They’re heading to Millfrost... That means they intend to secure the region," Dion reasoned.

"And rescue my second sister, Olivia... Gods, I pray she’s all right... She can’t fight at all, even if she’s a genius researcher," Aria said softly, her voice trembling.

"Do you know the current status of the capital in Thetor?" Luna asked the operative.

"My apologies, Your Royal Highness, I do not," the operative answered.

"Ugh, useless... How can you..."

Thwack!

Harumi suddenly materialized directly behind the kneeling Shadow Hand, cracking him sharply over the head with a resounding thwack that forced him to grip his skull with both hands.

Thwack!

Mei instantly appeared right beside Harumi and struck her sister across the head with equal force, retaliating for the sudden stunt. Harumi yelped, tears welling in her eyes as she clutched her head with both hands and glared at her older sister.

"Ow! Why’d you hit me?!" Harumi yelled.

"Shut up, you idiot kid! You just materialize out of nowhere and start smacking people around... Sit down over there. Children don’t need to meddle in adult affairs," Mei snapped back.

"Mei... what brings you here?" Dion asked.

"I saw the airship fly past me, stop at the palace, and take off again, so I figured something major had happened," Mei explained.

"Same here... I had the exact same thought," Harumi chimed in.

"Wait... where’s Cleo? Weren’t you two together?" Mei asked, glaring at Harumi.

"Oh... oops," Harumi muttered.

"Hoh... hoh... hoh..."

Everyone looked toward the doorway as Cleo staggered into the room. Her face was deathly pale, sweat drenched her brow, and her chest heaved heavily as she caught her breath, clinging desperately to the doorframe for support. Mei shook her head and flicked Harumi on the forehead one more time, drawing another tearful wince from her younger sister. Cleo slowly limped toward them, leaning heavily on her staff.

"Phew... You... next time... don’t make me sprint like that, understand?!" she wheezed angrily at Harumi.

"Sorry, Big Sister... I forgot you’re so slow... hehe," Harumi giggled nervously.

Cleo then lifted her gaze to take in the grim, shadowed faces of Dion, Luna, Sheila, and Aria.

"What’s going on?" she asked.

Without a word, Dion guided Cleo and Mei over to Aria, who handed them the letter and urged them to read it. When Harumi tried to peer over their shoulders, Mei firmly shoved her face away and told her to go keep Gina company at the coffee table. Once Cleo and Mei finished scanning the text, their expressions darkened as well.

"Thetor is under attack too... The grand cathedral has fallen to the undead. This is critical, the cathedral sits right in the dead center of the capital," Cleo analyzed grimly.

"It says here that Princess Evelyn is still holding out by sealing off the cathedral compound, and with the golem reinforcements and zeppelin we sent, they should be able to weather the siege," Mei pointed out.

"But if we don’t eradicate the source, the threat will never truly end. The high priest is definitely ground zero; during yesterday’s raid that injured my father, he was the one killed and turned," Aria noted.

"That’s true... Just like my stepmother," Sheila muttered thoughtfully.

"And on top of that, an airship was dispatched to Millfrost to check on the situation... Wait, who on earth is Lord Makoto?" Luna asked, pausing.

"Huh... Lord Makoto?" Mei repeated.

"Yeah... It says he accompanied Lord Johan and Astrid. Right?" Luna asked, glancing down at the Shadow Hand.

"That is correct, Your Royal Highness," the operative confirmed.

"Hmm... That means Father...er... King Araki, dispatched Lord Makoto to assist us. That implies the world is in grave, imminent danger," Mei concluded.

"Who even is Lord Makoto?" Cleo asked.

"Makoto Takeshi. He’s a legendary swordsman and general from Eredor. He’s well over a hundred years old, though he still looks like he’s in his forties. He’s widely considered the strongest individual in Eredor," Mei answered.

"Oh... If that’s the case, it changes everything. Coupled with Johan and Astrid, they should have no trouble securing Millfrost," Cleo reasoned, visibly calming down.

"So... what’s our next move, Dion?" Luna asked.

The moment Luna’s question dropped into the quiet room, Sheila, Mei, Cleo, Aria, and even the kneeling Shadow Hand all turned to fix their eyes on Dion, waiting expectantly for his verdict. Dion fell deep into thought, his brow furrowing tightly as his jaw set in a hard line.

"Northgard is barely wrapped up... and now Thetor? What a mess... Honestly, I just want to march straight to the root of all this in Minatheras, slaughter everything in sight, and finally retire... But if I do that, I’m terrified it’ll just spread further and completely ruin everything... Damn it... Talk about a massive headache," he thought to himself.