Early in the morning, Earl Of Hall woke up at the time he was most accustomed to and took a stroll in his garden and lawn.
By the time he finished looking at his beloved pureblood horses, he returned to the third floor of the villa and changed into his outdoor clothes. His wife, Caitlyn, had already woken up and was instructing her maid to pass on the arrangements she had just thought of.
"It's time for breakfast," Earl Of Hall said to his wife with a smile as he stood by the coat rack.
At that moment, he heard a commotion coming from outside. It was getting closer and didn't die down.
Frowning indiscernibly, Earl Of Hall turned his head to glance at his valet.
Without the noble needing to speak, the valet immediately walked to the window and pulled open the remaining gauze curtain.
With a whoosh, more light shone into the bedroom, turning it clear.
The valet then cast his gaze out the window and scanned the surroundings. His expression suddenly turned solemn.
He turned his head and glanced at his wife, who was still talking to the maid. He quickly walked to Earl Of Hall's side and lowered his voice.
"Demonstration! Many people are demonstrating! "
Demonstration? Earl Of Hall was no stranger to this term. As a noble of Rouen and the second-largest shareholder of the Constant Coal and Steel Consortium, he had seen many workers gather to demonstrate, demanding higher weekly wages and set maximum working hours. In the past month or two, there had been several demonstrations in Baekeland due to various issues, but they were quickly quelled and didn't cause much of an impact.
His gaze moving back and forth on the valet's face for a few seconds, Earl Of Hall narrowed his eyes, acutely sensing that today's demonstration might be different from what he had imagined.
He walked forward without batting an eyelid and came to the window.
At a glance, Earl Of Hall's gaze suddenly froze.
With the advantage of being on the third floor, he saw that the road in the distance was filled with people. They gathered together and surged in this direction, like a huge dark cloud that was about to envelop Baekeland.
"Bread!"
"We want bread!"
The shouts of tens of thousands of people gathered together and gradually became louder and clearer. Earl Hall felt that his blood was freezing.
It wasn't that he hadn't seen so many people when he participated in Mass and other activities at Memorial Square. He had never heard the overlapping voices, but back then, he could barely be considered part of the crowd, a part of the whole. And today, he was one of the targets of the surging "tide."
Earl Of Hall couldn't help but look at the back of the procession and found that there was no end to it. However, with his rich experience, he could make a judgment based on some of the details he observed.
He could see very few policemen and soldiers on both sides of the parade. Compared to the huge crowd, they were like waves stirred up by the tide, extremely insignificant.
Earl Of Hall believed that the protest against Queens would be under the strongest control. A large number of soldiers and police would be sent over. The current situation could only mean one thing:
There were too many people participating in the protest!
As a result, the soldiers and policemen were scattered too far apart!
A protest with more than 100,000 people? Perhaps it's more than that … A protest caused by a food shortage could turn into a riot and looting at any moment … It looks very orderly now … Is it because there are many organizers and leaders? Damn it, didn't MI9 and the various Churches notice any signs? How can a protest of such a scale be organized overnight? Even if Baekeland had become a barrel of gunpowder, it would take quite a number of matches to ignite it! Thoughts flashed through Earl Of Hall's mind as his expression turned more and more solemn.
"Bread!"
"We want bread!"
The shouts became more and more uniform and louder, as though a tsunami had appeared in the city.
At this moment, the servants in Earl Of Hall's residence sensed the commotion. They came to the windows and looked out the door.
Their faces immediately turned pale, as though they had encountered a flood that they couldn't avoid.
"Bread!"
"We want bread!"
Countless voices converged together as the black mass of heads brought with it a strong sense of oppression.
Earl Of Hall suddenly came to his senses. He subconsciously wanted to find someone to send a telegram to the royal family and ask them to organize an army to suppress it.
But when he took a closer look, he found that many people in the protest were wearing military uniforms and were physically disabled.
"Bread!"
"We want bread!"
The soldiers who maintained order were on guard while looking at the protest with sympathy, their guns pointed at the sky.
Among those people were their former comrades-in-arms, their parents, their wives, their children, their friends, their neighbors, and a large number of living people like them, who just wanted to not starve to death. How could they not feel pity and sympathy for them?
At first, such emotions might only have arisen in the hearts of five or six soldiers and policemen, but it soon spread to almost everyone.
In the past, under the supervision of officers with pistols, they would definitely accept all orders numbly. But now, many people were thinking:
If any son of a bitch dares to let me shoot him, I'll shoot him to death!
"Bread!"
"We want bread!"
Amidst the shouts and the impact of the large crowd gathering, Earl Of Hall's face turned a little pale.
He couldn't help but retract his gaze and look at the guards and bodyguards gathered outside the house. He looked at the Beyonders of the Church of Evernight who were in charge of protecting his family and realized that their reactions were different.
The guards and bodyguards were filled with fear, and the Beyonders he had hired hidden inside had rather solemn expressions. As for the protectors of the Church of Evernight, their gazes were filled with sympathy and pity.
To the Church, I might have a thousand believers here, but there are tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even more outside … Earl Of Hall instantly came to a realization. He had a clear understanding of the consequences of what he had prepared to do.
Even if he was armed to the teeth, it was impossible to fend off so many marchers with just a small number of guards. Once a conflict broke out, the Beyonders of the Church of Evernight couldn't be counted on. It would already be a blessing from the Goddess if his family could escape from Empress Borough with the bodyguards he had hired!
For the first time, Earl Of Hall experienced the power of numbers, as well as the terror of so many people gathered together.
As these thoughts raced through his mind, he immediately turned his head and instructed his valet, "Send a telegram to the Prime Minister and the other nobles.
Tell them that I'm willing to take the lead and donate most of the food!
"Ask them to maintain their calm!"
As the radio waves flew and exchanged, the nobles living in Empress Borough learned of Earl Of Hall's attitude.
The current Duke Of Negan looked out the window with a heavy expression. After a moment of silence, he exhaled and said to the male secretary beside him, "Protect the manor well.
Give up on your unyielding stance and follow Earl Of Hall's lead.
"Also, use those merchants who are hoarding food as an example!"
After high society came to an initial consensus and came up with a plan to deal with the situation, Earl Of Hall's heart finally returned to its original position. He had the energy to head to the dining hall and meet up with his family.
When he passed through the dining hall's door, he subconsciously scanned the situation inside.
His wife was standing by the window, looking out worriedly. His eldest son was pacing back and forth, appearing angry and anxious. His daughter was standing by his wife's side, silently watching the procession move forward like a tidal wave.
…
The Fog Sea, the Future.
Cattleya stepped onto the resplendent bridge formed from starlight and returned to the deck.
"Captain, you have to rein in Frank this time!" Boatswain Nina was the first to rush over and shout.
Cattleya's melancholic mood was instantly shattered as she frowned slightly.
"What did he do this time?"
Nina said angrily, "He asked me if I could give birth.
"He asked me if I could give birth to a child. He wanted to study how life was conceived and how the soul was created!"
"… Did you beat him?" Cattleya fell silent for a second.
"I did!" Nina didn't hide it at all.
Cattleya then cast her gaze at the nearby Frank, ignoring his bruised face.
"It's best you study the reproduction of fish first."
"Alright." Frank scratched his head and obeyed his captain's orders.
Cattleya then nodded at the pale Bloodless Heath Doyle who had grown out of the shadows of the cabin.
"It's fine."
Heath Doyle visibly relaxed.
"Yes, Captain."
After the commotion from the crew, Cattleya finally returned to the real World. While they weren't paying attention, she rubbed her temples and flew into the captain's cabin.
Following that, she used magic to seal the area and took out the Magic Wishing Lamp, which was ranked at the top of the Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts.
After finishing her preparations, Cattleya sat behind the desk and lowered her head. She recited Mr. Fool's honorific name in Jotun and reported the matter regarding Queen Mystic to "Him."
Klein, who was surveying the area around the northern city ruins with a lantern in hand, turned his head slightly and listened for a few seconds. Then, he followed the procedure and entered the world above the gray fog.
He then sat at the end of the long, mottled table — the high-back chair belonging to The Fool. He emanated his spirituality towards the crimson star representing The Hermit.
Queen Mystic has preliminary clues to that primitive island and plans on leaving the safe sea route to conduct a large-scale, long-term search …
That primitive island was discovered by Rosell The Great by chance. It's very likely that one of his nine secret mausoleums is hidden on it … This is the only one that hasn't been discovered or destroyed. It's where the hope for the Emperor's revival lies …
However, the living beings on that primitive island seem to worship an unknown power that originates from the cosmos. Just understanding the cosmos will cause one to be corrupted … I have to remind Ma 'am Hermit to write a letter to warn Queen Mystic …
"Magic Wishing Lamp … Magic Wishing Lamp? So this Grade 0 Sealed Artifact is in Queen Mystic's hands … It's formed from the combination of a Miracle Invoker's Beyonder characteristic and the characteristic of a mysterious origin. Even a true deity can't shatter it … Just as Klein finished hearing about 0-05, he immediately adjusted his perspective and enlarged the image of the kettle-shaped golden magic lamp.
Suddenly, the wick at the mouth of the Magic Wishing Lamp ignited by itself!
PS: On the first day of the new year, I wish everyone luck in the Year of the Rat!
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