Chapter 1353: Lost Contact

In the city of Cesile, a steady stream of intelligence reports from expedition commanders across various battlefronts was promptly delivered into Amber’s hands. After careful compilation, the information was presented to High Lord Gawain.

“…We can now confirm that the abnormal atmospheric discharges and large-scale ‘auroras’ have been occurring irregularly across the entire continent,” Amber reported, standing beside Gawain’s desk. The sunlight streamed in from the side, casting a warm glow on her face. Her amber eyes, usually lively, were today unusually serious and focused. “The distribution is random, the timing unpredictable, but all incidents have taken place within the last twelve hours. The first to notice these strange celestial phenomena were the garrison at Red Jade City in the Augray tribal lands. Since then, similar abnormal auroras and electrical discharges have been observed over the Empire’s northern border, the Holy Dragon Principality, Typhon, the Gaoling Kingdom, and even across the ocean on Talrond’s skies…”

Gawain furrowed his brow, flipping rapidly through the documents in his hands. “What do the scholars make of this?”

“The Arcane Research Institute believes this is a large-scale magical ‘resonance’ event,” Amber recited the experts’ conclusions with practiced precision—though she admitted she barely understood the jargon herself. “A powerful magical field suddenly entered the atmosphere and reacted violently with the upper clouds and magnetic fields. Given the randomness and the staggered timing of the phenomena, they suspect multiple magic sources leaked and resonated in sequence, rather than a single origin.”

“Considering the scale of the event, especially with anomalies even over Talrond, they believe this is definitely a planetary-level incident…”

“A planetary-level event,” Gawain repeated gravely, locking eyes with Amber. “Looks like the Sentinels finally can’t sit still. They’re preemptively activating the arrangements within the Deep Blue Conduits. This might just be a test—but next time, who knows.”

“On the northern and eastern fronts, construction of the ‘barrier walls’ is accelerating. So far, the aberrant legions seem caught off guard. The Silver and Gaoling allied forces on the southern front have secured positions near the ruins of the Starfall Sanctuary and will activate the first purification device today,” Amber continued swiftly. “On the western front, Duke Bertram has redeployed troops. Reinforcements from the Augray heartlands and the Dwarven Kingdom have been stationed in the scorched mountain zones. The Empire’s expeditionary ground forces and part of the Gorgon fortresses have begun moving toward the wastelands, which should put enough pressure on the aberrants there… and they will also start the first phase of the barrier wall construction.”

“Given the current situation, all we can do is buy time,” Gawain said in a low voice. “No matter how deep the Sentinels’ conspiracy runs, we must hold the frontline. Also…” He paused, then added, “You must pay extra attention to domestic order and public opinion. As the war drags on, the prolonged wartime conditions will inevitably strain the populace’s emotions. Even if we maintain normal production and daily life, the shadow of war weighs heavily on everyone’s heads—you understand this better than anyone.”

“Don’t worry, I’ve never let my guard down on that front,” Amber nodded firmly. “Besides the usual propaganda and stability measures, Philm Division is preparing a series of magical shadow plays themed around defending the civilized borders and reclaiming Gondor’s lost lands. I’ve already started following up on that. I think it’ll have a strong impact.”

“Good… I know that project. It fits perfectly with the official propaganda we began rolling out at the war’s start, and…” Gawain’s words were cut off by a sudden, urgent buzzing from the arcane network terminal on the desk.

Both of them exchanged a quick glance. Gawain raised his hand and activated the device. A shimmering light flickered above the focusing crystal, and Heddy’s holographic projection appeared clearly before him—her face betraying unmistakable tension and gravity.

Heddy was usually composed, even if she had the odd habit of giving herself dark circles under her eyes. This expression was rare, and Gawain immediately sensed something serious had happened. “What’s going on? Why that look?”

“Ancestor, we’ve lost contact with Byron and the Imperial Navy fleet,” Heddy reported rapidly, startling Gawain. “All communication channels are unresponsive!”

“What?!” Gawain’s eyes widened. “Lost contact? The entire fleet? They’re all gone?”

“Yes. The last communication was an hour ago. The Winter’s Chill sent a message via an enhanced channel, reporting they’d encountered an abnormal storm and that communications might be disrupted. After that, all contact ceased,” Heddy detailed the latest intel. “Their last known position was near the continent’s southwest coast, close to the Ordo estuary of the Holy River. Shore-based monitoring stations tracked the fleet moving away from land…”

“Away from land?” Gawain frowned. “And they ran into a storm near the coast… Did they try any temporary aerial communication networks? When was the last land-based sighting?”

“All channels have been tried—the Empire’s coastal communication chain, the newly established aerial network, and several recently restored arcane network lines within Augray territory. We can confirm it’s not a continental communication failure. The last sighting was this morning: an Imperial engineering ship was repairing an Alliance communication station north of the Ordo estuary. After that, no one has seen the warships near land or entering the Holy River.”

Gawain fell silent, deep in thought. Heddy’s expression grew more worried. “Ancestor, do you think Byron’s fleet might…”

“Don’t jump to conclusions yet,” Gawain interrupted. “The Winter’s Chill and its main fleet are the most advanced arcane warships, with heavy armor and specialized shields against maritime disasters. They also have sirens and stormborn navigators using wave-riding runes. Previous tests proved these ships can safely handle chaotic ocean currents—even in the open sea. From what you said, their last message indicated they were moving away from land, likely drifting off course in turbulent waters…” He frowned harder. “Given the nature of these chaotic currents, whether near or far from shore, even arcane warships can be pushed off course. But…”

He paused, his expression darkening. “…Byron’s fleet has sirens and naga as navigators. Even if their instruments fail, those guides shouldn’t lose their way.”

Amber, standing nearby, suddenly looked thoughtful. “Not necessarily. We have a siren here who got lost swimming home and ended up on land…”

“That shouldn’t happen in theory,” Gawain said seriously. “I asked Tyr before—she said she’s the only one in Antavian who’s ever lost a fish.”

He shook his head, pushing the nagging thought aside. Then he looked back at Heddy’s projection. “Keep all channels open, continue calling the Imperial fleet. Send messages to the Dwarven Kingdom and the Silver Empire, asking them to monitor the west coast and nearby seas closely—especially for any floating debris. Alert the Dawn of the World and have Jina Prince dispatch an aerial reconnaissance team to assist with the search along the west coast…”

He hesitated, as if weighing something, then glanced at Amber. “Go fetch Tyr—if she’s asleep, drag her here.”

“Got it!” Amber answered immediately, then vanished in a wisp of smoke. Heddy bowed slightly to Gawain, steady and composed. “I’ll arrange the calls and search operations.”

“Do it.” Gawain nodded, waving her off. Once her image faded from the terminal, he exhaled slowly, trying to calm the unease creeping into his mind. He leaned back in his chair, entering a focused, elevated mental state. The familiar sensation of his soul detaching and his perspective rising washed over him. His thoughts quickly transcended the limits of his physical body, and within moments, he connected to the satellite surveillance system orbiting in space.

The old, grainy satellite feed began zooming and adjusting. In Gawain’s mind, a bird’s-eye view of the Loren continent gradually emerged from the darkness. He focused his “sight” as much as possible within the satellite’s limited range, turning his gaze toward the continent’s southwest.

The Ordo estuary of the Holy River finally came into view, along with a small surrounding stretch of sea. In theory, he should have been able to spot the fleet of considerable size—after all, the Winter’s Chill and its accompanying warships were no small vessels. Against the relatively clear ocean backdrop, they should have been clearly visible.

Especially since the weather in the southwest was decent now. The storm that had swept through the nearshore area seemed to have passed, and the satellite’s overhead view was fairly clear.

Yet Gawain saw nothing. The Imperial fleet, which should have been sailing near the southwest coast, about to enter the Ordo and support the southern front, had vanished without a trace. Not a single sign remained in the nearby waters.

“…Even if they drifted off course, they couldn’t have disappeared this fast… They can’t fly that fast, either,” Gawain muttered to himself, manipulating the satellite view to scan the coastal area, switching between various sensory modes.

Suddenly, he sensed a presence approaching in the real world. He broke the satellite connection and returned his main consciousness to the present.

Opening his eyes, he caught sight of the study door being pushed open from outside. The first thing to meet his gaze was a tightly curled ball—a giant snake ball. Tyr had wrapped herself perfectly in her tail, fast asleep, with only her head and shoulders peeking out. She hadn’t stirred even as she was pushed inside.

Once the snake ball came to a stop, Amber emerged from behind it, wiping imaginary sweat from her forehead. Panting, she reported to Gawain, “I’m exhausted… I tried to drag her here, but she curled up like a ball, so I had to push her all the way from her room. You figure out how to wake her—I’m going to crash over there.”

With that, the half-elf vanished in a puff of smoke toward the nearby sofa, collapsing motionless. Gawain was left dumbfounded, unsure how to respond.

Fortunately, this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. He quickly recovered and reached for a drawer, pulling out a small brown-black bottle labeled “Poisonous, Dangerous, Do Not Open.” He twisted off the cap and brought the bottle’s mouth close to Tyr’s nose.

“Wake up. If you don’t, I’ll have to pour this down your throat.”

In her sleep, Tyr’s nose twitched. After a brief two-second delay, the sea caterpillar let out a startled “Ah!” and jolted awake. The entire coiled snake-ball she’d been curled into instantly contracted and sprang up. Flustered, she fumbled to untangle herself, shooting a glare at Gawain. “Is this how you wake someone up? Can’t you come up with a method that’s a bit more… civilized? You don’t just grab Lady Egg’s vintage brew and hand it over like it’s nothing—couldn’t you have at least poured me some hot water?”

“If hot water worked, I wouldn’t be keeping a bottle of this stuff in my study,” Gawain said casually, screwing the cap back onto the dark brown liquid that was already starting to emit faint purple smoke. “I need you for something—I want you to contact your kin.”

“Contact my kin?” Tyr blinked, as if only now fully waking up. “We’ve tried that a dozen times before. The entire continent of Loren is shrouded in an energy field. Our sea witch telepathic songs and racial resonance can’t penetrate that barrier. Have you guys managed to break through the shield?”

“I’m not asking you to contact Antavine,” Gawain clarified. “I want you to reach out to Cassandra—the navigator with Byron’s fleet. See if you can sense her location.”

“Cassandra? Byron’s fleet?” Tyr paused, then realization dawned. “Did something happen? You can’t get in touch with the fleet?”

“Byron’s fleet has gone missing. Communications cut off. No sign of them near the coast. The last known position showed them moving away from the continent,” Gawain didn’t hide the truth. “Right now, all we can hope for is your sea witch racial resonance. Even though contact between Loren and Antavine is severed, inside the ‘interference zone,’ you should still be able to sense Cassandra and the others, right?”

“Well… okay, I’ll try,” Tyr nodded. “As long as they haven’t gone too far from the continent, I can sense them in the coastal areas and even parts of the open sea.”

With that, the sea witch closed her eyes—not to nap this time, but to softly hum a melody in a low, gentle voice. The song was incomprehensible to human ears, a haunting, ethereal tune that filled the study. Along with the melody came a subtle vibration beyond the perception of most races, rippling through the space and drifting outward on invisible waves…

When contacting Antavine, Tyr had to use a device like the Arcane Network Nexus Tower to amplify her “song” because the distance was too great and the ocean was thick with interference. But this time, her target wasn’t so far away, so she didn’t need any extra help.

Gawain waited patiently as Tyr’s voice gradually shifted into a frequency completely inaudible to human ears. After a long while, the sea witch slowly opened her eyes.

Honestly, Gawain half suspected she’d fallen asleep again, but he had no proof.

“How’s it looking?” he asked the moment she opened her eyes.

“…I can’t hear any response from Cassandra,” Tyr blinked, her face registering shock. “She’s no longer on Loren. Not even near the continent anymore…”

(End of chapter)