Chapter 408: News of Charles

"The power I can command directly now is about eight times what it was before. All the power I once spent maintaining the Tree of the Night has been freed up..."

At some point, while the two were still absorbed in exploring the transformed tree, the Lady of the Night appeared behind Wang Yu and Avia. Blackness, smooth as water, coiled about her form. Her tall frame seemed even taller than before, her long black gown now traced with more intricate and stately patterns.

"As I thought. Entrusting this matter to the two of you was the right choice."

The goddess gave a small nod, voicing her satisfaction.

Wang Yu and Avia exchanged a look. Wang Yu could have sworn he caught a faint trace of pride in her tone. Perhaps that was a kind of special "wisdom" unique to the Lady of the Night—knowing to leave what she was not adept at in the hands of those who were.

In that sense, she was quite like Wang Yu himself. He delegated what he couldn't do to those who could.

That said, though the goddess had done very little besides idly watching from the sidelines, everything had nevertheless resolved itself neatly. Truly, great wisdom lay in foolishness.

Or perhaps not. Perhaps she hadn't thought it through at all. She had simply trusted them. In the end, her main hobby seemed to be watching her followers live well.

"Congratulations," Avia said with a bright smile. "This means the Church of Nightfall's members will be able to wield even greater divine arts."

"Indeed," said the Lady. "With the Tree of the Night's capacity improved, the faith supplied by my believers is more than enough to sustain the Prayer Network. The Midnight Library will no longer be bound by temporal restrictions. And the rest of that power flows back into me, making me stronger.

"Perhaps, given time, I may become something greater still."

Her delight was apparent.

"Not bad," Wang Yu replied with a raised brow. "We'll look forward to it then."

Though what exactly she meant by "greater," he could not say. Perhaps, with luck, it would mean that she could contribute directly in a fight.

"The Church of Nightfall has already dispatched aid to the Isle of Dragons," she added. "Several guilds have sent a convoy, and Charles is among them. I imagine he needs to talk to you, though he gave me no forewarning."

Wang Yu scratched his head. He had once mentioned the situation here to a few friends within the church whom he trusted, but he hadn't expected Charles to move so quickly.

"Charles, huh? Don't tell me he's come to collect on my debt. With his temperament, I bet he'd probably demand at least a few hundred thousand gold for a curio on the level of the Chronostasis Hourglass."

He had just sent the latest report on the Isle of Dragons to Charles, but Charles hadn't responded. Wang Yu had thought him too busy, but now it seemed that he was actually planning to talk to them in person.

Still, Wang Yu knew Charles wasn't the type of person to come storming over just to hold him accountable for the hourglass. If he was coming, it was surely on more serious business.

After bidding farewell to the Lady of the Night, Wang Yu and Avia departed the void and made for the coast of the Isle.

A vast fleet of alchemical ships was approaching the Isle of Dragons from the Endless Sea. Each vessel was stacked high with sealed metal crates and massive wooden chests, all loaded to the ship's limit, their waterlines dangerously low.

The convoy was immense, and the ships bore a uniform style. Upon their hulls gleamed the sigil of the Lady of the Night. Beside that sigil was a small grinning gnome's face with a coin clenched between its teeth—clearly Elliot's handiwork.

This was the crest of the Dusk Consortium. The merfolk had spoken of it before: using the Church of Nightfall's uncanny means of communication and cohesion, Elliot and a band of merchants had forged an alliance. By now, that alliance had grown into a guild of considerable influence.

"Boss," came a voice beside him, "are we really just giving all these supplies away? I know the island belongs to dragons, and I don't doubt your judgment... but this was a huge sum. There was so much we needed to liquidate just to outfit these ships. Is it wise to hand it all over without making any profit?"

Elliot stood at the prow, his clothes far finer than they had once been, eyes following the merfolk swimming in escort of the fleet. Thanks to them, there was no fear of shipwreck, no matter how overloaded the vessels were.

There was a saying among sailors: "May the Lord of Sea and Storm watch over me." And indeed, that ancient god seemed to be blessing the merfolk—and, by extension, the Dusk Consortium's ships.

"Damn it all, must you prattle on like some chattering goblin?" Elliot snapped, rounding on the gnome at his side. "The reason I took gnomes into my service was to lift you lot up—not to have you buzzing at my ear! Sometimes I think I'd have been better off with an actual goblin assistant."

The timid gnome flinched at the rebuke, but persisted in asking his question.

Elliot, now one of the great company's leaders, suddenly found himself nostalgic for the old days, when his "company" was just him, Emmon, and Vena. Emmon had been obedient and Vena reliable. As for these newbies, none of them grasped his vision. Worse, they questioned him. But what could he do? This was the curse of being as brilliant as Elliot.

"Do you even know what investment means?" he barked. "Do you understand the significance of the Isle of Dragons? These are dragons we're speaking of—creatures unseen on the continent for centuries! If we secure ties with them, even if they sell us nothing but their cast-off scales, we'd earn back our expenses within just one or two trades.

"And that's not even mentioning dragon blood, or dragon bone! Yes, it may be wishful thinking for now, but in time, once we've established goodwill, who's to say the dragons won't sell us such things? Do you have any idea how vast the profit in that ‘perhaps' could be?"

He rattled on, painting a picture of glittering prospects, before suddenly seizing the gnome by the collar and staring straight into his eyes.

"Do you know what the most important thing is?"

"N-no..." the gnome stammered. "I don't..."

The gnome, whose eyes had just been shining with visions of the bright future Elliot painted, now shrank back with a shiver at Elliot's sudden intensity.

"Do you know what matters most?" Elliot's voice rang sharp. "His Grace the Archbishop himself gave the order! Hah! Following the Archbishop will never lead to loss. Joining the Church of Nightfall was the best decision of my life. My position today, I owe it to seizing every chance this Church gave me.

"I was among the very first to join. Do you think I don't understand how the Church clawed its way to where it stands now? When His Grace speaks personally, it means opportunity is at hand.

"No power on the continent can breach that wall of lightning—none but us, the Church of Nightfall, carried across by the merfolk. You cannot begin to understand how rare, how precious, such a chance truly is!"

Elliot's voice burned with fervor. Whether his by now utterly dazed gnome underling believed him or not, Elliot himself was convinced of this.

"B-Boss, we've arrived."

The gnome pointed toward the looming Isle of Dragons. While Elliot lectured him, the ships had reached the shore. Orc hirelings and members of the Church who had come along were busy hauling cargo ashore.

"So this is the island where dragons dwell... looks as if it's seen a great battle. And those flying there—are they truly dragons?!"

"This is unprecedented! To confirm with my own eyes the truths written in books about dragons—I'll write my own volume and place it in the Midnight Library! By the gods, I can hardly contain myself... calm down, Gregory, calm down. This is your chance at immortality!"

"...To think I would live to return to this place. I wonder whether any of my old companions yet survive."

"..."

The Church of Nightfall had never been choosy about its membership—almost any type of being might be counted among its faithful. Those disembarking marveled at the isle for all manner of reasons, each bearing different purposes in their hearts.

"You, go direct the laborers. I'll take a look around first."

𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Elliot waved his gnome subordinate off and scurried down the gangplank toward the beach.

"Lord Wang Yu, Lady Avia, long time no see!"

Elliot beamed as he spotted the pair.

Wang Yu and Avia were standing quietly at the shoreline, watching the fleet arrive. To most, they seemed like nothing remarkable at all.

Though Wang Yu was the Archbishop, the vast majority of the devout had never seen his face. He bore no marks nor signs by which a stranger might recognize him. Unless one had known him from the Church's earliest days, he would vanish easily into the crowd.

"You've done well. What a huge merchant fleet you have..."

Wang Yu eyed the fleet. There were enough ships to rival the Golden Rain Coalition back in Aleisterre. For Elliot to have matched their scale was no small feat. Even Wang Yu had to admit the gnome's talent.

"It's all thanks to you and the Church! Once you build up a foundation, business takes care of itself. Praise the Lady of the Night!"

Elliot chuckled, face flushing at Wang Yu's praise. He gave the goddess's blessing in a neat, practiced gesture, though a touch of pride shone through.

"All the aid you asked for is here—basic alchemical reagents, metal ores, the lot. Everything the dragons should need."

He rattled off the inventory with satisfaction. They were practical resources with which the dragons could rebuild their island.

"The dragons will be pleased, I'm sure. As for mercantile operations on the isle, handle it yourself. Just don't let anyone run amok. I trust you."

Wang Yu clapped the gnome on the shoulder. He knew nothing about commerce, but Elliot's skill was plain to see. Letting the Dusk Consortium stake a claim here would benefit both Elliot and the dragons alike. Elliot surely understood the nature of sustainable trade better than he ever could.

"Oh! By the Lady, thank you, Your Grace! Then I'll get right to work!"

With a cheer, Elliot ran back toward the ships.

But moments later, he came sprinting back down the shore, waving wildly.

"There's one more thing—urk—let go, let go! I can't breathe!"

Before he could finish, his form blurred. A hand clamped around his throat from behind.

"Urk—damn it! I thought my wizardry was flawless. How did you still see through me?"

That "Elliot" writhed, his features melting and reassembling until a scowling Charles stood there in his place.

"This."

Wang Yu smiled, tapping the Perfect Fractal lens set in his right eye. He didn't bother to mention that the Chariot's power had marked Charles' presence far ahead of time.

"Tch. Miss Avia's work, of course. I concede the point."

Charles sighed, shaking his head. He was plainly disgruntled.

"It's been a while. What brings you here?" Wang Yu slung an arm companionably around his shoulder.

"What else? To collect my debt, of course! Damn it, my Chronostasis Hourglass—do you have any idea what it's like living without a strategic-class curio like that? I'm on edge every day, wondering where the next assassin will come from.

"Come on, you're definitely rich now. You've got to hand over five hundred thousand gold coins at least. Help me keep the Nightblades running—and toss a bone to poor Edward while you're at it."

Charles rubbed two fingers together in front of Wang Yu's face, his scowl making it clear he wouldn't let the matter drop.

"I don't have money. Truly. Everything belongs to the Church. I'm broke."

Wang Yu spread his hands. It was the simple truth.

"...Fine. Knowing you, that's probably true. We'll settle it later. For now, I actually came here with business. And besides, I wanted to see with my own eyes the place our Professor gave his life to protect."

"...It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yes. Very beautiful."