Yet Hawn soon realized that what he had throught was impossible was real.
The huge birds hovered above the square and then dropped. Hawn could now see clearly the pilot up there who was also peering down. The artifact was even larger than a carriage. Hawn could not understand how such heavy items could fly like a bird in the sky.
The other spectators also wondered the same question.
When the iron birds fleeted across the square, many workers knelt down and prayed.
This must be a miracle.
“Your sister Andrea is also there,” Horford Quinn commented. “Her letter is just dated yesterday.”
It took Hawn a long time to understand the implication behind the word “yesterday”,
All his hair on his back stood on its end as he realized what it meant.
They arrived here in just one day from Graycastle thousands of miles away?
Now, when Hawn thought of his father’s words that “the balance has been broken”, he realized how ridiculous his previous idea was.
The man-made iron birds landed quietly one after another. When Andrea walked off the plane, Horford could not wait to come up to greet her.
…
A banquet was held in the palace to receive these Graycastle witches. Although no nobles were invited, the news that the guests had descended from the sky immediately spread throughout the entire City of Glow.
So many people had witnessed that spectacular scene.
After lunch, Horford finally found an opportunity to speak to his daughter alone.
He was pleased that Andrea would at least call him father now.
“Are you leaving in the afternoon?” Horford asked a little regretfully.
“We must be at the Cage Mountain by the sunset and meet with the First Army,” Andrea said with a nod. “The ‘Seagull’ could have arrived there in one day had this not been our first time traveling abroad. If that was the case, we would probably not have had time to eat.”
Horford was utterly shocked when he heard that the Graycastle men could travel from one country to another within one day. Although he had learned about this amazing transportation tool from his daughter’s letter, he still could not quite take it. He had lectured Hawn earlier regarding the changes in Graycastle, but in fact, he himself was not fully convinced either. Horford sighed internally and said while stroking his beard, “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
Andrea smiled for the first time. She asked, “You knew?”
“I just think the planes shouldn’t have hovered so long in the air before they landed,” Horford said resignedly. “In that case, everyone in the southern city would hear the noise. Well, it’s indeed a good warning to those nobles who are thinking about stirring up trouble.”
“This is one of the reasons. The other reason is that we need to establish confidence among the public,” Andrea explained while shrugging. I’ve heard that there are demons and Devilbeasts lurking around the Kingdom of Dawn. If the residents here know that the Graycastle army also has the ability to fly, they would not easily get panic.”
“It does kill two birds with one stone. Is this also the idea of that Pearl of the Northern Region?”
“No, it’s Princess Tilly’s idea.”
Horford noticed that his daughter was pretty proud of her princess when she mentioned the latter’s name as if she was sharing the honor. It appeared that she had made many good friends in Neverwinter. Horford nodded and switched the subject. “By the way, are you really not interested in taking the throne?”
“Why did you say that again?” Andrea said while raising her brows. “Haven’t I told you that I’m not interested in being the queen of the Kingdom of Dawn? Are you not satisfied with Hawn?”
“He’s a good noble and also a pretty talented businessman. I believe he would be a good earl,” Horford replied while shaking his head. “But Hawn, like all the other nobles, cared too much about personal gains. Many people in the family don’t understand why I’m doing all this. They don’t comprehend that what I’m doing now is to further secure our dominant position in this country.”
After Horford had become the King of Dawn, the Quinn families had all somewhat changed, including his adopted son. Hawn would have never said such things as “you don’t look like the King of Dawn but a minister working for King Roland Wimbledon” in the past. Someone must be insinuating him into making such impertinent comments, or Hawn had already regarded him as the next king.
The word “His Majesty” was a fascinating word, but the power it brought could equally bring disasters. He did not want Hawn to end up like Appen.
Also, another reason that Horford had not told Hawn was that the other two families would probably not acknowledge an adopted son as the ruler of the state.
In fact, the Luoxi Family and the Tokat Family supported Horford largely because of Andrea.
“That’s your problem,” Andrea said indifferently.
“If you don’t want to take over my position, then I have to share the throne with the other two families,” Horford said in a sorrowful tone.
“You don’t mind?”
“That’s nothing,” Horford said half-jokingly. “It actually saves me a lot of trouble. After the war, I can probably move to Neverwinter and stay with you. I can have a peaceful life before I die.”
Horford was serious. If Roland Wimbledon won the Battle of Divine Will, would the Four Kingdoms continue to exist? Horford did not think so. The Quinn Family had risen to power simply because they took advantage of the war. If he let Andrea take the throne, Roland would probably leave the Kingdom of Dawn as it was. However, if someone else became the king, that would, perhaps, become another different story.
Just as he had said earlier, King Roland had broken the balance between the four kingdoms.
Andrea looked at Horford for quite a long time. He could tell that his daughter was not as determined as before. After a long silence, Andrea said, “I have to go.”
“Take care of yourself,” Horford said. It took him a great deal of efforts to suppress his urge to stroke his daughter’s head. “I’ll come to the front if available.”
“… You too,” Andrea replied as she turned around and withdrew from the study.
Horford took a deep breath. He leaned against the chair and closed his eyes.
He did not forget the decision he had made last year.
He would like to spend the rest of his life correcting the mistake he had made.
Four hours later, the fleet landed safely at Thorn Town at the foot of the Cage Mountain.
Within just two days, they had traveled between four cities and covered a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers. This unprecedented operation would definitely become a part of the history.
Iron Axe, Brian and Edith were all waiting for them at the airport. After a brief discussion, the witches entered the headquarters located at the top of the mountain. From the grave expression of the General Staff clerks, the witches judged that the First Army was not in an optimistic position.
Iron Axe spread open a large map on the long table and nodded at everyone before he said, “Now, let me tell you about the current situation.”