The news came far too suddenly, leaving everyone present stunned. A delegation from the Dark Continent requesting peace talks was simply unheard of—because the monsters had always done nothing but invade and plunder, and had almost never engaged in diplomacy.
"Could it be that 'Noxis' is the one behind these monsters?" Elara guessed. In the future, the instigator of the war had first risen from the Dark Continent, and given that clue—along with recent rumors that some force was attempting to unify the factions on that continent—it was hard not to connect the two. At the very least, one thing was certain: when Michelle appeared yesterday, her condition was abnormal and she showed clear signs of severe amnesia. This negotiation was most likely not initiated according to her own will.
That suspicion immediately made everyone uneasy. If Noxis was truly manipulating these talks from behind the scenes, then the nature of the matter would become far more complicated. But Elara had always longed for peaceful coexistence between the two continents, and now a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity lay right in front of her—there was no way she would abandon it lightly.
When she considered that these talks might truly end the thousands of years of hatred, Elara's expression shifted subtly—from guarded suspicion to a complicated, almost hopeful anticipation. In truth, that was how everyone felt. Not only angels: humanity had also never stopped searching for a way to coexist peacefully with the monsters. The long-standing hostility and conflict had already cost countless lives for no reason. If there were even the faintest hope of ending it all, no one wanted to let it slip away.
"I won't deny it—this invitation has plenty of suspicious points, and it may even be a trap. But we also can't ignore another possibility: what if there truly is a chance for peace? This is the first time the monster side has ever shown such an attitude. No matter what, we have to at least try!"
The moment she said that, it was clear Elara had already decided to accept. She then turned her gaze to me, seeking my opinion—because the monster side's additional requirement, that newborn angels must accompany the delegation, sounded extremely strange, and no one could tell what they were really planning.
"Could it be that this group is actually…?"
Speaking of which, the newest generation of newborn angels still alive in this world consisted of only three: me, Nicola, and Cyra. A possibility surfaced in my mind without me even willing it. Perhaps the one issuing the invitation was not "Noxis," but some hidden third party.
"I think it's fine," Adrian said, clearly arriving at the same thought I had. He answered without hesitation on my behalf. "Since they're asking for it, we'll agree to all of it."
After all, we would only understand what was really going on once we made contact. The best way to verify the truth was simply to go. Even if Noxis truly was the one orchestrating everything, we could use the negotiation process to learn more about him.
Besides the location, there was also the time. The monster side set a final deadline: we had to reach the negotiation site by noon tomorrow at the latest.
Lezbi Port lay at the northernmost tip of the Eldoria Continent—and also the northernmost edge of the Barren Lands. It had been abandoned for years, facing the sea and staring across at the Dark Continent from afar. The time was already nearing midday. For humans, reaching that place within a single day was extremely tight; theoretically, only the fastest airship could barely make it. For angels, however, high-speed flight meant travel was not much of an issue.
"Don't worry," Elara reassured several kingdom officials who still looked uneasy. "For security, I'll redeploy the Barren Lands' garrison—Third Legion will move in advance to defend the area around the port. Sixth Legion will provide support farther out. And your kingdom also has stationed forces in the Barren Lands that can be mobilized at any time. That should make it foolproof."
"Even if these negotiations really are a trap," she added, "with the angels backing it up—and with these preparations in place—we should still be able to handle it."
In just a few sentences, nearly the strongest fighting forces on the entire continent had been gathered around this negotiation. Meredith nodded in approval at Elara's careful arrangements and even volunteered to go along.
"I'll also report this immediately to Lord Adonis in Crescent City. This means the Sages' Alliance will follow the situation in real time as well!"
At that point, the kingdom officials could hardly say anything more. They hurriedly took their leave to inform King Galahad of the situation. Then Meredith suddenly turned to me and asked, "Can you contact Nicola? If she were present, we'd have even better odds."
"She might still be in the Holy Capital… but there probably isn't time to notify her," I said, shaking my head helplessly. I genuinely didn't know where Nicola was at that exact moment.
"What a shame… looks like we'll have to postpone going to Edenmere again," Adrian sighed with regret. With time so tight—and with the pressure of his Fate Breaker status and the monster side's demands—he and I had no choice but to delay our plans and temporarily join this critical negotiation.
Fortunately, Cyra's absence could be temporarily filled by Cyrae. So even if not every member of the newest newborn-angel generation was present, it should still basically satisfy their condition.
…
Less than a day had passed since yesterday's attack, and the prophecy of national annihilation hung over everyone's heads. The kingdom's high command remained on edge, and their efficiency was astonishingly fast. In just a few hours, the basic plan and assignments for the negotiations were finalized.
The ground of the guard drill yard beside the royal castle slowly split and slid apart, revealing a vast concealed underground space. A small airship rose from an underground dock next to the castle. Onboard were dozens of special diplomatic officials from the kingdom, along with Elara, Adrian, and the others leading the delegation—officially setting off toward the Barren Lands.
As for Cyrae and me, under Elara's temporary appointment, we led over a dozen Angel Guard members and flew ahead to Lezbi Port to conduct advance reconnaissance and security work.
These Angel Guard members, who normally protected the queen's safety, were typically six-winged or above. With high-speed flight skills, we reached our destination smoothly that very night.
Lezbi Port had once been a temporary military harbor built centuries ago, when humans—led by a Hero—constructed it specifically for an expedition to the Dark Continent. As the continent's situation changed over time, the once-bustling port had long since fallen into desolation. Ruined buildings lay scattered along the coastline; the roofs of most houses had collapsed, and vines and moss crawled over the walls. Cold sea wind, heavy with salt and fishy stink, howled through the wreckage with a low, mournful sound, and now and then the surf slapped against the shattered pier.
After a thorough search and patrol, we confirmed that there were no signs of monsters within several kilometers of the port. That was enough to show that the monster side had no intention of laying hands on the negotiation site in advance. However, a few Angel Guard members discovered something else: on a beach not far from the port, there was a group of four or five humans—apparently an adventurer team—resting and camping there.
"This is very close to the Dark Continent," Cyrae said after a brief pause, "and the aura of dark elements in the environment is much denser than inland. Ordinary human adventuring teams rarely push this deep into the very end of the Barren Lands… I can't help feeling uneasy."
There were indeed plenty of adventurers who formed teams and entered the Barren Lands each year to complete commissions. But after thinking for a moment, Cyrae decided it would be safer for the two of us to go check in person.
"But as long as they have some strength," I argued, "reaching here by luck isn't exactly impossible, right?"
Rumor had it that many pieces of high-grade equipment and weapons from the human expeditionary army had been lost around Lezbi Port back then, attracting treasure hunters willing to pay enormous costs—and even risk their lives—to seek loot in the Barren Lands. I felt that maybe Cyrae was overthinking it.
But then another Angel Guard member came flying over in a panic and reported:
"Something's wrong! Our people went to question them, and it escalated into a fight!"
What an outrageous misunderstanding. Putting aside the fact that very few humans could stand up to high-ranking angels, the angels had an extremely strong reputation across the northern continent. In theory, something like this should never have happened.
What's more, among the two angels left at the scene was an eight-winged angel. There would've been no time to hide their wings—yet those humans still dared to strike first, meaning they had to be extremely confident.
"They're not ordinary adventurers!" I realized at once that something was off. I immediately rushed over with Cyrae.
Sure enough—when we arrived over the camp, only a few minutes had passed, and the fight was already over.
And the winner was the human side.
Both the six-winged angel and the eight-winged angel from our Angel Guard had been captured. Thankfully, when they saw Cyrae and me arrive with the rest of the group, the humans didn't do anything excessive to harm the captives. Instead, they held weapons to the hostages' throats, clearly trying to threaten us into not moving any closer.
With five pairs of wings behind me—and an entire angel detachment arriving in force—the humans immediately started to lose their nerve. Their leader appeared to be a tall man in his early thirties, with short blond hair and deep blue eyes. His steps were steady and confident, giving off the air of someone battle-hardened. Yet his outfit was unusual: he was wearing a gray camouflage uniform.