A beautiful elf with black hair, green eyes, and skin so pale it appeared almost sickly, gazed into the distance at the region of Fittoa, her expression filled with obvious concern.
"You should have been teleported by now, everyone should have disappeared..."
"Master Elaine, urgent news from Fittoa!"
"Sylphy, what's going on?" Elaine looked at her disciple, who, in addition to learning magic, had a strong interest in the trade she worked in.
"They told me to deliver this letter to you, I'm sorry, but since it said 'urgent from Fittoa,' I read the header, and the news seems to be dire..." Sylphy, who at this moment had small white strands of hair sliding down her cheeks and the rest green, showed deep concern for what she had read.
Elaine smiled at her student, not blaming her but still reminding her: "Remember that if your emotions control your actions, you're losing to your impulses. I'll pretend this didn't happen, but I hope you won't do it again in the future."
"Yes, Master!" Sylphy bowed and walked alongside Elaine as they both gazed at the reddish hue spreading across the sky.
"The region of Fittoa has been damaged by 58.00%, our lord personally took measures to reduce the estimated 100% damage! In addition, considering the losses and affected inhabitants, it's estimated that there will be 150,000 casualties. We have managed to shelter 400,000 people."
"The White Eagle plan will commence, and the Mercenaries, under the name of the Templar Knights, will initiate large-scale searches, sending reports and offering rewards. Various slave businesses have been informed."
"The Towers of Uruk, operating under the name Black Pearl, will secretly work to find survivors until the Asura Kingdom's Crown makes an official statement."
"Official envoys have been dispatched with Prince Gilgamesh's direct representation, diplomatically requesting each kingdom's support in safeguarding Asura's citizens. In return for their assistance, favorable trade agreements may be reached."
"In secret, the pigeons will soon learn the response from this kingdom, and depending on whether they help or not, we will declare a report on what transpired. Furthermore, we anticipate chaos in the requests from adventurers, as planned, our requests will be extended to adventurers from other kingdoms."
Elaine, upon finishing reading the letter, turned into ashes, her cold gaze filled with cruelty, and she muttered, "I suppose it's time to plan the construction of Asura Kingdom's new capital, the City of Gold."
"Master, may I inquire about the scale of the damage?" Sylphy was anxious for her friend and those she cared about, like the Greyrat family.
"The entire city of Roa was destroyed by a mana disaster, and the incident damaged half of the Fittoa region, most likely completely destroying your hometown. We still don't know the extent of the damage, but as a mana disaster suggests, all people within the damage radius were teleported to different parts of the world, and it's estimated that 60% of the affected will die due to their circumstances."
Sylphy's gaze froze upon hearing this news; if she were in Bonna Village right now, not only she but also her parents would be affected.
"Is there any chance they'll survive?" Sylphy convinced herself that it was true and that they would all be fine.
Elaine, seeing her student's state, said, "2 out of 10 people will survive, although that 60% translates to 6 out of 10, and that's in the best-case scenario right after being teleported. Some fall into the sea, others from heights even mighty beasts wouldn't survive, and others are sent to regions where even powerful knights would find it difficult to return."
"It can't be..." Sylphy felt like her whole world was spinning; she couldn't come to terms with the reality her teacher had just revealed.
"Sylphy, you should be thankful that Gilgamesh took the trouble to bring you here. What happened is a true tragedy, but at least you can take comfort in the fact that your parents are nearby." Elaine walked over to her student and said, "Take the whole day; I'm sure if we ask, Prince Gilgamesh will agree to help us rescue all those affected."
"Wasn't he in Fittoa?" Sylphy asked, only to realize that he had probably already moved from there.
"That's not a concern," Elaine didn't respond and said, "You need to become stronger, Sylphy, at the very least, good enough to protect your parents."
"In that case, I'll retire." Sylphy returned to her parents to deliver this tragic news.
By the time she was out of Elaine's sight, Elaine snapped her fingers and said, "Shadows, begin the cleanup plan. Make sure to train the slave traders from other continents very well."
The shadowy figures that appeared near Elaine nodded and without saying a word, they began to move to carry out the orders.
...
"Aaaaahhhhh!"
"Who the hell are you, and why are you doing this to us?" a slave trader asked after witnessing how his guards, who were originally slaves, were incapacitated with just a few movements by the enemy.
"We are the fledglings of the three-eyed crow that sees all, and we're here to buy all your slaves," said the man wearing a crow mask.
"You bastard, then why don't you make those purchases through conventional means, you son of a bitch?" the slave trader roared, lying in a pool of blood from one of his assassins who had been turned into pulp by the enemy.
"It seems you don't understand; we want you to sell us absolutely all the slaves that enter this place. For someone like you, this business should be very tempting." The man with the crow mask pointed and continued, "There's only one rule: if you sell a single slave to anyone other than us, we will first cut off one of your hands and then kill the buyer."
The man approached the slave trader so closely that he trembled. "Don't come any closer..."
"But if you decide to keep lying and betraying the three-eyed crow, you'll die in the cruelest way you can imagine. Have you ever thought about being eaten by pigs while you're still alive?"
"I don't want to experience that," the trader said, with a pale expression.
"Then we have a deal. Here are two thousand gold coins, which are equivalent to the more than five hundred slaves you have here. Since most of them are in poor condition, I suppose it's a fair price." Said the man with the crow mask.
"That's a very good price. You shouldn't have caused all this chaos; I surely would have chosen you as the only customer if you had asked..."
"Don't fail us; we'll be watching you, the three-eyed crow will be watching you."