"So after all that, you're a council member too? Should I start addressing you as Councilwoman Serena from now on?"
I couldn't help but tease her as I sat down in my seat. I didn't expect Serena to have this additional role.
I had always assumed that an angel would need at least ten wings to be on the council, but apparently eight wings were enough to get a seat.
"Titles like that are just formalities. You can keep it simple. Actually, all the legion commanders have a place on the High Council, so I barely squeezed in," Serena waved her hand modestly.
Since there was still some time before the meeting began, she casually explained some things about the High Council and the angel legions to pass time.
Only now did I know that the angel legions were divided into six sub-legions, which coincidentally occupied half the seats.
The other six council members were all venerable ten-winged angels. Aside from Elara and Meg whom I knew, and the infamous Yvonne and her lackey Memy whom I hadn't met, there was still one more unknown member.
"Given the emergency nature of this High Council meeting called by Lady Elara due to the invasion, it was expected that nearly half the members would be absent. This is really unprecedented."
Looking at the empty seats around us, Serena seemed slightly sentimental.
"Josie, commander of the 2nd Legion, and Janette, commander of the 4th Legion, died in the invasion since they were traitors. I'm sure you already knew that."
"The commanders of the 3rd and 6th Legions definitely won't attend this time. They lead nearly a thousand angel officers garrisoned long-term at the Borderlands to defend against northern monsters, so there's no way for them to rush back at such short notice."
"As for the last remaining Elder of the three...well..."
She hesitated slightly here, seemingly unsure about confirming something.
"I've never even seen this legendary third Elder, not to mention knowing her name. It seems very few angels in Edenmere are aware of her existence." Upon hearing Serena's words, Cyra immediately leaned over and whispered to me.
"How mysterious!" I couldn't help but retort. But at this point, more and more angels had started entering the room, including Elara and Nicola.
As soon as Nicola entered the room, she looked around and immediately headed over when she saw us.
"What have you been so busy with after getting back from the Dark Lands? You've been attached at the hip with Elara and nowhere to be seen," Cyra questioned her right away.
"It's really nothing. After leaving the office, we went to the archives again because Elara wanted to find some documents proving my relationship with her..." Nicola answered quite casually. But she didn't reveal any details about the critical information.
"What relationship? Don't tell me you two were in-laws or lovers thousands of years ago?" Cyra clearly wasn't having it and kept pressing for an answer.
"It's about your Condensation Sword, right?"
I naturally didn't believe such a contrived scenario. But I had my own guesses, especially since I hadn't forgotten the change in their attitudes after leaving the Dark Lands.
"Uh...it's really not appropriate to talk about this beforehand. It's not that Elara doesn't trust you all, mainly she's worried about eavesdroppers!"
As I expected, Nicola didn't outright deny it, so it was likely related to Liana. Michelle's attitude changed immediately upon seeing the Condensation Sword. Elara probably reacted the same way, and she may also have known Liana.
Speaking of which, from my previous conversation with Yvonne, it seemed Elara was not as clueless about Michelle's origins as I had imagined. She appeared to have concealed quite a bit of the truth. If that was the case, I figured I should try to ask her for clarity after the meeting, even if she was reluctant to tell me due to confidentiality.
After all, Michelle was still alive, amazingly surviving even a hydrogen bomb! We couldn't rest easy with that threat still around.
"We agreed that if I keep it confidential and help her get through this difficult time, she'll immediately consent to us leaving Edenmere. Not only can Cyra go out to get her wings treated, she can also join us to find the Sages' Alliance. Reed is already a given."
In order to reassure us, Nicola had no choice but to first reveal the terms of their agreement.
"Really?" Cyra immediately stopped probing as soon as she heard it involved permission for her to travel outside.
"But what difficulties could Elara face at this time? Shouldn't the Reformist have the upper hand now?" I still didn't quite understand. Based on the information so far, this so-called difficult time was likely to occur during the High Council meeting. But with Yvonne imprisoned and conservative members like Janette dead, I really couldn't imagine what other difficulties could arise.
"That's not necessarily true."
Hearing our discussion, Serena suddenly turned around to interject.
"Before this rebellion, the conservatives actually slightly outnumbered the reformists on the High Council, but neutralist Councillor Meg and the 6th Legion commander always supported reformists, so the balance is tipped".
"Although the conservatives are weakened this time, the reformist is missing their 3rd Legion commander and the moderate 6th Legion commander, so the advantage isn't as great as imagined. And with top Councillor Meg's questionable health, there's also the possibility of flipping sides at the last minute, so the situation isn't that optimistic..."
"Even if Councillor Meg has special circumstances, it shouldn't make that big of an impact, right?"
I was also reminded of Meg's wavering expression when facing Janette. She was sitting right across from Serena, and although looking very stern, did not seem as despondent as rumored.
"It's hard to say. After all, Councillor Meg also has the status of an Elder. With Yvonne gone, her decision represents half the Elders' weight. If she can also persuade the remaining neutral Elder, then according to the Elders' privileges..."
As Serena spoke, she trailed off into contemplation.
I was taken aback by the sudden mention of some Elders' privileges. Wasn't it supposed to be majority rule?
Just as I was about to inquire further, I saw Elara suddenly stand up at her seat and announce:
"It's time. I now call this emergency High Council meeting to order!"
Here we go! My heart stirred as I glanced at Nicola beside me. I was finally going to find out what she and Elara were scheming.