"This is a top-secret operation,"
declared Cardinal Miralda, my direct superior and once my instructor at the Academy.
We were in a dimly lit room of an underground bunker beneath the Holy Church's Grand Cathedral on the Sacred Nation's mainland. The flickering lamplight cast harsh shadows across Miralda's already deeply furrowed face, making her look more severe than usual.
"The White Dragons have rebelled against the Demon Lord. With their cooperation, the elite of each race and the Holy Church will launch an aerial assault on the Demon Lord's castle to attempt his assassination."
"...Are you serious?"
I couldn't help but let my true feelings slip out. At first, I thought she was cracking another one of her grim jokes.
But Miralda didn't even smile. The furrow between her brows deepened.
