Eren settled between Nina and Levine, his expression silently conveying an unspoken apology to Agatha.
He didn't wish to exclude Miss Manager from his whereabouts or dodge her calls, but the past few days had taken a significant toll.
He had crisscrossed Anfang, using the power of space-element runes to engage with formidable and often sinister entities. These days had been a whirlwind of meetings and negotiations, blurring the boundaries of day and night.
"Now that you're here, allow me to brief you on some crucial details regarding tomorrow's deployment," Agatha began, taking a deep breath in preparation to outline her decisions for the White Raven Guild members. However, Eren interrupted her with a single sentence, his expression earnest and his voice calm.
"Miss Manager, we don't need to adhere to Edinburgh's guidelines anymore," Eren stated matter-of-factly. "For tomorrow's battle, we will only deploy Expert Rankers and above. Even then, our guild members won't risk their lives in direct combat with Layos' forces. Their primary focus should be on survival until the Sage Rankers initiate their battles. Once the S-Rankers from both sides engage, all of you need to retreat."
Agatha and everyone else in the meeting room were left momentarily speechless by Eren's words. It took a moment for the implications of his statement to sink in.
"Eren... Are you... are you serious?" Agatha asked, her expression a mix of shock and concern. "What you're proposing could be seen as treason once it becomes known," she cautioned, her voice trembling.
"Guild Master, this isn't a time for jokes," Jiana Jihang interjected, her face marked by seriousness as she expressed her displeasure. "Don't underestimate Edinburgh's central administration. We've painstakingly worked out all the details. We simply need your approval," she added, casting an almost accusing look at Eren.
Eren, through a private voice communication channel with Jiana, playfully teased her. 'Jiana, my dear, why do you insist on calling me 'guild master' when you can call me 'Eren' or something even more endearing? I might just leave a love bite on those lovely elf ears of yours tonight to ensure you hear my name loud and clear,' he whispered to her.
Eren appreciated Jiana's dedication to maintaining professional decorum, even in their close relationship. The more professionally she behaved, the more he was drawn to her.
Alas, the time of war didn't allow intimate times with the lovely ladies in his life. All he could do at this point was flirt.
Eren's private comment caused Jiana's cheeks to redden slightly, but she watched as he shifted to a serious demeanor and continued speaking for everyone to hear.
"Hmm. So where was I? Yes! Guys, I wouldn't joke about something like this. Don't concern yourselves with charges of treason. Given how events are likely to unfold, Edinburgh won't even have an opportunity to address the consequences of this battle.
And in the best or… um… worst-case scenario, there's a chance this world will witness a new future that no one could have imagined," Eren concluded, his tone solemn as he surveyed the Rankers gathered around the table.
Eren's ominous prediction about the war triggered a barrage of questions from all corners of the room. White Raven guild members grappled with the idea that defying the kingdom might not be in the guild's or the City of White Raven's long-term interests. After all, wars eventually come to an end. To ensure the guild's prosperity beyond the conflict, members believed they needed to commit wholeheartedly to this full-scale war.
Getting stamped as traitors was not a good idea especially during such a crucial time. The guild might lose all support from the general populace, allowing Edinburgh's central administration to take strict actions against it.
The tension was particularly palpable because Eren had accepted vital war contracts from Edinburgh. The kingdom had fulfilled its part of the deal by providing the guild with an array of rare ranking resources typically reserved for privileged Rankers. Now, it was the White Raven Guild's turn to fulfill its obligations.
It appeared that Eren wasn't concerned about the repercussions that he and others involved in the binding contract might face due to this decision.
While Eren didn't offer definitive answers to Agatha or anyone else, he made it clear that his decision was final and that strict adherence to his orders was expected from everyone.
Taking the lead in the meeting, Eren outlined the deployment strategies he had devised. He urged guild members to avoid a specific location on the battlefield and tasked Jiana with leveraging her connections in the central administration to secure an altered deployment location for guild members. The goal was to legally keep as many White Raven members as possible away from this particular area.
Eren also tasked Agatha with procuring rations and ranking resources, enough to sustain the city for at least a century. He expressed the need for the city to prepare for a potential siege in case the situation took a dire turn.
Over the past week, Eren had already struck deals with various merchant organizations, arranging for the delivery of a wide range of supplies and long-lasting food rations. Agatha's role was to ensure the smooth reception of these forthcoming deliveries and to secure additional regular supplies through her own channels.
All of this had to be accomplished while the full-scale war raged on. In line with Jiana's predictions about the involvement of Sage Ranked entities, Eren emphasized that these tasks needed to be completed within a tight window of 3 to 4 days, starting the next day.
Agatha found herself perplexed by Eren's decisions. She couldn't fathom why he was adamant about fortifying the city as if preparing for a prolonged siege lasting years. If she didn't know any better, she might have assumed that the battle between Edinburgh and Layos was about to take place right outside the walls of the City of White Raven.
Agatha felt a growing sense of frustration as she continued to absorb Eren's elaborate plans. Eventually, she had to express a harsh reality to him: the guild's financial resources were insufficient for the extensive stockpiling he envisioned, especially in the midst of an ongoing war.
Eren's use of over half of the guild's funds for his undisclosed private project had burnt a hole through the guild's pockets.
It left the guild with an inadequate amount of cash to procure the vast quantity of supplies and ranking resources he was requesting.
Eren, fully aware of the guild's financial situation from the outset, had a solution prepared. He provided Agatha with a storage artifact, all the while instructing other guild members on their specific roles, emphasizing the importance of diversifying their efforts beyond the war.
When Agatha examined the contents of the storage artifact Eren had entrusted to her, she was on the verge of sheer astonishment. It contained a vast assortment of Extols, along with an array of other rare treasures and valuable ranking resources, all of which could be converted into much-needed funds.
What Eren had handed over was his personal fortune, painstakingly amassed over a decade through arms deals with various organizations. It was as though he had decided to relinquish all his wealth, leaving himself with almost nothing, as if he were embracing a monk's life.
Agatha let out a resigned sigh as she recognized the futility of arguing with Eren or seeking any rationale behind his course of action. It was evident that he had firmly decided on his course. She stowed the storage artifact away and, at last, conceded to his demands.
The team captains and vice-captains of their respective squads harbored a certain satisfaction that their lower-ranked subordinates wouldn't be recklessly thrown into battle as cannon fodder. Nonetheless, they also needed to ensure their own safety in the midst of the war and potential reprisals from Edinburgh. After all, all of them were at the risk of being labeled as traitors to the kingdom.
***
Just a few hours remained until the official commencement of the full-scale war between Edinburgh and Layos.
In the eerie twilight hour, a chilling night breeze rustled through the dense forest. In the midst of the Badlands, a certain demon beast was on the brink of achieving an S-Rank breakthrough.
He had laid low for a very long time while harnessing his demonic powers to digest the accumulated faith energy. This was his chance to put those accumulations to right use.
This demon beast was none other than Argo, and the timing for his ascent to the coveted S-Rank had been deliberately chosen by Eren and himself. With the impending war looming, neither Edinburgh, Layos, nor the Anfang Alliance could afford to divert their attention to Argo's transformation.
"Aaaargh!" Argo's cry echoed through the night as his mana core erupted, marking the initiation of his S-Rank breakthrough. Instantaneously, storm clouds converged overhead. In his humanoid form, Argo sat cross-legged atop a massive, black stone etched with enigmatic runes.
The already dim twilight sky grew even darker as obsidian clouds gathered over Argo. Howling winds whipped around him, and the black clouds released a torrential downpour of fiery liquid, subjecting Argo to a raging inferno. Within a five-mile radius around Argo, the tranquil forest was instantaneously reduced to ashes.
The deluge of flames from the ominous clouds showed no sign of relenting. The surrounding winds conjured abstract wind blades that tore through everything in their path.
As Argo's breakthrough reached its critical point, the S-Rank mana in the area surged. Even Anfang's World Will was summoned, exerting immense pressure on Argo.
Argo's body was engulfed in flames from the sky, his durable demonic form bearing numerous wounds from the razor-sharp winds. It was evident that the entire world was determined to challenge his ascent to S-Rank.
"My liege, I've never witnessed anyone attracting such calamity upon themselves in pursuit of an S-Rank breakthrough," commented Ror, who stood behind Eren as they observed the distant spectacle. Eren and Ror had maintained a safe distance from Argo as he embarked on his transformation into an S-Rank entity within Anfang.
"Hmm. Let's say he is very special," Eren answered nonchalantly.
Argo had informed Eren that his breakthrough would provoke such a calamity, owing to his progress in the Ranking Journey fueled by the faith energy he had accumulated over a decade. His restaurant chain, Billy's, had generated a potent reservoir of faith energy as patrons indulged in the Sin of Gluttony.
This abundant reserve of faith energy had propelled him swiftly through the Ranking Journey, enabling him to reach the apex Rank of Anfang within a mere decade. His inherently freedom-loving spirit would find no restraints once this breakthrough was achieved.
