Chapter 176: I have to do this
Immediately after Cassius’s lips parted and his calm, commanding voice finished echoing across the Great Hall, Nelson rose from his seat. His silver knight tunic caught the flickering light of the pulsing green runes as he raised one hand, summoning a massive holographic screen that appeared at the center of the eight-pillared circle.
The image on the screen was clear and crisp, despite its origin being from a distant surveillance feed. It showed a man standing beneath a streetlight on a rainy night—a sharp jawline, silver-white hair, and eyes that seemed to glow faintly, even under the grainy visual filter. Alex.
Nelson’s voice carried the practiced weight of command, sharp and steady.
"I’m sure we’ve all been briefed about this man, so I won’t waste your time reiterating his history. What you need to know is this—we believe he is currently somewhere in Europe. It’s the closest continent to the Earth Domain, and considering the breach in Geb Fortress and what we’ve uncovered about his connections, it’s only logical he would’ve headed here next."
The image flickered, then shifted—to a poised woman with flowing blue hair, wearing a pristine white coat lined with the emblem of the World Association. Her name was displayed in glowing characters beneath her image.
Lauren.
"The situation has taken a turn," Nelson continued, his expression tightening just slightly. "We issued a high-level bounty to make his movements difficult—bait to stir the underground, to limit his ability to move freely or hide in the shadows. To be honest we already knew that the bounty would be useless, as we accounted for disguises, illusionary artifacts, even high-grade identity shifts. The bounty was never meant to actually catch him—it was a net, not a spear. But..."
He gestured at the image on screen.
"This woman—Lauren , current daughter to the President of the Association and the one to take over after him—has picked up the signal. She has been seen making her way into the branch quarters of the association. Which means the association are taking the bounty seriously. Which is not what we intended."
Freya shifted in her seat, her petite form still and silent, her sharp eyes narrowing ever so slightly.
"If the global government gets wind of our involvement," Nelson continued, "they will interfere. And if that happens, our hands will be tied. We do not want a continent-wide investigation pointing back to the Wind Clan."