Chapter 99: Displaying Might

Chapter 99: Displaying Might

Boom! Boom!

Inside an underground shelter somewhere in Backlund, Audrey, dressed in hunting attire, tilted her head and listened to the explosions that still seemed to be coming from far away.

When she turned back, she happened to see Melissa looking at her with a faintly dazed expression.

The young woman, who had only just come of age, asked in a voice as distant as sleep-talking, “Miss Audrey, if we suffer a complete defeat, will the war end? Will we no longer have to worry about shelling, bombings, and food shortages?”

Audrey looked at her deeply and said, “But if that happens, you will have to change your faith.”

Melissa hesitated, not knowing how to answer. At that moment, a commoner curled up beside the wall blurted out,

“I believe in the God of Steam and Machinery! Even if Feysac and Intis win, I won’t need to convert!”

When that time came, life could return to its former warmth and peace.

Those words stirred many of the civilians hiding in the shelter. They began whispering among themselves, frequently exchanging opinions about possible developments, and there was no lack of believers of Evernight among them.

For most people, faith was not so important when weighed against life itself. In the end, the one protecting them would still be a true god.

The police officers maintaining order in the shelter did nothing to stop the unrest from spreading. They looked on coldly, even with a faint trace of anticipation.

But what the defeated will suffer will be far crueler than you can imagine. It can’t be summed up by a simple change of faith… Whether from the lessons history had left behind or the conclusions she could draw from the present state of people’s hearts, Audrey was more pessimistic than everyone else here.

She swept her gaze around and couldn’t help sighing inwardly.

The Goddess’s anchors have already been shaken on a large scale… If not for the food distributed earlier still supporting them, they might already have collapsed completely…

Audrey knew very well what this situation meant. She closed her eyes, lifted her face slightly, and silently murmured,

“The war of gods is about to begin…”

And the final result would soon be revealed.

After nodding to Melissa, Audrey turned and left that area, arriving near the shelter’s exit.

Susie, the golden retriever, was crouching there like a qualified guard.

“You do not seem to intend to return?” Susie’s nose twitched as she asked in a lowered voice.

Audrey had only hidden in this shelter when the siege began that day and had not had time to return to her family’s residence in Queen Borough. As the battle eased slightly, Earl Hall had twice sent people to urge her home, to enter the shelter reserved for the nobles.

Audrey shook her head and said with a faint smile, “I need to do something I should do.”

Before Susie could respond, Audrey continued, still smiling, “Stay here in my place. Secretly soothe their emotions and don’t let disorder break out here. If they want to pet you, you may let them do so appropriately.”

Susie hesitated for two seconds before saying, “All right.”

Audrey said nothing more. She left the shelter through the exit, and the soldiers responsible for guarding it completely ignored her.

Outside, the sky was dim and heavy. Many buildings had already collapsed, burning with flames that were close to dying out. The streets were empty, without carriages or pedestrians.

This was completely different from the Backlund in Audrey’s memory.

The old Backlund had been blue, yellow, and creamy white. It had been bustling, prosperous, and full of vitality. Now it was gray, black, and crimson; withered, disorderly, and faintly deathly still.

Audrey glanced left and right. Dressed in her hunting outfit, she determined her direction and headed toward the edge of the city.

What she intended to do was simple:

Join this war and, within her capabilities, help Loen’s forces avoid collapsing before the war of gods…