Chapter 241 Attention
Some of the major cities in the empire had Oracle Academies, these were huge facilities where future Oracles were selected.
Many of the Oracles were sent to various towns and villages to keep an eye on the situation around them. Under the control of Order was to be the entire territory of the empire, Oracles had to watch every piece of land that appeared Chaos Hearth, was sure to be cleared.
Also in some cities, and especially in the capital, in Tergaron, there were special bases of the Order, for the Oracles. There, as if they were scientists, they conducted research and studied unusual anomalies that occurred even outside the territory of the empire.
In the central base, the most important one in Tergaron, there was chaos going on right now. Dozens of people were running through the corridors, rushing to report the news to different rooms or hand over some important documents.
Most of them were ordinary people, not mages or knights. However, they had important jobs that other people could only dream of because they were assistants to Oracles working in the central base of the Tergaron. Observatory - S-01.
S-01 was located near the center of the Tergaron, a massive blue dome with a bee honeycomb pattern. Some of the honeycombs were open, for massive telescopes and some other magical instruments.
Getting here was an honor for every Oracle, as even among them, it took years of experience and talent to work in Observatory S-01. The selection was done personally by the officers of the Order. Their order meant a great deal and could decide the entire life of one particular person.
"Miss! I have a report ready!" A young man in a white robe and round glasses ran into a wide room.
In the center stood a middle-aged woman with long white hair and blue eyes. With a pensive look, holding her chin, she looked at a three-dimensional projection of all the empire's territories floating above a bright blue crystal.
There were red dots in some places on the map, and they were far apart, most often in forests or mountainous areas. She didn't pay any attention to them, as they were First Tier Chaos Hearths.
Some points had a ring around them, which meant they were Second Tier Chaos Hearths, but they were all already reported and the Fate Knights were moving in to clear them.
In fact, in most cases, Order didn't have to take part in clearing Chaos Hearths. The local Knight and Mage Academies, as well as the powerful Noble Families, each had connections and personal squads of talented fighters.
The woman's gaze was directed to the eastern part of the map, the only part that hadn't been fully explored since the Dark Lands were located there.
"Fine, good work, but..." The woman muttered, "I don't think that makes any sense. We've already figured out everything possible, and there's hardly anything we can do..."
The woman's gaze shifted to the left, where Dark Mist Forest was, to its northern part. There was something special there, instead of a red dot there was a huge scarlet sword covered in flames.
"Chaos Trial, moreover, this one also includes a choice for the participant... Damn, why did this happen right now?" The woman frowned, "There's no way we were able to notice it, though there shouldn't be such a thing."
"Miss. The report says it may be related to the missing Zayne Fellen." The young man said, sludge of sheets in his hands.
"Hmm? Who is this guy? First I've heard of." The woman raised an eyebrow. She didn't understand why she didn't know of someone whose name was included in the report.
"Traveller has quickly become one of the best among them, according to our information. Recently, he was invited to Zexiton Academy by Solomon himself." The young man read on.
"Agh...? He's a student of Solomon's?" The woman was surprised.
The young man shook his head, "No, Zayne Fellen is not a mage, he is following the path of a Knight. Solomon invited him to Zexiton Academy to participate in a tournament for young talents. However, he is also interested in Erel Uri, who wants to offer him to become a Fate Knight."
"Damn... Solomon, Crusader... This guy hasn't been in our world for that long, but he already has such powerful connections. So, what happened to him?" The woman asked with emerging interest.
Zayne's disappearance was important because it involved Chaos, but it wasn't the most important event in the entire empire to have all Oracles watching it. Especially in Observatory S-01.
"Yeah, his progress is impressive." The young man nodded before continuing, "Zayne Fellen was kidnapped by Chaos, right in Zexiton Academy."
The woman's eyes went wide, "What...? Zexiton Academy is being watched by Anet, I don't believe she didn't notice it! This is simply impossible!"
The young man gulped, "Chaos Seed has appeared in Zexiton Academy, however, that's not all. Chaos Seed was hidden in the heart of Oracle who was killed in Red Feather City. Supposedly, it was done by Karin, the Frost Moon, one of the Moon Shattered Order."
"Shit..." Woman muttered, resting her hands on the table with a dazed expression, "But, why did they do it? What does Moon Shattered Order want with Zayne Fellen, or is it Chaos' fault?"
The young man cleared his throat, "Commander Marcus was sent on a rescue mission. They are currently in Dark Mist Forest and are heading towards Chaos Trial. If Zayne Fellen, happens to be nearby they will rescue him and return back."
"Fine." Woman nodded. She didn't even bother to ask if Zayne could become a member of the Chaos Trial since in her opinion it was impossible. If Erel Uri was interested in him, then Fate had already turned its attention to Zayne many times. So, she was sure that Zayne was just a victim of the situation.
"Miss, what do you think will happen next?" The young man asked with a curious expression, "I started working here recently, and this is the first time I'm facing this kind of situation. Shouldn't we do something to stop it? I think Order should send combat troops over there, don't you think so?"
The woman smiled bitterly while shaking her head, "You sound logical, but it also shows that you don't realize what nonsense you're actually saying."
"Agh...?" The young man felt awkward.
"You think Chaos Trial is an important event only for us? Only lasts for the residents of the empire?" The woman grinned, "I'm sure right now there are hundreds of monsters gathered around Chaos Trial and despite that, I doubt any of them will fight."
"But, why?" The young man was puzzled.
"Because that's not why they came there. Their purpose is to watch for a very rare event, especially since Chaos rules in the Dark Lands. Fate has little to no power there." The woman explained, "Even if someone decides to break that order, this one will immediately face the wrath of everyone else."
The young man gulped, "In that case... What should we do now?"
The woman shrugged, "Nothing. Keep an eye on the situation, just like the monsters around Chaos Trial. Even if a squad consisting of only Crusaders goes there, it won't change anything. Especially if someone from Moon Shattered Order is there."
The young man's face darkened as he clenched his fists tightly, "Those bastards... They're so strong, yet they're hindering us!"
"Are you talking about Moon Shattered Order?" The woman glanced back.
"Yes! They say that even Crusader isn't as strong as them. Many refuse to believe it, but I know it's true! If they were to join us, we could easily destroy all of Chaos!" The young man exclaimed, truly believing in his words.
"Perhaps you're right..." The woman muttered with a deep look, actually not taking his words seriously at all.
'Well, given his inexperience and youth, it's no wonder he thinks so. It will be many more years before he realizes that some will stick to their ideology to the very end.' The woman inwardly sighed before looking at the map.
Chaos Trial was an important event for the entire world because it was extremely rare, and if a monster successfully passed the Chao Trial, then after a few years, that monster would become a real threat. Against such an enemy, several Crusaders had to be used to defend the empire's territories.
...
"What is this...?" Zayne muttered, looking at the splashes in the water.
Whoooooooooooooosh.
Suddenly, four piranhas with massive jaws and four bloodshot eyes jumped out of the crimson liquid. Everything happened fast enough that Zayne didn't have time to react, at least, that was the monsters' plan.
Crackle.
Zayne summoned his sword sharply and took a few swings, slicing the piranhas to pieces. Their protective scales couldn't save them from the sharp blade of the black sword that easily ended their lives.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
Then, the lake surface shuddered as dozens of piranha tails emerged from beneath it. All of them were heading straight for Zayne at high speed, with the sole intention of devouring him.
'Hmm... If this is the first stage, it won't be hard.' Zayne thought as his eyes grew deeper.