NOVEL WEB 9: Three-Pronged Reactionary Meetings
[Library of Truth, Map of Marcen’s Cliffs (Restricted Version).
Location Added: Leaves of Dawn
Level of Caution: SS, Extreme Caution Advised.
Entities Present: Goddess of Gravity Valencia and Goddess of Dawn (temporary) Astrid
General Information:
Leaves of Dawn is a small cafe situated at the corner intersection between two streets as marked on the map. The shop serves tea everyday and plans to serve pastries and other food items whenever available.
Store will open at dawn. However, the closing time depends on the storekeeper’s mood. Due to this the cafe will also sometimes close at random hours during the day.
Flexibility is highly advised if one is planning any type of interaction with or visit to this location.
After a thorough assessment of the location, the danger presented by the location to the safety and order of the general populace is very low to non-existent.
Reason for Caution:
Primary storekeeper is Valencia, one of the eight Primordial Deities.
The store is run primarily by an extremely powerful goddess with high level combat capabilities. Furthermore, due to her combative nature, the high level combat capabilities are used without hesitation.
The only other person present is also a deity. Astrid, though much more mild tempered, is much less powerful than Valencia. Notably, Astrid is in possession of high-potential healing powers. Due to Astrid’s potential, she is fiercely guarded; entering the store with care and treating both storekeepers with care is highly advised.
Entry added by: God of Knowledge, Solomon (Administrator)]
With a new SS-Level location being added to the official map of Marcen’s Cliffs put out by the Library of Truth for the first time in over a decade, every organization with access to the map was scrambling for information—even if it was three in the morning.
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In one of the skyscrapers was a silent conference room. Illuminated by amber-colored strips radiating light from under the tables, walls, and ceiling lighting, the conference room sat on the highest floor of the building.
With the large windows being pounded by rain and sleet, the street could only be seen through hazy bulbs of light worming their way through the inky black blanket of night.
With only one large circular table, the conference room, though not spacious, was not cramped. Each seat at the round table had more than enough room, and now? Filled to perfection with every member, all wearing business attire.
This was the headquarters for the Federation of Obsidian.
“So... unexpected development.” One man began, flicking a printed copy of the new database entry to everyone at the table. “First of all, I’d like to thank everyone for gathering in the dead of the night.”
The man’s pale skin popped like fresh snow against his raven-black hair. Wearing a white and black suit with his hair slicked back, he looked right out of a monochromatic photograph. However, having been the first to arrive in the conference room, his tired but sharp eyes made his intentions clear.
With a chorus of murmurs reassuring the speaker it was no problem, he drummed his fingers against the table, sending small ripples of divinity through the table. “It’s unexpected that Valencia would return so soon. Everyone expected her to take at least seven decades to return instead of a mere two and a half.”
“Casimir, does that mean you’ll be adjusting your plans?” A woman asked with a twirling the paper in her fingers with a lazy sigh.
“No. I believe Valencia’s going to be low-key,” Casimir shook his head, standing up as the others all looked at him. “I want to, instead, talk about why Valencia is going to be low-key. The person she brought into Marcen’s Cliffs, Astrid.”
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“We need to pry Astrid away from Valencia and get her to join the Dynasty!” A dark, blue-haired woman emphasized, pounding the table. “If not, we have to—at the absolute minimum—form some sort of connection with her! Friendship? Acquaintance? All are on the table. Just some sort of facial familiarity.”
“Morgana, calm down,” A quiet girl murmured from beside Morgana, sitting her back down. “There’s not much we can do right now. It’s the middle of the night.”
With rich green eyes that shone like fresh gems unearthed from the ocean’s floor, Morgana’s dark blue hair flowed like water down her back and framed her always stern face and half-coy half-smug perpetual smirk. Being one to wear a long flowing dress at all times, Morgana wasn’t afraid to deck anyone who spent too long glancing at the long legs slipping out from her dress’s slit.
“Thank you Elyse, I got too worked up. Does anyone have any more information? Do we know the relationship between Astrid and Valencia?” Morgana nodded and sighed before motioning towards the other uniformed deities in the room.
Dressed in aegean blue military uniforms—all medaled and highlighted by cerulean—the few deities sitting along the rich, reddish-wood table shook their heads.
Being the main meeting room in the headquarters of the Cerulean Dynasty, the room was furnished well. Each chair was lacquered, cushioned, and solid enough to be comfortable for both the lightest and heaviest occupants.
Though all made out of wood, the meeting room was situated in the top floor of a massive storeyed pavilion overlooking an expansive enclosed courtyard. Yet, unlike other complexes, the courtyard in the headquarters was dotted with trees instead of training dummies, flower bushes instead of weapon racks, and verdant gardens instead of beaten-down practice areas.
“I assume there’s not much,” Morgana sighed, breaking the silence before pressing her lips into a thin line. “It’s alright, though. I apologize for my pent up–ness. Lysander, any thoughts?”
Tapping his chin as his tight uniform stretched over his muscles, Lysander brushed aside a few braided locks of hair. “Yeah, don’t feel bad, everyone. The cafe has only been open for a week and we only got back from our month-long faction-wide expedition yesterday.”
“Would anyone like to make a trip to the cafe with me tomorrow, then?” Morgana asked, her dress flowing to the floor as she kicked her feet up onto the table to signify the transition into more casual topics.
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Motioning for the chairs to be whisked away, a silver haired woman stood up as servants rushed in. “This marks an end to the business, Aelius and I will be making a trip to Leaves of Dawn tomorrow. Others are free to go, but let’s try to all go separately to keep things a little more discreet. We don’t want to raise too much of an alarm with not only Astrid and Valencia, but also the Federation and Dynasty.”
“Feel free to go right now everyone, as my sister Luna said. It is still four in the morning. However, the plan right now is to hold a bit of a social event, so stick around if you’d like.” Aelius laughed with a radiant smile spreading his arms as warmth flooded the room.
With the chairs gone, all that was left was a long, sleek metal table running down the middle of the room, gleaming under the ornate chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. With a large window on one side, the meeting room overlooked not the outside, but an expansive open area carved underground.
Though an underground bunker carved below the gothic church sitting on the streets, the Church of Eternity was no slouch. Modern and sleek, glowing blue strips of lights demarcated the paths towards each facility the church had invested so painstakingly in.
“Vera, I heard that you got some information from one of our cardinals?” Luna asked, walking over to Vera who glared at the few lazy deities deciding to peace out and return to whatever they were doing.
“I did, Adelyn did provide me with some information before the notice went up.” Vera nodded, grabbing her drink off the table as she stood up to greet Luna. “There’s nothing too major that isn’t already known though. I’ll send you a copy later. To be honest, there’s more interesting information about Morgana’s expedition.”
Seeing a faint smile appear on Luna’s always frozen face, Vera pulled out her phone, digging through her photos before stopping on a certain notepad. “So, out of the Dynasty’s ten deities, eleven were part of this expedition to exterminate a monster outbreak occurring in their country. However, surprisingly, there were more than a handful of class five monsters led by a class six.”
“That’s worrying. I’ll let the churches know in our territories to keep an eye out for developments...” Luna murmured as a flash of worry fluttered across her face. “Also, would you like to tag along with Aelius and I to go to Leaves of Dawn tomorrow?”
“Nope.” Vera shook her head, taking a long sip of her bubbling golden-amber drink. “I have some other administrative documents to take care of, a meeting with the current pope, and a meeting with half of the current cardinals.”
Patting Vera’s shoulder with a slight frown and murmur of condolences, Luna reassured Vera she’d “try and get as much information as possible” before walking off to talk to some of the other deities.
