Extraordinary Voyage

There was a low exclamation in the conference room; this wasn't the treacherous sea battlefield where hundreds could die in a small-scale naval war.

"New Inn Port" is not only the Kingdom's number one port city but also a military port stationed with the most elite Navy fleet of the Kingdom. It always presents a prosperous and open face to the world, serving as Phaletis' window to the outside.

A victim count of as high as forty-five in one night is enough to trigger an earthquake in "New Inn Port."

Ignoring the whispers of the audience upon hearing the number, Miss Lola continued:

"The victims have no common characteristics, including workers, merchants, the elderly, children, young girls, students, and nobles, covering almost all groups.

Furthermore, the perpetrator is extremely rampant, leaving the corpses at the scene after committing the crimes. According to reports from our agents, each victim's body is, um... how should I describe it? Extremely abstract!"

Upon hearing her peculiar use of the word "abstract," for some reason, a chill ran down the spine of each of the distinguished attendees.

"Madam, do you currently have any clues or speculations? Who on earth could have committed such heinous crimes?"

A representative of the Noble Congress seemed to have thought of something and stood up, solemnly asking.

Meanwhile, many attendees over thirty looked somewhat unnatural.

"We are very sorry, sir, but we don't have any eyewitnesses or clues, nor do we know who the criminal is. The perpetrator seems like a ghost, appearing out of nowhere to commit crimes and then vanishing. If there wasn't a complete lack of leads, even City Hall wouldn't have sought your help!"

As soon as the words were spoken, someone had already put forward their opinion, still that gentleman from the Noble Congress:

"I think we should lock down the city and find this reckless killer!"

"That's right, no crime can leave no trace at all. If we deploy all our resources to search every corner of the city, we're bound to find the culprit and seek revenge for the deceased citizens!"

"..."

Led by the representative of the Noble Congress, even though loudly condemning the criminals, they intentionally or unintentionally preemptively categorized the incident as an ordinary serial killing, except for the unusually high number of victims.

Some lesser-ranked attendees were stirred by their words and started voicing their support.

However, one individual found this irresponsible stance dissatisfying.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The sound of fingers tapping on the conference table interrupted their upcoming words.

The representative from the Crowman Team, an elder with slightly greying hair but a straight posture and sharp gaze, stood up.

He put both hands on the table, his eagle-like eyes sweeping over everyone present, an indescribable aura rising from him and enveloping the conference room.

Silence reigned...

"Ha! Although I don't really want to admit it, as the Crowman Commander of the city's dark side, I must remind you forgetful folks.

The tragic event eight years ago won't be prevented again by us sticking our heads in the sand like ostriches and pretending not to see!

Especially some gentlemen among us should review their words and actions to see if they might mislead everyone, creating more trouble for truly resolving the issue!"

Upon hearing the old man's words, vivid images and keywords instantly leapt into the minds of the prominent figures present. The things once strived to forget quickly resurfaced from the depth of their hearts, clearer than ever!

"Eight years ago? Serial killings? Killing Ghost incident?"

"Wells family?"

"Evil God Cultivation?!"

"Fallen God of Opera!"

The representative of the Noble Congress took out a handkerchief to frequently wipe the sweat from his forehead and said rather reluctantly: "Lord Diesel, you must be joking. The Wells family, which had ties to the Evil God, was obliterated eight years ago. How could those damned 'Killing Ghosts' come out again at this time?!"

Diesel, none other than the Crowman Commander of New Inn Port, didn't even bother to look at him. As the barrier between mortals and the Extraordinary World, how could he be ignorant of the role this gang from the Noble Congress played in that incident? Now, with the incident repeating, how could he possibly give them a pleasant expression?

On the verge of revealing his deduction, suddenly a voice rang out in the conference room.

"It's the Box of Dead Souls!

It's the box the Wells family briefly possessed after worshiping the Evil God eight years ago before it disappeared!"

The speaker was the representative of the Royal Navy Academy; he stood up and slightly bowed to everyone present.

"Principal Princeton previously captured the fluctuations caused by the box's power explosion in our city. Unfortunately, he was a step late, and although we continued tracking him, we could never find it.

Until the 'Box of Dead Souls' indeed released those Killing Ghosts again, we confirmed it hadn't left but instead just hid in some corner of New Inn Port."

As he spoke, his gaze also focused on the Noble Congress side; although the box escaped earlier, the wide-spread bodies of Sea Hunters and noble private soldiers were hardly disguised.

Just a bit of speculation makes it easy to guess what might have happened there...

Evidently, the Noble Congress or a portion of its members knew far earlier about the whereabouts of the Box of Dead Souls.

Yet, harboring some secretive intent did not report it but wanted to secretly possess it. Ambition is not a problem if successful; at least it shows they have the capability matching the ambition.

But with the emergence of the "Killing Ghost", it has demonstrated their complete failure. It makes people downright infuriated, furious at their reckless audacity, and even more angered by having to clean up this mess due to their incompetence!

However, right now is not the moment for accountability, that comes after the crisis is resolved.

For a moment, the vast conference room fell into silence.

The infamous "Box of Dead Souls," none present was unfamiliar with it. Few who personally witnessed it eight years ago knew all too well about it.

Because even eight short years weren't enough to erase the harm that the bizarre object brought to the city, nor the deep scars it left in people's hearts.

"Do you have evidence proving the 'Box of Dead Souls' has appeared again?

You know if the 'Box of Dead Souls' has reappeared, it means this incident involves an Evil God, enough to rate it as a 'disaster event,' and we must report it to the Kingdom!"

The Governor of New Inn Port, Murdoch, who took office after the incident eight years ago but doesn't fully comprehend its history, stood up to inquire.

As a city's manager, he has to be the first responsible individual in this matter, forcing him to cautiously consider.