Chapter 2032: Chapter 2032

Before he could learn the details of the disasters unfolding across the world, Jenkins was "politely" pulled aside by Princess Sophia.

"It seems we won't be able to leave today, will we?"

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry. I truly thought the meeting would be over quickly..."

He started to apologize, but Princess Sophia gracefully cut him off.

"It's quite all right. I know this is important. To be part of an event that will influence the material world for thousands of years... I actually feel quite honored. In fact, I'm glad I can be involved. Though Anathasia and I have been away from the material world for so many years, I was once human, and this is still my homeland."

Of all the princesses Jenkins knew, Sophia's regal bearing was the most pronounced and striking. In comparison, Dolores was still a touch too immature.

"I don't mind staying here for the night," she continued, "but you need to think about how you're going to explain to Anathasia that we were supposed to be at the theater."

"I understand. I'll speak with her... Would you mind if she came in to keep you company?"

A conflicted expression flickered across Princess Sophia's face.

Chocolate let out a soft cry, sharing Princess Sophia's sentiment. The Jenkins beside her was far too immature and needed to be constantly looked after.

Since Jenkins couldn't leave in person, he took advantage of the temporary recess. Leaving the floating negotiation hall, he found Julia and Briny talking with Fini in the church below.

"Watch over my body, I'll be right back... and look after Chocolate for me."

"What do you mean, 'watch over your body'?"

Briny's question had barely left her lips when she watched in astonishment as Jenkins collapsed right where he stood. Julia, already prepared, immediately steadied him while Fini pushed a chair over.

"He is able to project his consciousness and appear in another location," the maid explained simply.

"Oh, I've heard of things like that," Briny said. She had indeed read of similar feats in tales of legendary knights.

Nodding, she and Julia turned their attention to Jenkins's cat. Chocolate, somewhat displeased at being left behind, hopped onto Jenkins's lolling head. Seeing them watching, it let out an impatient "meow."

"You know," Briny said, "I've always felt there was something strange about Jenkins's cat, but Hathaway won't let me ask about it in front of him."

Julia nodded. Though she didn't know the truth, she had heard Alexia give Dolores a similar warning.

"Fini, do you know anything?" the blonde girl asked.

Fini didn't know what Chocolate was, exactly, but the little angel by her side was well aware of the cat's terrifying nature.

"Louise said I shouldn't ask too many questions about the little cat."

"Who's Louise?" Briny asked again.

Fini immediately clamped a hand over her mouth and shook her head furiously.

"Mister Jenkins told me not to say."

Meanwhile, Jenkins stepped out of the wardrobe in his bedroom once more. He straightened his clothes and, with practiced ease, slipped out the window, not forgetting to lock it behind him.

Riding his unicorn toward the church, he spotted the terrifyingly potent aura of the silver dragon from a great distance.

She was no longer perched on the dome spying on Princess Sophia. Instead, she stood at the opaque edge of the floating structure's transparent roof, her hands clasped behind her back as she gazed at the sky, which was completely blanketed by black clouds.

The rain had stopped, but the damp air was thick with a nauseating, scorched smell that was hard to bear.

The silver-haired girl stood there barefoot. The wind whipped her shimmering, waist-length hair and simple white dress back behind her. She saw Jenkins approaching and, with a flick of her hand, tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. The usual carefree air was gone; her expression was grave.

Jenkins landed on the edge of the rooftop. It was cold up here, but the view was breathtakingly vast. Before him lay a silent city shrouded in smoke, where police and church Benefactors struggled to maintain order. In the sky above, rolling bolts of black lightning slithered through the clouds. Further off, a pillar of fire clawed at the sky from the burning mining district, and at the edge of his vision, a column of black smoke seemed to connect heaven and earth—the metal tower. Get full chapters from novel•fire.net

"Is this the calamity?" he couldn't help but ask.

"I have witnessed the calamities and doomsdays that mark the end of an Epoch," the silver dragon replied. "Though I never experienced them firsthand, both Sophia and I have seen them. Compared to that, this is merely an appetizer."

She extended her right hand, slowly sweeping it through the air. Particles of black ash gathered before her. Jenkins saw their dark aura; this was something far more troublesome than the gray mist. Its very existence made the power of machines more potent in the material world.

"Jenkins, you don't have much time left. I saw your performance today. I'll admit, you are powerful, but in your mortal state, you are not the strongest Savior the material world has ever known."

"Someone stronger than me... How strong was the most powerful Savior?"

"The current system of Benefactors didn't exist in that era. They referred to users of extraordinary mystical power as 'Mystic Scholars.' If we were to make a comparison, that Savior possessed the strength of a 9th-level demigod, pushing the very limits of level 10."

The silver dragon spoke, her eyes fixed on the distant horizon.

"Incredible," he muttered. "So... did he win?"

He couldn't help but ask.

"No. He succeeded only in securing the title of Savior. But he wasted too much time dealing with the other candidates. By the time he became the sole Savior, the situation was completely irreversible... That is why I say, though you may not be the strongest, the situation you face is by far the best."

"You call this the best?"

Jenkins gestured to the scene before them, his arms crossed over his chest, unlike the dragon's poised stance.

"The sun has been completely blotted out from the material world, creating the perfect environment for a mechanical cataclysm. The mist is birthing an endless tide of monsters, the gray smog erodes the world and poisons its people, fire spreads and consumes everything, and beneath the very ground we stand on lurks a monster we are helpless against. You call this a good situation?"

"At the very least, you still have a chance to turn things around."

Hearing the silver dragon's words, Jenkins was inexplicably reminded of the final story in Black Town. He recalled the Savior who had successfully sealed the Calamity Beast, yet still had to face failure in the end. He, at least, still had a chance. A chance to stop both the Calamity Beast and the doomsday.