Chapter 221: Chapter 211 The Past Repeats Itself
Chapter 221: Chapter 211 The Past Repeats Itself
The walls and ceiling of the basement were spotless, without any mottling or dirt, everything was arranged in an orderly fashion, and the bright flames of many candles illuminated the altar, the sacred objects, and the contemplating faces of several people.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Fischer family quickly convened another emergency family meeting.
They had decided to believe the intelligence brought by that man because Lilian's Listening for Malice has not worked, so the other party must not have had any ill intent.
And if he was not an enemy disseminating false intelligence and had come to deliver the information while on the brink of death, it was most likely true that he was indeed a friend of Darren's, otherwise there was no reason for him to do so.
The man had struggled to make it to Nasir Town to pass on this important intelligence to Byrne, who was Darren's father.
Byrne was touched by his effort, but at the same time, he couldn't help but worry why Darren had not returned to Nasir Town while he had been approaching Cyart at that very moment.
What had happened to Darren?
Suddenly, Vanessa's voice broke the silence as she looked into Byrne's eyes and asked,
"What should we do next, with the Rhea army soon heading south, are we going to rely on the barrier of the four towns to resist?"
Byrne shook his head, feeling helpless and compelled to say,
"There may be several Monarch Level experts in the enemy's army, relying solely on our own power, we cannot solve the crisis. If the enemy has two or three Monarch powerful experts, even if we ask for divine intervention, it won't work."
Lilian also looked at her father, her voice tinged with suppressed hatred for the Rhea People,
"So father's saying we can't fight but must flee?"
She was more aggressive by nature and did not like the idea of fleeing.
However, Byrne was quite certain and nodded in response to his daughter,
"Yes, that's exactly what I think, we absolutely cannot fight, we can only evacuate from Nasir Town."
Lilian continued to ask, "If we evacuate, where shall we go? What about these towns of the four-town area?"
Byrne calmly explained further,
"We'll go to Fein City. We will take the main resources with us as we leave the four-town area and then head straight to Fein City. The city's defense barrier is of a high level and large scale, it is very effective even against Monarch Level experts."
"If the enemy has several Monarch powerful experts, they can easily take down the four-town area, but Fein City can hold out for a while. We just need to wait for the support of Monarch powerful experts."
Vanessa's gaze betrayed her reluctance as she took a deep breath, "But if we abandon the four-town area and retreat without fighting, handing over towns like Nasir directly, what about the people here, and our factories?"
She was still very reluctant to give up everything in the four-town area.
Byrne remained silent for a long time, finally making up his mind to say, "We will take what we can and for what we cannot, there's nothing we can do but to begin evacuating the nearby populace in advance."
Vanessa still wanted to persist, and she couldn't help saying, "I think the enemy is numerous, but there might not be any Monarch powerful experts among them. Perhaps they're only here to harass us, and besides, giving up the four-town area without having seen the enemy, could that be a bit too hasty?"
"..."
After a long silence, Byrne looked at everyone and realized the others also seemed deep in thought.
It was obvious that a decision to abandon most of their possessions based on nebulous intelligence and start the entire family fleeing was somewhat too drastic, and it was uncertain whether Vanessa and Lilian could accept it.
However, Byrne and Chris exchanged a look, and both were instantly reminded of that event from decades ago.
If back then they had left Nasir Town a bit earlier and encountered Duke Black Iron sooner, all of that would have been entirely different, the trajectory of their fate would have been completely altered.
Byrne sighed, if their father had survived, undoubtedly many things over the past several decades would have changed.
It was as if he was mumbling to himself, yet also speaking to Vanessa and Lilian.
"Back then, we were just a bit too late..."
"I don't want to see the Fischers make the same mistake again."
"Let's go."
Vanessa and Lilian looked at each other, both not understanding what exactly Byrne was referring to.
"Let's vote."
The always taciturn Chris suddenly spoke up.
Since it was undecided, they would vote, in accordance with the Fischer family's long-standing rule.
The scales of conviction were placed on the table, and the four fell silent for a while, casting their votes to decide the future course of the Fischer family.
The final vote was split two to two.
Byrne and Chris both agreed to evacuate immediately, while Vanessa and Lilian wished to refrain from acting just yet and observe the situation further.
It was rare for the Fischer family to not reach an outcome after a vote.
They all fell silent for a while, deciding to vote again in half an hour, and in the next thirty minutes, they would have ample time to contemplate.
"Trust me, Vanessa."
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Chris gazed at his wife and calmly took her hand, saying,
"They are in greater danger with us."
His words were brief, yet quickly struck at the core of Vanessa's thoughts.
Yes, she had chosen to vote against it, actually not wanting to abandon the civilians of the four-town area!
But Vanessa thought again, if the Fischer family decided to stay and defend the four-town area using its barriers, the civilians there might end up dying in even greater numbers.
Perhaps evacuating the people in advance was the right first choice.
Vanessa took a deep breath and nodded slightly.
"I understand."
After another round of voting, the result had changed to three against one. Lilian nodded in agreement with the collective decision of the family.
"Eh?"
All of a sudden, Byrne couldn't help but let out a surprised sound.
He could clearly feel that his Spirituality, which had not changed for years, suddenly showed signs of boiling over.
"Why?"
Could his recent actions actually be related to the ceremony for advancing to the 4th Rank?
A surge of ecstasy immediately welled up deep inside Byrne. Although he did not know the specific reason, if he could also advance to the 4th Rank of the God Pantheon stairway, the benefits to his family would be immense!
"Off to Fein City..."
He was silent for a moment before taking a book out of his breast pocket. It was "Zavier's Diary," likely the "backup plan of the Black Hawk" that Bast had mentioned.
The matters recorded within were of great importance, leaving Byrne speechless and pondering for a long time.
However, Byrne accidentally discovered there was a problem.
This was a forged diary!
——
The next day, the entire Fischer family set out with thousands of people, heading directly to Fein City in the south.
They traveled on a well-built road, but because of the large number of people, the movement was not very fast, and by the time Viscount Bast received the news, the Fischer family should still be on the road to Fein City.
Riding on his horse, Byrne gazed ahead, took a breath, and the surrounding weather became slightly chilly without knowing when.
"At least there's no snow."
The gloom of decades past resurfaced in Byrne's heart.
His father's face seemed to appear before his eyes, followed by the looks of Irene, Erik, Aaron, and others. Despite having lost much along the way, the Fischer family had persevered.
He knew one thing clearly: the Fischer family was already completely different from before.
"The outcome this time will definitely be different, it must be..."
Within the retreating column of people from Nasir Town, Archibald looked at his wife and children, a strong worry deep in his heart.
As the family's Sergeant-at-Arms, in charge of many of the Fischer family's soldiers and having studied at a military academy, he was very clear about the reality of war, having participated in that naval battle.
If the Rhea army truly came to attack, it would lead to a calamity.
He and his family could die at any moment.
Once, he thought he was unafraid of death, but with a family, the bonds in his heart grew stronger.
Archibald's wife and children were all silver descendants, and deep within, he had once regretted marrying a silver descendant due to the Fischer family's decision, causing his offspring to have much shorter lifespans than normal humans.
But regretting was useless, Archibald could only hope his offspring would become the Great Elders of the silver descendants on the East Coast, just as His Excellency Byrne had planned.
His daughter couldn't help asking, "Father, will the Rhea People catch up to us?"
Archibald shook his head seriously and said, "Don't worry, they won't, they can't possibly reach us here."
Archibald's son, however, looked upset and said loudly, "Father, I really want to know why we must flee. Can't we have a decisive battle with the Rhea People?"
"Because it's not time yet."
Archibald couldn't be bothered to explain to the child, but the silver-haired boy was persistent and even shouted angrily at his father:
"You've said it, the Rhea People are a bunch of garbage, beasts, weak and incompetent refuse. If they are such a weak group, why should we fear them?"
The boy paused and complained:
"His Excellency Byrne actually made us flee, I cannot understand it. He is truly a coward; too weak!"
"What the hell did you say?"
Hearing the deeply respected His Excellency Byrne being insulted, Archibald immediately became furious, raised his hand, and slapped his son to the ground without force.
His wife exclaimed in shock and immediately got angry.
She helped her crying son up and then shouted angrily:
"Archibald, what are you doing? You only know how to bully your son; if you dare, go fight the Rhea People!"
"Hmph!"
Archibald took a deep breath and snorted.
"I'm not wrong, and Mr. Byrne would not be wrong either! Remember not to say such things again!"
He couldn't be bothered to argue with his family.
In fact, Archibald had been stuck at the 2nd Rank for many years, watching his good brother Chris growing stronger and seeming to become more distant from himself, his heart filled with intense unease and pain.
"Damn it, what do I need to do to advance to the 3rd Rank?"
According to Mr. Byrne, most advancement ceremonies required impacting others. The Path of Calamity, could it be about causing calamities for others?
He fell into deep thought.
A week later, the thousands retreating finally arrived at the northern part of Fein City and quickly encountered a cavalry unit from the Lion clan. The people couldn't help but cheer and leap for joy.
The worried leader, upon seeing Byrne and Chris, called out immediately:
"Bad news, the Rhea People have suddenly invaded the East Coast!"