Chapter 239. Great Battle
As the decisive showdown drew near, the atmosphere on the island grew tense.
Inside the Explorers Association of Hope Island, people gathered around a simple brass bearing machine.
It was a telegraph. The groups clustered together around it were explorers who weren't out on a voyage. Each wore expressions of anxiety and anticipation.
There was no way everyone would be at peace. They had just received the latest news: in just two hours, Governor Julio and Governor Swann were set to crossfire.
The upcoming war would impact every individual in the Northern Seas, and the outcome of it was deeply intertwined with their lives.
As the seconds ticked by, the silence was so palpable that only the sound of collective breathing could be heard. Just then, the telegraph came to life.
Tick-tick-tick-tick... Emerging from n0v@lbin☆, this material harbors clandestine details.
Accompanied by a ticking sound, the machine spat out a stream of paper inscribed with a series of dots and dashes.
"Anyone who knows Morse code? Decipher it quickly! What's happening?" Anxious voices called out, demanding updates.
"Me! I did this before I became a sailor," a short man with a red beard jumped onto the table holding the telegram. Picking up the paper, he scanned the contents, and his face fluctuated between shock and hesitation, but he spoke not a single word.
His silence frustrated the captains gathered around him.
"Shorty! Will you speak up already? Stop dawdling! Do you want a taste of my bullet?" someone roared.
"Hurry up! What's written on it?" Another echoed.
Just as the tension escalated with each passing moment, the short man finally parted his lips. "Swann ambushed Julio's fleet!"
His words immediately silenced the noisy hall, and only his resonant voice continued echoing through the room.
"The battle took place three miles south of Spider Islands. Swann hid underwater on his Ronker. He used the same light beam that killed Governor Daniel of Whereto to sweep horizontally across the fleet from below the surface.
"Governor Julio's Invincible Fleet suffered heavy casualties. Lying in ambush, Swann's fleet closed in immediately. They've started fighting."
"Swann crawled out of the Ronker. He's dragging something... It's Governor Julio's corpse! Julio is dead!"
Disbelief and denial erupted amongst the captains.
"Impossible! This can't be true!" a captain exclaimed.
"Exactly! Everyone in the seascape knows that the governor of Albion Isles is far from powerful! How can he possibly kill Julio?!" another echoed the same sentiment.
"I don't believe a single word! It must be a lie!"
Amidst the uproar, the telegraph machine beeped again, and the room fell into silence as they waited for the red-bearded man to continue the interpretation.
"Governor Julio isn't dead! He emerges from the body of a crewman and is covered in blood! He's holding something... It's a book—"
The red-bearded man paused abruptly. As everyone around him urged him to continue, he flipped the paper in his hands.
The telegram messages ended abruptly. What should have been a series of dots and lines had been marred with random, chaotic marks. It was as though a sudden interruption had occurred when the sender was typing the message.
"Hold on, let me check the situation," the short man said before he rhythmically pressed a brass lever on the telegraph.
Everyone waited in abated breaths. However, no further messages came through. It was as though all communication had been cut off.
All across the seascape, every island continuously sent queries to Spider Islands in an attempt to get further updates on the war, but all of them met the same silence, as though something was blocking the transmissions.
Of course, in a huge battle like this, there were bound to be some escapees from the battlefield. These people managed to return to their respective islands, and eventually, the latest news arrived at Hope Island.
And the governor was always the first to receive any latest updates.
"What? They've called a truce?" Charles stood up in shock. He had anticipated various outcomes and also made plans for all possible scenarios. However, this was one outcome that he wasn't prepared for.
"According to the telegram messages, it seemed like Governor Julio had used an unusually powerful relic. Both sides have suffered heavy losses, and they've begun retreating," the silver-haired steward reported.
Just as Charles was pondering how to maximize this unexpected turn of events to his benefit, the steward stepped forward with another piece of news.
"Governor, the Divine Light Order is at the door with a massive stone statue. They request for an audience."
The Pope is backing Swann. Why is that fellow seeking me out now? Charles wondered about the Pope's impeccable timing of appearance.