– The Night Before
Meanwhile, Black Dragonriders General Headquarters was still brightly lit. General Morgan’s attention was currently focused on the sheet of paper before him. There were only a few lines, on it written a few concise demands, as well as stating the consequences when a satisfactory result was not reached: war. This declaration was sent to Chairman Bevulas.
Morgan looked it over three more times, and only then did he start up an old-fashioned fax machine that had collected dust in the office’s corner for many years, directly inserting this sheet of paper inside. The fax machine released zi zi ga ga noises, actually still usable, this quite a wonder in itself. Only when the entire sheet of paper was completely transmitted did Morgan seem to have removed a heavy boulder from his burden, releasing a breath of air. He raised the cup of coffee on the table, took a sip, and only then did he realize that the coffee had already completely cooled. He originally wanted to call the secretary in to heat it up, but after thinking about it, he shook his head, not minding that the coffee was already cold, instead slowly drinking it just like in the past.
Right at this time, his hand suddenly shook. With a slight noise, a crack suddenly appeared on the coffee cup. The entire cup broke into two from the center, the ruined coffee spilling all over him. When he saw the cracked surface of the coffee cup, General Morgan’s brows slowly furrowed together, his expression also gradually became grim. He slowly raised his head, giving the great sea outside the window a look.
The sea was still deep, great waves silently roiling, heavy to the point of making one feel suffocated. At the limits of his view, the ocean and sky were completely merged through darkness.
At this time, the light screen on the general’s office table lit up, the display showing that it was Chairman Bevulas.
General Morgan placed the ruined coffee cup to the side, cleaned up the leftover coffee on his body, and then accepted Bevulas’ call.
The chairman on the light screen was just like before, releasing an indistinct prestige through the calmness. This face hadn’t changed for over ten years already, and would perhaps similarly remain unchanged for another ten or so years. General Morgan sized up Bevulas, while Bevulas also looked at him. After remaining silent for an entire minute, Bevulas spoke first. “Old friend, it’s been a while.”
“It has indeed been a while, an entire nine months, eleven days, three hours and twenty five minutes.” Morgan replied with a smile.
Bevulas also smiled, and then said, “When I finish this very sentence, there should still be forty four seconds, old friend.”
“Don’t tell me you sought me out just to give me the correct time? The contents of the declaration I sent comparatively speaking shouldn’t have been important enough for you to immediately find me.” Morgan said.
Bevulas’ line of sight directly passed through the upper frame of his glasses, staring at Morgan. “The reality is that I indeed have a request, one that I hope you can agree to.”
“Let’s hear it.”
Bevulas paused for a moment, and then said, “I need you, and your entire family’s help. Old friend, stand by my side, we can immediately end this war!”
Morgan was first stunned, and then he couldn’t help but laugh. “Why do I seem to recall that the declaration I gave you clearly said that if you didn’t satisfy my requirements, returning my factories, moreover eliminating all of those who participated in the attack that night, that we would immediately go to war against each other? Could it be that my memories really deteriorated this much, to the extent where I even forgot what I just wrote?”
After pausing for a moment, a forceful look appeared in General Morgan’s eyes. “Also, if I didn’t understand incorrectly, just now, you wanted me to have my entire family surrender to you, am I wrong?”
A trace of a bitter smile appeared on Bevula’s face. He slowly said, “Old friend, I believe there is no way you do not understand my intentions, and there is no way you didn’t sense the restlessness of the will of the world just now. Both of us previously experienced the War of Blood Colored Dusk, and we fought side by side, the two of us long understanding each other. You should understand clearly that authority and status have no hold over me. If you stand at my side, once the war ends, I am willing to give you the position of chairman. Moreover, aside from dealing with those few individuals, all of the high-end military force can be handed over to you.”
General Morgan’s loftiness and forcefulness gradually calmed, returning to the keen yet somewhat gentle appearance. He fiddled with the ring on his left hand, slowly saying, “Old friend, I believe when you saw that declaration, you should have already understood my true intentions. I understand your way of thinking, and also understand your viewpoint. However, what you said was right, the world’s will has already started to move, and soon afterwards, the second Blood Colored Dusk might begin. When this time comes, if we continue our internal strife, then it really will seem a bit comical. However, have you never even considered that perhaps this civil war is precisely a part of the second Blood Dusk?”
The conversation between these two elders full of intelligence, to a great degree, could decide the lives and deaths of thousands upon thousands of people. That was why every word they spoke carried great weight, every sentence possibly producing endless bloodshed and corpses.
Bevulas removed his glasses, wiping them with a piece of deer skin while speaking with the calm and unhurried manner of an elder, “Old friend, are you truly not willing to choose my path? You should know what the Spider Empress is seeking, and you also know what kind of result there will be once she succeeds.”
Morgan nodded, and with a similar slow and steady voice, said, “It is precisely because I know what she is doing that I chose to stand at her side. I hope that she can succeed, because then, at the very least, a path will be opened up for me, as well as for those to come. I apologize, old friend, I am unable to sacrifice myself as you do.”
Bevulas wiped at the glasses, as if the glasses would never be wiped clean, slowly saying, “Old friend, how many ultra life forms do you think our world is capable of holding?”
“Even if there really is only a few, it is still enough.”
Bevulas’ hand trembled. He returned his glasses to his face, and then slowly said, “This is our world! Our word does not need ultra life forms, nor does it need a world will. Above us, should only be the sky.”
General Morgan remained silent for a whole ten minutes, and only then did he say, “I apologize, old friend.” After saying this, he cut off communications.