White Jasmine Palace
"What is that in the sky?"
The Golden-Haired Chief of Staff, who had been working, heard the startled cry and immediately stood up, raising her head to look out the window.
The sky, once covered in dark clouds, had grown even dimmer.
Snow-white jasmine flowers danced in the cold, lonely wind. Above that sea of jasmine, at the center of the endless dark clouds, a massive vortex was slowly taking shape.
Thump--thump--thump--
A dull heartbeat sounded through the air, as though some unknowable thing were passing through the gaps between worlds and rapidly drawing near.
As that muffled heartbeat continued, the vortex in the sky became increasingly distinct.
The Golden-Haired Chief of Staff stared at the vortex overhead and took a deep breath. Countless anomalies from all this time had finally connected into a line in her mind.
Her deepest fear had become reality.
The countless crisis-response plans she had prepared now seemed utterly inadequate. Beneath the pressure of that indescribable essence of life, no one knew how they should respond or resist.
Death was so close to them, as though separated by only a thin membrane.
And now, that steadily approaching heartbeat was tearing that membrane open bit by bit.
"Ms. Daisy."
The staff member beside her looked at the Golden-Haired Chief of Staff in panic, their eyes full of helplessness.
No one had ever experienced a true Evil God Descent, but the Federation had never lacked news stories and tales concerning such events.
The instant that vortex appeared, everyone quickly understood what it meant.
The Golden-Haired Chief of Staff took a deep breath, looked at the people who had gathered around her, and spoke quickly.
"Issue an evacuation notice. Tell citizens to stay at home as much as possible. Those near air raid shelters should