...War Is Coming, a Nation on the Brink of Ruin

Inside the heavy, ancient Great Cathedral.

Floor-to-ceiling windows rose in concentric layers like the rings of a sliced onion. Gentle sunlight streamed through the great central dome and the four smaller domes at its corners, spilling into the hall.

Arguments and angry voices rang through the cathedral without pause!

"How could he have vanished into thin air?"

"The outer guards noticed absolutely nothing!"

"Was Teleportation magic used?"

"—How could that be? Only a few of us and the guards specifically assigned to watch him knew where he was!"

"Arrest every guard immediately!"

They had all been detained early this morning, but no clues had been found."

Several Minotaur high priests argued endlessly, their faces filled with tension and panic.

At the very front of the hall stood a massive, exquisitely carved Minotaur statue atop a raised platform.

The statue was immensely burly, depicting a Minotaur wielding a long-handled double-bladed battle axe with a round shield on his back. It was the former Minotaur Sage.

And beneath the statue!

Stood a relatively lean Minotaur high priest wearing ceremonial robes patterned with golden horns, his exposed skin branded with mysterious markings—Urtes.

Watching the several high priests arguing below.

The High Priest did not speak. Instead, he raised his head slightly.

Directly ahead of him, on the dome's floor-to-ceiling window, were two protruding circular panes. Sunlight shone through them like a pair of eyes.

They symbolized the Sage's eternal gaze!

"The border nobles need strength, and the Royal Family needs power. Only we remember that even the hardest horns will eventually turn to ash."

The High Priest's calm voice sounded.

The priests below all shut their mouths. They lowered their heads slightly and fell silent.

"—War is coming."

The High Priest withdrew his gaze from the dome. His slightly cloudy eyes swept over