The elves of the Erem Kingdom had not seen such a strange announcement in a very long time. They were familiar enough with emergency mobilization orders issued in response to all kinds of disasters and accidents, but for thousands of years, they had never seen any good news attached to one. This sudden, bizarre message left a billion elves utterly baffled, while the more perceptive among them had already vaguely guessed what was happening. An inexplicable excitement and exhilaration spread throughout Erem society, gradually reaching every elf. The more well-informed citizens also noticed something else: the Royal District had been sealed off, and in the past few hours, the officials responsible for supply allocation and personnel management on every floating island had been summoned to the Isle of the Rising Sun. Nothing like this had ever happened during previous disaster mobilizations.
Something earth-shattering was about to happen. There was no doubt about it.
Aside from the elves who had to work overtime at critical posts, more and more returned home. They began taking inventory of their personal belongings as instructed by the announcement and contacting relatives and friends they knew. Then they waited in front of whatever media terminal could receive the royal broadcast, awaiting further news. Every media terminal—including the rarely activated urban street displays that only lit up when important information was released—was now broadcasting the same waiting screen. It was extremely simple, showing only a constantly jumping countdown. Erem society took "time" extremely seriously. Every meeting had a fixed time limit, and all participants, including members of the royal family, had to speak and make decisions within that limit. Once the countdown ended, the proceedings at the final moment had to be made public whether or not the meeting had reached a result. This was their unique