The newly built ships set sail.
Taking advantage of the gathered crowd, Theus publicly announced the newspaper and the opening of trade routes. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, but the result was even better than he had expected.
Kyle, built like a bear, had red-rimmed eyes. Zoe wore an equally resolute expression, while the remaining Faithguard Army soldiers were so stirred up that they looked ready to die for Castel.
Even Theus felt somewhat helpless.
The victory in the war had granted him enormous prestige. Theus's public credibility was now nearly at its peak. Even if he openly declared that Empire Truth should worship him as a god, these people would obey.
He intended to make use of that prestige, and the newspaper he was preparing to publish was the first step.
Castel currently had only this one newspaper. It would report on the progress of the search for the airship, and with all the recent attention, its readership would likely approach one hundred percent. Theus could use it to guide public opinion.
History had proven time and again that decisions contrary to public opinion could easily provoke a massive backlash. Guiding public opinion was therefore crucial.
Theus had not originally been in any hurry to expand, but the prince had detained the airship. He had to deal with this matter.
Yes, according to Theus's assessment, the airship had most likely been detained.
Given Connor's caution, the airship might have encountered danger, but it should not have reached the point where no message could be sent back.
The most likely scenario was that he did not know Blood Port had become independent from the Empire and went straight to contact the prince, resulting in his detention.
If that was truly the case, Castel and Tis would likely have some