War Begins!

Click, click! Click...

A series of mechanical transmissions sounded as the dense locking mechanisms behind the doors snapped shut one after another, their bolts pinning the doors firmly against the ground.

The entire hall fell silent.

People looked in confusion at the sealed doors, then gradually turned their attention to Hela, who was slowly making her way forward through the hall.

Clack, clack, clack...

Every step she took rang with the sound of metal striking metal. There was not a trace of flesh on her face or body; exquisitely precise mechanical structures moved slowly across her frame like dense clusters of worms.

The people on both sides instinctively made way for her, and mechanical priests clad in red robes immediately followed behind.

Gaia warily scanned the surroundings and discovered that followers of the Mechanical Cathedral were rapidly pouring out from seemingly inconspicuous pipes and hidden doors, carrying all manner of complex firearms and weapons.

"Followers of the Machine Spirit, devout warriors of the Cathedral!"

Hela raised her voice as she walked. Only then did the people in the banquet hall realize something was wrong. Some frantically looked around for an exit, while others stepped forward to demand an explanation, only to be forced back by the black muzzles of guns.

Hela stopped walking. She had reached the wall opposite the banquet hall's main entrance, where a heavy curtain covered the entire wall.

Hela turned around. Her face of steel and gears was cold as frost, while the power furnace in her chest spun at high speed, glowing crimson like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

Zoe and Gaia exchanged a glance and slowly backed away, trying not to draw attention.

But before long, both of them froze in place.

It was not just the two of them. The entire