By late March, the cold, hard wind blowing from the Devil's North Wind Belt of the Ice and Snow Wilderness had softened by the time it crossed the Oro Strait, passed Saint Hena Island—the island closest to the Ice and Snow Wilderness—and traveled another thousand kilometers south to reach Akray Island. No chill could be felt in it any longer.
Akray Island was the most prosperous large island in the entire Ewindara Archipelago. Covering more than 4,000 square kilometers, it was not only the hub linking Ewindara's northern and southern island groups, but also the ruling center of the entire archipelago. The Ewindara Autonomous Council was established here.
Among the islands of Ewindara's waters, none larger than Akray Island was as prosperous, and none more prosperous was as large. Nor did any possess Akray Island's deep foundations. Most of the old, established wealthy families that had risen through commerce and trade in Ewindara came from Akray Island. For the former reason, Gantiadu Island and Sinela Island had not become Ewindara's ruling center; for the latter, Saint Hena Island had likewise fallen short in comparison with Akray Island.
The cold wind from the Ice and Snow Wilderness had now grown mild, carrying the breath of spring. Yet another cold current, blowing in from the Western Continent, had plunged all of Akray Island into a different kind of chill—as though winter were descending once more.
After news arrived that the Holy Light Empire's expeditionary fleet had set out from the Western Continent, the atmosphere throughout Ewindara's waters grew ever more tense. As the Holy Light Empire's expeditionary fleet drew nearer by the day, undercurrents surged throughout Akray Island. And where those undercurrents ran deepest was the Ewindara Autonomous Council.
On March 26, the representatives of the Ewindara Autonomous Council had long