Gathering

"Something important?" Gilan frowned.

Since joining the secret cult Midnight Rose, he had only attended one gathering, right at the beginning. In a sense, it had even been a welcome ceremony held for him.

The organization had always felt rather laid-back. It disliked getting involved in disputes, and its members usually contacted one another privately, whether for trade or commissions, while adhering to the principle of "equal exchange." It had a fair amount of integrity.

Moreover, since most of its members were alchemists, everyone was busy studying and conducting experiments, with no time to gather every day and shoot the breeze.

Yet Lady Crow had called because the leader of "Night Rose" had personally issued a summons for every member to attend a gathering.

It was surely no trivial matter...

"Lady Crow, do you know what's going on?"

After a moment of thought, Gilan asked over the telephone.

There was silence on the other end for a while before the mature female voice replied:

"I don't know the specifics, but it should be related to the war between Bremen and Ovena currently underway... It involves not only our Night Rose, but other secret cults and clandestine societies as well."

"It seems..." Lady Crow hesitated slightly before adding, "the one who took the lead in contacting Rose Elder was that ancient secret cult from the rumors—Celestial Palace Dawn."

"Celestial Palace Dawn..."

Gilan's frown deepened as he murmured the name.

He had only heard of that organization.

It was said that Sal Cards, the currency circulating among the upper echelons of the mystical world, had been created by this organization.

Furthermore, Gilan had learned from his teacher Pala that Celestial Palace Dawn was exceptionally mysterious. There were few records of its members ever appearing, only a handful of fragmentary descriptions.

It was