Sun came bursting through the door into the ship''s cabin carrying a bucket of seawater. Cirona and Shuja stared at one another, bewildered by Sun''s energy and his bucket. "What''s that for?" Shuja asked.


    "It''s for Borvo." Sun placed the next to Borvo, frozen as a statue. "Salt counteracts the petrification spell."


    "And how do you know that?"


    "They told them. One of the Entente did."


    "What?" Shuja slammed her fist on the floor. "They''re dangerous! What if they were tricking you?"


    "Only one way to find out." Sun took out a sponge from the bucket and gently rubbed it on Borvo''s legs. The stone shell that incased his skin began to peel off as it absorbs the salty water. "I guess he wasn''t lying about this one. I was hoping he was because that would mean the other thing he said would be a lie."


    "What other thing?"


    "He told me, or rather, he implied that the army that nearly wiped out our race some hundred years ago has come back. And they have colluded with the church''s leader, the Pontiff. But I don''t know why. That asshole left before I could ask any more questions. But from what I can tell, we are the key to unlock the door the Pontiff is trying to open. And he got the Drons help."


    "But aren''t those Drons gone already? The only ones we''ve seen are those relics from the past. Oh, and Smoke''s Kepkriy war club is a Drons'' arm." Before Shuja could mention more, Cirona tugged her shirt. She couldn''t really speak to them, so she just looked at them with her large eyes brimming with questions.


    "Sorry Cirona," Sun said, "But this is a problem we need to deal with."


    "Do you think Pagasa already knows about this?"


    "I doubt it. He only found out about King''s dealings with the other powers at the same time as we did. Maybe we should have questioned King after the war. But Pagasa was so eager to remove King of his status as the Golden Condottiero through legal matters."


    "We should have just killed him," Shuja said, "It would have been much easier." While they were talking, Cirona was shocked to hear King''s defeat was due to Sun and his army. King supplied the entire continent''s military conflicts with experimental firearms, cannons, and gas bombs. Some of which reach the shores of their humble kingdom during its civil war. A war where so many innocent lives were taken away from the world. Some of them were taken by the weapons King sold.


    A single tear rolled down her eye while gently scrub the rocky surface off her fiance''s body. She could not help but remember the war. A moment she feared the most. When they were hiding in baron''s castle, at the county of Middlevater, a flock of Tez Eagles flew over the castle walls and dropped gas canisters. The purple gas quickly spread in the air and choked the knights and their soldiers to death. She saw them through her bedroom window, reaching out to the sky, gasping for air until their face turned pale, then they collapsed on the courtyard. The poison lingered outside for days until the army that sent the eagles came.


    The rest of the memory was lost in her thoughts. She could only remember the helpless pleas of the men and women outside. She prayed that the war would end, and it did. Although Sun''s victory over King was not the reason for the end of their civil war, she was thankfully nonetheless for Sun. And they are many out there who think the same. But there were also some that are now threatened by King''s demotion.


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    At the edge of the northern Venusia frontier, three village mayors sat in a dark room, dimly lit by a small lamp sitting in the middle of the table. They sat around the table with grim looks on their faces. The news of King''s defeat traveled fast downstream of the Everflow River. King protected the settlements on the north from the goblin raiders that traveled from the mountains and into the open plains. In exchange, they gave them whatever King requested. Sometimes it was gold and silver, at times livestock like goats and pigs, but the most expensive ones were women King wanted. They believed the women were simply for King''s enjoyment, but they had no idea what the true purpose for taking young women from the villages. It was no different than letting the goblins kidnap their daughters.


    But to them, they thought King''s grace was a far better deal compared to what the emerging major cities in the north offered. The price for their protections was exuberant, suicidal even. Some villages would rather go down fighting the goblins on the river shores. The three gathered in the room to discuss the matter. They were looking through the options the nearby cities gave them. But one of the mayors had some hope in his eyes than the rest. The one with the grey beard covering most of his face had news that may help them. "Have you heard about the test in Womva?" He asked the other men.


    The one with the smooth face and a red beanie raised a brow. "No, why should we concern ourselves with Kings and Queens?"


    "Because there''s a new kingdom founded this year. And that kingdom was founded in the heart of the goblin valley."


    "What?"


    The other man with a goatee laughed, "That''s unbelievable."


    "Wait?" The red beanie man slammed his fist on the table, "What if that kingdom is the reason King is gone?"


    "Exactly." The grey-beard man said, "That means that we may not have to rely on the city folks. We could send a delegation to the new royal family for protection. Or better yet, they might have already dealt with the goblin scourge that''s been terrorizing our lands. If it''s the latter, then we definitely need to go to pay our respect to the newly appointed king."


    The man with the red beanie leaned back on his chair, "But if the church''s wild dogs show up to intimidate them. I don''t want to get caught in the crossfire."


    "We can''t wait too long. The goblins could come earlier this autumn. We need to get protection before the summer ends."


    The three men nodded in agreement and began to write plans for the delegation. Hopefully, they can get the new king''s protection under favorable feudal contracts, and since they are on the other side of the mountain, it will be difficult to enforce these contracts. This means it is a win-win situation for the villagers.


    On the other side of the continent, another group of mayors was discussing the events of the recent mock exam. These mayors were not like the villagers on the frontier. They ruled over large metropolises, have connections to wealthy banking families, and have important roles within the Venusian Trade League. The failed plot to undermine Borvo''s rule over his large island made the Trade League''s future plans for the region unviable. Nevertheless, Borvo''s kingdom will surely rise and become a new powerhouse in Venusia, even becoming a great power.


    The major trading cities have had the privilege of ruling the ocean for generations, but with a unified Iric Kingdom, this privilege could easily be taken away from them. The Iric people are known for their shipbuilding and maritime expertise. They roamed the western seas as pirates most of the time, but a formidable navy could be founded with proper government backing. A navy that could rival the Trade League.


    Another point of contention was King''s demotion. They bought his specialized mortars and cannons that are able to shoot at least ten leagues longer than the cannons they bought from the desert nations. Without King''s weapons, they affectedly lost their military edge against the other nations and trading companies. But worse, they lost King as a potential mercenary for hire. King is one of the only two Golden Condottiero in Venusia that was not under the contract of the Church.


    But with King''s title being revoked, they essentially lost their ultimate weapon. But they can be replaced, and talks of a new mercenary, possibly a Venusian native, has circulated the social meetings in the Trade League. One such candidate is Cossack, a mercenary that joined multiple battles across different conflicts in the continent. He became a highly acclaimed horse rider by the end of his first year. His reputation is still relatively low, and he lacked a proper mercenary company that can rival other Golden Condottieros.


    The mayors have deep pockets and plan to bribe their way up the Garden Tower if needed. But Cossack is just one candidate they are considering to propose to the superpowers. There are many more out there with greater credibility. But time is running out. A replacement for King is needed before Borvo''s nation starts to move.


    And it''s not just in Venusia, but other parts of the world were affected by Sun''s actions. On the other side of the world, in the subcontinent of Krow, a family of hunters watches from above the canopies as two confederate nations fight among themselves. Confederacies are made up of red goblins. The father watched with a stern look on his face. "Children, remember this day. It will undoubtedly change everything in this land." He told his children, fraternal twins.


    The girl reached out to her father''s hand, "Why did the goblin change?"


    "I don''t know, but they are now at war with each other. Probably to decide which will rule the mountains they lived on for generations."


    The boy whispered, "Are other goblins from around the world doing the same thing?"


    "I hope not." He hugged his children then prayed for a peaceful day to come on the land. More goblins around the world began to fight among themselves after they transformed. Many more have unified, forming nations and alliances. But they were still far few in numbers and lack the wisdom of the world around them. If the Drons found them, they would have quickly been eradicated, but fortunately, their distant relatives in Venusia were the targets. They will be able to spend more days in blissful ignorance, while Sun and his goblins prepare for war.