Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

---------Delta----------

The whole city was currently in a state of emergency. There had been explosions all over the city and there was a mass abduction that had just happened on live TV.

Many people felt reminded of the day just after the apocalypse and they didn't know how close they came to the truth.

With the field generators sabotaged, more and more reports of gates opening in the city reached the joint emergency command center.

The leadership of Delta and the remaining officials of Chrona were hard at work to secure a command structure and deal with the situation.

There was a heated debate about what had the highest priority.

"We need to reinstate the protective barrier of the city to stop random gateways from opening. This should be our highest priority." the Archbishop of the System Church stated.

The normally kind-looking man with his well-kempt white beard and imposing aura resembled a demon of wrath at the moment. He did not even have the time to wash up and was still covered in sweat and dust. He spoke in a calm manner, but his eyes were blazing.

"Our engineers and enchanters are working on that matter as fast as they can. The problem is that the explosions cleanly destroyed our devices. 42 out of the 75 field generators in Delta are irreparable. We need replacements from the empire or rebuild them from scratch.

Even if our superiors work fast, it could take more than a week to get the replacements and set them up." spoke the representative of the empire's forces. He was the one the princess left in charge when she set off to the east.

"We need all forces to work together. We need to deal with the gates until the new generators are set up. We have to protect the citizens." the spokesperson of Delta's government announced.

"But our own forces and those of the empire are not enough. We are already hard-pressed at the moment. Can we expect the cooperation of the Adventurer Guild?" he asked and looked to the guild master of Delta's Branch.

The hulking man of indiscernible age rubbed his cleanly shaven head.

" We will give out an emergency quest on your behalf. But nobody can force these people to fight in a situation when their own families might be in danger. Whether the bigger clans and player guild will make a move will probably depend on the remuneration."

The spokesperson gritted his teeth but nodded.

------------------System Church, Delta----------

Monique sat at the head of the table with the other Lords, Lydia, Simon, and Jack Felton. It was an emergency meeting at the system church.

Their Tower Master had been abducted just before their first big scouting event had ended. Not just that, a lot of people among the audience and even candidates for the oath guard had been taken.

All of their faces were grave with Mina and Mary being especially down as they were present when Seth had been caught by the chains. One was unable to help and the other felt guilty because he was protecting her.

Simon's expression wasn't much better. He had left the VIP booth to call for the reinforcements from the System Church. He couldn't help thinking ... What if he had been there? Maybe he could have changed this outcome.

Although he was not supposed to interfere with a player's life as a Priest. He had long seen Seth as a friend.

Jack Felton looked serious and disgruntled at the assembly. He had watched the tournament as Monique had asked him to and liked the way it had been done. Real combat without risk to people's life or livelihood.

However, he had no idea why he was invited to this meeting.

"We are all here to talk about how things will keep going from now on." Jane proclaimed.

"Mike, Jane, Monique, and Me decided to suggest Monique as the Vice-Tower Master and temporary leader. Does anyone disagree?"

Nobody seemed to disagree, so Monique spoke up.

"Alright then. As you all know, Seth was abducted. Simon, he's still alive, right?"

"As long as he doesn't do anything stupid and remembered by advice for once then he should be alive. He won't enjoy it, but he should survive."

"What are the chances to save him?" Mina asked worriedly.

"Sorry, I... Don't know. We can only roughly guess where the Theocracy has built its base. If they really managed to restrict the overgrowing forest, they might be close to Alpha's A-City."

The faces of those native to Urth fell. They knew that this was a journey of almost half a continent.

"We contacted the Princess. The empire's troops are currently at Gamma. I heard they planned to establish a Starta Village there together with a teleport node. They are a lot closer o Alpha. She could get reinforcements from the empire and send troops to check."

"So, we can't do anything to help Seth in the immediate future," Monique stated what they all thought.

Just reaching gamma would take weeks. Alpha could take months.

"Why are you all looking down like that? You are acting as if Seth is some damsel in Distress that needs us to save him. Do you think he will just stay there silently and suffer? Fin knows he won't! Fin will bet all her candy, that he will be back here before we even get the chance to set off!" Fin bellowed.

Everyone listened to the fairy's rant in surprise but soon wry smiles appeared on their faces. Although she was throwing a mighty tantrum, they could all see on her tiny face, how hard she was trying to hold back her tears.

"He-he will definitely come back! Just you wait-Hug!- Hng! B-But why is it Fin can never be the one to do the saving?"

"it's okay, Fin." Mina stroked the tiny fairy's back.

"Fin is right," Monique said loudly, drawing all of their gazes.

"Right now, we have to believe in Seth. And don't forget, he has that crazy monster with him. It's not like any of us could be a bigger help than her."

"Right, he has the devourer of hosts..." Evee mumbled and got a knock on the head from Alison.

"Don't call master like that!"

"At the moment we have to believe that he will come back with his own strength and manage Minas Mar."

"What do you mean?" Jonah asked.

"With our current status, we can't help Seth even if we set off in a hurry. Instead, we should do what we can. Grow the guild as planned and await his return. That's why I invited Jack for this meeting. He will be the key to setting up the Oathguard as an effective force. I also wanted to leave the private examination to him."

"Are you crazy? The city is in a state of chaos and you want to keep going with that? Do you really think this is the right time for this?!" Jack suddenly exclaimed.

"The right time? Yes. In fact, I think this is a perfect time. Right now, the city is in an emergency situation. We already made ourselves known through the tournament. If we can set up the Oathguard quickly and help in this chaos, we will gain the sympathy of the citizens."

Jack was stumped and I wasn't just him. Neither of them had known that Monique also had such an opportunistic side to her.

"The more and especially more prominent we help in the solution of this situation, the firmer our standing in Delta will become. More people will want to join us. And most importantly, we will be able to collect more materials for Seth. I'm sure he would be happy when he returns and finds the treasury filled with epic material and more."

Only the members of "Yulecat's Fur" were slightly reluctant in agreeing to not do anything to immediately rescue their blacksmith. But they agreed in the end. It was true they wouldn't be able to help right now and the biggest help was already at Seth's side.

"Alright, since we agreed on this plan let's talk about our actions from now. How long can the weapon store operate without Seth?"

"He left quite a lot in the storage rooms. I think we should have enough for 4-5 months."

Everyone on the table widened their eyes. Just how much had that crazy person churned out...?

"I might have a good idea," Evee stated.

"Yes, Evee?"

"You said that we should do our best to help in Delta, right?

"Yes."

"And the more prominent the better."

"Right...where is this going?"

"How about we offer people shelter and protection?"

"Are you speaking of your wards? You are right, that would be a great help in this situation. There aren't a lot with these kinds of skills." Monique nodded as if she understood.

"No. Not just those. I talking about extending the shield of Minas Mar over part of the city."

"What?! You can do that?" Simon exclaimed in a high-pitched voice.

Evee nodded. Seth had given Evee administrative rights early on and was allowed to keep them as she had become quite proficient as a tower operator. The others were only moderators. They could use the system functions, but not change anything.

"Not just that, we could even use Minas Mar to monitor the unsealed part of the city and directly teleport to places with gate activities. We could be the first at the site, every time. Even without the Oathguard fully formed, we could have a massive impact."

They forgot Monique's opportunism. What happened to their cute innocent Evee!?