'What's going on?' Kim's brows furrowed the moment the connection went off abruptly.

His chest tightened, uncertainty mixed with fear gripping him from the inside.

The voice he had heard wasn't just scared. It was terrified.

What had the elves witnessed, a race of prideful beings, that would make them so scared?

If there was something like that, Kim knew it couldn't be simple.

Not at all.

An uneasy feeling enveloped him.

"Melina, connect me with the elves now," he ordered.

A feminine mechanical voice rang through the deck.

"Sir Kim, the connection has been completely cut off... Interstellar band with plate number ID: 122567 has been destroyed."

"What?" Kim raised a brow.

"Wasn't it used to contact us just now? How come it has been destroyed?"

"No sir, the message you received now was recorded seven hours ago. It seems some unidentified source was able to breach our connection, thus causing the message to arrive only now."

'Seven hours ago? Unidentified source? What's going on? And most importantly, what does that boy have to do with all of this?'

There were so many questions swirling in his mind with no answers to them.

Kim rubbed his forehead, calming himself with a deep breath.

"Melina, can you retrieve the last video record from the interstellar band before it was destroyed?"

"....."

Silence fell in the room, and Kim sat quietly waiting for the system's reply.

"It seems..." Melina paused.

Kim leaned back on his armoured chair, the cold metal pressing against his back, his hands clasped together in wait.

"The video records are fragmented due to the breach at the time, but I was able to get some of the clips."

"Play it," Kim ordered, calmly resting his hands on the soft cushion pad of the armoured chair.

With his order, a large holographic screen blinked into existence in front of the deck.

The screen flickered for a bit, showing a large massive ship in the sky — or rather, a pitch-black mass.

It kept phasing, as though it was an illusion yet still real.

Just as the ship entered into the horizon, the video flickered again, and darkness claimed the screen.

"Has the video ended?"

"No sir, this is after the connection returned."

'So that ship, it must've been the cause of the disruption, right? What sort of technology was it made from? It didn't even look real.'

Kim waited patiently, his eyes still fixed on the display.

The screen flickered again, another scene came into view.

This time, there was a bloodstain on the screen.

But it didn't stop him from seeing the display.

As Kim's gaze fell on the screen, his heart paused for a second.

And he felt a sudden chill.

"How... how is this possible?" he stuttered, disbelief apparent in his eyes.

Kim tightened his fist, his voice stern as he ordered:

"Melina, contact HQ and send a message to all the Family Heads. We have to hold the Faceless Summit."

"Yes sir, I'll send a message to HQ at once concerning the matter."

'How could this happen so soon after we left them? We didn't even encounter the ship. That hidden city of elves has been locked away for a long time, and we've already sent out news about the discovery. If the other elven realms hear about this, they'd probably think we had an involvement in it.'

Kim leaned back into the chair, worry hidden beneath his gaze as several thoughts occupied his mind.

Something big was about to happen — something no one expected.

It seemed this year was going to become the most perilous one yet.

'I guess I won't even have a break this year again,' Kim let out a sigh of resignation.

---

Sitting quietly at a large circular table was another group.

Here, things looked a bit less tense.

But the tension still remained regardless.

Especially for Jacob, who didn't expect to ever sit face to face with the one and only Captain Galand of the Ravenspare family — his large hands crossed over his chest in an imposing manner.

Sitting right by his side was his vice, Vesha, her grey eyes filling the room with an unnerving aura.

And standing just next to her was a young lady.

Obviously, if it were any other group, Jacob wouldn't have let a young girl join them in a supposed "classified" discussion.

But it was the Ravenspare family, so it wasn't like he even had a choice in the first place.

Unbeknownst to him though, the little girl had even more status within the Ravenspare family holy grounds.

However, for official purposes, Galand was to take the seat at the moment.

On his own end, Jacob had Anita sitting with him, fidgeting slightly.

And standing by her side was Kieran.

'This boy just keeps bringing more and more issues up for me. How do I explain to these people that he still has to come to the convention with me?' Jacob thought, giving out a sigh.

"Sir Galand, with all due respect, even with or without his consent, he has to be present for the Blue Fang faction convention. Our faction leader will have to meet him along with the new recruits," Jacob explained with a wry smile.

"This is a matter of particular concern. I can't go into much detail, but it affects not only us, but you and everyone else. He has to come with us... He has already agreed to this, so I don't see a reason to drag on for much longer," Vesha said sternly.

Jacob stared at the two with a complex expression.

He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He had already explained to them countless times about the situation.

But it seemed the two only cared about taking Kieran and not the consequences he would have to face if the young lady went off with them.

"I don't think you're getting my point. He can leave, but that can only be after the convention," Jacob stated, emphasizing more on the need for Kieran's presence.

But seeing the two staring back at him blankly, Jacob knew there was no hope.

"All they want is to see him, right?" Kadin asked, raising a brow at Jacob.

He nodded calmly.

"Then I know what to do."