The link disconnected, and her consciousness gradually returned to her body.
Zoe suddenly lifted her head from the table, her face full of excitement.
Unfortunately, the novel that had just been resting on the table hadn’t been moved, and her slightly swollen forehead smacked right into it again.
“Ow ow ow ow...”
Zoe clutched her forehead as tears welled up in her eyes.
“Ugh, it hurts this much... it must’ve been real then.”
Despite being dazed from the bump, her mind still lingered on that incredible experience. Even though the pain at her temple was intense, she couldn’t help but replay everything that had just happened.
A strange voice had appeared in her mind. After talking with them, she realized it was some sort of mysterious link that would occasionally activate—according to those people, they’d been exchanging information through this link all along.
This... this was simply, simply amazing!
Zoe had always loved reading novels, but she knew deep down it was that kind of exciting life she longed for.Back when she was just an ordinary maid in Duke Cohen’s estate, she had begged Hughes to take her away—even if it meant going to some unknown, remote island. She had followed Young Master Hughes knowing she might never return.
What she yearned for was adventure. She was tired of the repetitive, day-after-day chores.
But she was also aware of her limits. She was just a normal maid. Being able to leave the manor and attend basic literacy classes had already made her very content. Those thrilling and dangerous lives were, most likely, unrelated to her.
And yet today, she had suddenly gained this wondrous ability—to link with all sorts of capable people and communicate with them!
Zoe couldn’t help but spin a few circles in the room. This kind of thing only happened in novels—the ordinary protagonist suddenly gains a cheat, and then their life changes completely—
*Knock knock knock.*
“Zoe?”
A knock came from the door outside. Zoe immediately recognized Hughes’s voice and quickly straightened herself up before opening the door.
Naturally, it was Hughes standing at the entrance. He had come over directly upon returning, ready to inform her of his latest decision.
“Zoe, I plan to— What happened to your forehead?”
Zoe immediately covered her forehead. The touch to her swollen temple made her grimace and cry out in pain. “Uuuhh, it’s nothing, really. I just accidentally bumped it... twice.”
“...Be more careful then.”
Hughes gave a light cough and his expression grew serious.
“Zoe, you know about the first airship we sent out, right? The one we haven’t heard back from?”
Zoe nodded in surprise. Of course she knew—Hughes had only summoned her to help out after Connor left. She had been privately worried for old Connor, especially since he had looked after her back when she was a maid.
“That airship was headed in the direction of the Empire to seek aid. Its planned landing point was Blood Harbor. Rumor has it the situation over there is unstable. I suspect the airship was detained in Blood Harbor.”
“Ah? Is that so? Then we must hurry and rescue Mr. Connor!”
Zoe covered her mouth in alarm, her face full of worry.
“Since you feel the same, then I’ll leave it to you, Zoe.”
“?”
Zoe blinked, her face full of pure confusion.
“I’m organizing a delegation to go to Blood Harbor and investigate what happened to the airship. If it’s truly been detained, we’ll get them back—You’ll be leading the team.”
Zoe was nodding along while listening, but froze the moment she heard the last sentence. She slowly raised a finger to point at herself, utterly bewildered.
“Me? I’m leading it?”
“That’s right. You’re familiar with Connor, and you’re from Duke Cohen’s territory. You can use my... you can use Duke Cohen’s name to demand their release.”
It was all just flimsy reasoning. The real reason she had been chosen was simple—she had just so happened to randomly be linked into the group chat.
But Zoe didn’t know that. The little maid panicked the moment she realized Hughes was serious.
“W-what! No way! I can’t! I’ve never led an expedition before, and I’ve never even been to Blood Harbor. Shouldn’t this sort of thing be handled by someone like Mr. Alexei?”
“Alexei is busy with Holy Guard matters and can’t get away. The Banshees can’t expose themselves either. So it’s decided—it’s you!”
Seeing Zoe still flustered, Hughes began to speak in a softer, soothing tone.
“Don’t worry. I’ll assign a team of Holy Guards to you, and there will be Banshees on standby at sea. You’ll also have a ship following behind. If anything happens, they’ll assist. You did a great job managing the school before. This time, I’m counting on you.”
Without waiting for Zoe’s reply, Hughes turned and left.
“You can start by getting familiar with the situation. Ask about the mainland, find more channels—like Josh’s trade caravan—see if they have any contacts.”
“You depart the day after tomorrow. I’ll arrange the personnel. You just focus on being the team leader. Tomorrow, make sure to ask around for news.”
*Bang.*
(latest novel first released at 69shuba!)
The door shut.
Zoe dazedly sat back down in her chair.
Her mind was in chaos. She had only come here to help with some odd chores—how had she suddenly ended up leading a delegation?
What should she do? What if she messed it up and failed to rescue Mr. Connor?
Find more channels... ask around for information... ask about the mainland...
Hughes’s words suddenly echoed in her mind. Zoe stiffened, her eyes widening.
That’s right! She had just gained the link—she could ask those people!
Surely they would know something about the Empire, right?
This might actually work!
Zoe instantly perked up, pacing quickly around the room. The team was leaving the day after tomorrow. She still had tomorrow to ask questions... assuming the link worked tomorrow too...
Her face flushed bright red. She had unexpectedly gained a golden finger, and it turned out to be useful immediately. This—this was just like a novel plot!
Let everything go smoothly, let everything go smoothly... she silently prayed in her heart.
Meanwhile, Hughes was strolling slowly down the hallway, the corners of his lips curving upward.
Of course everything would go smoothly. He planned to descend into Worker Hughes’s body first thing tomorrow and pull her into the link.
The link would finally be of use. Thinking about it, Hughes couldn’t help but sigh.
Castel Island was still too disconnected from the outside world. There weren’t any reliable channels for information. Who knew what had become of Isaac, who had been sent to build the intelligence network? Someone needed to be sent to check.
But that was for later.
For now, he needed to figure out how to make contact with the Prince.
If the Prince really had detained the airship, they’d need to show some power to get it back.
With that thought, Hughes turned down another hallway, heading toward the Eastern Test Site.
He planned to ask the Moths Chasing Fire how their previous projects were progressing. If any of them were usable, they might come in handy.
After all, we’re talking about—cannons.