Chapter 316: Affidavit of Loss

During that most cruel times (the condition needs to be repeatedly emphasized), the fall of the Imperial Synod was inevitable. The enemies were advancing and invading in all fronts, and the Consistory was led to their own demise by the clear deception and tactical manipulation of the advancing enemy.

But Ezra Dunster was no where to be seen, especially in the most critical moments of the surprise attack. While the Cardinals have tried to put up a resistance, the might of the enemy was in no way to be matched. A few of the Old Branches was able to show enough power to wield some potent chants, but the stronger army of the enemies were more capable and very ready to duel.

The Book of Chants was also missing from its appointed place in the Little Theater. Some of the Cardinals believe that this fact was the bad omen that led to their weakened ability to slow down all the attacking enemies which eventually led to the fall of the See of Old. While negotiations were being made for the arrangements relating to the Nodal Guards to avert a potential conflict, there was no clear option to be taken from the very beginning so that they will arrive in time to aid for the See of Old's much needed defense. In the end, it was the carefully devised deceptive tactics that won, and so much instrumental in describing the climax of this planned invasion.

But where is Ezra Dunster? Is it possible that he was the traitor who betrayed the Empire into its own downfall? Was he capable to assume this kind of doing? Did he steal the Book of Chants?

As the courageous Cardinals slowly fell to their death one by one, the attacking Cyborgs were able to retrieve enough power from their command and sufficient mastery of the respective impetuses of their Magical Twigs to better suppress any opposition. It was very clear from the very beginning that the Woolswood Federation was gravely misinformed, and at most manipulated in order to declare a war against the Empire. The cause of the untimely Unicorn Uprising was motivated by reasons that were politically attributed to the weak diplomacy with the Imperial Synod, a precondition that eventually necessitated the Cyborgs to launch this sudden retaliatory attack.

The drastic manipulation was starting to manifest; the physical clock was clearly in use, but the relevant time wasps as a result of the circunstances of the war were not to be felt until the near period of the modern era, where the Empire's ruins particularly describe a hidden secret beneath a sprawling land of collapsed structures.

"Death to the Old Ways! Defeat the iron stand! Keep the veil open!"

The battlecry of the Cyborgs was directly evident to the conflict's substantive intent: that they have been strongly protesting against the presence of the Bishop of Old's edict in which it requires the most capable Nodal Guards to patrol the known tunnel ways from the Empire and into the Woolswood vicinity, and vice versa.

This has been called the despicable "bad journey" diplomacy that was the consistent content of the numerous Note Verbale submitted by the High Representative of the Federation through the approved diplomatic channels of the Parallelogram Office, and the Imperial Synod itself was being wrongfully blamed for gaslighting the Unicorns to induce a prejudicial sentiment against the peace-loving Woolswood Federation, and its recognized charted territories.

The Unicorn blood is sacred, and there is no way to will its shameless desecration.

As extreme opposition further escalated against the See of Colors and its artisan Blacksmiths, the ultimatum for them to unilaterally halt the faithful reproduction of the Willows was made with very strong rhetorical implications. This later act was mainly seen as a sanctionable move to challenge the authority of the Bishop of Old (with no other demands and conditions), in order to appease the concerns of the Unicorns that their own blood was being used to sanctify the manufactueed steels that severely desecrate their own kind, and that the Woolswood Federation is not responsible for any of the alleged high crimes committed against the Great Horns.

***

"Who are you?" Ezra Dunster woke up with severe pain all over his body. "Where am I?"

"At last you are awake!" the Elf greeted him. "I will immediately inform Santa Claus that you are now conscious. There are so much things to do, you see. The Christmas Corporation has saved you from your voluntary nightmare. But no worries! No worries! Safety is where you are momentarily."

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This Chapter is sponsored by Fendi.