Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1276: Simultaneous Attacks

The black flames burning on Red had already dissipated into the wind before he was about to hit the ground.

Mr. Joker suddenly leapt down, catching Red before his body could completely crash and be smashed into a pulp. With several bounds, he landed outside the crowd, in a corner of the plaza where the Foggy City Eye stood, avoiding the people.

The Ferris wheel continued to rotate slowly, but Mr. Joker stared at the many gondolas, his brow tightly furrowed.

At the same time, he checked Red’s condition.

Red could only be described as being in terrible shape—he had completely lost consciousness. His clothes were utterly burned away, large areas of his skin had turned pitch-black, and even the whites of his eyes were showing.

“Sir Dagonet!”

At that moment, three Grand Knights of the Knights of the Round Table organization pushed through the crowd and found Mr. Joker’s position, rushing over immediately. “What happened just now? For an instant, it looked like the Foggy City Eye was about to fall… what is this?”

Their gazes all fell on the charred figure slung over Mr. Joker’s shoulder.

“This is Red.” Dagonet casually tossed the man onto the ground. “He’s still breathing. Take him back—you should be able to save him.”

“As expected of Sir Dagonet!” The three Grand Knights immediately looked full of admiration. “Congratulations on defeating a senior executive of Doomsday Myth!”“It wasn’t me… go back first. I still have something to take care of.”

Mr. Joker shook his head, then, under the astonished gazes of the three, walked back toward the crowd—toward the Foggy City Eye.

They did not know what had just happened to the Foggy City Eye, nor did they know about the terrifying black flames that had suddenly appeared. But Joker Dagonet had seen it all clearly from the side, including the scene where the Ferris wheel’s axle was restored.

Dagonet walked through the crowd. People were discussing what had just happened—clearly, many had seen the Foggy City Eye shift position. Yet the reality was that it continued rotating as usual, with nothing actually happening, which left everyone puzzled.

“It looked like a restoration spell… but at that level, aside from a few people in the Magicians’ Association, who else could use something like that?”

His eyes searched through the crowd, not even sparing the couples stepping out of the gondolas, trying to find any clues.

However, even after the entire batch of riders had left the Ferris wheel and the staff temporarily closed the Foggy City Eye due to the disturbance—after much of the crowd had dispersed—Dagonet still found nothing of value.

Instead, his clown-like suit drew quite a bit of attention from tourists. In the end, Dagonet could only leave with his doubts and return to the Knights of the Round Table organization to report.

This was because the person in charge of the organization, Mr. Perkins, had already issued him an order that could not be disobeyed, requiring him to return immediately to explain Red’s case.

…

After repeated inspections, the staff later confirmed that the Foggy City Eye indeed had no malfunction. Under strong pressure from tourists, it was reopened once again.

A new batch of visitors lined up, waiting to enter the gondolas.

Boss Luo bought two ice creams from a nearby cart and walked over to Miss Maid, chuckling softly. “Let’s ride it one more time. Don’t be angry this time… there shouldn’t be anything strange happening again.”

“I’m not angry,” Miss Maid said with a slight smile.

Boss Luo merely smiled without saying anything… the man had already been burned to that extent.

After that, nothing else happened.

…

…

Sir Perkins was sixty years old this year. His graying hair was neatly combed. As the person in charge of the Foggy City Knights of the Round Table organization, he had served for over thirty years and had witnessed the birth of two generations of the Twelve Knights.

He was, however, an ordinary person, without the knights’ power or formidable physique—but he had another identity as well: a member of the ancient British royal family.

“…That’s roughly how things went.” Standing formally before Sir Perkins, Mr. Joker spoke. “I suspect that a very powerful magician has appeared in Foggy City—someone capable not only of using an over-spec restoration spell, but also wielding terrifying black flames.”

“According to our records on the Magicians’ Association, there is no one who matches your description, Knight Dagonet,” Sir Perkins said slowly. “Of course, I believe that as a noble knight, you are not deceiving me. Therefore, I will dispatch people to investigate as soon as possible. For now, what we should really be discussing is Red.”

Dagonet said in surprise, “Sir, hasn’t Red already been captured?”

Sir Perkins made a gesture for him to wait, and at that moment, the door to the room was pushed open. Gareth, also one of the Twelve Knights, walked straight in.

As a pillar of the nation, Foggy City had three of the Twelve Knights of the Round Table. One was responsible for guarding Her Majesty the Queen, while the other two were Gareth and Dagonet, who were mainly responsible for maintaining order among non-human beings within the Foggy City region.

Of course, most operations were carried out by ordinary knights and Grand Knights. Gareth would occasionally participate in regular missions, mainly because he was idle. As for Dagonet, it depended on his mood, and he would only act on matters that interested him.

“Gareth is here. We can begin,” Sir Perkins said as he tapped the table.

Gareth suddenly asked, “Sir, do we not need to wait for Lancelot?”

Sir Perkins replied, “Lancelot is by Her Majesty’s side and cannot get away for the moment. I will send him the contents of this meeting afterward.”

“What exactly happened?” Gareth asked seriously—Perkins rarely summoned both him and Dagonet at the same time.

The last time had been to address the issue of the Thirteen Clans’ Holy Blood Ritual scheduled for this year… more than a month ago.

“It concerns the organization known as Doomsday Myth.” Sir Perkins turned off the room’s lights and switched on the projector at the side.

On the wall, projected data appeared clearly. One image after another flashed before Gareth and Dagonet, their expressions gradually growing grim.

“The National Museum of Scotland, Blenheim Palace, Sheffield Cathedral, and Old Trafford Stadium! And the stadium was even hosting a league match, with tens of thousands of fans in attendance,” Sir Perkins said heavily. “Tonight, just over an hour ago, all of these places were attacked simultaneously. If we include the Foggy City Eye, that makes five locations in total!”

“Who did this?” Gareth frowned deeply… this was clearly one of the gravest provocations against the British Empire.

“Who declared war, I don’t know,” Sir Perkins said in a low voice. “But it’s obvious that after learning of these events, Her Majesty the Queen was furious. Doomsday Myth has become so frenzied, daring to openly attack so many places. Their next move could very well be to storm the Royal Palace itself! Her Majesty is currently unwilling to let Lancelot leave her side even for a moment!”

“Logically speaking, Doomsday Myth is only a newly emerged organization…” Gareth said thoughtfully. “Most of the people they recruit are on the Magicians’ Association’s wanted list, along with some non-humans with extremely poor reputations. Overall, they’re just a loose rabble, and over the past year they haven’t done anything too outrageous. So what exactly drove them to make such a large and blatant move this time?”

“We must get something out of Red, whom we’ve already captured, otherwise we’ll remain completely on the defensive,” Sir Perkins said gravely. “Knight Gareth, Knight Dagonet, I now formally order the two of you to root out everyone related to Doomsday Myth hidden within Foggy City. Under no circumstances can we allow these lunatics to operate again right under our noses!”

“Sir, then what about the missing beastmen?” Gareth reminded him.

“Have Grand Knight Simpson continue the search… for now, the most important thing is to stop Doomsday Myth’s next move. Attacks like this absolutely must not happen again!”

“Yes, sir!”

The two stood at attention, clenched their fists, and pressed them to their chests.

…

…

On the streets, late-night pedestrians stood before the display windows of TV shops, watching the breaking news being broadcast.

They covered their mouths in shock—the reports were simply too horrifying.

It appeared to be a terrorist attack. Several locations were struck simultaneously, and casualty figures were still being tallied… yet no organization had claimed responsibility.

Miss Maid was in a good mood. Ever since getting off the Foggy City Eye for the second time, her spirits had remained high. Even now, seeing this news report had no effect on her at all. She obediently accompanied her master, watching the live broadcast on the television.

“It should be the same group as the one at the Foggy City Eye earlier,” Luo Qiu said thoughtfully.

Although Miss Maid had indeed thrown out a mass of black flames, unless a customer specifically requested it, the club generally would not kill any living being—after all, judging by the former owner’s way of doing business, anyone could be a potential customer.

Still, it could hardly be called a light warning… considering that more than half a life had effectively been burned away.

“For sources of danger like this, which could lead to the deaths of a large number of potential customers, it does seem necessary to clean them up thoroughly,” Miss Maid said softly with a gentle smile.

“We’re not exactly champions of justice,” Luo Qiu said with a faint smile. He rather liked Miss Maid’s unusual way of expressing emotions—after all, compared with the previous owner, he did enjoy a greater degree of freedom.

“There seems to be an organization here similar to a Management Bureau,” Luo Qiu thought for a moment. “They should handle it… hmm, do you know about the Knights of the Round Table?”

Miss Maid understood immediately. “Master, are you thinking about Mr. Aamon, whom we encountered at Tu Shenyi’s estate back then?”

Luo Qiu nodded. With a turn of his palm, a necklace appeared—it was something Aamon had handed over just before his death, an opportunity to participate in one of the Twelve Knights’ inheritance trials.

Such an opportunity was likely extremely precious—for those who wished to become knights. But in Boss Luo’s hands, it naturally served little purpose.

It wasn’t a traded item, merely something Aamon had given before dying… Luo Qiu had been considering passing this inheritance opportunity to someone suitable.

“How much do you know about the Knights of the Round Table, Master?” Miss Maid asked softly.

“Not much,” Luo Qiu answered honestly. “Mostly King Arthur, the sword in the lake, fairies—those familiar stories. I don’t suppose the cartoons I watched as a kid count… do lake fairies really exist?”

Miss Maid pondered and said, “Generally speaking, the prototype legend behind King Arthur’s sword in the lake comes from the Celtic pantheon, specifically the magic sword Caladbolg wielded by the hero Fergus mac Róich. As for the Lady of the Lake, she also belongs to the Celtic pantheon. The Queen of the Land of Shadows you encountered in South America, whom Lord Lucifer summoned, also originated from this pantheon.”

“The Celtic pantheon…” Luo Qiu nodded, committing it to memory.

Miss Maid then added, “However, the Celtic pantheon has already fallen. The entire divine realm was shattered and ultimately swallowed by the gaps between dimensions. Many of its divine spirits could only take refuge among heroic souls, surviving by becoming servants bound by contracts. In fact, after King Arthur’s death and return to Avalon, when the divine realm collapsed, he too became a summonable heroic soul. The original Twelve Knights likewise entered the realm of heroic souls not long after. Before their deaths, however, each of the Twelve Knights left behind a portion of their power to guard the land.”

She twirled a strand of hair around her finger as she continued, “The Knights of the Round Table organization is essentially an institution that preserves portions of the original Twelve Knights’ power. It was established after the deaths of the Twelve Knights and has since been cultivating qualified knights to inherit that power. In the beginning, it was more like a civilian organization, staying out of Britain’s later divisions and wars, focusing solely on repelling local evils. But in modern times, it gradually took on an official character—mainly because there was once a secret marriage between the modern royal family and Arthur’s descendants, which allowed the modern British monarchy to successfully intervene in the Knights’ organization.”

“I see…” Luo Qiu nodded, then smiled. “Tell me more when we get back. There’s no reason to keep a lady standing out on the street.”

Miss Maid had long since stopped being upset.

(End of Chapter)