Chapter 1 It Stands to Reason

In Pland, the extinguishing of the sun naturally brought about a city-wide chaos, but before the chaos developed to a dangerous point, the city-state guards and guardian forces who appeared in time had already controlled the situation!

The melodious chimes from the small church echoed over the neighborhood, the chimes seeming to contain the power to calm people's minds and regain courage. Steam walkers clanked through the streets and alleys, broadcasting the latest orders from City Hall.

Gas lamps along the roads had been urgently lit. Panicked pedestrians were doing everything possible to return to the safety of their homes as soon as possible, or drilling into the nearest "Nightfall Shelters." Fully armed guardians were swiftly moving through the crowd, confirming the situation at each Nightfall Shelter and checking whether the sudden darkness had bred any "tainted things" that should not appear in the real world!

Heidi turned on all the lights in her house as soon as possible--from gas lamps with divine power to oil lamps and sufficiently bright electric lights, using these lights to dispel the darkness brought by the extinguishing of the sun, and also to dispel the tension in her heart. Her mother's voice came from the direction of the sofa, "Relax, Heidi, running around will make you fall. It's not the end of the world yet."

Heidi turned her head and saw her mother sitting on the sofa as usual, having picked up the few letters that she had temporarily put down due to the arrival of darkness.

The old woman's expression was still gentle and calm, as if no matter what happened in this world, it would have no effect on her. The sun had gone out! Heidi was surprised by her mother's calmness at this moment!

She couldn't calm down at all right now.

"You can still read letters!"

"If I put down the letters, will the sun light up again?" Her mother finally turned her head, with a helpless expression on her face!

"Now we can only choose to believe in City Hall and the Cathedral. There will be powerful beings protecting this city."

Heidi pursed her lips and subconsciously clutched the pendant hanging on her chest.

"Damn... If Vanna were here, I could ask her what exactly is going on... Father isn't home either."

She didn't notice that when her mother, who was sitting on the sofa, heard her muttering, her face instantly revealed a somewhat subtle expression. The next second, the old woman shook her head, "If the sun really went out, then this must be a sight that the whole world can see. Vanna and your father must have seen it too--they must be thinking of ways within their respective responsibilities, and you should calm down at this time and think about your own responsibilities."

Heidi finally calmed down a little. She frowned and turned her gaze to the table not far away. A delicate and sturdy suitcase was quietly placed in a corner of the table.

It was filled with various tools and potions she used when practicing medicine--since the city-state had been exceptionally peaceful even at night recently, she had not used the most potent items in that suitcase for a long time.

"There will be many people who need psychological counseling."

Her mother's calming voice came from behind, "I estimate that it won't be long before City Hall sends someone to pick you up--the sun is only temporarily dimming, but our city hasn't sunk yet!"

Heidi breathed a sigh of relief and slowly walked towards her medical kit.

"Okay, you're right, it's not the end of the world yet--so my overtime won't end either."

"Don't forget to bring a gun when you go out for a consultation…"

Her mother reminded her in a gentle tone, "Although Pland has been much safer than in the past recently, people with mental disorders are always so dangerous--you have to use some drastic measures to deal with 'foci' when necessary."

"Of course."

Heidi casually agreed.

Opening a hidden compartment at the bottom of the suitcase, a beautifully crafted revolver and several spare cartridge cases lay quietly before her. She quickly checked the condition of the gun before opening her mouth with a trace of emotion, "After all... gunpowder is also medicine."

"I have sent out the city-state guards, so there is no need to worry about the order within Frost City in the short term!" Tirian stood in front of a large floor-to-ceiling mirror in a corner of the domed office, saying to the mirror with a serious face.

"The sense of tension brought to the city by the mirror crisis that occurred not long ago has not yet faded. The good news is that under the influence of this sense of tension, the implementation of various emergency plans will be relatively rapid."

A faint green flame burned quietly on the surface of the mirror like a layer of gauze. Duncan's figure stood in the depths of darkness in the mirror. After Tirian's voice fell, he nodded, "Very good. Are there any abnormalities pointing to the supernatural in the city at present?"

"Not yet found," Tirian said immediately.

"



However, I have increased manpower and focused on the situation of facilities such as mental hospitals. The Cathedral is also arranging people to focus on patrolling the Nightfall Shelters, cemeteries, and blocks with less light..."

"Theoretically, within the anomaly-ized Frostland, 'darkness' itself is no longer a dangerous factor. Only mental breakdowns and large-scale panic that directly target people's hearts need close attention."

Duncan reminded, "In addition, there is no need to send people to the cemetery area. I will personally watch over that area."

"Yes," Tirian nodded quickly. Then he hesitated for a moment, carefully wording his words, "How is the situation on your side... Is there any problem on the Vanishing Sea?"

"No need to worry here, nothing can threaten the Vanishing Sea!"

Duncan said lightly, "Nina has already lit a temporary sun in the sky. Now we are still sailing south according to the plan, and the surrounding sea area is calmer than expected."

Tirian breathed a slight sigh of relief, "Then it seems that I was overthinking it."

"Can you contact Light Breeze Port?" Duncan's voice then came from the mirror, "What's the situation with Lucretia?"

"I just contacted her. She has just returned to the ship *Glittering Star*. There is no safety problem at present. She said that she also observed the scene of the sun going out in Light Breeze Port, but the chaotic situation in that city-state is much better than in Frost City--due to the influence of that mysterious 'falling object,' most areas of Light Breeze Port are still shrouded in 'sunlight.' Although the celestial anomaly is unsettling, it does not look as terrifying as it does here in Frost City."

"That's good. Keep in touch at all times and pay close attention to the changes in the city-state."

"Yes!"

Tirian nodded, then hesitated and slowly said, "In addition, there is another situation..."

"Speak."

Duncan in the mirror frowned, "At this time! Any situation should be spoken."

"We have lost contact with other city-states, whether those distant city-states or Cold Harbor nearby."

Tirian said cautiously, "The telegram is interrupted, the signal towers at sea are not responding, and even the psionic communication of the church cannot be contacted. At present, only two city-states are barely maintaining contact. One is Pland, and the other is Light Breeze Port."

"Communication with other city-states is interrupted."

Duncan's expression suddenly became serious, "How long has this situation been going on?"

"When the sun went out, we discovered the interruption of contact with Cold Harbor and then confirmed that the other city-states were the same."

Tirian said immediately, "I have urgently recalled all ships in the waters near Frost City and prohibited all ships from going to sea!"

Tirian said so, but in fact, he didn't say everything.

After the communication with other city-states was interrupted, an unusual worry floated into his heart.

He worried that outside the city-state, in those places where the sun could not shine, the boundless sea had become something that people could not understand...

"Continue to try to contact other city-states," Duncan's voice came from the mirror, interrupting Tirian's thoughts, "Also, if Lucy has any new news, contact me as soon as possible."

"Yes, Father."

The communication with the Vanishing Sea ended, and the huge domed office returned to silence. Tirian raised his hand and rubbed his sore forehead vigorously. Then he pressed the electric bell on the desk. The office door was pushed open, and Aiden walked in. Tirian raised his head and instructed his most loyal subordinate, "Be vigilant about those ships returning from the darkness. Before the sun lights up again, do not let them approach the city-state rashly--delineate a buffer zone in the near-sea area."

"Let the returning ships stay there temporarily and wait for inspection and clearance!"

The mirror in front of him gradually returned to calm, and the faint green flames temporarily retreated to the corners of the mirror. Duncan breathed a sigh of relief, turned his head and glanced at the window. The bright "sunlight" still shone on the deck of the Vanishing Sea and the surrounding large area of sea. However, outside the area illuminated by the sunlight, the entire boundless sea was still shrouded in a strange darkness.

This was a very unsettling moment. Even the usually most talkative Goathead was now silent at the chart table. Only Alice was happily airing her quilt on the deck at this time.

Duncan rubbed his forehead, trying not to pay attention to the figure airing the quilt on the deck.

Then he concentrated his mind and called out to the flame floating in the sky.

"Nina, how is the situation on your side? Are you tired?"

"Not tired," with the resonance of the flame's power, Nina's voice sounded in Duncan's mind almost immediately, "I didn't fly very high. I can stay in this position for a long, long time!"

"Can you see anything on the surrounding sea?"

"Um... no, there's nothing on the surrounding sea, not even a ripple. Uncle Duncan, did you think of something?"

"Not yet, but always pay attention to the situation at sea--especially those sea areas located at the junction of light and darkness," Duncan said slowly, "If something like a ship appears nearby, tell me as soon as possible."

Nina's voice immediately responded, "Okay, I will."

Duncan hummed, ended the conversation with Nina, then looked at the mirror in front of him, steadied his mind slightly, and stepped forward to stroke the mirror surface, "Lawrence, how is the situation on your side?"