Chapter 479 479 Who Is This?
The deal was signed, and the banker made the arrangements to purchase the items that Wolfe had requested using the accounts which had been set up by the military leaders for their business efforts here in the Morgana Swamps.
They would get Wolfe two of the smaller helicopters and make sure they were suitable for high mana environments, and the remaining balance could be paid in cash for Wolfe to spend as he saw fit later.
That deal worked out for everyone, as they didn't need to have all the cash on hand right now, and what the Banker and the Military units had on hand was enough to cover the payment to Wolfe for the goods.
"You really know how to work a deal," Cassie whispered into Wolfe's ear as the final arrangements were being made with the auction house, which had the helicopters they wanted.
"We're getting all the shiny toys. Just wait. Once we have a little more gear, we will have our own functional cargo airline, and we can start expanding it to the Covens." Wolfe whispered back.
If they controlled the flow of goods, they would have the Covens at their mercy in no time at all. They already had the power to fly safely anywhere, which no other faction on the continent could claim, so they just needed to consolidate that to stabilize their new nation.
"We will see you all soon. We should be getting back home, though. There are a lot of issues to take care of in order to stabilize the problems in the Frozen Wastes." Wolfe informed the gathered Elders and Military leaders.
"That is understandable. We will see you in a few weeks. You can message us in advance, or the local Mayor will call us when you get here. We have cell service all through the region now." The Prince replied with a smile.
"It has been a pleasure doing business with you, your Highness."
Wolfe led his team back to the helicopter and locked up the container for transit back to the airbase.
As they flew north toward the mountains, something began to feel off to Wolfe. The mana flow of the region had changed, but he couldn't figure out quite why or where. It just wasn't quite right, like something had passed through and disrupted it, making it feel unfamiliar.
His first thought was that there was a powerful monster nearby, but even with [Detect Hidden] at maximum sensitivity, he couldn't find any sort of powerful creatures around.
While the Witches noticed his unease, none of them could see a good reason for it, and all they could do was follow his lead and look for whatever might have alerted Wolfe.
The sensation got stronger as they approached the Airstrip until finally they landed and got out of the helicopter when the feeling suddenly stopped.
"Could it have been a Dragon watching us that was causing the sensation?" Wolfe wondered.
"That's possible. The sensation of being watched was strong before we landed." Cassie agreed.
Ella walked up and gave Wolfe a hug. "Welcome back. We felt the same thing like something was watching us, but we couldn't find the source. We've got the protective barriers up now, just in case, but would you like to put another over the area so that nothing powerful can sneak in without warning?"
As they were speaking, the air shimmered, and an oddly accented female voice spoke from beside them.
"That won't be necessary. We are here now. The Oracle didn't expect that you would be in a helicopter, so it took a while for the location spell to track you down."
Standing beside them, as if they appeared out of nowhere, were two rank two and one Rank Three Witches, all dressed in fancy armour with a logo on it that read "United World Military."
"And who might you be?" Wolfe asked, casting armour spells on all the Witches in the area.
"There is no need for the attitude, Demon. Respect your betters. I am here to speak to the Witches who have decided to set up an encampment within the War Memorial Nature Preserve."n..o/)v(.e(-l/)B((I-.n
Wolfe laughed at her arrogance. "Look, lady, I don't know where you came from, but you're clearly lost. You're not in any Nature Preserve. You're in the Broken Mountains, at the north edge of the Frozen Wastes. We didn't decide to set up an encampment. We live here, or technically just down the river from here.
Now, how about you wander off back to wherever you came from?"
"You let a Demon speak on your behalf? I had heard that the Witches had fallen a long way on this continent, but to think that they wouldn't even send out a proper welcoming party for the United World Military." The Rank Three Witch sneered.
Ella laughed. "And why would we do that? The United World Military hasn't held any authority for well over two hundred years. If you want to bring it back, you'll need to do better than a cosplay outfit."
"Do you really not know anything outside of this quarantined wasteland? The United World Military controls five continents and rules over both the Combined Covens and the resurgent humans. This continent was quarantined after the war to keep the Bloodline Curse from spreading to the other Continents, but it seems that nobody knew that there would be survivors who escaped the curse." The witch explained, now beginning to look confused.
"How about we have a sit down in a meeting room, and you can explain what you're on about. Clearly, we're not on the same page because our people have been here since the war, and there are dozens of relatively stable and prosperous nations on this continent. It's not a wasteland." Cassie suggested.
"And who might you be?" The team leader asked.
"Cassie Noxus." She replied simply.
"NO! That is not possible. The Magi are dead. We purged them from existence. How dare you use that name?" One of the weaker witches blurted out.
"It seems you really do have no idea what is going on here. The Noxus Family is a largely human family with some Witch blood now. The name is the only relic from before the United World Army committed genocide against the Magi." Wolfe explained.
"Who told you such lies?" The team leader asked.
"We have memory crystals from before and during the war. As I said, it would be best if we sat down inside before we caused a public spectacle. There are civilians here who don't need to be dragged into whatever is going on between you and us." Wolfe suggested.
"Fine, please lead the way," the team leader relented.
She looked somewhat nervous as they led her to the entrance to the bunker, but she didn't say anything about it. Her subordinates weren't so silent, though.
"Great, they're leading us to some hovel in the ground like we're common animals. What happened here after the war? Did they lose all signs of civilization?" She muttered to her partner.
"Who knows, but they likely don't even have coffee to offer guests, so we might as well keep our armour on." The other replied.
The beastkin could hear them from across the Den, and Wolfe could see that they were getting coffee ready for the guests, a measure that Wolfe wasn't sure this lot deserved.