"Hurry! Hurry!" David shouted, immediately organizing everyone. "All Secret Keepers who can move, head to the port at once! We're sailing to France to provide reinforcements!"
David's city was very close to the English Channel, allowing them to receive news of the attack on France almost immediately. By the time the intelligence reached London, was relayed to Her Majesty the Queen, and official orders were issued, precious time would have been lost.
Besides, the Queen would almost certainly order support for France anyway. It was better to act now. Everyone understood the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold." In these perilous times, if France fell, Great Britain would surely follow.
As David left the basement to rally his forces, a Herta Puppet arrived at the Secret Keepers Headquarters. Since the puppet didn't recognize him, Herta Herself remotely controlled it to find Martin. Without preamble, the puppet stated bluntly, "I apologize. This disaster is my fault. I will deploy all my puppets to assist you in defending against this crisis."
In the Main World, the Herta Puppet Factory in White Eagle continued to operate tirelessly. To date, it had produced over a thousand Herta Puppets, each possessing the strength of a "weakened Queen Elizabeth." Destroying the world with them would likely be effortless.
However, to protect the world, this number seemed woefully inadequate.
A major reason was the Featherless Bird Disaster. Starting from the skies above Africa, massive swarms of these creatures were spreading across Europe and the Middle East. If they were ground units, a defensive front could have been established to contain them, and Herta could simply distribute her thousand puppets evenly along the line.
But the Featherless Birds were aerial threats, capable of bypassing any defensive lines and scattering across France. How could Herta possibly station a puppet in every village, town, and city? The very idea was absurd.
Clearly, a thousand Herta Puppets were far too few.
"Are you Madam Herta?" David asked, staring at the puppet in disbelief. "Martin told me the Witch was supposed to be beautiful, elegant, and mysterious. How can she be a teenage girl?"
David frowned, glancing at Martin. The child was undeniably cute, but how could anyone possibly describe her as beautiful, elegant, or mysterious? His eyes conveyed deep suspicion, silently asking, "You... you're not a pedophile, are you?"
Though he didn't understand David's implication, Martin felt goosebumps rise on his skin and hastily clarified, "This isn't Madam Herta herself—it's a puppet she created!"
Martin quickly steered the conversation back on track, turning to Little Herta and asking, "You said this disaster was caused by you? What do you mean by that?"
The group remained remarkably calm. They wouldn't recklessly blame Herta simply because she claimed responsibility.
Little Herta explained simply, "I'm currently battling an Evil God. Those Featherless Birds are just its minions. Since they posed no threat to me, the Evil God ordered them to withdraw from the battlefield and harass you instead."
David: "Huh?"
Martin: "Huh?"
Hector: "What the hell?"
Little Herta's words were packed with information, leaving the trio stunned. Meanwhile, Jonathan knelt before her, his voice reverent. "Honored Madam Herta, what exactly is the formula for the improved Corrupted potion? Please, reveal it to me! I would give anything to learn it!"
While nearly everyone else was focused on the ongoing monster attack, Jonathan remained fixated on the improved potion.
Little Herta glanced at him, paused briefly, and then stated, "Even if I gave it to you, you wouldn't understand it. Moreover, the materials required don't exist in this world."
Herta wasn't being secretive; she was stating a harsh truth. The technology behind that potion was so far ahead of its time that handing Jonathan the formula would be like giving a caveman the blueprints for a cosmic spaceship. By the time his descendants might grasp even a fraction of it, this world would likely have been destroyed.
Though factually accurate, Herta's words bordered on calling Jonathan "too stupid." Anyone else would have taken offense, but Jonathan showed no such reaction. His forehead pressed against the ground, he replied with unwavering devotion, "I understand. Is this a divine miracle beyond the comprehension of us mortals?"
Little Herta was speechless, staring at Jonathan and wondering what he was up to.
David hastily ordered his men to drag Jonathan away before turning to the Herta Puppet. He took a deep breath and asked, "Are you currently battling the Flesh God? Is there anything we can do to assist?"
Little Herta shook her head. "It's not the Flesh God, but another nameless Evil God. It doesn't matter. I'll deal with the Flesh God later as well. I don't need your help; just focus on protecting yourselves."
With a blink, a massive virtual map materialized in the clearing before them, encompassing all of Europe and the Middle East. The map was densely dotted with glowing points. "According to my calculations," Little Herta said, "France has 937 cities near Africa. Establishing a continuous defensive line against the Featherless Birds is impractical. I recommend evacuating all nearby civilians into these cities. I'll deploy a Puppet to each city to protect them."
After all, Herta was responsible for the Featherless Bird Disaster, and she couldn't simply stand by and watch. The plan she had just proposed was the best solution currently available.
Hearing Herta's words, David felt a chill run down his spine. Not the Flesh God? But another Evil God?
So, this Witch is simultaneously battling two Evil Gods while also protecting nearly a thousand cities?
David nodded solemnly. "I understand. I will report this to Her Majesty the Queen immediately."
What David didn't say was that by the time Her Majesty informed the Emperor of France, the Emperor issued his orders, and the Secret Keepers of France began to mobilize, precious time would have been lost.
If France had been under direct attack, David could have acted swiftly and unilaterally, rushing to provide aid before reporting it. But this situation was different. He had no authority to command the Secret Keepers across all of France to coordinate with him. Even though he knew the situation was critical, his only recourse was to report the matter up the chain of command.