In Type-Moon, it all starts with adopting Sakura.

Crows, seagulls, eagles, sparrows, owls, and petrels, and even bats that live at night, defied the laws of nature and flew over, gathering together on the islands near Iceland.

At this moment, they are all gazing into the distance, facing the direction of the rising sun, which is also the direction in which the Magic Eye is collecting the train's route.

Unlike ordinary animals, under the morning sun, one can easily see that the eyes of these animals are not just empty and blank like those of wild animals, but are actually very human-like. Different emotions can even be seen in pairs of eyes of different colors.

That is why these animals, which cannot coexist in the food chain, are now gathered together in this place.

The scene was incredibly strange. Accompanied by these animals that resembled a forest gathering, the situation before us was just like the forest kingdom in Grimm's fairy tales. This was simply the forest world that every child had dreamed of.

However, if someone were to actually pass by here right now, they would definitely be scared half to death by these guys.

Because... these animals were communicating fluently using human language.

"Although we have prepared some familiars here in Iceland, it is still too difficult to fly across the ocean using the wings of birds. The round trip took seven hours, which is extremely troublesome."

A melodious and cheerful voice came from the mouth of a nightingale, but a crow that appeared behind it quickly changed the subject.

"So... everyone, what are your thoughts on the fire giant and the disappearance of the Demon Eye Collection Train? I'm completely confused about the situation right now."

"Yes... This is too strange, but something must have happened. Otherwise, the train should have arrived here by now, and our familiars should be able to board again."

A pure white seagull thoughtfully gave its answer.

His words also explained the origin of this group of special birds.

They are certainly not ordinary birds, nor are they members of the bird kingdom in fairy tales; rather, they are a very special species.

—Familiar.

In the Orient, they are also called shikigami.

Any qualified magician will definitely have many such familiars by their side; they are invaluable helpers.

After all, most magicians live far and wide, each with their own research, making it difficult for them to be readily available and arrive at a specific location. Therefore, in such situations, familiars can substitute for busy magicians to attend important events.

However, these specially modified birds are more like clones than familiars, because magicians can share their consciousness with animals to communicate and act, thus achieving the most basic sensory sharing.

In an era before video calls and online auctions, this unique form of communication is a convenience exclusive to magicians.

"Because the familiars we sent to participate in the auction only flew out last night to check the situation, they were all wiped out by that fire giant on the roof with a single slap. That's why we haven't returned to the train after all this trouble, and we've even lost track of the train's exact location."

The owl was right.

Originally, they had controlled their familiars to fly into the train before departure and temporarily slumber, intending to activate them again at the auction. However, around six o'clock last night, just as they activated their familiars, they discovered that the train was completely dark, and the entire auction hall was empty, as if some unforeseen situation had occurred. So they flew out towards the source of the magic to investigate, and the result was…

As soon as these bird-like familiars took flight, the magic emanating from them was locked onto by the out-of-control Witch-hunting King, who unleashed a burst of flames that turned them all into roasted birds, sending all the monarchs who had come to attend the auction away in one fell swoop. This forced them to hastily dispatch the nearest familiars to fly over.

They were also astonished: what exactly had happened on the Demon Eye Collection Train? How could a fire giant of such great magic level appear? And... how could they launch a terrorist attack on them, the guests?

They needed an explanation from the Mystic Eye Train regarding the killing of their familiar last night, so they gathered on the coast near Iceland, waiting for the train to proceed along its planned route. However…

Even though it was already dawn, there was still no sign of the train that was originally scheduled to arrive in Iceland.

With their keen intuition, they sensed something unusual about it.

"Could it be that the train changed its route at the last minute?"

Soon another bat offered a new guess, but it was quickly rejected.

"Impossible. Even if it was damaged by that fire giant, the train would still pass through here. After all, Iceland is the closest land to that place. There is no more suitable place than here for repairs."

"Moreover, Iceland was the last stop originally scheduled for the train. Even if they wanted to change the route, they should have notified us, instead of disappearing into thin air on the vast ocean like this."

"So... could it be that the train sank at sea and was completely destroyed by that fire giant?"

"Impossible, absolutely impossible. After all, others may not know who the owner of that train is, but we know very well. Although there is no evidence, there may be a big figure among the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles behind it. Even a monster of that size could not destroy the entire train."

"So... what exactly happened?"

"I think..."

"Alright everyone, please quiet down. I have some new information."

Listening to the noisy chatter among the different birds, suddenly, the eagle that had been silent all along let out a powerful female voice, silencing the noise.

Many birds turned their heads and then spoke with great respect: "Please speak, Lord Barthelo."

"—Just now, the ocean familiars I dispatched have already found traces of the train on the sea last night."

"what?"

"So the train was indeed damaged and malfunctioned?"

"It's really unbelievable that I could run into something like this."

"Contact the staff quickly and get the train repaired as soon as possible. The auction must continue!"

Upon hearing this news, several different bird familiars flapped their wings and let out startled and angry screams, their words filled with anxiety.

Clearly, they were magicians who longed to obtain the Magic Eye and were in dire need of purchasing it.

"Don't worry, there won't be any more auctions or the Magic Eye collection train, because that train has already exploded on the sea."

"When my fish-like familiar found the train, it was already completely destroyed, clearly from a severe explosion. The sea is now littered with debris from the explosion. I checked the fragments in the Mystic Eye storage warehouse, but there were no traces of Mystic Eyes in the ocean, indicating that it had been completely looted. Combining this with what happened last night, we can roughly conclude that the Mystic Eye train was invaded by some entity and successfully destroyed."

The eagle, clearly the most prestigious bird present, didn't mince words and directly stated what it had investigated.

Because she was the representative of the Barthez family, her hatred for those damned Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles was no less than that for the Church. So when she learned that the entire train had been destroyed at sea, her tone was clearly filled with schadenfreude, as if she wished such a thing would happen a few more times.

After all, the Department of Law and Politics has an abundance of Demon Eyes in its sealing mandate, so she doesn't really need them. And it's truly rare to see the estate of the 27th Ancestor of the Dead Apostles reduced to such a state…

It's unclear who exactly did this.

"What?!!"

Unlike Barthelon, who already knew about this and was mentally prepared, the other bird familiars present were undoubtedly deeply shocked upon hearing the news.

Although they suspected that Barthez was lying to them, upon closer examination, they realized that there was no reason for him to tell such a lie. After all, deceiving them would not have brought Barthez any benefit.

Some magicians suspected that the Barthez family might be crying wolf, but this absurd idea was immediately rejected by everyone.

After all, if the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles standing behind the Demon Eye Collection Train were so easy to deal with, Bartholomew would have already made his move and wouldn't have given them the chance to live until now. So...

"Could it have been done by the Holy Church?"

Someone immediately guessed a very close answer.

After all, besides the Magicians' Association, only the Holy Church possesses such drive and motivation.

Furthermore, the fact that the train's owner was a Dead Apostle who wanted to show off his collection could be considered a legitimate motive for the Church to intervene.

After all, those guys might not care about the Demon Eye, but they would really hunt down monsters that defy humanity to the bitter end, without any room for compromise.

"It's very likely... only the Holy Church has the capability to do something like this. Plus, someone said last night that they saw members of the Burial Agency moving around near Iceland, so it's most likely that they did it."

"..."

Upon hearing this news, all the familiars present fell silent.

After a long silence, an old bat with a deep voice spoke again: "Regardless of whether the church did it or not, our most urgent task now is to find out where the Demon Eye is."

“That’s right. Instead of asking such a trivial question as who destroyed the train, we should focus our attention on the Demon Eye.”

"Hehe... Compared to that greedy vampire, I actually prefer the Demon Eye to fall into the hands of the Church. After all, the Church won't let us compete maliciously with each other. Even if they do buy it, it will be a fixed price. They've never had any demands for the Demon Eye, so they'll definitely sell it to us in the end."

"Yes."

This statement was echoed by the crowd.

Although the Church's agents were also full of malice towards them, they were still better than the Dead Apostles, as they were all human agents.

"But the problem is... what if it wasn't the church that did this, but the other passengers? What if the survivors took the Mystic Eye? What then?"

“It’s simple. We can start from both sides. Send someone to contact the church to inquire about the situation, and send someone to check the names on the train invitation. Whoever comes back alive, we’ll go find them.”

“Your suggestion is correct. Then there’s another point… Lord Barthemello, have you found the bodies of the other magicians in the ocean?”

Because of this statement, the other magicians all turned their attention back to the eagle.

"No, they're all dead men."

The eagle shook its head: "And they were all charred by the flames, so there must be a master of fire among them."

"So the situation is now very clear: either the Church took the Eye of the Demon, or the surviving passengers took it. Therefore, we..."

"Don't be so naive, everyone. Maybe the train owner was attacked and took the goods with him to evacuate."

Just as this group of guys were starting to think about how to divide the spoils, Kenneth's sarcastic voice came from the canary representing the Archibald family, attracting the attention of everyone present.

He said dismissively, "After all, the owner of the Demon Eye Train is a big shot among the Dead Apostles. She can't just die so easily, right? Maybe she took the rest of the passengers and cargo with her. After all, Dead Apostles are known for being unruly and capricious; they're not trustworthy!"

"..."

Kenneth's words silenced the magicians present.

Indeed, they were all blinded by the immediate temptation and subconsciously avoided the option that offered no benefit but was the most likely outcome.

After all, humans always fantasize about situations that are more beneficial to them. If those Demon Eyes were really taken away by the train owner, where else could they get any benefits?

“You’re right, Lord Kenneth.”

Upon hearing this, the eagle representing Barthelo nodded slightly, acknowledging his conjecture.

Then, the spread of wings brought this strange and brief meeting to a close: "In short, continuing the discussion will not yield any concrete answers, so let's all go back and investigate first... Regardless of the actual outcome, how much benefit one can ultimately gain will depend on the means employed."

Then, the majestic eagle spread its wings and soared into the blue sky, becoming the first to withdraw from this meaningless discussion.

Seeing that Barthemello had already said so, the other birds lost interest in continuing the discussion and flew off in different directions. Only Kenneth merely snorted, inwardly mocking the delusional ideas of those poor fellows.

'With so many Demon Eyes, is it really possible for them to find such a bargain?'

Hehe, in the end it will probably all be for nothing.

So, after briefly assigning the search task to the butler beside him, he stood up and looked out the window.

Compared to these trivial matters, he is more concerned about his disciple's advancement exam.

By the way, that guy Luo Wei hasn't contacted him for two or three days.

Logically, he should have come over to discuss important points at a time like this, right? Why is there no sign of him? Is he really focused on preparing for his advancement?

Thinking of this, Kenneth couldn't help but look somewhat doubtful.

Although he didn't think Luo Wei would be so abstract as to continue messing around less than a week before the advancement ceremony, as his teacher, he knew him well enough to understand...

That kid is really capable of doing something like that!

Suddenly, Kenneth had a bad feeling.