Listen to the report.

Everybody gathers around their Demon King. Peony lingers adjacent to the throne while Alice stands directly in front of you. She holds the papers up and casts her magical cyan gaze down upon the words her herself had written. "This is all we have heard from Snow so far, Kyle. Please, everybody. Listen. There is news, both good and bad. She has been doing much in Tolis during the short time she has been gone. I will read what she said to me verbatim from the beginning to now."

You lean in and listen closely. Good. Snow has been busy. But it sounds like she figured out something bad too.

Alice begins. "Snow, reporting in. I've arrived quicker than I first thought. Already, I've been searching for anything that could help us. I won't bother you until I find something of note." She pauses for a moment before continuing. "Snow, reporting in. There are some interesting magical trinkets amongst the shops here, but before I bought anything, I made contact with Shadow Garden. Rose has been helpful and welcoming. I think we may be able to obtain some communication devices. Shopping side, I get a strange feeling whenever I'm monitoring Lord Vraelion's estate, but I won't base anything purely off instinct." Once again she takes a pause. "Snow, reporting in. The Circle of the Unicorn's headquarters is strange. They don't allow anyone in, which makes sense, but it seems the chairmen are often not here regardless, or the guards are lying. I did hear Rada may be here somewhere, but they aren't certain. It may be more likely I'll find Bulrak or perhaps Candy once again. I'll keep you posted, Alice." Another pause. "Snow, reporting in. People have been gathering in a location outside of Tolis, but I'm not certain if that's connected to anything. For now, I'm going to keep monitoring Vraelion Estate."

You stare at Alice during an especially long silence, wondering for a moment if she's already done.

But she continues. "Alice, emergency report! This is Snow. After following some leads, I managed to, perhaps too late, discover that Lord Vraelion has been calling in his contacts. He now leads an army. I repeat, he leads an army. They already formed outside of Tolis, and now they head south, likely towards Castle Phoenix. They're moving with incredible speed, but I can't imagine it would take any shorter than two days. Please prepare. I'll stay here in the meantime and find what I can. Alice, you must tell the others and form a defense just in case the Shard isn't enough."

You leap abruptly to your feet. "So war was declared." Shit. All right, we have the Shard of Draconax, and he might not know that. We could have a huge advantage. But we don't know exactly what we're facing either. There's no way this army isn't bolstered by Elok Daven, especially after we just raided one of his bases.

Lalarin, already dressed up in her bright green spandex, steps forwards. "What do we do, Kyle? Give the word and I'll fight. Nobody is taking this castle from us."

"Damn straight!" Fang grabs the bunny from behind and jostles her by her hips. "Look at the cuties we have here to protect!"

"S-Stop shaking me," Lalarin mutters as her eyes spin.

The sound of heels tapping against stone approaches your throne from behind. Like a ghost in the shadows, Cat the vampire looms with a piercing crimson stare. "They're fools to attack us. Let them come, I say. If their army consists of mostly golems and magical beasts, they may attack after nightfall. All the better. If they try to strike under the cover of darkness, I'll make them suffer."

"Kyle." The voice is from Vivi. She steps forward through the crowd and approaches the throne, stopping adjacent to Alice. There she places a hand upon her chest, and she bows formally before you. "I apologize for everything. While I know I'm not my sister, but Breiah the puppet-master is a large reason why we're in this position to begin with. If she shows her face here, I just want you to know that I won't hesitate. Just because we share blood doesn't mean that I'm loyal to my family. You come first. She will not get past me."

"Remember. We don't know who threatens us yet," Lalarin comments. "It could be just Lord Vraelion with his own connections. It could be a massive army by Elok Daven himself. we shouldn't assume, but we need to keep an eye on the horizon."

"Indeed," you reply. "And hopefully Nyllia hears about the marching army before it gets here."