NOVPUBRoom 203, second floor of Lichtenstein Castle.
Perhaps Lanci felt that the atmosphere in Room 202, which had turned into a torture chamber, was not pleasant. So, with Hyperion’s help, he moved the Goddess Officer to the brand new Room 203 next door, along with the chair she was bound to.
The light in the room was bright and stable, casting a golden glow into every corner. The wooden floor was covered with a thick, dark carpet, a haven from the wind atop the autumn mountain at this late hour.
Hyperion had removed the gag from the Goddess Officer’s mouth and unfastened part of her chains, making her seated position on the chair less uncomfortable. He also handed her a blanket.
Within just a few minutes the Goddess Officer had gone from hell to heaven, her expression bewildered. However, the dependency in her eyes as she looked at Lanci intensified once again.
Across from her, sat Lanci and Hyperion.
"Let’s start with a brief introduction. I turned off the [Shadow World Record Program] long ago, hence the Rebirth Church will not know about any information from you. Regarding your detention by the Cerryti Empire after the end of the Shadow World, I will do my best to protect you through Princess Alexia and spare you the interrogation in prison, ensuring your conditions there are bearable."
Lanci stared at the notebook in his hands and began to write, speaking as he did so.
When the Shadow World ended, all the Challengers would return to the location of their original Void Gate entrance.
This time, the Challengers had all entered the Shadow World through the large unstable Void Gates controlled by the South Continent Shadow World Management Association, rather than the temporary "Unstable Void Gates" appearing in the wild.
Hence, the Goddess Officer whose identity as a Resurrection Believer was already exposed, would be immediately arrested by the heavy troops of the Cerryti Empire as soon as she left the Shadow World.
The Goddess Officer nodded heavily at his words.
Once she no longer considered Lanci an enemy, her heart had been filled with a sense of security.
As long as she did not openly betray the Rebirth Church, her stay in the Cerryti Empire’s prison would be much less terrifying. Even within prison, the Rebirth Church was known to take extreme measures to punish traitors with the death penalty.
Now, she had something to look forward to, even knowing she was going to prison.
To wait for the dreadful man named Lanci to infiltrate the Rebirth Church.
By the time he arrives at the Cerryti Empire, he may already have climbed to an unimaginable position within the Church.
She believed that Lanci would undoubtedly have the capability to rescue her, and also protect her from the threats of the Rebirth Church!
"My name is Stisera, a northerner from the Cerryti Empire, and I grew up in an orphanage in a village on the outskirts of Granville City, the main border city in the north. After the village was decimated by Bishop of Destruction Ivanos, he spared my life because I showed potential. I was then taken away, and after five years of training by the Destruction Bishop Branch of the Rebirth Church, I emerged from a pile of corpses to become a partner assisting the Goddess of Destruction to infiltrate the upper echelons of the Cerryti Empire."
The Goddess Officer spoke rapidly.
Lanci listened to the Goddess Officer’s story without interrupting her to ask questions.
Rumor had it that among all the Cardinal Bishops, Bishop of Destruction was the most cruel, often slaughtering innocent people indiscriminately. To him, massacring poor civilians was no different from stepping on an ant hill.
Ivanos even often enjoyed taking illogical actions - without any reason, he would cruelly set all the civilians he had genial conversations with on fire. His brutality even surpassed that of Asksan, the Bishop of Nirvana in the Northern Continent.
"Would it be difficult for us to infiltrate the group under the Bishop of Destruction?"
Pointing to himself and Hyperion, Lanci asked the Goddess Officer, Stisera.
The ten branches of the Rebirth Church each serve one of the ten Cardinal Bishops. For example, Lilette, the heretic on the wanted list encountered last time at Purgatory Corridor Academy, was a believer of the Archbishop of Decay, while this time, the Goddess of Destruction Adelis and the Goddess Officer Stisera met were believers of the Bishop of Destruction.
Although they were all from the Rebirth Church, they served different bishops and their styles of operation could be quite different.
Sometimes, strife among bishops with strained relationships might even lead to civil wars within the congregation.
After completing this Shadow World mission and returning to reality, Lanci’s goal for the winter break is to go to the Northern Continent to consult with Asksan, the Bishop of Nirvana who owns [Original Stone Tablet- Sealed], and complete the course report for the "Visiting Tablet Holder".
If they could infiltrate the branch of the Bishop of Destruction ahead of time and directly switch to the branch of the Bishop of Nirvana in the Northern Continent, it would eliminate many steps and troubles!
"It’s going to be difficult. For young notable figures like you, the Church of Rebirth will be particularly wary. so I suggest that you capture a Resurrection Believer and assume their identity."
Stisera answered.
Duchess Huberian is already listed as a high-priority target by the Church of Rebirth.
And Lanci, by virtue of his role in the thwarting of the Goddess of Destruction, has earned him infamy equivalent to that of Huberian.
"But you should know that it’s hard to find Resurrection Believers in the Hutton Kingdom...unless you can provide me with some key information…"
Lanci listened to Stisera’s response, his expression calm as he looked at her.
The Hutton Kingdom has always been a major stronghold of the Church of the Goddess of Destiny, and has conducted several operations to purge believers.
The Hutton Kingdom is also one of the most ruthless in the Southern Continents’ countries in combating cults.
Now, any Resurrection Believers inside the Hutton Kingdom are sure to be like the Goddess of Destruction Adelis or the Goddess Officer Stisera, who are expert infiltrators with seamless identities. They are extremely hard to capture.
"There is a chance. A highly dangerous person will arrive in Ichrite from the Arolan Kingdom in the next few days. If Duchess Huberian isn’t found or eliminated in this Shadow World mission, he will spare no expense in orchestrating an accident in the campus to kill the Duchess."
Stisera glanced at Huberian, before speaking with a solemn expression.
"…"
The words gave no change to Huberian’s expression. But her heart started beating faster uncontrollably.
She hadn’t expected the Church of Rebirth’s attempt to eliminate her to be so determined!
It appears that someone is insistent she must die.
The fear and despair that had gradually dissipated through Lanci’s presence once again enveloped Huberian’s heart.
She was beginning to accept the reality that there would be no day of rest until she became stronger.
Every previous attempt on her life would have ended fatally had it not been for Lanci’s timely intervention.
Even though Lanci seemed to effortlessly dissolve each crisis, increasing the intensity might eventually get him killed too, no matter how powerful he was!
She lowered her head, her eyes gradually losing their spark.
Each time she attracted a disaster, Lanci got pulled into it too, carrying the burden for her.
The guiltier she felt, the more protective Lanci was of her, treating her as a dear friend and protecting her unconditionally.
She was nothing but a burden.
