NOVPUBThe next day.
The sun shyly penetrated through the heavy clouds, and every beam, after breaking through the gloom, felt like a released golden restraint, faintly illuminating the silhouettes of the diverse pedestrians and monsters on the Sunday streets of Herram.
The windows of the buildings on both sides of the street became small stages of life. Miniature magical beasts or alchemy creatures put their tentacles and tails gently on the windowsills, curiously peering at the world outside.
And in this morning.
Lanci had already left his inn located near the Protoss Royal Magic Academy.
He was on his way to the Temple of the Nirvana Knights.
He had been at the Protoss Royal Magic Academy for five working days now.
Today, as the last day of the weekend, he has to go to the Nirvana Knights to meet the Grand Priest who gave him the Certificate of Rebirth from the Nirvana Branch and receive the future work arrangements in the morning.
As Lanci was taking a leisurely walk, the voice of the Cat boss sounded in his ear again.
The two of them, a man and a cat, depended on each other in this foreign land. The Cat boss would chatter with him all day.
"Meow, Lanci, you have now become the new head priest of the Nirvana Branch... You’re not really going to meet the Bishop of Nirvana, Asksan, are you..."
If it came to that, it would not dare to go with this kid to meet the Cardinal Bishop!
Once it appears in the sight of such a natural-disaster embodiment, there is no power to resist. If it is not careful, it will be wiped out.
"Don’t worry, I have been seriously doing my projects and have never forgotten my initial intentions."
Lanci said calmly.
"Meow! How about doing more business in the empire! I feel that the Hegemony Branch is safer than the Nirvana Branch!"
The Cat boss thought he was fooling around.
Who are you visiting that you are infiltrating the Rebirth Church!
It looked like Lanci was a little careless and got drunk.
The Cat boss had heard from Tata that this kid had made some jokes in the border city-state of Nanwantina due to excessive drinking.
It worried that Lanci would sink deeper and deeper and couldn’t turn back. Compared with him, it would fully support and encourage him to let go and do whatever he wanted to do in the empire, as long as it had nothing to do with the Rebirth Church.
"Don’t worry, I have already completely cut off the Hegemony Branch. The Pioneer is the Pioneer, Rocky is Rocky, the journey of the empire will definitely satisfy you."
Lanci turned his head and looked at his shadow. He raised his eyelids and gave the Cat boss a smile.
"...Meow."
Meow, meow, meow, believe him one more time.
The city’s atmosphere was mixed with the unique smell of Magic-energy potions, and the faint lingering fragrance of rainwater.
Lanci walked along the neatly rectangular stone-paved road.
Every time he passed a street corner, there was noticeably less and less foot traffic.
Even the window sills of the tall buildings became a lot more deserted.
Then, a detail captured Lanci’s attention.
Not far ahead, a woman was walking towards the temple. Her long hair gently swayed in the breeze, lying on her silver skirt armor. The thin skirt armor had an ancient design, every connection point showed exquisite craftsmanship. The sunlight shone on her armor, emitting a faint white light, like a flowing water surface.
Lanci remembered this woman in silver skirt armor.
Their destination was evidently the Nirvana Knights.
And this woman named Sikder was also one of the reasons for the delay in the final assessment.
But Lanci had no intersection with her. They would become colleagues in the future and would have to get to know each other sooner or later. There was no need to go out of his way to greet her.
Lanci thought so, just as he walked into the next street, without feeling any movements beside him, a chilling hand had already grabbed his upper arm fiercely!
The strength of that hand was so powerful it seemed it could easily crush his bones, but the owner of the hand precisely controlled the strength to ensure it did not harm him.
"You..."
Lanci didn’t have time to react, because he didn’t feel any hostility. Or the other person was so much stronger than him, his nerves didn’t have the privilege to keep up with their speed.
The moment he saw the figure, the wind screamed in his ear. All gravity seemed to disappear, his shoes lost all contact with the ground, and the pressure of the air made him sure that he had been taken to the high sky of the imperial capital by the other party.
The emerald light in Lanci’s eyes pierced through the fog of the capital, Herram, and traced a clear trajectory. The clouds swiftly passed on both sides of him, bringing a cold and bone-piercing sensation.
Buildings, streets, vehicles, and crowds, all of these blurred into vague shadows before his eyes. Every detail was ripped apart by speed, leaving behind only a chaos of colors and lights.
In the next second, everything began to accelerate. His eyes were almost frozen shut by the chilling wind, and the city below looked like fragmented pieces of a colored glass painting. Amidst the overwhelming sound of the wind, Lanci’s head was filled with a buzzing noise, and the frigid air made breathing difficult. It felt like he was pulling in each breath from an ice cellar.
His sight was about to blur entirely, his consciousness gradually slipping away from him.
However, that hand continued to grip him firmly, keeping his balance with a strength resembling magic, serving as the only anchor point in this high-altitude world.
As his consciousness began to blur and was about to sink into endless darkness, the speed suddenly decreased.
By the time they had landed, he was carefully placed on a flat ground. The intense impact slightly revived Lanci’s consciousness.
"...!"
He held his forehead, stabilized his shaking body, and realized that he was in a completely different place within just ten or so seconds.
In the interior of an ancient and grandly designed building.
"Could you not bring me this way if there is a next time?"
Lanci let go of his hand, shook his head, the feeling of exhaustion not yet fully disappeared from his body.
His heart was strong, and this roller-coaster ride of tenfold acceleration did not make him faint.
However, he was abruptly pulled onto it. Even though the other party appeared to be as gentle as possible, the disparity in power and physical ability between them was too great. If Lanci’s rank was any lower, he would probably be unconscious by now.
The figure in the silver skirt armor who brought him here paid him no attention, merely heading towards her throne.
In this space, with its towering door frames, exquisite carvings, various mysterious items and ancient paintings hanging on the walls, Lanci could see a private collection reminiscent of deep and staunch atmosphere. All of this hinted at a collection of priceless artifacts from different regions and eras.
The floor was made of deep brown wood that has been aged over time. Each plank was slightly worn out, carrying different textures and hues, each piece telling a unique story, making it all the more valuable.
Apart from this, the hall of several hundred square meters seemed exceptionally spacious. At the center stood a throne, it seemed to be the only throne in this space, its back adorned with an array of bottles and jars, from amber-colored wine glasses to clear as water spirits, all silently waiting for the moment to be chosen.
At this moment, Lanci’s restored sight finally clear enough to see the figure who had forcibly brought him here.
Sikder.
Her attire had changed.
Still tall and graceful, her light-colored long hair spread behind her waist, her pupils shone like stars in the night sky or violets blooming in spring. The strong ambition evident in her demeanor resembled a queen of the land - she was not satisfied with only dominating what was within her reach, but sought to conquer everything within her sight.
"Most of the time, I don’t like to cooperate with others. Some people think I’m dominant, like to interfere and provoke others, and can’t work with people, but all I know is, I won’t easily let go of any opportunity that benefits me."
As she straightforwardly introduced herself, the domineering yet calm look in her eyes was like a clear mirror in a tranquil lake, reflecting a sharp sword poised to pierce an opponent’s heart.
"What is your purpose in bringing me here?"
Lanci slightly bowed in an imperial salute. Before figuring out Sikder’s real identity and intentions, he had no intention of saying anything else.
Not that there was anything to fear.
His life was practically in her hands. If she had malicious intentions, the chances of him successfully resisting with force were practically zero.
Sikder turned her back to Lanci and remained silent as she slowly ascended to her throne.
Having taken off her disguise, she was a cold beauty, seemingly indifferent to Lanci’s feelings, focused only on what she desired.
She had only used Disguise Magic before this, even the identity of Sikder was totally fabricated.
"You might not have heard the name Sigrid."
Sikder propped her chin on one hand, looking at Lanci condescendingly, but she seemed to appreciate Lanci’s calm demeanor.
"But you must have heard another name."
She tossed a Holy Seal, which was embedded on her right thumb, up like a coin.
It left a brief silver glow in the air before falling back into her palm.
Even though it was only a flash, Lanci saw it clearly.
At the center of the Holy Seal was a Silver Moon Crown, its shine curved like a crescent, as if all enemies would shatter into fragments. The stars scattered around the edge of the crown were fragments of shattered weapons, symbolizing the failures of those who resisted and their pitiful fate.
He was all too familiar with this style of Holy Seal.
He had seen too many of these on the priests of Hegemony in the Xi Nan Province.
The only difference was—
Sikder’s was radiating an overwhelmingly dominant and dazzling orange glow!
