NOVPUB"So, Saint Heir, what are you going to do next?"
Sigrid moved closer to Lanci on the sofa and asked, her hand resting on the cushion.
If Lanci lost the aid of Duchess Cloris, and it was unclear now whether she was a friend or foe, his plans would have to change significantly.
But the more relevant the surprises occurred, the more it indicated that the hidden enemies were about to emerge. Their every effort was not meaningless.
At this moment, Sigrid could clearly feel that there was a hidden hand directing some unknown activities against the Protoss Empire.
If she hadn’t met Lanci, she would likely be just another pawn. When everything exploded in the end, she would likely be a loser and wouldn’t even know why. This made her very angry.
Not only Asksan, but that man in the black cloak would be her enemy in the Hegemony Church from now on.
"What about Associate Professor Xido? Is he okay?"
Lanci supported his chin in thought and turned to ask Gloria.
Associate Professor Xido, who he first met in the history department of the Protoss Royal Magic Academy, was the matchmaker for himself and Duchess Cloris.
Duchess Cloris seemed to trust Xido very much. Regarding the disappearance of Duke Morotian, Xido was also one of the few who knew about it.
If there was any covert change in Berenhald, the most likely person to know about it would be Associate Professor Xido.
However, Gloria shook her head.
"Associate Professor Xido disappeared before Duchess Cloris was arrested, probably even a week earlier."
She said, biting her lip.
Associate Professor Xido was a very mysterious person. He often took academic research holidays and could be away for several months at a time.
Lanci nodded, not surprised at this outcome.
Xido was deeply involved with Cloris. If Cloris was in trouble, it was highly likely that he would not be spared either.
After thinking for a moment, Lanci seemed to have a plan for what was to come and looked at Sigrid, who had been watching him.
"Sigrid, you should stay in the school for a while. It would be best to stay with Gloria. I will also limit the actions of visitors and keep them away from the school’s residential area."
Lanci said to Sigrid.
"No problem."
Sigrid nodded.
There were many problems in the Imperial City of Herram. After leaving the ancient protective enchantment of the school’s safe zone, no one knew if she would become a target because of the power of her curse mark.
Fortunately, hardly anyone would think that Sigrid of the Hegemony Church would be hiding as a student in the Protoss Royal Magic Academy.
"By the way, Sigrid, do you think the man in the black cloak who fought with you gave it his all?"
As if he had a doubt, Lanci asked Sigrid.
"He clearly wanted to kill me with all his might back then. But I personally feel that he was always relying on the weird and powerful abilities like the black chains and the abyss black worm ... Normally, a person with such strong magic power should have many other magic abilities, but I never saw him use anything else."
After recalling, Sigrid answered with a certainty underlying her slow words.
Even though the black chains could change thousands of ways, covering all attack modes, Sigrid always felt that the man in black should know more.
"Do you mean... could Xido be that man in the black cloak?"
She suddenly looked up and asked Lanci.
One strange thing was that she had never seen this Assistant Professor Xido in school. Only when she heard Lanci and Gloria talk about him did she realize how noticeable the history department’s assistant professor was.
"..."
Lanci shook his head, also looking unsure.
He got along well with Xido personally and even regarded Xido as the first friend he made after joining the Protoss Royal Magic Academy.
At least Xido had no ill will against Zestira, which made Lanci like him. 𝙣𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝙘𝙤𝙢
Back when he was in school, Lanci had been in close contact with Xido for several days. On the battlefield of Bandera City in the North Border Province, he also saw the man in the black cloak.
He always felt that Xido was different from the strange feeling from the man in black.
The more people with mysterious identities and powers in the dark were involved, the more the empire’s situation was about to explode, reaching the tipping point of revealing the mystery, the more chaotic it felt.
Multiple forces may be plotting, and due to their northern tour, a series of chain reactions occurred. Everyone’s plans were disrupted.
"The visible enemy now is only Asksan. We can’t go wrong with picking on him. For the others, we can only be prepared for everything and deal with it when it comes."
Full of responsibility, Lanci said to Sigrid.
The two of them were totally the ones who remain in the limelight. But there were also advantages to being in the limelight. Both he and Sigrid liked to handle things uprightly.
The work and social practice journey in the Northern Continent these two months has taught him a lesson.
Justice and fairness very often either come too little or too late, making it rife with lawless villains.
Unlike the wastrels who loaf around, he had a high level of ideological consciousness when he was in the South Continent.
He now understood that the game that the Protoss Empire was playing revolved around manipulation, an area in which their Hegemony Branch excelled.
This didn’t conflict with his identities as a philosopher, educator, thinker, and doer—it was merely the most effective way to uphold justice in the current version of the Protoss Empire!
As long as they could completely eradicate the rotten presence of the Nirvana Branch, the Protoss Empire would inevitably prosper and exist eternally in peace and happiness.
This was his most grand and ultimate goal!
Watching Lanci maintain his enthusiasm, Sigrid wasn’t sure if she should douse his ardour now with the harsh reality of their situation.
"But I can’t defeat Asksan right now."
Sigrid’s eyes dimmed.
Asksan was originally her opponent to deal with, while the Saint Heir should have been responsible for other preparatory work. Now she couldn’t assist the Saint Heir but rather had become his burden.
Even if their Hegemony Branch had the power of the Saint Heir as Rocky McCarthy’s influence, they no longer possessed the highest deterrent force.
Even if they could win the bishop election in the future, once her true condition was exposed, it would be of no significance.
The empire didn’t need a paper tiger as a partner; strength was the basis of all negotiations.
"Your seal just needs to be lifted."
Lanci looked at her and said as if telling her that he couldn’t afford to be downhearted.
"To break the seal, one must find a Ninth-Order Sealer or kill the sealer…"
Sigrid’s voice grew softer, hesitating to meet Lanci’s gaze. It was as if she had never shown such vulnerability before.
Finding a Ninth-Order Sealer stronger than Asksan in this era was practically impossible. The only way to break the curse was to venture into the Shadow World and hope to encounter a Ninth-Order ally proficient in the sealing technique who could forcefully break her seal. However, with her current condition, if she were to enter the Eighth-Order Shadow World, she could die instantly if things go awry, with almost no difference from committing suicide.
It was a vicious cycle: she couldn’t recover her fullest power without killing Asksan.
But without regaining her fullest power, she wouldn’t be able to kill Asksan, even with the help of the Saint Heir.
"Then kill Asksan."
Lanci stood up and looked at the clock; he was always one to keep his promises.
It was time to change back to Rocky McCarthy and head to the Herram Broadcasting Company.
"..."
Gloria felt a chilly fear creep down her spine. This was the first time she had heard someone casually talk about killing the Bishop of Nirvana.
Even Sigrid hadn’t managed to defeat Asksan after multiple attempts, let alone killing him.
But to the Saint Heir, all of this seemed already determined.
He truly seemed fixed on eliminating Asksan for some unknown grand cause.
"How will you kill him? Only an Eight-Order can defeat an Eight-Order."
Sigrid looked up at the figure, who had reverted to his brown-haired, green-eyed appearance. Her gaze wavered; she didn’t want the Saint Heir to act recklessly.
Within a week, Asksan would have recovered most of his strength.
If the Eight-Order Strongman of the empire could be persuaded, whether for loyalty to the empire or inscrutable motives, the Cardinal Bishops would have already made attempts.
Moreover, the Cardinal Bishops were not ordinary Eight-Order that could be opposed easily.
The powerful figureheads of the empire would likely not gamble everything against Asksan, who was at the peak of Eighth-Order; they might even covet Sigrid’s Original Slabs.
If they discovered Sigrid’s true condition and whereabouts, Sigrid would be the most endangered.
"Our school is diversified. I’ve always considered introducing three orthodox foreign teachers. I initially wanted to change the current situation before introducing teacher resources. It seems now I will have to borrow them ahead of time."
Lanci only adjusted the collar of his outerwear, turned his head and smiled. His ambition seemed to be burning as he walked out of the door and waved as a signal for them to proceed first.
"..."
What foreign teacher can take on Asksan?
Sigrid was very confused.
Even if the Saint Heir planned to seek help from the South Continent, disregarding whether the powerhouses there would be able to intervene, there was simply not enough time for the Saint Heir to make the round trip.
Within a week, the strong figures that could be found in the Protoss Empire were limited, and none of them could be manipulated.
"Wait."
Sigrid suddenly paused,
"The foreign teachers you mentioned, you aren’t referring to the three Great Demon Clans locked up at the very bottom of the Herram Prison, are you?"
When she looked up at Lanci’s righteous face, she understood what this boy was planning to do.
This boy must be crazy!
He was actually contemplating taking on the ancient Great Demon Clans!
