The magic car was still driving steadily on the wide street leading to Obsidian Palace.
The light from the Magic Crystal Street Lamp flashed through the window behind them.
The seat beside him was empty. There were no traces of anyone who had been there. It seemed that there were only two people in the car from the beginning to the end. One was a trusted attendant in charge of driving, and the other was a powerful duke of the empire.
Ferdinand's expression was solemn. His spiritual energy spread out, but he did not sense any residual magic waves in the surroundings. He could not even sense any traces of life. He then looked at the attendant in the front seat. The latter had no idea what had just happened, but he seemed to feel the gaze of his master behind him. So, he asked, "My Lord, did something happen?"
"… No, nothing," Ferdinand said in a low voice. At the same time, he reached out to touch the seat beside him. The leather seat was cold, and did not even have the residual warmth of a human body.
The old duke's expression immediately turned even gloomier. His eyes showed that he was deep in thought. Outside the window, flashing neon lights and faint music suddenly appeared, temporarily attracting Ferdinand's attention.
He saw the scene outside the window from the corner of his eye. He saw a few tall buildings on the left side of the window. The spire of St. Yoram's Church of the God of War was peeking out from the top of those buildings. On the right side of the window was Vanna's Salon. The magic car had just passed by Sharon Gate, and the noise reached his ears through the window.
"We just passed Vanna's Salon Street?" Ferdinand's pupils contracted slightly. He immediately looked up and asked his trusted attendant who was driving in front.
"Yes, my Lord," the attendant immediately replied. "We just passed Vanna's Salon. It will take a while to reach Obsidian Palace. Would you like to take a rest?"
"…" Ferdinand was silent for two seconds. Then, he shook his head. "No, let's speed up. We will reach Obsidian Palace as soon as possible. "
Although the attendant felt a little strange, he did not raise any questions. Instead, he immediately accepted the order. "Yes, my Lord."
The black magic carriage sped up on the night streets where there were few pedestrians. After some time, the towering silhouette of the Obsidian Palace finally appeared in Ferdinand's sight. The old duke's heart was still filled with a faint sense of uneasiness. Malm Dumont's strange and sudden visit kept appearing in his mind, as well as the strange words he said to him. However, when he saw the steeple and palace walls of the Obsidian Palace, his slightly uneasy heart gradually calmed down.
Late at night, the guards on duty checked the vehicles and verified the personnel. Duke Ferdinand stepped into the palace, and under the guidance of an internal court female officer, he walked toward Rosetta Augustus' private parlor.
"Isn't Miss Diana on duty tonight?" He looked at the female official walking in front of him and asked casually, "She's usually in charge of this time."
"She has another job," the maid replied respectfully. "His Majesty has ordered her to do so."
"Mm-hm," Ferdinand replied simply and did not say anything else.
When he passed by the last archway leading to the internal court, he raised his head and glanced at the roof and pillars that he was already familiar with. The classic multi-edged pillars supported the corridor leading to the internal court, and the beams that extended in all directions from the top of the pillars were relief sculptures of heroic figures. Near the archway, all the beams and sculptures were connected and decorated with gold. Black and red curtains hung down from both sides of the archway, looking majestic and dignified.
It was like the throat of some giant beast. Perhaps only by building their own house like this could a mortal symbolize the majestic imperial power.
Ferdinand suddenly sighed in his heart for no reason. Then, he shook his head and stepped through the door.
…
In Rosetta Augustus' private parlor, the lights were bright, and a faint fragrance boosted the spirits of every visitor. There was also soft music that came from somewhere, making everyone who stepped into the parlor unknowingly relax.
That talented and bold ruler of the Empire was sitting on his favorite high-back chair. When Ferdinand stepped into the room, he was reading a thick book seriously with his head lowered, appearing to be engrossed in it.
"Your Majesty," Ferdinand went up and bowed to Rosetta. "I'm here."
"Oh, Ferdinand. You're here earlier than I expected." Rosetta raised his head and smiled when he saw Ferdinand. He stood up and put a bookmark in the big book in his hand before putting it aside.
With the front of the book facing up, Ferdinand saw the gilded words on it from the corner of his eye: "Society and Machines." He recognized this book. In fact, he had even read many of its contents. Rosetta Augustus had ordered people to print a batch of copies of this book and gifted them to some of the nobles and officials. As the most trusted noble representative of Emperor Typhon, Duke Ferdinand naturally had the honor.
This book came from Cecil, but Ferdinand had to admit that a lot of the content in it could inspire people. He had also been impressed by many of the concise yet never-before-thought "principles" described in the book. However, at this very moment, when he saw the book on the coffee table, he recalled some of the content in the book, and felt a sense of … uneasiness for no reason.
However, now wasn't the time to think deeply about the "Cecil's way of thinking" in the book. Duke Ferdinand shifted his attention and looked at Rosetta. "Your Majesty, you summoned me to the palace in the middle of the night because …"
Rosetta Augustus scanned the surroundings. The few attendants and high-ranking female officials in the reception hall immediately left quietly. When there were only the two of them left, the ruler of Typhon nodded at the Grand Duke and said in a deep voice, "Malcolm Dunnett was summoned by the Lord tonight — about four hours ago."
Ferdinand's breathing suddenly stopped. He felt as if his heart had suddenly stopped beating for half a beat. All the uneasiness that had been building up before finally connected vaguely. However, this momentary change didn't escape Rosetta's eyes. The latter immediately looked over and asked, "Ferdinand, there's something wrong with your reaction. What do you know?"
"Your Majesty," Ferdinand took a light breath and said with an unusually serious expression, "I saw Malcolm Dunnett tonight — on the way here. However, his appearance was very strange. The whole process … felt very out of place. "
"Tell me the details immediately," Rosetta said immediately. "All the details."
"Yes." Ferdinand nodded and began to talk about his strange experience just now. "It should have happened an hour ago, when I passed by the 'salon' in Van Leon Street. There were no witnesses other than me. At that time … "
The narration didn't take much time. Ferdinand tried his best to recount all the details of his strange experience as concisely as possible. As his voice fell, Emperor Rosetta's brows were already tightly knitted together, and his expression became extremely serious.
"That could be an illusion or some kind of 'projection' that directly affects the mind." Ferdinand shared his guess. "Regardless of which, the situation is very serious. The abnormality in the Church of the God of Combat has already spread to its highest level. If Malcolm Dunnett, as the pope, is the source of the abnormality, then the response plan that we've set up might …"
Rosetta suddenly interrupted Ferdinand. "Have you ever thought that this abnormality didn't spread to the highest level, but originated from the highest level right from the start?"
Ferdinand's eyes widened a little, and then he quickly fell into deep thought. After a short moment of thinking, he raised his head. "Your Majesty, regarding Malcolm Dunnett being summoned by the Lord … Is it certain? Are there any more details? "
"The news hasn't been made public yet. Currently, only the Great Cathedral and you and I know about this. You know, according to tradition, the death of the pope of the Church of the God of Combat has to be reported to the royal family immediately to ensure the stability of the situation. On this point, the Great Cathedral still fulfilled their responsibility very well this time. However, the situation after this was a little strange, "Rosetta said to Ferdinand." After reporting the pope's death, the Great Cathedral rejected the royal family's normal procedure of sending a representative to perform the rite for the body. They didn't give any reason, and they even shut down the channel of communication with the Obsidian Palace. "
"They shut down the channel of communication with the Obsidian Palace?" Ferdinand was instantly shocked. "Then, the Great Cathedral now …"
"Diana is trying to investigate. I'm waiting for her news," Rosetta said. "And I summoned you here to prepare for an even worse situation."
"An even … worse situation?"
"The priests and ascetics of the God of Combat are the most powerful among all the clergymen, and the recent changes in the situation have made them overly nervous," Rosetta said slowly. "The Knight's Regiment and the Obsidian Forbidden Army directly under the royal family have already made preparations near the Great Cathedral, St. Yoram's Church of the God of Combat, and St. Martim's Church of the God of Combat, but we still have to make further plans.
"If it's really like what you and I have discussed before, and the clergymen of the God of Combat have the possibility of collectively losing control and going berserk, then they may very well take actions that are even crazier and more unpredictable than normal humans. Facing such a threat in the city is a challenge, and the young Hardy probably doesn't have the experience to deal with such a complicated situation.
"Be prepared. If the situation calls for it, we may need the Knight's Regiment to enter — of course, that's the worst case scenario."
"The situation may develop to such an extent?" Ferdinand's brows were tightly furrowed, and his expression was solemn. "The Knight's Regiment will only take action when the capital is threatened with destruction during war …"
"If the largest church in the Empire completely loses control in Oldenheim, then the situation won't be much better than when the capital was attacked during war," Rosetta said slowly. "I don't want things to develop to that extent … But unfortunately, the time between the abnormality in the Church of the God of Combat and the deterioration of the situation is too short. We don't have enough time to prepare. Moreover, before we have concrete evidence and sufficient justification, we can't directly take more drastic actions against the church … You have to be prepared, Ferdinand."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Very good. Then, let's discuss some details …"
…
Silence and darkness shrouded the deepest part of the Cathedral. In the corridor leading to the inner sanctum, the candles in the innumerable niches had already been extinguished. The light that had once illuminated the sanctum had disappeared, leaving only a row of candles hanging from the ceiling of the corridor to provide the smallest amount of light, so that this long corridor would not completely sink into darkness.
According to the sacred scriptures of the Church of the God of Combat, the candles in the niches in the corridor leading to the inner sanctum would only be extinguished after the highest authority of the church, the spokesperson of God in the mortal world, was summoned by the Lord.
They would be extinguished for a full ten days and nights until the new church leader received enlightenment, completed the test, and successfully received the pope's scepter. Only then would they be automatically reignited by the 'flames bestowed by God'.
In the dim corridor, the fully armed Knight of the Church stood silently and solemnly between the pillars and niches. The combat priests and high-ranking clerics guarding the door stood in front of the door like statues.
It was early winter, and the fog had already shrouded Oldenheim. The starlight could not penetrate the clouds and fog on the plains, so the Imperial Capital under the curtain of night appeared even darker. But for the clerics in the Cathedral, the darkness in the Holy Cathedral was even greater than the Imperial Capital outside.
A gust of wind blew through the dim corridor, bypassing the line of sight of the Holy See guards.
There was no sign of life, no leakage of magic, and almost no perceptible heat fluctuations. The elite Extraordinary guards in the corridor did not sense that the uninvited guest had crossed the line of defense under their eyes and entered the prayer room in the deepest part of the inner sanctum.
Malcolm Dunnett's prayer room was empty, and only a weak oil lamp illuminated the center of the room. In the dim light, a black-haired, black-clothed figure emerged from the air.
Diana dispelled the concealment effect of the Light Bending Field. Under the premise of maintaining a precise perception of the surrounding environment, she began to look around the small room.
As expected, the corpse was long gone, and at this time, it had most likely been completely "purified" by the flames.
No matter how the former Pope died, and how twisted and terrifying the remains were, it must have become a handful of ashes and a wisp of smoke now.
But this did not mean that no clues would be left in the prayer room.
Diana quietly looked around and pressed her hand on her forehead. With a very faint mechanical sound, the skin on her forehead suddenly cracked open, and part of the "skull" moved back under the push of the deformation device. Some of the shimmering precise structures protruded out, and flashing rays began to scan the entire room.
At the same time, the eyes of the black-haired head maid also became cold and indifferent. The light-sensing units in the depths of her pupils adjusted slightly and began to carefully record all the traces scanned.
Under the detection of the scanning rays, large areas of the floor, walls, furnishings, and even the roof of the room were glowing with fluorescence!
Those were traces of spilled blood. It was a terrifying residue that could only appear after smearing all the blood from an adult's body. Although the priests in charge of dealing with this place had used alchemy potions and divine spells to erase the blood visible to the naked eye, their treatment obviously couldn't escape Diana's sight.
All of a sudden, Diana's gaze stopped.
She looked at the small platform where the oil lamp was placed. On the facade below the platform near the ground, a line of faint letters that were once smeared with blood was reflected in her sight in the form of fluorescence.
"Devout prayers, pray for mercy, and receive the Holy Will … as you wish."
(Friendship book, "We Monsters Don't Want to Die," fantasy category, brain hole, omitting the above and below.)
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