The night in Renstadt was not much different from that in other cities. Except for the everlasting light in the cathedrals and the noble districts, the rest of the places were illuminated by the Silver Moon or the stars. Therefore, in the pitch-black night, Renstadt was particularly cold and quiet. Only the occasional lantern flashed by.
'Blue Grace' Sharp stood next to the window of his bedroom and looked at the darkness outside attentively. The darkness that was not worth appreciating at all seemed to be the most important thing in his life.
He raised his right hand and touched the bump on his nose that looked like a tumor. His blue eyes were filled with anxiety. Other people might not know that Alfonsol, a leader of the Inquisition, had left to hunt the sorcerers of the Tower of Destroyers, but as the deputy captain of the Sword of Truth's Knight Legion, a duke, a grand noble, and one of the king's most trusted subordinates, he had enough channels to learn the fact. Therefore, he was waiting for the result.
Dum, dum, dum. Fast footsteps came over, mixed with the clattering of iron boots and armor.
"Captain …" The Knight who came to deliver the message breathed heavily. It took him no more than one minute to reach Sharp's villa. "'Heart of Time' has returned with heavy wounds. Alfonsol and all the clerics and night watchers that he brought with him are dead!"
"Heart of Time?" For once, Sharp did not control his expression. He did not understand why Kritonia was involved.
"It's a message from the Radiance Church. The specific situation is unclear." The Knight said in a hurry, "Captain, Kritonia accuses you of conspiring with sorcerers to assassinate Alfonsol. He failed to come to the rescue in time and could only save himself. He wants you dead!"
The royal family had bribed some bishops who were not strong and in inconspicuous positions but could receive and deliver part of the intelligence at critical moments.
"Alfonsol grew suspicious. Perhaps, somebody sold the operation plan to Kritonia. But if he was involved, why was Alfonsol still killed, and why was he heavily wounded …" Sharp seemed to be caught in a daze, forgetting that he was in danger. He couldn't figure out what was going on at all even though he racked his brains.
Clang! The knight who reported the news suddenly knelt down on one of his knees, and the iron armor on his knee hit the floor hard. He said in a sobbing tone, "Captain, please run away quickly. The Church will not let you go. They need a 'sacrifice' for their failed mission. They will send you to the stake! As long as you hide until His Majesty returns, you will definitely be acquitted! "
"… If I run away, it'll be tantamount to admitting my guilt. I don't believe that the Church can sentence a duke to death without any evidence. All the nobles will be scared and bitterly disappointed." After a brief silence, Sharp held back his confusion, anxiety, and worry and spoke to his Knight as a leader as usual.
The failure of the operation and the arrest of a sorcerer was within his expectation. He was fully prepared and believed that nothing would happen to him under the king's protection. The only thing that made him uneasy was that the accusation came from another duke, the legendary Knight Kritonia. It was much more important than he expected!
Clang. The window slightly squeaked, and a cluster of fire flew in from afar, turning into a tough man with a crew cut.
"Captain, run! A red robe has proposed to arrest you! "He was' Fiend Scorching 'Gourcuff, Sharp's deputy and a level-seven Knight.
Sharp clenched his right hand and said as calmly as before, "Don't worry. It's just a routine arrest and interrogation. They have no evidence. I'll be fine. If I run away now, I'll never be able to explain myself."
"My lord, we can't trust the Church. They've sentenced too many nobles who were merely suspected to death!" While 'Fiend Scorching' Gourcuff admired the deputy captain's calmness at such a perilous moment, it could not ease his anxiety. Perhaps, 'Angel of Grace' Francois would come in person very soon!
Sharp shook his head and clenched the handle of his longsword. "Those are all nobles below the Count. I'm a duke that His Majesty conferred in person."
"My lord …" Gourcuff was of a mind to run away with the deputy captain, but Sharp's firm attitude made him hesitate. "Why don't you hide in the Nekso Palace first? I believe that the Church will not dare to break in. Then, you can wait for His Majesty's return."
"Well." Sharp was more or less tempted.
Right then, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, and a young man whose hair was sparse and erect appeared in the bedroom. He was surrounded by silver electric arcs, and his eyes and skin were the rarely-seen silver. "Captain, the Radiance Church has decided not to arrest you but to send a red robe to comfort you in secret."
He was' Pure Silver Punishment 'Cesc, Sharp's other deputy.
"What?" It was' Fiend Scorching 'Gourcuff and the Knight who came first who exclaimed in surprise.
"Has the situation changed?" Sharp, as the leader, was equally shocked, but he still tried to pretend to be calm on the surface.
'Pure Silver Punishment' Cesc shrugged. "I don't know. The central information has yet to be investigated. Perhaps they've decided to respect the nobles …"
His words were full of sarcasm.
Very soon, a red robe came as expected and conveyed Francois' concern to Sharp. He told him that the evil sorcerer, the Liege of Death, set a trap, heavily wounded His Excellency Kritonia, killed Alfonsol and other clerics, and intentionally spread the rumor that it was his cooperation with Sharp, trying to sabotage the relationship between the Church and the nobles. However, as a saint favored by the Lord, His Excellency was wise and righteous and was not affected by the rumor at all. Deputy captain, please do not be instigated and believe in the Lord's justice.
After seeing the red robe off with a smile, Sharp turned around and entered his bedroom. His face turned extremely solemn. He said to 'Pure Silver Punishment' and his other subordinates, "Something else must've happened. Go and ask!"
He basically understood that the operation was a trap set up by the sorcerers. The target was not Alfonsol but Kritonia, "Heart of Time". Even the Liege of Death, who used to be a top legend, had been sent out. It was hundreds of times more serious than he expected! Therefore, it was impossible for him to pass the test so easily. There must've been other factors that led to the result, and it was likely to be something even more important and far-reaching than this incident.
After his three subordinates left, Sharp paced back and forth. He was not even in the mood to enjoy the night outside anymore. Vague anxiety spread out uncontrollably.
The sky suddenly lit up, and a bolt of lightning flashed. 'Pure Silver Punishment' Cesc appeared in the bedroom.
Holding back his feelings, Sharp maintained the image of a leader. "What have you learned?"
"A great battle took place in Tria. His Holiness defeated and heavily wounded 'Silver Moon' Alterna with God's Arrival twice in a row and killed Abel …" Cesc reported in shock.
"What?" Sharp could not maintain his image anymore and exclaimed in shock. 'Silver Moon' took action? And was defeated?
Cesc did not have time to repeat himself. He continued, "However, His Holiness is not in good condition and has returned to Lance. The legendary sorcerers, the vampire princes, and the primordial dragons have flown past Tria and launched attacks at Lance. The situation is quite dire."
It was even more than what 'Angel of Grace' Franz said earlier, because new intelligence had come from Lance.
"That explains a lot …" Sharp said in a low voice. Then, he comforted Cesc who was more or less panicked. "Unless a demigod takes action, Lance won't be taken so easily. Everything will be settled after the excellencies in the frontline of Tria return. I wonder how His Holiness is doing …"
Very soon, 'Fiery Burning Demon' Gourcuff returned. "Captain, the Angel King has arrived in the Holy City and blocked the attacks of the legendary experts such as Danisos, the primordial dragon of time, Dracula, the elven queen, and the Sun King with God's Guard."
This "Sun King" was only level three of legendary and was not Thanos at the beginning.
"Captain, His Majesty, Saint Griffith, Saint Ivan, the Shield of Truth, and Rudolph have returned from Tria and completely defeated the sorcerers and the dark alliance." The first Knight returned last and brought the latest news.
"His Holiness did not take action. It seems that the situation is indeed not good …" Sharp analyzed in a low voice. Suddenly, he burst into laughter. "No wonder they let me go so easily. At this moment, the help of the nobles is urgently needed on this side of the strait. It is the same in the war to the west!"
"Yes. Congratulations, Captain." The first Knight said in delight.
With a big smile, Sharp looked at his three trusted subordinates. "Not being judged is not the happiest thing for me. Can you guess what I'm happiest about?"
"The stalemate in the war to the west?" 'Fiery Burning Demon' Gourcuff replied uncertainly.
"Silver Moon was heavily wounded too?" The first Knight was still full of admiration for the Church, the pope, and God's Arrival.
After a brief silence, 'Pure Silver Punishment' Cesc said, "Captain, are you happy that the two incidents demonstrated the power of the nobles? The power that even the Grand Cardinals are wary of and scared of? "
"Yes." Sharp turned around and looked out of the window. There was no telling how many secrets were hidden in the thick darkness. "I didn't know until today that we are so strong. Even if I did kill Alfonsol, they still couldn't do anything to me."
Faced with the deputy captain's deliberate confession, the three Knight looked at each other and fell on one knee at the same time. "Nobles are supreme!"
… …
"Abel and Dracula set up a trap and ambushed the pope. Then, they consumed the pope's' God's Arrival 'with themselves as bait. In the end, Abel and Dracula killed the pope who was weakened. It was a good plan, but' Silver Moon 'was much more soft-hearted than I thought. Was he not scared that he would be erased by' God's Arrival '? Or was he so confident about the immortality of demigods? Also, was he so certain that the pope could not perform 'God's Arrival' twice in a row? " After hearing the simple but effective plan described by 'Silver-Eyed Count', the Liege of Death asked, half in mixed feelings and half in a tentative way.
The beautiful vampire who was known as' Silver-Eyed Count 'smiled. "Because he had a certain understanding of the power and the sequela of' God's Arrival '. During the Battle of Antiffler, the Primordial Ancestor had been observing nearby but did not take action. Instead, he stayed around Lance for a long time. It's a pity that his judgment was wrong."
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