In the relic at the bottom of the lake in the Land of Thousand Lakes …
After returning from the Black Forest, Douglas did not go to the place where Allyn was buried immediately. Instead, he waited for news from Renstadt with Arnold and Fernando. Only by learning the intensity of the Church's counterattack and the ending of Sharp, the Blue Demon, could he study the City in the Sky in peace, in case the sorcerers who participated in the party were arrested and exposed the location of Allyn. It had crashed there, and it was barely possible to move it away without causing a big fuss.
"Mr. President, Kritonia, the Heart of Time, has left the Radiance Church and returned to his villa in the city. The Church did not arrest the Blue Demon." A sorcerer reported the situation in Renstadt to Arnold. They could not plant spies within the Church or among the grand nobles, so they could only learn what was on the surface.
Arnold scratched his beard and nodded. "Kritonia has learned what happened from League, and he will certainly tell Francois. The Church, on the other hand, did not arrest or interrogate Sharp, not to mention execute him. It's very weird. It seems that things have changed. Perhaps it's a consequence of the battle between the pope and the Silver Moon …"
He analyzed the reason, but because this place was too far away from Aalto, Tria and Lance, and the sorcerers could not set up divine power circles to transmit sound messages in the cathedrals in the important cities like the Church did, the information was limited, and he could not figure out the reason. He could only speculate.
"Whatever the reason is, at least the Church has compromised to the nobles this time, which is very important for their ambitions." Douglas said peacefully. There was no telling whether he was delighted or expectant.
"That's why I said that whether or not the Church kills Sharp, it's in our favor," Arnold said with a smile. Arnold said with a smile. He turned around and looked at Fernando. "Don't go to Old Grimm for now. Sharp must've learned that we made use of him. He is still infuriated. Let's not talk about it for a while."
Then, he said with a naughty smile, "Fernando, Count Paphos happens to be in Renstadt. You can ask him if he has figured out where the nobles' position comes from and how powerful they are. By the way, you can ask about the situation in Aalto and find out the result of the battle between the pope and the Silver Moon."
At this time, the aristocrats had a much richer source of information than they did. If they didn't ask them, who else could they ask?
"Count Paphos?" Fernando was stunned for a moment and frowned. "You have to put on that belt again?"
Arnold chuckled and said, "What? Very repulsive? I think you were very interested in it before. You were even researching how to improve the belt. "
Fernando laughed dryly. "Life is so short compared to death. So, why don't we try different experiences in our limited life?"
"But even the most interesting experiences will be boring. Only the mysteries of the world and magic are profound and moving forever." Douglas was not aware of the transsexual belt, so he simply expressed his opinion.
Arnold laughed and did not say anything else like a senior.
… …
The night was quiet, but Count Paphos' villa was as lively as the day when people came and went.
The knights came and left under the cover of the night, exchanging information and confirming their attitudes without any rest. What happened tonight was too appalling for them to rest. Who could've thought that Duke Sharp would work with sorcerers to assassinate Alfonsol, the Red Robe? Who could've foreseen that His Excellency Kritonia learned the news in advance and planned to kill all the sorcerers? Who could've foreseen that the renowned "Heart of Time" would fall into a trap and almost be killed in the most miserable failure since he became famous?
And such a matter would definitely set off a hurricane. Just the tail of the hurricane would cause these ordinary nobles to lose everything. So, how could they not panic? How could they not look around? How could they not look for their own lords and nobles of higher ranks to ask for their opinions?
That was why Count Paphos' villa was so lively.
Watching the few subordinate nobles leave together, Count Paphos seemed deeply exhausted. For a heavenly Knight such as him, it was not a big deal for him not to rest for a few nights. What was exhausted was his mind. He had to analyze the Church's attitude and the other grand nobles' attitude according to the ever-changing intelligence and adjust his stance in case he was caught in the storm.
"Lord Count, now that the Church has sent a red robe to appease Lord Sharp, it seems that there won't be any bad changes anymore. This is the grace of the Lord. The evil devils' scheme will not work out." The last noble in the living room bowed and was ready to leave. He was Count Paphos' trusted subordinate.
In front of his trusted subordinate, Count Paphos did not disguise his exhaustion. "If it weren't for the battles in Tria and Lance, the outcome might've been different. We're strong, but we're also weak."
The noble who understood Lord Count 'last sentence sighed. "Yes, Lord Count. The Church's compromise made us feel strong, but the real reason for their compromise made us understand our weakness. If … If His Majesty and the rest of them completely defeated the coalition army of sorcerers, vampires, dragons, and elves, we …"
As he spoke, he was more or less scared that a night watcher was hiding nearby. So, he stopped talking and left in silence.
Looking at the gate that was slowly closed, Count Paphos had a lot of thoughts. Without the enemies such as sorcerers and vampires, was there any need for the Church to "raise" and respect the nobles? The changes in the attitude of the clerics in the past hundred years were enough to explain everything! Just like the beautiful and hot sorceress said, the enemies of the nobles were sorcerers, but the nobles' position also came from sorcerers!
Suddenly, he turned around abruptly and looked at the dark outside of the window. Lowering his voice, he said, "Now that you're here, come in."
"I can't come in without the permission of the master." A slightly magnetic female voice echoed. The glass of the window protruded, as if a transparent person were crawling out of a bubble.
But very soon, a petite beauty in a red magic robe walked out, and the glass was restored to its original state.
Looking at the girl who was as glamorous as fire, Count Paphos did not tease her anymore. Instead, he asked rather solemnly, "What are you doing here?"
"Hehe. Do you not know why I'm here? I don't remember you to be such an idiot. " After transforming into a woman, Fernando felt that his sarcasm was much gentler. "We've talked before. Now, I want to know if your questions have been answered. Have you figured out where the nobles' position comes from? Have you figured out how powerful you are exactly? "
Count Paphos' eyes were unique golden vertical pupils, like those of a golden dragon. Looking at Fernando, he said slowly, "The answer to the question is not important. What matters is that you are too weak. Even if the Liege of Death recovers, you will still be weak. As for me, it is impossible for me to pursue a chance that I will fail."
He had doubts about the nobles' position and power before, but what happened tonight made him completely enlightened. However, even though he understood it, he did not intend to share it with the sorcerers. Instead, he pointed out the core of the problem straightforwardly.
Fernando was very satisfied with such an attitude. At least, it meant that Count Paphos was willing to communicate with them. It was a sign of cooperation. He smiled, as if a light were shining in the room. "We are weak, but the coalition army of sorcerers, vampires, dragons, and elves is not weak. If the nobles are still divided, the Church can only protect itself. Of course, we don't need your risky cooperation for now. We only hope that you can give us some time to grow. By then, you will find that we are no longer weak and can cooperate with you."
"Sorcerers can't grow as fast as clerics." Count Paphos did not give a reply.
Sensing Count Paphos' concerns, Fernando changed the topic and asked, "Did I just hear that Tria and Lance had a great battle?"
"… Yes. Silver Moon, Abel, and Dracula ambushed the pope together …" Count Paphos pondered for a moment and told him what he knew exactly.
Fernando was surprised and excited as he listened. Providing intelligence was exactly the range of "a little help". Count Count Paphos, although you did not agree to cooperate verbally, you had already "agreed" in your heart.
… …
"The pope didn't take action, and the coalition army still couldn't break Lance. They only killed a Grand Cardinal and a legendary Knight before they were completely suppressed? The Church is truly terrifying … "Arnold received part of the intelligence from other sources, which confirmed Fernando's findings. Even so, he still found it hard to hide his shock. He found it hard to believe that the Church was already so strong!
In this world, almost all the legends except for the clerics and the nobles had joined hands, but it was still impossible to defeat the Church that had lost the pope. The Church had even left a Grand Cardinal and a legendary Knight to guard Holm and the edge of the Boundless Ocean in case the remaining sorcerers and the legends of the sea clans caused trouble.
It was truly a devastating fact!
"If the pope recovers, or a new pope is crowned, the coalition army will probably collapse when he can use God's Arrival." Douglas said worriedly. It was impossible to defeat the Church at this moment and was even suppressed. It would be even worse if the pope was involved.
Arnold nodded his head. "We can only hope that the Silver Moon recovers before the pope recovers or the new pope becomes a demigod. Then, a stalemate will be established."
"It's not something that we can control." Douglas smiled in self-mockery. "It seems that the counterattack this time won't be too intense. The best that can happen is that the remaining legendary Knight and the Grand Cardinals will all take action. Mr. President, I'm going to Allyn now."
"Alright. Don't slack off. Try to figure out something!" Arnold reminded him without any hesitation. Then, he looked at Fernando. "I hope that you can go to Aalto, Tria, and other places to figure out who is more likely to become the new pope, Griffith or Ivan. Also, you can find some young sorcerers with potential. After all, they cannot interfere in the battle of legends."
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