In the Navas Forest at night, time flew by amidst the excited roars of the magical beasts. Soon, five hours had passed. A figure slowly approached a tall olive tree not far away. Connor Ferguson was sitting leisurely on the trunk of this tree.
Sensing Dezerby's approach, Connor wasn't surprised at all. He didn't have the intention to turn around and face the person approaching.
When Dezerby arranged for him to be on night duty, Connor had already realized that although Dezerby arranged for him to be on night duty with him, in reality, he wanted to avoid talking to Milik. Coincidentally, Connor also wanted to talk to Dezerby, so the two of them hit it off. Otherwise, why would Connor obediently listen to Dezerby's arrangement and be on night duty at a place so far away from the campsite? With such a distance, he could ensure that the other official Magus in the team, Milik, wouldn't eavesdrop on their conversation.
Seeing Connor's back facing him, Dezerby's aged eyes revealed a hint of helplessness. He never thought that he would have to ask for help from Connor in the morning after he spoke ruthlessly to Connor Ferguson during the day.
However, as the saying goes, "There are no eternal enemies, and no eternal friends, only eternal benefits." Hence, for his own benefits, Dezerby pulled a long face and said to Connor in a low voice, "Before we set off from Flosinone, Cristante gave me a secret mission. If I can't find the ruins, I'm to kill you, Connor. The team of Arbiters beside me will be my helpers!"
Sitting on the olive tree with his back facing Dezerby, Connor was slightly surprised when he heard Dezerby's words. He turned around and sized up Dezerby with interest.
Connor wasn't surprised that Dezerby said that there was a mission to kill him, nor did he doubt the authenticity of Dezerby's words. Ever since Connor was forced by Cristante to agree to help the Church of the Storm search for the ruins, he was very clear that this was a difficult task. If he wasn't careful, the Church of the Storm would make things difficult for him. Hence, Connor was already mentally prepared for the possibility of the Church of the Storm getting rid of him, and he had also prepared a way to deal with it.
What really surprised Connor was that Dezerby actually revealed such a big piece of information right from the start!
After Milik explained his thoughts, Dezerby wanted to discuss something with Connor. Although he didn't say it out loud, Connor was well aware of it in his heart.
Milik's order was undoubtedly a difficult and thankless task for Dezerby. Not only did their team run the risk of being wiped out in the Navas Forest to kill Firo, but even if they were lucky and didn't end up in that place, the loss of members was inevitable. Now that half of the Arbiters' team was dead, Dezerby would be hard pressed to absolve himself from the blame when he returned. If a few more died, even if Dezerby returned alive to the Church of the Storm, he would definitely be in trouble.
Moreover, even if they managed to kill Firo in the end, the credit would belong to Milick. It wouldn't have anything to do with Dezerby. Therefore, it wasn't just Dezerby who didn't want to risk his life for someone else. No one else would be willing to do such a thing.
Although he was conflicted and unwilling to do it, the Storm token in Milik's hands that belonged to Red-robed Archbishop Hummel could not be faked at all. If he rejected Milik's request, Milik could use Dezerby's refusal to assist him as an excuse to add fuel to the fire in front of Red-robed Archbishop Hummel and push all the blame for not killing Firo to Dezerby. At that time, Dezerby would definitely offend Hummel, the next pope of the Church of the Storm.
Therefore, Dezerby really had a headache. He didn't know what to do, but after all, he was experienced and cunning. Dezerby still came up with a way to break the situation. In his method, the dark wizard Connor Ferguson was the key to breaking the situation. This was also why Dezerby deliberately avoided Milik and talked to Connor alone with the excuse of keeping watch.
Seeing that Dezerby had released such explosive news as soon as he came up, Connor naturally did not hide it. He smiled and said directly, "Dezerby, do you want me to step in and reject Milik's proposal?"
"That's right!"
Seeing that Connor had guessed his thoughts, Dezerby looked at him deeply, but he did not deny it. Instead, he nodded and admitted it very straightforwardly.
"Dezerby, you're really scheming. You actually want me to take the blame that Milik threw to you." The smile on Connor's face gradually turned cold as he spoke to the veteran wizard of the Church of the Storm in front of him.
Connor's reaction was completely within Dezerby's expectations. He shook his head and said in a deep voice, "It's true that Milik threw this blame to me, but that doesn't mean that you, Connor Ferguson, can remain unscathed!"
"The storm token in Milik's hands represents Cardinal Hummel. Connor Ferguson, I'm sure you're aware of Cardinal Hummel's reputation within the church. Therefore, even if it's not for my sake, it's for the sake of my family, friends, and descendants. I can't offend Cardinal Hummel. Therefore, the only thing I can do is to carry out Milik's proposal!"
"But Connor Ferguson, you have to think carefully. If I were to accept Milik's proposal, who would be hurt the most? You're the only one in this team who isn't from the Church of the Storm. Most importantly, Connor, you're also a dark Magus. If you were to encounter any danger in the process of pursuing Firo, Connor Ferguson, what do you think are your chances of survival? "Dezerby spoke slowly to Connor in an incomparably calm tone.
Although Dezerby's words sounded like Dezerby was asking Connor a question, the warning and threat behind his words were obvious.
Although he knew that Dezerby was telling the truth and wasn't trying to scare him, Connor, who was already prepared, did not panic. Furthermore, when he thought of what Dezerby had just said about the secret mission that Cristante had given him to kill Connor with the joint arbitrators, Connor vaguely understood the bargaining chips in Dezerby's hands …
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