NOVEL NEXT Chapter 48
48 An Exhaustive Plan
Astral Lighthouse, Astral Observatory.
In front of Vincent was the Stranger constellation that was connected to the Astral Circuit. Surging magic power was guided into the vast magic network from here and then resonated through the constellations into the ether domain of every registered magic chanter.
As long as he obtained the authority to use this constellation, he could bypass the Astral Laws and establish a connection with the Astral World, advancing to the Legendary domain-a domain that had kept him out for more than ten years.
This was a promise Duke Simon had given him.
However…
Vincent sighed slightly.
He didn’t believe that Duke Simon’s plan would succeed. Or rather, even if Duke Simon’s plan succeeded, it definitely wouldn’t be the bright future they had imagined more than 20 years ago.
After being enlightened by the magic chanter named Presiding Judge, Vincent increasingly realized that his previous worries weren’t unnecessary.
How different would the fate of the Blackwater Province ultimately be, whether it was controlled by the Empire or the Void Sovereigns?
Moreover…
Vincent recalled the Divine Realm magic chanter and his expression of having everything under control, as well as his confidence in letting him go after stating his request.
Was Duke Simon’s plan as foolproof as he said? Or was every step within that person’s expectations?
With this in mind, Vincent discovered the problem that had eluded him.
Why did that person choose to appear in the Silverstream Mine? Why did he let me off so easily?
The Rose Palace’s Mage Hall and the Bramble Guards’ headquarters were two places where problems were more likely to arise because there were too many people. However, the first time he appeared was in the Silverstream Mine.
It had to be known that the Silverstream Mine had always been handed over to the Moon Realm spirits to handle. Even the miners had been controlled via specially implanted Soul-Ingesting Spider Demons. Other than the supervisor sent over, even the people from the Mage Hall didn’t know what was below.
And he chose to appear in such a place.
What was even more inexplicable was that not only did the magic chanter not leave after killing the presiding Moon Realm spirit, but he also calmly stayed where he was and specially created a chance to talk to him alone.
If he hadn’t long understood the duke’s plan, how could a Divine Realm magic chanter like him lower himself to change into a miner’s outfit and infiltrate the Silverstream Mine alone?
It couldn’t be that he came because he lacked Elementium Silver, right?
Therefore, what was the other party’s true goal in letting him go?
A thought flashed through his mind like lightning.
“… Could it be that he already expected me to tell the duke what happened in the Silverstream Mine?!”
Upon having this realization, Vincent broke out in cold sweat.
If that was the case, everything made sense. This was a trap the other party had planned from the beginning.
Duke Simon planned on simultaneously holding the King and Rebel ritual and the Eternal Gift at the Holy Sepulchre. He did a perfect job of keeping it a secret. Even Vincent, the Chief Palace Mage, didn’t know.
Needless to say, the Moon Realm spirit had been secretly in charge of the preparations.
After the magic chanter destroyed the ceremonial temple under the Silverstream Mine, he expected that the duke might have a backup plan, but he didn’t know where it was.
Therefore, he deliberately triggered the duke’s sense of danger, making him choose to take the risk and begin the ritual.
With this in mind, Vincent immediately stood up and walked to the Astral Observatory’s door.
The duke’s intentions had been exposed. He had to inform him quickly…
Vincent pulled open the door to the Astral Observatory.
Then, he was stunned.
The Divine Realm mage who called himself the Presiding Judge stood at the entrance of the Astral Observatory with a serious expression.
His being here was within the other party’s expectations…
Vincent thought in despair as he looked at the person in front of him.
“You already know?”
There were thousands of words in his mind, but they only turned into these words of admiration.
It was too late. It was all too late.
Vincent turned around dejectedly and walked back to the Astral Observatory. His entire body went limp as he sat in front of the Stranger Constellation.
As for William…
He looked at Vincent, who had suddenly become dispirited for some reason, and swallowed the words “why are you here?”
After a moment of silence, he slowly walked into the Astral Observatory and closed the door with his elbow. Then, while paying attention to the surroundings for any ambushes, he walked to a spot not far in front of Vincent.
“What a coincidence.”
Although William didn’t know what the other party meant, he pretended to be relaxed and sighed as an opening remark.
However, the other party only replied dejectedly, “Coincidence? We walked right into your scheme. How is it a coincidence?”
My scheme?
William was puzzled hearing what Vincent said.
What did I do?
However, although he didn’t understand what the other party meant, he continued acting profoundly and spouted nonsense, “It might not all be part of my scheme, but sometimes, that is how fate is-place everyone in the right time and place, and everything will happen naturally.”
However, Vincent only chuckled bitterly at his words.
“Comparing your scheme to fate? Heh, there’s probably no one in this world more arrogant than you.”
The muscles on William’s face twitched unconsciously. Fortunately, Vincent was immersed in his decadence and didn’t notice.
It was really difficult to hold it in…
Just as William was thinking about how to get information out of the other party, the other party spoke first.
“Then, do it.”
He stood up and spread his arms, spreading his fingers.
He indicated that he didn’t have a magical medium in his hand and had exposed his body to the greatest extent. This was the posture of a magic chanter showing that he was willing to die.
William looked at his fearless expression and hesitated for a moment before asking,
“Why should I kill you?”
Vincent smiled in melancholy and said, “Didn’t you say that as long as I choose to stand opposite you, you will not be merciful?”
William nodded and hesitated for a moment. Then, he gritted his teeth and asked, “So you still chose to stand opposite me? Even though you already know that everything you do is under my control?”
As he spoke, William secretly added the status of Cold Bloodline to himself so that his burning face wouldn’t be so obvious.
As for Vincent, he felt a suffocating cold aura of death emanating from the other party. It looked like the Divine Realm mage was planning on attacking.
Therefore, he looked up at the sky, closed his eyes, and whispered, “Yes, even if you already know that the ceremonial venue is in the Holy Sepulchre, even if I know that we have no chance of winning, I still choose to stand opposite you.”
Bingo! He finally understood what was going on!
Although he didn’t know what the other party had misunderstood, it was good that he had said it himself.
William excitedly reached into his pocket and snapped his fingers.
However, he immediately realized what the other party meant.
Holy Sepulchre? Isn’t that the place that triggered the Rotten Moon Tide? So that duke planned on doing this? Creating an undead calamity?
William suddenly felt a headache.
If millions of undead were let out of their cages, it would be tiring killing them.
He didn’t know if his strategic spells could clear the area on a large scale. It wouldn’t be anything like in-game where he performed extremely poorly because of his computer hardware’s lacking performance, right?
Thoughts raced through his mind. Then, he looked at Vincent, who was standing there silently waiting for death, and picked up the magical medium, planning to give the other party a quick death.
But before that, William asked curiously, “I’m a little curious. Why are you willing to die instead of considering my suggestion? The conditions I offer aren’t bad, right?”
Vincent calmly replied, “Because I’ve long sworn that I’ll only be loyal to Simon Walde.”
Uh…
William felt that he had been flirting with the blind when he tried to recruit him.
“But I see that you’re also a person with ideas. Have you thought about whether Simon is a monarch worthy of your loyalty?”
William continued asking.
Vincent fell silent. Silence at this moment could be considered a response.
“Then, why are you still…”
Vincent interrupted William before he could finish speaking.
“He will keep his word, so I will naturally keep mine.”
“What did he promise?” William asked curiously.
“He promised to protect my daughter, Liliana,” Vincent replied.
“Huh?”
Upon hearing this, William extinguished the instant death spell on the magical medium.
“Your daughter might already be dead.”