Chapter 327: To sup with the devil (Part 1)

  "Yes, we are going to kill him. Only by killing him, by extracting the power of the Leaves of the World Tree and the Sunwell from his body, can we destroy the hilt of The Black Star." Talise took a deep breath and finally began to nod and speak.

  "More than twenty years ago, under the leadership of the strongest man on the continent, His Majesty Pope Dracon, the Church's power had reached its peak. His Majesty Dracon was already the strongest man on the continent at that time, both in terms of power and personal strength. So he began to challenge the legendary myth, The Black Star. After exploring countless elven ruins and studying ancient texts, he discovered. The ritual passed down by the elven race was originally intended to fuse the power of the Leaves of the World Tree and the Sunwell into a single person's body, and then have that person feed the sword with their body."

  "The power of the Leaves of the World Tree and the Sunwell is the only power that can affect The Black Star. Although it cannot destroy The Black Star, it can damage it. Although it's impossible to truly save the continent from being cleansed, at least through this ritual, that day of judgment, enough to destroy the continent, can be postponed until the next time someone draws the sword. Although he knew this, His Majesty Dracon did not believe it. Instead, he believed in Archibald's prophecy, believing that he was the strong one who had gathered all the power to change the world. So he wanted to draw The Black Star himself, to challenge this legendary artifact of destruction with his own power."

  "However, what we want is not to destroy the hilt itself, but the dark aura released when The Black Star is broken. According to the elven canon, when The Black Star is damaged, a dark, destructive aura of death will emanate and spread from the sword. Although it cannot compare to the ultimate Forbidden Spell hidden within the sword, it is still an aura sufficient to kill tens of thousands of people."

  "That aura is our trump card against Oufu, the most effective means. It may also be the only means."

  "Oufu's current development has already exceeded His Majesty the Pope's prediction and control. The submission of the Minotaurs and Harpies has greatly increased their strength. Most critically, they also seem to be mining a large number of magic gems in the Sanderfirth Mountains, which are essential materials for making high-level scrolls. Sedros's methods are heaven-defying. If he manages to produce a large number of high-level magic scrolls, Oufu's combat effectiveness will rise by several levels. Even though we have eliminated the main force of Nighon and can concentrate all the forces of the Western Continent, fighting Oufu will still be an arduous war."

  "Only by taking the hilt of The Black Star to the Barbarian Highlands and then destroying it. The released aura of death will not only engulf Oufu but the entire Barbarian Highlands as well. This is the best way to destroy Oufu. Otherwise, even if we can ultimately win the battle against Oufu, tens of thousands of warriors will be sacrificed in the Barbarian Highlands."

  "And Oufu must be destroyed as soon as possible. The development of this orc city is simply too fast, its potential too great. So far, Sedros is still controlling the actions of the orcs, but when he no longer needs to be wary of us, in order to fight for more resources and territory, Oufu will eventually have friction with us humans. Even people of different faiths can have conflicts and contradictions, let alone between different races. When it develops into a true great empire, the ones who will suffer will be all the humans on the continent."

  "It's for this reason that he must die. For the future of the entire continent, at least to prevent tens of thousands of warriors from dying in battle with the orcs, and moreover, to destroy the hilt of The Black Star, which is perhaps an even more dangerous thing. So, he must die."

  "Alright. I have told you everything now. This is what you wanted to know." Talise's face was full of exhaustion and powerlessness. To her, saying these words was more tiring than charging through the ranks of a massive army on the battlefield ten times over.

  "Knowing all this, so what? He has to die." Talise looked at Aimee. "I know you like him, but this is a fact that no one can change. So I didn't want to tell you these things. Perhaps it would be better if you hated me, thinking it was all my fault."

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  Lowering her head to stare at the ground, Aimee was silent for a long while before she spoke: "Why push all the responsibility onto Brother Ethan alone? This is not his fault. Sister, you should know, he is a good person."

  "It's not his fault. He has no responsibility. I... I also know he's not actually a bad person. It's just..." Talise sighed deeply. In fact, Aimee's question just now, she had also asked Lancelot before. "It's just... we can only do it this way, we only have this choice."

  "Making an innocent, good person bear a responsibility that is not his, is this the justice you have always spoken of, sister?" Aimee looked up at Talise, her young face full of stubbornness.

  "I don't know. I don't even know what justice is anymore. I only know that I must do this." Talise also looked at Aimee, her expression sorrowful and indifferent, but beneath this layer of sorrow and indifference was steadfastness.

  Neither of them spoke anymore, just silently looking at each other. After a long time, Aimee suddenly said: "No matter what, I must find a way to save Brother Ethan. I absolutely cannot let him die... and I won't let you die either."

  "Don't be silly. You should go rest now. I'll have someone take you away tomorrow." Talise shook her head, this was just childish talk.

  But on that very night, Aimee disappeared from the military camp. No one discovered how she had walked out of the camp. It seemed as if she had stayed in the tent the whole time without ever going out. The only explanation was that she carried a teleportation scroll with her.

  Although Talise found it strange that Aimee had a teleportation scroll, she was also a little relieved. Her biggest worry was that Aimee would do something foolish after learning all this. Now it seemed she would not. Carrying a teleportation scroll with her at least showed that she must have had a plan all along. As for what that plan was, Talise no longer had the energy or the means to care.

  Things had come to this, and no force could change anything.

  Erathia, St. Peter's Basilica, in the room of the newly appointed Cardinal Inham.

  Indeed, just as Talise had thought, Aimee had already made a plan before she went to ask her, but it was definitely not one she could have imagined.

  "Your Excellencies, you have heard all those words, right?" Aimee looked at the two Cardinals. She took out a small metal piece from behind her ear.

  This was a metal piece engraved with very precise air and space magic arrays. It could sense the vibrations in the air and then produce corresponding vibrations on another metal piece in a different location, transmitting the sound intact. This little magic trick required the carrier's own magic to drive it. If facing someone like the Pope or Lancelot, it would naturally be impossible to hide. But it was no problem to use it against the distracted Talise.

  "We heard it very clearly. Truly unexpected news. You've worked hard, thank you." Bishop Adela smiled faintly.

  Although Lancelot had released Aimee in a very secretive way, it was not difficult for them, who were deliberately looking for her, especially since she herself seemed to want to find Talise. The agreement with this little girl was also unusually smooth. Just as expected, with her help, they really did get those things out of Talise's mouth.

  "You're welcome. This was something I wanted to ask anyway. In fact, I should be the one thanking you. If it weren't for your help, I wouldn't have known where to find the answers, and I couldn't have gotten to that place on my own." Aimee bowed to the two Cardinals, then asked lightly.

  "Now what I want to know is, how do you two plan to deal with me?"

  "Oh? What an interesting little girl." Bishop Adela smiled, giving Bishop Inham beside him a rather surprised look. "What? You think we're going to deal with you?"

  "Someone like me who knows too much, if I continue to live, will definitely make Your Excellencies feel insecure. And neither of you are the merciful Lord Lancelot, so naturally you have no reason to let me go."

  "Oh? Then you dare to come back on your own?" Adela looked at Aimee, the smile on his face still as gentle and brilliant as if he were facing a very rare and cute little animal.

  "If Your Excellencies really want to kill me, how could I possibly escape? Since you were willing to let me see my sister alone, you must have been prepared long ago, not afraid of me leaking secrets or running away. Although you are in Erathia, I know that no matter what I do, I cannot escape your eyes." Aimee was very calm. It was a composure that was absolutely disproportionate to her age and appearance. Too many hardships had already given her a will and a mind beyond her years.

  "Hmm, what a smart little girl." Bishop Adela nodded, his smile even more captivating.

  Indeed, what was placed on this little girl was naturally more than just that one small metal piece for transmitting sound. There had also been several eagle-eye puppets monitoring her. He sighed a long, reluctant sigh. "For you to have such insight and courage at such a young age is truly rare... Even I feel a little reluctant..."

  Although he said this, the hand Bishop Adela had behind his back was already gathering magical fluctuations. This little girl knew too much. If it weren't for the need to completely erase all traces by waiting for her to return here, he would have turned her into a zombie long after learning those messages.

  Although this was a cathedral, with their abilities and status, it was easy to make everyone forget the matter of a little girl, whom no one knew, disappearing from here.

  But Inham's hand reached out and pressed on Adela's, dissipating the dangerous magical energy. He looked at Aimee and said lightly: "Stop beating around the bush. If you have something to say to us, just say it directly."

  "I want to make a deal with you two, Your Excellencies."

  "What?" Both Cardinals were taken aback. Adela then smiled and said: "Oh? With your intelligence, it shouldn't be for some boring condition. Let's hear it, what do you want to trade with us?"

  "Your Excellency Bishop Inham, you are the culprit behind the misunderstanding between the Tower of Fangs and the Whispering Woods, which resulted in them fighting each other, right? I heard from Tower Master Graden that you seem to want the Leaves of the World Tree very much to save your son..." Aimee mustered all her strength, looking at Inham's seemingly indifferent but actually ready-to-tear-her-apart-at-any-moment gaze and said. "If I help you get the Leaves of the World Tree, can you help me save Brother Ethan?"