Chapter 241

“Hey, Pei Xi. It's been a while. Looks like you've changed quite a bit.”

After two days of travel, the team dispatched to suppress the Saints had finally arrived in the Lower District. Pei Xi and his two companions were following the main force toward their temporary lodgings when a hearty voice suddenly called out from behind them.

Almost instinctively, Pei Xi's hand went to the sword at his waist as he turned, every nerve on guard. His two companions immediately tensed as well, their expressions turning wary.

Dark violet bangs spilled from beneath the brim of a black hat.

Wu Shu greeted them with an easy smile.

“Relax. I was only saying hello.”

The three of them grew visibly more guarded, their expressions tightening with wariness. Clearly, they hadn't forgotten the incident when Wu Shu had tried to kill them in order to seize the Divine Sword.

“This time our target is Sela. We're teammates, at least for now.” As she spoke, Wu Shu stepped closer to Pei Xi and lowered her voice. “Relax. I haven't been assigned any secret mission involving you this time. What about you?”

Pei Xi's expression remained cold and hostile, his brows drawn tightly together. He didn't utter a single word.

Wu Shu appeared to be making idle conversation, but every casual remark was a test. As she probed Pei Xi, her gaze drifted naturally toward Roy, the teammate standing beside him.

Compared to Pei Xi's grim silence and Kyle's restrained anger, Roy seemed noticeably more tense.

“Wu Shu, there's no need to keep probing us. We won't give you another chance to betray us this time.”

Pei Xi's reply came through clenched teeth. On the day Sykes transformed into the Demonic Dragon and lost control, if he'd awakened even a little later, Kyle and Roy would've already died at Wu Shu's hands.

When they'd first met Wu Shu during the Ability Competition, there had been mutual respect, admiration, and countless moments of helping one another. No matter how many times he thought back on it, Pei Xi still couldn't reconcile that memory with the ruthless woman she'd proven herself to be.

Wu Shu had no idea what the other party was lamenting. She simply lifted both hands in surrender, gave an easy shrug, then thoughtfully turned and walked away.

The moment she turned her back, someone behind her muttered, “The Papess's dog.” Judging by the voice, it was probably that emperor's illegitimate son.

What an ill-mannered little brat. Fitting for Sykes's half-brother.

With a quiet scoff, Wu Shu casually kicked aside a certain unruly team member who was laughing and fooling around before making her way back to her own group.

People lined both sides of the street, watching the soldiers dispatched from the Upper District. Their eyes held expectation and yearning, but also worry and quiet unease.

The unit was currently passing through the southern sector of the Lower District. By tomorrow, they'd likely reach the Western District.

By now, the Saints' fearsome reputation had spread throughout the empire. Most residents in the other districts wanted nothing to do with having the Saints descend upon their hometowns. A smaller number were curious about the organization, but for one reason or another, they could only bury those thoughts deep inside.

Wu Shu had heard of the organization known as the Saints ever since she was a child in the Middle District. Stories claimed that “the true God of Hope has suffered persecution,” that “the Church's current object of worship isn't the true God of Hope at all,” and that “the Saints are the true followers of the God of Hope,” among countless similar claims. Hardly anyone believed those tales. The organization had long since been scattered to the winds, only beginning to regain its strength after Sela emerged and took command.

“Leader” was a quality that defied explanation. Wu Shu herself had once tried to become the kind of captain everyone admired and looked up to, yet somehow she'd never won people's loyalty as completely as someone as impossible to define as Sela. Strange, wasn't it?

“Ah, isn't that Pei Xi?”

“Back then, I really thought he'd become the first person from the Lower District to win the Ability Competition and bring dragon bones back for us…”

“I heard Her Holiness the Papess only put a bounty on him because of a misunderstanding. Who would've thought that once it was lifted, he'd end up joining the Royal Knight Order? I've heard that even the most exceptional children from the Lower District usually become nothing more than guards serving dukes.”

“No matter what, he came back to protect his hometown right after entering the Upper District. He's truly the pride of everyone who grew up down here. Stop wasting your days fooling around! You should learn something from him!”

“These past few days, the number of Aberrant Realms has started increasing again. If only Pei Xi had won the championship back then. He never would've thrown away those dragon bones just for the sake of his own future!”

As the crowd buzzed with animated discussion, Wu Shu lowered the brim of her hat, allowing the shadows to conceal her eyes.

Wu Shu had always possessed a keen sense of self-awareness. The day she'd publicly refused both the dragon bone reward and the guaranteed position in the Upper District, she'd packed her belongings without hesitation and fled there immediately, determined to avoid having her doorstep blocked by an angry crowd hurling rotten eggs.

She'd escaped quickly enough, but judging from her own family's attitude toward her, she could easily imagine how deeply the people of the Middle District despised her. Calling her a traitor to her hometown wouldn't have been an exaggeration.

Every person who lost their life because of the Aberrant Realms descending upon the empire seemed, in the public's eyes, to be a death entirely attributable to her betrayal.

It was only because of her position within the Upper District Public Security Bureau that they didn't dare denounce her openly in public. Behind closed doors, however, every imaginable rumour about her spread throughout the Middle District. Some claimed she'd abused her authority to imprison anyone who spoke ill of her. Others maliciously speculated that she'd only secured her position through disgraceful, improper means.

Wu Shu found the situation rather amusing. Her position within the Upper District Public Security Bureau had become increasingly secure. Those people no longer dared to dismiss or overlook her. Part of that was the result of her own efforts, while another part genuinely came from certain "connections."

Why didn't those people from the Middle District dare to speculate that her connection was Papess Ye Zheng? Wouldn't that have been far more explosive?

They simply weren't bold enough. Their imaginations were far too limited. Wu Shu shook her head with a trace of regret.

The sky suddenly darkened. The sunlight blanketing the streets disappeared in an instant. Wu Shu seemed to sense something. She let her smile fade, removed her hat, and lifted her gaze toward the heavens.

Dark clouds churned overhead, as though rain were on the verge of falling, or as though some monstrous beast lurked within their roiling depths.

Ahead, a Church knight was making his way back, quietly reporting something to the captain of the Royal Knight Order. The two exchanged hushed words. Wu Shu watched the captain's expression contort with unmistakable disbelief.

Not long afterward, Wu Shu received the order to evacuate every ordinary civilian from the area.

There was no need to advance any farther. The enemy had already come to them.

✧✧✧✧✧

Within the Upper District, both the Imperial Palace and the Papal Palace received the news almost simultaneously.

Sela had silently led her forces into the Southern District.

Reports claimed that Sela had originally been lying in wait at a strategic chokepoint. Fortunately, a Church knight assigned to forward reconnaissance had been perceptive enough to notice that something was wrong. Otherwise, the expeditionary force might've suffered devastating losses.

But the news that Sela had slipped into the Southern District without so much as a sound was, without question, a crushing blow to the punitive expedition. She was no ordinary bandit who could be subdued with ease. Her control over the Western District had far exceeded everyone's expectations. Only that could explain how she'd managed to pull off such a feat.

Moreover, reports indicated that she'd brought with her more than a hundred creatures believed to be aberrant beasts. The level of threat they posed was comparable to an A-class Aberrant Realm, perhaps even an S-class, or higher.

Everyone in both the Imperial Palace and the Papal Palace who received the report felt the weight in their hearts grow even heavier.

Both palaces remained brilliantly illuminated throughout the night, teeming with activity. Yet the two figures seated upon their respective thrones each picked up a chess piece at nearly the same moment, the corners of their lips curling into faint smiles.

“Heath, if I were to ask you to destroy Ye Zheng, how do you think it should be done?”

“…Destroy her? I believe the most complete form of destruction is to kill her.”

Only through death does a person lose everything. As long as someone still lives, even if they've fallen to rock bottom, countless opportunities remain for them to rise again. That cannot truly be called destruction.

Heath believed this answer would satisfy the Emperor.

“No. What does the death of the flesh amount to? The true horror lies in the extinguishing of the soul!”

“Do you know how agonizing it is for a soul to perish? It has to happen at the moment of utter collapse, at the very point of greatest—”

Halfway through his impassioned speech, the man abruptly fell silent. Then, with a sudden shift in tone, he changed the subject.

“Heath, I have a task for you.”

His voice was calm.

“Please give your orders. I'll see it completed perfectly.”

The Emperor looked with satisfaction at Heath's lowered head. She'd been willing to betray the teacher she cherished most for his sake. Whether that sprang from genuine loyalty or ruthless self-preservation didn't matter. Either way, someone like her was exceptionally easy to use.

More importantly, having Ye Zheng's former close friend personally deliver the fatal blow... he could hardly imagine the magnificent expression that would appear on Ye Zheng's face!

Did Ye Zheng really think he'd wait until the punitive expedition had defeated Sela before making his move?

He had sent people to join the expedition not to suppress Sela, but to publicly expose the existence of those horrifying creatures. Unexpectedly, Sela had saved him the trouble by bringing those monsters into the densely populated Southern District herself.

He'd nearly failed to suppress a burst of laughter.

All that remained was for the punitive expedition to suffer a crushing defeat, for Sela and those monsters to run rampant through the Southern District, and for the public to be informed that the Demonic Dragon would descend upon a certain woman, that the woman would lose control and transform into the Demonic Dragon...

Finally, with Pei Xi exposing the truth behind the Divine Sword, every accusation and every blade could be turned toward Ye Zheng.

Everything she'd painstakingly built with her own hands would collapse into utter ruin!

This was the price Ye Zheng would pay for daring to challenge him!

The man's golden eyes gleamed beneath the dim yellow light like those of a beast intoxicated by excitement. Heath stole a brief glance before quietly lowering her eyes once more.

Compared to the way the Emperor intended to deal with Ye Zheng, Heath found herself fixated on a different, more unsettling detail.

A person's words and actions reflected the landscape of their own heart. She feared death, and so she believed death was the truest form of destruction. The man standing before her, once the incomparably brilliant Aston XIV, feared the extinguishing of the soul.

Heath admitted that she was selfish. She had persuaded Qin Lu, the teacher who had always protected her more fiercely than anyone else, to clear the path for her.

Yet her words had also come from sincere reflection. She'd revealed the Emperor's secret to Qin Lu: destroying the Emperor's physical body might not truly kill him. It could simply grant him the opportunity to change bodies. If she wanted to discover a way to strike at him, she first needed to uncover more of his secrets.

Although the notion of the soul felt elusive and intangible, Heath silently committed it to memory.

Thanks to Ye Zheng's efforts, some time still remained before Teacher Qin Lu's execution. If she could achieve a breakthrough during that window, she might not have to rely on Ye Zheng's intervention at all...

“Heath, raise your head and look at me.”

“I remember that you're rather skilled with words. Draft an article for me, one denouncing Papess Ye Zheng under the name of Princess Heath.”

Heath's blue eyes widened in surprise.

“What is it? I'm giving you an opportunity. Don't you want your name to spread across the entire empire by trampling Ye Zheng beneath your feet?”

“…It isn't that I don't. But the people of the empire place immense trust in Ye—”

“They won't for much longer.”

Looking into the Emperor's enigmatic smile, one tinged with unmistakable malice, Heath felt a deep sense of bewilderment. She had no grounds to object, so she quietly nodded her agreement.

✧✧✧✧✧

Within the Papal Palace, Ye Zheng watched the nun who had delivered the report take her leave. Alone in the vast hall, she let out a quiet laugh.

She wasn't the least bit surprised by Sela's actions. If anything, she'd expected them long ago.

Sela had never been one to overcomplicate things. The moment she learned someone intended to deal her a vicious blow, she'd simply sever that person's head before they ever had the chance.

Faced with the Imperial Family and the Church's joint punitive expedition, two forces she despised to her very core, Sela would undoubtedly inflict the deepest wound she could upon her enemies. She would mobilize every Dragonic person and every fragment of dragon bone under her command.

Once the existence of the Dragonic people was exposed so completely, it would certainly place them at a disadvantage. Even so, that day had always been destined to arrive sooner or later.

But while Aston XIV was intoxicated by his elaborate schemes, had he forgotten the colossal lie he'd once woven for the people of the empire?

She would wait until Aston XIV was completely immersed in the ecstasy of what seemed like an effortless victory. Then she'd drag the entire Aston Imperial Family down from their lofty position as the empire's guardians!

“System, establish a communication link between me and Wu Shu.”

“Just like last time.”

The system no longer hesitated as it had during the first attempt. After a brief silence, the faint sound of steady breathing reached Ye Zheng's ears, followed by a puzzled, “Hm?”