Chapter 215: A Strange Aftermath (Part 1)

  The vast Grand Cathedral was now empty of people. It had been temporarily designated a restricted area, with nearly a hundred swordsmen and mages from the Paladin Order standing guard outside, forbidding anyone entry.

  At the entrance of the Grand Cathedral, Ethan presented Commander Roland's sword, and only then did the two captains let him in. The Paladin Order never handled duties like guard posts and lockdowns, and in such a short time, it would have been difficult to find a suitable, unique pass authorized by Commander Roland. Therefore, Commander Roland had simply given his personal sword to Ethan as a temporary measure.

  Such a temporary measure was indeed necessary, because what was inside at this moment was far too important.

  In the very center, at the front of the Grand Cathedral, the sacred and solemn, colossal statue of a deity had been moved aside. The dark, gaping maw of the cellar next to the base gaped woodenly, like a monster, slowly exuding the rotten stench from the depths of its stomach.

  Ethan took a deep breath and lowered his head to dive into this dark, gaping maw. Even though it was his first time entering, the smell inside was truly unbearable, but he immediately realized it was useless, and so he exhaled, inhaling the scent that was like rotten cotton. He walked down the steps step by step. A strange sensation washed over his body, like brushing past a wind of magical elements that was perfectly still. This was the feeling of passing through a magical barrier.

  He didn't know if his senses had become sharper, but as he passed through the magical barrier permeating the space this time, Ethan had a strange intuition. This magical barrier didn't seem to have been set up to protect this place, but when he tried to carefully discern what was wrong, he found he didn't have a sufficient foundational knowledge of magic.

  Further down, the roars of the monsters that had once filled the dungeon were long gone. Only the sound of sparks constantly crackling from the torches gave a hint of life to the silence. Beyond that, there was only the sound of panting in this enclosed space.

  This panting was loud, but it gave no sense of life or vitality. It seemed more like a bellows being worked endlessly. But it was, unmistakably, a sound that only a person's panting could make; one could even hear the sound of the breath passing over the vocal cords. The sound wasn't one of pain, yet Ethan felt inexplicably that the hairs on his back were standing on end.

  In the wide dungeon, there was only the dim light of a single torch on the wall. As Ethan walked in, the torch in his hand immediately doubled the brightness in the dungeon. Even so, the light inside was still very limited.

  There were only two figures. One was Sandro, who was sitting, and the other was Javi, who was lying on the ground. The huge panting sound was coming from Javi's mouth. This Cardinal, who not long ago had been infinitely glorious, with a calm and free-spirited demeanor, was now no different from a dead dog. In the dim torchlight, his face, in contrast to the black ground he was pressed against, was frighteningly pale. His two eyes were open, but anyone who looked would only think they were two glass beads, without the slightest hint of life in them. If he weren't still breathing, Ethan would never have thought he was alive.

  "I originally thought he could last until I shoved his head up his ass, who knew he'd reach his limit so soon... It's just a pity my white magic isn't good enough. I was afraid of driving him mad. Otherwise, it would have been much more interesting." Sandro, sitting on a wooden stool, kicked Javi on the ground. But Javi didn't react at all. There was a large puddle of water on the ground; that should be the sweat he had shed.

  There were no visible wounds on Javi's body, but Ethan knew that in the hands of someone like Sandro, whether there was blood or torn flesh was completely meaningless. Even a person who had been sliced a thousand times could be healed to be whole and unharmed in his hands, so it went without saying that he could make you constantly feel the pain of a thousand cuts without being injured or dying.

  Ethan looked at Javi's face, which was no different from a dead man's, sighed slightly, and asked: "So, did he confess?"

  Sandro sneered and said: "Of course he confessed. He said everything he could. Otherwise, how would that kid Roland have been able to leave? But this kid was sensible enough. He didn't need me to make a move; he himself said everything he was supposed to say. He also knew that in my hands, it was impossible for him to hide anything, not even the possibility of death."

  "Then he's still like this?" Ethan was astonished.

  "The father's debts are paid by the son. Since I couldn't catch the bastard who dared to frame me, I naturally had to ask him to help his old man bear some responsibility. I know this kid used to be very confident in his own methods of torture. Today, I let him see what the true Diya Valley style is." Sandro seemed to still be angry and snorted. "But this is only temporary. If I get the chance, I must go to Diya Valley to settle the score with his old man. Valthor and his gang probably won't side with that kid. At most, they'll just let that kid run for his life."

  When he later heard Sandro say that he himself had nearly fallen into a trap and couldn't make it back, Ethan couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. If that had really happened, the situation in the royal capital would have been a standard, irredeemable disaster.

  After ending the standoff with Marquis, he had already made up his mind to counter-attack, to fight back. So he had Sophia continue to stay at the Chancellor's mansion, pretending nothing had happened, to confuse them, while he himself returned to the inn, took out his spare mask, disguised himself, and sneaked back into the Magic Academy.

  Only Sandro was the ace up his sleeve that he could always rely on. Even though this strange old man always had that stinking face of indifference, as if it was none of his business, Ethan believed that when it was time for him to act, he would definitely act.

  But when he returned to the Magic Academy, he didn't find Sandro in the library. Instead, he deduced from what others said that the old man had gone out for some extremely urgent matter. At the same time, he also heard about the Cardinal's strange actions in the Grand Cathedral. More importantly, to prevent Marquis's return, he went to scout near the teleportation array. When he discovered that Marquis had not returned, he originally wanted to proactively destroy the teleportation array, only to find that it had already been destroyed. Connecting this with Sandro's sudden disappearance, Ethan understood that this must have been Marquis's way of luring the tiger away from its mountain.

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  And before he had time to figure out the true meaning of this diversion, news soon came that the Queen, the Cardinal, and the acting commander of the Paladin Order had summoned all the ministers for an emergency meeting. Ethan knew this meant that Javi and the others had lost their composure because of his unexplained disappearance and Marquis's lack of news, and were preparing to bring everything to a final conclusion.

  Even though he knew this was also a dead end aimed at him, he had no choice but to go. He was now the only force in the royal capital who could still have a slight influence on this situation.

  But he also knew that he alone could absolutely not turn the tide. This situation had to be resolved by Commander Roland or Sandro. He could vaguely sense that Sandro's hasty departure must have been because of Roland, but with the teleportation array destroyed, he believed these were undoubtedly just delaying tactics. So his only option now was to stall, and to stall for as long as possible. To stall until they returned.

  So he first found a way to release Talise from prison, having her wait in the Magic Academy for Javi. He wanted her to delay him as much as possible when he managed to trick Javi into coming back. Although this plan was indeed risking the female knight's life, the situation was so critical that Ethan couldn't even fully consider his own safety, let alone worry about so much else.

  This plan was indeed extremely dangerous, with too many uncertain factors. It was only after Ethan arrived at the sleeping chamber that he discovered the Queen had already been restrained. The white magic seal wrapped around her, and the dark fluctuation in her body had been suppressed to its lowest point. For a vampire to be restrained like this, it was even more unbearable than a person being deprived of water. Ethan immediately understood that the Queen was no longer their accomplice; she had become a tool.

  Whether it was because there was truly no other way or because his mentality had matured, Ethan appeared even calmer and more composed. He immediately thought of a solution. If Javi hadn't had his sudden realization and turned back, the situation might have had a turning point then. And even after Javi returned, he had maintained the initiative on the scene, actually managing to stall, single-handedly, until Sandro and Roland's return.

  Although Ethan had indeed done his utmost, the final victory of this battle actually came down to a strange stroke of luck... the Spatial Scroll used by the Necromancer. If not for that, according to Marquis's conspiracy, Sandro would already be a pile of mangled flesh.

  Marquis's charming face, with its ever-present, captivating smile and intoxicating demeanor, surfaced in Ethan's mind once more. Naturally, the conspiracies originating from him also surfaced, and every one of those schemes was enough to make one's hair stand on end. Even now, he couldn't connect this person with these events on an emotional level. He sighed and said: "So you also asked him and found out that his father was the mastermind behind Bishop Ronis's murder?"

  "Of course I asked. But the specific method is still unknown. I can only guess that he probably just made use of Duke Mrak." Sandro pondered for a moment, a sharp light flashing in his eyes. "This guy is far too dangerous. To be honest, even I didn't expect this guy's scheming to be so deep, his methods so vicious, and his actions so flawless and seamless, as if everything was within his predictions. If my luck hadn't been so good, I probably would have been done for. Hmph, in all these years, this is the first time I've felt a bit of apprehension towards someone, and it's not even because of this guy's own strength." He snorted again, the light in his eyes turning into a thick killing intent. "Impressive, this guy..."

  "What on earth is he doing all this for? Did you ask him?" Ethan asked. He hadn't really wanted to know about these behind-the-scenes matters before, but in the current situation, knowing more could never be a bad thing.

  Sandro, on the contrary, frowned and shook his head: "Heh, this is the part I'm a bit puzzled about. Whether it's this kid, the acting guild master who was destined to die at my hands, or that little Vedenina..." At this point, he seemed to glance intentionally or unintentionally at Ethan, then lowered his head and sighed again. "What on earth are they trying to do? I thought the matter from twenty years ago should have been almost over by now..."

  "Twenty years ago? What matter?" Ethan was taken aback, then remembered something he had heard long ago and asked. "Twenty years ago... was it when Vedenina became a Lich and you left Diya Valley? Was there anything else..."

  A sudden frown and a glance from Sandro made Ethan abruptly shut his mouth. This glance seemed a bit angry, but there was more to it that was hard to understand. But he didn't say anything, just closed his eyes again and sighed heavily. The stuffy, heavy voice echoed and collided in the basement, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

  Ethan hesitated. He didn't speak. He knew that since Sandro didn't want to talk about it, asking would only be asking for a scolding.

  After a long time, Sandro finally opened his eyes and asked: "What's the situation up there?"

  "The situation up there?" Ethan was taken aback.

  "Naturally, it's about that damned Emperor and Queen, and what about the whole mess of ministers, the court, and so on." Sandro sighed heavily again. He rarely sighed. But these two sighs were heavy and stuffy. "Damn it. If those old bastards in Diya Valley who know me found out I'm actually wasting my energy on this crap, they'd laugh their heads off."

  Ethan was about to speak, but he glanced at Javi on the ground and hesitated. Sandro snorted coldly: "You can treat him as a dead man now. Don't worry."

  "Actually, there isn't much of a mess to clean up. Since the main culprit has been captured, and Her Majesty the Queen has been cured by me..."

  As if suddenly remembering, Sandro pointed at Ethan and asked: "How did you cure her? Tell me, and don't you dare try any tricks. I don't have the time to carefully inspect what ghostly business you're up to, but I know that no one can turn a vampire back into a human."

  Ethan smiled and replied: "I only said I cured her, that I restored her sanity. But I never said I turned her back into a human."

  Sandro was taken aback: "Then you..."

  "You said it yourself. Once a seed becomes a plant, there's no way to turn it back into a seed. But if you don't turn it back into a seed, and just make it look like one, that should work, right?"

  Sandro nodded in sudden realization: "Oh. You turned her into... another kind of undead creature?"

  "Something between a zombie and a vampire. It retains full consciousness and the ability to move freely, but I've erased the vampire's instinctive craving for blood and most of its physical substance. Now, what maintains her life force is purely Necromantic energy. Whether she cultivates it herself, or someone channels it to her, it can sustain her life."

  Sandro nodded: "Somewhat similar to a Lich's constitution, but of a much lower and inferior quality. I didn't think you could come up with such a compromise to muddle through."

  "Because there really were no other viable options, so it was the only choice to risk it all. I wasn't entirely confident of success, so I'm glad it worked. As long as she doesn't come into contact with white magic, holy water, and things like that in the future, the deception can be maintained. I didn't hide this from Commander Roland and the Chancellor. With their arrangements, it should be fine."

  Although this wasn't a method to completely solve the problem, it was a solution of sorts.

  Sandro kicked Javi on the ground and asked: "What about that kid's accomplice? How was he dealt with?"

  "Um..." Ethan thought for a moment, then frowned and shook his head. "That kid... although Commander Roland originally wanted to kill him, the Queen pleaded for him, and at the final moment, he didn't make a move with Bishop Javi. The ministers also believed he was just coerced and tempted. So in the end, Commander Roland only dismissed him from his post and exiled him."

  "You're not going to kill him?" Sandro raised an eyebrow.

  Ethan sighed and shook his head: "He had his own difficulties. Besides, he probably won't be able to do anything again. Since they all let him go, why should I go after him?"

  Sandro snorted coldly and asked again: "And then what about the others?"

  "The others... there's nothing else, really. Just a lot of slow explanatory work..."

  "It seems that kid Roland will be busy for a while." Sandro nodded. The Emperor and the commander of the Paladin Order returning together, carried by an undead monster belonging to a Necromancer, then defeating and capturing the Cardinal appointed by His Majesty the Pope, and then the most vicious criminal on the entire continent, who had just taken the Queen and the Chancellor hostage, being let go and disappearing... to clarify the ins and outs of all this, to make it acceptable for everyone, to let them know what they should know and believe what they should believe, that was by no means an easy task.

  "Actually, the most difficult part to explain is with the Emperor. He witnessed your Necromancy with his own eyes. It's impossible for him to keep it a secret. He doesn't have that kind of deep-seated cunning; he will keep asking..."

  "The Grafenhardts' brains are all a bit faulty." Sandro snorted impatiently. "Either they're missing a couple of screws like this one, or they have a couple extra like that one..."

  "So Commander Roland also told me the method he plans to use before he came... This was also something His Majesty the Emperor requested himself after hearing about those things..." Ethan said, then paused, looking at Sandro with some hesitation. "It's just to ask if you yourself agree..."

  "What is it? If you have something to say, say it." Sandro looked at him impatiently. "But I don't want to help them with anything. If it weren't for the fact that I have to stay at the Magic Academy, I wouldn't bother with them."

  "Of course you can continue to stay here. The Emperor said to invite you to be his teacher... oh, and that position, what's it called? Court Magician... or National Preceptor?"

  Sandro, who had been standing perfectly still, suddenly swayed and almost fell over.