Chapter 49
The grave of Lamb's adopted son was located in a corner of the entire cemetery. It took the two of them and the demon some effort to find it, as the location was truly inconspicuous.
Florian, having frequented the capital of Lortheran, naturally knew the newly appointed Holy Son of the High Papacy. Veris, not wanting to expose Sylvain's identity, had him completely covered by a cloak.
Standing before the tombstone, Veris examined the inscription, which only recorded the name and age of the deceased, with the Lamb family crest in the lower right corner, and nothing else.
He raised his hand, and a magical barrier appeared. Soon, a magic circle was drawn above the graveyard.
Frodiene is a demon, and all demonic spells are unusable. While Sylvain's magic can be used, there's no guarantee Frodiene won't see through it. Therefore, the only one who can take action is Veris.
A demon chieftain, a holy prince of a great papacy, and a pope who has been missing for many years are all sneaking around here, digging up other people's graves.
Veris thought about it and found it funny.
The magic circle activated. Of course, the church's magic books didn't teach people how to dig graves, but the greatest advantage of a ninth-tier mage was their ability to construct magic.
It's quite simple to combine any grave-digging spell.
The soil was dug out, and the coffin inside was lifted up by the mud.
With a long wrench that he seemed to have produced from nowhere, Veris easily pried open the nails sealing the coffin. There was also a magic circle engraved on the coffin lid; all he needed to do was use magic to disrupt the spell on the magic circle, and the magic circle would be rendered useless.
A cluster of flames lit up, and Veris pushed the coffin lid open with force.
Frodien couldn't help but hold his breath, staring at the coffin.
When he saw what was inside the coffin, his eyes widened, and he almost screamed.
Veris raised an eyebrow.
Inside the cramped coffin, a body lay quietly. The man had a handsome face, blond hair, and golden eyes, and was practically an adult version of Arnold. His body showed signs of decay, and his skin was pale.
What made Florin want to scream was that the male corpse kept his eyes open the whole time. If it weren't for the unfocused eyes, he would have thought the corpse was coming back to life.
Veris mentally calculated when the man had died, then reached out and covered the corpse with his hand.
He was facing those unfocused golden eyes.
A wisp of red light entered the space between the male corpse's eyebrows.
Sylvain, hidden inside the black cloak, watched this scene, his pupils shrinking.
The moment the red light touched the corpse's skin, it immediately formed a spiderweb-like pattern, spreading and covering every corner of the corpse. Finally, a red pattern appeared between the eyebrows.
Frodien asked curiously, "What is this?"
Veris said seriously, "Something that can bring him back to life."
The Demon Clan's Grand Protector widened his eyes and took a step back: "An undead? Hasn't he been dead for many years? Where did this undead come from in the capital?"
The dead can possess a body, but only if the body is weakened. Some dead can also possess corpses, but a corpse is no match for a living body, and the failure rate is extremely high.
Sylvain lowered his eyes, but he understood Veris's plan.
This body was probably prepared for Lortheran.
“This face is still too conspicuous, and we can’t go out in public. Let’s reshape it,” Veris muttered, then replied to Frodien without looking up, “Never mind.”
As Frodien watched him begin to rub the lifeless face, the red spiderwebs still spreading, he couldn't help but whisper, "Speaking of which, why did you make me come along for something like this?"
“If someone finds out, they can pin the blame on you,” Veris said.
Frodien: "...?"
He watched in shock as the face gradually changed under Veris's hands. Pinching a face with bare hands, even if the other person was a corpse, was just too outrageous.
Bones and flesh gradually shifted under those pale fingertips. Veris would knead for a while and then stop, as if recalling something.
Finally, a face that was only about 50% similar to the previous one appeared.
That five-tenths resemblance is also thanks to the golden hair and golden eyes—no, now those golden eyes are almost amber in color.
Frodien frowned as he looked at the face, feeling a sense of familiarity, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall anyone who resembled it. He simply asked Veris, "Whose face is this?"
Veris shrugged: "Anyway, nobody knows us, so even if they do, it won't matter."
He reached out, dragged the body out, and then closed the coffin lid. The entire cemetery was restored by the magic circle, as if no one had ever been there.
The corpse was casually placed on the ground. Veris turned to look at Florian and said, "Within three years, the Heroic Squad will travel to the Demon King's Abyss. Be prepared."
Frodien was taken aback: "So fast?"
Lamb's team took ten years to complete that mission.
He quickly remembered something, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Your Majesty the Demon King seems to have awakened, but he can't move his body yet. The seal has been almost completely destroyed. The demons have been causing quite a bit of trouble lately."
"It's a dog-eat-dog show; as long as it doesn't harm innocent civilians nearby, the High Vatican won't interfere." Veris pulled out a sack and stuffed the corpse inside, looking just like a human trafficker.
He stood up, carrying the seemingly empty bag, dusted himself off, and looked at Frodien: "Is there anything else?"
Frodien counted on his fingers: "The second brother plans to smuggle a group of demons to the Central Forest to wreak havoc on others, but I feel he has other intentions. The third and fourth brothers are still the same as before. The fifth brother is crying at the grave next to His Majesty the Demon King's ice coffin. The sixth brother has joined the second brother's plan. The seventh brother still likes to go out to sea to hunt monsters in the far north."
Veris said "Oh," and then added, "Goodbye."
"Now that His Majesty the Demon King's seal has been broken, will the High Church intervene?" Florian was more concerned about this matter.
If the Papacy were to intervene, he'd better keep a low profile and act like a demon to avoid being caught in the crossfire. He still has several hundred years to live.
Veris turned away, about to leave, but upon hearing this, he paused, turned his head, and smiled: "This time, even if the Grand Vatican doesn't want to intervene, it's impossible."
After saying that, he led Sylvain away.
The two figures disappeared silently into the night, presumably using magic to conceal their presence.
Frodien pondered the meaning behind Veris's words and concluded that this hero extermination campaign was of great scale, thinking to himself that it was best to play it safe.
He frowned as he recalled the team of heroes he had encountered earlier that day. Those teenagers were indeed very strong; even without formal education, their talent alone was exceptional.
There are only three people... which means that new members will be added to the team.
As he left the cemetery, Florin gazed towards the location of the Royal Academy, secretly thinking that he should also secretly observe his future opponents during the freshman trials in a while.
Meanwhile, the brave team that the Demon Lord has his eye on is currently in the underground arena of the Golden Merchant Guild.
They were "invited" here after the conflict in the afternoon.
The capital city was strictly orderly, and anyone caught fighting in the streets would be arrested. Neither side was happy about it. Faced with the other side's arrogant and malicious invitation, Allen hesitated, unwilling to cause trouble as soon as he entered the capital city.
But Arnold was angry and walked away.
Murphy followed closely behind Arnold, and seeing this, Allen had no choice but to follow as well.
The underground arena is a playground for nobles in the capital. With its high entrance fees and thrilling gladiatorial combat matches where death is a constant threat, it is always packed to capacity.
Amidst the rustling of elegant clothes and the clinking of glasses, the underground level here, besides the arena, also houses the Golden Merchant Guild's auction house. This auction is only open to a select group of people, and ordinary people have no idea that such an auction exists.
At these auctions, you can see all sorts of things.
Lost magic scrolls, powerful weapons, high-grade medicinal herbs, magical beasts from various dangerous secret realms, and even... alien races.
These things are none of the hero's team's business. They knew that coming here was fraught with danger, but if they didn't resolve this problem, it would lead to even bigger trouble in the future, so they might as well get it over with now.
Allen was still worried. The Golden Merchant Guild's influence was spread throughout the continent, and the young man who clashed with them claimed to be the grandson of the fourth elder of the Golden Merchant Guild. Even if they won this time, the Golden Merchant Guild would probably try to trip them up in the future.
Arnold said nonchalantly, "Does the Golden Merchant Guild even dare to extend its reach into the Royal Capital Academy?"
“I’m afraid they might resort to underhanded tactics, after all, this is their territory,” Allen said in a low voice.
The white-eyed boy holding the staff said coldly, "My student ID is still valid; they can't hurt us."
Putting aside the student certificate that person gave him, he was confident that he would not be in any danger on his own.
They went to an empty arena, surrounded by hanging black cloths, where the man who had challenged them stood on the platform with a determined smile on his face.
He stared intently at the three men, recalling his grandfather's instructions, his eyes filled with apprehension and murderous intent.
The young man in the lead carried a sword on his back and stared at him with a deep frown.
This person is said to possess a divine artifact. The Golden Merchant Guild dispatched hundreds of assassins, all of whom were killed. His own strength is also terrifying; at his age, he is already capable of killing high-level warriors.
The other young man, carrying a huge scythe, looked much more ordinary, except that he had more combat experience.
The last one, the thinnest-looking boy, had a pair of unusual white eyes and held a high-level staff in his hand. The scout reported that the staff was made by the High Church, and he probably had a close relationship with the High Church.
Thinking of this, the young man couldn't help but chuckle to himself. All the magicians on the continent were connected with the High Holy See, and this boy was no exception.
“Come on! If we win, you’ll pay us ten times the gold coins!” Arnold drew his sword, his golden eyes gleaming beneath his golden hair, his face resolute.
"Ha, how naive." The brown-haired youth opposite him sneered, then suddenly took a step back, the magic circle beneath his feet flickered, and he disappeared.
Immediately, the black curtains around them rose up, revealing the surrounding scene.
Countless people sitting in their seats couldn't help but whisper among themselves after they saw who was fighting on the arena.
"Why are there three people this time?"
"Yes, isn't today's match supposed to be a battle between dwarves and a fifth-tier magical beast?"
"These kids don't look like they're even adults yet, do they?" one of them frowned deeply.
Those around them also showed displeasure. They liked watching beast fights, but that didn't mean they liked watching young people being torn apart by monsters. What was even more infuriating was that the information announced by the Golden Merchant Guild today was completely inconsistent with what was happening on the field.
The noise grew louder and louder. A young man with curly hair suddenly stood up. He was sitting on a different seat, a small platform with an open space in front of him. His face was full of anger.
He grabbed the fruit platter from the table and smashed it on the ground. The sound of the fragile item shattering was loud, and the arena fell silent for a moment.
The curly-haired young man looked at the monsters that had been led out of the arena, his anger intensifying.
"Get Charles out here! Let the three kids play! Why don't you let your son go up there!"
His voice echoed throughout the entire arena. The young man sitting next to him was also dressed in a fitted robe, adorned with various jewelry, his short hair just below his ears, his face expressionless, and he did not stop his friend.
Charles is the head of the Golden Merchant Guild in the capital. Compared to Thorne, he is truly a core figure in the Golden Merchant Guild.
The curly-haired young man who rose up in anger was no ordinary person either; his sister was the current queen, who had recently inherited their father's title and was the youngest duke in the capital.
The arena was locked in a stalemate. The Duke was still yelling at the staff to come out and replace him, and many in the surrounding audience echoed his sentiments. However, some harbored ill intentions and excitedly eyed the arena.
They dared not say anything, only because the person who was angrily criticizing Charles was far more powerful than them.
Soon, staff members arrived, smiling obsequiously as they negotiated with the Duke.
"A bet? What business is it of ours if he wants to make a bet! And why is the other party in the bet a monster? Is Charles's grandson some kind of bastard?" The sarcastic words made the staff member's face stiffen.
The Duke made it clear that he was unmoved: "Get those three children down here. Do you want their personal grudges to offend my eyes?"
The staff member chuckled awkwardly, continuing to make polite remarks, but was actually stalling for time.
On the stage, the magic circle lit up again, and the audience who had been watching the arena, who had thought the monster was about to be taken away, all looked over.
Unexpectedly, what they saw was a hand, viciously stabbing a sharp spike into the monster's body.
The monster immediately went berserk and charged towards the three young men opposite it.
The audience gasped in surprise.
The Duke also noticed the anomaly. He took a few steps forward, stood on the edge of the platform, grabbed the railing, leaned forward, and stared at the arena with an extremely ugly expression.
The staff member was still smiling, but the obsequiousness from before had faded, replaced by a hint of smugness.
The other young man, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up.
"You guys are really brave."
He stood up, walked over to his indignant friend, and looked down at the people already fighting with the monsters on the arena. His gaze fell on the boy standing behind the two of them, waving a staff.
His tone was ambiguous: "Let's go first, Celinefini."
Serinfini turned to look at him: "I think we should stop this farce! If you can't make it back to the palace in time, go back first. I'm staying here!"
A staff member nearby chimed in, "If His Highness the Third Prince wishes to leave, the carriage is already waiting at the door."
The young man addressed as the Third Prince glanced coldly at the staff member, sneered, turned around and sat back down in his chair, saying unhurriedly, "Very well, I don't mind staying here and seeing what happens to you."
"Boom—" Almost as soon as he finished speaking, a huge explosion rang out. The staff were stunned and turned to look at the arena where the explosion came from.
The young man wielding a large scythe and the boy holding a sword had somehow appeared at the edge of the arena, while the white-eyed boy holding a staff was raising his wrist, the tip of the staff pointing at the monster.
The arena beneath their feet was blasted into a deep crater, and the monster lay in the crater, its body twitching uncontrollably.
If the barrier on the arena hadn't been strong enough, the audience seats would probably have been affected too!
"How is that possible... that's a sixth-tier magical beast," the staff member murmured.
The information clearly states that the young mage was only at the fifth rank, and even with the addition of two other people, he had no chance of winning against a sixth-rank magical beast!
What's more, the monster has been injected with a berserk potion, which will allow its strength to break through to the seventh rank!
Duke Serinfini stared wide-eyed at the arena, then, realizing what was happening, a smile of excitement spread across his face: "Well done!"
"Get that idiot who made the bet up there too!" he shouted at the staff.
The staff member's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat as he racked his brains to reply to Duke Serinfini. Suddenly, a commotion broke out at the entrance of the Colosseum, and the guards surrounding the entrance all stepped aside.
With the monster dead, the outcome of the battle on the arena was decided. Below the arena, Mold Charles's eyes were bloodshot, and only one thought occupied his mind: How could those people possibly kill a seventh-tier magical beast?!
This is the highest-ranking magical beast in the Golden Merchant Guild's arena!
The commotion at the entrance barely drew his attention. He turned his head and, after seeing the scene at the entrance clearly, his face drained of color.
A group of armored men walked in. The leader was obese and seemed to have some difficulty walking. His arrogance far surpassed that of Mold. He looked up and swept his gaze across the audience, letting out a cold laugh.
He raised a token, his voice not loud, but it carried throughout the entire arena.
"By His Majesty the King's decree, the Colosseum under the Golden Merchant Guild has been found to have engaged in illegal competitions, suspected of murdering students of the Royal Academy and students of His Holiness the Pope. Today, the Colosseum is shut down. Charles, the head of the Golden Merchant Guild in the Royal Capital, has been arrested and imprisoned in the Papacy's Execution Division with the approval of His Majesty the King and the special order of His Holiness the Holy Son, to await further judgment."
Mold stared blankly at the procession, his legs gave way, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
What is that person saying?
Among those three people, was there a student of the Pope...?
Why wasn't this mentioned in the intelligence report?
The royal decree was nothing to fear; what truly terrified Mold was how the Pope's students and His Holiness the Son of God knew about it so quickly.
At the risk of being ostracized by the nobles, his grandfather instructed him to deliberately provoke a conflict. He successfully lured the three people into the arena and even released a sixth-tier magical beast injected with a berserk potion. Everything went incredibly smoothly.
But—they actually killed a fully-fledged seventh-tier magical beast, and now the people from the High Holy See have arrived!
It's over. Charles's lineage is completely finished.
Mold finally collapsed to the ground, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice—his grandfather Charles: "Mold, run!"
A figure suddenly appeared in front of him, facing directly at Garcia's team. It was Charles, the Great Beastmaster. With just one command, all the magical beasts in the arena's cages would rush out.
They could easily hold off Garcia's men.
Mold can survive as long as he escapes back to District 4, or continues north, leaving the Kingdom of Lortheran.
Charles was no longer young, and when he decided to take a risky approach to seize the artifact from Arnold, he had already considered the possibility of failure.
However, what he didn't expect was that the Papacy had turned a blind eye all the way, only issuing a clear warning when they reached the Fourth District, and then stepped forward at this moment.
Charles's eyes twitched, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "I thought the Papacy was so noble, but compared to us, aren't we just birds of a feather?"
The ground trembled, a sound of monsters being released from their cages.
All exits of the Colosseum were blocked, and the nobles in the stands were terrified.
Garcia showed no sign of urgency. He smiled and spoke with the arrogance that Charles always despised: "How can you greedy fools compare to us? Besides, you've touched people you shouldn't have."
Charles recalled a name Garcia had just mentioned, and his eyes flickered: "Impossible, he clearly already—"
"Hush." Garcia grinned. "Walls cannot block the reach of his great faith, nor can they conceal his eyes. There's no point in testing him. Why don't you attack the Papacy instead?"
The monsters burst through the wall and charged toward Garcia. The royal guards drew their weapons and charged at the ferocious beasts.
Charles: "You think you can get away with this?!"
Garcia's fat face was still smiling, but he shifted his gaze to the group of boys on the arena. Mages have a strong sense of their own profession, and he immediately sensed that the magical talents of two of the boys were so strong that he couldn't help but feel jealous.
At this moment, the teenagers also adopted a wary expression, ready to fight at any time.
Garcia chuckled, and as he chuckled, the flesh on his face jiggled again. He stretched out his hand, the ground shook, but he remained standing firmly. However, a flash of light appeared in his hand, and a long staff appeared in his hand.
"Having not made a move for decades, it seems everyone has forgotten that the handsome Prince Garcia is still one of the five great magicians."
Garcia has almost never taken action outside. He lives a life of luxury and never leaves the capital except to patrol his own territory. He is practically useless when there is a situation that requires his intervention. Although he was selected as one of the five great magicians at an early age, he has been criticized for many years for allegedly getting in through connections when he was the crown prince and a fellow student of the pope.
In short, his status as a great magician is completely unfounded.
He recalled having dinner with his colleagues in the past, when Copperfield jokingly said that he was trying to play dumb to fool others.
Clark, his old buddy, sneered mercilessly: "Does he even need to play the fool?"
Garcia was also amused and burst into laughter. The sight of the two fat men laughing was quite cringe-worthy.
Copperfield quietly moved to another seat to eat.
A massive, radiant ring rose up, revealing nine enormous halos of light before everyone's eyes. At the same time, an immense pressure descended.
Prince Garcia, formerly a seventh-tier warrior, later became a mage. In just three years, he advanced from a magic apprentice to an eighth-tier mage. He then dedicated himself to mastering the eighth-tier mage for twenty years. Last year, during a battle with Sylvan, he gained enlightenment and advanced to a ninth-tier archmage.
The staff in his hand was inlaid with countless crystals, each containing terrifying power.
He raised his staff with some effort, and a magic circle instantly appeared, with intricate incantations lighting up, perfectly creating a vacuum zone that separated the nobles in the audience.
Duke Serinfini was dumbfounded. The high and mighty Prince Garcia was actually so powerful!
You never know it when he's always smiling!
The third prince had appeared beside him at some point, his face much calmer, but the hand gripping the railing betrayed his inner turmoil.
The king once lamented that his younger brother Garcia was the true prodigy, and none of his peers back then hadn't been jealous of this prodigy.
With his status, talent, and wisdom, Garcia was the perfect heir apparent.
If their father hadn't been so muddle-headed, Garcia would have been made crown prince long ago.
The monsters surged about. The arena was actually quite large, but under the protection of the magic circle, countless beams of light fell, instantly killing the monsters. No matter how high their level was, they could never exceed the ninth rank.
The battle ended quickly, a complete and utter defeat.
Garcia said with a smile, "Murdering a prince is an even greater crime."
The beam of light from the magic circle was obviously aimed at Charles, and now the old man is lying on the ground. Mold, who wanted to escape, won't get very far.
His Highness the Prince's obese body began to move. The team of warriors on the arena had arrived at the large plaza at the bottom of the arena. They didn't know Garcia's identity, but if it weren't for Garcia, they would probably have had a fierce battle.
That beast tamer was probably after them too. The chase along the way had given the hero team experience.
Before the boys could express their gratitude, Garcia waved his hand and said, "You should head to the Papacy first. Your group will be welcoming new members. Things have been rather unsettled in the capital lately, but the Papacy will protect you."
A new member?
Allen froze, while Murphy remained expressionless, staring at Garcia, his mind filled with the image of the nine enormous prisms from earlier, his breathing becoming slightly rapid.
A ninth-tier archmage… He gripped his staff tightly.
He will do it too.
Arnold was initially delighted, then naturally asked, "May I ask who helped us?"
Upon hearing this, Garcia paused for a moment, then said with a proud expression, "Naturally, it is the omnipotent Pope! Rest assured, His Holiness the Holy Son, acting on the Pope's orders, will deal with the sinners who murdered you."
Arnold's eyes lit up, and he asked in an admiring tone, "Then may I see His Holiness the Pope?"
"Don't even think about it." The chubby prince's smile was incredibly friendly, mercilessly crushing the admiring gaze of the young hero.
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Author's note: Updates will likely be mostly in the evenings from now on, so please check back then! [doge emoji with rose in hand]
The Seven Mysteries mini-drama has pretty much covered the backstory. If you have any character stories you'd like to know more about, feel free to leave a comment below! [Let me see!]
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