Chapter 877 Sacrifice and Reward
Before Angel could ask, Arianna shook her head again and said:
"The 'seal' of this magical item has disappeared. Do not carry it or use it. Otherwise, you will become like Hvin Rambis, watched by the gaze of the stars and unknowingly contaminated."
"Starry Sky" again?
Angel frowned and subconsciously asked:
"You mean the starry sky above your head?"
As she spoke, she looked up at the crimson moon that had become enormous due to the effect of "concealment", and the dark night sky against its backdrop. In the sky, tiny stars kept twinkling, like countless eyes looking at the earth.
"Yes and no," Arianna replied vaguely, "I can't tell you more. Once you form a complete concept in your mind, you will be watched by those eyes, and your body and spirit will be polluted... Wait until you become an angel, and then try to understand all this."
This is consistent with what my "person in the mirror" said. She also asked me to become an angel to ask her the truth. If I still had doubts before, Hvin Rambis's fate after hearing the "message" today has explained it all... Angel nodded thoughtfully and stopped trying to pick up the cylinder that could launch corrosive spheres.
"So how do we deal with it?"
Klein asked from the side. He was originally quite interested in this cylinder, but after hearing Arianna's explanation, the curiosity in his eyes disappeared.
"I suggest offering it to the goddess, just like the 'manipulator' trait."
Arianna was worthy of being called the "Servant of Secrets" and the advice she gave did not exceed Angel's expectations.
But in this way, I gained nothing from this battle... Well, it's not like I gained nothing, at least I got the potion formula from the "manipulator"... Angel thought a little frustrated.
Of course, this was just a fleeting thought in her mind. After all, she had done a lot of things under the arrangement of the goddess, and she could get more benefits every time, such as the "painful" characteristics after the heavy smog, and the "immortal" characteristics after going to Trier to track down the man in the mirror.
I believe that the goddess will give certain rewards for this sacrifice.
Therefore, she stopped worrying about the benefits of the battle and continued to say to Arianna:
"I never imagined that the mastermind behind the 'Great Smog' was actually the ruler of this city and this country, King George III... What is the church going to do? Will it unite with other churches to demand an explanation from the king?"
"We currently lack further evidence. Hvin Rambis only provided a confession, and according to him, George III cannot break through the existing sequence until he obtains the artifact in the ruins. Even if we find him, he will deny violating the Three Covenants. The Church is limited by the relevant agreements and cannot use force against him."
Arianna replied calmly.
"What are the contents of the three major contracts?" Angel asked cautiously. "If they involve secrets, forget it."
"In the early days of the Loen Kingdom, the three major churches signed a contract with the Augustus family, guaranteeing them the right to preach within the kingdom, establish churches, and arm Beyonders. This contract also guaranteed them the right to protect the royal family and nobles, assist the military and police in resolving Beyonder incidents, and even the obligation to join the war when necessary. In return, the Augustus family's ruler was not allowed to rise above the mid-sequence unless he was willing to abdicate and retreat behind the scenes."
Obviously, this isn't secret knowledge, or perhaps Klein and I, as chosen ones by the gods, already know this information... Angel wasn't too surprised by the contents of the "contract." After all, if a secular king became a demigod and lived to be a hundred years old and still in his prime, it would have a significant impact on the people, sparking numerous conspiracy theories. It would also be detrimental to the power transition within the royal family and could easily lead to internal conflicts.
But if this had been the way for millennia, why did this generation of King George III secretly break the "contract" and seek ascension to demigodhood? Simply to prolong his life and sit on the throne for a few more decades, he even went so far as to secretly kidnap his own people to work as workers to excavate the ruins, create a massive smog to conceal the truth, and use his own son, Edessac, as a scapegoat...
Unless he has a more hidden goal, he would not be willing to take huge risks and do these things under the noses of the three major churches.
Unable to confirm George III's true thoughts for a moment, Angel could only continue to ask:
"Next, are we going to look for the ruins on the Tussock River? I remember that 'Goddess Sword' Sesima has been leading the team in the search for a long time, but there has been no trace of it."
"Cesima searched the Stryven area but didn't find the ruins Hwin mentioned. After millennia, they must be deep underground, inaccessible by ordinary means," Arianna said, her tone as flat as a machine. Only her gaze occasionally flickered over Angel, giving her the impression he was a living being. "We can only find the other people he mentioned who can enter the ruins, first obtain the means to enter, and then obtain truly useful evidence."
"Qonas Kilger, Katarina, and... Mr. K?"
Klein repeated the names of those who could enter the ruins as mentioned by Hvin Rambis.
"That's right, and we need to do it as soon as possible. Hwin's death is kept secret, so it won't be discovered for now. But it won't be delayed for too long. Once those people know about the death of an important figure, they will definitely evacuate their personnel and cover up the evidence, leaving us with nothing."
Arianna's tone finally changed a little at this time, and became much more vivid.
"But attacking them might also attract more attention. We need to make a series of plans. It's best to act simultaneously and immediately head to the ruins after obtaining useful information," Klein said carefully, like a detective from Backlund rather than a crazy adventurer. "Ms. Arianna, how long can you maintain your 'secrecy'?"
"No one will notice his disappearance for ten days."
Arianna replied.
So this is how "Secrecy" works. It's somewhat similar to how "0-08" makes people naturally ignore something... Angel nodded and said:
"I'm in charge of Katarina, the White Saint. My original plan was to use Tracy to lure her out so I could deal with Viscount Stratford. If all goes well, it should be completed in about a week."
"Next weekend, I'll be hosting a hunting event at Meige Manor. That manor was bought by Qonas Kilger, and I'll invite him to the event. We can look for an opportunity to take action then."
Klein also spoke quickly, as if he had already had a corresponding plan.
As for that "Mr. K", neither of them was very familiar with him. Only Angel heard Sherman mention that the name of this Aurora Society messenger appeared in the underground gatherings that were restarted in the East District. But with the precedent of Mr. X's death, he dared to reopen it. He must have some backup plan. It is not worth attacking him.
"Very good, let's do it then." Arianna's lips twitched, as if trying to put on a smile. "Now, perform the sacrifice. I'll wait on the side."
He meant to use "secrecy" to protect us, so that we wouldn't be noticed by certain beings before the sacrifice, or because He was worried that something unexpected would happen and we would be contaminated... Angel thought secretly and nodded.
She didn't dare directly pick up the two Beyonder properties and magical items with "Starry Sky" contamination. Instead, she held them up with invisible silk threads. After Klein skillfully set up a simple altar with candles, essential oils, and herbal powders, she placed the two objects in the middle.
"Come on, and see if you can exchange it for a Sequence 2 Beyonder characteristic."
After doing all this, Klein smiled at Angel and stepped aside. He and Arianna stood on either side of the altar, waiting for Angel's sacrifice ceremony to be completed.
The latter sniffed, taking in the scent of burning night-blooming vanilla and moonflower, then stood in his own position on the altar, half-closing his eyes and chanting the honorable name of the Goddess of Night, causing a breeze to swirl around him and making the red moon in the sky even brighter.
According to the process of the sacrificial ceremony, after reciting the honorific name, Angel can express his prayers, such as what kind of items he needs and how many he needs. The gods may not agree, but they may take it as a reference.
She certainly didn't choose the Beyonder characteristic of the "Disaster" Witch. Trading a Sequence 4 characteristic for a Sequence 2 one was impossible, even with a simple thought. However, the requirement to purify the "Manipulator" characteristic might be met. Therefore, Angel prayed for this first, and then, after a brief pause, silently chanted in her heart:
"Respected Goddess, I hope to obtain the potion formula of the 'Ancient Scholar'. This is an item that another of your followers needs... If your contribution is not enough to obtain it, you do not need to provide the promotion ceremony..."
She nervously repeated it three times in her mind, let out a long breath, and slowly opened her eyes.
On the altar, the ice-blue metal cylinder has disappeared, while the "manipulator" feature that looks like a twisted brain is still placed in the same place. But unlike before, the dark green luster that seeped out of its surface has disappeared without a trace, and instead more strange patterns and symbolic symbols are squeezed out from the wrinkles, blending into the surrounding environment.
That is the characteristic of the "manipulator" that has been "purified"!
Angel breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that at least he wasn't returning empty-handed tonight. This Beyonder characteristic could be sold to Justice Audrey after she reached Sequence 5, or he could use it to create a demigod-level magical item, which should be worth between 40,000 and 50,000 pounds. It was quite a good harvest.
Unfortunately, the goddess didn't grant my other request... After the gold coins tinkled and clanged in his head, all that was left was deep regret. Angel's gaze flickered. Just as he was about to look at Klein beside him, he suddenly discovered that the ground, which served as a makeshift altar, was painted with various symbols. The ashes of various herbs formed one elegant word after another:
"Sequence 3, Ancient Scholar:
"Main materials: a pair of eyes from Fulgrim's Hound (the guardian of Sefirah Castle), a flocculent heart from the Mist Wolf; supplementary materials..."
The potion recipe did not include the promotion ceremony, so it was quite short, only two lines, but it made Angel hold his breath with excitement.
The Goddess of Night actually agreed to her request!
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