Chapter 97
“Everything is in order, and you now owe me at least £2000. The price for the ‘Saint’s Substitute’ isn’t cheap.”
Aivina continued, “At your current weekly salary, you’d need to work for me for at least 77 years to pay it off.”
“...From now on, if you plan to do anything dangerous, you must tell me first, Assistant Miss. I don’t want to clean up your mess anymore.”
“Of course, Employer Miss.”
Xia’er leaned back against the edge of the bed, looking at Aivina, and said, “I can tell you about a dangerous thing right now.”
Her own abilities were insufficient to confront the “Glowing Bishop,” so Xia’er needed to try to unite more people in the simulation.
At the very least, she had to probe Aivina and Yulisi’s cards to see what they had to play.
“Ah?”
Aivina paused, her gaze returning to Xia’er. The calm and composed expression she had just moments ago was now barely holding together.
I mean, really… We just took down a cult stronghold of the Saint’s Assembly, what more dangerous thing could you possibly want to do, Miss Xia’er? Taking down a cult stronghold, and just days later drinking a second-tier potion—can anything be more dangerous than that?
“I have reliable intel.”
Xia’er’s smile faded as she spoke seriously:
“At 1:01 PM on June 23rd, a ‘Glowing Bishop’ from the Saint’s Assembly will visit the assembly’s stronghold in Boren City—specifically, the Deyton Manor stronghold that I just destroyed.”
Aivina’s mouth slowly dropped open.
“A ‘Glowing Bishop’?”
You’re not just precise about the date, but you’ve got it down to the hour and minute?
Wait, girl, what kind of intelligence network is this? Can we even call it an intelligence network?
Is your intel network tracking every cultist 24/7? Or is your intel network actually a higher-up that assigns tasks to the “Glowing Bishop”?
If that’s the case, they might as well run for Pope instead of pretending to be an intel network!!!
Chapter Eighty: What if I said I’m “Sadana”?
Aivina felt a bit numb.
She didn’t even want to ask if this was real anymore; based on past experiences, Xia’er wouldn’t say anything without evidence.
Beside them, Adele was mixing a new potion for Xia’er, occasionally nodding in response to things no one cared about, whether she was too focused on her materials or just hadn’t processed everything yet.
“What’s the purpose of that ‘Glowing Bishop’ coming here?”
Taking a deep breath, Aivina continued, “Is it just a routine visit? Do you know his true identity?”
Even if it’s just a routine visit, once that ‘Glowing Bishop’ sees something’s wrong at the stronghold, he’ll definitely investigate further and might hide away, never to be seen again.
This is like a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment; one slip-up, and that ‘Glowing Bishop’ could brainwash one of us into becoming a cultist.
If any one of them gets caught and brainwashed by the ‘Glowing Bishop,’ the rest would definitely be implicated.
“Yes, it’s just a routine visit.”
Xia’er nodded and said, “The ‘Glowing Bishop’ doesn’t know yet that the plan has failed; Jidi has no way to report the information up, but she surely left enough intel before she died.”
“As for his true identity or any disguises, that’s still unclear.”
What to do…
Aivina lowered her head in thought.
Originally, she just planned to report this to the Goddess of Salvation Church and watch the two factions tear each other apart.
But now, she was caught up in it too. Even if she managed to escape back to her family to save her life, how long could she stay there?
Once she was marked, no one around her would be safe anymore.
At any moment, a brainwashed maid or subordinate could strike when she let her guard down completely.
It was impossible to defend against.
“Sigh…”
Aivina let out a deep sigh.
This was why she despised these church people.
Most of them couldn’t be bought with money and would do all sorts of extreme things out of their fanatical beliefs.
Dealing with the orthodox church was one thing; at least you could reason within the bounds of doctrine. But with cultists, there was absolutely no room for negotiation. Those rabid dogs would just lurk in the shadows, waiting for the chance to pounce and bite.
If only she could know the other party’s disguised identity. High-ranking cultists must have some extraordinary identity in the open, and she could use her wits in that regard.
“Do you have any ideas?”
Xia’er looked at Aivina, who was sighing, and asked.
“I can only think of one way.”
After organizing her thoughts, Aivina said, “Stir the waters.”
“Stir the waters?”
Xia’er narrowed her eyes, realizing they were on the same wavelength.
“I think so too.”
Aivina looked at Xia’er, and they both nodded in unison, almost simultaneously voicing the plan.
Aivina: “Drag the Deyton Group down with us, let them get involved, and before they arrive, burn down Deyton Manor, leaving only the cultists’ underground sanctuary.”
Xia’er: “Bring back everyone who escaped from Deyton Manor, kill them as sacrifices, and then burn the evidence.”
Aivina: “…”
Xia’er: “…”
Aivina looked at Xia’er with a strange expression.
Is Xia’er serious?
At that moment, Xia’er also realized her shift in thinking.
Now, she was almost entirely thinking like a “Judicator.”
What she envisioned was to do it all over again, eliminate everyone, and then sacrifice Jidi to summon that giant mouth, letting it devour all the bodies, and then burn the evidence…
Xia’er had one more thing she didn’t say: leave behind a “Page of the Otherworld.”
No matter how much they investigated, the ultimate blame would point to “the Otherworld,” leaving them with no way to trace it back.
Aivina’s thoughts were more aligned with normal human reasoning.
She thought about dragging the group behind Deyton Manor down with them—the headquarters of the Deyton Group, all the leaders of Deyton Manor.
Right now, the Deyton headquarters had no idea that something had happened at the Boren City Deyton Manor. If Aivina could find a way to contact the higher-ups of the Deyton Group, they would come to investigate the incident thoroughly and restore Deyton Manor’s reputation.
Aivina’s ultimate goal was to keep the Deyton Group and the Goddess of Salvation Church busy, and ideally, eliminate that “Glowing Bishop,” making the Saint’s Assembly overwhelmed by the combined pressure from the Deyton Group and the Goddess of Salvation Church, unable to continue their investigation.
As time passed, all evidence would be eroded by time; they just needed to hide for a while to be safe.
“I was joking.”
Xia’er averted her gaze, no longer looking at Aivina, but instead at Adele.
Just as Adele finished mixing the potion, she looked up and met Xia’er’s gaze, instinctively smiling, wondering why Xia’er was staring at her.
At that moment, a white figure slipped through the window and walked straight to the bedside.
With a flicker, Yulisi’s figure appeared in the room, directly looking at Xia’er and smiling as she asked, “You’re awake, Miss Xia’er?”
Oh no.
Aivina frowned slightly.
She hadn’t expected Yulisi to arrive so quickly.
If it weren’t for the shocking intel from Xia’er, she probably would have already taken Xia’er and fled in a carriage.
But now, this wasn’t the time to run.
Because they still had a major hidden danger to resolve.
Though Aivina was very reluctant, she had to admit that with her current abilities, she couldn’t independently resolve this incident; she needed Yulisi’s help.
The Goddess of Salvation Church would also send a “Glowing Bishop” over. If possible, they needed to set up the scene to ambush the Saint’s Assembly’s “Glowing Bishop.”
Otherwise, she and Xia’er would be forced to live in fear for the rest of their lives… and they might even have to bring Adele along.
After exchanging glances, Xia’er gently nodded at Aivina.
Understanding the unspoken message, Aivina turned to Yulisi and said, “Yulisi, I have a deal.”
“We’ve already made quite a few deals, Miss Russell,” Yulisi replied coldly. “From the results, you often seem to be the one breaking the rules.”
In Yulisi’s eyes, Aivina was just a family heiress with no bottom line or faith, acting with a merchant’s mindset, trading mysterious intel she didn’t know the source of for goods, and then flipping those goods for profit on both sides.
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