Unlike last time, breakfast passed peacefully.
Mel watched Tie’s back as she left the dining hall and slightly raised the corners of his lips.
‘Not bad for the first day.’
His gaze settled on the spot where Tie had been sitting moments earlier.
The emptied plates.
The porridge, drinks, and desserts the child had swallowed without much suspicion.
All of it had contained a small amount of Silencium.
‘Silencium is always like this. Difficult to handle, but lethally dangerous.’
Silencium was not a drug that worked within a day or two.
It took at least three days for the effects to appear, sometimes as many as five.
‘If you want to speed it up, you have to administer a large dose all at once, but...’
If the test subject was damaged in the process, problems would arise.
And if a valuable specimen like Astie was ruined, Luciano would undoubtedly fly into a rage.
As though he did not even want to imagine it, Mel quietly shook his head.
Right then—
"Lucien."
A heavy, coarse voice came from behind him.
Mel frowned and turned around.
"...Cardinal Croix?"
A short, thickset figure.
Dark red curly hair.
One of the cardinals, Nouvel Croix, slowly approached him with a crooked, unpleasant smile.
Mel asked in disbelief,
"How did you end up in Sercanos?.. Weren’t you supposed to have returned to the Grand Temple?"
Instead of answering, Croix smirked.
Then stopped directly in front of Mel.
"How cold, Lucien. I thought you’d at least be happy to see me again."
He tilted his chin toward the clear sky beyond the dining hall windows.
"I only arrived a short while ago, actually. Feels like I’ve finally come home. It rained endlessly on the Northern Continent, so the place was disgusting. But here... the weather’s still as pleasant as ever."
Mel’s expression stiffened.
Until recently, Croix had been on the Northern Continent.
He had overseen the Shadow Legion, which procured sacrifices throughout the world, while maintaining its network of operations.
"His Holiness said there would be no need for new sacrifices for a while. So he ordered us to gradually return."
Croix looked at Mel.
"And he also said that by the time I arrived, the preparations should already be complete... Lucien."
Croix bared his teeth as his gaze slowly swept over Mel’s face.
"Don’t tell me you failed again? No matter how I look at it, that ‘sacrificial material’ clearly isn’t ready yet."
Mel’s face twisted.
Underneath his robe, he clenched his fist tightly.
Then quietly forced the words out through gritted teeth.
"What does the progress of my mission have to do with Cardinal Croix?"
"Ha, hahaha! You’re still amusing."
Croix burst into loud laughter.
"Your personality hasn’t changed at all. You can’t even take care of yourself, yet the moment someone criticizes you, you immediately lose your temper..."
"Be quiet!"
Furious, Mel cut him off.
Then continued while glaring straight at Croix,
"And shouldn’t Cardinal Croix be the one praying in the chapel for forgiveness? I’ve heard there’s been quite a bit of noise surrounding the Shadow Legion lately as well."
This time, Croix’s face hardened.
Mel continued with a mocking smile.
"I hear the supply of sacrifices isn’t what it used to be. Recently, in Tallocium, you even lost the ones you’d already captured."
Killing intent flared in Croix’s eyes.
But Mel merely lifted his chin calmly.
"It seems your supply network is beginning to collapse. You should probably spend some time cleaning it up."
The corner of Croix’s mouth twitched.
Recently, they really had lost several sacrifices in Tallocium.
Those people had sensed something was wrong and escaped to parts unknown.
‘Though I did kill the coachman as punishment.’
But the missing sacrifices were never found, and the matter had left an extremely unpleasant aftertaste.
"And what will you do if secrets begin leaking outside?"
Just as expected, Mel sneered.
"If you keep making mistakes like this, people might start spreading rumors about figures bearing the Order’s emblem abducting children."
Silence fell over the dining hall.
"His Holiness entrusted Cardinal Croix with such an important task. Yet I can’t help wondering whether you’ll eventually be cast out just like the previous High Overseers."
At last, the fist clenched beneath Croix’s robe began to tremble.
His patience was thinning, and violent power started surging beneath his skin.
It was born somewhere near his heart before gradually spreading throughout his entire body.
At that moment—
"Croix. If you cause an ‘eruption’ here, you won’t escape punishment."
A short, icy voice descended over both of them.
The door on the opposite side of the dining hall opened, and someone else appeared.
Snow white hair and a pale face.
The Holy Knight with gray eyes, the only female cardinal who carried out Luciano’s will.
"...Seraphina."
Mel spoke her name in confusion.
But Seraphina simply ignored him and coldly looked at Croix.
"This is a dining hall, Croix. It isn’t a place for you to recklessly release that filthy power of yours."
Croix pressed his lips together.
The bulging veins on his forehead gradually disappeared.
Standing between Croix and Mel, Seraphina added in an even voice,
"Pathetic. You barely reunited after all this time and you’ve already started tearing at each other’s throats."
The enraged Croix immediately snapped back,
"What?! I merely greeted him first, and Cardinal Mel—"
"Shut up."
Seraphina frowned in irritation.
With a single look alone, it felt as though she were crushing him from above.
"You should be ashamed. A pitiful insect like you dares to serve Him."
"What did you just say?..!"
Croix tried to retort, but fell silent and only breathed heavily through his nose.
He had never been particularly eloquent to begin with, so he had probably simply failed to find the words.
Mel pressed his fingers against his throbbing forehead.
‘Croix returned. And even Seraphina.’
A strange premonition crossed his mind.
If both of them had returned, then—
Boom!
At that instant, the enormous dining hall windows flew open and a violent gust of wind rushed inside.
Wings mixed with black scales spread through the air.
A gigantic creature landed on the floor of the dining hall.
The tables trembled, and the dishes resting on them crashed to the ground.
"That is precisely why, Lady Seraphina."
Someone with a body half human and half beast opened black eyes before them.
"The fact that all of us have gathered for this council means only one thing — His Holiness has decided to act personally."
The wings slowly folded shut.
As did the half of his face covered in scales and burn scars.
"Long time no see."
The last of the four cardinals.
When Lionel smiled, sharp teeth were revealed.
No one knew what he had been doing before this, but vivid red blood was still dripping between those teeth.
Seraphina, who had been silently watching him, sat down in a chair.
Slowly crossing one leg over the other, she asked,
"You reek of blood, Lionel. Still hunting mercenaries?"
Lionel smiled.
"You could say that. Quite a few capable mercenary groups have formed throughout the archipelago lately."
Croix shook his head.
With a disgusted expression, he looked at Lionel.
"You still haven’t rid yourself of those revolting hobbies. Even if you slaughter every mercenary alive, it won’t solve anything, Lionel. Instead, we should hunt down the remnants of the World Tree and tear them out by the roots as quickly as possible."
"Yes, yes, of course, Cardinal Croix."
After fully folding his wings, Lionel slowly approached Mel, Seraphina, and Croix.
"But tormenting mercenaries is fun too. Catch one and leave him barely clinging to life, and the others always come rushing over to save him. It’s..."
Lionel spread his grin wide.
"An unbelievably entertaining and amusing game."
"...That’s disgusting, so stop."
Mel cut Lionel off.
Lionel merely shrugged and fell silent.
Quietly sighing, Seraphina rose from her seat.
"Still, His Holiness—"
At that moment, a snap echoed through the air.
A light, distinct sound, as though someone had snapped their fingers.
The next instant, the walls of the dining hall crumbled apart like an illusion.
All four cardinals simultaneously lifted their heads toward the sky.
The walls had not been destroyed.
Space itself had distorted, transporting them into another dimension.
Now the four cardinals stood inside a circular gallery.
A colossal space surrounded by gigantic sacred flames, so high and radiant that the ceiling could not be seen.
"At last, everyone has gathered."
At the very center.
Luciano looked down upon them from a crystal throne.
"I have changed my mind."
A tiny fragment of light gathered at his fingertips and slowly ignited.
A tremendous vibration rolled through the entire gallery, like the beating of a heart.
"The one who waits for absolute power will never open the final page."
The cardinals exchanged glances as they cautiously observed Luciano.
"I no longer intend to wait. One who is destined to become a god has no reason to delay anything."
With a gentle smile, Luciano looked at the cardinals.
Then he declared,
"Very soon, all of the prepared Magic Crystals will awaken."