13 Mink Street

During the negotiations, Delius had said that the spatial prison was extremely unstable, to the point that only two bricks needed to be pulled out for it to collapse. Pulling out two bricks meant using the Church of Pamireth’s greatest specialty, spatial abilities, to carry out a fixed-point demolition of that space, much like blasting apart a building.

As the Divine Progeny of the Church of Pamireth, Delius had been using Elder Sithe and the Seventh Knight Regiment, who were currently inside that spatial prison, as bargaining chips to secure benefits for the Church of Pamireth at the negotiating table.

Judging from the direction the negotiations had taken today, he had indeed succeeded. Beneath aggressive pressure from the Church of Order, he had fought for the greatest possible degree of autonomy in the merger. That much could be seen from the bitter complaints Leon and Larry had made, because what they valued was practical benefit, not empty prestige. What they wanted was to place the true god Pamireth into an added volume of Light of Order as a story to be enshrined, then strip the Church of Pamireth to the bone and assimilate it cleanly.

Originally, things should have developed in that direction, but now everything had undergone a massive deviation, no, a complete overturn, because of that one sentence from Bishop Byrne!

Standing here, Karon again felt that even with the so-called security regulations in place, was this really something he should be allowed to hear? This sort of plotting seemed to go beyond the limits of gag orders and could no longer be considered something that could be contained simply by preventing anyone from leaving Ankara Hotel before the negotiations ended.

Once those bricks were pulled, the spatial prison would collapse, and Elder Sithe and the Seventh Knight Regiment would be met with disaster. Was he, a person with inside knowledge, really going to be allowed to walk out alive?

Using a knight regiment and a Temple Elder as a sacrifice, no matter the purpose, was not a price that even someone as extraordinary as the person standing behind Bishop Byrne could openly bear.

Karon unconsciously raised a hand, wanting to tap the blue shell by his ear. He wanted to call the captain for help.

But halfway through raising his hand, he saw Bishop Byrne’s gaze resting on him.

It wasn’t Bishop Byrne standing in front of Karon who turned to look at him, but the one reflected in the floor-to-ceiling window. While the man himself remained still, his reflection twisted around to face Karon. The sight was deeply unsettling.

Karon hesitated, then used the half-raised hand to scratch the back of his other hand, acting as though he had contracted eczema and needed to deal with the itch.

Unlike Karon, who was worrying whether he would be silenced, Delius’s emotions snapped into something close to a loss of control. He all but roared at Bishop Byrne, “What exactly are you trying to do?! What do you want?!”

Once the spatial prison collapsed, the resulting losses would leave the Church of Order with no other choice; the Church of Pamireth would inevitably be annihilated by an enraged Order. In the end, all the groundwork, all the negotiations, everything would become a joke. His sacrifices, his plans, his efforts, all of it would become meaningless in an instant.

Bishop Byrne looked at Delius and sighed. “You’re clearly much younger than I am, so why do you carry a heavier air of decline than I do?”

“I want the truth!”

“You have already done what you were supposed to do.” Bishop Byrne turned and looked at Karon. “The meeting time is over.”

Karon nodded. “I’ll see you out.”

Bishop Byrne walked toward the door, but as he passed Delius, Delius thrust out an arm to block him. The younger man’s expression had grown savage. Perhaps even though this father and son had not seen each other for many years, there was still some kind of instinctive link between them. Delius could sense that what Bishop Byrne had said earlier had not been a threat, much less a joke. “Explain yourself before you leave!”

Bishop Byrne smiled faintly and reached out as if to brush Delius’s arm aside.

A streak of blue light immediately flared on Delius’s arm. The aura of space flowed outward, seeking to seal off this area. It was a spatial art somewhat similar to Order’s Cage Art, but even more seamless and natural than Cage.

A ring of black light appeared in Bishop Byrne’s palm. In an instant, it punched through the spatial seal that was forming, and the surge of black light immediately sank into Delius’s body, binding him in place.

With a thud, he dropped to his knees. In a single exchange, Delius had been utterly defeated by Bishop Byrne.

A true clash rarely involved both sides throwing arts at each other in a spectacular display. When the gap in strength was absolute, everything became very simple. The last time Karon had seen an enemy handled so simply had been when Tiz had made a move.

At this moment, Karon, despite being part of Delius’s close protection detail, did not step forward to save the man. This was a father and son fighting between themselves. It was not appropriate for Karon to intervene. More importantly, facing the unfathomable Bishop Byrne, Karon felt that if he did intervene, there would most likely just be one more person kneeling on the floor.

Bishop Byrne moved to leave, but after he had only taken a few steps, a blue starlight mark appeared on Delius’s chest where he lay restrained on the floor, and a blue worm flew out from that starlight.

The instant it appeared, Karon felt as though his vision itself were being split apart, as if a knife were slicing through his perception.

The blue worm shot straight at Bishop Byrne’s back. The man did not turn around, but reflection of Bishop Byrne in the floor-to-ceiling window extended a hand at that moment. His hand reached out from within the glass, stretching into reality to catch the space worm just before it touched Bishop Byrne.

The space worm began to struggle. The space around it twisted and tore, but the hand holding it in place had gone from formless to formed and did not belong to purely ordinary existence, so no matter how the Space Worm struggled, it still could not break free.

Very quickly, the power inside it seemed to run dry. It became listless and stopped struggling.

Delius sank into the same exhaustion. Karon saw blood leaking from both his nose and ears.

Bishop Byrne turned around and looked at the space worm still bound before him. “According to the records, the true god Pamireth was able to move freely through most High Gods’ domains, even cross the battlefields of the gods at will, because Saemis accompanied him.

“These space worms are Saemis’s descendants, yet none of those descendants seem to have ever recreated the glory of their progenitor Saemis.

“My son, what do you think is the reason for that? Is it because the Space Worms’ bloodline has degenerated, or because their keepers cannot reach the height of the true god Pamireth, and thus restrict the evolution of the Space Worms?”

Bishop Byrne lightly waved a hand, and the ward binding Delius was released. He braced both hands against the floor and lifted his head. His face was covered in blood, yet at this moment, there was also a kind of stubbornness on it, because he actually answered the question, “I think it is both.”

Bishop Byrne nodded. “I know your answer is correct, but I do not like that kind of answer. In my view, if the two form a symbiotic link, then the reason one side falls behind can only be that one side is not strong enough. That is the attitude with which problems should be solved.”

A symbiotic link? Karon looked at the blue worm still bound there. So the relationship between Delius and this space worm was equivalent to the relationship between Karon and Pu’er?

At that moment, he suddenly felt a trace of gratitude, gratitude that Pu’er was not some sticky, limp, soft-bodied creature.

Bishop Byrne seemed to have endless patience. He crouched down and looked at Delius, who was gasping in great breaths, like a father educating his son. “If you were strong enough, it would not be this weak. If it were strong enough, you would have been able to use it to break my restraint.

“You should know that the difficulty of both sides growing stronger together is often far greater than the difficulty of only one side growing stronger. That is the attitude for solving problems. Very often, all this tugging and weighing of interests does nothing except provide a false sense of inner satisfaction and achievement. In truth, it has very little real meaning.

“What I am saying is not reasonable, but it is realistic.” Bishop Byrne reached out and patted his son on the head.

“Has it collapsed?” Delius still stubbornly lifted his face and stared at his father.

“Yes. It has collapsed.”

“Why? Why did you do this!” Blood and tears mixed together and ran down Delius’s face.

“Are you grieving for the Church of Pamireth?”

“Why, why did you do this, why exactly!”

“This space worm was willing to come out to help you deal with me. The relationship between the two of you surpassed a mere mental bridge long ago. You are companions. So it is true, you were already linked with this space worm, and very well at that.”

Karon pursed his lips together. So that night, Delius had indeed been deliberately putting on an act, having the space worm, which was close to him, create the illusion of going berserk, then using Karon’s and Nio’s eyes to relay that scene to the upper ranks of the Church of Order.

“It seems I worried for nothing. I truly was worried that you were too foolish and would refuse to link with such a precious worm.”

Karon recalled what Richard had told him, that when Bishop Byrne went down in the elevator, his expression had been hesitant and unsettled. So this was what he had been worried about at that time?

He had not been worried about whether or not his son was still loyal to the Church of Order. What he had truly feared was whether his son, for the sake of that so-called loyalty, would give up such precious benefits and opportunities.

“If the Church of Pamireth is destroyed, I will kill you with my own hands, I definitely will!!”

A sharp smack rang out. The hand that had been stroking his son’s head suddenly forced it down. Delius’s face was pressed flat against the floor, scraping with a harsh grinding sound. “Where did all the calm you showed at the negotiating table go? When I have you completely suppressed, you still issue me a death threat? Heh. How stupid is that? Even if that is what you think in your heart, there is no need to foolishly say it aloud. Aren’t you forcing me to kill you and remove future trouble?

“Or perhaps, in your heart, you still regarded me as your father. After all, as a father, one can surely tolerate a little rebellion from one’s son, can one not?” Bishop Byrne gripped Delius by the hair and pulled his face up. “As a father, I feel gratified, but as the superior who sent you on this infiltration mission, I feel furious!

“I allowed you to possess love for the Church of Pamireth.

“I allowed you to embrace the doctrines of Pamireth.

“I allowed you to betray the Church of Order. I allowed you to turn away from the God of Order, because in my eyes, true infiltration is when you have even managed to deceive yourself.

“But I do not allow you, in front of me, to reveal this kind of expression now, an expression born from this so-called emotion, one that fills me with disgust and disappointment! You are my son. You are my work. My son may be lost, but I do not wish to see flaws appear in my work!”

Bishop Byrne’s expression changed again. He began using his fingers to smooth his son’s hair, speaking in a soft voice, “Tomorrow morning’s meeting begins at eight. When the meeting begins, both sides’ transmission rooms will be opened, and messages may be sent.

“The bricks will be removed at ten. There are two hours in between. You may choose to have your people send a message to the Church of Pamireth and have them stop all this in advance. I am placing the choice in your hands. I hope you will make a wise choice.

“A choice made while seeing the situation clearly for what it is. I hope you will not disappoint me again.”

Bishop Byrne stood and walked toward the door. Karon opened the door for him. As the Bishop adjusted the cuffs of his robe, he gave Karon a faint smile. “Forgive the spectacle.”

Karon stepped back half a pace and lowered his head.

Bishop Byrne left the room. Karon closed the door and escorted him to the elevator, pressing the button for him. Just like last time, Bishop Byrne did not remind him to keep matters secret. He did not threaten Karon, nor attempt to bribe him. It was as if on this floor, secrets had become the cheapest thing of all, scattered everywhere, so cheap no one even cared.

The elevator doors opened. Richard made a gesture of invitation, and Bishop Byrne entered the elevator.

Once the elevator descended, Karon let out a long breath. He returned to Delius’s room, not even bothering to knock, and simply opened the door directly.

At that moment, Delius was sitting on the floor, his mouth open wide as he held the blue worm in his hand and allowed it to enter his body through his mouth.

It looked similar to someone eating a fresh oyster.

Karon could not help once again feeling grateful that nothing of this sort was required between himself and Pu’er.

Of course, he also understood that this simple and brutal method of fusing was only being used because both Delius and the space worm were utterly exhausted at this moment. There was no way to send the worm back the same way it had come out.

Karon picked up a box of tissues and walked over. He first drew out a handful and handed them to Delius, then took more for himself and began wiping up the blood on the floor.

After cleaning everything up, Karon poured a glass of water and a glass of red wine for Delius and placed them on the tea table. “Please rest well.”

After saying that, Karon left the room. Standing in the corridor, he tapped the shell by his ear a few times, then returned to the elevator doors. Before long, the elevator rose and the doors opened. Beside Richard stood Nio.

Richard glanced at the situation in the hallway, then took the initiative to close the elevator doors and descend again.

Nio removed the mask from his face and asked, “What happened?”

Karon had not used the emergency tapping pattern, so Nio did not seem particularly anxious. Karon proceeded to report everything that had happened in the room to Nio. Karon was aware that there was something wrong with his captain’s identity, and also that Nio was constantly hiding some sort of secret, yet at this moment, Karon still chose to share information with his captain.

Nio folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the wall, listening as Karon spoke.

Once Karon finished, Nio nodded, but before he could say anything, Karon cut in, “Alright, Captain. I’m heading back to my room.”

Nio smiled. “You’re not curious what I was going to say?”

“You were going to say, ‘Mm. Got it.’”

“Yes, that is indeed what I wanted to say.” Nio put the silver mask back on his face. “Karon, what do you think of Ankara Hotel?”

“The last time, I thought it was the place with the best scenery in York City, a vacation spot.”

“And now?”

“A prison.”

“Yes, a prison. So no matter what you see or hear here, there is no need to be surprised.”

“I’m gradually trying to learn how to accept and be calm.”

“Besides, the Church of Order isn’t as clean as you think, but it isn’t as dark as you imagine either.”

Karon was very curious what sort of perspective the captain was speaking from when he said that.

“You made some new friends these past two days?” Nio asked in a deliberately casual manner, as though trying to make the coming good night feel less direct and abrupt.

Is he referring to Leon and Larry? “Not really friends. More like fellow inmates. Once we get out, there probably won’t be any contact again.”

“Fellow inmates? Heh, a very fitting answer. You seem very good at dealing with young people of noble status. You always manage to get along with them in exactly the right way.”

“That is a skill of speaking, or perhaps of socializing.”

“No, it isn’t skill, because it’s an ability that others may try to learn, yet still never master. After all, no matter how sweetly a little puppy barks, it’s hard for it to make friends with a pack of tiger cubs, unless it is actually the same kind as they are.” Nio stretched lazily and waved a hand. “Good night.”

“Good night, Captain.”

The elevator doors opened, and Nio entered. Then the doors closed and the elevator descended.

Richard suddenly heard the captain’s voice. “Bored?”

“No. I think my work is very meaningful.”

Nio turned around to face Richard.

Richard saw the captain’s shoulders trembling slightly. Then, the silver mask on the captain’s face floated down, revealing a calm expression and deep eyes looking directly at him. The captain’s shoulders were still trembling faintly, but the captain was not smiling.

Richard unconsciously retreated two steps until his back hit the elevator wall. His body had begun trembling uncontrollably.

A cool sensation spread across his face. Nio personally placed a silver mask on him. “A newly customized batch of silver masks for the squad. This one is yours.”

“Thank you... thank you, Captain.”

“Do you know, ten years ago, I was just like you? During a mission, I was assigned to stand inside an elevator like this. That meeting lasted a full month, and I stood in that elevator for a full month.”

“Captain, thank you... thank you for the encouragement.”

“I’m not encouraging you.” Nio took out another silver mask and put it on himself. Richard saw the captain’s shoulders tremble slightly again.

Ding! The elevator doors opened. Nio stepped out. After the doors closed behind him, he removed the mask.

This time, he really was smiling. He lowered his head and looked at the mask in his hand, murmuring to himself, “Ten years ago, were you just as foolish too?”