Mythology Rebooted-Chapter 65 - 62 All is Ready The Advantage is Mine

65: Chapter 62 All is Ready, The Advantage is Mine

65 -62 All is Ready, The Advantage is Mine

The three priests left the meeting room with grim faces.

Hefei issued a final ultimatum, within ten days find the Death Knight’s steed and sword, find them and continue being priests, fail to find them and go home to boil owls.

It was an impossible task, as the Death Knight’s steed had no traceable shadow and would appear and disappear without a trace; it was said to be a magical being personally created by the Goddess of Death as a reward for the Death Knight.

The steed itself possessed spatial magic, and unless it revealed itself willingly, no one could find it.

Even if they were fortunate enough to encounter it, they would not be able to retain the steed.

All three priests were Silver Mages, who had climbed the ranks through seniority; they were politicians within The Church specializing in management rather than combat, and their strength was far inferior to Hefei’s, not to mention Sidney, the candidate for High Priest.

Amongst the entire Windsor Naturalism Church, only Sidney could potentially arm-wrestle Hefei for power.

Even Sidney wouldn’t dare say that he could retain the Undead Warhorse.

The Death Knight and his warhorse were one, and if the Undead Warhorse was spotted in Lundan, the Death Knight must be nearby.

All of the Windsor Naturalism Church’s elites had been unable to defeat the Dark Knight, not to mention the more notorious Death Knight; with the previous High Priest left half-dead as a lesson, Sidney had no courage to challenge the Death Knight alone, and he’d be insane to trouble himself with the steed.

The three priests wouldn’t be able to bring back the Undead Warhorse, much less the Death Knight’s sword; Shadowmare was notoriously vicious, imbued with a Death Curse that corrupted and decayed any living being that touched it.

Their bodies would disintegrate, their thoughts would halt, and not even their souls could be preserved, consumed entirely by Shadowmare and sent to the frozen eternity of the Death Kingdom.

Shadowmare was a treacherous artifact that shouldn’t even be touched; it was too terrifying and should not exist on the God-chosen Continent.

So, on the surface, Hefei gave them ten days, but in reality, she had already declared their fate: go home, pack your bags, and after ten days, leave of your own accord.

Or else, go through the process!

“That damnable scoundrel, who does she think she is, merely a combat-designated scalpel lucky enough to climb to the position of priest.

She was transferred to Lundan and appointed as the new High Priest to support us, to appease Sidney, not to vie for power and profit,” Lawrence said coldly.

“Saying we’re corrupt, how laughable, as if she’s never been greedy!” Dana ground his teeth; he hated hypocrisy the most.

Priestess Simon weakly said, “I’ve heard her family is quite wealthy…”

“It’s her husband who’s rich, Austin Lando, you know, the banker.”

Lawrence dismissed it with contempt, “Austin’s reputation is well-known, a playboy always surrounded by women.

Their coming together was certainly not out of love: one lustful, one greedy, that’s all there is to it.”

Dana said bitterly, “She indeed doesn’t need to grub for money, she just has to spread her legs for it, and it’s even legal!”

Priestess Simon didn’t join the conversation; her colleagues’ disparaging and scornful remarks about Hefei made her, a woman as well, deeply uncomfortable.

She changed the subject, “What do we do now, order a citywide search for the Undead Warhorse?”

“And what can we do even if it’s found?”

“…” x3

Finding it would indeed change nothing, and Simon sighed, “The High Priest is doing this to make us give in.

Sidney has been dragged down by his own mentor, and although he has lost power, he still has a large following in Windsor, with many waiting and watching in the shadows.

The High Priest needs our support.”

“What, you want to be her dog?”

Lawrence sneered, “After a few months, you should be able to see what kind of person she is, being her dog is no freedom.”

Many would love to be in such a position and can’t even find a way in!

Simon sighed, bid farewell to the two men, and went alone to issue the orders to search for the Undead Warhorse.

Her colleagues had been in their positions for many years, enjoying the pleasures that power brought them to the extent that they were inflated with it and had forgotten the declarations they made when they joined The Church, and the original purpose of their pursuit of power.

Dana watched Simon leave and said coldly, “Simon has already given in, still referring to that woman as the High Priest.

To my knowledge, that woman invited her for a meal.”

“That’s to be expected.

Among the four priests, her power is the least, and now with a power vacuum, naturally, she would fawn over the new authority,” Lawrence said with a sneer, “What a pitiful creature, sitting in an office going dull in the brain, actually thinking the enemy would spare her.

Without us, she’s nothing.”

“What should we do now?” Dana frowned.

Lawrence fell into a silent brood; submitting to Hefei was out of the question.

From the moment he saw her, he found her particularly irksome, and the thought of her having authority over him filled him with a deep sense of loathing.

Dana felt the same, he very much disliked Hefei.

It wasn’t personal, it was purely the jealousy of power, the instinctive aversion they felt towards any strongly-willed High Priest parachuted above them.

They strolled through the garden pavilion, silent, lost in their own thoughts.

After a moment, they both stopped, exchanged glances, and nodded at each other.

They would reach out to Sidney to deal with Hefei!

If there were complaints, theirs were nothing; Sidney in Lundan held the most dissatisfaction towards Hefei.

In terms of strength, achievements, status, and reputation, Sidney was the legitimate successor to the High Priest, missed direct authority only because he was sabotaged by his mentor.

And it was Hefei who dismantled the Earth Core Cult, toppling him from his position.

Adding up all the grievances, it’s quite possible Sidney was already preparing something.

“Should we go and sense the winds?”

“Just having an afternoon tea, what does it matter.”

“Do you think Sidney has any connection with the Earth Core Cult, or has he been suppressing that information the entire time?”

“That shouldn’t be the case.

When the Legendary Mage was still around, Sidney was his most loyal student.

After the Legendary Mage became the Void Lord, Sidney hated his teacher more than anyone.

He would rather avoid him altogether; there’s no way he could be involved with the Earth Core Cult.”

“Right, unless he has gone mad.”

“Hahaha——”

“…”

“Do you think it’s possible that Sidney has gone mad?”

“Stop being so paranoid.

Sidney is one of the primary physicians at Crimson Leaf Forest Asylum.

If he were mad, he would have been locked up there already.”

“That’s true.”

“Let’s go.

It’s time for afternoon tea with him.”

————

In Lundan, the West District.

A black sedan left the villa, and two priests departed, disappointed.

Throughout their visit, Sidney talked only about black tea.

He showed no discontent toward the new High Priest Hefei, seemed to enjoy his retirement life, and even urged them to listen more to the High Priest’s words and not harbor any messy thoughts.

All were followers; power struggles could be set aside.

Serving the Goddess was the top priority.

Lawrence and Dana didn’t believe it.

If that old fellow could be so open-minded, he would have devolved his power three months ago.

Why wait until now to preach grand principles?

The visit didn’t yield any gains, so the two priests decided to come for afternoon tea again tomorrow. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

By tradition, today, tomorrow, and the day after—after three visits, Sidney should change his tone.

The scene shifts back to the mansion surrounded by trees.

The three-story building, originally ivory, showed much of its paint peeling off, revealing the inner brick structure and signs of time’s erosion visible on all sides, like a decadent painting.

Upon closer inspection, one could see that the fallen paint had formed several irregular patterns on the walls, other than the main entrance, outlining a hexagram, a crucifix star, and a triangle star.

The three-story mansion was Sidney’s ancestral home, which he had transformed into an impregnable Magic Fortress.

Sidney stood on the balcony, his gaze leaping over the bushes, watching the departing black sedan, and shook his head, “Fools, there’s no need for me to act against that woman.

She is so eager to achieve great things that she is bound to encounter the Dark Knight someday.”

Sidney, in his sharp suit, appeared to be between forty and fifty years old, robust and broad-shouldered, with a backdrop that exuded a sense of power.

He sported a meticulous beard with flecks of white on his temples.

His beard and back-swept hair were streaked with gray, and his eyes were exceptionally expressive.

Long accustomed to power, his features commanded respect without anger, carrying the heavy oppression of a superior ruler.

When standing beside priests Lawrence, Dana, and Simon, he was bound to dominate the central position—inevitably so, as his colleagues’ subordinate air was too conspicuous.

Indeed, Sidney had an excellent relationship with the previous High Priest, close enough to be considered inseparable.

The three priests’ rise through the ranks was aided, to some extent, by Sidney’s advice.

No other reason but to hold great power and let the newcomer know who the real boss was.

All was ready, and the advantage lay with him; all that remained was for the newcomer to submit!

He never expected his teacher to create such a mess with the Earth Core Cult, let alone such a big commotion.

The most critical aspect was the failure, leaving behind incontrovertible evidence!

“Why do you have to cling to Lundan when the world is so vast?

Wouldn’t it be better to go somewhere else?”

Sidney was frustrated.

He tried his best to disassociate himself from his teacher, but to no avail; everyone knew his teacher Marshall had betrayed the Naturalism Church, was utterly mad, and an irredeemable sinner.

So, when Hefei presented the evidence that the Earth Core Cult worshipped the Void Lord, Sidney had no choice.

He had to obey any arrangement from his superiors, or he too would be branded a traitor.

Regarding the new High Priest Hefei, Sidney had inquired about him with his colleagues from Paris: a tough character, a divine favorite, former top combatant of the Scalpel Organization.

Sidney was a Golden Mage, as was Hefei, but the Divine Favor gave Hefei a status beyond that of a mere Golden Mage.

When he was dismissed from his post, Sidney weighed his options and decided that anger was detrimental to health.

It seemed perfectly fine to go home and gaze into the eyes of his owl.

Just as he was brooding, Sidney’s expression suddenly changed.

He ordered his servants to clear the dining table and quickly entered his study.

He opened the secret door behind the bookshelf and stepped into the eerily silent darkness of the void.

After crossing a labyrinthine area, Sidney looked ahead at the Golden Statue with an ugly expression and said with difficulty after a long pause, “Teacher, you once said you would not contact me again.”

“Sidney, my beloved student, this will be the last time.”

“What is it?”

“Find someone for me!”