"Mr. A has arrived in Tingen so quickly?!"
Klein did not hide the shock on his face, as the others were also stunned by the arrival of a 'legendary' Sequence 5 in Tingen.
In a small place like Tingen, the highest-level Beyonder most had ever seen was Captain Dunn, a Sequence 7. Only a few had been lucky enough to see a passing member of the Red Gloves and experience the flair of a high-sequence Beyonder.
But even among the Red Gloves, a Sequence 5 was a captain-level figure!
Such a powerful Beyonder had appeared in Tingen?
And a mad cultist at that?
Fear, unease, anxiety...
Various negative emotions began to well up in their hearts, but soon, a peaceful power spread through the room.
'Leonard seemed to have used this power before... wait, is it the Captain? So at the Nightmare stage, one doesn't even need to recite poetry to use their abilities?' Klein suppressed the urge to yawn, while Dunn spoke solemnly, "There's no need to worry. As long as we are prepared, low-sequence Beyonders are not without a chance to defeat a mid-sequence one. Even a Sequence 5 can theoretically be killed by demon-hunting bullets. The news of the Aurora Order Oracle's appearance has already been reported to Backlund; I believe more reinforcements will arrive soon. Until then, we must protect Tingen! And we are not the only ones facing this crisis--the Mandated Punishers and the Machinery Mind Hive will also coordinate in the investigation..."
Dunn held a script in his hand, reading out the arrangements somewhat mechanically. However, at that moment, Klein suddenly raised his hand--
"Captain, speaking of the Aurora Order, I just remembered something."
"Go ahead." Hearing this, Dunn immediately stopped. Seeing this, Klein said somewhat cautiously, "I remember that incident with Hanass Vincent. One of my informants found out that he and Lanevus once had interactions..."
"Hanass Vincent?" Dunn pinched the bridge of his nose--which could no longer be hidden by his hair--for a good while before finally experiencing a flash of realization: "I remember now. The diviner who leaked the secret incantation pointing toward the True Creator? The one who died mysteriously later? He had interactions with Lanevus?"
Lanevus was just a swindler; he shouldn't have been mentioned at a time like this. But if he was associated with someone suspected of being a believer in the True Creator, then it was a different matter entirely.
It was common knowledge that the Aurora Order was a force that worshiped the True Creator. Could the sudden arrival of Mr. A--this so-called Oracle--in Tingen be related to this swindler?
"What else did your informant say?" Dunn didn't ask for the informant's identity, but Klein did not continue to use the informant as a pretext. Instead, he said solemnly, "Nothing more. However, speaking of Lanevus, I actually encountered something. Just yesterday, a woman who supposedly carries Lanevus's child came to the Divination Club. At that time, I originally intended to use Spirit Vision to take a look, but I mysteriously forgot. Originally, I didn't think there was anything wrong, but thinking back now, that was highly likely a spiritual warning from my own intuition!"
"Your spirituality made you forget to use Spirit Vision? 'One must not look directly at God'?"
Old Neil, who was responsible for teaching Klein mysticism, was the first to react. Dunn's expression also changed.
"In other words, there is highly likely a child of an evil god in Tingen? And the purpose of Mr. A's arrival--this Aurora Order Oracle--is this lady carrying the child? No, an ordinary person shouldn't be able to... forget it, those details don't matter! We must notify the Red Gloves immediately..."
Dunn turned and headed for the door, stopping halfway to add:
"One more thing. From now on, everyone is to go to the armory to draw a full set of equipment, including signal flares. When going out, you must maintain groups of at least three. All leave is temporarily canceled, and all members above Sequence 8 are to suspend their duty rotation for guarding Chanis Gate..."
...
"Oh, poor Ince Zangwill. His attempt to use official Beyonders to stop Mr. A has instead made the authorities aware of Megose's existence. Under the actions of the official Beyonders, Megose will soon be captured. His plan can no longer succeed. What a pitiful fellow..."
In the room with the red chimney, the quill once again skipped as it wrote these words, appearing to cheer and applaud for Ince Zangwill's clumsy screenwriting skills.
Ince Zangwill, however, felt his scalp tingle with rage.
Pacing the room in distress, Ince Zangwill racked his brain for a strategy.
His past experiences as an Archbishop surfaced before his eyes. The operating procedures of official Beyonders, the matters that required attention when interacting with various factions--all of it began to manifest before him one by one.
Accompanied by this process, an idea gradually formed in his mind. After a moment of contemplation, he picked up the quill once more and wrote on the open notebook, "Because the Nighthawks discovered Megane, this directly triggered the alarm of the child of the evil god. To protect itself, it shared a portion of its power with its host. The power of an evil god's offspring is always miraculous, so it is quite logical for Megane to escape tracking."
"Megane's disappearance drew the attention of the Nighthawks. They grew increasingly certain that this was related to the reason for Mr. A's arrival in Tingen, which drew the attention of all official Beyonders in the city."
"To capture Megane and Mr. A while avoiding disaster in Tingen, the Nighthawks turned out in full force to conduct meticulous patrols. This undoubtedly increased the burden on the authorities."
"To protect the child in Megane's womb, Mr. A issued orders to Aurora Order members in Tingen and Backlund to begin creating a large number of incidents to drain the energy of the Backlund authorities. Zealots are always blind; this is quite logical."
"The official Beyonders are overwhelmed by the Aurora Order's actions, and at the same time, have received rebukes from the Backlund nobility and the Royal Family. They have no choice but to turn more of their attention toward Backlund."
"Tingen will be unable to obtain support from Backlund in the short term, which will undoubtedly put immense pressure on the Beyonders in Tingen. The prolonged high-tension state has begun to affect the mental state of the official Beyonders. Some have started showing signs of losing control. This is quite logical."
"The strength of the official Beyonders has been greatly weakened, and the opportunity Ince Zangwill has been waiting for will arrive soon. He will surely obtain everything he desires!"
...
Writing the final line, Ince Zangwill leaned back against the chair as if exhausted. At this moment, he felt that no one could stop his plan!
Such a perfect script, completely in line with the logic of all factions. No one would ever exceed his calculations!
"I will make you all regret casting me aside!"
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika Kagura]