Ryan: I've Tread on Thin Ice My Whole Life... Can I Make It to the Other Shore? [6k] (Continued)

Ryan thought, Aren't you someone else, damn it?

Brothers gave you their hearts, and you played mind games with them? Come on, let's reveal the mole's identity first.

"Actually, I'd wanted to decide on a candidate for bureau chief long ago. You exposed Adler's crimes, so you're the best candidate. I'd been considering it all along, but Princess Cassidy brought it up today... Do you know? Even members of the royal family actually have no right to interfere in a territory's internal affairs."

"The reason I agreed wasn't because she's a Princess, but because I think highly of you." Bill shook his head. "The Princess is too young. The Empire isn't as simple as she imagines, and Berman City isn't her private garden. Ryan, the Princess will leave soon enough. In the end, Berman City will have to rely on ourselves. Do you understand?"

Ryan looked "confused." "Mayor, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"What I mean is, the Princess can't promise you anything. She isn't worth devoting your life to. If you want to climb higher, you can follow me. Bureau chief is only the beginning. I'll help you become a Noble. After that, you can do whatever you want in Berman City."

Bill did not know about Ryan's connection to the League of Fire. Although Ryan was close to Jonathan, Ryan himself had come from the East District Branch.

His later involvement in Adler's arrest had been more because of Cassidy. Of course, Bill guessed that Ryan was a Transcendent, so he was probing him now, attempting to recruit him.

Ryan did not really want to speak anymore.

If possible, he wanted to set up a mahjong table and invite Magana, Cassidy, and Bill over. Couldn't you three sort things out before coming to me?

"Think it over carefully. There's no need to answer me right away." Seeing Ryan remain silent, Bill smiled and patted his shoulder. "Perhaps you'll have made up your mind in a couple of days."

After leaving those words behind, Bill departed.

He seemed confident he could beat Cassidy?

Ryan cursed inwardly. One after another, none of them would let him have any peace.

"Ah, I've truly been walking on thin ice all my life... Will I make it to the other shore?"

His attempt to clear his name had failed. What about getting ashore? Slacking off? Lying flat?

"Keep it up, Master Ryan."

Early the next morning, the notice appointing Ryan as bureau chief came down.

For the Department General Bureau personnel, promoting Ryan was more suitable than parachuting in a new bureau chief.

The main reason was that Ryan had risen from Lesser Camilla to bureau chief in just one month. To ordinary people, that would have been impossible without connections. If their boss had powerful connections, then underlings like them could benefit too, right?

Then, that afternoon, the personnel Magana had sent as reinforcements arrived in Berman City.

West District, a secret safehouse.

Ryan had barely stepped into the room when a neat chorus startled him.

"Greetings, sir!"

Seven figures stood in orderly formation inside the room.

Five men and two women, each standing ramrod straight, radiating an invisible Killing Aura.

Ryan froze for a moment. "What is this?"

"Sir, you've worked hard!"

"?"

"Reporting!" The burly man standing at the far left shouted. "By order of Grand Duchess Magana, we are to obey Lord Ryan's commands!"

"..."

"Everyone, introduce yourselves!"

Starting with the burly man, each person introduced their basic information to Ryan.

The burly man was the squad captain, named Gluck, a Third Tier Transcendent. His profession was Soul Eater.

Member Blood Robe, a Second Tier Transcendent, Shadow Hunter.

Member Adi, a Second Tier Transcendent, Melee Tactician.

Member Aug, a First Tier Transcendent, Dark Mage.

Member Meyron, a First Tier Transcendent, Melee Tactician.

Member Lanny, a First Tier Transcendent, Puppeteer.

Member Ann, a First Tier Transcendent, Gunslinger.

Ryan said, "..."

Seven people: one Third Tier, two Second Tier, and four First Tier.

More importantly, the seven gave him the impression of possessing extremely strict discipline, far beyond what any ordinary organization could match.

Ryan even had the absurd feeling that these seven people could wipe out the entire League of Fire in Berman City.

"Were you really sent by the Grand Duchess?" Ryan found it hard to believe. Although Magana had said she would send reinforcements, Berman City's arrangement had fallen apart with Adler's death. Now that Ryan had taken the position, his future looked utterly bleak no matter how he viewed it.

Was it really appropriate to send such a lavish lineup under these circumstances?

"Yes," Gluck answered. "The Grand Duchess said that everything was to be based on Lord Ryan's commands."

"Are there only seven of you?"

"There are also over a hundred ordinary members. I've already had them conceal themselves and await Lord Ryan's orders at any time."

"I see..."

Ryan clicked his tongue. Damn it, this debt of gratitude truly could never be repaid.

"Fine, have them stay hidden for now. The situation in Berman City is unstable, so don't rush." Ryan pressed down with his hand. "As for you seven, you can remain at this safehouse. I'll notify you if there's a mission."

Gluck said, "Please allow us to protect your safety."

"Me? No, no, there's no need." Ryan shook his head. "I'm the Bureau of Investigation chief now. No one would dare touch me."

"This is a task assigned by the Grand Duchess," Gluck said stubbornly.

Before their departure, Magana had specifically instructed them that Ryan's safety took priority above all else. His mind was sharp, but his strength was weak. Magana did not want Ryan to die in Berman City like Adler had.

Ryan was helpless. He could tell that Gluck and the others were stubborn to the core. Unless he could persuade Magana, it would be useless.

In the end, they reached an agreement: Blood Robe and Ann would be responsible for his safety. Blood Robe was a Shadow Hunter, an assassin-type profession with unpredictable methods, and as a Second Tier Transcendent, her raw strength was second only to Gluck's.

Although Ann was only a First Tier Transcendent, as a Gunslinger, she had the advantage of providing long-range protection. Normally, it would not be suitable for them to follow Ryan around, so Ann's ability could be put to its fullest use.

But looking at it from another angle, if these two followed him all the time, he would need to be careful not to expose anything during future operations.

Fortunately, the second character, "Shari," would soon be ready to take the field. In the future, he could leave matters to his Alt Account.

"Magana didn't arrange this deliberately to test what I really am, did she? Probably not. If she suspected me, she should investigate in secret."

Ryan's thoughts stirred, and he gave Gluck a task: investigate Bill and Colonel Hart. He still had not figured out the purpose of that ritual. Sending Lin Qi would be too risky. Since these people were working for Magana anyway, Ryan would not feel the slightest heartache even if they died.

"Remember, don't let Bill discover you. I suspect he's a Transcendent too. As for Hart, keep a close eye on him as well. See whether he has any connection to the Kainter Army."

After giving a few instructions, Ryan left the safehouse. He then took the time to rent a new residence at the property center in Central City.

Commuting from East District had already become inconvenient. Houses in Central City were expensive, and he could not afford to buy one, but renting was still manageable.

Ryan picked a well-located place and rented a detached house.

Jonathan and Jack came over to help when he moved.

"There's something you should know. If you want to advance, don't rush it. Tell me, and I'll prepare everything for you."

Jonathan carried a large cabinet on his shoulder and asked in a casual tone.

"How could it be that soon?" Ryan carried his things alongside him. "How long have I even been a Transcendent?"

"Heh, you're underestimating your talent too much. With Burning Six Stars, as long as you have enough Soul Jade, breaking through from First Tier to Second Tier won't even take half a month."

After learning of Ryan's Magic Talent, Jonathan had specifically looked up relevant information. The magic test available to him could only measure up to A-rank, but more precise testing rituals could reveal an even higher S-rank.

Judging from Ryan's performance in the previous ritual, his talent definitely exceeded A-rank. Among recorded S-rank talents, breaking through a tier in half a month was entirely normal.

"Really?"

"Why would I lie to you? Generally speaking, someone with your talent only needs to consume around three thousand units of Soul Jade per day while cultivating to advance."

Experience had been accumulated over time, and the League of Fire could look up such information as well.

Moreover, differences in talent represented one's upper limit and cultivation speed; they had nothing to do with the magic power required for advancement. Advancement depended only on one's profession. Using his Son of the Sun profession as a reference, he had consumed nearly three thousand units of Soul Jade when he advanced.

"Three thousand?"

Ryan's expression turned strange.

"Yes, you should absorb around two hundred units a day... What? Have you run out of Soul Jade?"

"...No, I found quite a lot of that stuff in Adler's house."

"Then that's fine. Keep it for your own use."

Jonathan did not pay it much mind. He had not gone along during the raid precisely because he wanted Ryan to keep whatever he found.

But Ryan was somewhat puzzled. Although he had been busy handling many matters these past few days, he had never neglected cultivation. Whenever he had free time, he cultivated; he even absorbed Soul Jade during idle moments in the office.

Over the past few days, his efficiency in absorbing Soul Jade had steadily increased. He had directly burned through three thousand units, yet he still felt no sign of breaking through to Second Tier.

In terms of efficiency, he seemed far faster than Jonathan had described.

But when it came to advancement, although the system did not mark his level, Ryan felt that he would probably need to spend another three thousand Soul Jade before he could reach it.

"Captain, what does it mean if advancing requires more Soul Jade?" he asked.

Jonathan paused, realizing that Ryan's situation might be different. But he did not point it out and merely said, "In that case, it's most likely an effect of your profession's traits. The more powerful the profession, the harder it is to change professions and advance."

"I see."

"Don't rush." Jonathan held a cigarette between his lips and smiled. "Cultivation needs to be steady and grounded. There's no need to hurry over a day or two."

Ryan said nothing, silently calculating what sort of profession he actually had.

Night fell. Inside the new house.

Ryan sat cross-legged in the room, with a pile of Soul Jade beside him.

As cultivation continued, the quantity of Soul Jade visibly diminished.

If Jonathan had been there, he would probably have been so shocked that his cigarette fell to the floor, because Ryan's speed of absorbing Soul Jade had already surpassed that of many Second Tier Transcendents.

After roughly an hour, Ryan opened his eyes and let out a soft breath.

"Still no good. I don't feel like I'm advancing at all. If the magic power needed for advancement is related to one's profession, does that mean my profession is incredibly awesome?"

He could not help thinking again of what had happened on the day he changed professions. The scene in the Inner World had been too shocking. Yet he could find no information on either the pyramid or the scene of pilgrimage.

According to the records, the most recent era of widespread pilgrimage customs dated back more than a thousand years. By modern times, they had almost completely vanished.

That meant what he had seen was definitely unrelated to the ritual Jonathan had arranged. It had been caused by the change of profession. Unfortunately, there was too little information about God's Chosen. Otherwise, he could compare notes and see whether all God's Chosen encountered such things.

"Forget it. I still have enough Soul Jade. I refuse to believe I can't advance."

With the speed at which Lin Qi farmed Soul Jade, he had enough to support his early cultivation.

He checked on the two characters. Nothing was wrong, so Ryan continued cultivating.

Nothing happened that night.

The next day, news from the border swept through Berman City—the Kingdom of Kainter's army had crossed the Empire's border and clashed with the border garrison!

Although most people were not worried about this so-called military action, believing the Kingdom of Kainter was merely overestimating itself, Ryan knew that overestimating itself and attacking Berman City were not mutually exclusive.

If the situation continued like this, it was entirely possible for the Kingdom of Kainter's army to reach Berman City in a few days.

Sure enough, one day after the war began, the Kingdom of Kainter's army had already broken through the border defenses and officially entered Imperial territory.

This time, the Nobles and wealthy merchants of Berman City began to panic.

The border was not far from here. An army could arrive in two or three days by marching; if it hijacked a train, it could reach Berman City within half a day. And the Kingdom of Kainter's army numbered more than ten thousand.

The only force that could intercept this army was the border city of Kosotoya, but so far, Kosotoya had shown no intention of deploying troops.

That was the drawback of lords maintaining private armies. A territory's forces answered directly to the lord, their interests bound to the lord's. They possessed little sense of Imperial honor.

Unless the Kainter Army actively attacked Kosotoya, no battle would break out.

Ryan had thought Magana would use this opportunity to make a move. After all, as long as she led her army here, the entire stretch of territory in the Empire's south could naturally fall under her control.

Without a war, there was no legitimate reason to mobilize troops. Sending out soldiers casually would be rebellion.

What surprised him was that Magana did not make any move at all. Watching the Kingdom of Kainter's army advance in this direction, Ryan could no longer sit still.