The Excuse Had Arrived

Even though Iver said that, Isabel, blushing with embarrassment, still didn't take back her diary.

She generously gave her diary directly to Iver—

This made Iver realize that he might have underestimated Isabel.

She may not have intended to reveal her true feelings to Iver ... She understood the significance of this "Last Will Diary," so its essence was perhaps a letter. She wrote down what she wanted to say in the diary, along with the background and context, and gave it to Iver.

"I will keep it safe."

Iver smiled and carefully placed the diary close to his body.

But what truly pleased Iver was that Isabel gave Iver her diary... meaning that she believed she no longer needed a diary.

The changes may not be significant yet, but it is a valuable beginning. She has decided to abandon her past self and discard her former fears—and move forward.

After exchanging secrets, both of them wore faint smiles. Once Iver was back in his wheelchair, he went to the door and called back the people who had left earlier.

Lily and Yulia blushed slightly, but David looked completely bewildered. Yanis, on the other hand, smiled broadly, as if she had just received a sweet treat.

— Judging from their expressions, Iver could roughly guess who was listening and who wasn't.

To distract David, Iver asked him, "Has the Grand Guardian not reached an agreement yet?"

"I just went to see my father," David explained. "There were quite a lot of people there... I saw him talking to Grandma Meg and the others."

His single-minded thinking indeed led him to forget about Iver and Isabel.

At this point, David seemed a little worried. "They sounded like they were arguing... or at least very loudly."

"Loud voices do not necessarily mean an argument; they could just be a sign of emotional outburst."

Iver comforted her gently.

But he knew in his heart that this must be Meg proposing a promotion plan to her other Senior Generation colleagues.

With her time drawing near, she really has to take a gamble. If she gets any older, and time wears away her spirit and she becomes senile, then she'll have no chance at all.

But in this era, apart from the Eternal Pope, there is no Sixth Level. The Sixth Level is practically a myth... Only those ancient heroes who ascended to the rank of Apostle were able to reach that level.

Moreover, in that era, the connections between nations were not as close. Now, if Meg were to try to advance her career, others would certainly stop her—even the Full Moon Ritual, which emphasizes cooperation and prohibits attacks on each other, would be no exception.

Either no one will participate in the promotion, leaving her unable to gather enough people; or someone will participate but deliberately let her fail, causing her mission to fail. If six out of the nine form an alliance, the remaining three will essentially have no chance of completing the mission. Even if the remaining six cannot pass the level, working together can at least complete the minimum guarantee mission and at least save their lives.

Being able to safely kill three equally powerful individuals in one night without worrying about a counterattack is certainly a great deal.

At times like these, the disadvantages of relying on a single path become apparent.

Apart from Yanis, who had no intention of advancing to the Sixth Level, all the Fifth Level beings in Avalon followed the Path of Authority.

At most, we can borrow one teammate from the Theocracy to Dedication Path; otherwise, we can't find a single teammate in the entire country.

That's so pitiful.

Let's take another look at Xingti.

The Fifth Level of Star Antimony can at least be identified as three paths: Transcendence, Balance, and Twilight. Upon entering, they are seated in a triad, occupying a third of the space—a situation where a group of five couldn't possibly fit into a group of six, and with three people together, the ritual will undoubtedly revolve around them; it's impossible to replace any one of them.

The win rate of three people playing together against six random players is definitely different from Meg playing solo against eight—or seven—actors.

This is why Iver has been focusing on developing his teammates.

Isabel, Sherlock, David, Lily ... and even Yulia. Perhaps Edward or Hai Na ... but they both follow the Path of Authority, so one is enough.

The higher the level of the Promotion Ritual, the more difficult the storyline will be. At that point, it's not enough to just solve the storyline; you also have to be wary of unexpected backstabbing.

You need reliable teammates to focus on completing tasks and earning points.

However, the number of teammates for the New Moon Ritual should be limited to two. The Full Moon Ritual can have a maximum of five teammates, forming a six-person group.

If you have enough points for the Full Moon Ritual, you can at least survive even if you fail to advance; but the New Moon Ritual will eliminate six people, and failing at a high score means death... Iver doesn't want to send his friends to their ascension.

Lily can synergize with Shadow Fiend, and the Crescent New Moon Ritual will always occupy one slot. The remaining slot can be filled by Yulia or David.

So, her teammates for the Full Moon Ritual would be one of Isabel, Sherlock, Yulia, or David. And if we also include Edward or Hai Na ...

One more is needed. Iver thought to himself.

I just don't know where to find the remaining teammate.

He also understood why Meg had argued with them—because Meg's plans conflicted with the Queen's.

According to the Queen's plan, they don't need to do anything else. Once the ritual is complete, their ancestors can be resurrected. And because of this mission, Meg cannot be allowed to take any risks—she must survive until the ritual is fully completed.

According to Meg's plan, she wanted to start the promotion process as soon as possible. Promotion Ritual, making it even harder to get a spot the following month. Therefore, she had to start preparing as early as possible, but she herself didn't know when she could begin.

Although neither plan was feasible, they achieved a delicate balance...

This gave Iver a bit of a headache.

Which should he stop first? After much deliberation, Iver made up his mind.

—In short, let's find an excuse to get rid of Minister Drost first.

Meanwhile.

Because of the Prince's death, the elite forces of the entire Glass Island were concentrated in the Silver and Tin Palace.

Minister Drost, who was lying on the floor sleeping with the sheets pulled up, suddenly heard a rustling sound.

He suddenly woke up with a start—because there couldn't possibly be any sound in this room. This was a specially constructed building by the Bureau of Supervision, designed to instill fear in him.

He soon heard that the sound was coming from the ventilation duct.

The old minister stared intently at the ventilation ducts, his heart pounding with anxiety.

A little while later, a mouse crawled out from inside.

Minister Drost did not sigh in disappointment, but instead stared at the mouse.

In a flash of blood, the rat's flesh and blood shattered and then reformed, transforming into a naked, red-haired woman.

"Did you come to save me?"

The old man asked in a deep voice.

Although he didn't know the other person, he had a rough idea of who they were.

Noble Red – or rather, the online version of the Noble Red Society.

—The ""Rosy Cross" Society" Society of Xingti.

"His Majesty said... you cannot be captured alive."

The woman didn't answer directly, but said softly and seductively, "But whether or not to rescue you... depends on your value."

"I have very important information to report to His Majesty."

Minister Drost said very seriously, "It can directly reverse the current chaotic situation within Star Antimony."

"Oh?"

The woman raised an eyebrow. "Tell me about it?"

"I won't tell you. I'll tell His Majesty myself."

Old Drost stubbornly insisted, "I am a nobleman appointed by His Majesty—I have my own territory! You cannot kill me, you must save me!"

He feared that if he revealed the secret, the other party would kill him there and then steal his information to report as their own merit.

"Okay~".

The woman sighed wearily, "You Avalon are just full of problems."

As she spoke, she ran her fingers across her skin, as if unzipping a zipper from her chest to her lower abdomen.

Her flesh bulged and twisted, transforming into a face in the blink of an eye.

"What is it? Tell me."

A familiar, cold voice came from inside the woman's stomach. "I'm listening... It'd better not be a lie."

That was the very voice that Drost had heard when he spoke personally with the current King of Star Antimony through the ritual—the voice of His Majesty! He was immediately horrified—what kind of power was this?!

But Drost was, after all, a man of wide experience.

He was momentarily shocked, but quickly regained his composure and revealed the information he valued. "Meg's time is up," he replied, "She is preparing to advance to the Sixth Level to prolong her life."

"Is my time coming?"

The other person kept repeating that word.

She quickly sneered, "I can't tell at all. Didn't she say she eats fried chicken and drinks beer every day and has no illnesses? She's probably saying her condition is starting to decline... That makes sense, after all, she's getting older."

"This is useful intelligence—Blood Diamond. Let's rescue him and send him to his territory to set an example for the others... Tell them that working for us Stibnite Person won't be like the Iris People, who are used and then discarded."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The woman replied, "It is your will."

After saying that, she pulled her abdomen back up like a zipper.

Flesh and blood merged instantly, leaving only snow-white, taut skin, as if it had never been pulled apart.

"... How do you plan to get me out of here? By turning into a rat and crawling out like you?"

Realizing he was about to be saved and was useful enough to Star Antimony, Drost's mind began to race. "Can I go home again? I have some valuable collections... and some evidence to destroy."

"Do you even want to live?"

The woman said bluntly, "Shut up if you want to die—once you step out of here, you can no longer live in Avalon, so evidence and such are irrelevant. As for the collection... let the Noble Red take that stuff."

"... Then how do I get out?"

Drost thought about it and agreed, but he was still somewhat unwilling. "At least give me a piece of clothing..."

"What's there to be ashamed of, you're a grown man?"

The woman, also completely naked, crossed her arms and scoffed, "Getting out is easy too—"

"I'll have the Noble Red break in and rescue you. I'll meet you outside; the ship is ready. Anyway, the Grand Guardian isn't here, so it should be fine... probably."

She clearly didn't want the old man to keep staring at her.

The woman known as "Blood Diamond" shattered again, turned into a rat, and crawled back the way she came.

Update complete! I'd like to recommend a friend's new book, "The Times Matter."