The Light Without a Source Lasted Only an Instant

As a Third Level priest, Iver was well aware of the Queen's physical condition.

As veteran Fifth Level Transcendent, Ligeia and Yanis could easily sense their old best friend's weakened life force.

After this fall asleep, Queen Sophia will most likely not wake up forever... but she will probably never regain consciousness.

In other words, she did not use her last and most precious moments of lucidity to leave any last words, make any requests to entrust her children to others, or even whisper anything to her own granddaughter, Isabel, or reminisce about her girlhood alone... Instead, she spent them chatting idly with Iver and the others about trivial family matters.

Yanis looked up at Iver.

Of the three, only one had never chatted so relaxedly and naturally with relatives or elders.

Ligeia, as Meg, was not an orphan; she also had parents. Furthermore, she had a first love, a griffin companion, and a husband. Yanis, as Pure-Blood Elf from the Theocracy, also had a happy childhood.

Only Iver.

He had never chatted so intimately with a female elder, nor had he ever had the opportunity to act coquettishly with one. He had never been confused, nor dared to be confused; he had never been willful, nor had he had the opportunity to be.

It's probably...

Sofia must have felt sorry for her.

Yanis thought to herself.

Would you choose a gentler approach?

The elven painter spoke, asking Iver in a soft voice.

She didn't say anything specific directly. But everyone present knew what she meant.

—Those who spread "rumors" with the intention of targeting Iver.

"Won't."

Iver answered without hesitation, "It is precisely for the sake of Avalon's survival that we must take this opportunity to eliminate the toxins."

"I intend to completely change the entire Avalon, to make these people cease to exist... and for this, I hope Miss Ligeia can help me."

Hearing this, Ligeia smiled with relief.

Perhaps Meg in the past would not have supported Iver because of her conservative views, but now, as Ring Angel's Contractor, Ligeia is destined to constantly transform and change.

"Everything is easy, but ease is not easy."

Ligeia nodded slightly. "It's time for Avalon to change."

"Tell us your plan. Let us check it out for you first."

Iver nodded and began to explain his plan to the group.

His plan was simple.

Since these people have gone to great lengths to prove the existence of "Miss Aleister," Iver naturally wouldn't try to argue with them to prove that Aleister didn't exist.

All he needed to do was act as a victim, a detective, and uncover "evidence of Aleister's collusion with those knights."

How can this be done? What a joke.

—That's Aleister, isn't that easy to handle?

If Ligeia can confirm it herself, then it's irrefutable! If he really knows Aleister, Iver might consider the harm this would cause her. But can't "Miss Aleister" herself create evidence related to herself? After all, Iver and Aleister are two different people, something they went through a lot of trouble to prove.

... Of course, not long ago, Iver actually had another plan.

That was the thought that popped into his head as he was on his way to the Silver and Tin Palace, pondering how to handle the matter.

He had also considered acting as regent, either openly or covertly, to replace Isabel in wielding power.

He believed that Isabel would not reject him, and Yanis would also approve of him. Among those powerful figures of the "Senior Generation," some might support Iver, and some might remain silent, but at least none would openly oppose him.

If that were the case, he wouldn't need to eliminate these people so thoroughly.

Isabel is difficult to manage, but Iver is much easier to control.

Because those people are inherently cowardly and profit-driven, possessing both flaws and desires.

Once Iver gained power, these people would be easier to control—if he could manipulate these ministers from behind the scenes, it would be tantamount to indirectly controlling the Round Table Hall. In essence, this meant that Iver had completed a behind-the-scenes dictatorship over Avalon.

That is what Lloyd's's once wanted to do.

This is certainly simpler than directly reorganizing Avalon's superstructure.

At that time, naturally no one would dare to oppose Isabel.

Because that would mean directly confronting Iver behind her.

Iver's ability to rule was certainly superior to that of Isabel and those "knight" families. He watched from above, while everyone below was secretly controlled by him—in a sense, this was an extremely efficient form of government.

... However, Iver had neither the energy nor the desire for power to govern a country. He came up with this plan simply because he was afraid of trouble, and it was the plan with the fewest variables.

In any case, once the Celestials descend, the territories of various countries will basically be torn apart by these Celestials who have seized power in their own domains. So why not just max out military spending and borrow a large sum of money from merchants to train an army of extraordinary individuals? Then, after the Celestials descend and Star Antimony is fragmented, this money can be used to annex, occupy, and plunder the unclaimed territories of Star Antimony.

The Stibnite Person's self-proclaimed claim came in handy at that time.

In times of chaos, take advantage of the confusion to kill your creditor, and you won't have to pay back the money. After that, everything will be alright.

Although Avalon's economic situation may deteriorate rapidly in the next two years, it will become the safest place after the Avalon. Once the first wave of Celestials ends, Avalon's territory will expand at least three times. The almost ruined Star Antimony and the Iris, completely ruled by the Child of the Moon, will not be as attractive to talent as the future Avalon or Camelot.

From a utilitarian perspective, this is undoubtedly the most convenient, worry-free, and efficient "national salvation plan".

... But in essence, this kind of "saving the country" is actually stealing the country.

Queen Sophia will certainly become an apostle of the Crown Prince in the future.

The conversion to apostleship will not be completed immediately, but as a pastor, Iver will certainly have the opportunity to see her again in the future.

Even if he sensed that Her Majesty the Queen's words implied "If he is not capable, you may take it yourself"... if he actually did such a thing, he would have no face to see this elder whom he felt so kind and respected.

It was precisely this imbalance in the path Path of Transcendence that caused Iver's thinking to become extreme.

His dedication and transcendence both belong to the Third Level, but the Path of Transcendence takes absolute initiative—this is actually a deviation. Just as Yanis, as a transcendent being of balance and beauty, experienced a deviation in the Path of Twilight.

However, the path she deviated from was a new path that she had never completed before, while Iver's path deviated from the one he had already walked, which is why he was not seriously injured.

Humans are a race with Nine Great Paths of affinity. In any situation, a momentary deviation from one of these paths can give rise to a fleeting thought—perhaps an inclination towards dedication, authority, transcendence, or twilight. But in any case, these are thoughts that "these people were always likely to have."

This is undoubtedly part of Iver's thinking. It's a reasonable thought that he would naturally have as an HR professional and as a Paradox Interactive player, rather than "an inappropriate idea popping into his head."

Normally, these thoughts are quickly suppressed by the affinity of other paths due to reasons such as "reason," "morality," and "constraints." However, when he is seriously deviating from Path of Transcendence, these thoughts become very difficult to suppress by other paths.

Like a gluttonous and lustful person, if they walk other paths, they will at most remain at the stage of empty talk. But if they are extraordinary on the Path of Love, or if they strongly lean towards the Path of Love when multiple paths are compatible, they are very likely to put the thought into practice after it has only been in their mind for a moment.

Now that he has regained consciousness, Iver can't help but feel a little scared.

"... Perhaps it was because I had completed two Promotion Ritual that the resonance from the Ring Angel did not cause me to lose control directly."

Iver thought to himself.

Each completed Promotion Ritual signifies adapting to the Path Power. While it may subtly alter one's personality, the changes are not as pronounced.

The Queen may have realized that Iver was not in a good state, which is why she used the last of her lucid moments to help Iver alleviate his overflowing desire for transcendence.

Just like the way of "surpassing," one must not only actively surpass others, but also have the magnanimity to accept being surpassed by others.

The path of selfless dedication also requires truly accepting the kindness and love from others. Only then can one truly understand how to bestow that warmth upon others.

Iver was adopted and protected by his adoptive father, received help from his older brother, and witnessed Yulia being protected and treated by his adoptive father... That's why he subconsciously wanted to protect the people around him, help his classmates, and treat those who had been hurt.

Give back the kindness you have received to others.

A spark ignites another spark, and light sustains light.

This is precisely the core concept of the Dedication Path.

In a daze, Iver suddenly understood why priests had to learn the art of "fire worship".

He gained a deeper understanding of the Dedication Path.

It's not just that the depleted life force needs to be replenished; the life force replenished by the candlelight is also to help the priests understand that "simply giving is not enough to sustain life."

The light without a source exists only for a fleeting moment.

How can someone who has never been loved openly and sustainably love others?

—This warmth and love that Iver had never felt before was a true gift from the Queen to Iver.

Update complete! I slept for eleven hours today, and I didn't feel uncomfortable when I woke up.

We've finally recovered...