Telephone Game

In the living room of the Moriarty Manor, everyone gathered around Master Nobel.

The Court Alchemist's successful escape... some were delighted, while others became wary.

Just as the consultant had predicted—

At this moment, the nationality of Master Nobel seems less favorable.

He was, after all, from Star Antimony. His departure from Star Antimony was solely due to a conflict with the then-ruling Royal Alchemy Association. Today, those former leaders have long since passed away, and the current Star Antimony Royal Alchemy Association holds Master Nobel in high esteem, having repeatedly invited him back to the country.

Avalon ultimately lacked an academic atmosphere.

It could be said that Nobel remains in Avalon partly because the old man is still resentful about what happened back then, but more importantly, it's because his several explosives and gunpowder companies in Avalon are quite profitable. Today, Nobel is a top businessman in Avalon.

If he leaves Avalon and returns to Star Antimony, his work in Avalon will inevitably be targeted.

From this perspective, he was essentially stuck. At least from a personal point of view, it would be quite normal for Nobel to stay in Avalon —although the lack of an academic atmosphere would make promotion difficult, it wouldn't significantly affect his research career.

After all, the royal family of Avalon was very friendly to him.

In the early stages of his research, Queen Sophia provided him with ample funding and facilities. Now he can even freely enter and leave the Silver and Tin Palace, and has built more than thirty factories and research institutes in various regions of Avalon. The filing of various experiments is basically approved as soon as the documents are submitted.

"—Therefore, it is impossible for me to betray Her Majesty the Queen."

The stranger frowned, arguing forcefully. "How many alchemists are there on Star Antimony? How many are there in Avalon? The ' Master Nobel ' is undoubtedly the number one in Avalon, but if I return to Star Antimony, then I'll be just one of countless 'excellent alchemists.' I know how to choose..."

In fact, under such immense pressure, he was already somewhat afraid.

The fact that Ms. Shafiya's eyes were glowing white was especially alarming to the stranger.

Even though he didn't have a deep understanding of Path of Authority, he knew that those in positions of Path of Authority were capable of using lie detectors. He could only speak what he believed to be the truth—if he said anything against his conscience, it would be immediately detected.

... But this was truly an undeserved disaster.

The stranger felt very wronged.

He had reviewed his own introductory script and knew that Nobel truly had nothing to do with this matter. However, he couldn't explain it clearly.

After the Stibnite Person arrived in Avalon, some of them did indeed visit Nobel. They hoped to bring him back to Star-Antimonics and told him that Valentine VII valued his research. But Nobel resolutely refused.

But Stranger never expected that Ms. Shafiya knew about this—her inspector had witnessed it yesterday and reported it in a letter. And now, Star Antimony's actions were tantamount to declaring war on Avalon, and Nobel had actually followed Isabel to her side... So the whole situation instantly took a turn for the worse.

"Please say it that way, Master Nobel— "

Shafiya's expression was serious. "'I had absolutely nothing to do with Her Majesty the Queen's assassination attempt. I did not reveal any secret information to the Stibnite Person, nor did I provide them with any assistance.'"

So the stranger repeated Shafiya's words.

As a result, Shafiya's aura weakened slightly.

The stranger was so frightened that he broke out in a sweat.

He also regretted it a little—he should have known better than to come.

But looking at it now, it seems like we've passed the test...

However, his appearance seemed somewhat incongruous with the supposedly strong and aloof Master Nobel.

The stranger couldn't help but speak again, trying to salvage his image and avoid giving himself away. "That's right, Xingti is my homeland. I still have deep feelings for Xingti, but..."

"—But you are just as loyal to Her Majesty Queen Sophia as I am. Isn't that right?"

Sherlock's cold voice came from the side, interrupting the stranger's words.

Seeing that Sherlock had regained his spirits, Shafiya's eyes lit up, and she stopped talking and turned to ask, "Are you alright, Sherlock?"

"Thank you for your concern, Ms. Shafiya. His Excellency's healing skills are quite excellent."

Sherlock nodded reservedly, then turned back to take a closer look at the Master Nobel.

"It shouldn't be a big problem," he said, "But just in case... let me ask him myself."

"Do you need me to come along?"

Shafiya asked in a friendly manner.

She clearly trusted Sherlock a great deal.

After politely declining, Sherlock led Master Nobel back to Iver's bedroom.

He stirred a gentle breeze with his fingertips, and an invisible wave of air swirled and spread—a soundproof barrier, simulated by magic, instantly unfolded.

The next moment, Sherlock's eyes suddenly turned fierce.

Sherlock's leisurely and rational tone suddenly turned sarcastic. "Mr. Lore, our great genius. Your operation went very smoothly, finding Isabel so quickly... but why have you become so passive? Hmm? Do you like being passive? I heard you became someone's Blood Slave during your last Promotion Ritual —did you become so passive that you developed some kind of addiction, so you specifically learned how to serve others? What, do you want me to extract your soul and give you a girl's body?"

"...teacher."

Upon hearing the familiar voice, the stranger immediately recognized the person before him.

He completely deflated. "I'm sorry, I just..."

"—What would you have done if I hadn't come out?"

"Sherlock" interrupted the stranger again.

He narrowed his eyes, his tone stern. "Honorary Lord Albert Lore, answer me. What were you trying to achieve with those last two sentences?"

"... I just felt that I was too submissive before. It didn't quite fit the personality of Master Nobel. If everyone calmed down and realized something was wrong, they might notice. So I wanted to correct my image a bit..."

"—Adding feet to a snake."

The advisor interrupted him again with a primordial idiom.

He snorted coldly and chuckled, "It's like trying to make a foolish attempt to cover up something you said wrong to someone of the opposite sex. Little do they know that the more they try to explain, the more infuriating it becomes."

"Our great genius really lacks experience in interacting with people."

"... Yes, teacher."

The stranger opened his mouth, then subconsciously wanted to say something in his defense.

But remembering what the consultant had just said, he swallowed back the explanation he was about to give and obediently nodded in apology.

"Snort."

The consultant was very satisfied with the performance of the stranger.

His attitude toward the youngest son of the Lore family was very complicated.

On one hand, he felt an uncontrollable jealousy towards his genius student... He believed that Mo Ke had a chance to reach the Fifth Level before the age of thirty, and even a chance to reach the legendary Sixth Level.

On the other hand, he genuinely cared deeply for the stranger. The consultant sincerely wanted to protect him and guide him earnestly... because he truly didn't want this qualification to go to waste or lead him astray.

At the same time, his inner jealousy and fear made him hope that the stranger would always respect him.

"Listen carefully, great genius," the advisor said seriously, "That Bishop Mathers you encountered is most likely a ' Fox '."

"...Why?"

"Because in this world, Iver and Isabel's relationship isn't that good. Their relationship has never been made public. They can't even be considered friends; at most, they can only be described as collaborators."

The advisor answered without hesitation, "Only those who have risen through the ranks from outside, like us, would believe that Iver and Isabel are lovers. That's the image they've always presented."

"I see... So, shall we cooperate with him?"

The stranger nodded, then suddenly realized, "He's a pastor—don't we need a pastor?"

"You don't need to... did you bring your medicine?"

"I brought it."

"Then we don't need to. The potions you brought are enough for healing. There probably won't be any undead that need to be exorcised by a priest during this ritual. Bringing him along might increase our chances of being exposed."

At this point, the advisor reminded him, "Also, I have some information for you. We'll separate our memories and write them down immediately after leaving the Promotion Ritual. Afterwards, I need to find ' Olive,' and we may part ways soon. If you see Aurora, remember to give her this information as well."

The same piece of information is given to multiple people to remember... This is to minimize the impact of memory lapses.

The stranger understood the consultant's intention and nodded.

While the details of the world created by the Pillar God may Promotion Ritual due to specific variables, the details outside of those variables are the same as those of the real world. It is essentially a special, one-time simulation environment.

This is why, regardless of whether the Promotion Ritual's script is set in the past or the future, it can provide some useful references—though not necessarily 100% accurate. But this information is certainly something they cannot obtain through normal channels.

"First of all, the relationship between Iver and Isabel is actually very tense. They may indeed be lovers, but they are essentially a power couple because they are both very strong-willed, which makes it difficult for them to get along, and this is also our opportunity."

"Queen Isabel is indeed a skilled performer, and she is ruthless and extremely aggressive. Iver is someone we can turn to, and if something happens to Star Antimony, we can try to move the Spirit Tower into Avalon."

"Furthermore, the Avalon royal family possesses a ritual called ' Shadow of Avalon,' which is why Queen Sophia has remained silent about the curse—it's a necessary condition for the ritual to activate. This ritual can resurrect Lancelot I, Sixth Level being, under special conditions. We need to investigate this ritual. The following are the known conditions of the ritual..."

The consultant carefully handed over all the intelligence he had gathered to Stranger.

"Iver and Queen Isabel are not on the same side. If there is danger at the Spirit Tower, just go to Iver. We must seriously investigate the Shadow of Avalon Ritual..."

Meanwhile, the stranger listened quietly, his lips moving silently as he read aloud quickly to reinforce the key points he had summarized.

Stranger possesses unique skills in recalling information from the Dream Realm —he used this method to transmit Valentine I's experience back during his last Promotion Ritual. In this respect, he is even more adept than his teachers and advisors.

Too many details to remember, so we can only summarize the key points. Remember the key points first, then the details.

Compared to things that are only thought through or seen, memories are clearer when "said aloud".

"Okay, I've remembered these three most important points!" The stranger felt much more at ease.

At least these most important pieces of information, Mo Ke is certain he will never forget!