I Will Definitely Survive

Bishop Mathers's proposal was quickly rejected by Iver.

Imprisoning Master Nobel would not benefit them at all— Alchemy Potion are just medicine in the hands of others, but in the hands of alchemists they can have unique effects.

And now, they need manpower. Neither Iver nor Isabel rejected the Equilibrium Path, so they could accept help from the Strangers.

After calming Bishop Mathers down, Iver obtained the fragments of the Red Hilt Sword from him.

With the familiar weapon back in his hands, Iver felt much more at ease.

So Iver went to Isabel again and told her about the arrangements to come.

"It's time to get going," Iver said seriously. "Take Shafiya with you, and my father— Oswald will ultimately have to protect him, and he can protect you along with him. Diomedes is yours too; take them all with you..."

"Originally, you would have encountered danger on your way to the Theocracy. But that was based on the assumption that Ms. Shafiya was dead and we were going to the Theocracy alone. Now that we have rescued Shafiya, with her protection, you probably won't have too many problems. I plan to have Bishop Mathers and Master Nobel accompany you as well... Sherlock and I will stay here. I will keep an eye on him."

"... And what about you?"

Isabel looked at Iver, but simply asked in return, "Do you really have to perform the Shadow of Avalon Ritual?"

They are becoming increasingly in sync, Isabel has already guessed what Iver wants to do.

When Iver suddenly mentioned the Shadow of Avalon Ritual, Isabel sensed something was wrong.

"You told me, didn't you? That ritual was problematic."

Isabel tried to stop Iver: "If you want to secure your promotion... all we need to do is expose that fake Sherlock, right?"

"I think your father seems to have guessed that this is a Promotion Ritual. By hinting, we might be able to get him to help us get rid of that troublesome 'advisor'."

"The advisor has to be killed."

Iver replied, "If I were to die simply from being exposed, my soul would be damaged, but I wouldn't necessarily die. So I plan to kill him more thoroughly."

"In that case, he will either suffer severe damage to his soul or die directly as a result. Either way, he won't retain enough memories... Our previous acting, although flawless so far, will be exposed once he realizes that Iver is ' The Fox ' or Isabel is ' Lu Lu '."

"... You mean, the one at the end of the Promotion Ritual..."

Isabel realized what was happening.

The "highlights" segment will likely include Isabel and Iver.

"But what if he tells these details to his two students?"

Isabel had a new question.

"No," Iver affirmed. "They can't remember so much. Because I didn't directly reveal any secrets. What we said must be analyzed in conjunction with real-world intelligence to yield useful results. If he had just given the students the original text, they would have missed a sentence or two, and the meaning would have been completely different. Besides, they don't have the authority to access Avalon's secrets, nor do they have enough experience and life experience to analyze them independently."

"That's why he'll definitely hand over the summarized intelligence to them. And even if he mentions our affairs, as long as he silences them, there will be no way to prove it."

"... After all, it's four days, right?"

Isabel understood. "If they don't want to be exposed, they can't write these things down. So in the end, they won't be able to remember much information; it will all be a summary."

"That's right."

Iver nodded. "However, I don't intend to drag the ceremony into the fourth day... I plan to finish the Promotion Ritual on the second day."

"You've taken Drunken Dream Tincture, haven't you? Dreams should last for four days, right?"

Isabel asked with some concern, "Is your dream unstable? Should I go to the Theocracy at full speed?"

"I ate, I'm fine. I was just thinking about something else..."

Iver sighed helplessly, "If it were any other Pillar God, I wouldn't have any objections... but this is a stage created by the Lord of Scales and Feathers."

As a pastor, his primary area of expertise is theology.

He was certainly aware of the differences in personality and personal preferences among these Pillar God.

The Lord of Scales and Feathers enjoys watching stories of mortals surviving hardships and dangers.

A little girl who survived a fire despite being severely burned all over her body; a soldier who survived a dozen gunshot wounds and multiple limb injuries during wartime; Hunter struggled to survive the cold and hunger caused by heavy snow or drought, leading those around him to live...

These people may receive the blessing of the Lord of Scales and Feathers and become His apostles.

He is the God who faces danger head-on, tastes suffering, and sings praises of hope.

"Adaptation" is not about escaping, but about overcoming. Like the principle of "bionics," it is a victory for the weak.

This can be seen from the character of his apostle, Akropolis —this savior, commonly known as the "medic," would equally save all those who wished to be saved. He would often appear on the battlefield as a dove to save soldiers with a strong will to live; occasionally, he would transform into a sparrow to kiss terminally ill patients, granting those who, despite their terminal illness, still strived to live a miracle of life.

Given the Lord of Scales and Feathers's personality, this ritual will either escalate further or present dangers that require courage to overcome. And nowhere is absolutely safe.

Iver saved so many people so that Isabel could reach the Theocracy safely.

Iver, however, planned to stay on Glass Island until the very end.

"If it drags on to the last day, it will be very dangerous for me. So I hope you can arrive in the Theocracy before dawn on the third day. But it's best not to rush, because I still need to look for Olive. Or rather, I need to wait for Olive to find me."

Iver looked at Isabel intently. "Although we go through the Promotion Ritual to receive the blessing of the Pillar God and increase our 'rank,' the Promotion Ritual is essentially still for 'simulation.'"

"Since it's a simulation, it's natural to test things that can't be tested in the real world. Take the ' Shadow of Avalon ' for example. I can't use the Queen's Blood to perform the ritual myself, so I need the help of other ritual masters. I don't know what will happen after the Shadow of Avalon is completed... so I plan to complete the ritual at dusk tomorrow, and you will enter the Theocracy after dark."

Iver instructed Isabel: "We'll split up. We can't contact each other, so we'll have to rely on our understanding. That's why I can't let anyone else stay here for me... I can only feel at ease if I stay here myself; and I can only feel at ease if you control the timing of our trip to the Theocracy."

"... Indeed, Olive is Master Ibn, isn't he?"

Isabel has finally made up her mind.

If Olive were anyone else, Iver would never have trusted him so much, nor would he have revealed the secret of the Shadow of Avalon to him.

"Yes," Iver nodded slowly, "The only problem is that this plan will leave Professor Ibn in a dangerous place. But I will do my best to protect him..."

"—You must protect yourself, Iver."

Isabel interrupted Iver and said with utmost seriousness.

Knowing that Iver still had his own people around him, Isabel relaxed a little.

She joked, then whispered, "Don't forget... we have a date tomorrow night. You have to survive, Iver."

"No Promotion Ritual is ever absolutely safe... but I'm sure I'll survive."

Iver smiled and said, "After all, I'm not completely alone. At least Lia is still with me."

"Who is Lia?" Isabel asked warily.

"The Paradox Flame Butterfly. That's the name I just gave her. Does it sound nice?"

"It's alright."

Isabel vaguely glossed over the topic.

She then asked, "Do you know how the Shadow of Avalon Ritual is performed? Do you want me to tell you?"

Although she still felt uneasy, she chose to trust Iver.

Silver Crowned Dragon, Twin Mirrors...

I hope you can look after Iver. May he be safe and sound.

"Then we'll need... Lu Lu's dedicated teaching."

Iver grabbed Isabel's wrist and whispered a soft laugh in her ear.

But in reality, Iver wasn't as calm as he appeared.

The dungeon created by the Lord of Scales and Feathers himself... is definitely not that simple.

He wasn't worried about his own side. He could survive no matter what; at worst, he could give up the Shadow of Avalon Ritual. This was just an experiment, and also a way to rack up points. But when it came to the safety of himself and his friends, he knew what he had to choose.

Everything seems to be going smoothly so far, but that's all thanks to Iver's intelligence advantage, which allowed him to choose the best possibility in every event.

But what about Isabel...?

Iver could only do his best, passing on all the teammates he found and rescued to her.

"I beseech the Lord of Scales and Feathers, the God of the Sacred Number Six. The God of Scaled Feathers, the God of a thousand garments and myriad appearances..."

Iver silently prayed, "I hope Isabel will be safe and sound."

And at that very moment.

Within a section of the Dream Realm, nine transparent souls sat on marble chairs, heads bowed, and entered a dream within a dream.

Akropolis stood in the middle of them, idly playing with the small snake on his staff, occasionally glancing at their progress.

He suddenly narrowed his eyes.

"—Please stop, Miss Enyo."

Akropolis said slowly.

Not far away, a red-haired girl clad in light armor and covered in blood quietly appeared.

Wielding an invisible hammer formed from a hurricane, she made her way toward Iver's spirit, leaving a trail of blood with each step.

When she appeared, a storm filled with the smell of blood swept around her.

Stop.

Akropolis warned again.

He raised the serpent staff in his hand and looked coldly at Bear Angel's apostle, "The City Breaker" Enyo.

I don't want to say it a third time.