Meeting Again, Ansu's Plan

[Reality]

[April 23, 625, Light Calendar, 23:00]

[Comment: Although you have yet to change the Fated Death, you are infinitely closer to the truth...]

[Rating: C]

[Reward: Points *40]

Opening his eyes once more, Ansu returned to the pitch-black alley under the cover of night.

This simulation was the longest he had survived, and the intelligence he had gathered was the most critical; after all, he had jumped straight to the scene of the Open Day.

Ansu glanced at Freya, who was keeping watch beside him.

Staying up late for several nights in a row had finally taken its toll on her; she stretched out her hand and let out a weary yawn.

After finishing, she noticed Ansu staring at her and her expression suddenly turned awkward.

"I'm sorry, Lord Ansu..." Freya tried her best to widen her eyes, "I will pull myself together!"

"You've worked hard these past few days." Ansu offered a grateful smile, "Tonight is the last time. You won't need to accompany me tomorrow, so you can get some good rest."

"Hm? Why stop the surveillance?" Freya blinked in confusion, "Is there no longer a problem with Bishop Terry?"

"No." Ansu shook his head, for he intended to resolve all problems tonight.

He gazed toward the distant Holy Dome Cathedral, which was shimmering with pale white lights.

Bishop Terry was still working in his office on the third floor; perhaps he was already secretly gathering men, preparing for the next day's operation.

Ansu recalled the scene from the simulation where Terry commanded the Inquisition. It seemed the opponent's goal was a "decapitation strike"—to lure out Samantha, the leader of the Echo of Truth Cult, and then kill her.

Ansu pondered silently. In truth, at this point in time, Samantha's influence was indeed greater than that of Cecilia.

Under her leadership, the Echo of Truth Cult had been locked in a struggle with The Church for nearly a century; Samantha was a figure the Church hated to the bone.

However, these people would never imagine...

That even if they got rid of Samantha, it would be useless. Her successor, Cecilia, would bring a far more terrifying and desperate gloom upon the Church...

Ansu pulled back his wandering thoughts. The truth had basically surfaced, and as for how to solve it, it was actually quite simple.

That was to directly eliminate Bishop Terry himself.

"Freya, go and notify Bishop Paul now. Tell him to bring more men..."

Ansu gave her a meeting point, "We will rendezvous at that abandoned inn later."

"Oh... okay!"

Freya didn't know why Ansu was calling so many people, but seeing his calm expression, she figured Lord Ansu must have everything planned out with masterful strategy.

Perhaps tonight... they could finally dig out that villain from the Church!

After Freya hurried away.

Ansu pulled out a small pendant-like accessory. This was the magic tool Cecilia had given him, which allowed him to communicate with her from a great distance.

[Communication Amulet]

This item could only transmit brief messages. Ansu dared not cast spells outside the Church, so he only contacted Cecilia after putting some distance between himself and the Holy Dome Cathedral.

But he had barely spoken two sentences to Cecilia... when a circle of pale blue magic teleportation runes suddenly lit up in the alley.

Following that, the lazy and graceful figure of Cecilia gradually appeared.

She also let out a slow yawn, "Why did you call me over? Is there a situation on your end?"

Ansu looked nervously at the distant cathedral, his tone quite helpless.

"Lady Witch, could you... not cast teleportation spells so close to the Church next time?"

"What are you afraid of?" Cecilia chuckled, "I am still quite confident in my magic level. Do you believe I could cast magic at the very gates of the cathedral without them noticing?"

"Amazing, truly amazing..." Ansu was already used to the prideful and show-offy Scum Witch.

He observed Cecilia before him once again.

Although Cecilia knew nothing of what had happened in the "future," nor did she know what Ansu had promised her, Ansu's state of mind had changed significantly.

Fortunately, the witch didn't know what he had said to her in the simulation. Thinking about it now, it was quite cringey and embarrassing...

There won't be a next time!

"Why do you keep staring at me?" Cecilia looked at Ansu suspiciously. Ever since she arrived today, this guy had been staring at her face.

"Uh..." Ansu coughed awkwardly, "It's nothing..."

"What, haven't seen me for a day and you're already missing me?" Cecilia said with a playful smile.

Ansu nodded, "A day without you feels like three autumns. My heart misses you every moment, Lady Witch."

Cecilia froze for a moment, then gave Ansu a massive eye-roll.

"Why is your mouth so sweet today? This isn't like you. Do you have something to hide?"

Ansu is acting really strange today...

I get the feeling he has something on his mind, yet he's unwilling to tell me.

Cecilia narrowed her eyes, continuously sizing up the silent Ansu. It looks like I'll have to find a time to use Hypnosis on him again and ask what's going on...

After telling Cecilia his plan to deal with Bishop Terry, Ansu also shared his deductions with her.

"I suspect Bishop Terry is colluding with an elder from the Echo of Truth Cult, intending to act against the Witch's teacher."

Upon hearing this, those beautiful deep purple eyes blinked.

Cecilia's expression was slightly surprised, "How does this involve my teacher? Where did you get this intelligence?"

"It's like this." Ansu was already well-versed in weaving fake intelligence in front of her, "Over the past two days, Freya and I have been tailing Terry. We discovered that he was indeed in contact with a mysterious person in the Black Port District. After I went in alone to investigate, I found that this person not only uses magic but is also a colleague from our cult!"

Seeing Cecilia's focused expression, he continued, "This cult colleague is just a low-level operative; his superior should be a member of the Council of Elders. I used Shadow Stealth and hid for a long time, eavesdropping on his conversation."

"He seems to be in contact with an elder named Simon..."

"Simon?" Cecilia frowned instantly.

Ansu noticed that her reaction to hearing this name was just as subtle as it had been in the simulation.

"Is there a problem with this Elder Simon?" Ansu asked, feigning curiosity.

"You could consider this Elder Simon to be my teacher's lover; he is a confidant she trusts quite a bit." Cecilia sneered, "I really didn't expect him to betray her too."

"It seems the internal strife within the Echo of Truth Cult is quite severe, if even those close to Elder Samantha can be turned." Ansu remarked silently.

He subconsciously thought of the three papal candidates; the infighting between the three bishops was almost a mirror image. These two organizations, one righteous and one evil, were truly rushing toward each other...

"Humans are always good at infighting!" Cecilia scoffed, "Even if the apocalypse left only three people alive, they would still split into two factions."

"The Witch has quite a prejudice against us humans..." Ansu chuckled, "As a member of the Demon race, which is also a sentient species, I don't believe they don't have their own infighting."

"Perhaps..." Cecilia pursed her lips, no longer dwelling on that, and instead explained the two factions within the cult to Ansu, "It's time to tell you about the complex situation inside the organization. Hall, whom I burned to death last time, and other elders like Kori among them, belong to the Reformist Faction of the Echo of Truth Cult."

"The Reformist Faction?" Ansu really wasn't clear about the state of the Echo of Truth Cult at this time. After all, by the time the game timeline began, the elders who refused to obey had almost all been killed by Cecilia...

It didn't matter what faction you were in; when you met the 'King Daxi' Witch of World Destruction, none of it mattered. Kill, kill, kill, kill!

Cecilia had used 'physical' means to prevent the cult from splitting.

"Yes." Cecilia nodded, "Members of this faction are dedicated to reshaping order and focus more on secular power, hoping to restore the glory of the magic empire of the previous era by some means. Therefore, they are constantly plotting subversion in various countries across the continent."

"They also have the most supporters, because the benefits they provide are indeed tangible and visible."

"As for the other faction, that would be my teacher Samantha's side." Cecilia continued, "They are known as the Truth Faction. They are more fundamentalist, believing that the purpose of the cult's existence is magic—to explore the truth of the world and obtain the great power of the gods."

"After the Great Magic Collapse, the Truth Faction has been dedicated to solving the backlash issues of high-level magic. Because of this, these elderly mages mostly bury themselves in endless ancient texts. Although their numbers are smaller, their strength should not be underestimated."

"Hmm... I think I understand." Ansu nodded, "One side has money, the other side can fight."

"Something like that." Cecilia looked at Ansu and asked with a smile, "Looking at you, you already have a plan, right? What are you going to do next?"

"Next..." Ansu narrowed his eyes, "I'm going to set a trap."