Outside Hibiscus Town, on the road.
" Xilǐ'er, don't you find that strange?"
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang], riding on the back of the Hoofed Beast, his body rising and falling, looked at Xilǐ'er, who was as steady as Mount Tai, and asked.
Tell me about it.
Xilǐ'er was not surprised by the question; he looked at the player with an encouraging gaze.
This was clearly a sign that he himself was aware of it.
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] thought for a moment and said:
"I think this fat guy named Alter is a bit too smooth in his words and actions, even a little unpleasant..."
He scratched his head and said:
"In reality... well, in my past memories, he looked like an actor who overacted."
"Well, third-rate actors overact, second-rate actors perform well, and first-rate actors don't seem to be acting at all."
I think he's somewhere between third-rate and second-rate.
Xilǐ'er had never heard such a description before. The word "actor" was a compound word in the Kingdom's language, and although he had never heard it before, he could understand it to some extent.
Nobles have always been fond of entertainers, and he quickly grasped the meaning behind this description.
Xilǐ'er nodded:
"I think so too."
"Ah?"
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] paused for a moment and said:
"Then why don't you expose him?"
Xilǐ'er explained:
"Firstly, overacting doesn't necessarily mean that Alter has a secret; he might just be too afraid of death."
Secondly, he didn't seem to be so resistant to the Second Holy See; he even seemed to have some expectations for it.
"Thirdly, even if he really has a problem, our fastest solution right now is to march directly to Golden Leaf City and force the Archbishop of the Yiluo'en Province to take a stand. That way, Alter will openly choose sides."
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] pondered Xilǐ'er's words:
"I still feel he's hiding something, and what he's hiding... might be in the church."
"As an Stained Ones, he so eagerly demonstrated the security of his parish and even showed the collapsed underground prison."
"But why did the underground prison collapse? The existence of the Stained Ones is no secret, and Alter has no right to help the Stained Ones conceal anything. Moreover, outsiders can't even get to the underground area. Theoretically, there's no need to destroy it unless it's to hide a bigger secret. That's where I think he really went too far."
"You mean, I think I understand."
Xilǐ'er looked at the Soul Returner with an approving expression:
"So what do you want to do now?"
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] turned his head and looked in the direction of Hibiscus Town, asking:
" Xilǐ'er, if you were to rush back to the church right now at top speed, how long would it take?"
The knight turned his head, closed one eye, estimated the distance, and asked:
"Shall we go through the main gate?"
"You don't have to leave."
That will be soon.
What if you take me with you?
How are you feeling?
"Very durable."
"That won't have a big impact."
Let's go.
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] revealed a playful smile:
Let's launch a surprise attack.
Xilǐ'er looked at him with slight surprise:
"This is the first time I've heard of this. Let's go."
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] asked:
"So what do I need to do now?"
Xilǐ'er let the Soul Returner mount his horse, then took the wooden staff Ed had given him, holding one end himself and letting the Soul Returner hold the other:
"Be prepared for the impact."
" Radish!"
The knight donned his helmet and gave a low shout, and a deep blue light immediately emanated from the armor of his warhorse.
The sound of hooves pounding the ground was like thunder, Radish entered a frenzied state, accelerating wildly.
Sitting in the "back seat," [Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] felt a tremendous force coming from below. Without stirrups, he was about to be thrown off the horse by the sudden acceleration, which reminded him of many physics problems he had done in high school.
Fortunately, he was holding Xilǐ'er's wooden staff tightly, which allowed him to maintain a steady pace and avoid the tragedy of man and horse separating.
The Radish was like a sports car with the accelerator pedal pressed into the gas tank; it reached its maximum speed in just a few breaths.
The priests and guards at the gate of Hibiscus Town saw them turn back and, before they could even realize what had happened, their checkpoint had been breached. They could only stand there dumbfounded.
The scenery around them rushed past, and the Hibiscus Town Church came into view in front of them.
This time, Xilǐ'er showed no politeness whatsoever, patting Radish with a gesture he had been trained to use, and the magnificent warhorse leaped into the air.
Xilǐ'er accomplished the separation of centaur in mid-air, his metal wings unfurling instantly. With a powerful flick of his hands, he flung the other end of the wooden staff, the Soul Returner, towards the glass window of the church, which had been raised to the next floor.
That was Alter Art's study.
"Bang!"
[Kunjinkao Tangtangtang] crashed into the church like a meteor hammer. Xilǐ'er used the metal wings formed from his armor to slightly control his forward direction, and followed closely behind in a more elegant posture that allowed him to enter battle mode more quickly.
"Bang!"
Meanwhile, Alter watched the two disappear outside the city gates of Hibiscus Town, then turned and opened a hidden door behind another bookshelf.
He didn't Ignite any lamps or use any fluorescent plants as an aid; he stepped straight into the dark underground space, a task he was already extremely adept at.
After walking along the dimly lit tunnel for several dozen seconds, a rustling sound came from ahead.
" Sean, Borg, Moore... are you all alright?"
As Alter called out, the rustling in the darkness became more pronounced, and some dark objects that had been hiding in the corners began to move slowly.
Soon, a crowd of dozens of people gathered in front of Alter.
These people hiding in the darkness all had one thing in common: they were young. Even the tallest one among them was only seventeen or eighteen years old.
Facing dozens of people who looked to be only teenagers, Alter breathed a sigh of relief.
Those two people have left, everyone please go out.
"Just like before, everyone go home, and please be careful."
The boys nodded in agreement. Alter looked towards the end of the dark passageway and asked:
"You all behaved, didn't you? You didn't touch the door I told you not to open."
The boys nodded again, and then Alter turned and led them outside.
The last section of the passageway is an ascent of more than thirty steps. The warm sunlight from the outside world is refracted through the stained glass, making it incredibly mesmerizing. The light spots fall at the end of the stairs, giving one the illusion that this is a stairway to a beautiful heaven.
However, the moment Alter stepped out of the passageway, two crisp, clear impacts reached his ears.