Night falls in the apartment building.
With Glen and the others leaving, the building was now deserted, and any movement in the empty corridors was particularly noticeable.
Moonlight streamed in through the window at the corner of the staircase. Isaac climbed to the third floor and stood in the corridor.
He waited a moment, and then, ahead of him, Halperin's figure appeared, solidifying into a gaunt humanoid figure draped in a cloak.
Halperin didn't approach immediately, but instead scanned the empty space beside Isaac to confirm if the demon was nearby.
"No need to look anymore, I left it somewhere else," Isaac said. "I've arrived. What deal do you want to discuss?"
Halperin took two steps forward, his hoarse voice ringing out. "As you can see, before today, I was under house arrest, and the Cult's power in Vista had effectively fractured."
I would like to hear more details.
"Since you're from the Joint Investigation Bureau, you should know the true nature of the Cult," Halperin said. "Our Cult isn't a tightly knit organization; it's composed of numerous factions that pursue immortality, each with its own ideologies and methods."
"But in each city, a representative will be appointed as the leader of the Cult in that area, coordinating relations between the various factions and making decisions on behalf of the Cult when necessary."
"I was the head of the Vista Cult —formerly."
"A year ago, Annabelle —she was the leader of a faction and wanted to be in charge, but she knew she couldn't beat me in a head-on fight, so she chose another way."
"She stole my life box, tampered with it, and ruined it. My body deteriorated overnight to the point where I couldn't even speak and could only be manipulated by others."
"Treason is ultimately dishonorable and easily provokes hostility from other regional Cult, so they placed me under house arrest. Annabelle controls the Cult in my name, and they—including Glen, whom you met—are responsible for guarding me."
Isaac nodded. "Then why does Glen want to kill you? Since you're already under control, wouldn't it be safer to keep you alive?"
"Because I know too many people's secrets," Halperin said. "Many people within the Cult have things they don't want others to know, and I know those things. As long as I'm alive, I'm a threat to those people, and they don't want Annabelle to know those secrets; they want me to disappear completely."
"In other words, killing you wasn't Annabelle's intention."
"Yes, Annabelle wants to keep me because she thinks I'm still useful."
Isaac understood that Glen's roundabout way of killing Halperin was more about fearing Annabelle's retribution than the Cult's overt rule of "not killing one's own people."
However, since they wanted to kill Halperin, they probably thought that Halperin's life box was destroyed, and once he was dead, he was truly dead and could not be resurrected.
But Halperin survived, which means he had many backup plans and was clearly someone who had laid out a long-term escape route. Although he was ambushed by Annabelle for a time, he might be able to turn the tables once he seized the opportunity to break free.
"I'm telling you all this to illustrate one point," Halperin continued, " Annabelle and her gang betrayed me, and my current strength is insufficient to wage direct war against them. I need a powerful enough partner to help me reclaim my position of leadership."
What kind of cooperation do you want?
" Joint Investigation Bureau to eliminate these traitors."
Isaac was somewhat surprised. He thought Halperin would ask him to do something shady or continue infiltrating the Cult as an inside man. He didn't expect Halprin to target the Joint Investigation Bureau.
"I have betrayed the Joint Investigation Bureau, you should know that."
"Stop pretending. You still have a die in your pocket. You're one of Schuster's men. Others might not know, but I know exactly what kind of person Schuster is. So your so-called betrayal is nothing but a facade."
Since the other party had touched on Carlo's point, Isaac simply stopped pretending. "Even if I'm with the Joint Investigation Bureau, why would the Joint Investigation Bureau cooperate with you? Even if you're the overthrown leader of the Ghoul Cult, the Joint Investigation Bureau and the Cult don't have a friendly relationship."
"Because I can provide them with what they want, what Annabelle is doing is far more dangerous than you can imagine. They're not just pursuing immortality; they're trying to awaken an ancient being."
" Morzul?"
Halperin was not surprised that Isaac knew this; instead, he gave a mocking sneer, "You really think that's the Morzul you know? Ha—"
You mean " the Tree in the Lake "?
Halperin: "----?"
Isaac noticed Halperin's expression stiffen slightly. "If you're trying to say that Morzul Annabelle they're targeting isn't the ' God of Decay ' known to later generations, but rather the more ancient ' Tree in the Lake,' then I'm sorry, we already know that."
Halperin narrowed his eyes slightly, reassessing the amount of information the young man in front of him possessed.
He thought that " the Tree in the Lake " was one of the few bargaining chips he could still use to negotiate, but he didn't expect that the other party already knew about it.
"Since you know about the Tree in the Lake," then you should also know that what Annabelle and her group are really looking for isn't the blessing of some " God of Decay," but rather the source of the " Tree in the Lake." They believe that if they can reach that source, they can obtain true immortality—that source—"
Lake Pote?
Halperin paused. "----You even know this?"
"Uh, if you already know about ' The Tree in the Lake,' isn't it normal that you know about Lake Pote?"
"----Normal?" A look of confusion crossed Halperin's face.
Looking at Halperin's reaction, Isaac suddenly realized that this guy probably had even less information than he did.
Because Carlo had traced the origins and development of the Morzul faith, the mention of " Tree in the Lake " naturally led him to think of Lake Pote.
However, for those who only know the name " The Tree in the Lake," it is difficult to directly associate this "lake" with Lake Pote. They might immediately think of it as some kind of mystical "lake of the underworld," skipping the search for its real-world origin.
"So what else do you have to offer the Joint Investigation Bureau in a deal?" Isaac asked. "We already know what you're saying. If this is all the intelligence you have, then the value you can offer is probably not as much as you think."
Halperin remained silent for a long time. "If I can regain control of the Cult, I can restore Cult to a state of 'harmlessness'."
"Harmless?"
"As far as I know, Annabelle's recent actions have killed quite a few people. But I can guarantee that the Cult under my command will only steal the corpses they need, and will not harm the living."
Isaac: "----"
Well, from a comparative perspective, it is not much more harmful.