Chapter 747: Act 103 – Eternity IV
“The structure of the Everything Returns Society consists of a council of elders, a privy council, and a secondary assembly. The members of the secondary assembly call themselves parliament members. Many of these members have intricate relationships with the nobility of various nations, and some are nobles themselves, such as Anlek, Duke Siphai, and Marquis Julian. The number of subordinate members of the Everything Returns Society is countless, but most parliament members have a loose connection with the society. They gain more benefits from the society while contributing less — this is also a means for the Everything Returns Society to win hearts. They possess some wicked black magic, unknown channels of information, appoint aides, and facilitate the circulation of unsavory goods— such as the slave trade that has been rampant in the territories of Cruz, Saint Ausoor, and Erluin. Although these illegal activities have long been prohibited by law, they are regrettably quite popular among the nobility, thus becoming a breeding ground for evil. Cultists use such means to entice you and our already corrupt nobles, forging ties and gradually corroding them. A few nobles become core members, and I think Anlek is one of them.”
Shi Do felt somewhat saddened; this was not how she imagined the nobility. It was hard for her to picture that there might be cultists from the Everything Returns Society lurking among her friends. She frowned and asked, “Mister Brendel, is what you said true? How can it be…”
“Shi Do, you are inexperienced, so you don’t realize how treacherous this world can be. Most of what Brendel says is true; the nobility of the Empire, alas…” Veronika sighed.
Brendel silently waited for them to finish speaking. He understood Veronika’s reason for sighing; as a member of the nobility herself, she naturally lamented the overall decay and corruption of her class. However, he was different. While the world believed he was the heir of the Holy Sword Darus, inheriting the glory of the Highland Knights, only Brendel understood that within him resided a prouder and nobler soul. He continued, “The privy council consists of the privy council president and one hundred thirteen key members. They wear rings of silver in the shape of serpents and address each other as ‘Your Excellency.’ They strive for a common goal—to return the world to the rule of the Duskgazer Dragon. To become a key member, one must meet two requirements: first, to possess a fervent and wise faith in the doctrines of the Everything Returns Society, and second, to have strength that surpasses the Enlightened Element. The Amann we defeated last time should have been a member of the privy council. I found this thing in his dimensional rift.” Brendel took out a shiny silver ring adorned with intertwining serpents.
Veronika let out a gentle scoff, somewhat disdainful. The Everything Returns Society may have one hundred thirteen members of the Enlightened Element, but the Temple of Fire has many more temple knights, and even the number of Flame-affiliated knights far exceeds this. In her view, the core strength of the Everything Returns Society was nothing special. Brendel sensed her feelings but chose not to remind her immediately, continuing, “As for the council of elders and the president of the privy council, no one has ever seen their identity. Even the number of elders is unclear; they are only mentioned in fragmented information. However, I believe these individuals are on par with the twelve high priests of the Tree Shepherds and possess similar powers.”
Veronika nodded in agreement, recognizing this speculation. However, she raised her head, sharp green eyes piercing into Brendel’s face, “This information was also obtained from the Black Tower Sorcerers.”
“No, this was part of Charles’s investigations before his demise,” Brendel replied with a slight smile, confident in his answer.
Veronika shot him a glance. She had already learned from the messages sent back from the temple about Brendel’s identity and was aware of Charles’s identity as well. She knew that before disappearing, Charles had conducted an in-depth investigation into the Everything Returns Society, and the knowledgeable nobility believed that the genius Highland Sorcerer had perished at the hands of the Everything Returns Society. These were past errors, and the Temple of Fire played an unflattering role in it. The female commander may have had doubts in her heart but did not wish to dwell on the topic.
“In general, the council of elders rarely meddles in the secular affairs of the Everything Returns Society. Of course, there are powers that we are not fully aware of. However, the secular military force of the Everything Returns Society is indeed controlled by the privy council president. Among them, two forces are the most renowned: one is the Chaos Cult, and the other is the black knights we see now, known as the Order of the Fallen Knights. These forces can only be mobilized with a special decree personally signed by the privy council president. This indicates that Anlek’s identity is likely to be elevated to a key member soon, especially if it coincides with filling the vacancy left by Amann’s death—”
“Heh,” Veronika chuckled lightly, “So it’s still our responsibility.”
“Exactly, so our duty today is to keep that vacancy unfilled.” Brendel said playfully, “The nobles of Erluin often lament the high expenses of the noble council; I imagine the Everything Returns Society must face similar troubles. Let’s find a way to help them with that.”
This comment amused everyone except the accompanying nobles from Cruz, as Brendel’s words were also a sharp satire against them. “You really are humorous, Mister Brendel.” The scholarly lady naturally deciphered the double entendre in Brendel’s words and couldn’t help but give a quiet compliment.
However, slightly behind the scholarly lady, Xi appeared somewhat puzzled. She looked at Shi Do with a hint of jealousy and unease, timidly touching the ring on her finger.
“I am serious, but I must remind everyone that the primary qualification for a privy council member of the Everything Returns Society is a fervent and wise faith; as for genuine fanatics, they actually have an abundance of that,” Brendel said.
“What do you mean?” Veronika suddenly detected the subtleties in his words.
“As far as I know, the Order of the Fallen Knights consists of no less than thirty thousand members, most of whom possess strengths similar to what we see now. Moreover, within the secular military of the Everything Returns Society, the status of the Order of the Fallen Knights is far below that of the Chaos Cult,” Brendel said slowly.
Everyone gasped, suddenly realizing the reason Brendel urged them to remain calm. When confronting such a colossal enemy, it was indeed wise to be cautious.
“However, Anlek must die, not just because of the fragment of the teleportation gate in his possession, or his identity within the Everything Returns Society, but because I believe there are others here with even greater reasons for vengeance.” Brendel glanced at Peiya, whose hands were tightly clenched into fists, trembling slightly. After a long pause, she opened her eyes, gazing at Brendel with wild, dark eyes and breathlessly replied, “Thank you, Sir Knight.”
Everyone understood Brendel’s meaning; in fact, they had already realized it when they saw the dragon fly into the sky. Anlek was certainly waiting for the Frost Tooth’s frost whelpling to emerge from its lair, but he could not guess that he had made a fatal mistake.
In the distance, the corpses of two hunters quietly fell upon the snowfield, their blood pooling and freezing into conspicuous red stains.
Further away, Anlek and the members of the Everything Returns Society were beginning to enter a narrow fissure. The private troops of the nobility lined up, first being ushered in, followed by the dark knights of the Order of the Fallen in three batches, and lastly, by Anlek and a few of his bodyguards.
Brendel rubbed his hands, coldly observing this scene. He did not dare come too close; although he was relatively safe, he could not guarantee that others would not be noticed by the enemy. The silver knight, Sylphy, was genuinely a master of the Elemental Order, and the enemy had several sorcerers beside them. Brendel also did not fully trust the Cruz nobles Veronika brought along. In fact, the team maintained a magical silence; apart from being able to contact Medisa through his higher authority as a traveling mage, all other channels for external communication were entirely sealed.
No one could guarantee that the people beside them were not members of the Everything Returns Society.
“Did you see the people next to Anlek, young one?”
“There are a few sorcerers. I’ve never seen them before and have no recollection of them. They must be members of the Everything Returns Society. That jerk Dejyar is also in there; I thought he was dead, no wonder Ampere Seale didn’t find his body after the battle,” Brendel nodded.
“Should we wait for them to come out?” Shi Do asked.
“No, the ice caves beneath the Frost Tooth are interconnected with many paths. We need to find a way to follow them and surprise the duke,” Brendel replied.
“Now?”
“Just wait a moment.”
“But Mister Brendel, didn’t you say there’s a frost whelpling inside?” Shi Do turned back, looking at him with curiosity.
“I also mentioned that it is very timid.”
……
Starr was indeed very timid, regardless of whether he admitted it or not. He resided in those cobweb-like, eerie blue ice caves, partly to avoid danger. This was quite comfortable, as it allowed him to rest his claws on the cracked blue-white ice and hide in the shadows, silently watching the unexpected guests with his unblinking green eyes.
However, lately, he began to realize that moving between these fissures was becoming increasingly difficult.
Anlek’s party was actually not far from Starr, yet no one was aware that a dragon was lurking nearby. Starr’s large body, white with hints of blue, was concealed behind a semi-transparent ice wall; the twisted ice pillars around him served as natural cover. He commanded his subordinates—a group of foul-smelling, white-furred ice cavemen—to attack those humans, while he himself planned to create a collapse from behind.
……(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your votes or support with monthly tickets; your support is my greatest motivation.)
