With his two sons making such spirited promises at his side, Frederick nodded in satisfaction.

Right after that, they spent the next stretch of time discussing why exactly the Bloodnight Cult and Sadom wanted to seize the Imitation Holy Sword.

Unfortunately, with the intelligence they had, they couldn't reach any useful conclusion. In the end, the meeting was adjourned with a temporary plan: wait and observe, search for Cang Xiaoxi and Jikuhir, and decide their next move based on the situation.

After gathering up the sorted information, Eugia and Mia bid Frederick farewell one after another and left their seats.

“Eugia, wait a moment first.”

“What is it, Father?” Hearing him, Eugia stopped. “Is there something else you need to tell me?”

“Yes.” Frederick frowned slightly and nodded with his chin resting on his hand. “Also, remember to strengthen the guards around Lia. Based on what we know so far, Sadom most likely has some kind of instant-transfer ability. The last time he entered the royal palace without anyone noticing and abducted Lia, he probably used that power.”

“That does seem to be the case.” Remembering what had happened back then, Eugia nodded in agreement. “Understood, Father. I’ll make sure guards stay by Lia’s side twenty-four hours a day.”

After giving Frederick his assurance, Eugia took his leave as well.

Left alone in the meeting room, Frederick sat there with a somewhat grave expression, one hand supporting his chin.

Amid the heavy echoes of nothing but his fingers tapping against the table, he quietly stared at the Imitation Holy Sword lying on the desk before him, the one passed down by the first Sage and inherited by him.

Thinking of the message the first Sage had left for each generation of kings, he murmured to himself.

“Looks like I have to find a way to speed up the dismantling of the barriers between the races... before the goddess sends down her new script...”

◇

In the desolate forest, the scent of blood had been especially thick lately. It left the monsters lurking in every corner unusually restless.

In the past, whenever monsters saw their own kind, they would usually fight to the bitter end. It was kill or be killed. That fit their nature perfectly: mindless beasts living by the law of the jungle.

But now, it wasn’t just monsters of the same type. Even species that should've been mortal enemies on the food chain had gathered together peacefully, with not a single one showing any intention of attacking another.

They got along like friendly companions, almost harmoniously. Honestly, the sight was a little terrifying.

After all, the fundamental difference between monsters and rational beings was that monsters didn’t band together for warmth. They had no group instinct. Most of them just did their own thing.

That was exactly why people had always held the advantage in subjugation.

So the appearance of a monster army moving in groups and lined up in orderly ranks showed just how abnormal this world had become...

“Report to Lord Morin. At present, all the low-rank and mid-rank monsters in the entire forest have been fully tamed. As for the remaining few high-rank ones, the instructors are speeding up the process.”

At the temporary base in the forest belonging to the Bloodnight Cult Vice Leader Sadom’s forces—

several instructors were currently reporting on the progress of the monster taming.

“Mm, not bad. With results like these, I’m sure Lord Sadom will be very pleased to see them.”

After reviewing their results, Morin, a priest of the Bloodnight Cult and a handsome man with delicate star-like brows, gave his approval in satisfaction.

“Keep accelerating the taming process. We must strive to exceed our target before Lord Sadom returns in victory.”

“Yes, Lord Morin!”

The instructors crossed their hands over their shoulders in salute to Morin. Then, following his orders, they immediately returned to taming the monsters.

Watching them leave and the room’s door close, Morin’s lips curled upward into a deeply satisfied smile.

To help the Bloodnight Cult crush all teachings related to the goddess, this plan of theirs had been in the making for years, ever since the murder of Princess Aisha. Now, as long as Sadom brought back the Imitation Holy Sword and then sacrificed Princess Lia, the plan could finally be carried out.

Just thinking about how the long-cherished ambition of the revered Vice Leader was about to come true made Morin’s brain tremble uncontrollably.

—Ahh~~ I want Lord Sadom to dote on me so badly~~.

His expression turned dreamy, practically like a young girl in love... ahem, a grown man. In truth, Morin’s obsession with Sadom was close to pathological.

That obsession ran so deep that even if Sadom told him to die, he would happily scamper off and do it without hesitation.

“Ahh, isn’t Lord Sadom back yet? I can hardly wait to see Lord Sadom gain the power of the Imitation Holy Sword and successfully advance to the Divine Tier.”

He stuck out his nimble tongue and licked the jade pendant he had received as a reward from the one he adored. Morin’s sickness had clearly reached a terminal stage.

After waiting and waiting, while Morin kept licking it in silent anticipation, a powerful force suddenly appeared in the room.

The person he had been waiting for so long had finally returned.

Filled with excitement, Morin rushed forward, eager to be the very first witness to the birth of a new Divine Tier.

But the moment he turned his head, he froze.

“Lord Sadom?! What happened to you...?”

A deathly pale, icy fear spread across Morin’s face.

The one before him was not some Vice Leader who had successfully broken through to the Divine Tier.

It was a pitiful man covered in wounds, someone who could barely even maintain the Peak of Transcendent Rank.

“Lord Sadom, who did this to you? No, wait—here, medicine. Please use this quickly.”

He hurriedly poured part of the potion over Sadom’s wounded body and fed him the rest to drink.

After a burst of gentle light, and with the emergency treatment from the potion plus Sadom’s own Peak of Transcendent Rank resilience, most of his injuries were healed before long.

Seeing that Sadom had mostly recovered, Morin stepped forward in delight to support him.

But Sadom, whose dignity as a strong man had just been ground into the dirt, had no mood to respond to a subordinate’s loyalty.

“Damn it! That brat... I’ll make him pay in blood sooner or later!”

With a savage sweep of his sleeve, Sadom shoved Morin aside and returned to his seat as Vice Leader.

The rage he had no outlet for left him unwilling to hear a single word from anyone.

“Lord Sadom...”

Morin’s expression tightened. It was his first time seeing Sadom this furious.

By all logic, he should’ve already become a Divine Tier powerhouse. So why had things turned out like this?

Morin glanced at the Imitation Holy Sword Sadom had casually thrown aside. Even though he was afraid of Sadom in this state, as a proper member of the Bloodnight Cult, how could he, as a priest, ignore the worries of the Vice Leader?

He respectfully bent one knee and bowed slightly before Sadom.

“Reporting to Lord Sadom, the monsters in this forest are about to be fully assembled. We can prepare to launch a full-scale assault on the Mosiri Kingdom at any time.”

“A full-scale assault... hmph?!” Sadom let out an irritated snort and looked up at Morin in fury. “I didn’t even make it to the Divine Tier. What the hell use is having more monsters?! Tell me, are they useful?!”

“My apologies, Lord Sadom. I misspoke.”

So frightened his eyes nearly popped out, Morin threw himself flat onto the ground.

Under the pressure of power far beyond his own, sweat poured down his back. Every second felt like he was wandering on the edge of death.

“I’m truly sorry, Lord Sadom! I... I... I really didn’t mean it, I really didn’t mean it, I really didn’t mean it...”

He kept apologizing in terror. In front of Sadom, Morin didn’t even dare breathe too loudly.

He lowered his head so far it was almost buried in the dirt.

“...Hmph. Get up. You’re not guilty for not knowing.”

Seeing his loyal hound so terrified of him, even someone as cold as Sadom could still show a little consideration to a subordinate.

“Thank you, Lord Sadom.”

Morin shakily got to his feet. Even with Sadom’s permission, he knew Sadom was still in a rage, so he didn’t dare say another word.

He could only wait for Sadom to speak first.

“You just said the monster taming—how’s it going?”

After a stretch of silence, Sadom finally asked about the progress of Morin’s side of the plan.

“Reporting to Lord Sadom, the monsters throughout the forest will soon all be tamed. Once that happens, our plan will—”

“Not enough...”

“Not enough? Lord Sadom, you mean...” Morin already half understood, but he still asked carefully.

“With just this many monsters, there’s no way we can take down the Mosiri Kingdom.” Sadom spoke in a low voice. “At minimum, we need monsters at the same level as me, in the Transcendent Tier. Or even Divine Tier ones...”

“Transcendent Tier and Divine Tier? Lord Sadom, are you serious?”

Morin’s mouth fell open in shock.

What did Transcendent Tier and Divine Tier monsters even mean? Those were beings on the level of monster kings and monster gods. To put it simply—

Demon Kings.

Even though Morin himself was at the early stage of the Transcendent Tier, taming them was out of the question. Those things were so terrifying that weaklings like them wouldn’t even dare get close, let alone try to tame them.

Besides, according to rumors passed among the people, some monsters had a certain chance of awakening intelligence like the higher races once they advanced to the Transcendent Tier or Divine Tier.

And they were supposed to tame something like that? Was Sadom insane? Or did he simply not care about the lives of his instructors at all?

“With all due respect, Lord Sadom, since you already obtained the Imitation Holy Sword, shouldn’t you already have the conditions needed to advance to the Divine Tier? Besides, now that the Silverfrost Dragon Queen has fallen and no new Divine Tier has been born yet, if it’s you, Lord Sadom, then surely you can—”

“The Silverfrost Dragon Queen is still alive. And even if she were dead, the Imitation Holy Sword alone still isn’t enough for me to break into the Divine Tier right now.”

“What?!”

Morin’s eyes widened in stunned disbelief.

His gaze kept darting between Sadom and the Imitation Holy Sword lying on the floor.

He simply couldn’t believe that, with every condition supposedly in place, the lord he adored still couldn’t break through.

“Lord Sadom, what exactly is going on...?”

Morin wanted to ask, but Sadom raised a hand and stopped him.

Sadom folded his hands beneath his chin. As he recalled that one-sided battle, the boy’s face, and the fact that the boy didn’t seem especially familiar with the Mosiri Kingdom, a terrible thought surfaced in his mind.

“If I’m not mistaken, that boy should be the new messenger summoned by the goddess. He is the new Sage of this era—the enemy who will stand in the way of our Bloodnight Cult’s grand cause!”