When the plot-skips players into the game world

Chapter 606: Chapter 21 The Secret Knowledge of the Serpent Celestial Marshal Chapter 606: Chapter 21 The Secret Knowledge of the Serpent Celestial Marshal At this time, Shafiya and Oswald had also left Moriarty Manor.

They were discussing the action plan to follow.

Despite Aiwass’s plan to assassinate Prince John, Shafiya still intended to try to steal the body.

After all, there was a possibility that Aiwass’s action might fail.

Previously, she had wisely chosen to flee because she was outnumbered and also unprepared for battle.

But with Oswald by her side this time, they might not necessarily lose a head-on conflict—

Therefore, Shafiya felt confident.

This time, she first took Oswald back to her home briefly, ensuring her husband and child were moved to a safe place, and retrieved her own wand.

“The first sequence of actions to be taken is to reclaim the Queen’s body,” she said.

In Shafiya’s home, she assigned tasks to Oswald: “Should the first sequence fail or be unachievable, we will immediately initiate the second sequence—extracting a tube of the Queen’s blood.”

“This is a syringe pre-filled with anticoagulant.

Each of us will take one.

We have to extract at least ten milliliters…

as an alternative material for the Ceremony of Avalon’s Shadow.”

“If the second sequence also fails, we’ll abandon the Queen’s body and instead begin searching for and rescuing Sherlock Hermes, while leading the two from Star Antimony as far away as possible, to buy time for Aiwass’s plan.”

“And if possible, we’ll help Aiwass kill Minister Drost…

after all, he is a Priest and not skilled in combat.

Even though the fat man has probably forgotten how to fight by now, he is still a fourth-level Transcendent…

”

“—First of all, Grand Adjudicator madam,” Oswald solemnly interrupted Shafiya, “I must emphasize that our plans and tasks are all predicated on Mr.

Aiwass’s safety.

If he encounters lethal danger, I will abandon these plans and rush to his rescue.”

“Of course, I’ll join you,” Shafiya nodded in agreement, “At the very least, we can’t let that child come to harm.”

That was the man Princess Isabel was fond of, and her only support at present.

Shafiya at least had to preserve Aiwass’s life.

As long as one is alive, there will always be opportunities; death leaves nothing.

Besides, as long as she could get Aiwass and Isabel to Holy Nation, she herself staying in Avalon…

had a chance to conduct the Ceremony of Avalon’s Shadow once again.

Professor Moriarty’s words had gradually begun to persuade her.

That enticing voice continued to echo in her head, making it unforgettable.

…

If Prince John was going to die anyway, it might be better to hasten his death.

If Aiwass couldn’t do it, then let her find someone—if Prince John was only two years old.

Rescuing Prince John wouldn’t be easy, but killing him would be very easy.

Extracting blood from Prince John’s corpse was definitely simpler than from the Queen’s.

At that point, let her bear the sin.

Shafiya thought to herself silently.

Meanwhile, back at Moriarty Manor.

Everyone else had already left, leaving only Isabel behind.

She had been invited by Professor Moriarty into the drawing room for hospitality.

As they casually chatted over pastries and tea, completely indifferent to the queen’s recent assassination, Isabel grew cautious and maintained her disguise, worrying it might be some kind of test.

Professor Moriarty expressed his curiosity about how exactly Isabel and Aiwass had come to know each other.

…Indeed, Isabel was equally curious about Professor Moriarty.

That was because Aiwass seldom mentioned his adoptive father, whereas at the New Year’s Eve banquet, Edward showed an utmost admiration for the professor.

Yulia’s attitude was the strangest of all—on one hand, she was quite affectionate and trusting towards her adoptive father, yet on the other hand, she seemed to harbor a subtle unease around him.

That feeling…

It was as if Isabel were viewing the scene of two familiar married men, who, while seeking pleasure outside, happened to run into each other—she had seen a similar scenario in plays before.

Both parties had a secret in common they could use to destroy each other; but if one used it, it would mean their own destruction as well.

Isabel believed this was the nature of Yulia’s attitude towards her adoptive father…

trust with caution.

To Aiwass, it seemed as though he had significant apprehension towards his foster father.

It was akin to how the ministers Isabel encountered in her childhood behaved towards her grandmother, subconsciously avoiding any mention.

Even when they did speak of him, they wouldn’t use his name or the term they normally referred to him by, choosing instead to use some kind of pronoun.

As if uttering that term would invoke an immediate response from the person.

Isabel had met Professor Moriarty before.

In college, the classes he was in charge of were astral studies, astronomy, and advanced mathematics—subjects that Isabel had no need to study, and thus, she had never formally been a student of Professor Moriarty… but she was fairly familiar with him, nonetheless.

However, curious as she might be…

Throughout the conversation with Professor Moriarty, Isabel was constantly on edge, rapidly thinking and weaving or embellishing lies.

On one hand, to hide her identity as a Transcendent, and on the other, to help conceal information for Aiwass.

——Based on her understanding of Aiwass and that keen intuition, Isabel could still vaguely sense the seemingly non-existent hostility Aiwass had toward his foster father.

Though she didn’t know the origin of this hostility.

But as long as Aiwass was resistant towards Professor Moriarty, Isabel would naturally side with Aiwass.

It was fortunate Shafiya had left, Isabel thought.

If Shafiya were here, it would be inconvenient for her to lie.

Otherwise, she might have deceived the professor but could have inadvertently aroused the suspicions of Shafiya, who knew her better.

The professor’s near-total ignorance of her allowed her much more leeway to maneuver…

But at that moment.

She suddenly heard a clear sound of a bell.

According to Yanis’s teachings, this was a death warning that would only occur during a full moon ceremony with a “role-playing requirement” and a demand for cooperation against formidable enemies.

This signal meant that cooperation in battle existed in the promotion ceremony.

The purpose was to spare those Transcendents seeking teammates the need to wait endlessly for those who had been dead for a long time.

Of the three promotion ceremonies Isabel had been through, there had been only one where she hadn’t heard such a bell sound…

and that one had coincidentally been the Great Sage’s ceremony.

At the instant Isabel heard the sound of the bell, her pupils contracted with tension and then dilated with fear.

—Has someone died?

Is Aiwass safe?

Since Sherlock had not joined them, her only teammate was Aiwass.

But after a brief consideration, taking into account the distance, it was unlikely that Aiwass could have reached the Hall of Silver and Tin by this time…

It was then that she breathed a sigh of relief.

But right after that, she heard uproarious laughter.

It was like a stand-up comedian had told a joke on stage, causing at least a dozen different kinds of laughter to burst out from the audience.

Some were shrill, some were deep, some loud…

some hysterical, laughing until they couldn’t catch their breath.

A Transcendence’s identity has been exposed!

This was the first time Isabel had heard such laughter.

The first time she ascended, her teammates died too quickly for their identities to even be exposed.

And during the second ceremony, the only one who could have exposed them was the “receptionist” who died in each layer of the nightmare.

This time, she could finally understand…

what Sherlock meant by “uproarious laughter” and what Yanis meant by a “sarcastic laugh”…

—Two have been eliminated!

And in quick succession no less!

If the first one killed wasn’t Aiwass, could the second whose identity was revealed be him?

Isabel pursed her lips and forced herself to calm down.

No, it’s unlikely.

Right after the first death knell, it must have been someone caught off guard while doing something or in a crucial conversation, and exposed because of the sudden bell.

Given Aiwass’s mental fortitude, it’s unlikely he would be exposed for such a reason.

“Are you…

worried about Aiwass?”

At this moment, Professor Moriarty suddenly spoke up and asked.

Isabel glanced hesitantly at him, still playing the role of the timid princess, she slowly nodded and whispered, “Yes…”

“…After all, he’s just a priest, is that really okay?”

She already showed a moment of emotional overflow, and if she were to deny her concern now, it would only raise more suspicion.

So Isabel smoothly shifted the reason for her concern for Aiwass onto his occupation.

“You need not worry, Princess Isabel.”

Professor Moriarty spoke softly, “Aiwass is especially adept in Prayer Arts.

Not only can he invoke the power of Pillar Gods, but even Angels and Celestial Marshals are quite familiar to him…

“By the way, Your Highness.

Have you ever heard of the ‘Serpent Celestial Marshal?’ That is the power Aiwass is very skilled in borrowing.”

“…Serpent Celestial Marshal?”

Isabel repeated with some confusion.

“That’s right.”

Professor Moriarty nodded and smiled at Isabel.

“…Are you referring to the ‘Ouroboros’?

The Ouroboros Celestial Marshal, the Infinite Celestial Marshal…”

Isabel finally remembered.

Ligeia seemed to be related to the Serpent Celestial Marshal: “The lord of Ascension Sorcerers…

is that so?”

Professor Moriarty was quiet for a brief moment.

His lips curled slightly.

“Yes.”

He nodded and replied, “That’s Him.

You should know which Path He belongs to, right?”

“The Path of Transcendence?”

Isabel was not sure: “I actually know very little about theology…

but He is the Son of the Serpent Father, isn’t He?”

“…Indeed.”

Professor Moriarty fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

He put a finger to his lips, speaking in a hushed tone, “I will share with you more secret knowledge…

Afterward, you may inform Aiwass of this information, and he will surely be greatly surprised.

Of course, if you do not wish to tell him, that is also an option…

You are free to choose.”

Upon hearing these words, Isabel instantly became alert.

Is he trying to pass some false information to Aiwass through me?

But it wouldn’t be right not to listen…

What if it’s something useful for Aiwass?

…As Isabel thought this, she realized she had fallen into a chain of suspicion.

Listening and not listening both seemed wrong.

After much indecision, Isabel decided to hear him out.

At least to take the initiative.

Perhaps due to her lack of extensive knowledge on theology, she found his words somewhat confusing and could only commit them to memory…

“…Before the ‘Cicada Slough’ occurred, the Ouroboros did not belong to the Path of Transcendence.

He was once the Celestial Marshal of Self-destruction, the Celestial Marshal of Rebirth and Renewal…

belonging to the Path of Balance.

It was only after He obtained one of the fruits of Cicada Slough, the ‘Endless Knot’, that He became a Celestial Marshal of the Path of Transcendence.

“In the ancient times, before Elves were born, the ‘Ouroboros’ held an entirely different authority.”

Professor Moriarty spoke softly, “Back then, He could restart the timelines, resetting the world to a previous moment.

Until after the ‘Cicada Slough’, history became fragmented and irrecoverable to the point before the Cicada Slough.@@novelbin@@

He then discarded that fragment…

“The Ouroboros had another name in the past.

“—The Dragons revered Him as…

Reincarnation Celestial Marshal.”