The speed of events was somewhat beyond Mann’s expectations.
Kris was actually planning a direct assault on the territory. Either he was a madman, or he was completely cornered.
Or perhaps it was both.
Although he didn’t know what the Heretic God Sect was plotting, seeing Kris’s desperate, cornered-dog behavior gave him a pretty good idea that they probably didn’t intend to get further involved.
“Young Master Mann, why did you suddenly stop?”
“It’s nothing. Plans just need to be moved up.”
Mann’s expression remained calm. He wasn’t surprised by this turn of events.
“Go notify Father now. Tell him to prepare in advance. After that, coordinate with Ge Rui En to secretly evacuate the villagers.”
“And you?”
“I need to go see someone first. The person who sent me the letter.”
A short while later, at the Paladin garrison within Matthews Territory.
“Mann Matthews… right?”
The Paladin leader only glanced at the abruptly appearing figure in white robes before continuing to drink his wine in solitude.
Across from him was an empty cup, clearly waiting for someone.
Mann focused his senses, catching a faint Magic Fluctuation.
It seemed he wasn’t the only guest.
He turned his attention back to the drinking leader.
He looked utterly dejected. It seemed Kris had sidelined him completely; there was no small rift between the two.
The leader savored his wine for a moment before speaking quietly.
“I should have already warned you, shouldn’t I? Instead of preparing countermeasures, why are you here?”
Mann pulled down his hood and sat opposite him.
Since the other party was getting straight to the point, he didn’t mind being direct himself.
“What, can’t I come? This is my family’s territory, isn’t it?”
“And besides, being so stiff and formal all the time isn’t it tiring? But you, what are your plans after this?”
“Attack the territory? Afterwards, the King will purge you. That bastard Kris will at most be locked up.”
“If you don’t help him, he’ll probably have you killed directly. Then someone willing to follow orders will take your place.”
Mann picked up the wine glass in front of him, poured himself half a cup, and swirled it playfully.
As relaxed as if he were in his own home.
“In short, you’re dead either way.”
The leader was a bit stunned by Mann’s relaxed demeanor.
He couldn’t understand why Mann wasn’t the slightest bit anxious.
“…So what? That shouldn’t concern you, should it?”
“Don’t say that. Think of this as my response to you passing on that message. I’m willing to give you a hand.”
“So, want to hear my idea? Maybe it can help you out of this predicament?”
The leader set down his cup at this, looking at Mann seriously for the first time.
“Are you serious? Aren’t you afraid I’ll turn around and sell you out?”
“You won’t. Even if you did sell someone out, it wouldn’t be me to Kris.”
Looking at Mann’s confident expression, the leader realized this person was even harder to read than Kris.
And it might have been his imagination, but whenever he met Mann’s gaze, he felt as if all his thoughts were being seen through.
It was a little annoying, but at least it wasn’t unpleasant.
Besides, Mann was right. It was a losing situation either way. Might as well take a gamble.
The leader gently set down his cup. A crisp sound broke the silence.
“Alright, let’s hear it…”
A long while later, Mann finally left the place.
Right after he left, a figure clad in armor slowly emerged.
“Gray, are you really going to do what he says?”
“Can you come up with a better plan?”
At this, the armored man fell silent for a moment.
“His Highness the Prince’s order to attack has been given. It’s tonight.”
“Time is running out.”
“Haah…”
The burly man sat opposite him, propping his head on his hand, his expression hesitant.
“At least, between the two of them, Mann is clearly more trustworthy. I’ve said my piece. Think it over yourself.”
…
The sun was about to set, yet the weather was abnormally hot and stuffy.
Mann was alone in his room, planning his next moves.
That bastard Kris had never shown his true strength before.
But just one exchange had made Mann extremely wary.
The Armor of Time… and those strange fluctuations and immense Mana…
Fighting him within the territory was clearly unwise.
“Click.”
The room door was gently pushed open.
“Father?”
Seeing his father, already clad in a full suit of armor and ready for battle, Mann was somewhat surprised.
“What’s wrong? Worried about the final battle?”
“I really can’t hide anything from you.”
Mann lowered his head with a bitter smile.
Count Matthews walked over and gently patted Mann on the shoulder.
“Son, don’t always think you have to solve everything on your own.”
“Don’t forget, we’re still here behind you.”
At that moment, Mei and Ge Rui En also came over.
Everyone looked at Mann. Their trusting gazes solidified his resolve to protect this territory.
“Just go ahead and tell us your plan. We’ll cooperate fully.”
“…Alright.”
“First of all, regarding the territory, my suggestion is not to resist.”
“Not resist? Give me your reasoning.”
Count Matthews’s expression turned somewhat grim.
“First, the villagers have already been evacuated, so there’s no need for another bloody conflict.”
“Second, purging the Heretic God Sect is the King’s command. Cooperating is just doing our duty. It’ll also prevent those with ulterior motives from finding a handle against us later.”
“Then, what do you plan to do about Kris?”
Instead of answering immediately, Mann took a map and pointed out several locations on it.
“I’ll lure him away in advance. At the very least, the battle site needs to be far from the territory.”
“So how do you plan to lure him away?”
“If I were him, I’d use the territory as a bargaining chip, to maintain the initiative.”
Mann didn’t elaborate. He looked at the Count with a confident gaze.
“You can rest assured on this point, Father. I guarantee he’ll follow me. Just have everyone lie in wait there beforehand, ready to ambush him.”
But as soon as he finished speaking, a series of urgent shouts reached their ears.
“Enemy attack! Enemy attack!”
“A large army has assembled! They’re right at our gates!”
“So fast?!”
Even the battle-hardened Count was somewhat surprised, though he quickly recovered.
“Then let’s proceed with the plan. But to avoid arousing his suspicion, I still need to show my face.”
Time was pressing. No one said much else. After reaching an agreement, they all headed to their respective positions.
Mann was no exception. As the core of the entire plan, luring Kris away had to succeed. Failure was not an option.
The pressure on him was immense, especially under such tense circumstances.
He didn’t even notice that everything around him had frozen.
Divine Revelation descended silently.
The scene before him began to dissipate bit by bit, until the entire space was nothing but a void.
Then, a blurry humanoid phantom appeared, gradually becoming clear.
It was Kris, clad in twisted armor, like a monster.
On his right arm, human facial features were contortedly arranged. From time to time, they let out unpleasant screams.
“No doubt about it. That arm is also part of the Body of the Evil God.”
Realizing this, a chill ran down Mann’s spine.
How had he gotten that thing? How had he managed to transplant it onto himself?
If it was the work of the Heretic God Sect, just how many bodies did they possess?
But before he could even think, the figure was walking towards him.
He looked at the immobilized Mann with amusement, like a predator eyeing a helpless prey.
“I regret it now. I really should have… killed you when we first met.”
With that, he grabbed Mann by the neck and lifted him up.
“Maybe if I had, I would have earned the right to be the Heir to the Throne by now…”
“But saying all this now is meaningless.”
Mann, battered and bruised, had no strength left to struggle. He just looked down at Kris, his eyes full of pity and mockery.
“You…”
“How pitiful…”
As soon as he said this, Mann felt a tremendous force on his neck. Everything went black, and his consciousness snapped back to his body.
“Huff… huff…”
He was on his knees, gasping for air from the instinctual reaction to being choked. Tears streamed uncontrollably down his face.
After calming down for a moment, Mann struggled to his feet.
“I have to… lure Kris somewhere else before they get to him…”
“That thing… Father and the others can’t handle it.”