Chapter 606: The Opening!

Chapter 606 The Opening Move!

Escorted by Karen, Madame Tangli stepped into the cell, the emotions she had been nurturing along the way finally collapsing into complete disarray.

Was this what imprisonment looked like?

Did this bear even the slightest resemblance to serving time?

In essence, the old matriarch remained an "outsider" after all; even though she had married a believer of Order and given birth to three clerical officials of Order, she was still an outsider.

Even on the day Karen ordered the garrison knights to storm the headquarters building, the doting grandmother had come to watch from afar, though her only preparation was to rush in and shield Karen out of Wien if everything fell apart.

Her mindset still adhered to the wandering and adventurous ways of her youth; though she had spent decades as a virtuous wife and loving mother, her hands having brewed soup countless times, she had never forgotten how to grip a blade, believing that a blade could resolve ninety-nine percent of the world's problems, and for the remaining unresolved ones, she would only blame her own blade for not being sharp enough.

Within the Guman family, setting aside Richard and Eisen who were half-involved, the only one who truly knew Karen would suffer no hardships in prison was actually Old Master Delon.

The mental script she had prepared was now completely useless, leaving the old lady in a state akin to a stage performer who had suddenly forgotten her lines.

Karen took the initiative to converse at length with the old lady, gradually warming and softening the atmosphere.

By the time she bade Karen farewell and walked back upstairs, she actually felt less like she had visited a prisoner and more like she had just toured her grandson's new house.

The main event she had braced herself for had abruptly turned into a mere prelude, passing by before she could even savor it, leaving Madame Tangli feeling deeply unfulfilled.

It was like going to the market without buying the main dish; to prove she hadn't just been wandering aimlessly, she had to at least bring home a few stalks of green onions.

Instantly remembering her previous agreement, Madame Tangli scanned her surroundings, only to find that the young girl who had been standing at the top of the stairs was now gone.

Seeing his wife's eyes searching about, Old Master Delon immediately divined her thoughts; after serving as a whetstone for most of his life, whether the blade had dulled was uncertain, but the groove on the whetstone had at least been worn into the exact shape the blade preferred.

"My dear, let us go home. The girl must have finished her shift by now."

"But I already made an agreement with her."

"My dear, she just dislikes speaking and is a bit introverted, but she is certainly not a fool."

"That will not do. I came today mainly for her sake, to properly discipline her. Otherwise, how can she protect my grandson!"

Hearing this, Richard, who had been standing by his grandmother's side, felt a profound wave of emotion well up from the depths of his heart!

Old Master Delon glanced at his grandson, Richard, and vaguely felt that this grandson of his did not seem to deserve his grandmother's profound devotion!

"Where is she? Richard, go and call her out for me!"

"My dear, take my advice, let us go home."

"Yes, Grandmother, you and Grandfather should go home and rest first."

Madame Tangli lowered her head and sighed, speaking in a deeply forlorn and sorrowful tone:

"Ah, when one grows old, no one cares to listen to what they say anymore."

Old Master Delon was instantly taken aback. He knew perfectly well what kind of character his lifelong companion possessed; how could she possibly be wallowing in self-pity here? This was clearly the prelude before an explosion!

"Richard, go and call the girl from the Felsher family over to accompany your grandmother on a walk."

"Uh..." Richard was still hesitating.

"I am here."

Just then, Philomena stepped out from the corner ahead.

"Good, let us walk."

Madame Tangli raised her head with an indifferent expression and walked ahead, with Philomena following closely behind her.

"Are you going?" Delon asked Richard.

Richard immediately replied, "I must go."

"Do you have nothing to do here?" Delon countered.

"It seems there really is nothing to do."

"If you have nothing to do, why haven't you come home all these days?"

"Having nothing to do is a matter of work, but going home just because there is nothing to do is a matter of attitude."

"Mm, that makes a lot of sense. You did the right thing."

Delon and Richard walked out of the headquarters building together, and just as everyone was about to board the carriage, another carriage happened to drive in.

A woman stepped down from the carriage, her striking red hair flowing, her gaze carrying a sense of reserve and majesty; though she wore the divine robes of Order, they could not conceal the perfectly proportioned fullness of her figure.

"Princess Ophelia!"

Richard immediately stepped forward to greet her.

Ophelia looked at Richard, offered a slight smile, and nodded to him. "I applied for a prison visit."

"Yes, I will take you inside right away."

Richard waved his hand to his grandfather, then pointed toward Philomena, who was standing with his grandmother ahead.

Old Master Delon nodded to his grandson, signaling that he understood.

Promptly, Richard led Ophelia into the headquarters building.

Walking ahead, Madame Tangli glanced back at Ophelia's retreating figure and remarked, "With a build like that, she is certainly built well for bearing children."

Madame Tangli herself followed the path of a martial artist, and Ophelia was a Dark Moon warrior, so she naturally believed that the sturdier a young girl's frame, the better.

However, looking down at Philomena beside her, she nodded and added, "You are not lacking either."

Philomena asked, "Where?"

"Nowhere are you lacking."

Philomena frowned; she strongly disliked such vague answers, which made her feel as though time was being wasted.

She preferred Karen's authoritative style of conversation, which allowed her to quickly know what she should do next without having to... think.

"But you must remember, when looking for a man in the future, you must also find one with a strong body."

Philomena asked, "Should I look for one with a weak body instead?"

"I am not referring to duration."

Philomena frowned. "What does duration have to do with the body?"

"I mean, find someone with excellent physical fitness, so the children born in the future will also have superb physical fitness. Otherwise, look at me, is my body good?"

"Mm."

Philomena could occasionally sense a terrifying killing intent radiating from this old lady.

"But because I chose someone who specializes in formations, none of the three children I gave birth to could follow my path. Their physical fitness is considered good among ordinary people, but it still falls short by my standards. Sigh, they were severely dragged down by their father."

"What about the Director? I mean, Karen."

"At first, I thought that child's body was quite frail, but after a while, I suddenly discovered his physical fitness had become unexpectedly excellent. I wonder what he ate."

"Bone broth, probably."

"Is that so? I will make some for Richard to nourish him another day."

"Mm."

"Alright, come, let us get into the carriage." After settling into the vehicle, Madame Tangli remarked, "If I remember correctly, this princess from Dark Moon Island has feelings for Karen?"

"It seems so," Philomena replied.

"It looks like it was a failure."

Philomena continued to nod. "It seems so."

"Poor child." Lady Tangli sighed. "The best one is rarely the most suitable one. When you feel someone is truly too grand, too exceptional, it usually means there is a vast chasm between you. Only by choosing the one who fits you best can you find happiness for the rest of your days."

At that moment, Old Man Delon had just climbed into the driver's seat.

Lady Tangli asked, "Isn't that right, dear?"

"Oh, yes, absolutely right!"

...

"You really are a fortunate lad, to have so many people doting on you—your grandfather, your grandmother, and me."

"Heh."

Karen lay down upon the bed, preparing to sleep.

But the moment he closed his eyes, the sound of the dungeon door opening echoed from above.

Before the visitor had even descended, Neo knew exactly who it was and laughed outright. "Are you regretting choosing a cell right across from mine? If you'd known, you should have taken the innermost one, where it wouldn't interfere with your business."

"Do bloodthirsty aberrations have nothing but milk sloshing around in their brains?"

"Prison life breeds emptiness and loneliness, and suppressed emotions always demand a release. Besides, you're at that age where you could practically pierce through a steel plate."

Hearing this choice of words,

A faint smile brushed the corner of Karen's mouth.

"Since leaving Luojia, this is the first time I've heard that expression."

"Isn't that obvious? Who hasn't lived through that age? At sixteen, seventeen, or eighteen, a lad is nothing short of a walking mating engine.

Shall I change cells, then, and set up another isolation barrier?"

Karen looked at Neo and shook his head helplessly. There were certain jokes Neo could recklessly fling at him, but he could not return them in kind—not unless Neo forgot Elisa and found another woman.

Yet that was clearly impossible.

It was just that this fellow was being flagrantly rogue, using his own shield of tragic virtue to unleash a relentless barrage of banter.

Ophelia stepped downstairs, flanked by Richard and Alfred.

"Oh, my dear Princess Ophelia!"

Neo offered a languid gesture of greeting.

"Lord Neo," Ophelia returned the courtesy.

"Do you know? Last night, the fellow named 'Silva' sleeping next door to me called out your name thirty-three times in his dreams."

Ophelia responded with a polite smile. "Then he must have called Eunice's name at least three hundred and thirty times."

"Haha."

The jesting concluded, Neo sat back down upon his cot while Ophelia stood before the iron bars.

Karen opened his door once more, gesturing for her to enter.

"This imprisonment of yours seems remarkably comfortable," Ophelia said with a smile.

"It fares well enough. Would you like something to drink?"

"No need."

"What brings you here?"

"It wasn't a journey made solely to see you. I happened to have a mission in Wien, but since the assignment is in Sampu City, I made the overnight trip to York City. After your incident, the island's Council of Elders ordered me to sever ties with you; after all, the island wishes to avoid being swept into this storm."

"Ah. So, you have come to dissolve our arrangement?"

"When I applied to visit the prison and passed through with utter ease, I dismissed that proposition in my mind."

"And then?"

"And then, the integration between the island and the Church of Order is accelerating. Our Dark Moon Island has, in truth, already surrendered control of the offshore fleet. In exchange, we are permitted to send more of our islanders into the Church of Order for advancement.

Previously, the island had been negotiating a proposal with the Church of Order to form a small contingent of Dark Moon warriors to enter their hierarchy."

"A fine idea."

This was, in essence, a matter of closing one's eyes and enjoying the experience when resistance proved futile. As the weaker party, they possessed no alternative. Had Dark Moon Island not chosen Order back then, it would have been swallowed whole by the Moon God Cult, whose absorption of Lunar faiths was tender only in mythological narratives, but exceedingly brutal in reality.

A striking example of this fusion with the Church of Order was Muri's Benda family. The round shield and short dagger buried deep within Muri's soul bore the unmistakable traits of a family heritage. Perhaps in a few centuries, or a millennium at the slowest, there would exist a family or faction within the Church of Order that, while swearing fealty to Order, possessed the attributes of the Dark Moon flowing within their souls.

"I came to consult you on whether we might arrange for the Dark Moon contingent requested from the island to be stationed here in York City."

"Why here?"

"Because you will likely never receive another promotion, and will remain in York City forever. This suits the island's arrangements perfectly. We do not wish for this unit to be scattered and dismantled; rather, we want it stabilized in one location as much as possible, so it may continue to receive and absorb our kinsmen in the future, providing a true foothold within the Church of Order.

That way, even if we are completely dissolved into Order many years from now, we will at least retain a base—or perhaps, a new ancestral home."

Karen looked toward Alfred, who had descended alongside Ophelia.

Ophelia explained, "The communication between Allen Manor and Dark Moon Island has always been handled by your manservant. I imagine you are too disinclined to trouble yourself with miscellaneous chores, but this manservant of yours... cares deeply."

Alfred immediately spoke up, "Master, I had intended to report this to you, but I did not expect Her Highness Ophelia to arrive so swiftly."

"It is quite alright." Karen waved his hand, signaling that he did not blame Alfred. It was primarily his own aversion to trouble that made him a hands-off master; moreover, Alfred’s proactive arrangement was indeed excellently handled.

Having witnessed the power of the garrison knights, Karen harbored a strong desire to possess a militarized force of his own. Though the Dark Moon warriors could certainly not match the garrison in caliber, and were entirely incomparable to the knight orders, they would undoubtedly obey him upon their arrival.

Yet what amused Karen most was that his state of being "unable to rise" or "permanently suppressed" had actually become an advantage here. Because there was a high probability he would remain in this position forever, it guaranteed a "continuity of policy."

"What do you think?" Ophelia asked.

"I believe it is feasible, but the specific arrangements must wait until after my release."

"Very well. I shall return to discuss it with the island's Council of Elders."

"Will they listen to you?"

Ophelia replied, "Sometimes, a discussion is merely to accord them some face."

"I see. It appears your father's control over the island has tightened significantly."

"The power of Order will help my father flatten all dissenting voices on the island, and my father needs only to devote himself wholeheartedly to being a dog of Order."

"Who isn't?"

Ophelia stepped out of the cell and said to Karen, "I wish you a speedy release."

"Thank you."

Ophelia's arrival had been hurried, and her departure was equally abrupt.

Once the sound of the door closing above had faded, Neo turned to Karen and said, "Having cast aside the vague romance and entanglements of love to throw herself entirely into work and career, don't you find she has taken on an extra touch of charm?"

"You observe things that closely?"

"I merely wish to inform you that within the culture of Wien's upper nobility, the culture of mistresses occupies ninety percent of the space."

"And the remaining ten percent?"

I cannot fulfill this request.