Chapter 654: His Conditions!

Chapter 654: His Condition!

Walking out of the cemetery, the two of them stood by the main gate.

Karen looked at Neo and asked, "When are you coming back to work?"

Neo replied dismissively, "I am still a pitiful patient. Since when has the Church of Order become so exaggerated that it needs to exploit even heavily injured employees?"

"The Church of Order will continue to exploit even the dead, so what do you think?"

"Cough..."

"We are very busy right now, we need hands."

"Hey, you can handle this matter by yourself, there is no need to drag me along, right?

What if you make a mistake in your operation, and furthermore, those above are no fools either, what if they strip you of your position and throw you into prison? There always needs to be someone who retains their position so they can go to the prison and bring you flour and seasonings, right?"

"Flour and seasonings?"

"To make oil-sprinkled noodles, of course. Didn't you bring a bowl down to visit me last time? I don't know how to make it, so I can only bring the ingredients for you to make it yourself."

"After I finish making it, do I have to hand it to you first, and then you hand it back to me?"

"I will carry it up first, and then carry it down, that way it feels ceremonial."

"Heh, by the way, what was that spell about?"

"What spell?"

"Decent Burial."

"Oh, just a name I thought of on the spot, nothing else meant by it. If there is any resemblance, it is purely coincidental.

By the way, what about Byrne? Byrne and Warfulen were very close too, no less than you. What did he say?"

"Like you, he thinks it would be too much of a waste for two people to do this together."

"True, according to his original intent, he probably wouldn't want to do it. After all, he is a man who could even send his own biological son away. Alright, I still want to continue my leave, I have some things I need to deal with."

"Are you going out of town?"

"Still in Wien, but not in York City. Anyway, if you need me, just send me a message and I will come back immediately."

"Mm."

"However, have you thought about what method to use?"

"I will think about it slowly, there is still time."

"Don't use the most extreme method, cover it up a bit."

"I know."

"Then I shall leave first, good night."

Neo's figure turned into a cloud of blood mist, dispersing instantly. He left very quickly, looking as if he was afraid Karen would pull him back again.

Karen felt that his mind had grown wild. In the past, he had never seen Neo proactively ask for leave to avoid work; before, the captain of the Hound Squad used to have an exceptionally high level of enthusiasm for work.

Was it because he borrowed Leon's coupons last time to apply leverage and won a huge fortune?

Karen felt this possibility was very high. Once people made money, they grew slack with work. If he had lost miserably, he would only go to the rooftop to catch a breeze and then immediately throw himself into work with absolute enthusiasm to earn coupons to pay off his debt.

Hesitating for a moment, Karen ultimately returned to the Ankara Hotel. The reason he chose not to go home was that Purr was not at home.

If Purr was not at home, there was really no difference between home and a hotel.

He opened a room, checked in, took a shower, and went to sleep.

It was currently a mission period. As a head, Karen's room and board were reimbursed by the mission. In fact, even without a mission, Karen's own position benefits included vacation time, so theoretically he could stay at the Ankara Hotel for free for a period of time;

But rarely did senior clergymen of York City waste their vacation in their own parish. It was better to take the public-expense reimbursed teleportation array to those parishes with beautiful scenery to have a good relaxation.

Upon waking up, Karen originally wanted to order room service, but suddenly realized that if he ordered, it was highly likely that a member of the Whip of Order under his command who was responsible for security would push the dining cart to him, which was not good. Therefore, after washing up, he went to the restaurant in person.

There were not many people in the restaurant, but the food was very abundant. After Karen walked in, just like last night, a waiter came over specifically to serve him. Still, after he sat down, the dishes tailored to his preferred taste were carried and served up.

While he was eating, Alfred walked over, and behind Alfred followed Chief Bishop Byrne's attendant.

"Young Master, these are the fruits sent to you by the Chief Lord."

Last night, Byrne had mentioned sending him fruits as a condolence gift.

Karen glanced at that large box and said to Alfred, "Take it to my room and inspect it."

Byrne could not possibly really only send fruits. He would not participate in this matter, but he would provide assistance.

"Yes, Young Master."

After finishing breakfast, Karen was about to take the elevator back to his room when he happened to see Alfred coming out of the elevator.

"Come, let's go to the conference hall to talk."

Karen led Alfred to the conference hall. At this time, personnel related to the meeting were entering, and the venue was being arranged.

Choosing a corner seat to sit down, Alfred pulled out three letters, letting Karen glance at them before putting them away again. Evidently, he also knew very well that his young master's trust in him had reached the point where he was too lazy to even open the letters and read them.

"Young Master, the three envelopes represent three addresses. One address is the secret office of the Desert God Church in this parish, inside of which are the contact and liaison methods."

Karen shook his head and said, "There is no point in looking for them."

Although the Wilderness God Church and the Desert God Church had not officially split yet, the relationship between them had reached an incompatible stage of fire and water, and a civil war could be said to be on the verge of breaking out.

Logically speaking, the Wilderness God Church definitely did not want the Desert to receive the support of Order, but to ask the Wilderness to dispatch hands at this time to carry out an assassination on the territory of Order... they would not be that stupid.

The previous attack encountered during the journey escorting Luther and his group into the Ankara Hotel—how many of them were true Wilderness believers and how many were Desert believers putting on an act was truly hard to say.

But according to the conventional rules agreed upon in the church circles, once people reached a place like this hotel, to carry out an assassination again would really be tearing off all pretense. The tolerance for assassinations during the journey, conversely, could be a bit higher.

"Your subordinate also feels this way. They have no reason to act now, nor is it possible for them to strike. Because currently, the relationship between Order and Desert is still of a secret nature and has not been made public. No reporters came to this meeting either, and no announcement will be issued after the meeting ends. If the Wilderness proactively punctures this, that would truly force Order to enter the field."

"What about the second address?"

"Uh, the second address is the secret office of the Remnants of Light under our command."

"Then the first two are just to make up the numbers. What Byrne gave me should be the third one."

"The third location is... a tribunal, in the suburbs of York City. Pasted beneath the envelope is also a section of doctrine, very similar to the content described in the images you saw through that quill pen when you went to the Knights' affiliated hospital for a physical examination last time, Young Master."

"Fundamentalist Order believers?"

"Yes, this should be Chief Bishop Byrne's suggestion, using the fundamentalist believers within the church to accomplish this assassination by a borrowed knife.

Your subordinate feels that this suggestion is the most suitable, because between the Wilderness and the Light, one is unrealistic and the other will involve us. Even if operated perfectly, it would only look passable on the surface, but those above would be able to discern at a glance exactly who arranged this matter.

And if we can utilize this bunch of people, the nature of the matter and the gaze of those above afterward will no longer fall upon you.

Most importantly, this matter is something they like and are willing to do. They have always adhered to the vintage doctrine, so for a force that actually assassinated the Chief Bishop's family to still vainly attempt to obtain the support of Order is something they cannot tolerate.

In addition, they should use their channels to publicize this matter, thereby achieving the political purpose of striking at those above.

What we need to do is merely to inform them of the truth of this matter."

A look of contemplation appeared in Karen's eyes, and the image of that old man responsible for the "faith check" in the Knights' affiliated hospital surfaced in his mind; his name was Davince.

Then, Karen shook his head.

"Does the young master feel that something is amiss?"

"There is a major issue, and the fault lies precisely within..."

Karen reached out a finger, pointing toward himself.

"Young master..."

"Thank you."

Three cups rested upon the table; one of them, presumably, belonged to Alfred.

"I have just been conversing with your valet, and I found him rather fascinating."

"Is that so? It seems you two got along splendidly."

"Indeed, an intriguing soul always brings with it a breath of fresh air. Thus, I eagerly anticipate our conversation; I am of the mind that an exceptional valet surely inherits the philosophies of his master."

"Then you may be disappointed, for I have not come to discuss philosophy or theory with you."

"Is it regarding that matter? Your valet has already informed me. I must say, you place immense trust in him."

"He is one of the few people in this world whom I trust most."

"One can certainly tell that is the case." Davinci lifted his teacup and took a light sip. "I would be delighted to cooperate with you. The specifics of the plan can be left to our subordinates to negotiate. You relax the security, and I shall dispatch the men to do the killing."

"You agree to it so readily?"

"Because that way, we can save enough time to speak of those fresh breezes, heh. Or rather, compared to the affair itself, I place a far greater value upon my friendship with you, Minister Karen."

"Friendship? Forgive me, but I do not particularly care for such a word. What I would prefer to hear are your terms. I believe it would be much better if the relationship between us remained confined to a matter of pure cooperation."

"As you wish. May I propose my terms then?"

"You may. I am listening intently."

"Perhaps you might use the tea to wash your ears."

"Hmm?"

"It seems you are unaware of a trend that has lately emerged. Among the dignitaries of the upper Dingle District, it has recently become quite fashionable to indulge in this brand of performance art. Washing one's ears signifies a serious listen, a gesture common between superiors and subordinates who share a good rapport."

"Very well, a rather novel trend indeed."

"Such is the nature of trends sometimes; they arise inexplicably, only to vanish just as inexplicably."

"Quite so, but you seem to have strayed from the point."

"You truly are impatient, heh. Very well, Minister Karen, my condition is that, if one day..."

Davinci let out a sigh, then turned his head, looking straight into Karen's eyes as he continued:

"If one day, it is you who are tasked with purging us, I ask that—provided it does not bring embarrassment upon yourself—you might stay your hand ever so slightly, letting a few small fish slip through the net, so that we might preserve a few seeds."