Chapter 146: Intelligence and Trouble

A series of plain yet immensely powerful words spoken by Wang Yu plunged "One" into a long silence. This was not the speechlessness born of being suppressed by Wang Yu’s aura, but rather the genuine shock of having nothing left to say.

Few people would ever speak to a devil in such a manner; in fact, there were none. Wang Yu was the first to strip away the mystery of its precognitive abilities and dissect them in the cold light of day.

Whether one should seek the origin and principles of innate abilities is a common question in this world. Every race possesses its own peculiar talents—dragons, elves, and dwarves go without saying—and even humans, who appear the most ordinary and featureless, possess the concept of bloodlines.

Most of the time, the power granted by these innate abilities far exceeds what can be learned through study; such natural gifts are always easily mastered and effortlessly enhanced.

Yet, this does not mean one should abandon the pursuit of their essence. The professors at the academy have conducted in-depth research into these so-called talents, including bloodlines and special constitutions, developing a vast array of secret arts and other techniques from them.

These scholars never believed that innate gifts should remain unexamined. To use them blindly without verifying their principles, devoid of any curiosity, was, in their eyes, utter foolishness.

Even Wang Yu, faced with his own absurdly overpowered mental resistance and the ripples of his energy, never ceased his investigations. Not fully understanding them for the moment did not mean he would stop using them, but he truly could not stomach the way "One" treated the visions transmitted by the Void as absolute truth.

In reality, he couldn't care less how "One" handled its own talent—it had nothing to do with him, and they were hardly acquaintances—but he held a particular loathing for these cryptic, riddle-speaking types.

He didn't care if his words made sense; he only wanted "One" to stop babbling about the future and provide clear information, rather than offering useless, nonsensical platitudes like "I believe you cannot change it" or "I believe you might be able to."

"I need concrete information, not your lectures on whether the future can be changed. That is of no help to me. If the future cannot be changed, what is the point of me standing here talking to you? I might as well go home, lie down, and wait for the predetermined fate to unfold." Wang Yu waved his hand, his tone impatient. He truly detested these prophet-like characters.

"..., Fine." "One," inhabiting Charles's body, tapped a finger against its temple, eyes closing slightly, its tone tinged with a hint of helplessness.

Wang Yu’s words were unvarnished, blunt, and aggressive, yet they were remarkably similar to what someone else had once said to it. Perhaps it should change its perspective—not looking from the viewpoint of a prophet, but from the viewpoint of those within the prophecy?

Straightening its expression, "One" withdrew its gaze from the future and, imitating Charles and the members of the Lede family, began to collect sufficient intelligence from those future visions, converting them into usable information.

Opening its eyes, it began to recount the intelligence it deemed useful.

"Setting aside the things that cannot be spoken of, which might invite the gaze of certain entities, I find my scope limited. There are two points you must pay attention to."

"One" raised a finger. "You must be especially wary of the 'gods' created by Sevintan. You will find these gods to be extremely incomplete. They possess some characteristics of divinity, but they are absurdly 'weak.' Compare them to the power displayed by the Seven True Gods, and you will see. As an archbishop of the Lady of the Night, you should have an even deeper understanding of this."

"It is precisely because they are incomplete that they are so feeble. Whether it is the 'Source of Life' you faced or the 'God of War' you captured, it is the same. Their true threat does not come from themselves, but from what they are connected to—and Him, I cannot see."

"However, it is worth noting—I do not know if it is an influence caused by you—but the Lady of the Night seems to have severed her connection with Him. In the future, I do not see the events that befell other 'gods' happening to the Lady of the Night."

"What events?" Wang Yu frowned. He was already highly vigilant regarding the things Sevintan was concocting. The situation with the Lady of the Night seemed like a coincidence difficult to replicate; how much influence would the other 'gods' exert? As it stood, the Source of Life alone had already caused the catastrophe at the academy.

"Return. They will return to a much larger entity; that is their true form." There was undisguised dread in the words of "One." It was clear that it feared that thing immensely.

Although it was strange for a devil to appear "cowardly," it was not a loss of face. The most terrifying aspect of a devil was never their raw strength, but their ability to hide beneath events, subtly nudging things toward the direction they desired.

"Fine. I will report this to those who can intervene." Wang Yu nodded. These matters could be refined and passed on to Zig and Shugin, ensuring the Night's Edge had a clear contingency plan for this potential scenario.

"The second point, also related to the incident at the Stevenson Academy of Magic, is that what they are searching for are the thirteen keys left behind by Roland." "One" raised a second finger, informing Wang Yu of this second vital piece of intelligence with an inscrutable expression.

"Thirteen keys?" This was not the first time Wang Yu had heard this.

"Yes. Roland was indeed the human in your history closest to the Void. Regarding the things he left behind, from the feedback I receive from the Void, it is a blank slate."

"But I can see the covetousness of certain people in Sevintan for the thirteen keys he left behind. Many treat this legend as a mere story, but these thirteen keys truly exist. Some entities have already collected many of them, but they are not yet complete. Their attempt to drag the Stevenson Academy of Magic into the Void was precisely because they believed a key existed within the academy."

"Do you know what the keys actually are?" Wang Yu’s expression grew grave. Information he had previously obtained made him suspicious of the connection between Aivia and the keys. If it were true, the trouble would escalate once more. However, "One's" explanation of the keys left Wang Yu deep in thought.

"The keys are objects that autonomously attach themselves to those who possess powerful wizarding talents. I do not know if Roland is selecting qualified candidates, but in my travels over many years, I have seen records stating, 'Thirteen steps lead to the truth of the Void.' Thus, these thirteen keys do indeed lead to a secret treasury left by Roland."

"It is worth noting that if my knowledge is correct, the holders of these thirteen keys are all qualified to obtain that final object, and the things Roland left behind will certainly not be simple."

"These keys possess additional properties: the people they attach to will receive a significant, breakthrough-level enhancement to their original wizarding talent. If the previous level was one, after being attached to a key, they will receive a multiplicative breakthrough—roughly doubling it. It is very obvious."

"A multiplicative breakthrough?" Wang Yu did not focus on the information regarding Roland's treasury. Even though "One" clearly showed curiosity and desire for it, to Wang Yu, it was unimportant.

He had previously suspected a connection between Aivia and the keys, but now it seemed incorrect. He had watched the girl's progress from zero, step by step. Although her talent was terrifying, her progress had always been steady and grounded, just like his own—there had been no sudden, leaping accelerations. This didn't match up.

However, there was no doubt: for Sevintan to sacrifice the "Silent Forest"—an object of greater value than a standard strategic relic—just for a chance to obtain a key, it was enough to show how precious the contents of Roland's treasury truly were.

"I have gained much useful information, but it has only made things more convoluted. To be honest, someone at my level of strength shouldn't be involved in these things. I should pass this on to the professors and the captain as soon as possible."

Wang Yu shook his head. This information was useful, but it was beyond the scope of a small pawn like him. The layouts made by those powerful entities were things Wang Yu had no ability to shake; he would have to leave it to those with sufficient strength to handle.

"The information I can share is limited to this for now. Afterward, I will stay by Charles's side. I have made a plan with him; I used a devil's special ability to influence his memory."

"He will not remember the things he did to interfere with the future, and I have also allowed this not-so-pious believer to borrow power from the generous Lady of the Night to mask the traces of his actions. Therefore, he might be a bit dazed, and I would appreciate it if you could keep these matters between him and me a secret from others."

"One" spoke with sincerity—at least in tone. But was it too rash to trust a devil's words?

"So, I have a question. Why are you intervening in a matter that is so difficult to stop? There is no meaning or benefit in this for you, is there?" Wang Yu looked into the eyes of Charles, possessed by "One," and asked the question.

"...Charles and I are good friends. If possible, I do not want him to lose this kingdom he values or the people he cares about." "One" paused slightly, offering a reason that seemed almost too simple.

"Fine. I'll trust you for now. You should be able to continue contacting me through Charles, right?"

Wang Yu didn't react further, standing up to leave. There was still much to handle regarding the aftermath of the academy incident, and he still needed to report to the captain and discuss the matter of adding the Lady of the Night as an object of worship for the Night's Edge, which had been discussed before the Winter Wolf riot.

In truth, sometimes actions do not require so many reasons; the simpler the motive, the more convincing its power.

"I can." "One" nodded in agreement.

......

After Wang Yu left, "One" pulled the chair to the desk and began to carefully read the diary left on Charles's desk.

"It seems I still know too little about Charles. Having not met for so long, I tried to infer his current style of conduct from his diary, yet I was spotted because of a difference in how he handled a drink. I need to look more closely."

For a long time, "One" did not put the diary back. It sat in the chair, eyes closed. Once the controller lost its grip, the body slumped, collapsing onto the desk as if falling into a deep sleep.

"Ah!" A few moments later, Charles’s startled voice rang out in the room. He lifted his head from the desk and straightened up, looking around in confusion. He had absolutely no memory of what had happened; his mind was a blank void.

Seeing the sky outside the window had already turned dark, he realized he had likely overslept.

Then he discovered the notebook that had been taken out and placed on the desk. After hurriedly putting it away, a wave of sleepiness and exhaustion surged over him. He stumbled a few steps to the bed and collapsed onto it, drifting back into a hazy sleep.

One wonders what he will think when he wakes up and sees the mountain of messages from the professors, the captain, and Edward in his communication crystal.

......

Having left the Lede family's property, Wang Yu walked home through the streets, his mind filled with questions waiting to be solved. The involvement of those powerful entities gave him a headache.

"Should I find an opportunity to leave the capital..." The thought surfaced involuntarily. Staying away from the turmoil of the capital seemed like a good choice.

"No... that's all empty talk. The speed of my progress in the capital is definitely faster than it would be outside. Resources—this is the resource a kingdom's capital possesses; it cannot be compared to the outside world."

Squeezing his fist, which was still strong but felt weak from the inside out due to overexertion, Wang Yu rejected the option.

"Sevintan and Alastair are at war. Although the capital is in turmoil and at the center of the event, in this world where transcendent power reigns, leaving the capital—a place protected by powerful forces—would still mean facing threats elsewhere. I had better hurry and use these resources to improve my strength."

Walking home, Wang Yu planned his next steps while observing the streets, which were unusually noisy. At this hour, with the sky already dark, the residents of the capital usually wouldn't be out, and the streets wouldn't be so lively, but tonight was different.

Wang Yu saw some residents dressed as hunters and guild members walking by with two or three dead winter wolves on their backs. There were a few unlucky ones—likely hit by the first wave of crazed winter wolves—with bandages on their arms and legs, but in a sense, they were lucky to have kept their lives.

Others were setting up the winter wolf carcasses along the streets to sell at prices much lower than in previous years. This beast tide had its pros and cons; while it caused more casualties than usual, because the winter wolves stopped fleeing, the catch had multiplied several times over. People were actually buying them, as magical beast materials were always in short supply.

Wang Yu saw many such makeshift stalls. Some weren't even selling winter wolf materials but were seizing the opportunity to hawk their own goods. Both sellers and buyers seemed quite brazen; the out-of-control beast tide and the academy incident meant the city guards couldn't spare the manpower to deal with this group of cunning, albeit minor, offenders.

Although the war had not ceased and the capital was in chaos, life went on. Those who needed to make a living continued to do so, and those who had nothing to eat remained hungry.

This scene slightly altered Wang Yu's predictions about what might happen next. Human resilience is high, and a kingdom's even more so. He did not believe Alastair would simply collapse; this was a kingdom, not some small village.

Temporarily setting aside those thoughts, Wang Yu returned to Red Maple Street. As he reached the corner, he saw several carriages parked in front of his house. It was clear the horses were purebreds, and the exquisite nature of the carriages was incomparable to those one could hail on the street. More importantly, there were family crests on the vehicles.

"Tch... troublesome."

(Reached the final round of COVID, let's see how long I can stay negative, haha.)