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"The candelabra on the left seems to have some dust. I'll go wipe it."
After saying that, perhaps afraid of being lectured by Father Utravsky, Emlyn White seemed to have fire under his backside and went to clean up without a second's delay.
However, his movements while wiping the candelabra were rather "absent-minded"; he was clearly distracted and occasionally showed a conflicted expression, evidently thinking about praying to the The Fool.
Lin Ruo watched this scene, his lips silently curving into a smile, when he heard Father Utravsky's gentle voice beside him:
"Your Excellency Lin Ruo, I received guidance from the Earth Mother. She told me that an ally will always be an ally."
Lin Ruo raised an eyebrow. An ally will always be an ally?
Is this expressing a stance? At this time… so it not only refers to the Church of the Earth Mother but also the Family?
But the word "always"… Lin Ruo lowered his eyes, smiling gently, and said:
"I understand. Thank you, Father Utravsky, and please thank the Earth Mother for me."
"May the Earth Mother bless you! Praise the Earth Mother!" Father Utravsky said devoutly, making the gesture of praising the Earth Mother again.
Lin Ruo once again showed a gentle yet polite smile.
Afterward, the few of them chatted for a while. Since there was nothing else to do, Lin Ruo and Klein naturally chose to take their leave. Soon, the two returned to Sherlock's Detective Agency.
"Lin Ruo, are you also an old friend of Lilith, the Family's Ancestor?" As soon as they returned to the Detective Agency, Klein eagerly asked.
"In a sense, yes." Lin Ruo nodded. He looked at Klein, not intending to reveal the Earth Mother's identity in front of Klein, and simply said: "Lilith should bear you no ill will. She, like the Evernight Goddess, can become our ally."
Klein nodded thoughtfully. After a while, he said: "In that case, Emlyn White should also be brought into the Tarot Club…"
"It's a good opportunity for you to learn about the various secrets of the Family from him, isn't it?" Lin Ruo smiled, thinking of the phrase "an ally will always be an ally" just now. He paused, then said: "Actually, there are some things I also want to understand."
"Hmm?" Klein looked at Lin Ruo in confusion.
"I have some questions about the fourth epoch, although Emlyn might not know them now…" Lin Ruo didn't hide anything. He indeed had some questions.
For example, what Lilith meant by "always."
Lin Ruo had no memories of Lilith or the Family. His only understanding of them, aside from what was mentioned in the original work, was probably just the various historical records he had found in this Mystical World after waking up.
And in those records, during the War of the Four Emperors in the fourth epoch, the Family was essentially confirmed to have allied with Night Emperor Trunsoest, and even their Queen Auernia married Night Emperor Trunsoest.
Although in the Mystical World, being enemies one second and allies the next is very normal, Lin Ruo could understand his friends' choices in the fourth epoch and the situation of mutual hostility.
But if the Family was truly his ally, this act of directly binding themselves to Night Emperor Trunsoest seemed rather off, no matter how he looked at it.
Either his connection with the Family wasn't that close.
Or… Lin Ruo's eyes flickered. A few seconds later, he raised a hand to brush his hair aside and smiled again.
"Or perhaps I'm just overthinking it…"
Lin Ruo stretched, looked at Klein, and said: "However, even though Lilith might indeed be showing goodwill towards you, Emlyn should genuinely be a scapegoat pushed out by the Family's bigshots. The Family most likely doesn't know Lilith's true attitude towards the The Fool…"
"So, if the The Fool truly wants to interact with the Family, my suggestion is to maintain a temporary distance."
Lin Ruo didn't think that if the The Fool truly interacted with the Family, those Family bigshots would immediately bow down and offer the The Fool a lot of benefits. He never expected such a windfall.
The Mystical World is not a fairy tale. Any benefits gained now will have to be repaid in the future.
Lin Ruo never believed he could freeload off these old friends. There was definitely friendship, but an exchange of interests was also indispensable.
"I understand…" Klein's expression straightened, and he nodded seriously.
Lin Ruo smiled, then suddenly thought of something and asked: "Klein, do you know anyone with progressive ideas? Uh, you know, that kind of talent."
"Uh…" Klein immediately recalled the big discussions Lin Ruo and Medici had had. He thought for a moment, then finally shook his head and said: "I don't know anyone with that kind of talent."
"Then what good are you?!" Lin Ruo said, his face full of disappointment.
"Talent isn't like cabbage. It would be strange if I could just casually run into it…" Klein mumbled softly, then saw Lin Ruo's gentle yet dangerous gaze sweep over him, and immediately, with a strong will to survive, said:
"However, although I don't know any thinkers, I think we can start with middle-class people who sympathize with the lower classes. Perhaps we'll find the talent we're looking for among them. Of course, the lower classes cannot be ignored either. I also have informants in the East Borough who can help with the search."
"Tsk…" Lin Ruo glanced at him and said: "Don't make it too obvious, and it's not just talent in that area. You also need to pay attention to talent in research, logistics, and so on. I don't expect you to contact them, but at least be able to give me a list when the time comes."
Although he would also search himself, Lin Ruo naturally didn't mind sharing some of his burden.
That's what students are for, right?
Righteous.jpg
"Okay." Klein nodded obediently, but in his heart, he was seriously considering which channels to investigate.
Regarding what Lin Ruo wanted to do, Klein naturally had no objections whatsoever. In fact, after witnessing the miserable conditions of the people in the East Borough, Klein fully supported Lin Ruo's actions with both hands and feet.
It's just a pity that I'm not that kind of talent either… Klein muttered to himself.
…
In the evening, within the underground structure of the Odora Family.
After a fierce ideological struggle, Emlyn White, who had finally made up his mind, looked at the iron-black coffin in front of him and took a slight breath.
Lying in this iron-black coffin was the Family bigshot Emlyn White spoke of, Nibbs Odora, an ancient member of the Family who was once active in the fourth epoch but was now very decayed and had to frequently fall into slumber.
Emlyn White said to the ancient Family member lying inside with determination: "Lord Nibbs, I accept the Ancestor's mission!"
Then, he heard Nibbs's aged voice come from the iron-black coffin:
"When do you want to start? Do you have any unfulfilled wishes?"
Having finally made up his mind and constantly reassuring himself that the Ancestor wouldn't harm the Family and that the bigshot would definitely protect him, Emlyn White's heart immediately sank. But having come this far, he naturally couldn't back down and could only bite the bullet and say:
"I have no wishes."
"Start now."
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