"Alas..." Roselle sighed deeply, looking like he didn't want to say more.
"That really sounds like you."
Leyton looked at Roselle, swallowed a retort, then took half a step forward, placing his right hand, encased in a mechanical glove, on Cielf's shoulder. A layer of pitch-black covered the bronze glove, continuously spreading over Cielf's body.
Cielf maintained his posture, his expression unchanged, only a hint of fear and panic showing in his light blue eyes.
The pitch-black spreading from the mechanical glove continuously surged, separating the Fallen thoughts within Cielf's mind bit by bit, and merging into the shadow beneath his feet.
The replenished shadow instantly came alive, rising like water, forming an uncontrollable, independent creature beside Cielf.
It was entirely pitch-black, but its body outline was almost identical to Cielf's, just without a layer of clothing. There were many strange, pattern-like cracks on its pitch-black form, through which a crimson moonlight shone.
"Hmph!" Roselle snorted, clenching his right hand into a fist and swinging it forward.
Bang!
A violent sound followed. Roselle's fist ignored distance and direction, directly smashing into the pitch-black figure, shattering it and disintegrating it into a dark void and a rapidly disappearing crimson moonlight.
As the "Shadow of Deprivation" separated from Cielf was shattered, he suddenly entered a Sage-like state of detachment, standing calmly in place, seemingly without even the desire to speak.
"Did you strip too much desire from him?"
Roselle tilted his head suspiciously to look at Leyton.
The latter shrugged, replying calmly, "It should be said that apart from mating, there's nothing else in his head."
Roselle was silent for a second, then changed the subject:
"I originally planned to take him back to the Southern Continent and keep him by my side, but given his current state, I think I'll pass. I just feel his behavior might affect my reputation. Let's just keep him on the Dawn for now."
"Alright, with things here settled, first take Cielf to the Dawn, and then send me back to the Southern Continent."
"I'm not your driver."
Leyton grumbled but still summoned a pumpkin carriage pulled by two fat rats, stuffing Roselle and his descendant Cielf inside.
Roselle leaned against the pumpkin carriage, sighing softly:
"I can't help it. Bernadette has been staying near Backlund recently. The Loen Royal Family's ascension ritual is nearing its end. Although they've lost Adam's support, they won't give up because of it, and few people know that the identity of Adam has disappeared."
"This is clearly being driven by the True Creator's will. Although the Visionary's ascension ritual is no longer needed, a large-scale war can also attract the attention of the gods and alleviate the pressure on the Southern Continent."
Leyton did not respond, driving the pumpkin carriage to deliver Roselle and Cielf separately to the Dawn and the Southern Continent.
After several round trips, Leyton finally arrived in Backlund as Dawn approached.
In the West Borough, inside Leonard's detached house, Leyton's figure quickly materialized on the living room sofa. He rubbed his forehead with one hand, seemingly a little drowsy.
The moment he appeared, Leonard sensed an extra person in his room. After seeing who it was, he slightly relaxed, walking a few steps from the dining room to the living room, and asked Leyton:
"Why are you here?"
Leyton chuckled, replying, "To invite you and Old Man to travel to Trier with me."
"Travel? A trip for the purpose of Marauder?"
Pallez, speaking through Leonard's mouth, scoffed, then paused slightly before continuing:
"You'd best be well-prepared. If you appear in Steam's sight, I believe He will personally emerge from the Land of Perfection to welcome you."
Leyton nodded slightly, not denying Pallez's statement, but also not overly concerned, saying:
"Don't worry, Steam only has one ally, and I have many."
"Best be so." Pallez replied blandly.
Leyton raised an eyebrow. Seeing that Pallez had no intention of emerging from Leonard's body, he asked curiously:
"Are you planning to take Leonard with you?"
Leonard's expression instantly changed from calm to horrified. Before he could ask, Pallez spoke through his mouth:
"I'm just an Old Man who's still recovering. If we run into Amon, he can still serve as an insurance."
As soon as the words fell, Leonard's voice immediately followed:
"Wait, I don't agree. I'm a Nighthawk of the Church of the Evernight Goddess. If my identity is discovered, it will directly cause conflict between the two Orthodox Churches, and I will definitely be wanted by the Church as a traitor."
Pallez chuckled, saying calmly:
"Don't worry, no one will discover your identity. In front of a High-Sequence Marauder, identity can be changed at any time. At that time, I will swap your identity and fate with an Intisian. No one will see any problem. Steam doesn't have the authority of fate, so unless there's a direct encounter, He won't be able to tell."
Seeing Leonard still hesitant, Leyton followed up on Pallez's words:
"I can provide the Concealment's Blessing. Even if your false identity is seen through, no one will be able to tell who the true you hidden beneath that identity actually is."
"Are you sure my true identity won't be discovered?" Leonard asked suspiciously.
Leyton calmly shook his head:
"No, and even if it is, it's not a big problem. Your Goddess won't care what Steam thinks. She is very strong and fully capable of protecting the Nighthawks of Her Church."
"The Seven Deities have basically chosen their factions by now. A small matter won't make Them change Their original choices. The real danger lies in the attacks after your actions are discovered by the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery, but as long as I can successfully accommodate that Characteristic, I can easily take you away."
"You're going to directly accommodate the Characteristic? Aren't you afraid of losing control? Or, have you already prepared the ritual and corresponding supplementary ingredients in advance?"
Leonard looked at Leyton with some suspicion. Directly accommodating a Characteristic to advance, even at low Sequence, has a high probability of losing control, let alone the other party already being an Angel. The danger involved is multiplied many times over.
"Everyone has some secrets, don't they?"
Leyton looked at the surprised Leonard and chuckled in response. This was something he deliberately told Pallez, revealing some of his cards so that both sides could cooperate better, and also to tell Him that he had enough confidence and ability to help him fight Amon, otherwise this Worm of Time would definitely not help him with all His strength.
After a moment of silence, Pallez sighed heavily:
"...The secrets on you far exceed my imagination. I'm already this old, and I still have to be plotted against by you guys. Can't you give an Old Man some time to peacefully retire?"
"What secrets?" Leonard's words were interrupted by Pallez before he could finish:
"That's not something you should know right now. To understand the shadows beneath the surface of this world, you need to at least become a Sequence 4 Beyonder, after gaining divinity."
Leonard's expression froze for a moment, then gradually became solemn. Pallez usually subtly urged him to advance, but never as directly as now.
The Old Man's tone was exceptionally serious, with a sense of urgency. Demigod, this is already the true high-level of the Church, a Archbishop in charge of a region or a Senior Deacon among the Nighthawks. How could it be so easy to advance? Even His Excellency "Sword of the Goddess" has remained at Sequence 5, unable to get an opportunity to advance to this day.
Sensing Leonard's thoughts, Pallez snorted and said:
"There will be opportunities soon. This world is becoming increasingly dangerous. To cope with increasingly frequent Beyonder events and the potential outbreak of war, the major Churches will intensify their efforts to cultivate new recruits."
"Haven't you noticed that the Archbishop of Saint Samuel Cathedral, even knowing you might have some issues, only transferred you from your original Red Gloves team, marginalizing you, but still assigns you tasks to accumulate contributions and exchange for the Spirit Warlock potion?"
Leonard was stunned for a moment, as if just realizing, and murmured to himself:
"Isn't that His Excellency the Archbishop's regard and cultivation for me?"
"What do you have that's worth a Archbishop's regard? A Parasite? Or an undercover agent infiltrating Fool's subordinates?"
Leonard opened his mouth, unable to say anything. After a long silence, he finally accepted the fact that he was being guarded against by the Church.
He took a deep breath, then exhaled heavily. After calming his emotions, he slowly said:
"I understand. My potion is almost digested. I should be able to advance to Spirit Warlock by the end of this month. If I can't get the Nighthawk potion from the Church later, I might consider changing Pathways, although the sinister Corpse Collector Pathway doesn't suit my style."
He paused, then looked at Leyton, saying calmly:
"During this time, I just happened to be specifically reassigned by the Bishop from the Red Gloves team to handle some incidents involving undead and Natural Spirits around Backlund. As long as I don't disappear for too long, no one will notice that I've left Backlund."
"When do you plan to depart?"
"Do you have any matters that need to be handled today?" Leyton asked.
Leonard recalled briefly, then simply explained the tasks he planned to complete in the next two days:
"There have been several ghost sightings recently at Green graveyard in the West Borough, and there are rumors of hauntings and Zombie traces at Hargs graveyard outside the East Borough…"
After a slight thought, Leyton chuckled:
"Klein can disguise himself as you to complete these tasks. It's very simple for him. I can bring him some local specialties from beneath the Steel Church in Trier as a reward."