Chapter 239 (1): The Third Dragon Blood Enhancement

Alex watched the siblings go, shaking his head. Wayne was too friendly. He wasn’t good at dealing with people like him.

“Why did you just agree to an alliance?” Desiree kicked her older brother. “That man isn’t trustworthy. If you’re so careless, you may end up counting money for him after he sold you out.”

Alex nodded. His younger sister had always been smart. If she said that Wayne was untrustworthy, he had to be.

“And that girl, Veronica. There’s something strange about the brother and sister...” Desiree kicked her brother again, frowning as she looked for the right word. She gestured as she continued, “They’re like siblings, but also not. It’s strange. Perhaps they are cousins.”

“What difference does it make? Veronica’s the true candidate, and Wayne will be protecting his sister to make her the Holy Maiden. That’s all we have to know.”

Alex told his sister not to overthink. Wayne was right about one thing: they were in Prussian territory, and the faction of six would band together to eliminate the other candidates first. If they wanted to stay in the game, they had to form an alliance.

The way the mansions were arranged made that clear, too. Headquarters wanted the tension to escalate so that the most excellent Holy Maiden would win.

“Right.” Desiree nodded in agreement. With Prussia’s threat on the horizon, Windsor and Franc had no choice but to become allies, despite their hundred years of friendship.

“We can trust them at the beginning of the alliance, but not later. Don’t invest too much emotionally and believe them to be friends,” Desiree warned. “Also, try to chat Veronica up rather than waste your handsome face. If you can make her give up on her own, I’ll have a better chance of winning.”

Alex smiled bitterly, brooding even harder.

Before he could say no, Desiree added, “Wayne, too. He was being too friendly to you. Since he’s from Windsor, perhaps you can win over both siblings if you try a little harder.

Alex’s smile stiffened. He wasn’t just brooding, but looking downright forlorn now.

***

Meanwhile, the Lando siblings had returned to their mansion. Wayne made a pot of black tea and sat down in the living room, fingertips stroking over smooth chin. “The man named Alex is easy to deal with. I can make him count the earnings for me after I sell him out.”

Veronica slapped his finger away from her chin, punching him in the chest. Wayne leveraged the inertia to pull her into his arms. After some tussling, she pushed him away with a blush.

“Stop messing around. What if someone sees us?”

“You’re right.” Wayne nodded, but then he started blabbering nonsense once more. “Master Senna told you to listen to me, though. Whatever I say, you should do. Come here and give your brother a hug.”

I’ll give you a punch!

When the thought occurred to her, her fist was already colliding with Wayne’s face.

He covered his nose and mumbled, “It’s difficult to become the Anointed One. Although Alex can rival me in handsomeness, he’s clearly Desiree’s bodyguard. Given his aloof attitude, he’s likely also Desiree’s muscle. He must be strong.”

Veronica turned away and muffled a laugh. Forgive her honesty, but Alex was much more handsome than the scumbag.

“Why are you laughing?” Wayne rolled his eyes. What good would a pretty face do? Alex could only move to an adjacent square, while Wayne was versatile—sometimes charging straight into the target like a chariot, sometimes ignoring impenetrable defenses like a cannon, and sometimes thrusting with every move like a galloping horse[1].

“I didn’t smile...” Veronica cocked her head at the scumbag. No matter how she looked at him, she couldn’t see any good points. She didn’t understand why she would fall for someone like him, but it wasn’t as if she could unfall for him. She could only live with her feelings.

“During my conversation with Alex, I was observing Desiree,” Wayne warned. “The girl’s quiet front is hiding a shrewd mind, making her a formidable rival. Don’t talk to her unless you have to, or you may fall for her lies.”

“Don’t underestimate yourself. She can’t be a better liar than you are.”

“That’s true.”

...You sound proud of yourself!

Veronica huffed and punched Wayne in the face. She did that whether she was happy or unhappy. It was her way of expressing closeness, which proved how close she and Vera were.

“I have a feeling that Desiree is difficult to deal with. Allow me to seduce her. I’ll make her pull out of the competition in a month.” Wayne made a bold claim.

“What about the other candidates?” Veronica said sarcastically. “Are you going to do the same to them?”

Wayne pondered seriously. “We’ll see. If there’s enough time, perhaps I will be able to take them all down...”

Pow!

That, naturally, earned him another punch.

***

March came. At the Church of Nature’s headquarters, Wayne had been behaving himself to some extent, not daring to get too intimate with Veronica. Their physical contact was kept within the boundaries of siblings.

𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

The older brother was in charge of riling the younger sister up, while the younger sister was in charge of initiating physical contact.

Wayne had become friends with Alex, and he had an amicable relationship with Desiree—as long as he continued to ignore her wariness. He had been maintaining his persona of an outgoing, warm-hearted young man.

Today, two mail carriers entered the estate to deliver packages to the two mansions. Wearing the ring marked with thoughts, Wayne stared at the hunky mailman with overly active muscles, who resembled those musclemen of the Church of Sun. His ring told him that the mailman was his master’s master, Senna.

I want to learn that, Coach!

Wayne ogled the mailman’s pectorals. He wanted the divine art. Once he learned it, he would boldly visit the Queen as Auston to confirm if there was something between them.

“This package came from Londan. Just sign here.”

The hunky mailman winked at Wayne mischievously, making Wayne shudder. He quickly took the package and slammed the door shut. The mailman strode away with a smile.

The mail carrier responsible for mansion number eight caught up. The two of them exchanged a scrutinizing look before deactivating their disguises. Senna, wearing a black robe, looked as stunning as ever. Facing her was... a mandrill.

The mandrill was tall and strong with well-built forelimbs, as well as sharp claws and fangs. Grey hair covered its entire body, in stark contrast with the colorful stripes on its face.

“Isn’t this Oracle High Reverend Senna? Why, did you find a new target after your failure last time?” The mandrill spoke human language in a strange, ghostly voice.

Rather than answering the question, Senna said, “High Prophet Tubert, since when are you interested in Holy Maiden? I didn’t expect this.”

Oracle High Reverends were part of the leadership of the Church of Nature’s headquarters, ranking second only to the Pope and holding tremendous power. The High Prophet was a leader with a status that rivaled that of the Pope, but while the High Prophet had influence, they didn’t have actual power. Their daily work was to relay messages for the deities.

The deities in this context didn’t refer to the Goddess of Nature, but Her three subordinate gods. The Goddess of Death had three subordinate gods, also known as the three avatars: the Observer, the Judge, and the Executor.

The Goddess of Nature also had three avatars: the Oracle, the Dreamer, and the Destroyer.

The rivalry between the two goddesses was clear in the names of their avatars. Even their avatars played similar roles. The two goddesses could be considered archenemies.

In terms of status, the Holy Maiden was no less than the Pope and the High Prophet. Given that she would be receiving the Goddess of Nature’s oracles, her duty could be considered more sacred than that of the Pope.

Unfortunately, the Holy Maiden was replaced once every twenty years, giving her no chance to cultivate her force. Without raw power, she could earn no political influence. The Pope and the Oracle High Reverend had always controlled the Holy Maiden’s clout instead.

The Oracle High Reverend was the direct subordinate of the pope, while the Holy Maiden and the High Prophet were independent players, seemingly creating a separation of powers with three branches. However, in reality, the Pope held the majority of the power, entitled to command all members of the Order of Nature aside from the captain.

The Holy Maiden relayed the goddess’s oracles, while the High Prophet served as the mouthpiece of the three avatars. They could be silent for three years and only spoke one line when they received a message. They had neither the power nor the right to keep the Pope in check.

Thus, the Pope’s direct subordinate, Oracle High Reverends, became the one to take on the role.

There was only one pope for every church, while there were an uncertain number of Oracle High Reverends—the maximum number being five. Since there was no limit to the duration a pope stayed in office, an Oracle High Reverend would have to wait until the Pope retired to take over.

A pope only retired in two scenarios: either they went to their goddess’s Divine Realm, or they reached the end of their life.

The latter possibility aside, the first would take a long time. The current Pope, for example, had been in office for a hundred years. He considered himself middle-aged and could still serve the church for another hundred years. Thus, he insisted on staying in the human world.

I’ve worked so hard to get to this position. The seat is barely warm. If I leave now, wouldn’t I have put in the effort for nothing?

What, so we should wait for another hundred years?

Scarcity wasn’t the problem, but unfairness. That was true for every system. In a power hierarchy, there were more than a few cases where parents and children clashed, and siblings fought each other.

A certain prince should be commended for patiently waiting seventy years for his turn[2].

The Oracle High Reverends couldn’t wait until the Pope left his post, so they had to try their best to fight for power. With internal strife exhausting the resources of the church, the Church of Nature naturally couldn’t band together to form a united front.

As the Pope and the Oracle High Reverends expanded their factions, the Holy Maiden and High Prophet would naturally suffer losses.

Well, the Holy Maidens were never a threat to begin with since their twenty-year term prevented them from gaining influence. A High Prophet could take a stand to some degree since they could stay in office indefinitely and lie low. They spent their days acting cryptic with no need to show their hands. Thus, they were able to maintain a stable footing at the church.

Senna didn’t understand why the High Prophet, who never got involved in the Holy Maiden selection, was suddenly stepping in. The old lunatic wasn’t the type that craved power.

1. Chariot, cannon, and horse are all pieces from Xiangqi, similar to other board games like chess. Wayne, of course, is talking in innuendo here. ☜

2. Another reference to how King Charles waited to succeed Queen Elizabeth. ☜