Chapter 1236: Suspicion and Meeting

Seeing the situation escalate, Xia Duo could not help but feel some concern regarding Iolum's guarantee; if the Seven Towers insisted on implicating him, or held him to some form of joint liability, would the other Great Arcanists go with the flow?

In such a scenario, even Iolum might not have much room for rebuttal.

However, it was somewhat late to leave now; if he had left earlier, he could have just left, but leaving now would make it look like he was guilty and fleeing because the situation looked bad, and leaving at this moment would also be more likely to attract others' attention.

Furthermore, Kelifu was already dead; for a living Senior Arcanist, even if he were to be held accountable, it would not be too excessive, which was also an important reason why Xia Duo dared to stay here.

"I only hope Sikumu is broad-minded!"

Regarding the current Seven Towers, especially Sikumu of Giles Tower, Xia Duo truly found it difficult to gauge him.

Not long ago, during the Snow Melting Competition, Niya went to Giles Tower to apply for some data on Magic Web Background Fluctuation, and Sikumu deliberately expedited the approval, seeking to have Niya support him at the Council of Great Arcanists meeting after the Snow Melting Competition.

As the Princess's only student, once Niya stood out to support Sikumu, it might be interpreted as the Princess's intent; now that the Princess had only recently achieved Ascension to Godhood, she still retained immense influence in Netheril.

If it were just a general proposal, that would be one thing, but Sikumu's proposal at the time was to open up various research regarding demon summoning—how could such a proposal be agreed to?

Moreover, Sikumu having Niya stand out to support him might not be without the intention of taking the opportunity to take over the Princess's remaining influence.

The fact was, later that proposal did not even get the chance to be brought up; the Princess passed down her opposition through Greta and Bailun, and Sikumu was silenced immediately.

……

The Princess's remaining influence was now mainly inherited by four people—Sikumu, Greta, Bailun, and Niya.

Of course, as a typical new Pioneer under the Princess's order, Xia Duo could also inherit a portion to some extent, but compared to those four, that could be ignored.

And among those four, Greta was single-mindedly retreating to the Nether Palace, managing the Temple of the God of Exploration and Protection, and would likely follow the path of a Priest in the future, so she would not have any conflict with Sikumu;

While Bailun had always been indifferent, and since he was the Princess's teacher and also a Great Arcanist, Sikumu would not do anything to him, but rather would have to treat him with respect every day.

Only Niya, as the Princess's student, in a situation where the Nether Family was already effectively extinct, should logically be the most legitimate heir to the Princess's political influence, and even a considerable portion of the Nether Family's legacy.

Although Niya's current strength was not yet enough for such a status, no one dared to say that there would not be a day when Niya became a Great Arcanist.

By then, it would not be unimaginable for Niya to accept the Princess's influence, or even her legacy.

Even if Niya herself did not want to, it was not impossible for Sikumu's opponents to push Niya forward.

One must know that Giles Tower was essentially a Lord Alliance, and Sikumu was merely the person in charge "elected" by everyone; if everyone truly did not recognize him, even if he were a Great Arcanist, he would only be able to step down in disgrace.

The relationship between Sikumu and Niya was somewhat similar to the relationship between the lineage of Emperor Taizong and the lineage of Emperor Taizu of the Song Dynasty in Xia Duo's hometown; one was the current ruler, and the other was a potential ruler with legitimate rights of succession.

Xia Duo did not doubt for a second that Sikumu would use his suspicion of Niya against him, especially with this incident of Kelifu's death; such a good opportunity to smear him, would it not be a pity not to use it?

With Iolum present, smearing him was likely impossible, but joint liability would surely implicate him to some extent; other Great Arcanists might ignore it for Iolum's sake, but they might also just go with the flow.

He believed that if Giles Tower were still under the Princess's charge, he would definitely not have so many troubles now.

But regardless, since things had developed to this point, he would just wait patiently for the result; if it truly came to a falling out, Xia Duo did not fear Sikumu.

……

Thus, Xia Duo waited patiently at the Arcane Union like this, but from the afternoon until evening, he did not receive any news that anyone was going to convene a Council of Great Arcanists meeting; instead, news came from the Halan Chamber of Commerce.

Lord Halan himself had arrived in Seventon and, through Deacon Tom, conveyed a request to "Dailike" to meet with Lord Xia Duo.

"My Lord, Lord Halan says he will wait for you at 'Fireside Rest'!"

Tom's words made Xia Duo think of the recent Snow Melting Competition, when he and Lord Collins also met at the "Fireside Rest" tavern outside Jilan Tower.

The unique sour wine there left a deep impression on him, and he still reminisced about it from time to time; he did not expect Lord Halan to also make an appointment there.

After dismissing Tom, Xia Duo tidied his attire and prepared to head to "Fireside Rest".

Come to think of it, he had been busy refining Mithril and manufacturing simple mental Amulets, and had even forgotten to eat lunch, having only gnawed on two steamed buns; by now, his stomach was already starting to growl.

……

Old City District, Fireside Rest.

When Xia Duo arrived here, the sky outside had already turned completely dark, with only a few Magic Street Lamps by the road casting spots of brilliance, adding a touch of color to Seventon's nightlife.

It was just that Fireside Rest seemed excessively quiet tonight; although places frequently visited by Spellcasters were mostly quiet, it was rare to be as quiet as tonight, with no human voices at all, only the faint popping and cracking sounds of wood burning in the fireplace inside.

This was truly a bit exaggerated; could it be that there were too few guests here tonight?

Xia Duo shook his head, then pushed open the baffle at the tavern entrance, and after walking around a corner, Xia Duo stopped in his tracks, a fine layer of sweat appearing on his forehead.

More than a dozen pairs of eyes were watching him; if the owners of these dozen pairs of eyes were ordinary people, that would be nothing, but the key was those four or five!

Xia Duo finally knew why it was so quiet here tonight; Badijiaer and Haruisi, these two Great Arcanists of the Seven Towers, as well as Braun and Weide, these two Great Arcanists from outside the Seven Towers, and one whom Xia Duo had not seen before but could recognize from the style of his Mage Robe and decorative marks, should be the Great Arcanist Magna.

With these five Great Arcanists present, how could anyone else dare to make any sound? Just as Xia Duo was stunned, a Mage from Jilan Tower hurriedly paid the bill and ran past Xia Duo.

Xia Duo forced himself to stay calm, nodded slightly to the several Great Arcanists, and then looked inside; excluding the Seven Towers Mages, among the remaining three, the one gesturing at him with his eyes, if nothing went wrong, was Lord Halan.

Passing through a One-way Soundproof Barrier, Xia Duo sat down directly in front of Lord Halan and said quite dissatisfiedly: "Lord Halan really chose a good place!"