Chapter 477: Conspirator

When Lu Mi recognized the man in the black cloak as the dead Philip, a lightning bolt flashed through his mind, illuminating most of the dark corners.

He connected many pieces, re-examining details he had previously found unconvincing:

Lu Mi had once asked Gardener Martin why he supported Yu Ge Atua, the spokesperson for multiple demonic gods; Gardener Martin had replied that he had always known exactly who Yu Ge Atua was and what forces lurked behind him, and that he supported his campaign for parliament because he believed Yu Ge would bring disaster after disaster to the Market District, pushing citizens and workers toward the opposition and the "Iron Cross Society," preparing the ground for overthrowing the government.

Before today, Lu Mi thought this excuse held up on the surface—that even if Gardener Martin hadn't told the whole truth, he had revealed some facts—but now it seemed those words were ninety percent lies!

Yu Ge Atua had been raised and pushed into politics by the dead General Philip, and Gardener Martin had clearly established a cooperative relationship with General Philip long ago; his support for Yu Ge Atua was not a matter of seizing an opportunity, but of having participated in the plot from the very beginning!

Similarly, General Philip's fake death and escape from his original fate—using the "Dream Seeker" charity to fund the "Painters" and other demonic grantees, while also joining the Charcoal Party to incite rebellion—was not surprising to Lu Mi, but the fact that this "deceased" man was the one communicating with Gardener Martin and the "Iron Cross Society" made many details deeply intriguing.

When the "Hostel Ritual" officially began, Lu Mi had already pieced together the general outline of the conspiracy, but felt some explanations were strained—for instance, if Mayer Maip Maier had left the "Blessed Society" in anger and returned to the Market District to prove himself, how had he contacted the "Painters" or the demonic grantees who orchestrated the "Hostel Ritual"?

This could be explained by suggesting that Susanna had already contacted other demonic sects before her death, while she was still High Priestess of the "Blessed Society," and Maip Maier Maip Maier, as her lover and a core member, must have had access to certain resources—but upon closer inspection, it still felt forced—was Maip Maier Maip Maier really close to followers of other demonic gods? Would he naturally turn to them when seeking help to prove himself?

Although Maip Maier Maip Maier knew Lu Mi's body contained an angelic seal, his knowledge could not have led him to any use for this information beyond sacrifice—unless the "Tree of Desire" directly revealed it to him. But how could a "Blessed One" who received divine revelation possibly avoid boasting about it, and yet still be ostracized by other members of the "Blessed Society"?

Once Lu Mi placed Gardener Martin's prior connection with General Philip into the conspiracy, every detail found a more plausible explanation:

After the "Shadow Tree" disaster, Gardener Martin publicly ordered Lu Mi and his subordinates in the Market District, like Franca, to investigate the incident and Yu Ge Atua's assassination, but privately he must have used General Philip to inquire what the "Blessed Society" had done, what mistakes they had made, and what problems they had encountered.

Under these circumstances, Mayer Maip Maier, eager to return to the Market District, naturally established contact with General Philip, who showed interest in these matters, and provided the most crucial intelligence—thus Gardener Martin learned long ago what was sealed within Lu Mi.

The entire "Hostel Ritual" may have been conceived by Gardener Martin and General Philip together with the "Painters":

One of them had coveted that Third Era Trill for years, possessing deep knowledge of its secrets and occult lore, understanding how the seal functioned and how it had once leaked—the building where the Breeze Dance Hall stood belonged to the Sava Party; No. 13 Market Avenue was where the "Iron Cross Society" tested new members;

The other had profound ties to the domain of fate and, through funding from the "Dream Seeker" charity, had already begun uniting several demonic sects, accumulating considerable knowledge across multiple fields.

—The reason Yu Ge Atua was protected by multiple demonic grantees was not because he could attract so many problematic individuals, nor because his "enlightened" reputation ran deep, but because his backer, General Philip, who had commanded large-scale wars, had long been working to unite the followers of demonic gods toward their most vital goal.

Lu Mi suspected that Gardener Martin's formal trial and acceptance of him into the "Iron Cross Society" were not based on initial trust, but on finalizing the "Hostel" plan—deciding to keep the target within sight, exerting influence, and exploiting him.

Had the "Tarot Society" not intervened and had the ritual not been hastily accelerated, the one who would have ultimately moved against Lu Mi, dragged him into the painting world, and activated the ritual would most likely have been Gardener Martin or a demigod of the "Iron Cross Society"!

In a flash of thought, Lu Mi's mind cleared completely:

Everything Gardener Martin had done after the "Shadow Tree" disaster was for the sake of the "Hostel Ritual"!

No wonder he was once—or still was—the "Conspirator"… Lu Mi sincerely remarked.

Of course, Gardener Martin was certainly unaware of the residual aura of the "Blood Emperor" Arista Tudo within Lu Mi, but he likely suspected something was off—though he could not guess the true nature of the problem, since he knew for certain that Lu Mi Li's body contained an angelic seal, a walking trouble that attracted countless anomalies.

As for whether Gardener Martin knew Lu Mi and Franca were backed by another organization, Lu Mi leaned toward the belief that he had noticed something amiss, but did not know the specifics—even Mayer Maip Maier, who had not participated in the "Shadow Tree" ritual, had no idea what had truly occurred.

Lu Mi signaled to Yu Jianna to terminate the mirror magic, lest Gardener Martin and General Philip detect it, while a new question arose:

"Why does the 'Iron Cross Society' desire that Third Era Trill so desperately? Why have they prepared so extensively? What do they hope to obtain? What goal do they seek?"

"If I had never come to Trill, never stayed at the Golden Rooster Inn, never summoned the Fallen Tree Spirit Susanna Ma Ma Disi, what would the original plan of the 'Iron Cross Society' and the other demonic sects have been? How would they have bypassed the seal to open the gate to Third Era Trill?"

The moment this question surfaced, Lu Mi recalled something:

Gardener Martin had once ordered "Rat" Cristo's smuggling caravan to bring an object into Trill through an underground tunnel; that object had triggered a hidden mirror world beneath the ground, and later, Franca, while tracking the man in the black cloak—the Charcoal Party member, the fake-dead General Philip—had sensed that object…

Now, General Philip had entered here—entered the place suspected to be Third Era Trill!

"They've made many preparations, including a massive uprising, aiming to use that object, its connection to the mirror shards across the wasteland, and the former seal leak point beneath the Breeze Dance Hall to infiltrate here? Later, they found a better option—me…"

"Damn! The reasons Gardener Martin gave for supporting Yu Ge Atua's election to parliament? Most of them were true! He really needed someone in the Market District to incite public outrage—but not to overthrow the government, to fulfill the ritual!"

"Heh, promoting villains to power while posing as the leader of the resistance—the villain is him, the hero is him—he's squeezed every last drop of value from the people of the Market District…" Lu Mi redefined the term "Conspirator" after observing Gardener Martin.

At that moment, Yu Jianna understood Lu Mi's intent and terminated the mirror magic.

She immediately heard Gardener Martin laugh:

"It really is you, Philip. Let's enter that Third Era Trill."

Philip… Yu Jianna, who had been hiding in the shadows, had not formed a strong impression of General Philip's photograph; now she suddenly realized that the cloaked man Franca had tracked was the fake-dead General Philip.

A deep, rich voice spoke:

"Aren't we going to find Lu Mi Li? If he becomes your loyal subordinate and joins your team, you can immediately complete the ritual, ingest the potion, and ascend to demigodhood."

"I'm truly sorry," Gardener Martin sighed. "He carries an angelic seal—he alone can match an entire squad. I gave him many chances, but he never understood loyalty. Now, I have another option. Let him die naturally in Third Era Trill."

An angelic seal? Yu Jianna's eyes widened as she turned to Lu Mi.

Lu Mi smirked, sneering at Gardener Martin's words:

I'd be the fool to believe you!

You who coldly plotted from the start, planning to use me—now you speak of loyalty and regret?

As Gardener Martin and General Philip turned to walk toward the magnificent city, two figures emerged from a mirror shard in the nearby wasteland.

They were Franca, dressed in a woman's shirt, beige riding pants, a dark brown short coat, and black leather boots, and Anthony Reide, clad in military green.

Franca's gaze swept across Gardener Martin, who wore a silver-white full-body armor with his faceplate raised.

Anthony Reide's eyes locked onto General Philip's face, where a ridge rose along the bridge of his nose.

Eight eyes met. The air froze briefly.

…………

The figure of Count Puyfer appeared at the edge of the wasteland, before the pale black bricks.

He stared at the towering giant figure—shrouded in storm, lightning, flame, and smoke—and ran toward it with the fervor of a martyr.

That figure was the out-of-control, mad, underground-bound Vemenda Soren.

The former archangel, the "Conqueror," who had stood close to the throne of godhood!

(End of Chapter)