Chapter 779: Traitor

Franca stared in shock:

"Can you even do that?"

Can this be recycled?"

This isn't water!"

I've already digested 'Pleasure' extensively because of Morane Avini…"

"Why not?" Lu Mi smiled. "Isn't this just like wanting to make a powerful target experience pleasure, but you can't get close yourself, so you need my help as a middleman? Besides, pleasure isn't limited to one-on-one encounters—otherwise, Brune Soren's female pleasure parties would be meaningless. What we're doing now is essentially affecting other targets while dealing with Morane Avini."

"This… but…" Franca had to admit Lu Mi had a point, and it was feasible—but it felt like exploiting a loophole, like using a bug.

Meanwhile, Franca muttered inward criticisms of Lu Mi:

Have you read too many underground books, or watched too many pleasure parties? How else could you speak so naturally about one-to-many…? And sure, saying "use your help, go through you" works for other things—but once pleasure is involved, that phrasing is just bizarre…

Under the watchful eyes of the quiet Antony and still-confused Jian Na, Lu Mi turned the question back to Franca:

"Let me propose a scenario: you're experiencing pleasure with someone, and another person happens to pass by, witnesses the scene, and is so strongly charmed that they experience pleasure on their own—could that help you digest the 'Pleasure' elixir?"

"Yes." Franca answered with firm certainty.

Based on her experience, pleasure didn't require direct contact or a fixed method—only the basic condition that the target gained pleasure because of you. If they became immersed in it, unable to escape the pain, even better.

As she thought of this, Franca suddenly froze:

In my world before I crossed over, as long as you abandoned dignity, shame, and morality, digesting the 'Pleasure' elixir would be incredibly easy—after preliminary preparation, you might achieve full digestion in just a few days, or even hours.

Lu Mi returned her smile:

"What's the essential difference between the scenario I just described and handing Morane Avini's fate fragment to a pirate general, triggering his lust?"

"None…" Franca was convinced.

She then sighed:

"You're a true bug-exploiting master."

"What's a bug?" Jian Na asked, puzzled.

Lu Mi had heard this strange word before from his sister Aurora and explained:

"'Bug' means exploiting a loophole."

Franca nodded with a clicking sound:

"You know about it too? Sometimes I wonder if you'd have been better off choosing the 'Error' Path."

"Then I'd probably already be an Amon," Lu Mi replied with self-aware amusement.

Franca was also a woman of action—otherwise she wouldn't have drunk the 'Witch' elixir—and immediately asked:

"Which pirate general do we pick?"

"Won't this be too dangerous? Every pirate general has their own fleet, many extraordinary subordinates, and powerful factions behind them."

"We're just asking him to enjoy pleasure—we're not doing anything else to him. What's there to worry about?" Lu Mi replied calmly. "Even if we lose control and kill him, so what? Have we ever lacked enemies among the great powers? These pirate generals aren't law-abiding citizens anyway."

Seeing Franca about to say more, Lu Mi added:

"This is also training for the team. Trust me—our group combined won't be weaker than any pirate general's crew. Afterward, we can find opportunities for Jian Na to digest the 'Witch' elixir, and for Antony to digest the 'Hypnotist' elixir."

"Mm." Franca nodded. "Let's start by gathering intelligence—see which pirate general's recent movements are most clearly documented."

First, we need to find the man!

Having settled this, Franca again marveled at Lu Mi's journey to the Underworld:

"This ended too quickly—I couldn't reach '007' last night, hadn't yet given him Jian Na's messenger summoning method. I planned to return to Trier tonight to complete it, but the whole mission ended outright—no need to go to the Southern Continent, no need to give '007' the messenger summoning method."

She'd expected this mission to last days, even one or two weeks—but it was done by morning.

…………

Inside Saint Vief Church.

Angouleme, dressed in a brown wool coat, stood at the room's entrance, gazing up the staircase leading higher.

Yesterday, he and several colleagues had been ordered to stay overnight, but given no reason why.

Angouleme could guess a little—he'd been the one to deliver the relevant intelligence to the higher-ups.

As time passed slowly, a middle-aged man in a white robe edged with gold thread ascended the gilded staircase.

He had black hair, brown eyes, a commanding presence, and neatly trimmed mustaches above his lips.

Angouleme recognized him—he'd had several dealings with him while handling occult incidents in the Trier region.

He was Peacock, Senior Inquisitor of the 'Purifiers,' one of the few giants of the Religious Inquisition.

He was not Angouleme's direct superior—he oversaw the areas surrounding Trier, meaning the entire Trier region except Trier itself.

He was not a demi-god of the 'Sun' Path, but a Rank 4 'Fallen Count' of the 'Lawyer' Path.

Upon seeing Peacock, Angouleme lowered his gaze and retreated deeper into the room.

He suspected this man was the core member of 'April Fools' outside the 'Curly Baboon Research Society'—the mastermind behind the incident '1—147' escaping Church control.

Angouleme's suspicion was simple:

The core member of 'April Fools' embedded in the Church used the 'Broker' and 'black-box deals' to get other 'Purifiers' to release '1—147' for other reasons—and the 'Lawyer' Path resembled the 'Broker' Path, both skilled at twisting clauses in deals and agreements to achieve their own ends.

The demi-god of this Path had been entangled in countless gray transactions and was the most likely to have contacted—or been contacted by—the 'Broker.'

Before 'Supervisor' Perle was discovered, '1—147' wasn't under Peacock's jurisdiction, and during that time he never left his Inquisition—so he was never on the 'Eternal Sun' Church's list of suspects, despite being a Senior Inquisitor who knew the location and details of nearly all '1'-class artifacts.

Today, Peacock had come to Saint Vief Church for a meeting.

The official reason: to swiftly thwart the 'Mirror Man's' scheme and eliminate these hidden rats, the demi-gods of the Trier region needed to meet face-to-face, exchange opinions, and finalize a plan.

Only after Peacock's gold-threaded white-robed figure vanished up the staircase did Angouleme slowly exhale, alert to what might happen next.

Just one or two minutes later, Angouleme felt the entire church tremble slightly.

The disturbance lasted only seconds and vanished—barely noticed by anyone except those already watching for such signs.

…………

In a room near the dome, bathed in sunlight.

The 'Eternal Sun' Church's Cardinal Archbishop of Trier, Plaisy, with pale-gold hair and high cheekbones, stood beside a beautiful yet holy woman dressed in white.

She was Saint Vief, the patron angel of Trier!

Opposite them, near the door, Peacock's body twisted, half-melted, as if filled with white wax inside.

The Senior Inquisitor of the 'Purifiers' laughed heartily:

"The 'Supervisor' immediately informed me she had a problem—these past few days, I've been moving around using this dummy!"

His true body remained hidden, observing, avoiding all contact with anyone from the 'Eternal Sun' Church.

"Of course…" Archbishop Plaisy sighed.

This was expected—Perle's successful escape had inevitably led to this outcome.

Though the Church had sealed news of Perle's flight, it was merely doing its utmost, without much hope.

As Peacock's wax dummy rapidly melted, he stared at Saint Vief's emotionless, holy face and laughed again, voice shrill:

"I made the only and most correct choice.

"The Crimson will descend—only by submitting to the Great Beings can one gain protection and survive the End-Time disaster!

"The Crimson will descend!"

After shouting the final words, Peacock's wax dummy fully turned into a pile of semi-solid, semi-melted white wax.

Saint Vief, clad in a gold-threaded white robe with no other adornments, silently watched. After several seconds, she spoke:

"Who made this dummy for him?"

"Perhaps through a deal with the 'Broker,'" Archbishop Plaisy replied gravely.

Saint Vief maintained her unchanging tone:

"Few extraordinary individuals can craft such a dummy."

"Mm. This is a lead to pursue," Plaisy nodded.

A wax dummy capable of fooling even an angel's senses was no simple thing—and finding its maker might lead to the 'Broker' involved in the deal, and ultimately to the hidden 'Supervisor.'

Saint Vief continued:

"Inform all bishops, priests, and 'Purifiers' of Peacock's fall—but do not issue a wanted notice."

"Understood." Plaisy agreed—a wanted notice against a demi-god would be useless and damage the Church's image among the public.

…………

Several days later, Franca, Antony, and others gathered, through various channels, all intelligence on the last known appearances and rumored movements of the pirate generals.

Looking at the documents before her, Franca tapped the top sheet and said to Lu Mi:

"Him?"

Lu Mi glanced at it, silently reading the target's name:

"Deep Sea Admiral," Hal Constantine.

(End of Chapter)