Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough

"..." Rhodes' mouth was slightly open, and he remained silent.

Sure enough, Shirley seemed far too naive in front of Felicity, that heartless woman.

Felicity was easily fooled with just a few words; she truly is a master of the art of manipulating emperors.

Rod sighed and touched his collar, preparing to catch up—

"Rhodes".

A figure suddenly entered Rhodes's line of sight, interrupting the harem conflict that was nearing its end.

Cedric's voice drifted from afar, followed by several knights who marched with disciplined and orderly steps.

“Cedric.” Rhodes’ eyes were fixed on the knight who was walking towards him.

Cedric stopped walking and didn't engage in any further reminiscing.

He came with a mission, so he naturally got straight to the point:

"Rod Chivenlance and Felicity have important business to discuss."

"Brother?"

Hearing Cedric's tone, everyone realized that the Cedric who had approached them was not as a "friend," but as the "First Prince."

However, if it's done in such an official capacity, then it's definitely not a good thing.

Rhodes understood this perfectly, and therefore his expression towards Cedric became somewhat calmer.

Cedric's golden eyes shone brightly in the sunlight:

"Your father has ordered that the two of you enter the palace to visit him."

It wasn't a discussion, nor was it simply a reminiscing session.

Rather, it is a requirement, or more fundamentally, a command.

For a few seconds, the scene fell into a deathly silence.

Rhodes frowned slightly, breaking the silence:

"You know, we have a lot of things to do here."

Cedric shook his head slightly, his expression changing.

He had finished delivering the orders on behalf of his father, the Emperor. Now, he was Rhodes' friend and Felicity's brother.

"He is worried about your safety. He would rather you two stay safely in the palace than risk yourselves outside."

"Of course, I understand that you have ideas and things to do, Rhodes, so I can't say anything."

"However, this time his order was quite forceful."

“If you don’t go, or rather, if Felicity doesn’t go, it might upset him.”

"If things escalate a bit, he probably wouldn't have asked me to invite you."

"Now he is more concerned about whether the sacrificial ceremony can be completed safely, and whether the two of you can get engaged safely after the ceremony."

"Moreover, you do need to go to the palace to discuss matters with the Emperor, don't you? After all, there's only a little over a week left, and you still need to choose clothes and handle some etiquette issues."

In his last sentence, Cedric was essentially offering a way out.

But Rhodes still ignored him.

He doesn't have time to waste on things like royalty and nobility right now.

"No need. There's no need for the palace to prepare anything for discussions. We'll make the decisions ourselves, including the dates."

"Then, I'll briefly tell the Emperor that once my matter is resolved, we'll naturally visit him in a few days and have a good chat with him. There's no need to rush."

“…” Cedric’s figure froze slightly. “Is that so?”

"Ah."

“Okay, I understand what you mean.” Cedric nodded. “I hope your matter can be resolved soon.”

"Our affairs are actually the Empire's affairs, concerning the witch."

"Three witches who have been promoted seven times have gathered at the Imperial Capital Academy and are preparing to massacre the academy."

"Please inform the Emperor about this matter and see if he is willing to send a powerful figure from the palace to handle it."

Rhodes didn't expect the palace to send anyone to handle it.

And there's no need for it.

They now have three promoted to the seventh rank, and when the next train arrives—Merrick—there will be four promoted to the seventh rank.

So the prerequisites for the decisive battle have already been met, and naturally there's no need to expect reinforcements from the imperial palace.

But Cedric kept it in mind: "Okay, I'll take it with me too."

"Where are you going next?"

"Us?" Rod asked back, glancing slightly at the girls—

"Of course I'm going to the military headquarters to get some things to improve my strength, so I can deal with the witch the day after tomorrow."

……

...

Imperial Capital Military Headquarters.

As a ruthless department tasked with safeguarding the empire's security and maintaining order, everything about the military is imbued with seriousness and solemnity.

The pitch-black tower is as solid as an iron mountain. Passing through the middle, you can see these buildings arranged in an orderly manner, like a dark army.

Even though it is suspended more than ten meters high in a rugged position, the black stone walls on both sides remain solid.

As Rhodes and his companions walked through the military area, they frequently saw soldiers in uniforms walking on the streets.

The Empire's military is actually divided into two factions. One part consists of squads, while the other part consists of individuals like Rhodes, who hold unofficial ranks and are more like adventurers, occasionally accepting missions.

Therefore, it is only natural that some people would stroll casually on the streets.

"I have two purposes for going to the military headquarters. First, I want to use my points to exchange for the link scroll. Second, I want to recruit people at the military headquarters to join this witch extermination. Also, I'll buy you something later."

Rhodes looked at Lilith beside him and gave a casual explanation.

"Hmm." Lilith didn't delve too deeply into it; she figured she'd just follow Rhode...

Of course, she knew perfectly well that the "thing" Rod was referring to was the tail.

Why is he still thinking about it...?

As for Shirley and Felicity, they stood in front of Rhodes and Lilith.

The objective is simple: to protect Natalie and Felicity, two high-value, low-combat-power targets.

“Ivina is still not awake. When she wakes up, she’ll probably be very angry that we didn’t take her out to play,” Lilith said after a long silence.

“…” Rhodes paused, then chuckled, “You’re becoming more and more considerate of others.”

"But there's nothing we can do about it. It would be too much trouble for us to carry her around, so we can only entrust her to the Pope for protection. Besides, she's not on the Dragon God Empire's kill list, so she's safe."

"Hopefully we can get back before she wakes up, otherwise she'll really cause a ruckus."

“Yes.” Felicity turned her head and responded with a slight smile.

They were chatting, and the soldiers on the street were also chatting.

Rhodes would occasionally hear about his battle with the witch the night before.

The rumors are as outrageous as they come... the claim of being torn apart and promoted six times, although it is indeed true.

Rhodes also knew that these rumors, which were vague and only described his bravery without mentioning his evil power, were naturally deliberately spread by the Pope.

The goal was simple: to slightly increase his reputation.

With the engagement imminent, the higher his reputation rises, the more joy and congratulations the people of the capital will feel about the marriage.

That's just how the capital is.

That's why he used to dislike doing business here. If someone had a higher status, everything would be spread around and made a big fuss, and it was always done on purpose.

“Rhodes, right, right, something I just remembered.” Shirley moved slightly closer to him, her voice, like the tide of souls, penetrating his consciousness:

[My skin is from one of the three dragon heads of the Dragon God Empire.]

Rhodes did not stop upon hearing this, nor was he surprised.

Of course he could guess that the snow-white appearance and those eyes were exactly the same as the Dragon God's.

Upon thinking of the Dragon God, a sense of urgency welled up in Rhodes' heart—

He didn't know whether the Dragon Goddess had chosen to persist after hearing his words... He had to imagine the best possible outcome, hoping she would choose to persist and resolve the matter as soon as possible.

Rhodes' will was also transmitted back:

[So what is it?]

[There are three dragon heads in total, two besides me. I was planning to kill them before you arrived, but you came too quickly, and I didn't have time to make a move.]

[One of these two leaders is disguised as a military officer, so let's take care of him later~]

[Understood. You can tell Lilith later.]

[Yes, sir!]

As the two were talking, they had already seen the building of the [Meritorious Service Department].

More than ten soldiers were coming and going in the Merit Department.

It's normal for there to be a lot of people; this department is the place where people with low rank of military officer come most often.

It serves two purposes: first, to accept tasks, and second, to receive rewards and redeem prizes.

Everything can be completed simply by explaining the situation at the front desk.

Rhodes and his companions didn't waste any time. Stepping on the black metal floor, they quickly arrived at one of the reception desks and handed over their [Merit Badges].

Chapter 179 The Beginning of the Sacrifice

The receptionist wore a fitted short skirt, had medium-length brown hair, and gave off a very concise and capable vibe.