This necromancer is going to seduce the beautiful girls who are already dead.

Helen seemed relieved at this moment and said, "Is this your answer?"

General Beth immediately sensed something was amiss. It seemed the princess had anticipated this all along?

“These things might not leave any trace from people’s mouths, but what if we sent an investigation team to investigate the former territory of the Kingdom of Osi—which is now the Empire’s new territory?” Helen’s heart pounded, and her speech quickened. “Battlefields leave traces, especially battlefields where fierce battles have taken place just a few years ago. As long as the investigation team’s methods are skillful enough, I don’t think anyone can perfectly hide the mistakes they made there. Not to mention the nearby civilians, who have just become citizens of the Western Empire and haven’t been fully assimilated into its culture yet. Perhaps they still harbor some resentment and secrets…”

"I have never killed innocent people to claim credit!" General Beth gradually lost control of his words and actions. He gritted his teeth and slammed his fist on the table.

“Dear General Bate, when did I ever say you killed innocent people and claimed credit for them?” Helen’s breathing was rapid, but her rhythm was perfectly steady. “Has our conversation revealed anything?”

Bate felt like killing himself.

Princess Helen, what a Princess Helen! What she just said was a constant veiled reference to his killing innocent people and claiming credit for them; she was practically pointing it out outright. He was so nervous that he fell right into her trap!

Is this still the ethereal princess he knew? Or... was the princess he knew before merely the tip of the iceberg of her full power?

“Your Highness… I’m glad that only you know this secret. Does that mean that as long as I erase your memory here, we can live in peace?” With his true colors exposed, Bette no longer pretended to be a refined gentleman. The murderous aura of the former battlefield butcher was released in one breath. Even though he did not release any battle aura, an invisible aura made Helen feel immense pressure.

“General Beth, I advise you not to do something so foolish,” Helen sneered, raising a hand to Beth. “Do you see this bracelet of mine? It has a simple little magic circle on it, commonly used by nobles to monitor their health. No matter what kind of mage you bring to erase my memory, this bracelet will malfunction for a certain period because my mind is damaged. When that happens, as long as I have a court mage examine me, the spells you used on me will be completely nullified.”

“You think you can scare me like this?” Bate slowly stood up. “I have far more tricks up my sleeve than you think.”

“Threatening a princess, General Beth has quite the nerve. We could have avoided this tense situation.” Helen also stood up. She was considerably shorter than Beth, but her royal bearing was palpable, even subtly challenging General Beth’s murderous aura. “The two guards I have waiting outside are armed with communication crystals—you have three minutes to decide whether to support me and let me leave. Otherwise, having received my orders beforehand, they will send the message to my personal guard if I don’t come out soon. I’ve hidden a note in a secret place, and as soon as my personal guard gets it, they will immediately inform your brother.”

General Beth felt as if his heart had plummeted into an ice cave.

When did Princess Helen become so ruthless? She actually came up with such a contingency plan? And she had her personal guards inform her brothers? Don't be ridiculous. His four brothers are all eyeing the position of Grand General. Once they find out, they'll definitely organize an investigation team overnight and set off immediately. Beth is certain that in that situation, he won't survive a month. Even if he has all the connections and influence, this is the capital. Can his men, no matter how fast, outrun the royal guards?

“General Bate, you have two minutes to make a decision.” Helen was already drenched in sweat, but a faint smile remained on her face. “Before things get out of control.”

“I support you! Your Highness!” Beth finally lowered her head.

"So, it's a pleasure to work together?" Helen extended her slender, gloved hand.

Beth reluctantly grasped the delicate hand that countless young nobles longed for, only to find that the palm of her gloved hand was already damp with the princess's sweat, and her beautiful face, so close to his, was also covered in glistening beads of sweat.

"Could this really be the first time the princess has done something like this?" A sense of doubt and frustration arose in his mind.

Chapter 52: Preparations for War Without Any Tension

On the deserted wasteland outside Golden Griffin City, two tents stood, with a campfire burning between them. It appeared that someone had been living there for several days; the snow on the ground had been cleared away, and there were faint footprints and traces of blood on the ground nearby, but they were covered by the newly fallen snow and were not clearly visible.

Abyss solemnly rolled up the paper scroll in his hands again, holding both ends, and announced, "I declare that I have read all the notes left by Starr!"

Leona sat on a blanket in the tent opposite Abyss, holding a chivalric novel she had bought from the city, and glanced over: "You've finally finished reading it? Did you learn anything?"

“I have fully understood all the data about the upside-down man that has been troubling him in Starr’s records. Although Starr did not provide a method to fight Him, I think some of the details will come in handy in the future.”

Abyss casually summoned a magical catfish, fed it the scroll, then took a roasted potato directly from the campfire in front of the tent, blew on it briefly, and ate it. He had been busy reading notes and hadn't had time to eat yet.

The tents were bought yesterday because Leona had been complaining that it was too unrefined for the group to sleep on the ground. So, Abyss spent some money to buy two tents, blankets to make sleeping more comfortable, and a range of other necessities. Although they were almost out of money, this small but complete campsite was finally enough to satisfy Leona.

"These past three days have been so boring. When is that invincible guy from the Council of the Dead finally arriving?" Leona pouted in dissatisfaction. "Can't we just leave? I'm a princess of the Western Empire, a knight personally bestowed with a title by the emperor, a genius aura warrior who can smash a mountain with one punch. Why do I have to wait here for a dawdling necromancer?"

“Try to understand, not everyone has an ice dragon like me.” Abyss’s mouth was full, but that didn’t stop him from speaking. “Perfect, since we have nothing to do these few days, we can also watch the show on the imperial court’s side.”

Yes, it's been three days since the cooperation was established with Princess Helen. Abyss hasn't met with Princess Helen since then because Her Highness has been incredibly busy—she's been tirelessly traveling among numerous nobles, gaining a large number of determined allies in just three days. This girl, who has never participated in power struggles before, has performed remarkably well these past few days, with unbelievable efficiency, which makes Leona very proud, as if she herself were doing all this.

Those who were received by the princess remained silent, while those who weren't were completely baffled. No one knew why the princess's persuasion was so effective; was she a potential diplomatic genius?

What happened behind the scenes remains a mystery thanks to the tight-lipped stance of the new "princess faction." However, everyone knows that as the princess gains more and more supporters, the emperor's decisions are gradually shifting towards this daughter he has never really cared about. It seems that the establishment of the Royal Medical Association, overseen by the princess, is only a matter of time.

"Hmph, Helen is quite the hidden talent. I thought she might be at a loss since she's never had any training in this area." Leona lay comfortably on the blanket. "You could say she's even better than me."

"If you were Helen, what would you do now?" Abyss asked with great interest.

“Me?” Leona thought for a moment. “I’ll just grab the most influential minister by the collar and make him support me. If he supports me, he’ll be my ally, and he’ll get all the benefits. If he doesn’t support me, he’s disrespecting Leona, and I’ll beat him up and demolish his house.”

"...That's pretty straightforward." Abyss thought for a moment, and it seemed that this was indeed something Leona would do. After all, she was an invincible aura warrior. If it weren't for the curse from the extraterrestrial evil god that caused her to be caught off guard, probably no one on the entire continent could have killed her.

Thinking about this, Abyss felt a renewed sense of curiosity. The deaths of the five genius girls were all orchestrated by the Creator God. Was He the mastermind behind all of this, or did He merely flick the threads of fate, triggering a series of reactions that led to the tragic ending?

Did He know of the existence of extraterrestrial evil gods? If He did, what was His relationship with these powerful beings from other worlds, who symbolized chaos and destruction? What was His attitude towards them?

“Abyss, by the way, Flora has been busy outside all this time, why isn’t she back yet? Could something have gone wrong?” Leona suddenly asked, pulling Abyss back from his thoughts.

Abyss waved his hand: "Don't worry, she is my familiar. If she is in danger, I will sense it. And as long as she calls my name in her heart, I will definitely hear it."

"So you can see into our hearts?" Leona asked warily, clutching her flat chest.

“Of course, but I won’t do it if you don’t agree,” Abyss replied.

“That’s more like it.” Leona nodded, then sat up from the blanket. “Oh, we were just talking about Flora, and now she’s back.”

Abyss stood up and looked in one direction. From that direction, in the pitch-black night, Flora was walking gracefully towards them, her expression relaxed, with the magical rabbit that Abyss had created for her perched on her shoulder.

"Flora, are you done with your work?" Abyss smiled at Flora. "Thank you for your hard work."

"Ah, thank you." Flora quickly bowed to Abyss from a distance.

Leona ran out of the tent and happily greeted Flora: "Flora! You're finally back! I'm so bored because I have no one to play cards with! Why did you suddenly decide to go somewhere deserted to pray?"

Flora smiled as Leona took her hand. She said apologetically to Leona, "I'm sorry, I can't tell anyone what I'm praying for, or it will be ineffective."

"There's such a rule?" Leona looked at Flora in surprise, but then she felt relieved. "Oh well, never mind that. After all, you're a genius sorcerer on the same level as me."

"So, we're all preparing for the coming enemy, but Leona, all you do is play cards," Abyss teased Leona with a laugh.

"Huh? Do you have some misunderstanding about my invincibility? Do I need to prepare?" Leona puffed out her chest. "Let me tell you, I've never shown you my full strength before. When we fight that guy, don't be surprised!"

"You haven't shown your full strength yet?" Abyss raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, it seems your knowledge only goes this far. Just watch me do it." Leona flicked her wrist triumphantly. "I'll show you that when battle aura becomes powerful enough, it transforms into something else entirely."

Chapter 53 A Mentally Ill Person Meets a Mentally Ill Person

Princess Helen's plan was progressing smoothly. The Western Empire's court, which had become a disorganized mess in its struggle to secure the Empress Dowager's funds, gained a new "princess faction" within a few days. A group of powerful ministers stood firmly on Princess Helen's side and quickly changed the emperor's mind—he had originally intended to use the money to purchase equipment for the army.

The royal family is now intensively gathering senior physicians and alchemists from all over the empire and carrying out a series of preparations. The Royal Medical Association has entered the preparatory stage.

Princess Helen's ideals were a great success, while at the same time, another person's goal was also a great success.

On the wasteland outside Golden Griffin City, a lone, thin man dismounted from a black horse. Looking at the camp ahead and the three people sitting and eating inside, his body twitched uncontrollably, and a sickly smile appeared on his lips.

"Hehe... According to the last message the priest of Golden Griffin City sent me, it's definitely these three people: a thin boy, a short little girl, and a beautiful blonde girl..."

The man's skin was similar to that of the Abyss, deathly pale due to a lack of color. He wore a black mage's robe, a necklace made of human finger bones around his neck, a twisted staff in his right hand, and a bottle in his left containing the head of an elf who had died with his eyes wide open. He seemed to be ill; his body trembled intermittently, and a stiff smile always clung to his face, his skin etched with wrinkles from the constant grin.

This is a fairly standard necromancer outfit. Compared to him, the Abyss, who is wearing cloth armor and carrying nothing, seems less professional.

He was the Bishop Dalan mentioned by the priest. After receiving news that the artifact needed for the coming of the Lord of the Fallen had been stolen, he immediately set off from the headquarters of the Council of the Dead and rushed to the Golden Griffin City. Originally intending to follow the clues of the Abyss to the end, he hesitated when he saw the three people in front of him who showed no sense of danger.

Why don't they leave? Why are they camping here waiting for him? Didn't the priest tell them that he was invincible?

"Hey bro?" Leona, who was munching on a lamb leg in the camp, suddenly called out loudly. Her keen senses as a warrior had already detected Dalan's arrival, but she was too lazy to go out and greet him from afar.

Abyss and Flora also glanced at Dalan. Flora's glance was merely out of basic caution, while Abyss's gaze was as casual as if he were looking at a passerby.

Dalan's eerie smile remained, but his eyes narrowed. He knew these three people were either mentally unstable or had something to rely on. He decided to proceed with caution.

A string of obscure and difficult ancient words came from his mouth. At the same time, the elf's head in the bottle in his left hand also turned its eyes and chanted the spell with him.

A suit of jet-black bone armor grew from his heart, gradually covering his entire body. The Abyss also had similar bone armor, but it was completely different in style—the Abyss's bone armor was simple in design, just like a beetle with a plate-like exoskeleton covering its entire body, while Dalan's bone armor was twisted, with countless spikes extending outwards, and reflecting an eerie bluish-purple light under the moonlight.

This is one of the necromancer's signature skills, Bone Armor. It not only provides protection but also allows the necromancer to launch any part of the bone armor at extremely high speeds, causing massive damage to any enemy who dares to approach.

Then, as he continued his incantation, a shrill black shadow enveloped him, transforming into a semi-transparent black cloak that constantly shifted in shape. This spell, called the Cloak of the Wraith, greatly increased a necromancer's resistance to magical attacks.

Charm Resistance, Enhanced Perception, Calmness... one high-level spell after another was cast on him as if it were free.

"The Council of the Dead greets you... Hehehe..."

Dalan spoke, his eyes fixed on the Abyss's movements, waiting for its response.

Upon hearing this, Abyss, who was sitting in the camp, slowly stood up, his usual nonchalant smile still on his face. He strolled forward a few steps and stood a dozen paces away from Dalan: "Hmm, Abyss the Necromancer greets you."

“Hehe… The information the priest of Golden Griffin City sent me before told me that you might be a dark mage, and it seems he was right.” Dalan looked at Abyss. Due to the various amplification spells cast on his body, his eyes emitted a faint blue light, which, combined with his stiff face, made him look very eerie in the night.

“I must apologize for that; I didn’t use necromancy sooner to have him send you the exact message,” Abyss said with a smile.

Dalan's eyes didn't laugh: "Hehehe... How did you kill the priest? Hehehe..."

“I didn’t kill him. He committed suicide, and he burned his own soul and the souls of his followers—you didn’t know that, did you?” Abyss feigned surprise. “He sent a message out when he took his own life, and if I’m not mistaken, it was for you, wasn’t it?”

How could Dalan not know? He and the priest communicated regularly through a magic crystal. The last message the priest sent him was to monitor the person who had taken the artifact. That very night, the message the priest sent with magic before dying reached him, even though he had already set off.

He thought that even if the priest couldn't defeat an enemy with a divine artifact, he should be able to protect himself. He never expected that the priest would die so quickly, and by burning his own soul.

This shows that the enemy the priest faced was far too powerful, so powerful that he could not escape and had no choice but to take a desperate gamble, sacrificing his life to send the message out. He still couldn't confirm whether the enemy possessed the power of the divine artifact or was simply incredibly powerful himself.

However, none of that mattered, Dalan thought confidently. The most important part of the Fallen Lord's artifact, "Hellface," the Face of Nothingness, was on his own body—a bare mask with three holes, just enough to hold three gems. As long as he possessed this mask, victory in battle was assured.

"Hehe... Hand over the three gems you hold... This is your last chance. You don't understand what kind of being the Lord of Fallen is, deceiving yourself into trying to seize His artifacts for your own use... Hehehe... Utterly foolish... Hehehe..."

Abyss raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, feigning innocence: "You've misunderstood. I don't want your Fallen Lord's artifacts. The abilities of these artifacts are actually quite ordinary; I wouldn't even consider them worth my attention."

"Hey... so what do you want them for?"

“What I want is the power of your tentacle monster master himself.” Abyss revealed a big smile. “Look, didn’t you bring another part of the artifact and a whole bunch of information with you? These past few days have really been worth waiting for. Thank you.”

Darlan chuckled, but his eyes were full of sarcasm.

He was a madman! A madman blinded by power!

Chapter 54 The Seemingly Insignificant Enemy and His Strength

Leona stood disappointedly beside Abyss, not even bothering to unleash her fighting spirit.

In her eighteen years of life, she had never experienced a life-or-death duel. Even the battle against the priest of the Golden Griffin City after being resurrected by the Abyss was merely a one-sided bullying, and there was not a single decent fight.

I originally thought that this time a supposedly "invincible" enemy had arrived, and that there would be a battle between two strong people, but now it seems that this is not the case at all.

Instead of the imposing, dignified necromancer in black robes billowing in the wind, imbued with the power of a god, Leona was confronted with a disheveled, sleazy fellow. This guy seemed to have some facial nerve issue, unable to control his facial muscles, which kept trembling and smiling. This was far too insignificant; Leona couldn't believe this was a bishop under the Lord of the Fallen—his rank was even lower than that of the Grand Deacon of the Holy See, who was always accompanied by a retinue.