Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

Upon hearing this, Wayne paused slightly in his pocket where he was holding his phone, but ultimately pulled it out empty-handed.

Indeed, although we don't know why Chen participated in this graduation assessment, it was an opportunity she had worked so hard to obtain. If she gave it up because of a small problem, given her personality, she would probably regret it for the rest of her life.

Forget it, anyway, with me, Wayne, by her side, as long as it's not the Shadow Guard, the Emperor's Blade, the Pope's Gun Riders, or Mon3tr all coming at her at once, what could possibly happen?

He patted Chen on the shoulder reassuringly and gave her a firm smile:

"Of course, I believe you, Chen!"

Chapter Thirty-Six: Kal'tsit's Shock

As Wayne approached the main gate of the mansion, he immediately spotted the Lateran people not far away. The halos above their heads were so dazzling that it was hard not to notice them.

What's going on? I just saw a security guard who looked like Kal'tsit, and now I see a group of Lateran. Wasn't Dorron County supposed to be just an insignificant little town on the border? Why is it so lively?

A sense of foreboding rose in Wayne's heart. He recalled Mostima's affectionate gaze as she fled the palace.

Could this Lateran team be connected to Mostima?

Wayne felt he hadn't interacted much with Laterano; it was mostly just the Pope generously donating money, which he then spent like a dutiful son of God. Even Urbino and Mostima, two people he was relatively familiar with, shouldn't be in Victoria right now.

After all, Mostima has only been out of the palace for a few days. And the black and white keys are gone; why the rush to return and deliver them?

With doubts in mind, Wayne pulled Chen Weiwei around a corner, avoiding the Lateran group who were being led by the butler towards the porch area.

Unlike Theresa, Mostima couldn't easily verify anything; he didn't have her contact information and couldn't communicate with her over long distances. Whatever these Lateran people were up to, he figured it was best to avoid them.

Chen glanced at Wayne, who was about to reach the main entrance but suddenly chose to take a detour, and followed his gaze toward the gate, puzzled.

A group of Lateran?

Why did Bruce deliberately avoid them?

Chen thought for a moment and quickly understood the reason. She remembered clearly that not long ago, Wayne had told the class that the time of the Victorian Reformation ceremony had been brought forward.

Wayne had mentioned before that he had a reliable uncle in the army. Chen had never forgotten this, which was why she pinned her hopes on the Royal Military Academy's invitation to participate in this special recruitment.

By participating in the special recruitment, you'll have the opportunity to contact the Victorian military, and perhaps even meet the uncle Bruce mentioned. There's also a chance you might be able to rescue Bruce.

However, this undoubtedly created a grudge between Wayne and Laterano. Chen didn't follow politics much, but she knew about the enormous impact of the Reformation on the Laterano Church. Such massive losses were enough to drive even the most composed person to desperation. Although Bruce wasn't the direct planner, he was still involved. How often had the weak turned against the weaker on this land?

Bruce was right to avoid them. With such amazing caution, he'll be able to overcome any danger he encounters in the future.

Chen looked at Wayne with admiration. Although Wayne was an imprisoned nobleman, Chen had learned a great deal from him.

So she gave up the idea of ​​leading the way, loosened her grip, and silently handed over control of her body to Wayne.

......

On the other side, in the lounge.

Kal'tsit sat with her legs crossed, exuding a cool and confident aura opposite Mostima and the others. Their eyes met, and they sized each other up, each harboring their own agendas.

Mostima was plotting how to bypass the guard Kal'tsit and successfully escape from the lounge to find Prince Wayne's whereabouts.

But the more she thought about it, the more helpless she felt. In the past, she wouldn't have needed to think about this at all. She could have just taken out her invincible Black Key and White Key, cast a Time Lock on Kal'tsit, and then knocked her unconscious. Everything would have been solved without any difficulty.

However, she was now in a different situation. The Black Key and White Key were lost in Victoria's palace, and might now be in the treasure vault of some evil empress. Even if Mostima wanted to retrieve them, she would need the corresponding strength—she dared not venture into the Iron Palace of Londinium alone again. Not only were there terrifying Sarkaz female Gundams inside, but also the Demon Lord, who had consistently topped the list of Laterano's most fearsome enemies. She had already become a delivery boy even with the Black Key and White Key; now that she had lost her weapons, another attempt would likely result in her demise.

Moreover, when she stormed into the palace, the most troublesome and terrifying Queen Victoria didn't even have to lift a finger. Her Sarkaz allies tormented her to no end. Later, Mostima realized that this was probably because Vina was hiding her strength. According to the Lateran Chronicles, the core of Londinium was not the [Londinium Core City], but the Iron Palace. And the core of the Iron Palace was not the emperor's residence, but a towering magical tower.

Legend has it that once the ruler of Londinium enters the tower, he can activate the spell within to "ring the death knell for the invaders," generating a shockwave throughout Londinium that disrupts all Originium arts, thus creating the legendary "anti-magic field."

This is why Londinium is known as the City That Never Falls. Without Originium Arts, it's virtually impossible to break through Londinium's defenses with just physical strength. Similarly, Mostima's chances of escaping from the palace are zero.

She could try to ask Wayne to retrieve it for her, but the risk was far too great. Mostima didn't want Wayne to get hurt in the slightest; this feeling was even stronger than protecting herself.

So how exactly do you get around this annoying security guard?

Mostima fell into deep thought.

As she pondered how to take Kal'tsit down, a look of bewilderment welled up in Kal'tsit's wise eyes beneath the brim of her hat, which covered half her face.

what's the situation?

She wanted to ask a question, but there was no one she could ask.

Why would the Pope's cavalry appear in a small count's territory?

Kal'tsit has traversed the land for millennia, witnessing countless nations rise to glory and fall into obscurity. She is like an encyclopedia of Terra's history; any page randomly drawn from her mental library could become a lifetime's worth of research material for countless historians.

She had seen the Pope's musketeers before. They had learned and modified the extraordinary technology derived from the ruins, and were among the few who could achieve the combat power of an army on their own, even without relying on the fusion of fragments of barbarian species from the wasteland.

Legend has it that when the swivel guns of the Pope's musketeers blaze with azure flames, a kilometer radius ahead becomes a no-man's land. Kal'tsit can attest that this is not merely a legend, but a fact.

The Iberian region was constantly harassed by deep-sea monsters, yet Lateran was able to successfully proselytize with the local Agor people, largely due to the devastating destructive power displayed by their musketeers. With each musket's barrel spinning 3,600 revolutions per breath, a sea monster was instantly reduced to 108,000 pieces. A single musketeer could cause such immense destruction, and here, five of them had gathered!

What are they planning to do? Attack Victoria?

Kal'tsit dared not make any rash moves. She had no confidence in taking on five such formidable opponents who were no less powerful than the Emperor and who could even overwhelm the Imperial Guards in terms of long-range firepower.

She was pondering what exactly in the small county of Toronto could be so important to Lateran that it would require sending five musketeers here.

Is it Heidi's intelligence network? Impossible. While that thing is useful, it doesn't require deploying five musketeers. Even deploying just one would be a luxury. Any intelligence master could easily take that network away from a child.

Was it Earl Vincent? That was unlikely. A Victorian earl was merely a precious life to the musketeers; they could easily rob or kill him with a single burst of fire. Their concern was the chain reaction in Victoria that killing an earl would trigger. The loss of all five musketeers in Victoria would be a huge blow to Laterano. If they were truly after the earl, they would have brought assassins, not musketeers.

what is that?

What is it that requires cavalry of equal rank to fight against?

It's a unicorn.

What is it that needs a unicorn to protect it, yet is incredibly important to Laterano?

Kal'tsit's expression shifted, and a name flashed through her mind. That was also her target for this trip.

"Wayne Bruce".

The Pope's musketeers were there to assassinate Wayne. Lateran went to great lengths to kill Wayne, even risking the loss of five musketeers, intending to confront the unicorns head-on and kill Wayne.

Their ultimate goal was simple—to prevent Victoria and Kazdel from getting married.

Has the situation really gotten this critical?!

Kal'tsit had to reconsider her assessment of Wayne; he shouldn't be considered an observer now, but rather a protected one. A spoiled prince could never attract the attention of five musketeers, but the true power behind Victoria, the mysterious Shadow Emperor, certainly deserved that kind of treatment!

Princess Theresa is telling the truth.

Kal'tsit clenched her fist.

She misjudged him.

Fortunately, it's not too late! We need to find Wayne immediately and protect him before these people do!

Under Mostima's astonished gaze, Kal'tsit stood up, bowed respectfully to Mostima, and then, suppressing her impulse, quickly left the lounge.

Then, it sped down the corridor, leaving everyone else in the dust, and rushed toward the gate.

She only saw the troop carrier disappear into the distance.

"Tsk, troublesome! mon3tr!"

Summoning her companion, Kal'tsit nimbly leaped onto the Mon 3Tree, pointing to the disappearing car in the distance and saying:

"mon3tr, let's go!"

mon3tr: "(A low groan of unbearable burden)"

Kal'tsit: "? What did you just say?"

mon3tr: "(Grooches, accelerates charge!)"

Chapter Thirty-Seven: There's more than one person trying to steal Wayne from me!

"Snapped!"

Mostima stared at the lounge door that slammed shut with a dull thud, narrowing his eyes in confusion.

Something's not right. That security guard from earlier was acting strangely.

The Felin people's physique is inherently unsuitable for physically demanding jobs like security guards, and upon closer inspection, the green-haired Felin woman in the security uniform didn't show much muscle definition. Unless Count Vincent is a pervert, no one would hire a Felin woman who is only somewhat attractive as a doorman or security guard.

That woman might have a problem, no, she definitely has a problem!

She wasn't a gatekeeper at all. A gatekeeper wouldn't abandon their master's duties and leave in a hurry without any reason. That's running away, and running away is tantamount to admitting guilt!

"Damn it! How could this happen!"

Mostima abruptly stood up from her chair, her face unusually grim. She was forced to confront a terrifying truth: the woman from Felin likely knew the papal guards behind her; otherwise, she wouldn't have left so hastily, without even having time to extract information from her.

Knowing His Holiness the Pope's personal guards, appearing in Toronto, and infiltrating the Earl's security force—it's no surprise this person is after Wayne!

Moreover, Wayne's situation could be extremely dangerous!

Mostima had always considered the unicorns as her hypothetical enemy, but she forgot one thing: if Queen Victoria really wanted to get rid of Prince Wayne, then the unicorns were the last group of people she could not take action against!

Their features are so distinctive that as soon as they appear, Wayne, who is familiar with unicorns, will recognize them and become wary, making the assassination more difficult.

The easiest and safest way to get rid of Wayne is to use an inconspicuous person to catch him off guard, and the best candidate is undoubtedly the "Filin," the most populous race in Victoria.

That woman, Felin, was a highly trained assassin. She had infiltrated Earl Vincent's mansion, disguised as a security guard, intending to carry out an assassination. However, she had just encountered me from Laterano and the five papal guards behind me, forcing me to leave immediately and expedite my plan to assassinate Wayne, lest things change!

Your Highness Wayne, it's extremely dangerous right now!

Mostima never expected things to turn out this way so suddenly, but fortunately, with the assassin's departure, the people monitoring them also disappeared. In other words, they were now free to move around!

"Follow me, hurry up, catch up with that damned Felin assassin ahead, we absolutely cannot let her harm a single hair on His Highness Wayne!"

Mostima gave the order in frustration. Queen Victoria was so ruthless, trying to use this opportunity to frame Wayne's death as a regrettable accident on the border.

But at the same time, she was deeply moved. Because Prince Wayne had never betrayed them until his death.

If Prince Wayne had truly confessed his affair with Laterano, his head would probably be hanging on the Iron Palace tower in Londinium, kissing the cold metal walls and the biting wind.

But he didn't, which means that Vina never found any evidence of Wayne's treason and couldn't justifiably kill her own blood relative. That's why she had to resort to assassination, a despicable and unacceptable method, in this remote place far from the capital to try and eliminate Wayne, this potential threat.