People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

Rhodes Island does indeed have an office in Kjerag. The Originium Contamination Protective Suit, Inhibitors, and other common medicines needed for various projects in Kjerag are basically all sourced from there, making it an officially designated supplier.

Ernst remembered that the head of that office was a young but reliable girl who supposedly worked in the Rhodes Island medical department and was Kal'tsit's apprentice. She was doing a good job. Ernst had never heard of a new head being parachuted into that office today.

Theoretically speaking, this is an internal job adjustment within Rhodes Island, and Ernst shouldn't interfere. But Miss Ascalon... well, just looking at her face, well—that face probably isn't suited to be the head of a pharmacy.

Your outfit, that hood, that cold expression, and that thing on your arm... if I'm not mistaken, it should be a hidden blade, right?

Are you sure you're not some assassin master straight out of Assassin's Creed?

Ernst was genuinely curious, so he glanced at Kal'tsit. But Kal'tsit reacted even faster than Ernst; the moment Ascalon entered, she turned her face away, completely ignoring Ernst's questioning gaze.

You've humiliated the head of my intelligence organization, and now you expect me, her former employer, to give her an onboarding presentation right in front of you?

You have some really heavy tastes... *cough cough* Don't bully Hakimi like that! You can defeat my body, but you can't defeat my spirit!

Ernst frowned strangely.

The old cat seems to be acting a bit disobedient again.

But Kelsey wouldn't speak, and Ernst couldn't force her to, so he turned around, took a sip of coffee, and asked Ascalon, the person involved, directly:

"Miss Ascaran, you certainly don't look like someone in charge. What do you do at Rhodes Island?"

Ascalon explained without any hesitation:

"Prevent infiltration, sabotage, and assassination attempts against Rhodes Island, and solve problems for Rhodes Island in the same way."

"Pfft! Cough cough cough!"

Ernst choked on his coffee, and for the second time today, he looked at Ascalon with a horrified expression, then at Kal'tsit.

Ascalon's expression was calm, yet a hint of hope lurked beneath. Her open and honest gaze met Ernst's, as if to say, "See, I won't hide these secrets from you."

As for Kal'tsit, after turning her head away like a cat, she added another ostrich tactic, lowering her head and trying to bury it in her chest. Unfortunately, she was clearly caught off guard by Ascalon today and hadn't prepared in advance, so she didn't have time to pad her chest.

This made her lowering her head seem even more awkward.

Kal'tsit's actions were undoubtedly strange, but Ascalon's self-disclosure of her identity was even more shocking.

Dude, is this something I can say?

The mere mention of preventing infiltration, sabotage, and assassination attempts against Rhodes Island, and resolving Rhodes Island's problems in the same way, clearly indicates that Rhodes Island is no longer just an ordinary medical company.

Of course, Ernst never really considered it a medical company. Even disregarding Rhodes Island's status as the protagonist in the game, based on his current understanding of Rhodes Island, the company simultaneously carries relatively normal names such as "medical company," "mercenary service provider," "organization to address the infected problem," "large logistics company," and "construction contractor," as well as less respectable names such as "Tower of Babel," "the company opened by the defeated commander of the Three Kingdoms Alliance," and "a gathering place for immortals, Sarkaz, and other similar characters."

But it's hard not to think that such an abnormal place suddenly sends an assassin master to Kjerag and parachutes him into the leadership of Rhodes Island's Kjerag office.

Old Cat, you're not planning to go back to your old ways, are you?

You, with three (national allied forces) against one (Kazdel), got counter-killed. Don't you think your glorious achievements are enough to go down in history? You even sent an assassin master here. What, do you think I'm too involved with the Sarkaz, that I want to help them build a nation, so you finally couldn't hold back?

But honestly, sending just one assassin seems a bit disrespectful, doesn't it? Aren't you afraid that if I push you too far, you might sneak off to Laterano and join the main server in destroying Terra?

Ernst let his mind wander for a moment, letting his thoughts wander freely.

In fact, he didn't think Kal'tsit would actually do that.

Firstly, sending only Ascalon, and having her identify herself in front of him, seemed to disregard both him and the great god Yeragand. This behavior was less like a werewolf making a bold move and more like a plea for cooperation. Secondly, if Kal'tsit truly intended to do this, why would she ask him for the Sarkaz Residents' Committee advisory position?

Was this a deliberate setup to lower one's guard?

Ernst didn't think Kal'tsit would do something so absurd. After all, whether he was wary or not, the great god Yeragand was watching this place, and He wouldn't lower His guard just because Kal'tsit volunteered to be an advisor.

On the contrary, the great god Jeragund's attitude towards Kal'tsit has always been lukewarm. The closer Kal'tsit and Ernst get, the more vigilant the great god Jeragund becomes.

However, just to be on the safe side, since Ascalon seemed to be saying, "I'm not pretending anymore, I'm laying my cards on the table," Ernst decided to get straight to the point and ask:

"Did Kal'tsit send you to take over the office work?"

"No, I came here of my own accord."

Ascalon shook his head.

"I don't want to have any regrets."

What do you regret?

Ernst waited patiently, but Ascalon just stared at him with an aggressive gaze, and even though it gave Ernst goosebumps, she didn't say a word.

Ernst had no choice but to ask again:

What is your relationship with Kal'tsit?

Ascalon still answered instantly:

"Irrelevant."

She and Kal'tsit are indeed unrelated.

This was true both during the Tower of Babel era and the Rhodes Island era.

During the Babel era, she was an apprentice of Theresis and Theresia, Manfred's senior, the most powerful warrior of the Military Council, and the leader of Theresia's special operations squad, responsible for fighting against Theresis's "rebel" attacks on the covert front as part of the Babel side.

During her time at Rhodes Island, SWEEP was only responsible to Rhodes Island and the Demon Lord. Although she did obey Kal'tsit's orders most of the time, she simply didn't want to think about it. Because once she started thinking, she couldn't help but wonder why she hadn't thought about it back then, and what the point of thinking about it now was, besides giving her a splitting headache and an empty feeling in her heart.

In terms of internal authority, she is on the same level as Kal'tsit.

Ascalon answered frankly and readily, but Ernst noticed that Kelsey's shoulders slumped slightly, and there seemed to be a slight emotional fluctuation on her face, which was not visible to the naked eye.

Huh? Hakimi dropped a little pearl already?

Ascalon, aren't you being a little too harsh on her by saying that?

Suppressing the joy... no, the sadness, that comes with being a cat lover, Ernst was fairly certain that Ascalon hadn't lied.

He had seen countless people and had some experience in judging whether someone's answer was true or a lie. If it were Vina or Hinterlea, Ernst could have directly asserted the truthfulness of their words. The reason he added "approximately" before his judgment of Ascalon was mainly out of respect for her profession.

What if someone who has never been exposed to this kind of thing can actually hide it?

So, after a moment's thought, Ernst asked his last question:

"What brings you to Shelag?"

This question is actually quite easy to answer. The standard answer is practically written on his face. Ascalon just needs to say that he's here to take over the normal work of the Rhodes Island office. After all, as Ernst said earlier, this is a normal personnel transfer at Rhodes Island. Even if this personnel transfer seems abnormal to outsiders, it is still "normal and reasonable."

But Ernst found that Ascalon seemed unusually, unexpectedly, "frank" with him.

Ernst couldn't tell whether this frankness was genuine or fake, whether it was fake disguised to appear genuine, or too genuine to seem fake.

So Ernst wanted to see what kind of answer Ascalon would give to a question with such a "standard answer" right there on the table.

This was a simple interview, and also a simple test. After all, Ernst would be dealing with Rhodes Island quite a bit in the future, and he didn't want to be facing someone he couldn't understand at all all the time.

Out of respect, and also for his own image, Ernst put down his coffee cup after asking the question and before Ascalon answered.

To avoid spilling it again later, just like how I almost spilled it on someone else.

Ascalon lived up to expectations. Her gaze remained firm, and her answers were as crisp, concise, and incredibly swift as ever, as if she had practiced countless times in private, mentally rehearsed countless times, and considered all possible contingencies before finally choosing this method of communication—sincerity was the ultimate weapon.

"I'm here to protect you."

“I feel that you are surrounded by dangers, but you are unaware of it.”

“This won’t do. Some tragedies are caused by this kind of excessive trust! I can’t let that happen again in front of me.”

"Therefore, I must protect you!"

Ernst was taken aback.

Is danger lurking all around me?

He looked at Kal'tsit for the third time.

This time, Kal'tsit was stunned.

No, why are you looking at me like that? I didn't do anything! You're making it easy for people to misunderstand!

Fortunately, just as Kal'tsit was about to explain, Ernst looked away, forcing Kal'tsit to swallow back the words she was about to say, and she couldn't help but burp.

Ernst looked at Ascalon, his face filled with disbelief and suspicion:

"How can you say that I'm surrounded by danger?"

Ascalon smiled slightly. This time, she didn't answer immediately. Instead, she raised a finger to Ernst, put it to her lips, and gently shushed him.

Then, she took a step, her feet, though wearing high heels, made no sound at all. Her light steps seemed slow but were actually fast, and in the blink of an eye, she arrived at the office door.

Then, she suddenly flung open the door.

Vina, Hinterlea, and Lola stumbled in unexpectedly. Vina reacted the fastest; the cushioning pad helped her execute a quick crisis management maneuver, and she held up the report high in her hand:

"Ernst, the questioning of Susie is over. Here are the summary notes!"

This statement demonstrates that her presence here is perfectly reasonable. After all, it was Ernst's order to let Susie rest for a day and ask her questions again tomorrow. Besides Daphne and Ernst, the only other person in Seragh who knows Susie is Vina. It would be the best way to have her ask her questions and then compile and record the information to give to Ernst.

Lola was a little slow to react, but the polar bear girl, as expected of Sherag's first top student, immediately learned from Vina's move and raised her hand as well:

"Young Master, I'm here... I'm here... I'm here to discuss the venue setup for this year's Harvest Festival with you!"

The Harvest Festival is just around the corner. Last year, during the Harvest Festival's sacred hunting ceremony, Ernst used custom-made fireworks imported from Lungmen to liven up the people of Kjerag, and incidentally, to put Ensioudis in his place. This year, Kjerag is developing rapidly, and the Harvest Festival gala can be separated from the sacred hunting ceremony. Ernst intends to make it a program like the Spring Festival Gala, which naturally requires the engineering department to build a stage.

And Hinterlea, poor Hinterlea, was at the very bottom. Not only did she fall hard without any cushioning, but she also had nothing to report, so she could only raise her hand and shout:

"Um, boss, I was just about to knock on the door to tell you that those two need to talk to you!"

Ernst watched as the three stood up, dusted themselves off, and then looked at Ascalon, who remained expressionless as she walked into a side room.

This time, Horhaia opened the door herself, gave Ernst a polite smile, and at the same time, glanced defiantly at Ascalon:

"I work right here. I'm the new head of the Rhodes Island office. We're all government employees, so how can it be considered dangerous?"

"Rather than that, you are the one who... hehe."

The subtext of this statement is that you belong to Rhodes Island, but you're not one of us, so you should be more mindful of your words and actions!

Treating them as a threat, the newcomer has some nerve!

Ascalon completely disregarded Horhyth's warning. So what if they were on the same side? Princess Theresa also considered the Doctor one of her own, but what was the final result?

It is precisely because of this excessive trust in one's own people that misfortune can occur! That's why she needs to take precautions.

As for herself?

Ernst could certainly trust her unconditionally. As a Sarkaz with a dictionary, Ascalon's dictionary did not contain the word "betrayal." Betrayer had already been killed by her own hand!

Ascalon's expression remained unchanged, and finally she raised her head and glanced at the surveillance camera in Ernst's office.

On the other end of the surveillance, Ms. Joyce Moore, the Sherag Finance Minister and Sherag Network Engineer, shrank back, instinctively trying to disguise herself as a bamboo pole.

After doing all this, Ascalon withdrew his gaze, looked at Ernst, bowed slightly, and when he raised his head again, a confident smile appeared on his face.

P.S.: Yes, I'm the moderator of the Theresa forum.

PS2: Just wanted to commemorate this day, I soloed the Black Dragon with a katana. Perfect! Speaking of which, guys, any game recommendations lately? I tried Mingchao, but it didn't really suit me. The Elden Ring DLC ​​is still over a month away, so I'm looking for something to kill time. Preferably something with multiplayer.

Chapter 482 Kal'tsit: Heh, heh heh, ho—

Shelag, Tukarim, Government Office Building, Ernst's Office.

Admittedly, Ernst didn't understand why he, the Prime Minister of Sherag, needed a Rhodes Island guard, or why a Rhodes Island guard would come to protect him, the Prime Minister of Sherag. But in the end, Ascalon still came.

Ascalon was a burly woman, and like most Sarkaz—except for a certain little lich who lost his Sarkaz kin—she was broad-minded, with the capacity to encompass the universe and the ambition to swallow the heavens and earth. Her height of 175cm made her stand out among the Seraphim government, although Ernst did not understand why a head of a Rhodes Island office would stand guard at his office door every day.

But in any case, Ernst couldn't stop her.

There's not much you can do about her. Strictly speaking, Ernst isn't Ascalon's superior and has no authority over her. As an operator of Rhodes Island, unless Ernst is directly involved, it's her freedom to go wherever she wants and do whatever she wants. What Ernst can do is simple: find Kal'tsit or Amiya and have them order Ascalon to stay away from here.

But doing so would also be somewhat inappropriate. After all, Ascalon had repeatedly said, "I'm here to protect you," and "If you don't want to see me in your sight, I'll hide." Having said all that, it wouldn't be right for him to forcibly drive her away.

Rhodes Island and he still have a cooperative relationship.

Besides, it's not that he completely ignored Kal'tsit's mention of this.

Does Amiya know that Ascaron is here?

Kelsey nodded:

"she knows."

Ernst then asked, "What was her attitude?"

Kal'tsit replied, "She agreed. Amiya approved it."

As the nominal supreme leader of Rhodes Island, Amiya mostly follows Kal'tsit's advice, but she is also a woman of her own mind. Ernst witnessed Amiya's popularity on Rhodes Island during his last shipboard tour. It's fair to say that even if you only consider Amiya a mascot, she is a very popular one. Moreover, Amiya is clearly more than just a mascot.

Her position on Rhodes Island comes from Miss Theresa, but Miss Theresa's position was not inherited. According to Amiya, the Tower of Babel, the predecessor of Rhodes Island, was built by her own hands. She was a true leader with real power!