In the dimly lit underground laboratory, Ravenna gazed at her original body under the faint light, her eyes cold and detached.
"Almost completely disconnected, there's even the possibility of never being able to return."
The iron-hued forefinger touched the soft flesh between her brows, but the intense sense of resistance and repulsion sent Ravenna's heart plumting.
The soul may never return to its original body; this is the worst-case scenario.
This puppet, designed to confront the Etheric Academy, had been fine-tuned for combat, specialized in battle, but lacking in other aspects.
It was the least suitable temporary vessel for Ravenna's soul.
There were no fifth-stage experts proficient in soul magic within the Tower of Babel, and even if there were, they wouldn't be able to quickly remove the constraints Soren had placed on her.
She tried to manipulate puppets with her puppet body, but the effectiveness was abysmal, rendering them practically unusable.
"…Before solving this problem, the best choice is to stay in the safe house, but the issue lies in—"
The issue was that the Alchemy Association still stubbornly controlled the mass production of the second-generation floating cannon Hummingbird.
The leader of the Tower of Babel, Hendrik, had just promised Evora that the Tower would resolve this issue within seven days, but now…
If she didn't step forward and remained hidden in the safe house, there was no way to solve this problem — because Ravenna was certain that there were no flaws in the design of the mass-produced hummingbirds, and the Alchemy Association must be sabotaging them.
"Alchemy Association…"
Ravenna slowly clenched the alchemical carving knife on the table and uttered word by word, "Hydral, is it you again?"
As the son of Flalle, the monster that the Alchemy Association practically worshipped as a deity, it was needless to think about how much influence Ansel had within the Alchemy Association.
And his relationship with Evora, as the two most crucial divine beings of the empire, was naturally self-evident…
This tightly connected, suffocatingly oppressive rhythm was thousands of tis stronger than the Etheric Academy, which only sought to assassinate people.
Having returned for only three days, he had nearly driven her into a dead end.
But Ravenna didn't want to praise Ansel in this regard, nor did she wish to be the fortunate one to experience this rhythm.
Under the dim light, Ravenna, who was gazing at her original body, fell into deep thought.
How could she find a way to break the deadlock? What did the gamble in Hydral's words imply? If he truly intended to do as he said, burying her beliefs and ideals in paranoia and madness, what would he… do?
Various possibilities flashed through her mind, and the energy Ansel could mobilize in the imperial capital was simply too enormous. Moreover, he himself was one of the most colossal energies. Even if the devil claid not to directly threaten her personal safety and freedom, it would be impossible to guard against him if he intended to trip her up.
The slender forefinger of the woman slowly caressed her own body, murmuring thoughtfully:
"In other words, the key to breaking the deadlock lies… with the person who made the gamble with Hydral."
"Who could be qualified to bet against Hydral?"
To break the deadlock, she needed to recognize her current situation.
And the situation was that she was now a pawn placed on the adventure chessboard by two powerful figures. Those two malicious and bored individuals would decide her "future" by either extending a compassionate and rciful helping hand or inflicting cruel and vicious disasters.
With every step she took, she didn't know whether the markings on the chessboard squares were blessings or curses.
They was truly… lofty.
"Judging from Hydral's actions this ti, they are not bystanders. They not only refuse to watch the situation passively but also actively influence , either overtly or covertly, and with considerable force."
Ravenna imrsed her original body in a container filled with pale green liquid, gently pushed her glasses, and sat down on the spacious soft chair.
Six light screens unfolded before her eyes, and Ravenna, who was staring at the various data, whispered to herself:
"In other words, this is a contest between Hydral and his gambling partner. If we assu that they won't directly restrict , then the key to this contest lies in—"
Ether flowed from the core of the puppet to her fingertips, dragging the light screen. The woman's gaze then fixed on one of the scenes.
Hendrik was talking to a man in a dark robe, and behind the dark robe, the sun with embedded eyes hung in an inverted triangle.
The emblem of the Alchemy Association symbolized their desire to uncover the truth.
Ravenna, who was gazing at them, gently tapped the table, and various possibilities erged in her mind.
It seed that she had gained so insight, and the purple pupils under her gray glasses reflected the flowing light on the screen: "A guiding… for my choice?"
"At so point, perhaps even a mont I may not be aware of, the choices I make under the multiple influences of various external factors will determine whether I, as a pawn, receive help or suffer disaster."
"In this way, everything the pawn sees is always under their control. Only by standing at the sa height as them can there be a chance of survival in the face of death."
"Their height is…"
"The perspective of the chess player."
It was easy to say, but how could the perspective of a chess player be captured by a pawn like her, who didn't even know where to land?
Resources, power, energy… The Tower of Babel was already struggling against the Etheric Academy, let alone confronting the colossal monster that lood over the empire.
Ravenna couldn't obtain the information from the chess player's perspective, nor could she see their distant designs and traps. However, she could do one thing—
If she only looked at herself, gazing down at herself from a higher level and angle without casting her gaze far away, it would be a breeze for Ravenna.
That alone was enough. There was no need to see the distant future; she only needed to see the path beneath her feet as clearly as possible.
Ravenna, who had found the answer, stood up. She silently ard this puppet as much as possible and then walked towards the long corridor outside.
The manipulated pawn whispered coldly: "Control yourself, Ravenna."
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