Chapter 147
Hiding in the shadows, Daros watched the communication alchemy prop pulse with fluctuations.
He crushed it directly in his grip.
The terms the leader of the Scavengers had negotiated with them seed perfectly reasonable, but who did he think he was?
For a lowly Scavenger, he wanted far too much.
Not only did he want to conceal his identity and claim this batch of plundered Whale Products for himself, but he also demanded the secret backing of the Dartnerly family to achieve total independence.
There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world.
Did this man truly believe that just because he achieved so minor success in the South District with the backing of the Construct Protocol, he possessed outstanding abilities? That he could just wash off the stench of corpses and beco a real human being?
Keep dreaming!
From the very beginning, the only thing the Dartnerly family valued about the Scavenger leader was his status as a mber of the Construct Protocol.
They intended to use this identity to blow the situation completely out of proportion.
Smuggling ant little. The real issue was conducting large-scale smuggling operations with a heretical cult.
Westbin had t his downfall entirely due to his connection with the Floating World Society.
The goods Das and his n were transporting belonged to the nobles, but neither the smugglers nor the nobles could ever publicly admit to such a transaction.
And right now, a group from the Construct Protocol just so happened to be alongside the smugglers. As long as a "witness" was present, today's events would be permanently set in stone.
"The rain is stopping..." Daros reached out his hand, letting the misty precipitation wash over his skin.
For this incident to escalate properly, it needed to unfold amidst the downpour, blurring the details of how it all began.
Because of this ambiguity, the "witness" would have the final say in determining exactly what had transpired.
This would allow him to forge an undeniable link between the smuggling and the heretical cult during the latter half of the event.
"Protection of the Saint Road!" Daros whispered, slowly drawing his sword to prepare himself.
Moving forward, the scene did not require any other living souls.
All that was needed was a ground littered with the corpses of smugglers and Construct Protocol mbers, along with scattered Whale Products.
The wind and rain gradually subsided.
The mont Daros failed to appear to help them as agreed upon, the Scavenger leader awoke to reality amidst the rain.
Daros was a Noble.
He was just a piece of trash who was not even worthy of a na.
Daros was a Holy Knight.
He was just a Scavenger who handled the dirty work.
Daros was an Iron Rank.
He had only managed to raise his Attribute Value to seven or eight points by relying on the Construct Protocol's Berserk Accessory, gaining a few special abilities through the berserk overdrive mode.
Under these circumstances, why would the other party ever genuinely cooperate with him?
He had simply let the power provided by the Construct Protocol rush to his head.
He had foolishly believed he actually possessed the qualifications to negotiate.
Looking at it now, was he nothing more than an abandoned pawn?
Blood splattered as blades sliced through flesh. The agonizing screams of his subordinates filtered into his ears, accompanied by the fading sounds of the storm.
Perhaps the storm had not weakened at all; it had rely found a different way to crash into his life.
"This is Holy Knight Daros. I have discovered a Supernatural conflict occurring near Nineteenth Street in the North District."
"It appears to be infighting between special factions!" Daros's voice seamlessly and "correctly" connected to the Grid's communication channel, remaining perfectly composed.
As an Iron Rank Holy Knight, Daros carried a special item on his person that allowed him to temporarily connect with the Grid and relay ssages.
Now, this audio log would serve as one piece of the "evidence".
Next, as long as the enemies fought back and enough people died, this incident would blow up. It would be massive enough to alarm Sky Spring City, massive enough to force an official investigation.
Even if the investigation eventually proved that Nemus was not collaborating with the Construct Protocol.
The fact that he orchestrated this smuggling operation would still be exposed.
When that ti ca, it would be impossible for Nemus to retain his position as a Great Knight.
Stripped of a Great Knight's authority, he would be nothing more than an ordinary Iron Rank.
Using his body, which had already awakened its Saint's Essence, as the raw material for the Golden Elixir would absolutely bring new hope to the Dartnerly family.
Their family would undoubtedly rise to greatness once again!
As these thoughts raced through his mind, Daros unleashed the full might of his twenty-seven Attribute Value as an Iron Rank.
Web-like craters ford on the cobblestones beneath his stomping boots.
Braving the storm, he swung his sword directly at the Scavenger leader.
Flesh and Blood Berserk Spell: Grotesque Flesh Defense!
A massive amount of blood spilled onto the ground, yet this strike failed to claim the Scavenger leader's life.
His body rapidly expanded. The shallow wound was swiftly covered and filled by layers of mutated, grotesque flesh.
At this mont, the Scavenger leader looked like a standing bitter gourd, his entire body covered in pulsating muscle tumors.
This was his trump card. During his independent research on the Berserk Accessory, he had discovered this mutated Spell, born from the combined operation of agitated ntal Power and flesh-and-blood Spells.
"Excellent, exactly like that!" A smile surfaced on Daros's face. Instead of growing irritated by his enemy's resistance, he was exceptionally delighted.
The harder the Scavenger leader fought back, the more pronounced the traces of the Berserk Accessory beca on his body.
Consequently, his ties to the Construct Protocol would seem even deeper, and the resulting scandal would be even more massive.
On the other side, Das had also noticed this. With a single turn of his thoughts, he deduced exactly what was happening.
However, it seed it was already too late to escape. There was no possible way to gather up the scattered goods and leave imdiately.
"Then we fight them to the bitter end, for Lord Nels!"
This thought abruptly popped into his mind.
A mont later, he even found himself startled by his own conviction.
He was originally just an ordinary rchant who exclusively believed in value and profit.
Drifting with the tide in this world, his family had long since fallen into ruin. Though he still bore a surna, he no longer held a Noble title.
He had been involved in comrce since he was young, changing his allegiances ti and ti again.
It was all for the sake of profit. Naturally, he pledged his loyalty to whoever could provide him with a stable business environnt.
Previously, when he faced condemnation from Dong He over the Tavern incident and was subsequently protected by Nemus, he had assud he was rely switching factions once more.
Yet this ti, he harbored absolutely no desire to flee from the danger. The only thing occupying his mind was the urge to pledge absolute loyalty to Nemus.
'It feels as if my entire being has been brainwashed without even realizing it,' Das thought with a smile.
"But... to have my talents acknowledged and valued so deeply—if this is brainwashing, then I accept it willingly!" Das took a deep breath. His ntal Power abruptly surged, compressing his spirit to violently accelerate his Spell casting speed.
Even though they had only known each other for half a year, and even though Nemus had not explicitly taken special care of him, many things were reflected in the details.
Just like when Nemus had lashed out back then; neither Dong Luo nor Dong He was willing to step forward, leaving him with no choice but to shoulder the bla himself.
Nemus, however, was different. He recognized Das's capabilities and was willing to back him up because of those very talents.
They had not spent much ti together over the past six months, but through countless small details, Das knew that Nemus trusted him as a valuable asset.
"Profit and risk are always proportional. When the danger grows too great, abandoning the potential earnings of a deal is a valid choice."
"But when the rewards are great enough, I am willing to risk everything for it!"
At this mont, Das entered a very special state.
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