"General."
As Daniel Davis and Theresis returned to the conference room in the Shard Tower, the Penitent and Manfred immediately came forward. Compared to the other Court Lords, these two were the most concerned about Theresis's safety.
"It's time for us to go."
Daniel glanced at W, and upon seeing no reaction from her, he nodded to Theresis and signaled for Kelsey, Theresa, and the others to leave.
"Don't worry about me. Your duty has already come to an end." Before Theresa could say anything to Theresis, he spoke first.
"Lord Kelsey, I'll be counting on you from here."
"This time, there won't be any more problems."
"So it really was a complete resurrection, huh? Were the Penitents just that skilled, or did Theresa never truly die in the first place?"
After returning to Che City, Daniel immediately conducted a comprehensive examination of Theresa. From the results, aside from issues with her consciousness, everything else was perfectly intact.
During the examination, Daniel also treated Theresa's Oripathy. As a Sarkaz who had lived for centuries, her condition was quite severe, with significant crystallization across her body. At the request of both W and Kelsey, this treatment was a complete cure.
"Alright, from here on, I'll leave things to you. Prepare everything—once I return from Laterano, it'll be time to leave this world."
Having cured Theresa's Oripathy, Daniel handed over the remaining matters to Kelsey—namely, whether Amiya and Theresa should meet right now. While Daniel believed it would be better for them to wait, the final decision rested with Kelsey.
After all, in matters like this, she held the most say.
"Thank you very much."
"It's rare to hear you speak with such sincerity. By the way, you sure there's no problem not bringing those two with us earlier?"
Seeing W unusually serious, Daniel waved his hand with a smile, then brought up Hedley and the others. That look he gave her back at the Shard Tower was meant to ask whether she wanted to bring Hedley back.
"No need to worry about those two. Won't be long before we hear news of their deaths."
"Faking their deaths to slip away? That's a good idea."
Feigning death—Ines, the one who usually accompanied Hedley, had done it many times. Ines was an interesting case. While most Sarkaz would try to hide their identity—filing down their horns, pretending to be Minosians—Ines had done the opposite: she pretended to be Sarkaz.
"Start preparing. We'll be leaving this world soon, so take care of anything you need to."
"So this is the other form of the undying Black Snake? Is the main body actually female?"
In a mid-sized nomadic city in Ursus, outside a university classroom, Daniel stared through a window at a stunning female lecturer giving a history lesson on the Empire of the Talons and couldn't help but be baffled.
If Talulah hadn't confirmed it herself, he wouldn't have believed that this woman was also Koschei—more precisely, one of his incarnations.
Still, Daniel had to admit: in terms of taste, Koschei had far better style than Talulah. Back when they first met, Talulah was always in uniform—granted, Ursus uniforms weren't bad, but wearing the same thing every day got dull.
Since Chen Huijie stayed in Che City, Talulah's wardrobe had improved significantly. Chen, despite always wearing uniforms in the L.G.D., had a closet full of outfits in private.
"Do you two like Professor Kashenna's lectures? You can go in and listen—she doesn't mind. Are you university students from around here?"
A female student walking through the corridor stopped when she saw Daniel and Talulah by the window.
"No need. We're fine here."
"The professor is quite popular here."
"Of course. Professor Kashenna's classes on Ursus imperial history are always full. If people have time, most of them come to hear her speak."
The student enthusiastically praised Kashenna's reputation.
"Seems the real reason they're here isn't for the lecture."
Daniel thought to himself as he looked at the packed lecture hall. Certainly, Kashenna's teaching was engaging—but popularity like this wasn't solely due to her skills. Swap her out with an old man, and the situation would look very different.
Being a brilliant speaker and a beautiful young woman naturally drew in crowds of college students. Honestly, if he were a student here, Daniel probably would've shown up too.
"Ah, so that's the reason the Empire of the Talons fell. What rotten luck."
Still, Daniel had to admit—Kashenna's teaching was excellent. Even with just a few minutes of listening, he quickly grasped the root causes of the empire's collapse.
First was aristocratic oppression, much like Kazimierz's old knight-slavery system, with Ursus being the oppressed.
Second was the Talon Army's destruction at the hands of the Khanate, leaving the empire unable to suppress internal uprisings.
"Professor Kashenna is incredible. It's like she actually lived through those events."
Some students whispered among themselves. Hearing that, Daniel wanted to tell them—she did live through it. That's probably why she was so good at teaching it.
"Class dismissed."
"Found you—Koschei."
As soon as Kashenna stepped out of the classroom, Talulah walked up to her. The unusual attention drew curious glances from students—two striking women like them always caused a stir—but they wisely kept their distance. Clearly, Kashenna commanded considerable respect on campus.
"I thought I'd see you sooner."
Kashenna showed no surprise at Talulah's appearance—if anything, she seemed prepared for it.
"Ursus's will, indeed. As hard to deal with as ever."
Koschei had long prepared for his defeat. Honestly, it didn't seem to bother him whether his plans succeeded or not. Talulah had only found this incarnation thanks to Koschei's subordinate, Shedding Scale, and a letter sent ten years ago.
Which meant that Koschei had anticipated this at least a decade in advance.
This "Kashenna" hadn't emerged after Daniel erased Koschei's presence from Talulah's mind—she had been teaching here for years, confirmed through investigation.
Clearly, Koschei had multiple incarnations acting independently.
"Incredible. Looks like I underestimated him before."
Listening to Talulah and Kashenna's conversation, Daniel revised his opinion of Koschei. For him, there was no difference between "Duke Talulah" and "Infected rebel Talulah."
Even if the Che City plan failed, that didn't mean Koschei's overall plan failed. War would still break out. The tension between new and old nobility in Ursus was worsening—conflict was inevitable.
"I told you before—I don't care who rules. Ever since Ursus seized this land from the Talon Empire, over the past millennium, the transfer of power has occurred both openly and in secret. All we desire is to see the spark within Ursus ignite into flame. After the blaze, will Ursus rise anew—or be consumed by it?
Ursus has survived its first thousand years. I will ensure it sees its second, third, and fourth millennium. That is the true purpose of the undying Black Snake."
"Why not go for forty thousand years while you're at it?"
Listening to her confident tone, Daniel muttered inwardly. Koschei truly didn't care who sat on the throne of Ursus. The current emperor wasn't even from the founding line—after all, Ursus had existed for over a thousand years.
Only the Sankta of Laterano and the True Dragons of Yan had ruled uninterrupted for thousands of years. Other nations, like Victoria with its Dracos, had changed dynasties.
In the end, Talulah didn't kill Kashenna. She understood that killing her wouldn't solve anything—it was just one of Koschei's incarnations.
Talulah had sought out Koschei because she wanted answers.
"From a different angle, cooperating with Koschei might actually be a viable option."
Koschei didn't care who ruled Ursus, so in theory, he could support Talulah's rise to the throne. But that was just a thought—Talulah would never willingly cooperate with him. She wasn't a politician driven solely by interests.
Since Talulah didn't kill Kashenna, Daniel naturally didn't interfere. He'd only followed her here out of curiosity about the undying Black Snake.
"'Messenger of All Nations'? 'Summit of All Nations'? Is Laterano trying to form the Terra equivalent of the United Nations?"
Reading the intelligence from Wei Yenwu regarding Laterano, Daniel couldn't help but chuckle. Though Laterano held high status among Terra's nations, creating a "UN" was no simple task. For one, Ursus would never attend such a summit.
Ursus was one of the few nations to have waged war against Laterano. Even the Patriot had clashed with their gun-knights in the past.
Still, since this was the first time Laterano had formally expressed its international stance, many countries were paying attention. Quite a few would probably send observers.
"Too bad Che City and its allies aren't considered real nations."
The "Summit of All Nations" implied participation was limited to recognized Terra nations—empires, kingdoms, and principalities. Since Che City wasn't formally established as a nation, they didn't qualify—same with Siesta.
"W, aren't you supposed to be by your princess's side?"
Seeing W accompany him to Kazdel, Daniel raised an eyebrow. Ever since bringing Theresa back, W had set aside all other work to stay by her side.
"Her Highness is busy training that little bunny. Besides, I've got some business in Kazdel. When she heard you were heading there, she asked me to be your guide."
W's expression soured slightly at the mention of a certain rabbit. Back then, and even now, she still wasn't thrilled about Amiya—though she had grown to accept her.
Kelsey had ultimately decided to let Theresa and Amiya meet. Amiya had been overjoyed—but that joy came with new responsibilities.
Back when Amiya inherited the Demon King's power, she'd done so in haste—she never fully harnessed it. That's why Manfred had been able to disrupt her Arts with his own.
But now that Theresa had returned—a Demon King with at least a century of experience—she could guide Amiya through the evolution she missed due to Daniel's earlier intervention.
"Things are much calmer here now. And it's thanks to you destroying the Scar Market."
Since the destruction of the Scar Market, various forces had tried to seize the lucrative black market. But mysterious attacks from an unknown power prevented anyone from gaining a foothold, forcing Sarkaz mercenaries to retreat from Kazdel.
Without these chaotic mercenaries rampaging around, Kazdel naturally became more peaceful.
Kazdel didn't have mobile cities—most of its population lived in scattered villages. Mudrock herself had come from one.
Not all Sarkaz were born to be mercenaries or killers. Many simply wanted to live in peace.
"Looks like I'm not cut out for treasure hunting. Laura's better at this than I am."
After a few days exploring Kazdel and finding no treasures, Daniel was ready to head to Laterano.
He'd come for two reasons: to assess the living conditions of the Sarkaz (for future immigration plans), and to hunt for relics.
Initially, Kazdel's influx of mercenaries had been driven by the lure of ruins—only later did the Scar Market emerge.
Even now, with the market gone, some mercenaries remained—driven by the allure of ancient relics. Rhine Lab, for example, had placed hefty bounties on them and even fielded their own teams.
Ifrit's flame powers and Mostima's staff were both found here. Kazdel was also the largest black market for Sankta guardian rifles.
Selling Sankta weapons elsewhere ran a high risk of alerting the Laterano Tribunal—but in Kazdel, it wasn't a concern.
After all, nobody expected Tribunal agents to travel deep into Kazdel. While Sarkaz could file their horns and blend in, the Sankta couldn't hide their halos. Those sunlamps on their heads were just too obvious.
"You want to follow me to Laterano? What are you planning?"
After wrapping up her business, W offered to join Daniel on his trip. He eyed her curiously.
If he didn't already know W had no beef with the Sankta—and that her visit to Kazdel was to settle old debts—he might've thought she was planning to stir up trouble before leaving this world.
"You know how Sarkaz and Laterano are mortal enemies. I killed a lot of Sankta. I just want to see what Laterano's like for myself."
"You're not worried about getting recognized? Even with that suit of yours, you can't take on multiple gun-knights."
Even with the 4th-gen Godslayer Armor, W couldn't match the Patriot in strength. And even he hadn't fared well against the gun-knights.
"If I get caught, you can just extract me. I bet I'll be the first Sarkaz ever to step into Laterano. Hahaha."
W laughed boldly.
"Alright. But at least disguise yourself a bit. Cover those horns."
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