Upon arriving at the Hotel Solotour, Odis generously booked the entire third floor and then took Bernadette out for a meal.
Solothu State is already in the heart of the western province. It takes two days by horse-drawn carriage to reach the city of Wotai. The city is very safe and the businesses seem quite prosperous.
The food at the hotel was pretty good, about the same level as in Azshara.
After dinner, Odis gave a few instructions to Longzel in the hotel corridor, leaving all the chores to Longzel and the three clerks, while he and Bernadette returned to their respective rooms.
After the two entered, Neil, a clerk in his twenties, whispered to Long Ze'er in the hallway, "Captain, isn't that beautiful lady the governor's wife?"
If they are a married couple, they should go into the same room.
Long Ze'er's public identity is the captain of the guard, while his team members are those "extraordinary puppets".
He glanced at Neil before saying, "No."
He gave a brief reply and then went to direct the "extraordinary puppets" to settle them into different rooms.
Meanwhile, Longzel instructed three clerks to go out and inquire where they could buy carriages, as Governor Odis had just told them that they needed to buy a few carriages to continue the second half of the journey.
After watching the three members go downstairs, Long Ze'er quickly went to Odis's door and knocked on it.
"Please come in."
Long Ze'er opened the door and saw that Odis had just taken off his vest and hung it on the coat rack. After closing the door, he whispered, "Governor, that clerk Neil seems to be an undercover agent sent by another organization."
Odis glanced at Longzel: "Why do you say that?"
"He's asking about far too much," Long Ze'er said. "Unless he's extremely curious, he's definitely helping other organizations gather information."
Odis smiled and said, "This can't be called an undercover operation."
Long Ze'er was taken aback: "Am I being too sensitive?"
"No, what I mean is, I sensed he was sent by another organization the moment I first met him," Odis smiled. "So you can't call him an undercover agent, you can only call him a fool, or an actor."
Long Ze'er smiled and said, "I see."
Odis sat in the chair in front of his desk: "Be on alert tonight. I suspect someone might attack us today."
"Yes." After saying that, Long Ze'er left the governor's room.
At that moment, Bernadette, who lived in the next room, appeared as a phantom, seemingly a spirit, passing through the wall.
She sat down seemingly casually opposite Odis: "How did you figure out that those three people were acting strangely?"
"The Neil I was talking about with Longzel just now must have just arrived in Lenburg," Odis said. "He said he failed the civil service exam and had lost hope for life in Azshara, but his fingers didn't have the deformity that comes from holding a pen all the time."
He had long noticed that the people of Remburg had a characteristic: almost everyone's thumb, index finger, and middle finger had slight deformities, which were caused by extensive use of pens.
If one had truly prepared for the corresponding exam, there should have been similar traces.
Odis paused for a moment and continued, "The clerk, Roxanne, said her fiancé had disappeared and she couldn't find him anywhere. She didn't want to stay in Azshara any longer."
"She looked heartbroken when she said this, and almost cried, but he immediately gave himself away when asked the next question."
I asked her if she had called the police, and she said she had.
"But why didn't she wait for the police investigation results before preparing to leave Azshara immediately?"
Odis leaned back in his chair and continued, "The third clerk, Corey, said that his friend had gone missing in Wotai City, and he really wanted this job to search for his friend under my protection."
"This is the most carefully crafted explanation, almost flawless, but it has a fundamental logical problem. If he really had such a good relationship with his friend, he should have gone to find him himself long ago."
"If the relationship isn't that good, it's unlikely that I'd take the risk."
"Of course, my most basic basis for judging that they have problems is that they don't have any absolute reason to go to Wotai State, or rather, the reasons they came up with don't warrant an ordinary person doing such a risky thing."
Bernadette crossed her legs and said, "So, you recruited them on purpose, didn't you?"
Odis smiled and said, "That's about right."
After Odis's previous interview, when the high-ranking official Bichir told him that it would be difficult to recruit people in Azshara, Odis came up with this idea to see if his previously "accumulated" enemies were well-informed.
For the past few months, Odis has been adrift at sea, never staying in one place for long, because under the protection of "Night's Favor," his enemies are unlikely to find him.
But now Odis has come to land, and he has been in Azshara for several days in his true form and identity, a fact that should be known to many.
Therefore, Odis's act of "recruiting clerks" was essentially giving those organizations with ill intentions a legitimate reason to approach him.
In this way, their attack can be launched with full force in one go, without being hesitant or having to test the waters.
Of course, Odis wouldn't have been so arrogant as to invite a wolf into his house before he learned that Bernadette was going to accompany him.
Knowing that Bernadette would be going to Wotai City with him, Odis had no more worries. He was only a Sequence 5, and the enemy would not send out angels.
With Bernadette around, Odis is safe as long as there are no angels among the enemies, and she can also reap a lot of spoils.
Upon hearing Odis's reply, Bernadette said, "If the other side sends out demigods, I will help you deal with it, and the spoils of war at the demigod level are mine."
"If they are just enemies below demigod level, and you are not in mortal danger, I will not take action, nor will I share your spoils."
Odis smiled and said, "Thank you."
After chatting for a few more minutes, Bernadette returned to her room.
Odis did not go to the "Wilderness of Knowledge" to write today, but instead took the time to rest, because if someone were to launch an attack, the battle would definitely take place in the middle of the night.
While Odis was fast asleep, a pair of hands suddenly nudged him, waking him up immediately.
He glanced at the clock in the darkness; it was a little past three in the morning, but his intuition did not sense any danger.
After a slight pause, Odis realized that the one who had just pushed her might have been the "invisible servant," a reminder from Bernadette.
The spirituality at Sequence 5 is certainly not comparable to that of a demigod; Bernadette should have sensed the danger beforehand.
Odis immediately began to put on the sealing artifact. The "Gus Staff" and the sealing artifact were placed beside him, and he put them on in two or three seconds. Then he used the "Scale Armor Scroll", held the staff, and sat on the edge of the bed to wait.
Because it was in the city, and not many people knew that Odis possessed the "Scepter of Disaster," Odis did not intend to use this Level 1 sealed artifact.
After waiting a few more seconds, Odis, as if sensing something, looked towards the window.
His own spirituality was only now given a warning, and although there was enough time, it wouldn't have been as calm as it is now.
Because of Bernadette's reminder, Odis was well-prepared. So when he saw a figure suddenly appear at the window, Odis immediately infused the "Star Sand" into the "Staff of Gus" and simultaneously imbued the "Hand of Judgment" with spiritual power: "Imprisonment!"
The other party hadn't done anything yet; they just stood there, seemingly "imprisoned" by the surrounding air.
Odis charged forward: "Death!"
Whoosh~
He smashed the window and sent the other person flying.
Odis also flew out, and the symbol on the head of the "Gus Staff" appeared, summoning a bolt of lightning from the sky that struck the opponent.
Odis then swung his fist with his glove-clad hand, "Harvesting!"
Under Odis's three consecutive blows, the opponent fell to the ground, severely injured and unable to get up.
The process was swift, leaving the attackers completely bewildered. They began their attack, but the target of their assassination rushed out first and immediately seriously injured one of their members.
Odis's attack continued, and the starlight on the head of the "Gus Staff" suddenly solidified, forming a straight sword made of starlight, which pierced straight towards the member who had fallen to the ground.
"Exile!" shouted a "Punishment Knight" standing on the roof.
Odis was pushed away by a tremendous force, failing to deliver the final blow.
At this moment, the other members of the enemy finally came to their senses and attacked Odis.
A "chaos mentor" lying in ambush under the window, because everything happened so fast and hastily, picked up a floor tile and threw it at Odis, thus completing the "bribery" process.
Just as he was about to use his next ability, Odis suddenly used "Flash" to appear not far from the "Punishment Knight" on the roof.
Odis flung out a scroll: "Chaos!"
As the scroll radiating black light shattered, the "Punishment Knight" was immediately thrown into a state of "chaos," and the extraordinary power he had originally used on Odis was instead thrown at a nearby tile.
Odis stepped forward abruptly, and "Gar runes" appeared on the "Gus Staff" in his hand. Suddenly, clusters of dawn-like light descended around him.
The dawn light condensed at the head of the "staff," forming a sharp straight sword that pierced fiercely towards the "Punishment Knight."
Thump thump thump~
One of the "judges" who had been lying in ambush in the courtyard as support finally rushed over. Because his "exile" ability had a limited range, he raised his gun and fired at Odis, hoping to force him to give up the attack.
"Chaos!" This was the chaos unleashed by the "Chaos Mentor" in the courtyard, used to block Odis's attack.
But they were all too late; Odis's straight sword pierced the "Punishment Knight's" heart.
The intense pain and the threat to his life instantly pulled the "Punishment Knight" out of his "chaotic" state.
He immediately jumped backward, letting himself fall off the roof.
As he fell, he extended his palm and solemnly declared, "The use of scrolls is prohibited here!"
Odis on the rooftop was unable to catch up. He was first hit by the "Chaos Mentor's" "Chaos," but fortunately, he was surrounded by "Dawn Light," so he was not greatly affected.
Then the three bullets hit Odis, but they were all blocked by the power of the "Scale Armor Scroll".
Odis knew that he was affected by "chaos," and that no matter what ability he used in the next few seconds, he might miss his opponent due to this tiny mistake.
So he stopped attacking and looked at the four people in the courtyard.
They have three Sequence 5 members: two "Punishment Knights" and one "Chaos Mentor".
One of the "Punishment Knights" was the first one to appear at the window. He had been severely injured by Odis, completely losing his fighting ability and unable to escape on his own.
Another "Punishment Knight" was stabbed by Odis. If an ordinary person had been stabbed like that, they would have died long ago. But for a Sequence 5, it was just an injury. He could even continue fighting, but he couldn't move around too much. After all, Odis's sword had stabbed him near his heart.
Currently, the "Chaos Mentor" has become the main fighting force, and the "Judge" who just arrived as reinforcements is also unharmed.
The "judge" fired three shots, waking many people up, who then stood at their windows looking out.
...
The third floor, Bernadette's room.
The "Mysterious Queen" sat in a chair by the window, quietly watching the battle in the courtyard.
At that moment, the door to the room was kicked open, and Neil, the clerk Odis had just hired, pointed a gun at Bernadette: "Hands up."
Bernadette glanced at the other person: "You're the first one."
Neil paused, not understanding what the other person meant, but then he said in a fierce tone, "Stand up, from here..."
Bernadette looked out the window again and waved casually at Neil.
Neil's neck was suddenly twisted by an invisible force, and his neck was snapped, interrupting his speech.
Neil struggled for a few moments, then collapsed to the ground convulsing.
...
The "Chaos Mentor" in the courtyard knew that they didn't have much time left for the assassination, so he took the initiative to attack Odis. He first used the "Weakening" ability, then suddenly jumped onto the wall, dug his hands into the bricks, and climbed onto the roof in a few moves. Like a brown bear, he drew his short sword and pounced on Odis.
The "Punishment Knight" with the chest wound continued in a solemn tone: "Witchcraft is forbidden here!"
The "judge" standing to the side also shouted while attacking, "Teleportation is prohibited here!"
One difference between the "Punishment Knight" and the "Judge" is that the "Judge" can only "ban" once, and the bans cannot be stacked.
The "Prohibition" skill of the "Punishment Knight" can be stacked. This means that the "Judge" can only use "Prohibition" once within a certain period of time, while the "Punishment Knight" can use it many times in a row.
Odis was still under the "Chaos" status, and it had been "weakened," so he immediately jumped from the rooftop into the courtyard to avoid the "Chaos Mentor's" attack.
"Imprisonment!" The "Judge" who had been chasing closely used the "Imprisonment" ability. The air around Odis suddenly became viscous, but before he could even land, he was "imprisoned" in place.
The "Chaos Mentor" charged forward and stabbed Odis in the chest with his sword.
But the moment the sword tip touched Odis, the "Chaos Mentor" froze, because there was no feeling of a sharp weapon piercing flesh, but rather as if he had stabbed a hard steel plate.
Then, the "Chaos Mentor" saw a layer of illusory scales flash across Odis's body, and he suddenly understood why the "Judge's" three shots had not hurt Odis.
"Death!" At this moment, the "judge" behind him followed closely, ready to "finish him off," thinking that Odis had been stabbed.
However, the physique of an "astrologer" is not strong. If an "astrologer" is stabbed in the chest, he should basically lose his fighting ability.
However, the "Chaos Mentor" realized that Odis seemed to be deliberately leading them closer. It was at this moment that he saw Odis's lips curl up and she smiled slightly.
The "Chaos Mentor" immediately realized something was wrong and quickly jumped back, shouting, "Get out of the way!"
But it was too late, because once the "death" ability has a target, it will definitely hit the other party, and the "judge" could no longer change the target.
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
At this moment, the head of the "Gus Staff" in Odis's hand emitted a brilliant light once again, and a huge pillar of starlight fell down, completely covering the "judge".
The "Pillar of Starlight" is Odis's own ability, not a scroll or witchcraft, so it was not weakened by the "forbidden" just now.
The moment the "judge" was covered by the beam of light, his skin seemed to melt and disappear.
The "Chaos Mentor" immediately used the "Chaos" ability again, hoping to interfere with Odis. Although the beam of light shifted slightly, it still failed to leave the "Judge" immediately.
On the other side of the courtyard, the "Punishment Knight" immediately used the "Imprisonment" ability on the "Judge," hoping to block the attack of the beam of light with the thickened air.
However, the ability to "imprison" was immediately shattered by the beam of light.
So the "Punishment Knight" immediately used "Exile" in the hope of pushing the "Judge" out of the pillar of light.
This method was indeed effective. The "Punishment Knight" pushed out a figure from the pillar of light, but the figure immediately crumbled like a pile of sand and scattered on the ground.
These "sands" are the "judge".
Because of the "Judge's" death, the "prohibition" on the "teleportation" ability was lifted, so Oddis instantly "teleported" to the "Punishment Knight's" side, and "Gar runes" were reflected in the head of the "Guth Staff" in his hand, which he pointed at the "Punishment Knight's" wound.
Bang!
With a muffled thud, the "Punishment Knight's" chest cavity was completely blown open! His heart and lungs were exposed to the air.
Odis had just simulated the "Flesh Bomb" ability of the "Mystic" pathway. The power of this ability was not great, but it was enough to catch the "Punishment Knight" off guard and was directly blasted into a fatal wound.
When I turned back, the "chaotic mentor" had already run away.
Just a few seconds ago, when he had two teammates helping him, he thought the mission was hopeful, but in those few seconds, the situation changed instantly, and now he was the only one who could move.
Clearly, the assassination mission was unlikely to be completed, so he turned and ran.
Odis used "Flash" to catch up, and with the "Gus Staff" shining brightly, he used the "Starlight Cage" ability to trap the "Chaos Mentor".
Then Odis threw a punch with the hand that had the "harvest gauntlet".
Harvest!
He sent the "Chaos Mentor" flying!
Then Odis used her "Imprisonment" ability to trap the "Chaos Mentor" once again.
He then used the "Gus Staff" to mimic the vampire's "claw" ability, his fingernails rapidly growing longer and shrouded in a blood-red mist, wrapped with illusory symbols.
Odis's five fingers were like five sharp daggers, stabbing at the "Mentor of Chaos".
Seeing that he could not dodge, the "chaotic mentor" simply raised his left arm to block Odis's five fingers.
Pfft~
The long, five fingers pierced through the "Chaos Mentor's" arm in an instant, almost hitting his chest.
The "Chaos Mentor" took a deep breath: "Chaos!"
In the instant affected by the "chaos", Odis seemed to lose his goal. He used the "Sword of Dawn" simulated by the "Staff of Gus" to stab the ground. Then, Odis's second sword pierced a big tree by the roadside.
This feeling was strange. Odis knew very well that her target was the "Chaos Mentor" in front of her, but when she launched her attack, her thoughts and actions were "confused", and she perfectly avoided the opponent.
The "Chaos Mentor" seized the opportunity to escape, but after taking only two steps, he turned around and found himself back in front of Odis.
When Odis used the "Imprisonment" ability, he was afraid that his next attack would not be able to completely eliminate the opponent, so he simply hypnotized the "Chaos Mentor".
Although it was "battle hypnosis," the opportunity was fleeting, but it was enough for Odis to emerge from the state of "chaos" and use the "Staff of Gus" to summon the "Pillar of Starlight," instantly enveloping the "Chaos Mentor" in a dazzling sea of stars.
The violent impact instantly brought "Chaos Mentor" to his senses. He jumped back and let out a scream. Many parts of his body were mangled and bloody, as if he had just been in a violent explosion.
This is the difference between Sequence 5 and Sequence 6. Previously, the "Judge" had virtually no ability to resist the "Star Pillar".
However, the "Chaos Mentor" still had the strength to dodge, but after dodging, he was in a very sorry state.
Odis immediately tossed out a scroll: "Art!"
This is the "Blood Explosion Scroll" he designed using the flesh and blood of that black spider.
Although this violated the "prohibition" of the "Punishment Knight", the "Punishment Knight" no longer had the power to "punish" him at this time, so the power of the "scroll" was only slightly reduced, and there was no other effect.
puff!
The "Chaos Mentor" was instantly blasted open, with a large hole blown into his stomach, and then collapsed to the ground, unable to get up.
Odis finally breathed a sigh of relief, solidified the "starlight" once again, and used the "Sword of Stars" to finish off the assassin in front of him.
Odis then threw the corpse of the "Mentor of Chaos" into the "Wilderness of Knowledge" and hurried back to the courtyard.
At this moment, Longzel, who had just jumped down from the third floor, had just killed the two seriously injured "Punishment Knights".
He sheathed his longsword and smiled somewhat helplessly, "I just charged down, and the battle is almost over."
Just as he arrived in the courtyard, Odis used "Starlight Pillar," and by the time Longzel rushed over, he had already severely injured the second "Punishment Knight."
Seeing that Odis had gone after the fleeing enemy, Longzel stayed behind and dealt with the two wounded enemies.
Odis said, "There will be plenty of opportunities to fight in the future."
As he spoke, he used the "Gus Staff" to simulate the relevant abilities of the "Death" pathway, accelerating the extraction speed of traits, and quickly obtained three traits of the "Arbitrator" pathway.
"You have fully recovered your level of characteristics." Odis smiled and said to Longzel, "When we arrive in Wotai State, I will give you a Sequence 8 level potion."
"Well, you can start by collecting auxiliary materials."
With that thought in mind, Odis threw the corpse of one of the "Punishment Knights" into the "Wilderness of Knowledge".
He suddenly realized that he didn't have any potion recipes other than Sequence 9 of the "Arbitrator" pathway, so he planned to use "Spirit Communication" to obtain potion recipes later.
Long Ze'er smiled and said, "Okay."
Odis left Ronzel to deal with the police who had rushed over after hearing the news, and he quickly returned to the third floor and went to Bernadette's room.
Upon seeing Neil's corpse, he paused slightly, "Did this guy expose himself?"
Bernadette hummed in agreement: "I don't understand either, why didn't he leave quickly and instead came here."
Odis kicked the corpse: "What else could it be? He must have been lustful."
Bernadette simply said "Oh," and waved her hand at Neil's corpse again. An unknown force folded the corpse into a "V" shape.
Odis clearly heard the sound of the corpse's spine breaking, so he summoned two "extraordinary puppets" who threw the body into the yard and handed it over to the police.
The "mysterious queen" asked Odis, "Do you know which faction the assassins belong to?"
"It should be sent by the Feneport military," Odis said. "We captured spies on Cruz Island before, but they committed suicide before we could interrogate them. I suspect they were sent by the Feneport military."
"It's precisely because I wasn't often on Cruise Island before that they couldn't find me, which is why they thought now was the perfect time to assassinate me."
Bernadette nodded and said, "It's a very reasonable guess."
Aside from the royal family and military of Rune, only the royal family and military of Fenneport have many extraordinary individuals who act as "arbitrators" and "lawyers."
At this moment, the police who arrived at the scene saw so many soldiers staying in the hotel and immediately realized that this was not an ordinary case. Therefore, they did not immediately launch a further investigation, but quickly reported to their superiors.
Before long, the official extraordinary individuals also arrived.
Although the Western Province is currently in chaos, its religious beliefs have not been disrupted. In other words, although Intis and Fenneport are infiltrating the Western Province and supporting a group of local armed forces, they dare not affect the local churches.
Because if that were the case, war could very well break out.
The extraordinary beings who arrived were official extraordinary beings from the local Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. After learning that Odis lived there, they simply inquired about the situation, took a statement from Odis, and left.
Archbishop Douglas had already given orders to the churches in the western provinces to cooperate with Odis's actions as much as possible.
Therefore, the Church's official extraordinary beings would not make things difficult for Odis.
After the investigation was basically completed, Odis moved to another room, lay on the bed, and pretended to continue resting.
In fact, he used "meditation" to arrive at the "wilderness of knowledge," first crushing the four extraordinary characteristics, and then using the sealed artifact to "communicate with spirits."
Because Odis could draw upon the power of the "Wilderness of Knowledge," she easily brought the spirit of the "Mentor of Chaos" into a state of "spiritual communication."
Odis asked, "Which organization do you belong to?"
The "Chaos Mentor," looking bewildered, replied, "The Fenneport Security Bureau."
Odis nodded slowly. The functions of Fenneport's Security Service were similar to those of MI9 in Rune and MI8 in Intis. In addition to investigating some extraordinary cases, they also carried out some infiltration or assassination work in other countries.
Odis had already guessed this and wasn't particularly surprised. He then asked, "Where did you get this information about me?"
"Our group is only responsible for assassinations," the Chaos Mentor replied. "We don't even know where we got the information from."
Odis nodded slowly, guessing that there were officials in Azshara working for the Kingdom of Feneport.
Seeing that he couldn't get any other useful information, he asked in another direction: "Do you know the potion recipes for 'The Fallen Earl' or 'The Lawful Mage'?"
These are the names of potions from the "Lawyer" and "Arbitrator" pathways, respectively, at Sequence 4.
Now that Odis has many subordinates through the channels of "lawyers" and "arbitrators," she should certainly inquire about the corresponding potion recipes if given the opportunity.
Unfortunately, this "chaotic mentor" has not yet come into contact with the formula at this level.
Odis then went to communicate with the spirit of the "Punishment Knight" and obtained the potion recipes for Sequence 8 to Sequence 5.
This "Punishment Knight" was also unaware of the "Law Mage's" potion recipe.
After ending the "spiritual communication," Odis returned to the real world to continue resting.
The next morning, at breakfast, the other two clerks greeted Odis with normal expressions, as if they didn't know that Neil had died the night before.
Odis knew this was a sign of their confidence in their organization; otherwise, they would have fled long ago after witnessing the assassination attempt the previous night and learning of the target's strength.
Their task today is to buy a carriage to continue their journey.
Just as Long Ze'er and his group arrived at the car dealership, Odis received an unexpected invitation. A man claiming to be the governor's butler invited Odis to lunch at the governor's residence.
Odis assumed that the governor had invited him to dinner after learning that the governor of the neighboring state was passing through his jurisdiction.
When Odis arrived at the governor's mansion by carriage, the governor turned out to be the same man she had chatted with on the train.