Arknights' Lock of Heaven

"That guy must have some serious illness!"

"But what does this have to do with concealing the existence of food?"

“Of course there is a connection,” Xia Yu sighed. “As a special advisor to Rhodes Island, I have some secret intelligence sources.”

"An intelligence report indicates that an assassination attempt against you, Anton, is in the works."

"Me?" Anto pointed to himself in disbelief. "Assassination?"

"Who would assassinate a mere infected doctor like me? Do I even deserve to be assassinated?"

Hearing this, she was completely dumbfounded.

Why would someone use such a sophisticated and high-class term as assassination to describe themselves?

“Of course you’re qualified,” Xia Yu sighed. “Don’t you have some kind of misunderstanding about your outstanding performance in Wolumonmold?”

"Because of your existence, the order of Wolumonde has been maintained until now. Your existence has appeased the infected who are increasingly dissatisfied with the status quo, at least preventing them from going to extremes."

"And the simplest way to break this balance is a fire that leaves no survivors."

"Without your control, and coupled with their growing dissatisfaction with the drastic reduction in their supplies, the infected will unleash all their old and new grievances. They won't care who orchestrated the assassination; the blame will be shifted onto the townspeople."

"Then, the unrest occurred."

Xia Yu nodded to Anto, "Don't underestimate your own importance."

"How could this be..." Eyjafjalla gripped her staff tightly. Even now, how could anyone do such a thing...?

“Assassination… turmoil…” Anto sat back down in his chair, his face blank, the joy he had just shown vanished.

"Did I really misjudge him?"

She lowered her head with a bitter expression. "That emotion... was actually faked?"

She did not doubt the truthfulness of Xia Yu's words.

But she was absolutely wrong about who she suspected.

Anto definitely thought of the remnants of the Reunion Movement led by Mudstone.

These teams of Sarkaz did not join the Patriots, nor did they follow W.

They followed behind Mudrock, wanting to return to their hometown.

Kazdale.

Unfortunately, after the Battle of Chernobyl, the Ursus defenses in the Kazdel direction were tightened, and the nobles of the neighboring Kazdel region would not welcome them. So they had no choice but to take a long detour from Letania through Syracuse back home.

But I never expected to encounter these messy things in Wolumonde.

"No, how could you be wrong about him?" Xia Yu knew what she was thinking, but deliberately pretended not to know and teased her, "Didn't you just say that this person might have some serious illness and doesn't seem like a good person..."

"Huh?" Anto looked up in surprise. "Assassination, turmoil...aren't these referring to...?"

At this point, Anto quickly shut his mouth.

After all, Rhodes Island and Reunion had clashed before, especially since this advisor had led from the front...

I don't know how he treats those people.

"Not what?" Xia Yu's lips curled slightly. "Not the Reunion Movement led by Niyan?"

"Oh, so you know everything," Anto said, pursing his lips.

Judging from his tone, he probably doesn't have any major issues with Mudstone and the others.

“They’re just a group of people who want to go home,” Xia Yu shook her head upon hearing this. “Why would they be plotting anything in this foreign land?”

"I see..." Anto breathed a sigh of relief, but then remembered Thor's question.

"That Thor... he doesn't seem like a good person, but he shouldn't have any reason to assassinate me, right?"

Anto said, puzzled, "Although he usually seems two-faced, always wearing a fake smile and harboring deep thoughts behind the scenes, he is, after all, the son of Commander Severin, and Wolumonde is his home. What reason would he have to assassinate me?"

"Reason?" Xia Yu looked puzzled. "Do you know about the Crisis Contract?"

“I do know about the Crisis Contract,” Eyjafjalla interjected. “It’s a platform specifically for messengers of natural disasters, where they help each other out…”

"Mutual support?" Upon hearing this, Xia Yu couldn't help but scoff. "Perhaps to someone as naive as Eyjafjalla, that is indeed mutual support."

"But in the end, the Crisis Contract is just a platform for setting up bounties and achieving objectives."

"What kind of sordid things are behind this, and how many people know?"

"Do you know those extremists in the Cataclysmic Messenger?"

“Extremists?” Eyjafjalla hesitated for a moment upon hearing this. “I…have heard of them.”

"Their beliefs are extremely... extreme. Rumor has it that they are a group of perverted utilitarians who are even capable of confusing natural disasters with man-made ones."

"They will stop at nothing to kill anyone as long as it serves their purpose..."

“But what good does chaos do for them?” Anto still couldn’t understand.

"Not to mention Thor is Commander Severin's son, and the order in Wolumond is maintained by Commander Severin. How could he..."

Anto and Eyjafjalla both turned their gazes toward Xia Yu.

"Remember the predicament Wolumond is facing that we discussed before?" Xia Yu looked at the two puzzled people and sighed. "What is the biggest problem Wolumond is facing right now?"

“It was external aid!” Eyjafjalla answered first.

"Yes, that's the biggest problem. Once this is solved, everything else will be fine."

"Does that mean they want to get attention by killing me?"

“But…” Anto frowned upon hearing this, “I still have some self-awareness. Even though I am Kal’tsit’s disciple, I am not that important.”

“Who said this ‘outside world’ refers to Rhodes Island?” Xia Yu’s voice rang out softly. “Couldn’t it be the nobles of Letania?”

"Nobles?" Anto still didn't understand. "I don't seem to be that important to nobles, do I?"

It's normal for a doctor to lack political insight.

"Yes, you're not that important, but the infected who cause trouble under the guise of avenging you are."

"Think about what would happen after you were assassinated?"

"The trust between infected people and ordinary people will be completely destroyed, and all the accumulated contradictions will erupt in an instant."

"With Mudrock, who is on good terms with you, they will definitely make their move when the Reunion Movement members are present, just to drag them into it."

"What do the nobles want? Stability! For the sake of their stable rule, they will never let a wedding hold them back."

"By dragging the Reunion Movement into this, and then raising the Reunion Movement's banner, do you think the nobles of Letania will still be able to sit still, considering what happened to Chernobog in Ursus?"

"The nobles will definitely send troops to suppress it, and after they've suppressed it, they'll also take the opportunity to resolve the predicament of Wolumonde."

"After all, to the nobles, it's just the infected who are causing trouble; they won't be too harsh on the ordinary townspeople."

"They might even lavishly reward their bravery in the face of infected rebellion, in order to deter other infected individuals."

"Look, the world where only the infected are injured is complete. What a clever plan."

100 recordings

Terra's nights are always so agonizing.

Especially now that it's winter, and the camp is located in the Winterling Mountains in northern Letania.

Outside Anto's tent, the campfire had long since died out, and most of the infected had retreated back to their own tents. Even Kevin, who had brought Xia Yu here, and the duo with mental issues had returned to Wolumond.

They are, after all, townspeople, and are entitled to live in the town.

Unlike the infected people who stayed here.

But Originium brought Terra not only Oripathy, but also all sorts of advanced... equipment.

For example, the heating devices used by the infected in the camp allow them to stay in their tents and avoid the wind and snow outside.

Of course, it's estimated that only places like Letania would allow infected individuals the right to purchase such equipment.

If this were Ursus, haha.

Who cares about the life or death of those infected?

Anto's tent was naturally equipped with such a heater.

But even in the warm tent, the two girls still felt cold.

It's not because of the environment, but because of people's hearts.

“Ah, I see,” Anto said with a wry smile. “Instigating internal strife is not something Commander Severin’s son would do.”

"But if it's to save Wolumond, it wouldn't be surprising to make such a choice, would it?"

"In the end, it's only the infected who will be sacrificed."

“I knew it. Even in a ‘tolerant’ country like Letania, the infected… have never been taken seriously. When disaster strikes, we are always the first to be abandoned.”

"Who else but ourselves would even give us a second glance?"

“It’s alright,” Eyjafjalla gently patted Anto’s back to comfort her. “Now that the conspiracy has been exposed, we will stop it from happening.”

The events of the past two days have left this young lady, a brilliant graduate of William University who has already gained fame at a young age, with much to ponder.