The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　The Holy Church's camp was so exquisitely designed that it didn't seem like a temporary encampment. In addition to the palace materialized from the field card, there were also many custom-made decorative buildings on the perimeter.

　"I've heard that paladins' education includes arts and culture classes, and most paladins are skilled in singing and dancing, and know at least one craft. These stone sculptures displayed outside might be works created by paladins for their leisure time."

　Dark pondered for a moment, observing the surroundings, and a smile gradually returned to his face. A few minutes later, they arrived at the palace. The two silver-armored paladins stopped at the entrance, standing on either side. A white-robed priest who had been waiting there took over the responsibility of "leading the way" and led them forward.

　By the time they finally arrived at the reception room, it was already ten minutes after they had entered the barrier.

　"Please wait a moment, both of you." Just as Dak was about to enter, the priest suddenly reached out and blocked him from the maid behind him.

　Dark frowned instantly.

　The pastor said in a rather gentle tone, "Miss Maids, you may wait in the private room. We have prepared tea and snacks for you."

　Darke relaxed his brow and said, "Reverend, I'll let it slide since you're unaware of the situation. These two women belong to my sister, not maids."

　The pastor's eyes flickered, and he immediately composed himself, saying, "Please, gentlemen."

　Dak nodded slightly and stepped inside.

　A faint smile appeared on Ollie's face, and she followed Angeli inside.

　As soon as you step through the door, the sound of traditional Chinese string and wind instruments enters your ears. A beautiful melody plays softly in the reception room, and a faint fragrance permeates the air, making one feel relaxed and refreshed.

　If you turn your head slightly, you can see the people sitting on both sides of the table.

　Dani Sophie accompanied them as an adjutant and was sitting to one side with Chris.

　On the other side, naturally, was the master of this area—Bishop Sabrina Melville, along with a lieutenant and two paladins.

　Bishop Sabrina Vermeer, in terms of appearance, was about thirty-five or thirty-six, at the most mature stage of a woman's life.

　She herself had long, flowing blonde hair, an elegant demeanor, and a pair of eyes as blue as jewels.

　She was more like a noblewoman than a bishop.

　But in the past, she was a member of the Inquisition, a body known for its "infamy".

　Dark's gaze lingered on her for a moment before immediately shifting to the other person beside her.

　He was a male adjutant in the role of a "secretary," wearing a gold-rimmed monocle, holding a pen and paper for taking notes, and with a serious expression.

　On the other side sat a pair of blond, blue-eyed, and incomparably handsome paladins.

　Dark had seen their photos on the front page of the Daily Wise more than once, so he could recognize them at a glance as the rising stars, the Twin Paladins!

　The "Twin Paladins" have only been out of school for two years since graduating from the Holy Mystic Academy, and will be turning twenty this year.

　They graduated from the Holy Mystic Academy with top marks and impeccable skills.

　They received the golden armor of paladins on graduation day. They were idols to almost all the students at the Holy Mystic Academy. And they themselves were flawless in both appearance and character. By Dark's standards of beauty, they were also quite beautiful.

　Moreover, the two people looked exactly alike, and sitting side by side created an extremely eerie charm.

　Perhaps for the sake of easy distinction, the elder brother of the twin paladins has short hair, while the younger sister has long hair—but that only makes the elder brother with short hair have a more androgynous beauty compared to a girl.

　However, many girls seem to prefer this style.

　In short, they are very popular, with the older brother being even more popular than the younger sister.

　Upon seeing Dak and his two companions enter, Bishop Sabrina Vermeer immediately rose to greet them, and the others also stood up.

　Dak slowed his pace and waited until Bishop Wilmer approached before extending his hand and smiling, "It is a great honor to meet Bishop Wilmer here."

　Sabrina Vermeer's face blossomed into a beautiful smile like a peony, and she reached out to shake his hand as well: "I've been waiting for you for a long time, Lord Dark Dimon."

　Dak loosened his grip, withdrew his hand, and smiled, "It seems Bishop Wilmer already knew I was coming."

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer immediately laughed and said, "Chris revealed this. I canceled all my engagements this morning because I knew you were coming. You see, Albert and Emily are here for you too."

　Dark's gaze shifted to the Twin Paladins, his eyes gleaming with delight. "Could these two be the Twin Paladins, Albert Grantham and Emily Grantham?"

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer said, "It seems you know them too." "Of course," Dak laughed, "I see them in the newspapers all the time. I can even tell you how many evil cults they wiped out. They're idols for our generation."

　Albert Grantham and Emily Grantham also stepped out from beside Bishop Sabrina Wilmer, both wearing the most standard smiles.

　Short-haired Albert Grantham shook hands with Dark first and said, "Hello, I'm Albert Grantham, just call me Albert."

　Dark shook hands and said, "Dark Dimon, I've heard so much about you."

　Albert Grantham smiled and said, "I've heard so much about you too. Junior, Dimon...may I call you junior?"

　Dark said, "Of course."

　Albert Grantham said, "I've been following Dumbo's story at St. Marian College. If I had graduated two years later, I would definitely have visited St. Marian College."

　Dark laughed and said, "It's not too late to get to know each other now."

　Albert and Grantham shook their heads slightly and said, "It's still a bit late. After all, I'm not in a position to fight you right now."

　Darke's smile widened: "If you're willing, senior, I'm available anytime."

　“Hello.” Emily Grantham silently stepped in, snatching Dark’s hand from Albert’s. She shook hands and said, “I am Emily Grantham. Please don’t blame my brother. Don’t let his appearance fool you; he’s actually a battle maniac at heart.”

　"Competitiveness is the finest virtue," said Dac.

　Emily Grantham smiled and said, "So, I'd like to have a little spar with you first."

　“Emily!” Albert Grantham turned sharply to look at Emily, a hint of anger appearing on her identical beautiful face.

　But Emily Grantham continued to hold Dark's hand without changing her expression.

　Dak weighed her hand in his hand and couldn't help but sigh at his own weakness; he was yet another opponent he couldn't beat.

　Emily Grantham and Albert Grantham. While at the Holy Mystic Academy, they were students of the Holy Son's House and the Holy Maiden's House, respectively, not the Holy Knight's House.

　However, they are all number one in magical techniques and physical skills, and each of them has opened more than seven chakras.

　In terms of pure physical combat skills, Dark is clearly no match for them. However, the outcome of an actual fight is another matter entirely.

　Dark tried to pull his hand back, but Emily Grantham showed no girlish modesty whatsoever, firmly gripping his hand.

　Dark sighed inwardly, slightly bent his middle finger, and suddenly scratched his palm.

　Emily Grantham's face flushed instantly, and she instinctively let go of his hand.

　Dark Dimon withdrew his hand as if he hadn't done anything, saying, "If Senior Emily is willing, of course I can."

　“I was first,” Albert Grantham said in a low voice. “Nonsense!” Bishop Sabrina Wilmer finally couldn’t help but shout.

　Enraged by the bishop, Emily Grantham and Albert Grantham sat back down. However, their eyes darted around, clearly indicating they hadn't given up on fighting Dark.

　Dark sat down next to Chris and gestured for Ollie and Angry to sit down as well, before getting down to business.

　He had never expected that the "Twin Paladins" would be such "childlike" people. But compared to their perfect public persona, Dark preferred the real them a little more.

　Of course, he wouldn't actually spar with the "Twin Paladins" on a occasion like today.

　Dark said seriously, "Presumably, Chris has already expressed our intention to cooperate. I wonder what Bishop Melville's thoughts are on this."

　“I have indeed spoken with Chris about this,” Bishop Sabrina Vermeer said earnestly. “I think what you want to explore is not the Mountain of the Gods, but the ‘Heavenly Court.’”

　Darkmo glanced at Chris silently, and Chris nodded slightly. He then spoke, "Indeed. Entering the 'Heavenly Court' is our ultimate goal. But I think the Holy Church likely has the same need."

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer stated, "It's perfectly acceptable to speak frankly; we do indeed need to enter 'Heaven,' and that's why Emily and Albert have come. Therefore, based on the principle of mutual benefit, there's a basis for cooperation between us. However, if we are to truly cooperate, there's one thing we must discard."

　Dark asked, "Which point?"

　Sabrina Vermeer solemnly asked, "Will our ultimate goal after entering 'Heaven' conflict with this?"

Chapter 934 Darkdemon's Information Advantage (6k)

　In short, the core of the problem lies here.

　Since both sides' ultimate destination is the "Heavenly Court," there are no points of conflict on the road before entering the "Heavenly Court."

　However, once they enter the "Heavenly Court," their differing goals could easily lead to conflict.

　If the desired item possesses "uniqueness," then it will further evolve into an unavoidable and intense conflict.

　For the Holy Church, there is no option that "it is impossible to enter the Heavenly Court without cooperation with the Academy." Therefore, if it would eventually escalate into a violent conflict, it would be better not to cooperate in the first place.

　Therefore, Bishop Sabrina Vermeer clearly pointed out that this issue should be clarified first.

　But achieving this is not easy.

　Because under the current circumstances, neither side can frankly state their true intentions.

　Even if Sabrina were willing to reveal something for some reason, Dark wouldn't reveal a single word.

　Moreover, both sides need to maintain their "information advantage".

　The Holy Church's entry into the "Heavenly Court" had a very clear purpose. In this respect, they certainly possessed information that the Academy lacked. As far as Dark knew, Gavin North and Count Stanley Longfellow likely also possessed similar information.

　Their goals are very consistent.

　As for the elves, although there is no information yet, Dark highly suspects that they also have similar goals.

　In the end, among these four forces, only St. Marian Academy was completely unaware of this.

　However, the academy also possesses information that the other three parties do not. Furthermore, the arrival of "students" like Dark and Aurora is quite deceptive to those three factions.

　As it stands, both Gavin North's side and the Holy Church's side seem to tacitly acknowledge that Dark's side knows "something."

　This situation is based on chance, but it is quite advantageous for Dak and others.

　If you want to get something for nothing, you need to let this misconception continue.

　The above thoughts flashed through Dark's mind quickly, and he then decisively said, "Regarding this, I can assure you there is no conflict."

　"Hmm," Bishop Sabrina Vermeer frowned and said, "How can we be sure?"

　Dark said calmly, "What we need are other, more important things. If circumstances permit, we can even provide you with some assistance after we have achieved our own goals."

　Bishop Sabrina Vermeer frowned even more deeply, looking at Dak with a hint of suspicion, as if trying to read something from his face.

　But Dark's ability to manage his expressions was already at its peak, so he wouldn't make the slightest mistake at this moment.

　“In fact,” Dak paused for a moment, then continued, “what you should be considering more is whether you will clash with the other two. I just came back from the Northern Army camp.”

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer nodded and said, "I already know this from Chris. So, you've reached an agreement with the Duke of the North."

　Dark shook his head and said, "The Duke of the North has no intention of spying on the Mountain of the Gods, but I have reached an agreement with Count Stanley Longfellow."

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer said, "Stanley Longfellow... indeed, our dear King also wants a share. Who are his supporters? Which eldest, third, or seventh son of the North family?"

　Dark said, "Garvin North."

　Bishop Sabrina Wilmer asked with some surprise, "Gavin North? The Tiger of the North Wind?"

　Dark nodded slightly and said, “Gavin North and Stanley Longfellow have secretly cooperated and will depart with us tomorrow. I think his purpose is similar to yours. If you don't want to miss anything, you'd better set off as soon as possible. In addition, we have also contacted the Elven race. I personally believe that the Mountain of the Gods is fraught with danger, and the Heavenly Court is full of unknowns. Every extra person is an extra bit of strength. If we can gather all our forces, we can reduce some losses. What do you think?”

　Bishop Sabrina Vermeer glanced at him and then quickly began to think.

　The alliance between Gavin North and Stanley Longfellow is not a threat, but if the elves also get involved... and with St. Marian Academy joining in, the cooperation of these three forces will inevitably unleash tremendous power, which is not what she wants to see.

　Moreover, as Dak said, more people mean more strength... The Holy Church is determined to succeed in this operation, but in reality, they have very little chance of success.

　Their faith only lasted until they were able to "cross the Mountain of the Gods and reach the entrance to the Heavenly Court." As for what would happen after entering the Heavenly Court, no one could predict that.

　Although Sabrina Vermeer had made some preparations, it was questionable whether those preparations would be effective in a divine realm like the "Heavenly Court".

　According to speculation within the Holy Church, this operation was extremely risky, and those who participated were prepared not to return.

　But proportional to the risk is an equally enormous and unimaginable reward.

　If this mission succeeds, Sabrina Vermeer will be able to leap from the rank of bishop to archbishop, and may even have the qualifications to compete for the next pope!

　At that time, Albert and Emily will also become her support.

　This is one of the reasons why she took on this task.

　That's also the biggest reason why she's sitting here patiently negotiating with Dak and the others.

　From her perspective, Principal Arte of St. Marian Academy is currently the only human to have returned from "Heaven," even if Principal Arte didn't personally return. However, the people of St. Marian Academy certainly possess a wealth of information that they themselves lack.

　This is also known as "information advantage".

　She unilaterally believes that St. Mary's College has an informational advantage over the Church.

　Dark had already realized this when he was negotiating with Gavin North and Stanley Longfellow.

　Whether it's the North, the royal family, or the current Holy Church, they all believe that the Academy possesses more information.

　But only the college itself knows that they have very limited information.

　However, they can take advantage of this cognitive bias to facilitate this tripartite or even quadrilateral cooperation as quickly as possible!