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

　This part of the story is incredibly melodramatic.

　Its absurdity is so great that it could be compiled into a book and become a bestseller.

　Sloan ultimately killed the holy son.

　But the relationship between the holy son and the holy daughter was actually quite good.

　Because of the death of her son, the saintess finally felt despair regarding Slon's return.

　The feelings between the two turned from love to hate.

　In the final battle against Sloan, the saintess killed Sloan herself to avenge her son.

　But after that.

　She committed suicide herself!

Chapter 1527 The Darkness After Midnight (4k)

　"No wonder the Holy Church hates him so much."

　By the end, Dak finally understood why the Holy Church acted so radically.

　In the battles related to Sloan, the Holy Church not only lost a sacred artifact, but also the son of an artificial saint and a promising saintess.

　This hatred is completely irreconcilable.

　But under these circumstances, how dare Sloan appear in the Holy Church's sight? What kind of reliance does he have?

　Dak couldn't help but ponder.

　He had a vague feeling that something fishy was going on. Sloan's participation in the competition was definitely not as simple as it seemed on the surface. But those things couldn't be deduced from information on paper alone. If he wanted to understand more deeply, he would at least need to make contact with him. However, interfering in Sloan's affairs now would not be wise.

　As the head of Scorpio's intelligence department in the Free City, Lara's decisions are noticeably conservative.

　And Dac... to be honest, is also a conservative.

　Currently, both Alvitt and Claire are still trapped in the Temple of the Goddess of the Snow Mountain, and there has been no news of them.

　Naturally, Dak would have a tendency to avoid unnecessary complications.

　However, after reading about Sloan, he became interested in the "Heart of Light".

　That artifact, capable of transforming the power of darkness into the power of light, held an extremely strong attraction for him.

　"I'll report back later."

　Of the three holders of the "God Cards," "Lich" Slok is the most dangerous, but the hidden benefits behind him are also the greatest.

　Rachel Hodge is the easiest to approach, but approaching him is also the least meaningful.

　Thompson, who possesses the "Lava Demon," is the weakest and lowest value among them.

　But precisely because of this, not many people are targeting him.

　Among the three major powers in the human kingdom, the royal family's focus is on Raqi Hodge, while the Holy Church's focus is on Slok.

　As for the Duke of Dimon's mansion... to outsiders, it seems that the focus is on Alice.

　But in reality, Dark didn't exert any effort on Alice at all, and he wasn't even clear about the source of her divine power.

　That white cat named Nicholas was really good at playing dumb.

　However, adding the Dimon label to Alice wasn't too difficult. As for deeper information, that would have to wait until later. ("Hmm," Dark had just thought of this when he suddenly noticed someone walking towards them.)

　Half an hour had passed since the ball began, and most of the things that needed to be done and the plays that needed to be performed had been completed. The people from various countries who had been dancing hand in hand with other ethnic groups on the dance floor hurriedly withdrew.

　Some people were still able to keep smiling, while others had already gone into the restroom, probably to wash and disinfect their hands.

　Orcs, elves, goblins, dwarves, sea creatures... and all sorts of other races, large and small, reacted differently.

　And walking towards this corner after halftime was the Holy Church's most anticipated rising star—Albert Grantham!

　As the elder brother of the "Twin Paladins," Albert was perfect in both appearance and character, serving as a role model for almost all young paladins.

　Of course, he was also the dream lover of noble ladies.

　However, Albert consistently refused invitations from women. Over time, rumors circulated that he had no interest in women.

　Although few people believe it, it serves as evidence of his aloof and arrogant demeanor.

　This time, however, Albert arrived with a smile. Paladins naturally exude an aura of light, making his smile as warm as the sun, which naturally inspires goodwill in people.

　But Dak only glanced at him and immediately saw the...guilt hidden in his heart.

　"So they came with a mission."

　Dark turned to look behind Albert and saw Emily sneaking around in their direction, which made him chuckle.

　The Holy Church is truly desperate; they've even resorted to using their charms. Are these dignified paladins finally forced to sell their bodies to complete their mission?

　Albert deliberately chose a route that deviated from this direction, keeping his gaze straight ahead, clearly not wanting to confront Dark.

　Although he was nervous, he was adept at displaying his masculine charm, clearly indicating that he had received specialized training.

　In short, his arrival successfully attracted Alice's attention. Before finding Nicholas, Alice was just a kind and loving ordinary girl, so it's understandable that she would like a gentle, handsome, and upright paladin.

　Moreover, Albert was a paladin among paladins.

　If she had no one else around, she would probably have been easily swayed by Albert's words and become a saintess of the Church, reaching the pinnacle of her life.

　—From this perspective, it seems that Dark's side is the obstacle preventing her from reaching her dreamland.

　Upon closer examination, this statement isn't entirely wrong.

　Compared to the Dimon faction, which she was not actually familiar with, Alice definitely had a better feeling about the Holy Church, and becoming a saint was more in line with her vision.

　Unfortunately, there is no such thing.

　Darko never claims to be absolutely right. In the battle for talent, there is no right or wrong.

　Now that I've got it, there's absolutely no way I'll let it go.

　He glanced at Pandora and saw that her eyebrows were already raised, so he knew that Albert would have to return empty-handed.

　However, a little while later...

　Then someone else went

　Come from this corner.

　The person was skipping and jumping around, looking very happy; it was none other than Lucia Artemis, the moon elf princess.

　Unlike Albert, Lucia simply came to say hello. "It's been a long time, I've missed you dearly."

　However, her words immediately dampened the atmosphere. Darke awkwardly dealt with Lucia's enthusiasm, only to see the Nehm siblings strolling over from the edge of the dance floor.

　We hadn't seen each other for a long time, and it wasn't easy to catch up during the competition the other day.

　The dance is now halfway over, and if we don't get in touch soon, the day will be over.

　The arrival of the Nehm siblings eased Dark's embarrassment.

　Shortly after, "Grassland Elf" Zeniburns, "Forest Elf" Isaiah Rogill, and the other member of the "Twin Paladins"—Emily Grantham—also came over.

　Although their relationship has grown distant over time

　But after all, they were in a relationship that had gone through life and death together.

　When they reunited and recalled their past experiences, they quickly became familiar with each other again.

　Dark is inherently communicative, but he prefers to remain on the periphery, listening attentively and occasionally chiming in with a word or two to prove he's not glued to his phone (cough). This balance of social interaction and personal leisure makes him feel very comfortable.

　Unfortunately, such a comfortable environment cannot last long.

　As the dance party drew to a close, more and more people couldn't resist crowding around.

　This corner, located to the right of the entrance, quickly became the center of attention, second only to the gathering places of the King, the Pope, the Lionheart, and the Elf Queen.

　It was probably the unexpected gathering of the "Twin Paladins," the Elf Princess, and others that aroused the suspicion of those people, who couldn't help but come over to inquire. However, apart from Eber, who was particularly interested, the others were genuinely just there to exchange information.

　But since they were already there, they couldn't very well leave, so their numbers kept growing. Eventually, even Albert lost interest in the task and simply gave up, joining in the noise.

　The life of a paladin is not as wonderful as one might imagine.

　In order to cooperate with the Holy Church's external propaganda, the "Twin Paladins" need to abide by a large number of rules, and their words and actions during outings must be within the bounds of regulations.

　Time like this, where I can get together with friends and chat, is almost nonexistent.

　In short, stances are stances and feelings are feelings, and this does not prevent them from building a friendship with Dak.

　Although this scene might seem somewhat strange to those who don't know the details.

　"Ding dong."

　zero point.

　The ball is over.

　Leaders from various countries posed for a group photo on the stage.

　That will become the headline photo in tomorrow's newspapers, spreading all over the world with the newspaper's publicity.

　This gives the World Cup the additional meaning of symbolizing peace.

　Behind this group photo, however, neither of the factions showed any sign of backing down.

　So-called peace is always just a superficial facade.

　As the ball ended, the students of St. Marian College poured out of the restaurant entrance.

　After two days and one night of fierce competition in the city, the preliminary rounds finally ended, but the event didn't end until midnight.

　Even though the food at the banquet was indeed delicious and the atmosphere at the ball was quite pleasant...

　But none of this can mask the mental exhaustion.

　After saying goodbye to his "friends," Dak followed the students out of the restaurant and down to the floor assigned to St. Mary's College, where they each chose their own rooms.

　Considering that Sophia was unfamiliar with the area, Dak arranged for her to stay next to him.

　On his other side, naturally, was Pandora's room. Next door was Alice's room.

　Diana and Rose chose to share a room, on the other side of Sofia's house, so that it would be easier for them to take care of her.

　The students opened the door and went inside, then, as if by prior arrangement, poked their heads out again, waved to each other on both sides, said goodnight, and finally smiled and went back inside.

　This day passed quietly.

　But after entering his room, Dark immediately changed into the casual clothes that had been prepared there, then opened the window, summoned the "Adventure Bird," used "Hidden Feather," and jumped out of the window.

　Two minutes later, Dark appeared on the west side of the Alliance Duel Arena. Moonlight slanted across the walls, casting long, angled shadows. As Dark stepped inside, a lithe and graceful figure emerged from the shadows.

　He asked in a deep voice, "Is it still there?"

　Laura nodded slightly and said, "They've moved to a different location, but they haven't escaped our pursuit."

　Dark said, "Then let's go and meet him." Laura nodded gently, "Okay."

　Then, with a light tap of her feet, a magical sprite resembling a small boat swiftly emerged from the shadows. Inky black shadows surged from its wing-like body on either side, transforming into a dark curtain that enveloped the two of them.

　Then, it shot out like a shuttle, quickly disappearing into the darkness.

　That's Lara's magical spirit—"Shadow Ghost Fish," a ghost and water-type creature.

　Standing surrounded by the shadowy form of the "Shadow Ghost Fish" felt as comfortable as being enveloped in warm water, and there was no obstruction to vision, allowing for a clear view of the surroundings.

　Laura glanced sideways at the young master's profile beside her, thinking that he wasn't this tall at this time last year. Time always seems to fly by so quickly without you even noticing.

　"Shadowfish" flew through the air and entered the Ground-type arena in Duel City just a few minutes later.

　Duel City's opening hours only last until midnight, and those still remaining inside are being guided towards the exit by staff. The interior, far from the entrances and exits, is completely deserted. Thompson, who was originally hiding in one of the burrows in the ground-type area, has simply moved from one burrow to another after changing his hideout.

　The terrain design of the ground-based competition area is relatively complex, especially the establishment of the Y-axis.

　Whether it's the caves inside the mountain or the underground caves, they all have interconnected roads, making them as intricate and complex as a maze.

　Therefore, as soon as the preliminary rounds ended, the entrances and exits of these caves were sealed off, and spectators were no longer allowed to enter.

　Thompson's choice to hide here was a calculated move. The "Shadow Ghost Fish" broke through the blockade and instantly disappeared into the underground passage. After flying forward for about a hundred meters, it came to a sudden stop.

　As the shadowy figure disappeared, two more maids emerged from either side of the hole. They were Hannah and Joliet.

　They had been waiting here for a long time.

　Hannah and Joliet are both the deputy head maids of the "Lion Palace". However, one is a delicate young catwoman, while the other is over thirty years old.