Mr. Zhongli, we can't slack off anymore!

Uh……

If you're worried that I might get accidentally injured by stragglers who have just woken up, you're overthinking it.

I'm the kind of person who can take on a demon god single-handedly!

“Ugh…you annoying thing…” the soldier’s voice rang out again, this time with a twisted anger that was suppressed to the extreme.

He began to struggle violently, his seemingly frail body unleashing astonishing strength. The grass elemental vines wrapped around his neck, arms, and waist creaked and groaned as he pulled. The vines binding his legs grew and coiled wildly, as if they were alive, trying to drag him back to the center of the platform.

"You go first!" Seno commanded the traveler behind him without turning his head, his crimson pupils focused only on the danger that was breaking free of its restraints.

"Ah? But..." the traveler hesitated.

I'm afraid these two will actually start fighting.

The consequences of the stragglers and Sino... are unimaginable.

And if both sides suffer heavy losses, wouldn't I be the one to clean up the mess in the end?

As a "player," facing this dilemma of NPC infighting is truly a difficult situation!

Who should we worry about?

At this tense moment, the traveler's voice seemed to pause for a moment, as if the struggling movements of the scattered soldiers had come to a halt.

His cold, purple eyes glanced briefly at the traveler's location, passing over Seno's tense shoulders.

"You...are still here?" His voice was soft, with a hint of...confirmation?

Was that said to Sino? Or... to me?

Before the traveler could figure it out, the stragglers struggled even more frantically and violently.

"Ugh—" he let out a suppressed growl, actually tearing off several vines wrapped around his waist.

Before the rampant vines could completely engulf him, he suddenly stood up from the cold platform and, step by step, with great difficulty yet unwavering determination, dragged the heavy vine shackles toward Seno and the traveler.

His every step was accompanied by the mournful sound of vines tearing apart.

The green branches, like living venomous snakes, frantically coiled around his arms and neck, trying to drag him back to the platform.

His voice became muffled by the tangled vines, but he stubbornly stretched out his arm toward the traveler and Seno.

Suddenly, an even stronger light of grass element burst forth from the platform, and several thicker vines burst forth from the rock like giant pythons, carrying an overwhelming force that tightly wrapped around the soldier's waist and legs, dragging him backward violently.

boom!

With a muffled thud, the stragglers were thrown heavily back to the center of the cold platform. More vines surged up like a tide, completely engulfing and imprisoning them, leaving only their pair of purple eyes burning with resentment, staring intently at them through the gaps in the green branches.

Only after confirming with his own eyes that the skirmishers were firmly restrained again did Seno's tense body relax almost imperceptibly. He silently turned around and used his authority to open the heavy metal door.

"Let's go." His voice remained cold, devoid of any emotion.

The traveler took one last look at the "zongzi" completely enveloped by green vines, as if it had fallen into an eternal slumber, and left with Seno with mixed feelings.

*

Inside the rapidly ascending elevator, a strong sense of weightlessness enveloped the two of them.

The only sound in the enclosed space was the monotonous creaking of the cables. Looking at Seno's cold, hard profile, the traveler hesitated for a long time before finally voicing the biggest question that had been swirling in his mind.

Although she had a premonition that she might not get an answer.

"Why...why did he attack Lord Grass God?" Her voice was exceptionally clear in the narrow space.

Seno was silent for a moment. His gaze was fixed on the cold metal panel in front of him, and a faint hint of confusion seemed to flash deep in his crimson eyes.

Finally, he answered in a completely indifferent tone: "I don't know."

There was no arrogance, no perfunctory attitude, and not even deliberate concealment. What was conveyed in that tone was a genuine and pure "I don't know."

How could stragglers possibly attack Nasita?

Moreover, the wounds on his body, and the filthy and chaotic energy aura they exuded, could not possibly have been caused by Nasita's intelligent and vibrant grass elemental power.

That feeling... was very familiar. It was more like—the aura of a newly born demon god.

Could it be that... the skirmisher didn't actually attack Narcida at all? Or that he discovered the "Narcida" who appeared in the Church House was a fake?

Just like back in Inazuma, when Kujo Sara attacked Yae no Miko, who was impersonating Raiden no Shogun?

Could it be that he attacked an enemy disguised as the Grass God?

That's why he suffered a fatal counterattack from the other party.

The vibration of the elevator interrupted her thoughts.

*

Outside the locked room, at the entrance to that cold, gloomy path.

"You know the way back, right?" Seno stopped in front of the heavy metal door that separated the inside from the outside world.

His gaze was fixed on the main building of the church, clearly indicating that he had no intention of continuing to escort the travelers back to the inn.

“I know,” the traveler nodded.

As it happened, she didn't want to be "escorted" all the way by this imposing disciplinary officer.

"Okay, that's good." Seno responded briefly, then turned and walked back into the metal door that symbolized imprisonment and secrets, his figure quickly swallowed up by the darkness inside.

He probably... misses the people in that cell very much.

The traveler looked at the gate that had closed again.

Just like me right now, I am also thinking of those who are in the afterlife.

She wrapped herself tightly in her travel clothes and began her journey back to the hotel.

The cold stone path beneath her feet and the sky above her, fragmented by the branches of giant trees, gave her a lingering sense of heaviness.

"Lu Ren?" A surprised and uncertain voice came from the side.

After the anti-Elhesen alliance was formed, the two abandoned honorifics and addressed each other by their first names.

The traveler looked in the direction of the sound and saw Kavi walking from the direction of the main building of the Church not far away, with obvious doubt on his face.

"Is it really you?" He quickened his pace and walked closer, pointing to the secluded path the traveler had just emerged from. "If I remember correctly... isn't this the path leading to the disciplinary officer's private passage and the solitary confinement room? How did you get out of here?" His beautiful crimson eyes were filled with confusion and worry.

“Ah, Kavi.” The traveler managed to pull himself out of his chaotic thoughts, and Kavi’s appearance dispelled the gloom in his heart: “Yes… Mr. Seno, the Grand Disciplinary Officer, asked me for a favor.”

“So that’s how it is.” Kavi seemed to realize something, a look of understanding appearing on his face, which then turned into the familiar look of disdain he had towards someone: “No wonder! When I went home to get something this morning, I happened to run into Seno and Elhesen talking about something, and it seemed to be about you.”

He curled his lip. "That guy Al-Hysen, his mouth's as tight as a lock, he won't say a word no matter what I ask. So Seno needed your help." He was clearly relieved.

"Yes, indeed. Hehe..." The traveler chuckled awkwardly.

“Sino didn’t force you to listen to lame jokes, did he? I’m always bombarded with his lame jokes when we’re alone,” Kavi said, frowning.

The traveler thought for a moment, then replied to Seno with a wary look on his face, "Mr. Seno... didn't force me to listen to lame jokes."

"No?" Kavi's eyes widened in surprise, then he gave me a "you're so lucky" look. "When that guy is alone with me, he's a total joke bombardment! No matter the occasion or the atmosphere, he'll just pop out of nowhere and give you the chills!"

"No, that's not it," the traveler confirmed again.

"Oh, right, sorry." Kavi seemed to remember something, his face showing apology. "I drank too much last night. I was supposed to take you home... but that guy Elhesen got to take advantage of it."

"Hehe... well... I originally wanted him to take you back from the tavern last night, but I didn't expect him to leave you alone in the tavern all night..." The traveler shook his head helplessly.

“If that guy takes me back, that would be a real miracle!” After saying that, Kavi changed the subject: “Have you finished your business? Would you like me to take you for a tour of the Council of the Church? Although there’s nothing much to see inside except books and a bunch of stern-faced scholars, such an opportunity to ‘visit’ openly is rare!” He suggested enthusiastically.

"How about another day?" The traveler looked tired and gently pressed his temples. "I'm really... a little tired today."

Repairing the peculiar puppet body of the skirmisher consumed a large amount of her elemental power and mental energy. Coupled with her physical discomfort over the past few days and the lingering fatigue from a hangover, all she wanted to do was return to the inn: "Besides, I haven't been feeling well these past few days. I'm always lethargic and all I want to do is sleep, except when I'm eating."

“Of course!” Kavi immediately expressed his understanding, showing no displeasure at being rejected, but rather concern: “Your health is important. I’ve just finished my business, so let’s go back together on the way.”

“Okay,” the traveler readily agreed.

With a sunny, cheerful, and understanding companion like Kavi by my side, the journey back didn't seem so arduous.