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

The air inside Jingshan Palace seemed to freeze, with only the faint sound of the lights reminding us of the passage of time.

The traveler and Nasita sat facing each other, the atmosphere between them tense yet harmonious. They were chess players, making final calculations before placing their pieces.

I am not a gambler and I never accept bets based on luck.

In my world, only meticulously calculated strategies and flawless plans can lead to victory.

The traveler paced slowly in the room: I must create a perfect deception, a meticulously crafted plan that will make the demon willingly walk into the trap.

A multitude of possibilities raced through the traveler's mind; her thoughts, like a precise instrument, sifted through every detail: immense temptation and jealousy would lure that cautious demon out of the World Tree's protection. This was our first step, a crucial one.

She stopped and turned to face Nasita: All fraudulent gambling games follow a common pattern—luring gamblers to continue playing with seemingly easy opportunities, eroding their reason, and causing them to lose everything the moment they get caught up in it.

Nasita listened quietly, her emerald eyes gleaming with agreement. She nodded gently, her white hair swaying slightly with her movement: "Yes, you're right. And the longer it goes on, the more completely the sacred object will materialize the demon." Her voice was soft, yet contained wisdom: "How about we make our bet a riddle?"

The traveler frowned slightly, her mind racing: "Hmm... riddles can be played many times, and it's difficult to cheat during the process." She carefully considered the feasibility of this suggestion. "You are the god of wisdom; there shouldn't be any riddle you can't solve, but the demon god would refuse our bet because of that. He would never enter your area of ​​expertise. I myself cannot guarantee that I will solve every riddle... We need to find someone else to answer the riddles. But how can we ensure that the person answering only solves the last riddle correctly?"

A mysterious smile appeared on Narcida's face: "We don't need many riddles, we only need one." Her voice remained calm, but contained a reassuring certainty: "Because I've just thought of a cheat code; I can guess the answer to one riddle correctly. In the final round of riddle-solving, I'll guess the answer correctly and make the demon lose the bet."

The traveler's eyes widened slightly, then a knowing smile appeared on her face: Even so… the Reincarnation Demon God would pay special attention to me. Being the one to answer the question wasn't a wise choice; we needed another answerer. Her thoughts continued to expand, searching for every loophole in the plan: Of course, to be on the safe side, the other answerer couldn't know the answer directly; only his genuine unease could assure the Demon God of the fairness of this gamble.

She approached Nasita and continued refining her meticulous plan: To prevent the person from guessing the answer correctly the first few times, we can use a vague riddle to provide incomplete information. Finally, you'll somehow let him know the answer and win the bet.

"What is the answer to the riddle you guessed? We must choose the person to answer based on the answer so that we can deliberately make him answer incorrectly."

The only thing the Reincarnation Demon God cares about, he will definitely use as the answer to the mystery. Nasita's tone was very certain, as if she had seen through the Demon God's heart: for the Reincarnation Demon God, the most important thing was Hathor's—love.

The traveler's lips curled into a slight smile: Heh...that makes things much easier... Several names flashed through her mind: Elhesen, Seno. She knew perfectly well that this concept was almost a blind spot in their understanding, making this choice the most appropriate.

Narcida nodded slightly in agreement: "Elhesen and Seno? They are both top scholars of Sumeru. This alone demonstrates our determination to participate in the gamble and mislead the Demon God." She paused briefly, then offered a further suggestion: "Why not add Kavi and Tinari as well? The four of them are very close. Even if we don't choose them as the answerers, the two of them will definitely know. With the two of them, we'll form a group of top scholars of Sumeru. Defeating them should make the Demon God of Reincarnation blinded by the sense of victory even faster."

The traveler couldn't help but smile: I think Kavi might be able to guess correctly, but even if he does, the other three will definitely reject it.

Especially Al-Hysen. Their interaction pattern provided perfect cover for their plans.

Nasita nodded, then offered a deeper consideration: "On top of that, I also hope they have a special person to answer the questions. This person won't be affected by the cycle of reincarnation initiated by the Demon God, and won't have their memories stolen by the effects of each cycle. This would put pressure on the Demon God and make the gamble seem more real. The Demon God believes we are going all out in this gamble."

The traveler immediately understood Narcida's intention: this person must be resilient enough, rational enough to border on ruthless. Even knowing I was paying the price for their mistakes, they could still resolutely continue submitting answers. She added this characteristic from the perspective of human emotion, and a most suitable candidate had already emerged in her mind.

Nasita fell silent, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes, clearly having guessed what the traveler was thinking.

Elheisen. The traveler uttered the name directly, knowing that Nasita was too merciful to make the same decisive decision as she herself.

Nasita finally nodded, though there was a hint of a sigh in her voice: I trust him too.

The traveler continued to refine her meticulous plan: the team of seemingly law-abiding test-takers was already assembled. They still needed the power of the shadows. She searched for every possible loophole in the plan: the Reincarnation Demon God might also be plotting against them; they needed someone accustomed to such tactics as their protector, and to divert the Demon God's attention to their true intentions hidden behind the scenes.

She added an extra layer of protection to this opportunity, ensuring that nothing went wrong.

Nasita quickly thought of a suitable candidate: "I happen to know someone excellent. I'd like to send him to protect you."

"I have assessed the scope of the Demon God's influence on the cycle of reincarnation, and given your special status, you are certainly not among them. However, the Demon God will try every means to make you also subject to the influence of reincarnation. He may demand that you possess not only your power but also your crucial and precious memories."

Memory! The traveler suddenly became alert: Wait, when the demon god stole my memories, was it possible that he could read them and see our scheme within them?

She suddenly discovered a potential loophole, an oversight that could ruin the entire plan.