Chapter 162: The Guildmaster's Sword Master Legacy
Guildmaster Adeline arrived very quickly.
After coming to her senses from the sudden explosion, she first checked on the condition of her father and Coleridge, then hurriedly followed after Loria, who had been "taken away."
As she approached, she realized that the situation was somewhat different from what she had imagined.
"Vita？"
Seeing that familiar face, Adeline's expression became serious.
Vita is a member of the Hidden Leader group, and her presence here means that the Hidden Leader has infiltrated close to her home. This made her feel uneasy.
But what made her even more uneasy was Vita's appearance and attire.
She remembered clearly that the clothes Vita was wearing had once been seen on Loria.
Of course, we can't conclude that Vita wore Loria's clothes based solely on this point.
But if you look closely, you will notice that Vita's waist is especially tight, revealing a captivating charm amidst the suppression and uplift.
Without a doubt, this dress belongs to Loria because Loria is one size smaller than Vita. So when Vita wears her clothes, it has this effect.
Got hard.
Adeline's hand holding the knight's sword got hard.
"How did you put on Loria's clothes? You must have forced Loria!"
She wanted to rush out and stab Vita with her sword to protect Loria from Vita's harm, but in the end, she managed to control herself.
Because she overheard Vita saying something urgent.
"the Stone of Enka？"
The Adeline heard it from the teacher.
The emperor who established the empire gave the Stone of Enka to four outstanding heroes who were highly skilled in magic to safeguard.
The reason he did this was to prevent anyone within the royal family from being tempted by evil forces and secretly using the Stone of Enka to remove the seal.
Whether the emperor's actions were more harmful than beneficial or vice versa, it is hard to say. However, over the years, the empire has never encountered trouble because of the Stone of Enka, and as a result, many people have even forgotten about its existence.
It was never expected that the true purpose of the Hidden Leader was to collect the Stone of Enka and open the seal.
Adeline thought that what Loria said was right. The high-ranking officials of the empire certainly couldn't think of this for a moment, and as a result, the chances of success for the Hidden Leader were very high.
What would the world become if they were allowed to remove the seal?
She could only seek answers from history.
Before the Oder Empire was established, the powerful and influential empire on the continent was the sacred Lorenzo Empire.
The last emperor of the empire made a decision that went against the ancestors' teachings in order to ensure his family's long-lasting rule over the vast empire.
Bring in outside forces!
He traded his heart to a demon and promised to give the demon an endless supply of flesh and blood in return, thus gaining a fearsome army of disasters.
He attempted to use this army to conquer the member states within the empire who refused to submit, but he greatly underestimated the ambitions of the army of disasters and the determination of those who wanted to defend their homelands.
The war ended with the emperor being devoured by the demon, and the Oder Empire came to an end.
The ambitious one died, but unfortunately, the wounds he brought to the world took decades to heal.
If the seal of this ruin is opened, the catastrophe it brings may be far worse than the previous one.
"We must stop them."
Adeline immediately thought of Count Norton.
That person was a fierce and determined individual, lacking the skills of their ancestors, but always dreaming of restoring the glory of their family. However, when faced with real challenges, they often hesitated and missed out on opportunities.
Once someone like that is targeted by the Hidden Leader, there is no way they can keep the Stone of Enka.
"First, we need to control Vita, and then..."
Adeline was about to step out from their hiding place.
But at that moment, Vita suddenly spoke, "You need to leave this place as soon as possible."
"？"
Loria shook her head, "I can't leave now. You've borrowed the power of the Weaver, there must be some lingering effects. I need to confirm that first."
Vita said, "Even if you confirm it, it won't make a difference. Let me tell you the truth, the so-called lingering effects will slowly turn me into a puppet for the Weaver. It's something that can't be reversed by human effort."
She felt a wave of pain welling up from deep within her body, it was unbearable suffering. She didn't want to show her pain in front of Loria.
Loria said, "No..."
Vita interrupted her, saying, "Instead of worrying about me here, you should go back and take care of Adeline. Adeline suddenly unleashed that level of power, and the trouble she's facing may not be lighter than mine. If you continue to delay here, you might not even get to see her one last time."
Curse who, damn it?
The guildmaster, who was eavesdropping nearby, furrowed her eyebrows even deeper.
Loria's reaction was also quite intense.
As soon as she heard that there was a possibility of not seeing the guildmaster for the last time, she turned her head and wanted to leave. However, she quickly stopped in her tracks and turned back to gaze at Vita.
"You... this, and this, and this, I'm giving them all to you."
Suddenly, she pulled out a bunch of restorative potions from her inventory and stuffed them all into Vita's arms.
Even after stuffing them, Loria still felt it wasn't enough.
She isn't unaware, actually she understands very well.
If she were to run away at this moment, Vita would definitely have concerns in her heart, even if she doesn't say anything.
But she had to leave, just like Vita said, something must have happened to the guildmaster.
"How about this, you come back with me, I'll change your clothes, hairstyle, and apply makeup. I'll say I found you by the roadside, so they won't suspect you as the attacker."
Vita shook her head. "Let's go, don't mind me."
Sometimes, it's impossible for people to have the best of both worlds.
She had always been someone who valued rationality more than emotions.
Understanding this, she didn't blame Loria. It was Adeline who had always been by Loria's side, while she was just a passerby. Though she had been with Loria time and time again, she was still just a passerby.
Loria looked at Vita with a dazed expression.
Raindrops fell on Vita's forehead, and within the shimmering water, it held unknown beauty or something else.
Then let's go.
Standing here forever is not the solution.
After Loria walked a short distance, Vita sat down on a stone. Her face instantly turned as pale as if she had applied powder.
"Huff, huff~"
Vita held her chest, breathing uncontrollably.
The pain started to spread, challenging her limits step by step.
When those limits were surpassed, she lay on the stone, unconsciously digging sharp nails into her own arm.
Nails sank into the flesh, and fresh blood rolled down the wounds.
In the fog, Vita noticed that the threads entering her body were slowly spreading.
Those threads eventually formed the shape of a spider, pulling her consciousness into the depths of the spider's abyss, making her a part of the spider.
But before seeing the spider, Vita saw a sword.
"Ding."
The sword pierced into the stone.
After a moment, a woman bent down.
A familiar face floated before her eyes, Vita recognized her, it was clearly Adeline.
"You..."
She wanted to ask something, but the pain completely overwhelmed her ability to speak normally. When she opened her mouth, only painful moans came out.
Adeline moved Vita's hand away so that her fingernails wouldn't continue to dig into her arm.
At that moment, she had no expression on her face, and you couldn't tell whether she was happy or sad, but inside, she felt a faint sense of joy.
Even though she hesitated, Loria still put Vita's safety first.
It was because she was feeling so happy that she decided to step forward and help Vita.
"Don't move."
Adeline gently wiped the wound on Vita's arm and then gave her some pain medicine to eat.
"I'm not good at healing others, but I can do this much for you."
Vita was still rolling on the ground, not giving any response.
Adeline didn't mind, she opened a large umbrella above Vita's head to shield her from the rain, and then she took off Loria's clothes from Vita's body and put on her own clothes instead.
She was about to toss Loria's clothes aside, but halfway through, she changed her mind and pulled back.
"Nevermind, let's keep it as a souvenir."
Adeline tucked Loria's clothes into her arms, holding them tightly against her.
Instead of leaving right away, she stayed by Vita's side and looked for a while, and immediately noticed something was wrong.
In the pouring rain, a person walked from afar, with a clear goal in mind, heading straight for Vita.
"I never thought you would end up like this. What's the matter, ran into some trouble?"
The woman smiled playfully, finally reaching Vita's side, ignoring Adeline squatting nearby.
"Based on your performance today, when you go back, you'll definitely face punishment. It could be as light as physical pain or as severe as direct execution. After all, you have done great deeds. If you end up with such an outcome, it would be a pity. Why not let me help you, completely separate yourself from the ugliness of this world."
The woman's hand now had a sharp spike.
She held a thorn in her left hand, lightly brushing her index and middle fingers over it with her right hand. Her movements were gentle, yet they exerted great pressure.
"Where should I start... gurgle gurgle..."
The woman's words were interrupted by a sudden pigeon-like sound coming from her mouth. Blood trickled down from the corner of her mouth, flowing all the way onto the knight's sword that had pierced through her neck.
"Shut up."
A chilly voice came through the rain curtain.
The woman stiffly turned her head and happened to catch sight of Adeline retracting his sword.
"Gurgle... gurgle!"
At the moment the sword was completely pulled out, a massive amount of blood surged, and the woman fell to the ground, lifeless.
Vita stared at Adeline, her eyes seemingly questioning why he had helped her.
Adeline put his sword back in its sheath and said, "I am not helping you, I am only helping Loria."
Adeline came quickly and left quickly too.
After dealing with the woman's body, she left Vita's side and went back to find Loria.
The two of them met halfway.
After hearing Count Lidilia's words, Loria knew that the guildmaster had come to find her, so she immediately went back the way she came.
"the guildmaster, are you okay?"
The guildmaster replied, "What could be wrong with me?"
Loria breathed a sigh of relief, but not completely.
Because the guildmaster was in good condition, while Count Lidilia was not doing well.
When she came back, she immediately noticed that Count Lidilia looked very pale and was having trouble breathing. Considering his strength, this was not normal at all. Something big must have happened.
The first thing Loria thought of was the white light that flew from Count Lidilia's body into the guildmaster's body.
It turned out that she was right. After being questioned repeatedly by the guildmaster, Count Lidilia had no choice but to tell the truth.
That white light was actually his power held within his body. After giving up that power, his body suffered serious damage and lost control.
Feeling tired now was just the beginning. Next, he would rapidly age.
Fortunately, the good news was that he wouldn't die because of this.
Aging was just a part of it. Count Lidilia, who didn't care much about his appearance, was more concerned about another problem.
His main concern was something else.
"People outside say that our family has a legacy of sword masters, and every now and then someone with the power of a sword master appears. But the truth is, it's not because our family has such powerful bloodline. The key reason is that each previous family head would store their power before they died, waiting for the next family head to inherit it."
Loria was shocked.
Generation after generation, how much power has the Lidilia family accumulated?
"This method of inheritance also has its drawbacks, as it demands a lot from the person receiving it. The poorer their qualifications, the greater the loss they will cause."
"Therefore, each family head will carefully select the successor before deciding who will ultimately take over."
So that's how it is, Loria nodded in understanding.
Looking at it this way, the power accumulated by the Lidilia family should not be particularly strong, considering that each inheritance consumes a considerable amount of power.
Count Lidilia continued, "These words are only known by the family head and the next family head in the entire Lidilia family."
"..."
"You don't have to feel burdened, and you don't have to think that you have let Tracy down. From the beginning, I never considered Tracy as a candidate for the next family head."
"Why?" the guildmaster didn't understand, "This is unfair to Tracy."
Count Lidilia shook his head, "There's no question of fairness, Tracy's personality is not suitable for being the head of the household. If I were to force her into that position, it would only harm her. This way is the best."
The guildmaster was still puzzled, but Loria had completely figured it out.
Now they faced another problem, inheriting is not an easy task, and the process can even be dangerous.
Just because the guildmaster had made a start, they could only continue bravely.
Seeing that her daughter had been comforted, Count Lidilia breathed a sigh of relief.
Actually, there was something important that he hadn't told his daughter yet.
This way of inheriting came from an eternal deity. The first-generation Count Lidilia gave up his own life to obtain this method.
From that day on, the Lidilia family was shrouded in the shadow of that deity.
Although the divine being has never asked for more, nobody knows if He will one day come to collect interest.
"For now, let's not tell Adeline about this, so as not to disturb her peace."
Count Lidilia shook her head and sighed.
Afterwards, the group returned to the manor, attending to their injuries, resting, and receiving the inheritance.
Loria stood by the window, gazing at the rain outside. Thoughts of the guildmaster and Vita flashed through her mind, occasionally accompanied by scenes of crumbling webs.
"Why is this happening, after all?"
She pondered over it endlessly, but in the end, she had to put it aside and keep it to herself.
The immediate priority is to reveal the true intentions of the Hidden Leader to Count Lidilia, hoping to gain some insight.
