A brave man may not live, but he cannot die

Chapter 301 Starlight and Business

In the afternoon, clouds began to gather on the mountaintop. Looking up, layers of dark clouds pressed down on the sunlight, as if it were about to rain at any moment.

Ike didn't ride in his white rhinoceros car, but instead swaggered into Branson Estate on foot, and this very act of entering and exiting sent a signal.

After the two came out, Quinn could clearly feel that the people watching him had moved much further away, and even the guards on duty had become more polite.

Ike repeatedly read the stamped purchase contract in his hand, a thick cigar dangling from his mouth, as he leisurely puffed out smoke.

"I knew I hadn't misjudged you." Even his face, flushed red from the curse, couldn't hide his smile. "The Prophet, Councilor, is truly a man of great talent."

Quinn, who was standing to the side, did not respond.

"What's wrong?" Ike's steps were light; he didn't think there would be any problems at the hearing a few days later.

If the hearings fail to oust Elon, Eswell will hold its five-yearly parliamentary elections in August. According to regulations, as a candidate, Elon cannot be prosecuted by Parliament during the three-month vote-counting period unless convicted by a court under criminal law, in order to uphold "democratic fairness."

Elswell's vote distribution has always been relatively stable. Apart from Elon, the Branson family can still retain Reeve's vote thanks to their large corporate workforce. In any case, Elon will control the parliament, and Golden Wind will rise to prominence.

The only risk is that the Academy might find out about the resale of arcane weapons.

Ike looked at Shelby with satisfaction; this was the most worthwhile investment he had ever made.

Who here is accusing me?
“Find a place where we can talk,” Quinn said briefly.

Ike narrowed his eyes, knowing what had happened when he was following Elon alone.

"Let's go to Mirror Lake Restaurant for afternoon tea. Their Earl Grey tea is quite good."

Quinn nodded and silently followed behind the tall black man.

The sky was overcast, the lake was still and undisturbed, and the precious green plants along the roadside were rustling in the wind, their sound mingling with the sound of horse wheels rolling over the mosaic pavement.

In the quiet afternoon, he finally had time to reflect on what had happened earlier.

What exactly is the "starry sky" connected to the body of that person?
Quinn could no longer recall how he felt ten minutes ago.

Those fears, madness, and bizarre emotions of ascension; the "knowledge" received; that calm yet ecstatic heart.
All of this was erased, or rather "concealed," by the power of the Command Seals, leaving no trace in Quinn's consciousness.

He could clearly remember what he saw, but the events of ten minutes ago seemed not to have happened to him at all; his mind was filled with "recording," not "feeling."

Recalling it again will not trigger any mental madness.

Kexiupozu.

He can still remember the name of that starry sky.

But in Quinn's memory, the name was nothing more than a sound that instinctively made him feel dirty and uncomfortable, with no other meaning that drove him mad.

For some reason, he had a kind of intuition, as if it had been sewn into his mind by the gray fog or the demon king.

He cannot utter the syllables of that name—at least not now, not during the day when the sun shines on the earth.

Otherwise, it will inevitably lead to uncontrollable problems!

Like a steel stamp, this warning was imprinted in his mind.

Quinn inhaled and exhaled. He didn't care at all that he was behaving strangely, projecting his fear onto his posture, because he knew the Demon King was watching.

In any case, the starry sky I just saw confirms one thing.

Leticia's warning to him at Merlin's grave was true!

When I was first summoned, the Demon King truly implanted a Command Seal into my soul!
Command Seals can monitor one's every word and action from across the world. They consist of three strokes, each of which forces the user to perform a specific action.
As Quinn's understanding of the mystical deepened, he learned that there were many kinds of powers similar to Command Seals, such as various contracts, curses, and even physical control. However, the coercion of these powers was not absolute, and there were always ways to counter them, even if such methods would harm the contractor.

Even so, the "coercive" power of the Command Seals far exceeded his original expectations.

But with just the phrase "Shut your eyes, you idiot," he forcibly freed himself from the pollution of the starry sky across the world, which means that, to some extent, the Command Seals are at least on par with Ksiupozu.

A contract that belongs only to the hero
Although no fear remained, Quinn was genuinely terrified.

This was the Demon King's first move.

This means that even if it means using precious Command Seals, the Demon King will help him break free from that thing. In the Demon King's view, even with the system, he cannot resist the attraction of the starry sky, which is why Ruby had no choice but to take action.
The second point of contention is what Ruby said.

The use of Command Seals seems simple, the incantation being a short three-part phrase; however, its first part reveals an extremely eerie message—

"Give the command with the second stroke of the command spell."

The second stroke?
In other words, she has already used one of the three strokes of the Command Seal?

When? When I descended upon the Demon King's castle completely naked?

Of course, there's also a bad possibility. That is, the first stroke is still there, and Ruby likes to start eating the three-color ice cream bucket from the middle strawberry flavor, not in any order.

This possibility is not high, as it goes against common sense in the mysticism. A better possibility is that Ruby only has one Command Seal left to control herself.

When the last stroke is used up, according to Leticia, it means the contract is terminated, and he can no longer obey the Demon King.

The starting point was bad, but the matter was handled well.

Quinn wondered if he should activate the Demon King's Eye and stare at Reeve again to trick the Demon King into revealing his final Command Spell.
The moment this thought entered my mind, a second subconscious thought, stitched in, emerged—

Upon reaching the sixth level of the advanced warrior rank, one ignites the fire of the soul, enabling them to initially resist contamination and preventing them from instantly losing their senses.

Quinn was stunned.

Sequence Six?
He instinctively felt that he couldn't try anymore. Perhaps the Demon King could save him, but given Ruby's personality, she would probably just abandon this fool.

What would happen after the Demon King didn't save him, and his soul ascended to that starry sky? Quinn dared not think about it.

In the second paragraph, the Demon King read out a Chinese name.

"Qin Chuan".

My name is Qin Chuan?

Quinn felt no sense of reality about it; it was as if he were seeing a new name.

He felt a greater affinity for "Quinn" than for Qin Chuan.

But in any case, it seems that I have regained my name.

Dear Chuan, it's like seeing you in person after reading this. (I forgot the rest.)

He couldn't help but feel a bit ironic, thinking that perhaps he would never use this name again for the rest of his life. Unless he returned to Earth—provided he could actually go back.

Back at Mirror Lake Restaurant, Ike led him to the second floor of the glass dome building, where they went into a private room and ordered two cups of black tea.

After the waiter placed the tea down, he asked the other person to close the door and then gestured for them to speak. This was both a gesture of inviting them to drink the tea and a way of asking them to continue speaking.

“We won’t be eavesdropped on here; there’s a soundproofing matrix in the walls.” Ike relit the cigar he had just cut, the flame illuminating half his face. “What’s the matter that you had to discuss here?”

Quinn looked at him for a while.

Instead of mentioning the azure light first, he asked, "What do you think about the Child of Prophecy?" Ike raised an eyebrow, then crossed his legs and turned to admire the view of Mirror Lake outside the French windows.

"How else can you look at it? Those thighs are much thicker than the senator's. Hey, brave warrior, if you could get close to Golden Wind, you'd be dead."

"What I mean is, how did Elon manage to hook up with the Child of Prophecy?"

Quinn didn't believe Elon knew the prophesied son at all.

Celia's social circle is about two blocks away from the tavern. She thinks the patrolling law enforcement officers are important figures, and her impression of Elon is probably limited to the overwhelming campaign posters.

“It’s unlikely that he’s gotten involved with the Son of Prophecy,” Ike shook his head. “But if you say he’s gotten involved with the Eternal Cult, I’d believe it.”

"Since the start of the war in Britain, as far as I know, there have been quite a few dignitaries in the city who have gone to find the bishop of the Eternal Church, and there are probably even more outside of Eswell. After all, the Eternal Church is the most likely cult to find the Child of Prophecy first."

"But they are tight-lipped, and no one can get such a promise from Elon. This may be related to the geographical location of Eswell. After all, we are the most suitable place to transport arcane weapons to the front line. We can produce and ship them. Britain is just 200 kilometers away to the east."

Ike exhaled a puff of smoke. The cigar he was smoking was different from the one Ankuya liked. It had an extremely strong flavor, as pungent and harsh as strong liquor, but his expression was one of pure enjoyment. It was unimaginable how he could endure the pain while enjoying the cigar.

"Of course, there are other possibilities, such as the Child of Prophecy being in Aishwell, which is why the Eternal Bishop of Aishwell might know more than the bishops of other cities."

At the same time, a voice echoed in Ike's mind: "Observe his expression, quickly."

Quinn, who was standing to the side, did not show any surprise when he heard this.

Instead, they shook their heads as if they were listening to a joke.

"How could that be? If I were from the Eternal Church, I would be more than happy to send the Child of Prophecy to the Northern Continent. With the Misty Sea separating us from Britain by Eswell, King Aaron would be driven to desperation if he found out."

Following the voice in his mind, Ike said, word by word, "What if the academy protects him?"

“That’s a great idea.” Quinn nodded in agreement. “If it’s a guy, he can become sworn brothers with him; if it’s a girl, he can flirt with her. They can get a marriage certificate before they draw their swords. I won’t have to worry about anything in my next life.”

"Ha, hahahahaha"

"Hahahaha"

The two burst into laughter, filling the private room with a cheerful atmosphere, laughing as if they didn't care about anyone.

After laughing, Quinn instantly switched to a fighting expression: "Boss, you can sell weapons all you want, but be careful. I can't help you with this."

"Just have that air transport commissioner turn a blind eye." Ike understood how to proceed from the moment he saw the contract. "With Elon's cooperation, I can handle things on my own."

"Actually, you don't need to worry too much about this. Even if it's exposed in the end, since it concerns the hero, the academy's higher-ups won't do anything to us."

Quinn frowned and said, "The premise is that the Child of Prophecy is a hero."

"If he isn't, then who is?" Ike flicked his cigarette ash. "I shouldn't need to remind you, right? Not only Link's Holy Sword, but Merlin's other holy artifacts have also remained in Grindelwald, haven't they? The Elder Wand, the Wizard's Hat, the Golden Ring, the Book of Merlin. Grindelwald has so many geniuses, and so many archmages throughout history, yet no one can use these holy artifacts. Is it because they don't want to?"

"Only the hero can use the sacred artifact left behind by the hero. Otherwise, why would the Child of Prophecy draw the sword?"

What Ike said is true.

Although Merlin's hat and spellbook continued to function for nearly a thousand years after his death, they operated on their own without a master, more like carrying out the tasks Merlin left them.

The hero's sacred artifact can only be used by the hero.

"If that's the case, what's the point of you going to such lengths to find the sacred artifact in Jiangnan?" Quinn asked pointedly.

"Didn't I tell you never to question the boss under any circumstances?" Ike glanced at him sideways, then grinned, revealing a set of bright white teeth. "What good would that do you think?"

"I'm not Jiangnan, how would I know?"

"So you can only be a teacher, while I can start a company."

Ike shook his head and said matter-of-factly, "Sell it for money, Archmage. How much do you think the Fifth Hero's artifact is worth?"

"."

Quinn had no rebuttal.

Even if it is unusable, the sacred artifact that once killed the Demon King has immeasurable commemorative and research value. It can definitely be sold for an astronomical price. Even if Golden Wind were to work his whole life on a business scale, he would never earn such a value.

The two then laughed together again, and the joyful atmosphere filled the private room once more.

Only at the very end did Quinn ask, "What about the Star Flower?"

"Ok?"

“Boss, we’re all in the same boat now.” Quinn asked seriously, “Tell me the truth, what exactly is the Star Flower you got from me for?”

Ike remained silent for a long while, lost in thought, then took a sip of tea before suddenly realizing and saying, "Eron's father was affected by the starlight?"

“I could tell Reeve wasn’t acting normally. The one accompanying the young lady outside wasn’t him.” Ike frowned. “But that’s impossible. Reeve fell ill a year ago, that can’t be right.”

Quinn's eyes narrowed slightly.

"You mean the drug that's been concocted and sold to rich people... is that Starlight?"

He finally understood why the academy had suspended and erased all traces of artificial circuit experiments.

If the starlight that can suppress the rejection reaction eventually leads to the fact that the starry sky should not exist in the world, then that thing should not exist in the world.

Not only did the data disappear, but the participants in the artificial circuit experiment also vanished without a trace, as if they had disappeared into thin air.

After being stared at by his accusing gaze for a long time, Ike shrugged.

"It seems you know about the artificial experimental circuit."

“I don’t believe you could possibly know the formula for Starlight,” Quinn said coldly. “It’s a top-secret experiment even within the academy.”

"Don't question the boss."

"This determines whether we can continue to cooperate."

Even now, Ike hasn't drunk a drop of the black tea he ordered for Quinn.

"I think I should have warned you. Don't use starflower to make drugs."

“Hey, calm down.” Ike didn’t know why he was so angry. “That’s not starlight. At most, it’s just a drug diluted a hundred times. It’s a little addictive, but it also has healing properties. It won’t turn someone into Reeve. His illness has nothing to do with me.”

"Is this your secret to quickly establishing yourself in Eswell?" Quinn said with disgust. "I thought the Golden Wind wouldn't do those low-life businesses of the White Bandits."

Do you think that if we don't sell, they won't be able to buy anything?

Ike wasn't annoyed. "They had been doing this for years before Golden Wind came along. We just took over the business; we didn't expand to include any new clients."

"Is anyone willing to sell?"

"Who else could it be? Of course, it's the professor who conducted Grindelwald's artificial circuit experiments back then—"

He said casually, "He is now the chief court arcane mage in the government-in-exile in Engen."

(End of this chapter)