Do you all know the future?

Chapter 149 Fake
Raindrops pounded against the glass dome, forming streams that meandered down, blurring the gray sky outside the window.

Inside the greenhouse, the air is warm and humid, mixed with the complex fragrance of soil and hundreds of flowers.

Diane paused before a cluster of blooming white hyacinths, her gaze falling on the full, delicate flower clusters, where moisture condensed at the edges of the petals, giving them a translucent quality.

Fiona stood ramrod straight, her gaze passing over Diane's shoulder to a more vibrant area deep within the greenhouse, where crimson 'Queen's Heart' roses were in full bloom.

The torrential rain outside contrasted sharply with the bright sunshine inside the greenhouse, where the light was exceptionally soft and bright. Dewdrops on each petal refracted tiny sparkles of light, and a rich, sweet fragrance filled the air.

"Your Majesty Greta, has she brought you here before?"

Fiona asked, her gaze shifting from the crimson roses to Diane beside her, her voice just loud enough to drown out the sound of the rain.

"No."

Diane answered very decisively, shaking her head with a very small gesture.

"You need to register to come here. It's inconvenient that my name appears on the register. Even though my mother has special privileges, people will still notice me."

After Diane finished speaking, she could clearly feel Fiona smile and feel happy. Diane didn't know what she was happy about. Just yesterday, Queen Greta had been feeding her water.

"Your Majesty's caution is justified. Even if she fails to ascend to godhood and perishes, no one will discover your existence!"

Fiona told Diane that as the leader of the guard and a mad pursuer of Queen Greta, she had not noticed Diane at all, which could only mean that the Queen was hiding her too well.

"Perhaps. Having escaped the gods' wrath, how do you think I should reclaim Ishtar?"

Diane looked at him and met Fiona's eyes, her gaze devoid of any emotion, only displaying a businesslike seriousness.

"It depends on what kind of Ishtar you want. If you want an intact Ishtar, then unite with and persuade the nobles to surrender and get their support. If you just want revenge, you can ask the demigoddess Margaret to kill all these nobles now."

Fiona took half a step forward, lowered her voice, and became very pragmatic as she began to elaborate on her ideas.

“I was initially inclined to the first option, but Ishtar is rotten to the core. Almost all the nobles in key positions are in cahoots with the gods. I think it wouldn’t be unreasonable to kill them all.”

Diane thought of the list she had obtained from the merchant; most of them had already voted, so there was really no need to save them. In any case, Diane didn't want to save these people.

“You’re right, these people should have died when they betrayed Queen Greta!”

Fiona did not avoid Diane's gaze; her eyes remained as firm as ever. Fiona also held the view of cleansing, wishing that all these people would be sent down to be buried with Queen Greta.

“That would completely throw Ishtar into chaos, which is not what I want to see, although I think it’s fine for them to rot and die like this.”

Diane said maliciously, "Ignorance is understandable, but wickedness and stupidity don't need understanding. Just kill them."

"I think so too. I was planning to resign, but if Your Highness doesn't appear, I will leave soon and head to the Spirit Realm."

Fiona straightened her body, regaining her standard, upright posture as a captain of the guard.

Aren't you going to try to persuade them?

Diane turned her gaze to the window; the downpour showed no signs of stopping, and Ishtar was about to be engulfed in the storm as well.

“If Ms. Margaret is an angel-level powerhouse, then we must be extremely careful, for one wrong step could lead to an abyss. But Ms. Margaret is a demigod, a demigod like Her Majesty the Queen, so I think we might as well be a little more arrogant.”

Fiona placed her right hand on the hilt of her sword, a gesture that made her look menacing. The madwoman in everyone's eyes was clearly not a patriot like Lady Terry.

"Your Highness, would those gentlemen who lord it over their own castles willingly bow and pledge allegiance to a 'ghost' that suddenly appears?"

The sound of rain hitting the glass created a constant background noise, forcing Fiona to speak louder so that Diane could hear her clearly.

“Everyone knows that supporting you is more profitable than maintaining the status quo, but do you think they would accept being controlled by the gods?”

“They have already betrayed Queen Greta once. Don’t let them betray you again, Your Highness. I think the best way to deal with them is to let them die.”

What's the point of trying to persuade her? It's just that Fiona lacks the ability; if she did, she would have already gone on a killing spree.

"You're right. Can you create such an opportunity for us to wipe them out in one fell swoop?"

His fingers gently brushed against a large ornamental taro leaf beside him, the cool touch sending a sensation through his fingertips.

The nobles of Ishtar have no use to us; things are already chaotic enough, so why bother making them even more chaotic?

"It's not easy. Since the fall of the Abyss, fewer nobles have come to the capital, seemingly afraid of getting involved in danger. In fact, the capital is quite dangerous."

Fiona shook her head, her eyebrows slightly raised, a gesture that softened her serious expression.

"Forget it, if we can't wipe them all out in one fell swoop, let's clean them up one region at a time."

Diane wanted to take the easiest approach, but unfortunately the nobles of Ishtar were too cowardly.

"However, things may be different recently. It seems that Your Highness has provoked the false king and he wants to hold a coronation ceremony. At this time, the nobles should come to participate in the coronation. If you don't want to be seen as disloyal by the false king, you will have to be prepared."

Gripping the sword hilt tightly, Fiona wanted to resign for this very reason, because she was already disloyal, and to let her witness this scene was blasphemous.

"Oh, has my uncle not been crowned yet?"

Diane was quite intrigued; she hadn't expected things to take such a turn for the better and for such an opportunity to arise.

"Before, she was busy fighting with the other heirs. After all, Her Majesty Queen Greta never thought she would fall without leaving an heir. At that time, the heirs each had their own legitimacy, but none of them were legitimate. Now that you have returned..."

Fiona looked at Diane's head. Without a crown, who could have the legitimacy of the Holy Blood? The imperfections in the procedural nature of the false king could be used as a pretext for making a big fuss.

"What's the use of procedures? It still comes down to strength. He doesn't think I'll spare his life just because he ascended the throne legitimately!"

Diane scoffed. This move by the other party was too stupid. Did he think he would give up competing with him for the throne just because he held a coronation ceremony?

How can it be?

The nobility are a bunch of fickle people; even a coronation ceremony can't hold their hearts.

"He's not targeting you, but the nobles. He probably wants to eliminate some nobles who are at odds with him so that he can focus all his efforts on dealing with you, Master."

The head maid reminded him that the false king was unaware of Diane's attitude towards the nobles—that they should all die. Therefore, they should eliminate dissidents first to ensure that no one would surrender or hold them back when dealing with Diane.

"He wants to deal with me? What makes him think he can? He's not even a demigod!" Diane was quite impressed by Murak's wild ideas. It was understandable that he made his decision before, not knowing the power behind Diane. But now that the head maid is famous throughout the Spirit Realm, he still wants to try to deal with her? Isn't he overthinking it?

"Otherwise, are we just waiting to die? The false king is not one to willingly wait to die. Moreover, the coronation ceremony will be recognized by the divine artifact, the Crown of the Spikes. At least when facing demigods, he can put up some resistance and make it easier to survive."

Fiona chimed in, mentioning the royal family's heirlooms, such as the Shield of Radiance and the Holy Lance Valentin, which Queen Greta herself acquired during her travels. The Spike Crown, on the other hand, is a symbol passed down through generations of the Ishtar royal family.

"A divine artifact! I want the divine artifact from the treasury! Marquis Fiona, do you have a way?"

Diane's secondary purpose in coming to Ishtar was to pack up the artifacts belonging to Ishtar and prevent them from being lost again.

“Your Highness, your idea is very bold. But since the theft of those two divine artifacts, the treasury has been so secure that it is impenetrable.”

Fiona turned to the side, her gaze level with Diane's, looking out of the greenhouse as if she could see through the walls into the depths of the palace.

"The first theft of the Holy Lance, the second the theft of the Shield of Radiance, both occurred recently. After these two incidents, Her Majesty the Queen's design for the Treasury's defense system was completely altered."

"Currently, the area is guarded by three independent Royal Guard units on a rotating basis. Every inch of the walls is imbued with sensing magic, and any unauthorized fluctuations in magical energy will trigger an alarm."

Fiona was one of the three guards, so she had a clear understanding of the situation. The false king changed his mind after hearing the news of the appearance of the Holy Blood.

"In addition, the entrance to the core area requires not only the false king's seal, but also a special bloodline verification magic. This magic is directly connected to the false king, and only rulers recognized by the false king can pass through unharmed. The result of forcibly breaking in is that the treasures in the treasury are teleported away."

Fiona gritted her teeth. This wealth was accumulated by Queen Greta, who now belongs to Diane. The false king had seized the treasure.

Is it that complicated?

Diane was also afraid that the artifacts would be transferred. The head maid said that a few of them would be useful, and the other person seemed to understand her thoughts.

"Trouble is inevitable. The false king is also afraid of losing the artifacts, but there are a few big ones that are connected to the foundation of the entire palace. Moving them would be no less disruptive than demolishing and rebuilding the palace. The false king doesn't have the guts or the ability, and the demigods won't agree."

“He can’t move them, but he can study them inside, or even use them. What I’m worried about isn’t losing them, but that they’ll be used in the wrong places, like the detection barrier of Ishtar.”

Fiona simply nodded slightly, indicating her agreement with Diane's viewpoint, and continued to add information based on his words.

"It is indeed a problem. If we let him use it, it will not be conducive to Ms. Margaret's performance."

The barrier functioned as a minor divine realm, equally oppressing all non-royal demigods; even the Tudor War Maid and the Moon Goddess were suppressed.

"I don't want any accidents, so I want to obtain the artifact that maintains the barrier spell, or at least shut this thing down."

The head maid didn't seem to mind, but Diane was more cautious and hoped the head maid wouldn't cause any trouble.

"Before the coronation ceremony, the false king will inevitably open the treasury and take out the tasseled crown in order to demonstrate his legitimacy. That may be the only opportunity. At that time, all the defenses will be open to him alone. We can take advantage of this opportunity to enter the treasury."

Fiona thought for a moment, then found an opportunity. A fierce glint flashed in her eyes, revealing a murderous intent.

"We can even use this opportunity to send the false king to his death!"

Fiona's eyes gleamed with icy killing intent, as if the warm, humid air in the greenhouse had been frozen solid by it.
“With his death, a power vacuum will emerge in Istia. We can use Lady Margaret’s power to kill the nobles who have already arrived in the capital. I also have some trustworthy subordinates in the guard who can control several important exits of the palace at critical moments.”

"Margaret, what do you think?"

Diane reached out and plucked a rose petal, placing it in her palm. She then took Margarita's hand, their hands separated by the dew-covered petal.

“I think Marquis Fiona’s method is quite good; it can achieve the goal of preserving the artifact and killing Murak.”

With a faint smile and affection in her eyes, the head maid squeezed Diane's hand, urging him to agree.

“Then I have no problem, Marquis Fiona. Let’s go have dinner together. My mother also took me to a restaurant.”

Diane invited him, saying that with the wind and rain, and after enjoying the scenery, he was a little hungry.

"No need. That's not a place where His Majesty and I have memories. Besides, I'm busy now, I need to keep an eye on the false king. Let's talk about it next time!"

Marquis Fiona removed her right hand from the hilt of her sword, placed it on her chest, and gave Diane a standard military salute.

"Very well, Marquis Fiona, please be careful and prioritize your own life!"

Diane advised that he should show more care and affection towards the woman who might become his lover in the future.

"Your subordinate takes his leave!"

Fiona glanced at Diane and the head maid's clasped hands, then turned and left, leaving Diane and the head maid to continue admiring the flowers.

"It doesn't seem to have aroused any desire in her either!"

Diane looked at the vibrant red roses, unsure whether today's plans had been successful or not; the subsequent dinner invitation hadn't materialized.

"..."

The head maid remained silent, her gaze fixed on the direction Fiona had left in.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Give me your feedback on my performance today. Did I overact in any way and make her realize something?"

Diane rubbed her thumb against the head maid's smooth hand, feeling that she had already put all her effort into the performance, and that calling out "Mom" sounded very natural.

"Someone wants to challenge us!"

The head maid whispered in Diane's ear, without commenting on whether Diane's acting was good or bad.

"Huh? Who? The Moon Goddess? The Goddess of Life? Murak? Could it be Marquis Fiona from earlier?!"

Diane was slightly confused. How could the head maid see so much? She hadn't even figured out who her enemy was.

"Marquis Fiona? That's not Marquis Fiona. Marquis Fiona's mental illness won't be cured so quickly!"

"Then who is she?"

Diane was shocked. Fiona was a fake?
"It is the enemy, but also your future weapon of mass destruction, Eros."

(End of this chapter)