Man on the ark, forced to become king

Is it Theresa, or the Tower of Babel, or... both?

If it's Theresis, it's not impossible that she could launch a surprise attack while Theresa is away from Babel. With the Doctor there, there shouldn't be any major problems. So, that leaves only…

hum! ! !

Suddenly, the roar of an engine grew louder and louder as it approached. Kal'tsit immediately stood up, closed the book in her hand, and turned to look.

A black dot gradually grew larger from a distance, entered the area illuminated by the golden tree's light, and was covered in a layer of golden light.

It was a pure black sidecar motorcycle. Judging from the model, it was probably quite old, an obsolete model that had been phased out of the market. Even mercenaries in the wilderness no longer used this kind of old-fashioned motorcycle.

What's particularly eye-catching is that a shiny rope hangs from the back of the motorcycle, extending into the air and tethering a moon-shaped sphere.

"It seems to be... Miss Lani's magic?"

Kal'tsit felt she wasn't mistaken; she had seen this move before, though on a smaller scale than the one floating in the sky.

So this spell can actually be used to pull a balloon around?

As she thought this, she blinked and finally saw clearly the person sitting on the motorcycle.

Inside the crossbody is Miss Lani, behind her is Lin Lu, and in front is the driver… the Pardoner?!

In an instant, Kal'tsit's entire body tensed up instinctively, and the clothes on her back slipped down slightly, revealing glimpses of darkness.

That attire—no doubt about it, it's the Pardoner! Therese's lackey!

How did they end up here?!

Could it be...

Many possibilities surfaced in her mind, making it even harder for Kal'tsit to remain calm.

-------------------------------------

"Well done."

Jumping off the motorcycle and holding the petal whip that held Theresa Darkmoon Balloon in her hand, Lin Lu walked past Hadley, patted him on the shoulder, and encouraged him, "Work hard. After I finish what I'm doing, you and Ines can also be promoted. From today onwards, you are official members of the Golden Tree and are qualified to enter and leave the Great Blessing."

These two guys have good potential. Lin Lu didn't intend for them to do hard labor for the rest of their lives. Now that their temperaments have been tempered, she's giving them a chance today. Whether they can seize it is up to them.

"Uh, th, thank you."

The sudden surprise left Hadley stunned, until Ines next to him stepped on his foot and he finally came to his senses.

He had been watching W's improvement closely, and it would be a lie to say he wasn't envious.

Using fire magic he had never seen before, W's strength had now completely surpassed his and Ines's, to the point that he could barely see her back. Such an improvement was an irresistible temptation for any mercenary.

Mercenaries, those who make it into this line of work, actually have very simple goals: to survive, and if possible, to live a better life.

Even if you want to pursue something, you need to have the strength to back it up.

However, their background and the circles they can access determine the upper limit of ordinary mercenaries. They have no background to rely on and no channels to obtain resources. The only way for them to improve their strength is to risk their lives.

The Golden Tree was the first tangible organization that Hadley encountered that could lift them out of their current social class. The enhancement brought about by the 'Golden Tree Blessing' that was integrated into their bodies was something they could actually feel, and that was only the lowest level of blessing.

W's experience has shown them that as long as they become official members of the Golden Tree, they can also obtain higher-level blessings and more powerful spells!

As for the previous conflicts, and the hard labor these days...

It was nothing more than being captured. At first, of course, I was very angry, but after calming down, there was nothing I couldn't let go of, since it didn't involve any blood feud.

If those mercenaries outside knew that they could earn such an opportunity by doing hard labor for a few days, I wonder how many of them would be eager to get in!

"When W comes back, you'll still be a team. Do your best, the Golden Tree won't let down its heroes. One day, you'll be able to stand in a position you could only look up to before."

Lin Lu had a fairly good impression of Hedley. After making a vague promise, she led Theresa Ball toward Kal'tsit, who was watching them, and pondered what to say.

Kal'tsit is an extreme princess-obsessed guy. Although he usually likes to tease the big cat, it's better to take care of her feelings at this time.

"His Highness did not return with you?"

Kal'tsit was extremely wary of the Pardoner, but she was more concerned about Theresa's condition.

"Your Highness is inside the ball."

While thinking, Lin Lu answered casually, then realized what she meant, held up one finger, and smiled, "Miss Kal'tsit, I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?"

"...Let me tell you the bad news first."

Kal'tsit couldn't understand what 'Your Highness is in the ball' meant. She didn't want to play along with this guy's joke at all, but she had no choice but to swallow her anger for now.

"The bad news is... your prince is inside this ball."

Lin Lu pointed to the dark moon floating in the sky.

"She is still alive, but only temporarily; her condition is very bad."

"And the good news?"

She closed her eyes and opened them again, her flat chest rising and falling slightly, and she asked through gritted teeth.

"Isn't it good news that she's still alive?"

"Alright, stop teasing her."

Lani stopped Lin Lu's inappropriate joke in time and said seriously, "Her current condition is not optimistic. She had tried to end her life before, but I sealed her in the Dark Moon and she did not succeed."

"Miss Lani, what exactly happened to Her Highness? Even the Golden Tree can't cure her?"

Upon hearing the news that Theresa was in critical condition, Kal'tsit panicked for a moment and almost lost her composure.

She pressed Lani for answers, hoping to get some good news.

Compared to Lin Lu, she preferred communicating with this Miss Lani; this being with a great soul had a much better personality than that nasty fellow.

"I can't say."

Meeting Kal'tsit's expectant gaze, Lani shook her head, offering no definite answer.

She didn't know the full extent of the Golden Tree's healing abilities. Melina knew more about it. If she were to do it, she could at most extract the Demon King's soul using special magic and then stuff it into the puppet using the same method she was using now.

"I do have a way to make her live on in the body of a doll, but she probably won't agree."

"Let's go in first."

Lin Lu pulled Dark Moon closer, and a chill swept over her.

He thought for a moment, then looked at Shining: "Shining, wait outside for a bit."

"it is good."

Shining's lips moved slightly, and she nodded in agreement.

Of course, she also wanted to go and see how His Majesty the Demon King was doing, but she also knew that this was someone else's territory, and outsiders had no right to make demands; that would be too presumptuous and very impolite.

"Let's go."

Theresa's condition was not optimistic, so Lin Lu did not waste any more time. She directly pulled Theresa into the gate of the Great Blessing and placed Dark Moon on the round table of the Great Blessing.

Mostima and Fiameta went to Laterano, and W took on a black market mission to hone his skills.

Nian is a restless person who prefers to stay in Longmen and tinker with her terrible movies. She even half-forced Xi to go and do some set design. Melina, I don't know what kind of spell she was cast on, agreed to play a cameo role. So Da Cifu is now empty, without a single person.

Under Lani's control, the Dark Moon dissipated into specks of light, revealing Theresia frozen inside.

The princess's head stuck in the irregular crystal was a very horrifying and bizarre sight. Kal'tsit was startled and then understood why even Miss Lani said it was difficult to handle.

This is not difficult at all...

From her perspective, this condition was a death sentence in medical terms; there was no hope of recovery. Modern medicine couldn't even effectively treat severely ill patients with late-stage Oripathy, let alone someone like Theresa whose body was almost entirely crystallized.

If before they could still hope that the blessing of the Golden Tree could reduce the severity of Oripathy and suppress its deterioration, now Kal'tsit can't think of any other way besides soul transfer.

A ray of dazzling golden light descended from the top of the Great Blessing, enveloping Theresia completely.

A life force far more powerful than healing prayers was drawn from the golden tree and injected into the almost completely crystallized body, attempting to regenerate flesh and internal organs and replace the crystallized parts.

A vigorous life force flowed through her body, so concentrated that a head could survive without a body. Theresa's consciousness, frozen by the Dark Moon, gradually awoke.

"No, to complete body regeneration, all the Originium crystals must be removed. Otherwise, even with the Golden Tree's abilities, it's impossible to make flesh and blood take up the space of the crystals. But to remove the Originium crystals..."

Lin Lu didn't finish speaking, but Kal'tsit and Lani already understood what he meant.

Theresa's head is now half-covered in crystals, and if her skull is destroyed, her currently barely maintained consciousness will immediately lose its restraint, making this method completely unworkable.

"That's all. Thank you for your efforts, Lin Lu. And, I'm sorry, Kal'tsit."

Theresa spoke weakly, managing a weak smile.

She had already made preparations, and being able to entrust some matters to Kal'tsit was already a pleasant surprise; she had nothing to complain about.

The future will belong to the new crowned queen; her era will eventually come to an end.

"Don't worry, I have one last way."

Lin Lu interrupted Theresa, raised her hand, and a deep blue light shone from a certain spot on the hall wall, falling into her palm.

It was a dark blue blade with no handle, and three sharp protrusions on each side of the blade, forming a serrated shape.

"Yuanhui Stone Knife?"

Lani recognized the origin of the item and immediately understood what Lin Lu wanted to do.

The Source Stone Knife—a product of an ancient ritual. In the past of the borderlands, ancient magicians would use this knife to cut open their hearts in order to transform the Source Stone into their own souls before stepping into death.

If successful, they will be reborn in another form, merging their souls with the radiant stone, breaking free from the shackles of the flesh, achieving a finite 'eternity,' and getting closer to the essence of magic.