Kisaragi's Long-Strange Collection Notes

Chen Meimei nodded, without making a pretense of refusal:

"Luna is a large family, rooted in the [Crimson House] for thousands of years. As a member of the council, they have intricate relationships with other families. With so many members, the situation is complex. Even if you are the patriarch, can you represent everyone's attitude?"

"Human hearts are unpredictable, and I dare not say that I can control the deep thoughts of every family member. No matter what they think, I can control what they do. This resolution has already been passed at the family internal meeting."

"No one objected at the meeting?"

"Yes, but only a few. Some people say that after the city was saved, the five families benefited, so why should our family bear all the costs?"

"That's not entirely wrong, is it? You resorted to direct, violent suppression?"

Luna Scarlet shook her head:

"I am the clan chief with real power. If I were to issue orders by force, there would be no need to hold a meeting. I persuaded them."

I told them that the old practice of the five great families ruling the city only applied to the Seventh Age. Now that it is a new age, clinging to the old ways will only lead to falling behind and eventually being eliminated by the times.

Standing behind you is the new trend of the times.

"You've always seemed to have high hopes for me, both when I staked my entire clan and the scepter, and now."

Do you really think such abstract arguments can convince all the opponents in the family? People usually only believe in things like "the trend of the times" when they see real benefits.

"No, they all believe it. There were very few dissenters to begin with, and besides, our Luna family believes in this."

"Do you believe in 'the trends of the times'?"

"We believe in the moon. If we follow the church's standards, about 20% of the people in our family are devout believers, with a level of faith that is above that of ordinary believers."

Chen Meimei: ......

It turns out there's a large group of hidden Lunar cult followers here.

Luna Fei continues to reveal more:

"In fact, the Moon Church has been able to grow and thrive over the years thanks to the covert support of our family and the Herlin family."

Luna means "moon" in the ancient language, while Herin means "tide". Our ancestors were believers in the moon and branched out from the church.

Of course, mentioning these old histories doesn't mean that the two families are particularly devout. After becoming in power, faith gradually becomes tainted by the pursuit of fame and fortune. But this is a mysterious world, and faith is not something ethereal; it is also linked to power.

Those who believe become strong, and the strong become believers; this virtuous cycle continues to this day, where faith and self-interest are intertwined.

Chen Meimei only heard a little bit before she started to veer off-topic: "So, you guys are supporting [Winter] behind the scenes?"

"The Herlin family directly supports [Winter], while our family mainly supports [Ghost Marriage]. Until the day before yesterday, we did not know that the two were the same person."

"That's not right. You believe in the moon. Before the [ghost marriage], it represented the witch of the [Blood Moon Society]."

"No, the Blood Moon Society is divided into two factions: the Moon faction's Ghost Marriage and the Sun faction's Scorching and Panda."

Our support for [the ghost marriage] is not for her ghost marriage ceremony, but for our previous actions against Blood River.

Her blood-red lotus boat wasn't originally that powerful. Although the lotus holes had the ability to teleport, the silt blocking it was difficult to remove. I had someone secretly sell her the relevant materials.

"I see. The relationships between the various factions in the city are really messy."

"The world of power is inherently chaotic. Unless one possesses overwhelming strength and stands head and shoulders above the rest, scheming and compromise will never disappear."

Now that everything has been clarified, let's get back to the main topic.

"In that case, from this day forward, the Luna family will be a subordinate force under my command, awaiting my orders."

"Luna Fei, on behalf of her family, wishes to pledge allegiance to you." Luna Fei rose and bowed deeply.

The light from the moon inside the room brightened several degrees, and seemingly tangible yellow threads appeared out of thin air, shining on Luna Fei.

Luna Fei thought to herself, "The Knot of the Moon, it seems I won't need the paper contract I prepared."

She didn't flinch, letting the moonlight dye her liquid-like short hair orange.

Chen Meimei helped her up: "I don't care about formalities here. Why is your hair so short?"

"I was slightly injured while blocking termites yesterday, which damaged my very essence."

"Can it be restored?"

"It's okay, it's not too heavy. It will just affect my strength a little, but I don't usually have many opportunities to do things myself, so it won't have a big impact. It'll be fine once my hair reaches my waist again."

Chen Meimei tapped the tabletop lightly with her finger twice before lifting her hand.

A beam of moonlight shone into Luna Scarlet's hair.

Her ear-length hair grew at a visible speed, reaching her waist in less than ten seconds. This was the length of her hair before it stopped growing.

Chen Meimei put her finger down: "Try again."

After closing her eyes and sensing the effects, Luna Fei opened them in surprise: "I'm recovered! Thank you so much."

Seeing the smile on Luna Fei's face, Chen Meimei was also a little dazed.

A year ago, he had just woken up and transformed into [Yellow Robe], using this move to heal [Nan Jun] in Sixiang City. Today, a year later, he has done it again with his own [Mystery] 6 ability, although Luna Fei's injury is much lighter than [Nan Jun's] and her self-healing ability is much stronger.

"Alright, from now on we're on the same side, it's nothing. Besides expressing your stance, you must have something else to say to me today, right?"

"Yes, it's about the new Grand Duke. The council is looking for you to find out your attitude and whether you are interested in that position."

As Luna Fei expected, Chen Meimei shook her head directly.

"I definitely won't become Grand Duke. I'm planning to go home once everything here is completely over. If you want to run for office, I'll support you."

"Me? Forget about it. I'm not cut out for being a politician or leader. I find their meetings incredibly annoying. If I wanted to compete, I would have signed up last time. I know you don't actually have that idea, but what about your people?"

Chen Meimei shook her head: "The cities of the bloodline should still be governed by the bloodline. I don't have many people under my command, nor the strength and qualifications. If I force them into power, the outcome won't be good after I leave."

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Why are you sighing?"

"In the past, the position of Grand Duke was fought over by several families, who would fight tooth and nail to the point of exhaustion. As far as I know, this time, none of the major families have any candidates."

"Anyone from the five major families?"

"It's not that there's no one, it's that there aren't people with enough prestige and power."

In this epoch of suffering, a third of the Mystics died, and the number of the wounded has not yet been tallied. The number of talented individuals has decreased significantly, with several previous candidates, including Herlin Meng, [Winter], and [Filter], all dead.

The major families previously had a "Spark Program," with each family having five slots to transfer several outstanding individuals.

Now here's the problem: the candidates are all very talented and not afraid of death. Some didn't want to leave and were taken away by force. But looking at the objective facts, they didn't contribute to this disaster. They "escaped" before the disaster and came back afterward. Under these circumstances, how can they have the face to run for election?

Oh, by the way, Thorn didn't die. She's taken over half of Loran's body in the form of consciousness, and can now appear for 12 hours a day.

Chen Meimei's tuft of hair stood up and curled into an exclamation mark: "Possession?"

"Of course not. They are siblings. Loran has always had facial paralysis on one side of her face. She probably left a backup plan for the family a long time ago, and this time she used it on Thorn."

Chen Meimei looked serious: "This is bad. If I go to the bar with Luo Lan again, what if Jing Ji suddenly shows up halfway through?"

Luna Fei was stunned by Chen Meimei's ability to instantly veer off-topic.

"Your focus is... quite peculiar."

"What's so strange? Loran is my good buddy, he still owes me two drinks."

Since the thorns are still there, and there's no good alternative, why not just let her continue? She's already proven with her actions that she's capable of being a good Grand Duchess, hasn't she?"

"We've thought about it, but firstly, the Grand Duchess needs to face the public frequently, and with Thorn currently inside Loran's body, it's always a bit strange to explain to the public. Not only do others find it strange, but she herself is also not very willing to continue."

Furthermore, Loran's current physical condition severely limits Thorn's strength; if the election process were to proceed normally, her current strength wouldn't even qualify her for the preliminary stages.

Chen Meimei disagreed:

"What kind of reason is that?"

Thorn's actions are something I approve of, so what's so hard to explain? She's paying the price for the city. Her current state isn't strange; it's a badge of honor.

As for strength, let alone the possibility that she can become stronger again as Loran grows stronger, even if she can't, so what? This isn't an election; she's already a Grand Duchess. Does a Grand Duchess need to fight? Would a Grand Duchess who were injured in the past be ousted simply because their strength has declined?

As long as it's the same soul, how can it not be a Grand Duke?

Luna Fei looked slightly puzzled: "You seem to really support Thorn?"

"I don't know her well, we don't have much of a relationship, but when it comes to whether someone can be a good Grand Duke, I only look at what they do."

"I understand your stance. There's a big problem with not letting Jingji stay on. She only has 12 hours a day, and it's impossible to give the other 12 hours to Loran. The Grand Duke is the highest decision-maker in the city, and it's impossible for him to be absent for half the time."

Chen Meimei did not refute this point.

Although Loran was a good friend who was also a bit of a frenemy, Chen Meimei knew his true nature very well. If Jingji hadn't become the Grand Duke, given Loran's personality, he wouldn't have been able to become the Grand Duke's secretary, let alone a middle-level manager.

Chen Meimei rolled her eyes and made a joke.

"How about we let Thorn do the day shift and [Winter] do the night shift, so the two of them can work together?"

This time, it was Luna Scarlet's turn to jump up in surprise: "[Winter] is still alive?!"

"Yes, to be precise, [Winter] is gone, but [Eye of the Moon] is still here."

Luna's lips trembled slightly: "She...she's alive, which means she...she broke through?"

"yes."

"The Great Sage?"

"yes."

"Born into the Herin family, once the leader of witches, served as the archbishop, and a great saint who sacrificed himself for the city?"

"yes."

Luna Scarlet almost fell.

"Then why bother with a team? Why not just let her take on the role of the new Grand Duke all by herself?"

"Oh, that's impossible. Due to the aftereffects of her body being used as a substitute, she can only come out under the moonlight."