Goddess Kaleidoscope

"What else? You can rest assured and leave this to me. I promise you, I will never break my word!"

In front of Hume, Ludd spoke with such conviction that Hume, who had originally intended to tease him verbally, was momentarily speechless. He felt a touch of emotion welling up inside him, but his expression quickly turned into a mischievous grin as he nudged Ludd with his elbow.

"Hey kid, you're so concerned about my affairs. Could it be that you actually believed what I said last time about paying me back with your body if I helped you break the curse? Hahaha, you actually believed it!"

"If you really offer to pay me back with your body, I definitely won't refuse."

"..."

Faced with Hume's deliberate teasing, Ludd calmly retorted with a single sentence, causing Hume's laughter to abruptly cease, and an awkward silence fell between them. Fortunately, at that moment, Alvitt walked in from outside, saying that she had something to report to Ludd. Hume immediately fled the scene with lightning speed, running as fast as the wind.

Later that day, more information about the Navarro family was passed on to Lud. After being in a coma for more than half a year, Trin woke up and took over the family affairs in place of his bedridden father.

Although Terlin had not made a public appearance, there had been rumors that he was recuperating in seclusion. Therefore, most people in the city who did not know the truth did not find anything unusual when they heard the news that Terlin had recovered and woken up. Others who knew some inside information wisely remained silent.

Large families with a long history often have secret techniques or forbidden methods that are not passed on to outsiders. Even if they sense something is wrong, they usually choose to turn a blind eye and pretend not to know, and would never get involved in anything that would not bring them any benefit.

However, Trilling's sudden awakening was a family matter of great concern to the members of the Navarro family.

When Terlin became a living dead, none of his siblings were sad or shed a tear. Instead, they were all secretly celebrating and preparing to fight for the position of the eldest son that Terlin had vacated.

As a result, after being in a coma for more than half a year, Terlin miraculously woke up, and the old patriarch Hu En happened to fall ill, allowing this playboy, who was looked down upon by many brothers, to rise to the top in one step, directly from a wheelchair to the throne of the patriarch.

Some disgruntled family members then tried to question Terlin's abilities, feeling that his prestige and competence were insufficient for the position of patriarch and that his uncle Juan should temporarily assume the position, perhaps because his father Huen's illness would improve after a while.

Faced with these questions directed at Trilling, and the suggestions from his nephews who clearly wanted to push him out as a scapegoat, Juan was at his wit's end, especially since his cousin Huen's sudden illness had come as a complete shock.

End of this chapter

Inside the Navarro family's castle mansion, Juan, with a solemn expression, strode through the corridor and headed straight for the patriarch's study. He had just visited his bedridden cousin, whose condition was very serious; it seemed as if he had suffered a stroke, and he was completely immobile, lying on the bed staring blankly, unable to utter a single complete sentence.

Seeing his once powerful and respected elder brother reduced to such a frail and aged appearance, Juan felt a deep sense of unease.

This "wolf king," who led his clan to victory over countless opponents, ultimately could not escape the erosion of time. The clan may soon enter a difficult period, and those demons and monsters who once dared not act rashly out of fear of Hu En may also become restless.

Filled with anxiety about the future, Juan went to his elder brother's study to check some account books, but he was surprised to find that Terlin, who had just woken up from a coma that morning, was sitting behind his desk writing furiously. Juan vaguely saw a shadow of his elder brother.

"Telin! What are you doing here?"

“I have official business to attend to. My father is seriously ill and bedridden. As the eldest son, I should be responsible for these matters.”

"But...you've never done any of this before...can you do it?"

“My father taught me.”

"He...he taught you? When?"

When Juan heard Trin say that he had learned how to handle official business from his father, Juan clearly showed disbelief. In his memory, his older brother Hun was indeed a self-disciplined and hardworking person, but Trin's usual behavior was that of a complete playboy.

Saying he's ignorant and incompetent might be an exaggeration, but his personal abilities are practically nonexistent. Juan genuinely doesn't believe he can handle that pile of official documents.

So, out of distrust of Trilling, Juan went to his desk and picked up a few documents that had already been reviewed. He was increasingly surprised as he looked at them. Trilling was not only able to handle them, but he handled them quite well!

Looking at his nephew, who was calm and collected, a stark contrast to his previous impression of him, Juan couldn't help but marvel.

"That's amazing! He's been in a coma for over half a year, and he's actually grown!"

Although he still had many questions in his mind, Juan felt a little relieved to see that Trilin was much more reliable than he had expected. He gave Trilin a few words of advice and then left the study without making any strange connections.

After Juan left, Trillin, who was engrossed in processing official documents at his desk, pressed a hidden button under the table without looking up. A moment later, several masked men silently entered the study and knelt down on one knee before Trillin.

"Master of the family."

"Are you ready?"

"Everything is ready."

"Then go ahead and do it. Make sure it's finished before dawn."

"Yes!"

After the masked men finished speaking, they disappeared silently from the study like ghosts. After finishing the last document, Terlin got up and went to the bookshelf next to him. He opened a hidden door with practiced ease, took out a bottle of fine wine and wine set that he had treasured for many years, poured himself a full glass, and then walked to the window with the glass in his hand. Looking at the full moon in the night sky, he sighed with satisfaction.

"It's so good to be young!"

Just one night later, a shocking piece of news swept through the entire city of Yanmu at dawn.

In the early hours of last night, a fire broke out at a mansion belonging to the Navarro family, the wealthiest family in the city, in the eastern suburbs. Seventeen people, all of whom were young members of the Navarro family, were burned to death on the spot.

According to a few survivors at the scene, the young men were having a party when one of them got drunk and accidentally threw a bottle of liquor into the fireplace, which instantly caused a fire. The fire quickly got out of control, and none of the young men in the living room survived. Only Trin, who was in the main house with his bedridden father, survived.

Anyone with eyes to see can see that this matter is very suspicious, but with witnesses and physical evidence, the evidence is irrefutable. People can only sigh in private that this Terlin's ruthless style is really quite similar to his father's back then.

At the theater, Lu De was having breakfast when he received the news, and he was completely stunned.

"Holy crap! He's dead?"

"Yeah, they're all dead, only Trilling is left."

That's pretty ruthless!

“Generally speaking, it’s normal for bloodshed and deaths to occur during the succession of heirs in large families. But this Trin… is indeed a bit too ruthless.”

No one expected that this former playboy would be so ruthless, especially targeting his own half-brother. The whole process was incredibly swift, clearly premeditated.

Luther sighed to himself for a moment, then suddenly asked Hume a question.

"Does our Trinity force know about this?"

"Not yet, should we tell him?"

"Let me speak."

After much thought, Lud felt it necessary to inform his comrade, Trin, about this matter, so that Trin could be mentally prepared in advance. However, when Lud arrived at Trin's small private room, the man was standing motionless by the window, gazing into the distance. Upon seeing this, Lud couldn't help but ask...

"You already knew?"

"Yes, that guy over there... he's awake."

Trilling sounded calm, but his slightly trembling shoulders suggested that he was not at peace.

"Master, I feel very confused right now... I don't know how to describe this strange feeling!"

"You're doubting yourself, doubting whether you're really Trin, am I right?"

"Ah."

Trilling nodded, and Lud stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder.

"Instead of doubting yourself, why not doubt the other side? Last night, all your half-brothers were wiped out in one fell swoop, and it was most likely that guy who did it. If you're feeling confused, you might as well ask yourself if the real Trilling could do something so heinous."

"What? All my brothers are dead?"

"More or less. There might be a few left who slipped through the net in other places, but at least in Yanmu City, there really aren't a single one left. You didn't know that?"

Seeing the incredulous shock on Trilling's face, Lud recounted the news he had just received that morning. Trilling remained silent for a long time after listening. Although he did have many disagreements with his brothers and sisters, he at least still cared about blood ties and never once imagined that such a bloody and cruel purge would be launched after he ascended to the throne.

Clearly! The soul currently occupying Terlin's body is completely different from Terlin himself.

"Master, you just said that my father is still alive, is that right?"

"Yes, there's no news of his death yet. He's said to be bedridden and unable to move. If he doesn't pose a threat, he shouldn't be killed anytime soon."

"Well... Master, I have a favor to ask..."

"You want me to send someone to rescue your father?"

"Ah."

"I do plan to send someone to infiltrate Navarro's house to investigate and try to rescue him, but I can't guarantee that the rescue operation will be successful."

End of this chapter

As the wealthiest family in the entire Yanmu City, the Navarro family owns a rather large castle in the suburbs. It is said to be nearly two hundred years old. The castle is heavily guarded and easy to defend, making it impossible for ordinary thieves and bandits to even consider attacking it.

But Rudd was clearly no ordinary man; from the moment he arrived in Flamewood City, he had his eye on this castle. It was both the private property of the Navarro family and one of the important secret meeting places of the Brotherhood of the Black Hand, mainly used to receive believers among the upper class, with a meeting held once a week.

Thanks to the thorough preliminary reconnaissance conducted by Hume and Fallen Leaf, as well as the inside information provided by the traitor Trilling, Ludd now has a fairly detailed map of the castle.

The entire Navarro Castle is divided into two parts: the central area is the main castle, which is not open to visitors attending gatherings, while the outer area is a manor enclosed by walls, resembling a small town.

The hundreds of visitors attending the gathering were only allowed to enter the outer manor; they were not permitted to enter the castle. However, Trinn told Lud that there was actually more than one secret passage inside the castle. One of these passages led directly to the outside, but it was usually closed and could only be opened from the inside. The other passage connected to the manor and could be opened in both directions.

This weekend happens to be the day of the gathering, and Ludwig plans to disguise himself as a guest attending the gathering and take the opportunity to sneak into the castle to scout.

On the weekend, Lud and his men lay in ambush on the only road leading to the Navarro family castle outside the city. Most of the believers invited to the castle for the gathering were wealthy people from the city. Generally speaking, these people would not believe in the god of thieves, but they couldn't resist the brotherhood's divine wine.

The so-called "divine liquor" of the Brotherhood, in Lud's view, is a drug of this world with extremely strong hallucinogenic and addictive effects. Basically, once you drink it, you will develop a strong psychological dependence. So the Brotherhood uses this stuff to develop followers and make money.

Ludd had previously visited the meeting places in the city that were specifically for the common people and believers. These places were usually very secretive. The one that Ludd went to was actually hidden in the city's sewers.

After being summoned, believers would go to a nearby meeting place. Upon arrival, a prayer ceremony would be held to harvest a wave of faith, and then the so-called pastor would bring out large jars of holy wine and start selling it on the spot, harvesting another wave of believers' wallets.

The divine wine they bought was not allowed to be taken away and had to be drunk on the spot. But this did not stump Ludwig and Hume. The two of them used a little magic trick to successfully deceive the other party and successfully brought out a sample of the divine wine.

The gathering place located in Navarro's castle is a high-end venue specifically for the wealthy, which claims to be just an ordinary upper-class cocktail party.

The group waited along the forest path until nightfall, when finally carriages began to appear. Those in large groups were allowed to pass, but Ludwig specifically targeted a lone carriage.

With the help of the Heroic Spirit Squad, hijacking the carriage was a breeze; the driver and several guards were easily subdued. Disguised as a masked robber, Ludwig kicked open the carriage door and found a couple with a vastly different age gap inside. The man was at least fifty, with half his hair white, while the woman looked to be in her early twenties, fair-skinned, beautiful, and voluptuous. Thinking they had encountered robbers, the two huddled together, trembling with fear.

Without saying a word, Lu De took out the sleeping potion he had prepared beforehand, sprayed it on the faces of the two men to knock them unconscious, then dragged them out of the carriage and hid them in the nearby bushes along with the guards who had been stripped naked.

Through a body search of the older man and younger woman, Lude found an invitation from the Navarro family on their person. The invitation bore the names of the husband and wife: the husband was named Jeros, a merchant from Yanmu City, and the wife was named Josie. Neither of them were nobles.

After carefully examining Jeros, Ludd used the mask to transform himself into Jeros's appearance. When he turned around, Hume had become Josie, clearly intending to attend the gathering with Ludd.

"Wasn't I telling you to be in charge of providing backup outside?"

"Only Luo Ye and I here know how to disguise ourselves. You know Luo Ye's acting skills; she can't play this kind of flirtatious young woman."

As Hume spoke, he deliberately mimicked Josie, striking a few seductive glances at Ludd. Ludd looked at Fallen Leaf beside him, who was giving him a look of disgust, and thought to himself that this girl, who could only play various dull and clueless characters, was indeed not suited for this type of role.

To be honest, the risk of this infiltration was actually very high, because the mask Ludwig used for disguise (Hume's Smile) was a divine artifact of the God of Thieves, and Hume was simply the God of Thieves himself. So if the fake one was also in the Navarro family's manor, there was a high probability that the two of them would be recognized by the other party at a glance.

Therefore, to ensure absolute success, Lud had already mobilized all available combat forces around him in advance. While they were infiltrating the manor, these people would be on standby outside. Once Lud was discovered, they would immediately launch a strong attack, directly flatten the Navarro family's castle, and capture the fake God of Thieves alive.

With Lude's strength, this is not a difficult task. The downside is that it will alert the enemy. If the fakes realize that they can't win and back down and run away, it won't be so easy to find them again.

With everything prepared, Ludd and Hume disguised themselves as husband and wife, Fallen Leaf pretended to be a coachman, and the Heroic Spirits donned thick leather armor that concealed their figures, pretending to be accompanying guards. The group drove the carriage and swaggered down the main road to the gate of the Navarro family's house, where they entered the outer manor smoothly with the help of invitations.