Chapter 74-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

Princess Heath noticed the anomaly and brought people to the rescue in time. Most of the students participating in the test were saved, with two dead and a dozen injured.

The subsequent investigation revealed that the second prince had bribed two guards at the hunting ground. The objective was to assassinate Crown Prince Sykes. The Emperor was enraged and had the second prince, Laimeng, imprisoned to await trial.

As the victim of the incident, the Crown Prince received numerous rewards from the Emperor as consolation, but nothing more.

Ye Zheng found the Emperor's attitude toward the matter quite intriguing. Gold and treasures were useless to Sykes; his vaults were full of them. If he truly wanted to soothe his repeatedly frightened son, he should have given him something more practical, like true command over the Royal Knight Order.

When the incident at the hunting ground occurred, Ye Zheng had acted alongside the rescuing knight order. Her main role was to provide timely healing to the injured. However, during the rescue, she paid special attention to the scene and found some interesting things: traces of high-temperature burns, metal fragments, and so on.

Soon, she thought of someone. It turned out that person had also been fanning the flames from the shadows. She couldn't help but sigh at the complexity of the Royal Family's relationships.

After quietly erasing those traces, Ye Zheng left the hunting ground at a leisurely pace.

This matter had nothing to do with her; it was an internal conflict of the Royal Family. She seemed to be just an unwillingly involved party. However, Sykes knew that Laimeng had tampered with things, yet he chose this specific time to meet with her. What on earth was he thinking?

Ye Zheng speculated a little and roughly figured out Sykes's thoughts, even if his intellect was now only slightly superior to Laimeng's.

Sykes just wanted to show her, to demonstrate a fact before her eyes: he was no longer the Sykes of the past, no longer someone who could be trifled with. He was warning her, but at the same time, he was trying to win her over.

"Winning over" was a word that didn't exist in the old Sykes's vocabulary, but now he had quickly learned the methods of eliminating dissenters and using both rewards and punishments.

What value did she have to be won over now? To the outside world, Ye Zheng was still just the mascot Saintess of the Sei Curia, with no real power. Only her ability was worth a second look.

Sykes needed her ability, an ability that could heal or repair some defect of his.

Ye Zheng couldn't help but look down at her hands. When she was twelve, she first secretly tested her talent on the black market. After learning she was double S-rank, she used some tricks during the official test to change her result to A-rank.

The Royal Family had a strict requirement for the Empress to have an S-rank or higher talent to ensure the strength of the royal bloodline. Ye Zheng had no desire to be packaged off to the Royal Family by her own.

Sykes said she helped him recover some memories. Could her [Stream] have other abilities to be developed? Not just the body, but even abstract memories could be unconsciously repaired... No, perhaps it was the Dragon Bone at work. She had been diligently developing her ability all this time; if there were extra effects, it's unlikely she would have overlooked them.

"System, I remember you said before that Sykes had a tragic background, powerful abilities, and was an extremely popular character in the original plot, with countless readers feeling sorry for him?"

When she heard the System say that, Ye Zheng had found it very strange. Aside from his powerful abilities and his appearance like a metal vase, what tragic depth did Sykes possess that would warrant the System describing him as "extremely popular"?

[That's right. The forums say that he and Percy are the protagonists of the light and dark plotlines, which isn't wrong in a sense. He and Percy are fated rivals, two sides of the same coin.]

The System said tactfully, unable to reveal too much without breaking the rules.

"So, in the original plot, the Saintess Ye Zheng also accidentally flipped some switch in Sykes?"

[The original plot developed this way as well. As I've said before, the plot has its own gravity. No matter how much it deviates, it's difficult to change the major nodes.]

"Sykes's awakening is a major, unchangeable node, and so is the death of Saintess Ye Zheng."

Ye Zheng said thoughtfully.

[As long as you accumulate enough popularity points and action points, you can change your own fate!]

The System quickly comforted her.

Ye Zheng wasn't worried; she was just thinking. Since her death could be changed with action points, if she had known the plot related to Sykes in advance, perhaps she could have suppressed his awakening.

There was still too little information on hand, and the spoilers on her phone were extremely limited.

"System, I used to recklessly tease Sykes, banking on his stupidity. Now he might hold a grudge against me and want to kill me even more than in the original plot."

Ye Zheng let out a huge sigh.

The System recalled what Ye Zheng had done to Sykes and was horrified.

[You have a point! Now that his intelligence is online, if he recalls what you did before...]

"My survival difficulty has increased. The possibility that he sends assassins to my door tomorrow cannot be ruled out."

[And you know it!]

"So I need more security. That way, both your job and my life will be protected."

The Saintess's large, deep black pupils blinked, a sly smile flashing across them.

[Alright, regarding the permission issue, I've been reporting it upwards. Perhaps I need to go and press them again...]

*

Ye Zheng wasn't too worried that Sykes would make a move on her.

She was almost certain that Sykes wanted something from her, from her ability. Therefore, she took his words "go find Yu Tianming if you need anything" at face value and went directly to Yu Tianming with her request.

"Your brother wants to gain some experience by the Crown Prince's side. That's not difficult. But as for your father... that is not something I can guarantee."

Yu Tianming pushed up his glasses. He was a little surprised by Ye Zheng's direct request; she didn't seem like the type to demand repayment for a favor.

Considering the recent situation of the Sei Curia and the Saintess, Yu Tianming found it less strange. Even a naive and kind little girl would know to seek more security for herself during such chaotic times, and a powerful family was the most stable support.

"It's alright. The affairs of adults are beyond the meddling of children like us. We can only do our best."

The Saintess tucked her hair. She was a bit fidgety today; her unease was visible in the small details.

Yu Tianming felt a strange sense of relief. Lately, he had encountered too many people he couldn't control: Percy, whose strength had suddenly surged; Zhao Mei, who threatened him; even the most familiar Sykes had become a stranger.

Damn it! Did Sykes suddenly grow a brain, or was he being advised by someone else? He hadn't been notified about that matter at all.

Seeing Ye Zheng today, he actually felt a sense of reassurance, a feeling that there were still normal people around.

"Rest assured, we have all witnessed the loyalty of the Ye family. I will explain it properly to my father."

Yu Tianming had originally intended to just brush off the Saintess's request; he had enough on his plate recently.

But considering the recent turn of events, he felt he needed to gather some allies for himself—not for the Yu family or Sykes, but just for himself.

Pleasing those two was completely useless! They wouldn't even grant him the most basic trust.

Instead of offering up his heart's blood to beg from the stronger, it was better to take everything into his own hands—this was something that the mysterious and ruthless Zhao Mei had made him realize.

Now, because Sierra had exposed the Pope on the spot, the Sei Curia's attitude toward Ye Zheng was delicate, and Sykes had always disliked her. This was the perfect opportunity for him to win her and the Ye family over. Although they might not bring him great benefits, he had to take this step.

He was only one year away from adulthood. He had to adjust his mindset, completely shed his student mentality, and prepare to truly plunge into the storms of the Empire.

As the young man's heart surged with excitement, lost in visions of the future, the other young person in the room crossed her arms, no longer fiddling with her hair, a faint, almost imperceptible interest in her eyes.

Noticing Yu Tianming's face gradually flush and his hand unconsciously adjusting his glasses, Ye Zheng knew her objective was achieved.

Yu Tianming would handle things for her properly.

To deal with a smart person, you just had to make him feel that he was very smart.

"Additionally, I need a venue in the lower district. A formal training ground, at least on par with the specifications of the knight order stationed there."

Yu Tianming's eyes flickered with confusion. "You are the Saintess of the Sei Curia. Do the Sei Curia's knights need a training ground in the lower district?"

"The Pope already promised me that I could form a knight order exclusive to the Saintess. After all, there have been too many dangers recently."

"But, as the Saintess of the Sei Curia, bypassing the Sei Curia to seek assistance from the Crown Prince's people... I'm afraid the Pope will be displeased, which would be detrimental to you."

To this, Saintess Ye Zheng gave a slightly bitter smile. "The Pope has too many worries lately. I really shouldn't approach him and add to his troubles..."

A look of understanding flashed behind the lenses. Yu Tianming got it again. Ye Zheng had likely been cast aside by the Pope because of that incident and had no choice but to side with the Royal Family.

Speaking of which, he also found the relationship between the Royal Family and the Sei Curia a bit hard to understand. Although the two had always maintained a delicate balance, the Emperor seemed to have broken that balance this time, making a not-so-subtle move against Pope Wen Jian.

Yu Tianming snorted. Wen Jian was from a minor noble family; to have reached his current position was already a great honor. Yet, he seemed unsatisfied, causing more trouble than the previous Pope. What was this about Peace Talismans with his own portrait? The Empire's currency was engraved with the God of Hope!

Ye Zheng was also unlucky. Wen Jian brought his downfall upon himself by being exposed by a thug, and she just happened to be there. And for that, she was innocently blamed.

Establishing a training ground in the lower district was probably to avoid the spotlight of the Sei Curia in the upper district and reduce her presence in the Pope's eyes.

"Alright, I will get it done for you as soon as possible. The Saintess's safety is no small matter."

Both had gotten what they wanted. After exchanging smiles, Ye Zheng left the Yu residence and got into her car.

She closed her eyes and leaned back in the car for a while before speaking to the driver in front. "Please turn around. I need to visit Duke Qin Lu."

*

Ye Zheng rarely visited Qin Lu's residence. As a teacher at the Royal Academy, she usually met her in the school's laboratory or library.

But she guessed that Qin Lu must be at home now. Truly important experiments or data were unlikely to be kept at the school. After that failure, Qin Lu wouldn't give up; she would only continue her research.

Qin Lu did not live in a mansion typical for a high-ranking noble. Her residence was of a modest size: a small garden plus a three-story villa, manageable by one person.

She liked solitude and always kept her rooms messy. Ye Zheng was used to Qin Lu's style and quickly found a suitable spot to stand in her cluttered room.

"What brings you to visit your teacher all of a sudden?"

Qin Lu laughed, her expression as carefree and enthusiastic as ever.

"I wanted to ask how Heath is doing with her studies under you. I'm a little worried about her."

Heath had led people into the hunting ground to rescue them, offending both her biological brother, the second prince, and the well-prepared Sykes. Ye Zheng thought about it and decided to just push Heath over to Qin Lu.

Like Qin Lu, Heath enjoyed studying knowledge beyond abilities, only Qin Lu loved to tinker with substances that produced peculiar reactions, while Heath preferred literature and art.

More importantly, Qin Lu's unique status could protect Heath.

"You really know how to cause trouble for me."

Qin Lu flicked the girl's forehead with her finger, with considerable force.

Ye Zheng rubbed her forehead, showing a somewhat childish smile in front of her teacher, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness.

"Teacher will always help me."

"Besides, this matter with Heath has a lot to do with you, Teacher."

Looking at Ye Zheng's meaningful smile, Qin Lu's expression faded.

The woman's irises were small, and her long, upturned eyes revealed more of the whites, somewhat resembling the eyes of a snake.

Especially when she was expressionless, her gaze locked onto someone, the oppressive feeling of a cold-blooded animal was overwhelming.

Yet, facing those eyes, Ye Zheng took a metal fragment out of her pocket. She carefully pinched the fragment and waved it in front of Qin Lu.

"Teacher, tell me. Tell me everything you know about Sykes."

Why did the naturally carefree Qin Lu harbor such intense hatred for the Royal Family, the Sei Curia, and Sykes?

After so many years of peace, why did Qin Lu suddenly make a move against Sykes at this juncture, using Laimeng?

The most likely reason for Qin Lu's action was that she had sensed a change in Sykes, which made it unbearable for her to continue waiting. Even if the plan was crude, she couldn't help but act.

"You're asking about Sykes? Ha."

Qin Lu sneered, her hands on the table, and she slammed it hard.

"He is a monster, a complete and utter monster!"

"Is it because he was born with the awakened [Destruction] and took your sister away?"

Qin Lu didn't answer immediately. She composed herself and looked again at her clever student.

She suddenly changed the subject.

"How much do you know about the Pope's ability?"

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