abnabooks Chapter 170 Triss's Exposure
Chapter 170 Triss's Exposure
Chapter 170 Triss's Exposure
After learning from Evan about the manor where Triss was located, Mr. A went to great lengths to place a believer inside as an informant. He then disguised himself and blended in to make contact with Triss.
Triss then relayed to the Witch Cult that the Aurora Society wanted to cooperate with them to assassinate Duke Negan, promising that the Witch Cult wouldn't have to do anything, only provide them with intelligence.
When Triss reported this matter, it unsurprisingly provoked a strong reaction from the Witch Cult.
Although it was Triss who first brought the news of the Aurora Society seeking cooperation, the Witch Cult never allowed her to contact the Aurora Society in Backlund. Instead, they sent other witches to make contact with the Aurora Society, all to prevent Triss from being exposed to them.
Because Triss could be considered one of the reasons they orchestrated the Backlund smog event.
For George III, the Backlund smog was a population write-off, concealing the rapid decline in the East End's workforce and buying time for the construction of his underground mausoleum.
For the Witch Cult, the Great Smog of Backlund was not only a matter of cooperation with George III, but also a necessary measure for them to cultivate Triss, the primordial witch, as a vessel for her descent.
Just as the child in Megas's womb was able to grow rapidly in an environment full of despair and resentment, Triss's growth also required the same environment.
Triss had only recently infiltrated Edsac Augustus's inner circle when the Aurora Society came knocking on her door, naturally provoking a strong reaction from the Witch Cult.
If Mr. A from the Aurora Society can come to us, does that mean other secretive organizations can also come to us?
The high-sequence witch, "Desperate Nightingale" Panatia, reacted impulsively, wanting to capture Mr. A alive and find out why he had come to her door.
Although Mr. A was the strongest "Shepherd" below the demigod level, and he had made preparations in advance when he infiltrated and contacted Triss, specifically having the "Dark Saint" record his demigod-level abilities, it was still quite unexpected that he could escape Panadia's pursuit so easily.
This is because, during her pursuit of Mr. A, Panatia unexpectedly discovered traces of the "Gnostic Society" and their attempt to abduct Triss.
The Gnostic and the Witch Cult are mortal enemies, yet both control the "assassin" path, and their origins can even be said to be the same.
The saying "What is more hateful than heretics is internal heresy" couldn't be more fitting for both of them.
The power of the Gnostic Society, or rather its higher-level power, is far inferior to that of the Witch Cult, but their threat to the Witch Cult far exceeds that of other orthodox churches and secret organizations.
Both sides even viewed each other as a conduit for advancement, a walking potion.
If Triss's existence becomes known to other people or organizations, they can simply trade with each other or miss this opportunity to cultivate a vessel for divine descent.
However, if the Gnostic learns of Triss's existence, Triss could potentially be used against her by the Gnostic.
It is important to know that the founder of the Gnostic Society was the youngest daughter of the "Primal Witch," and also a witch who was born as a Sequence 2 angel, and who worshipped the feminine side of the "Primal Witch."
If the Gnostic were to obtain the "divine vessel" painstakingly created by the Witch Cult and use it to influence the "Primordial Witch," it would be a devastating blow to the Witch Cult.
Conversely, the same applies to the Gnostic Order. The reason the Gnostic Order trained Evan to infiltrate the Witch Cult was because the Witch Cult's movements in Backlund were unclear, and they were worried that the Witch Cult might have a conspiracy against them.
And Evan lived up to expectations by bringing news that the Witch Cult had sent people to approach Edsac Augustus.
This secretly relieved the witches of the Gnostic Order, because they knew that the Augustan royal family possessed an extraordinary trait—Hunter's Path Sequence 1 "Conqueror"—so it wasn't surprising that the witch cult had once again set its sights on it.
Just keep an eye on things, and stab them in the back when it matters.
Later, when they heard that the Witch Cult was planning to cooperate with the Aurora Society, the Gnostic Society sent people to follow Mr. A. Unexpectedly, they ran into him while following him.
Others might not be able to tell, but the witches of the Gnostic Society could. Triss was definitely a standard vessel for divine intervention.
If the Witch Cult successfully cultivates Triss and truly brings the male will of the "Primal Witch" into the world, it would be an absolute catastrophe for the Gnostic Society.
So when Panadia was hunting down Mr. A, Sophia, the demigod witch of the Gnostic Order who was also tracking Mr. A, and Helen's aunt, resolutely took action, attempting to kidnap Triss. Unfortunately, just as she was about to succeed, a "Law Mage" with the Arbitrator Path Sequence 4 appeared and stopped her.
This even prevented her from killing Triss, leaving her only able to escape.
The situation in Backlund has become tense and chaotic again over the past two weeks.
The Witch Cult expressed its willingness to cooperate with the Aurora Society, while also trying to find out why the Aurora Society knew about Triss's existence. At the same time, they wanted to lure Mr. A out and capture him alive.
The Gnostic Society quickly assembled its forces, wanting to both seize Triss and, like the Witch Cult, begin searching for Mr. A's whereabouts, as they also didn't know his current location. At the same time, they wanted to know why Mr. A was able to find Triss so precisely, otherwise, even if they managed to seize Triss, they couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't be found.
Mr. A was both anxious and overjoyed after escaping from the clutches of "Desperate Nightingale" Panatia.
He was anxious because he had just realized he was being followed by a demigod-level witch, and even the "Dark Saint" he had met before...
No one noticed that he was being watched.
This made him somewhat anxious. Had Evan, who had been frequently in contact with him recently, been discovered? Had Lanius's hiding place been exposed, and so on?
To his delight, he was certain that Triss was not suspected by the Witch Cult, and he also heard from Triss that the Witch Cult had changed his name to "Chik".
Although Mr. A did not understand what the name meant, as a devout believer of the true Creator, he keenly sensed that the Lord's gaze was upon him and Triss at that moment, and clearly felt the Lord's joy, and even received a certain reward.
Since the Lord has already set his sights on Triss and has not given him any divine instructions, he will not interfere with Triss's affairs, lest he ruin the Lord's plans.
At the same time, he also had to conceal himself and reduce the suspicions of the Witch Cult and the Gnostic that the true Creator had intervened in Triss's affairs.
Yes, he already knows that the one tracking him is a Gnostic witch. This information came from Evan. With such a big incident in Backlund, if MI9 didn't know anything about it, they deserved to be dismissed.
After several days of struggle, the Gnostic found no opportunity to strike and outwardly began to back down.
The Witch Cult couldn't make too much of a move to avoid arousing suspicion about their cooperation with the Augustus family, so they gradually reduced their actions.
Backlund seemed to have returned to calm for a time, but the behind-the-scenes actions of all parties were becoming increasingly intense.
First, Colonel Evan, the most dazzling rising star of MI9, received the mission to investigate the hidden organization and cultists in Backlund.
The demigod battle that took place outside the Red Rose Manor of the Third Prince, Edsak Augustus, aroused strong dissatisfaction from the royal family, who ordered MI9 to investigate the truth of the matter and purge all evil forces within Backlund.
The participants in that great battle were all demigods, the lowest being the strongest shepherd below demigod. The demigods of MI9 were not present and knew little about the situation, so it would be a miracle if they could uncover the truth.
Moreover, if secret organizations and cultists were so easy to catch, they would have done so long ago; there's no way they would have waited until now.
After a meeting of MI9's top brass, everyone agreed to entrust this glorious and arduous task to Colonel Evan Horn, the most prominent figure in MI9.
Such a major incident was naturally handled by the most outstanding intelligence personnel; that was their official explanation. In reality, all parties within MI9 wanted to see Evan suffer a major setback.
This shows just how much people hate Evan for being promoted three ranks and granted a hereditary baronial title during this period!
To the astonishment of the bigwigs at MI9, Evan, upon receiving the mission, did not wallow in self-pity, rendering all the excuses they had prepared useless.
Just two days later, Evan had raided many Aurora Society outposts, including the location where Mr. A held a gathering in the West District, some of the Witch Cult's peripheral intelligence personnel, some of the Gnostic Society's secret properties, and the Rose School's secret outpost in the East District.
He openly mocked and ridiculed everyone involved at an internal MI9 meeting, implying that they weren't incapable of cleaning up Backlund's underworld, but rather harbored a "let's just get by" or "raise bandits to enhance their own importance" mentality. This infuriated the bigwigs, who were unable to refute him.
Because in the face of Evan's record, all their rebuttals are weak and powerless.
They can only be either "stupid" or "evil." Choosing "stupid" means the immediate end of their political career. How can a stupid person sit in a high position?
Choosing "bad" isn't much better, but at least it proves that there's nothing wrong with your brain, and there's still a possibility of making a comeback in the future.
Moreover, these people were actually quite guilty, because they also had a certain degree of ego in mind when they were supporting bandits. For example, MI9 personnel attended every one of Mr. A's gatherings, and it was impossible for them not to know about it.
However, since they used to trade extraordinary materials and gatherings, which couldn't be completely prohibited, it was better to secretly use this as a pretext. But when Evan exposed that the organizer of the gatherings was the Aurora Society, this argument fell apart. The tacit acceptance of underground trading of extraordinary materials was to keep them under their own control and reduce the harm caused by the circulation of extraordinary materials, rather than letting them fall into the hands of the evil god organization and contribute to their growth and expansion.
The only reason MI9 would tolerate these illicit gatherings is that these organizations are giving money to certain people within MI9.
In short, at the MI9 internal meeting, Evan did his best to mock, while Robert, sitting on the stage, cooperated perfectly, looking at his colleagues with an expression of "I never thought so" and "I never thought you were this kind of people," making a large number of people feel extremely uncomfortable.
The internal debriefing meeting ended hastily, foreshadowing a major overhaul that would follow. Robert's first act as the new leader would likely affect many people.