Mystery: Good Witch

Chapter 875 Death and Channeling
The dragon's collapse was not like what Angel had seen before, where the dragon was affected by the "disaster" spell and turned into powder from the inside out, but rather it was like spiritual exhaustion and the loss of control caused by the body's inability to contain extraordinary power.

Hvin Rambis's golden pupils turned dark red, and thick blood vessels emerged from the gaps between his eyeballs and the surrounding scales. They burst due to pressure, and blood quickly covered his still human face. The dragon's sturdy limbs kicked and pawed in the air, as if trying to grab something to maintain balance, and the pair of wings covered with flesh flapped up and down in an uncoordinated manner, causing his heavy body to sway constantly in the air, as if it would fall to the ground at any time.

The human's mouth opened at an exaggerated angle, tearing the skin between the upper and lower lips, emitting a continuous, untuned roar and spewing out transparent breath.

But it was not aimed at the enemy below, but was firing aimlessly everywhere. Rather than actively attacking, it was more like an unconscious resistance.

The scales covering his entire body were lifted up one by one, and underneath was the constantly squirming flesh and blood. They seemed to have their own consciousness, and they were eager to squeeze out of the dragon scales that were wrapping themselves, drill out of the body surface, and gain freedom.

Splashes of dark red blood fell from the sky like rain, forming a circular red and black area on the ground, like an eye looking up at the sky.

Angel, who used a mirror to dodge the "rotten meteor", emerged from another place and looked at everything happening in the sky in surprise. For some reason, Hvin Rambis, who was still full of fighting spirit a second ago, suddenly collapsed in spirit and was destroyed in body, as if...

Like it's been seriously polluted?

Just then, a familiar voice sounded in her ears.

"Remember, no matter how weak the enemy is, you must go all out. Every path has its own unique way of fighting. If you underestimate them, you will only suffer a great loss... If I hadn't passed the forbidden knowledge to the virtual personality that invaded your consciousness on your island of consciousness, and finally polluted the dragon, you would have either killed the opponent with crazy thoughts and then sought help from the gods yourself, or come to the 'City of Disaster' to keep me company... Don't do divination or spiritualism on your own, otherwise you will be affected by the pollution."

That was the voice of her "man in the mirror".

The battle in the "mirror world" still attracted her here. Although she cannot go to reality, she can appear in my subconscious in the mirror world... But I am also prepared for the mental plague. The Hewin who invaded my consciousness will only infect my mirror double, not myself...

Angel muttered, knowing that the "man in the mirror" had good intentions, so he did not refute, but locked his sight on Hvin Rambis, who was no longer in dragon form and was about to fall in the sky, and decided to end the battle quickly.

Invisible threads spread out. They did not carry the cursed black flames or the power to petrify people. Instead, they were strengthened by "precision" and "harvest", becoming sharp blades that could easily cut through scales, flesh and bones.

These invisible blades quickly surrounded the dragon-like Herwin, cutting deeper and deeper blood marks on his body. During this time, the giant dragon's unconscious struggle broke many silk threads, but more blades followed, completely wrapping him up like a giant net, penetrating deep into his flesh and bones.

Gradually, the giant dragon stopped struggling. Its thick limbs were cut into several pieces, and fell one by one on the bloody ground. Its pair of fleshy wings drooped limply on its tattered body, and it fell to the ground with a thud, stirring up a cloud of dust.

Angel took advantage of the situation and jumped up, hanging in the air with the help of the silk thread, avoiding the smoke and splattered blood.

At the same time, the "Mirror World" that was already crumbling due to explosions and corrosion also ended its mission. As the surrounding streets collapsed and shattered like broken mirrors, the corpse of the dragon, the blood and flesh on the ground, and Angel who was gradually falling to the ground were once again shrouded in the light of the red moon in the sky. The surrounding streets were still dead silent, but with the breeze blowing, there was a hint of life.

It’s over… I practiced the abilities of the Iron Knight in actual combat, killed Hvin Rambis of the Psychological Alchemist Society, resolved a major crisis, and witnessed the horror of the “knowledge” that my “person in the mirror” said I had to become a Sequence 2 to understand… The only problem is that the “person in the mirror” doesn’t seem to be like she said, and can’t leave the location of the “City of Disaster” at all…

Thoughts flashed through Angel's mind. He landed lightly on the ground with his feet. He stood up straight, raised his neck slightly, took a deep breath of the slightly bloody air with enjoyment, squinted his eyes, maintained this posture for a moment, and ended the battle in a very ritualistic manner.

It's a pity that no one appreciated this scene, otherwise the "Golden Queen" would have another legend, such as "Dragon Slayer"... She thought with a little pride, opened her eyes, and looked towards the place where the dragon Hvin Rambis died.

German Sparrow, who was wearing a black windbreaker, a silk hat, a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose and a slightly thin face, and Arianna, the "Servant of Secrets", who was wearing a simple robe, a bark belt, and bare feet, stood side by side and looked at her quietly.

The former held the "Death Knell" revolver in one hand and the "Luck Thief" amulet in the other, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised and his dark brown eyes revealing an undisguised smile.

Although the latter's expression was calm and there was no change in emotion, his gaze was like a brush sweeping across his skin, making Angel feel extremely uncomfortable.

"When did you guys come?"

Hurry up and say you just arrived—she let out a roar in the style of “Flame” Danitz in her heart.

"It's been a minute or two. Ms. Arianna said the battle in the Mirror World is almost over. We'll be waiting for you here." Klein, dressed as Gehrman, finally couldn't help laughing until he restrained his emotions under Angel's murderous gaze. "He has already 'secreted' this area. Let's finish what we need to do first, and then discuss your appearance just now."

He dared to mention "just now"... Angel took a deep breath, turned his gaze to Arianna, who was dressed as an ascetic, bowed respectfully, and said:
"Ms. Arianna, Hvin Rambis has died in the battle just now, but he fell into madness before his death and seemed to have been contaminated in some way. I am not sure whether the spiritual communication will be successful."

"Let me do it." The lady, whose status in the Goddess Church was second only to the Pope, answered calmly. She stepped barefoot on the dragon blood flowing on the ground, walked to Hwin's head with open pupils and burst blood vessels, and reached out to grab it.

The outline of the broken dragon body that had not yet regained its human form faded and almost disappeared on the street, while a translucent figure emerged from under her palm, was dragged away from the body, and floated in front of the three people.

That was the spirit of Hvin Rambis, with a bloodstained face and a dazed expression.

Unlike the usual "psychic", this "manipulator"'s eyes were still somewhat bulging, with drops of blood and tears running down his face, his bulging blood vessels still hadn't returned to normal, and his skin had a strange dark green color, reminding Angel of the projectiles fired from the strange metal barrel he had used before.

"He was contaminated by the 'Starry Sky'. You were wise not to choose to channel the spirit on your own."

Arianna said calmly, and then shook the hand that was dragging Hwin's spirit. Hwin, who was held by Him like a toy, disappeared from Angel's sight for a moment, and then reappeared, but the strange dark green had disappeared without a trace, and the blood and tears on his face had also faded a lot.

Now is the time to ask questions... Angel looked at Klein, their eyes met, and then they both looked at Ms. Arianna, signaling that he should speak first.

The ascetic did not hesitate to ask directly:

"Which faction of the royal family was behind the 'big smog' at the end of last year?"

This was also the answer that Angel and Klein wanted to get after spending nearly half a year lurking in Backlund, changing their identities and blending into the upper class society.

Hvin Rambis, whose spirit was contaminated by the "secret" and much more stable than before when it lost control, twitched his mouth and replied in a calm tone:
"It was King George III and those members of the royal family who supported him and wanted to start a war."

Hearing this answer, Angel was surprised, yet felt it was natural. He felt that a vague suspicion had been confirmed, and many unresolved questions had been answered.

In the royal faction, Angel already knew the conservatives represented by Duchess Georgina. They were not conservatives in the political sense, but were inclined to let the Kingdom of Loen maintain the status quo, recuperate, and balance the situation between the north and south continents through various covert means. They could have some minor conflicts with other countries, but would not trigger a full-scale war.

Naturally, where there are such factions, there will be "radicals" that they oppose. According to the information Angel and Klein have investigated, as well as the "mission" Audrey received from Hwin, many nobles and parliamentarians are eager for a larger war to divert internal conflicts within the kingdom, expand externally, seize profits, and strengthen themselves.

King George III seemed to have suffered great losses in the smog, lost some of his prestige, and compromised with the three major churches. However, in fact, through the changes in the authority of the church and the military, the military strength of the Kingdom of Loen was strengthened in the short term, and the possibility of launching a local war was greatly increased.

But he could have carried out reforms with more moderate means. What was the purpose of creating heavy smog and killing more than 100,000 of his own people... Angel pondered and waited for Arianna to continue asking.

"What is your purpose in helping him?"

Arianna seemed to have no reaction to the name "George III" and continued to ask in a calm tone.

“Follow the trend of the world, obey the choice of the times, help George III conceal his secrets, and provide certain guidance to make events develop in the right direction.”

Hwin's expression changed slightly and he replied in a serious tone.

The trend of the world... As expected, the Psychological Alchemy Society and the "Twilight Hermit Society" are closely related... But Herwin's answer means that he has no idea what this secret organization is going to do specifically. It is only responsible for assisting King George III, helping him hide the truth about the Great Smog, and spying on the thoughts of other royal factions... The name of "Fantasy Angel" appeared in Angel's mind again. He took a deep breath and forced himself to kill the idea to prevent the other party from knowing it.

Well, but with the protection of Ms. Arianna here, He shouldn't find out. That's why He communicates with spirits directly here... Looking up at the red moon that was even bigger than usual, Angel relaxed.

As her thoughts continued to flash through her mind, Arianna asked her next question:
"What secret is George III hiding?"

Herwin's serious expression softened a little, and he replied:

“He tried to bypass the contract with the three major churches and break through the restriction that he could only be promoted to Sequence 5. As long as he waited for the tide of the times to come, he could take the potion and ascend to the position that belonged to him.

"And the key to achieving all of this lies in a ruin outside Backlund."

(End of this chapter)