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Chapter 416: Medical Miracle

In the command center of Tark Stronghold, a golden-haired man stared at a prairie outside the window. Behind him were a group of men and women dressed in the saintly white robes of the Genesis Goddess Church. There was not a sound to be heard within the room despite the crowd gathered inside.

The only evidence that time hadn’t fallen still was the roaring night gale outside.

From the towering fortress, it looked as if Tark Prairie was submerged in a sea of murky darkness filled with treacherous enemies. It reflected what Prince Kane was feeling at this very instant.

Perhaps due to sensing the discomposure coming from the command center, the guards patrolling around the stronghold had intentionally lightened their footsteps, but the absence of sound only worsened the moods of the present bishops.

“Where is Nora?”

“… She’s in the Arcane Ice Lake, Prince Kane.”

“…”

The Chief of Rites, Bishop Kathleen, carefully answered Prince Kane’s question.

As one of the top leaders of the church, Kathleen had never had to tread warily around anyone before. She was respected no matter where she went, and her words were taken as edicts. Yet, this competent woman was speaking in a carefully controlled tone.

It couldn’t be helped since she knew why Prince Kane was in such a terrible mood.

A month ago, as a side effect from her overly swift bloodline awakening, the princess of the Saint Mesit Theocracy, Nora, showed signs of Seraphication and ended up losing control. That incident took the entire church by shock.

Holy Eminence John immediately ordered a lockdown on the news before dispatching many experts from the Rites Department to accompany Nora to the Tark Stronghold for treatment.

Back when they first received the edict, the bishops of the Rites Department heaved a huge sigh of relief. It had been a while since they had to deal with any cases of Seraphication, so Nora’s situation had completely caught them off guard. They felt that it would be easier for them to treat Nora once she moved to Tark Stronghold.

Seraphication could be summarized as one’s divine instinct and energy going berserk, and one of the ways to resolve this berserk state was to give the individual an avenue to vent. It was similar to how a rampaging bull would eventually tire out after a while.

The countless deviants outside Tark Stronghold would become fodder to wear out Nora’s aggression, till she finally regained her composure.

There was nothing wrong with the plan, but things didn’t proceed the way they had expected.

Nora’s condition did improve initially when she first arrived at Tark Stronghold and started venting her aggression on the deviants. However, as the degree of her bloodline awakening deepened, the situation took a turn for the worse.

“She has already been out for almost ten hours now. That far exceeds my duration back when I was in the same position as her. Bishop Kathleen, can you explain why there’s still no improvement in my daughter’s condition?”

After a prolonged bout of silence, Kane turned to Kathleen and questioned with suppressed fury. The latter gave the situation some thought before she respectfully stepped forward and answered.

“Your Highness, Her Highness Nora possesses the Primordial Angel Bloodline. Her condition is far more severe than what you faced back then. This is evident in how Her Highness Nora has already slain two times as many enemies as you did back then.”

“Then why is it not working?! There are already no deviants alive in the vicinity of our stronghold. At this rate, she’ll be marching into the depths of Tark Prairie within the next few days!”

Kane slammed his palm on the table and bellowed. The bishops in the room shuddered at his furious outburst, including Kathleen.

None of them had expected Nora’s Seraphication to be so severe, and the knowledge that her condition was only going to further worsen left them despaired.

Seraphication was a fight between one’s humanity and divine instinct, and it was the most dangerous condition that a Xeclyde could be afflicted with. If Nora succumbed to her divine instinct, she would lose her humanity for good.

That was not a result the church could accept.

Nora had undergone the Restoration of Primordial Bloodline, making her the most talented Xeclyde in the past thousand years. Not to mention, the lineage of the Xeclydes had been thinning out over the years.

No one could predict the repercussions that would occur if they were to lose Nora, especially in this tumultuous period. But if one thing was for sure, all of them present here would become the sinners of humankind.

It was a frightening notion even for the veteran bishops who had weathered through numerous storms.

After a moment of silence, Kathleen stepped forward and spoke up.

“Your Highness, I understand how you’re feeling. Her Highness Nora is in a precarious position. Allowing her to unleash her aggression on the deviants has indeed helped alleviate her condition to some extent. It’s just that Her Highness Nora’s bloodline is simply too powerful. She’s unable to exhaust the divine instinct within her.”

“What do we do then? Are you going to make her soak in that blasted ice lake forever?”

Just the thought of how his daughter was still soaking inside that freezing cold magic lake to suppress her own energy left Kane feeling as if a dagger was plunged in his heart. He had been through that experience himself, and he knew just how excruciating it was.

He knew that the bishops were trying their best too, but that wasn’t enough.

But just as he was about to continue berating the bishops, he noticed a peculiar look on their faces.

What’s going on? Did I say something wrong?

Prince Kane’s forehead slowly furrowed as he waited for the bishops to give their answer. Bishop Kathleen hesitated for a brief moment before speaking carefully.

“Your Highness, the effectiveness of the Arcane Ice Lake on Her Highness Nora is extremely limited. It can stall the encroachment of her divine instinct, but it can’t treat her condition.”

“It can’t treat her condition? That can’t be. Didn’t you report an improvement in her condition earlier today?”

“There’s an improvement in Her Highness Nora’s condition, but it isn’t because of the Arcane Ice Lake. It’s because of that letter.”

“Letter?”

Prince Kane repeated the key term before his pupils slowly dilated. He specifically remembered a certain letter that had arrived from the Holy Capital just earlier today.

It was from the successor of the Ascart House, Roel Ascart. It was probably sent a month ago, considering the time it would have taken to reach the eastern border. Back then, when Nora first arrived at Tark Stronghold, she specially requested him to keep a lookout for any letters from Roel and make sure to deliver it to her right away.

Who could have thought that the Seraphication, which the church elites desperately tried to suppress but to no avail, would actually be suppressed by a mere letter?

“Her condition improved because of that letter?”

“That’s right. Her Highness spent the entire night looking through the letter over and over again. It was around that period of time that her degree of Seraphication started falling.”

“…”

Prince Kane was stunned.

The other bishops present in the room who had witnessed the medical miracle also had bizarre looks on their faces. Kathleen thought about the look she had seen on Nora’s face and spoke up once more.

“Your Highness, there are grounds to believe that Her Highness Nora’s willpower is more effective in dealing with her Seraphication than venting her aggression on the battlefield. She might benefit more from your accompaniment… as well as that of the person who sent the letter.”

“I understand.”

Having heard the expert’s verdict, Prince Kane raised his head and ordered with conviction.

“Dispatch the troops. Bring Roel Ascart here right away!”

…

It was rare for Roel to alight from his carriage unless he was on duty, but at this very moment, he stood alongside the other members of the group to behold the impressive fortress towering in the middle of Tark Prairie.

It was refreshing to witness such vast scenery after spending a month traveling through mountains and forests, but more than that, they were amazed by how nature created obstacles and humans exploited them to their benefit.

Far in the distance, there were two steep mountains with a black fortress standing imposingly between them. The fortress was built into the mountains, resembling an unwavering black shield blocking out all threats.

Seeing that their destination was finally in sight, the crowd couldn’t help but tremble in excitement.

There was a saying that horses who raced toward mountains eventually die of exhaustion.

However, Roel’s group were already mentally exhausted from having to deal with all sorts of schemes concocted by the deviants. There was no greater motivation for them than having a place where they could rest at ease.

Good news came in pairs.

After several more days of traveling, Roel’s group stumbled upon their second surprise. A group of knights from Tark Fortress had specially come over to fetch them.

“Lord Roel, we are from the Third Knight Order. We have under orders from our commander-in-chief, Prince Kane, to escort you to Tark Stronghold. I have a letter from him with me. Please have a look at it.”

The knights stood in an orderly fashion as their captain stepped forward and respectfully presented an envelope.

Both the inquisitors and the heretics were amazed by how much the Xeclydes favored Roel to actually dispatch knights to escort him. In contrast, Roel frowned upon hearing those words. Kane had never shown a favorable attitude toward him.

While Holy Eminence John showed full support for Roel and Nora’s relationship, Kane, as her father, was much more stubborn about it. On the whole, he still treated Roel fairly well, but definitely not to the extent of dispatching a knight unit to escort him.

That gave Roel an ominous premonition. He nodded in acknowledgment before opening the envelope to have a look at the letter.

The contents made his heart sink.

It was a request for help from Prince Kane, urging Roel to rush to Tark Stronghold as soon as possible to accompany Nora.

The letter detailed how Nora’s bloodline activity would reach its peak within the next two weeks. It was a crucial period for her, and there could be dire consequences if she lost control during this period of time. Regarding that, Roel was one of the key factors that could aid her.

Roel flew into a fluster after reading the letter. Estimating the time the letter was sent, it was likely that Nora had already reached the critical period for her bloodline awakening at this very moment.

I need to set off right away, or else it’ll be too late.

Not daring to waste any time, Roel entrusted the heretical army to Hanks’ command before accompanying the knights toward Tark Stronghold. With anxiety pounding in his heart, he urged his steed to gallop as far as possible.

Meanwhile, in the distant Tark Stronghold, a billowing sea of mist started rising from the ground, gradually drowning everything within it.