Sothos Town.
Ava suddenly felt something was off around him.
In the butcher's shop beside him, the butcher was staring greedily at the piece of meat in his hand.
On the road, a man and a woman exchanged a glance and couldn't wait to hold hands, slipping into the nearby grove.
On the wooden fence, a cat was making a mewling sound like a crying baby.
Below, two stray dogs, whose origins were unknown, had already mounted each other...
...
"What's... going on?"
Ava looked at Bill next to him, suddenly finding this lad quite handsome.
Desire surged within him, yet he didn't know what to do.
What terrified him even more was that he saw the same flame in Bill's eyes!
"Ahem ahem!"
The next moment, a coughing sound came, like a bucket of ice water in winter, making Ava and Bill shudder and break out in goosebumps.
"Oh grandmother, how could I have such thoughts just now... Ptooey ptooey ptooey!"
Ava turned his head aside, nearly throwing up.
Bill's face turned pale, but he still performed his duty as a servant: "Lord Baron, we have arrived at the town."
"Good, drive directly to the castle!"
From the carriage came Alan's voice.
At this moment, Alan was looking at his own hands as if he could see the extremely powerful 'red' spirituality flowing through his veins!
'Substantial items, even after being offered through two worlds, have been mostly obliterated, leaving only pure spirituality?'
'That's good too, at least I don't have to deal with the negative effects of the oddities...'
Thoughts raced through Alan's mind.
At this moment, just the terrifying quantity of 'red' spirituality made him comparable to an Extraordinary of the second or even third stage!
'But there's no need to hold a ceremony, it will eventually fall away...'
'Thus, I still need it!'
Alan touched his heart, feeling it like a block of ice, freezing even his surging desires.
Just a bit of 'red' spirituality had almost made him lose control; now, with this amount, the impact would be even more terrifying.
The changes outside were a manifestation of this overflowing spirituality!
Fortunately, Alan had prepared in advance, having Olivia and others offer the 'Pure White Ice'.
'The 'Pure White Ice' left behind by the High Priest is the best sealing material. Using it as a foundation to arrange the 'Secret Covenant Ceremony' can create a powerful seal within me. I feel... it could last for dozens of years, even decades...'
'But... even if I hold a ceremony and become an Extraordinary on the 'red' path, will I still become an ordinary person in decades?'
'Then there's no need to fix the path now, it won't be of any use anyway...'
'Besides, with the conflict between 'dark' and 'red', I can use it to balance my desires, preventing loss of control...'
'Facts have proven that, apart from a small initial accident, everything has gone smoothly.'
...
Alan got off the carriage, looking at the familiar outline of the castle, with a complex expression.
"Alan, my brother, you finally came."
Colin stepped forward and embraced Alan: "Father... Father is still waiting for you!"
Alan glanced at the elite soldiers and Morkdo following behind Colin, seemingly unconcerned, and entered the castle: "I'll go see him."
"Of course..."
Alan arrived at Theodore's sickroom and saw the comatose Theodore.
Beside Theodore were the crying Lady Sonia and Sean: 'Oh... my husband, he was as strong as a bear, but he didn't take care of his body...'
Lady Sonia cried sorrowfully: 'The scholar is powerless now, what should I do?'
Alan stepped forward and scanned the scene.
He had to admit, the secret medicine of the Kagash Kingdom worked well. At least Theodore didn't look poisoned; he indeed seemed gravely ill.
'Sigh... With Father in this condition, I am also deeply saddened, but responsibility calls, so I must reluctantly take over...'
Colin sighed: 'Alan, go freshen up and rest, change into formal attire. I've prepared a welcome banquet for you and the other lords tonight.'
'As you command.'
Alan agreed and returned to his old room, looked at the familiar scene, and couldn't help but sigh heavily.
...
'Tonight will decide everything.'
Colin stood in the center of the banquet hall, gazing at the vibrant flowers and the sparkling tablecloths on the dining table, his expression turning somewhat strange: 'When Alan was a child, he was always very quiet and not sociable... but we never fought. I was the one who taught him to ride a horse for the first time.'
Ferlic appeared behind Colin at an unknown time: 'Everything is ready. Do you still want to stop, sir?'
'No, I'm just lamenting... How much more do I have to give up to claim that position...'
Colin sighed deeply.
After he left, Ferlic looked at his back, his gaze deep.
'Sir!?'
A servant came to his side: 'What do we do next?'
'Watch Colin obliterate dissent and truly secure his position? What a joke.'
Ferlic chuckled quietly, looked around to make sure no one was there, and commanded: 'No matter who wins, the count will die suddenly tonight. Tomorrow, rumors of Colin murdering his father will spread in all directions! Hmm... we can't let Colin win so easily. Find someone, leak the news to Alan, but don't use our people, use Lady Sonia's people from before!'
...
At this time, Alan walked through the castle corridor, pondering what he saw in the sickroom.
'Lady Sonia... Did she join forces with Colin?'
He wasn't surprised; she was a smart woman who would choose the most advantageous course for herself.
A maid approached him and suddenly bumped into his chest.
'Sorry, sir!'
She was so scared that she immediately knelt on the ground, earnestly begging for forgiveness.
'It's okay, be more careful next time.'
Alan waved his hand to let the maid leave. He walked to a corner and opened his palm.
In his hand, there was a note with a line of text.
'Scarlet Banquet?!'
He curled his lips and casually stuffed the note into his chest: 'How unoriginal...'
With his spiritual intuition, after walking around, he almost sensed Colin's arrangements.
As an awakened one with the Scarlet Spirit, he was very sensitive to matters of flesh and blood.
Alan felt that in the castle dungeon, many people seemed to be skinned and blood was flowing everywhere.
Besides that, key soldiers in critical positions were also replaced.
Everything indicated that a conspiracy was approaching.
The only reason he was waiting was to give Colin a chance to repent.
'Sometimes, I am really a bit overly sentimental...'
Alan shook his head, smiled bitterly, and mocked himself.