"Peach" Isadro noticed Tang Zheng's calm demeanor and likewise picked up the Black Tea on the table, lost in thought.
This mission to the Slane Theocracy wasn't complicated. The most important part was, as instructed by Lady Quartet, to try their best to win over Team Leader Tang, the Adamantite Rank "Free Will."
However, after observing for the past few days, he realized that the Theocracy seemed to value this Team Leader Tang even more than Lady Quartet had anticipated.
Especially after what happened today.
"Peach" Isadro had to consider things more deeply.
From a national perspective, causing conflict between their country and the Theocracy because of an Adventurer was something to be avoided at all costs!
A thought of giving up on this Team Leader Tang surfaced in "Peach" Isadro's mind, even though he also admired the other party.
After all, the other party was both an Adventurer and someone from the Re-Estize Kingdom. Even if they could win him over, the benefits gained would be quite limited.
"I don't care if that old guy is really dead or just pretending!"
"What the Theocracy is doing now is forcefully restricting us, these arrogant fools!"
Remedios's expression was displeased, and she spoke angrily.
"Captain..." "Peach" Isadro's face fell, and he quickly spoke to stop her.
"Shut up!"
Remedios glared, her sharp gaze sweeping over "Peach" Isadro: "Constantly giving in will only make the Theocracy more reckless!"
Having said that!
Remedios turned her head, her fluffy brown short hair slightly lifting, and looked at Tang Zheng with fiery eyes, a hint of excitement in her tone: "How about we cause a big scene? What do you say, Tang?"
"Like first capturing that annoying Clementine, breaking her hands and feet or something. Anyway, the Theocracy knows I've clashed with her multiple times."
"As long as I don't kill her, the Theocracy can't do anything to me."
Remedios spoke proudly.
This wasn't arrogance, but a fact. Given Remedios's status, as long as she didn't kill Clementine, the Theocracy really wouldn't escalate the matter because of it.
"Captain!"
"Peach" Isadro's face completely changed, his voice deepening slightly.
Saying such things in private was one thing!
Now, not only was she saying it in front of an outsider, but the attitude revealed in the Captain's words would also allow Team Leader Tang to further understand their stance, and even gain some initiative.
"For the honor of the Holy Kingdom!" Remedios retorted unceremoniously.
"Peach" Isadro opened his mouth.
Tang Zheng held the Black Tea cup and glanced at "Black" Pabel, who had remained silent the entire time.
Although these three were all "Nine Colors," Pabel's status was clearly the lowest. Remedios and the other person were the Captain and Vice Captain of the Paladin Order, respectively, and were more familiar and closer, with similar status.
"Black" Pabel had no right to interrupt their conversation.
A keen intuition.
"Black" Pabel immediately felt Tang Zheng's gaze. Just as he was about to nod in response, his narrow eyelids suddenly became terrifying.
*Bang!*
"Who?"
"Black" Pabel suddenly stood up, his gaze as sharp and cold as needles, scanning the entire hall. Then he took out a black short staff from his pocket.
"Life Detection!"
The short staff emitted a soft, pale green light.
It formed Mana Fluctuations invisible to the naked eye, rapidly probing the surroundings.
"What's wrong?"
Remedios's face also turned cold right after.
After a brief observation, "Black" Pabel's short staff's light faded. A look of confusion and hesitation appeared on his face behind the mask before he respectfully replied:
"Lady Remedios, I just sensed someone watching here."
"It's just... I didn't find anything. Maybe it was an illusion."
Remedios's expression eased slightly.
A hint of surprise flashed in Tang Zheng's eyes. It had to be said that "Black" Pabel was indeed worthy of being a Hero Domain "Guerrilla"; his intuition was truly sharp.
At this moment, there were more than just the four of them in the room.
Specifically, there are a total of 5 people!
Detected skill "Ninjutsu: Concealment". Requires high-level job class [Ninja]. Current conditions met.
Consume 1 skill point to learn?
Tang Zheng's gaze swept across the attribute panel in front of him. He had already noticed it the moment he entered the room.
Ninja job class?
If it weren't for Remedios's words just now, which caused the hidden person to make a move...
Perhaps "Black" Pabel would never have discovered them from start to finish.
With such strength and job class...
The only one who fits the description is "Heaven and Earth" from the [Darkness Scripture].
They are truly valued by the Theocracy.
How long has it been? They've already seen several members of the [Darkness Scripture] consecutively.
However!
This was actually a good thing for Tang Zheng.
The continuous deployment of [Darkness Scripture] members instead indicated that the number of Hero Domain powerhouses within the Theocracy was about the same as shown in the original work.
"This is the Theocracy's territory after all."
Tang Zheng feigned a natural demeanor, placing the black tea cup he was holding onto the table, and said with a smile:
"And we are currently restricted. It's possible we're being monitored."
"Heaven and Earth," hidden in the hall, carefully retreated backward, pressing closer to the wall. A slight cold sweat appeared on their invisible face.
"I was almost discovered!"
"Monitoring four Hero-level powerhouses, that's a tough job."
The figure dressed as a ninja in a red and black tight suit muttered inwardly.
Being discovered would be very troublesome!
And facing four people alone, even with their strength, they dared not be careless in the slightest.
"Tang, what do you think of my suggestion just now?" Remedios asked again with anticipation, her face full of eagerness.
"While I'm also a bit annoyed, that's not a good suggestion."
Tang Zheng shrugged his shoulders and said helplessly, "Actually, I have a better idea."
"Alright." Remedios was quite disappointed but didn't insist further.
This attitude...
It surprised "Peach" Isadro. He knew the Captain's personality very well; she would be quite persistent about things she wanted to do.
To put it less politely, she was stubborn!
When did she become so easy to talk to?
If he had said that, her response would definitely have been something like "This is an order," and it would have taken quite an effort to dissuade the Captain from her unreliable idea.
"Team Leader Tang, what are your thoughts?"
"Peach" Isadro suppressed the doubt in his heart and spoke solemnly.
He didn't plan on letting the Captain respond. Otherwise, with the Captain's "wisdom," she could easily be led by the nose by the other party, leading to unpredictable results.
"I'm sure you're all curious about the real reason the Slane Theocracy invited me here."
Tang Zheng lightly tapped the tabletop with his palm, while secretly observing the movements of the hidden "Heaven and Earth," and continued:
"Do you remember the 'Dominion Authority Angel' that Captain Nigun summoned during the Abelion Hills incident?"
Upon hearing this...
The expressions of Remedios and the other two turned serious. That terrifyingly powerful angel was something anyone who saw it would remember vividly.
Even if Remedios was foolish, she knew clearly that it was definitely a power they humans couldn't resist!
"Peach" Isadro, seeing Tang Zheng suddenly mention this angel with the power of a Demon God, immediately thought more deeply.
"Whether it's an angel or other summoned Demon Creatures, they all have a time limit. This is one of the drawbacks of Summoning Magic."
Tang Zheng's voice suddenly lowered a few shades: "And the Theocracy used an 'Integration Potion,' allowing the angel Demon Creature to potentially exist for a longer time."
He roughly conveyed the information from the research data the Theocracy had.
The entire hall suddenly fell silent!
The expressions of Remedios, "Peach" Isadro, and "Black" Pabel completely changed, their faces full of solemnity and disbelief.
Didn't stop him?
Tang Zheng observed that "Heaven and Earth," after he revealed this information, had no intention of stopping him.
"Are they just responsible for monitoring?"
"Or is it simply to prevent information about Killing Death from leaking?"
Several thoughts flashed through Tang Zheng's mind as he looked at the three people from the Holy Kingdom. He suddenly noticed that Peach, Isadro's expression was a little grim.
As for Remedios and Black, Pabel, they were mostly surprised and disbelieving!
"So that's it."
Tang Zheng understood in his heart, realizing why Heaven and Earth or the people from Theocracy didn't care about him telling the Holy Kingdom about the potion.
"Your potion actually has such an effect!"
After the initial shock, Remedios looked at Tang Zheng excitedly, her voice agitated:
"No wonder Theocracy, after failing to find you, stole the potion you gave us. Those despicable guys!"
"That old guy really died at the right time. Restricting us now must be to prevent you from leaving."
At this moment, Remedios had even learned to think. Unconsciously, she stood up and paced back and forth, her sharp gaze becoming increasingly determined:
"Such a precious potion must not fall into the hands of Theocracy!"
"We will now..."
"No!"
A rather oppressive voice sounded.
Peach, Isadro, who had always been gentle, for the first time showed the imposing manner of a Paladin Vice Captain, forcefully interrupting Remedios.
"My apologies, Team Leader Tang."
"This matter is too significant. We need to return to the Holy Kingdom and discuss it with His Highness and the ministers before we can decide."
Peach, Isadro also stood up and bowed slightly to Tang Zheng, speaking apologetically.
He clearly had the intention of distancing himself from Tang Zheng!
Peach, Isadro's expression was tense, and a hint of fear flashed deep in his eyes.
It wasn't that he wasn't tempted by this power.
It was that this "benefit" had already exceeded the price their Holy Kingdom could pay!
As one of the witnesses to the Abelion Hills incident, he naturally knew how powerful the Dominion Authority Angel was.
If Theocracy used the power of the potion to create a Dominion Authority Angel that could exist for a long time, just one would be enough to collapse the entire Holy Kingdom's defense line!
And even if the potion fell into the hands of their Holy Kingdom, they didn't have Theocracy's ability to summon the highest-level Angels.
The country simply had no equivalent power to contend with!
When the "benefit" far exceeds the price that can be paid, then "benefit" and "greed" will turn into poison!
"Captain, let's leave for now."
Peach, Isadro turned around and spoke to Remedios. To prevent the Captain from acting rashly, he said sternly:
"This was instructed by Lady Quartet in advance. As your subordinate, I have the right to make the final decision!"
Remedios felt humiliated. Her subordinate was actually contradicting her superior: "Who do you think you're talking to!"
Seeing the situation unfold before him.
"Haha."
Tang Zheng leaned back relaxed against the sofa, suddenly bursting into laughter:
"Is this the Holy Kingdom's capacity?"
Remedios, Peach, Isadro, and Black, Pabel all looked over in unison.
"Team Leader Tang..." Peach, Isadro's expression was grim.
"My apologies, I didn't mean to mock."
Tang Zheng interrupted directly, his expression calm:
"Have you ever thought about why I invited you to come to the Holy Kingdom with me?"
"Is it simply to guard against Theocracy?"
He had never believed that the Holy Kingdom would directly clash with the Slane Theocracy just for the little potential he had shown.
Ultimately.
The nation's interests are above all else!
If the "cost" is higher than the "gain," even the most ordinary merchant knows how to choose.
Since he dared to come to the Slane Theocracy, Tang Zheng even secretly planned to connect the two countries and the Abelion Hills area in a straight line. Naturally, he had a trump card.
And this trump card was with the Holy Kingdom!
The people from the Holy Kingdom thought they didn't have equal terms with the Slane Theocracy, which was precisely a big mistake.
This time, the Holy Kingdom was the one with the advantage!
And exposing his strength and using tough methods to bring them together...
Before the Great Tomb of Nazarick arrived, this was the worst option. He didn't want to be targeted before the Undead King appeared.
"And the only one who can fully utilize this advantage is me!"
The smile on Tang Zheng's face grew wider, and his gaze deepened as he looked at the people from the Holy Kingdom:
"Everyone, although I am an Adventurer, I am also aware that to sit at the negotiating table and discuss terms, one must have equal qualifications."
"Although I don't know if you will believe what I say, if you just assist me next, you will gain benefits far beyond your imagination from this negotiation."
"To be precise, you will have leverage completely equal to the Slane Theocracy!"
Isadro of Peach frowned deeply; he didn't believe what Tang Zheng said.
How could the other party understand the country's foundation and strength better than he did? Even if he didn't want to admit it inwardly, Isadro of Peach knew that the Slane Theocracy was stronger than the Holy Kingdom.
"I believe you, Tang!"
"What do you need us to do next?" Remedios asked without hesitation, in her usual blunt manner.
"Captain!" Isadro of Peach's cheek twitched, and he suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness.
Why did the adults of the Quartet arrange for the Captain to come along? If he had known this, it would have been better to arrange for another Vice Captain to assist.
-----------
Machine Translation by: https:// beta.randomtranslator.com/
Read 999+ original & fanfic translations in English, Español, Português, Deutsch, Français, or Русский at: https:// beta.randomtranslator.com/
Join our Discord: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------