"Today marks your forty-second day in this Shadow World."
"The Horning Empire hasn't just successfully occupied the neighboring Kingdom of Bliss; the Kingdom of Fukelo and the Kingdom of Edith on our eastern and western flanks have now also been infiltrated. The Polant Empire is retreating steadily on the main front. In this latest campaign, our forces suffered thirty thousand casualties and lost nearly a thousand magic cannons. Even the ports across the northern continental strait have fallen into the hands of the Blood Clan. It is now a foregone conclusion that the Horning Empire will launch a new offensive against our country or our neighbors."
"Worse still, the parliament's trust in you has plummeted to an unprecedented low. Barring any surprises, you will be impeached in tomorrow's vote of no confidence."
"This afternoon's speech is your final chance."
"Success or failure hinges on this one stroke. Your fate is now tied to Loren's."
Boss Cat stood on Lanqi's desk, fiddling with his Nixie tube timer as he read out the report.
Inside the Prime Minister's Office in Hersalem, it was midday.
With the curtains drawn shut, the room was slightly dim. The saturated orange-red glow from the Nixie tube timer resembled molten magma, illuminating the final countdown.
Lanqi sat alone behind an antique wooden desk, buried under dense stacks of documents and file folders.
"It really is about time for me to deliver my speech at the House of Commons."
Lanqi's face was cast in oblique light by the glow tubes on the desk. No one could tell what he was thinking, though his gaze seemed to penetrate the walls in the direction of the Parliament Building.
Two days had passed since his return to the capital, Hersalem, from Berkingham County on the northern border. Lanqi had already completed all handover coordination with his body double and finalized the ultimate agenda.
The war cabinet's support for active resistance had evaporated. They were already drafting a peace agreement and had even exercised their power of delay to stall ratification of the alliance with the demon race.
Lanqi rose to his feet, walked around the long desk, and retrieved his overcoat from the coat rack.
Before picking up Boss Cat, he fetched a magic apparatus box covered in warding seals from a cabinet at the side of the room.
Upon opening it, there was only a small communication device inside, topped with a button formed by three intertwined sacred crests.
"Kitty, why don't you press this button?"
Lanqi gently stroked Boss Cat's head and spoke softly.
The faint hum of the timer echoed in the quiet room, serving as a reminder of the precious time slipping away.
"What is this, meow?!"
Boss Cat circled the communication device several times with great curiosity.
"Once this button is pressed, your contribution rating for this Shadow World will skyrocket. You might even land an epic-tier reward matching your rank," Lanqi said with a smile.
"Meow-meow?!"
Boss Cat rolled around in sheer bliss.
He had assumed Lanqi's talk about boosting his contribution rating was merely to keep his spirits up. He never dreamed Lanqi had kept it in mind all along—he truly loved the guy!
"Really? If I press it, I actually have a shot at an epic reward?"
After rolling across the desk once more, Boss Cat sought confirmation again.
He couldn't shake the feeling that securing a legendary, out-of-reach, high-tier epic card sounded far too easy. In the past, he hadn't dared to dream of ever obtaining an epic-tier item!
"Yes. Pressing it will bring happiness to many people."
Lanqi nodded, flipping open a copy of the *Gospel of Sacred Rites* on the desk, speaking with absolute certainty.
The concept of the Trinity represented the communion between the Heavenly Father, the Son of Man, and the Holy Spirit—a communion of love.
It revealed that love was the essence of the Divine, and God's love was unconditional, perfect, and eternal.
Followers of the Sacred Rites were encouraged to emulate this divine love, striving to embody love and harmony.
The Trinity was also intertwined with the Church of the Sacred Rites' concept of salvation.
The Heavenly Father sent the Holy Son to redeem humanity, while the work of the Holy Spirit within individuals and the church helped bring this plan of salvation to fruition.
Salvation was the collective act of all divine persons, intended to deliver all humankind.
And this button was the final step toward realizing that great love.
"Meow!"
Without hesitation, Boss Cat raised a paw and slammed it down on the button.
"And then? What's supposed to happen after pressing it?"
Boss Cat looked around nervously and asked.
It felt as though nothing had actually happened after pushing it.
Given how mysteriously Lanqi had talked it up, something dramatic should have followed.
"Somewhere in the Horning Empire, ten thousand suns will rise."
Lanqi scooped up Boss Cat and spoke in a gentle, warm tone.
"Meow?"
Boss Cat blinked his bright feline eyes.
He didn't understand in the slightest.
Still, it didn't matter so long as he got his reward.
...
Three hours later.
The mortal realm.
In the heart of the Kingdom of Hutton, along the city walls of Ikerite, stood the Old Bailey Inquest Court—a structure steeped in history. In the pitch-black hour before daybreak, a stroke of vague, grayish-blue twilight lightly brushed against it.
At this moment, the world had yet to fully awaken, but the Old Bailey Inquest Court stood quietly on the edge of time, prepared to host an emergency hearing called for the new day.
The time zone of the seventh-tier Shadow World, Darkest Solar Eclipse Demon Realm, was offset from the mortal realm by roughly twelve hours. If it was five or six in the morning here, it was five or six in the evening in the Shadow World.
With less than seventy-two hours remaining in the Shadow World, the outcome was virtually set in stone.
Inside the courtroom, traditional wooden paneling and heavy red curtains loomed tall. A statue of the Goddess of Light and Law stood at the far end of the hall, as if her gaze too was fixed on the hearing about to unfold.
On this solemn morning, Loren had long been standing alone at the center of the hall.
He had become a regular fixture at the inquest stand. His weary, weathered face showed an uncharacteristic stubble, lending a touch of earthly grit to his usual gentle, handsome countenance.
As an eighth-tier High Priest, he was walking on thin ice.
"There's practically no hope left for this seventh-tier Shadow World. Forget one percent—even a tenth of a percent is far out of reach."
"Judging from the broadcast his student opened last time, it was utter nonsense."
Hardly any natural light reached beyond the high windows. Murmurs from the jury box echoed softly, lingering like ghostly whispers.
"Today may very well be the final hearing. Are you ready, Loren?"
The presiding officer's gavel struck, abruptly cutting off the discussion and wrapping every corner in dead silence.
With a gentle wave of his hand, Chief Inquisitor Duke Acares signaled the spherical crystal magic apparatus on the courtroom wall to light up simultaneously, projecting the final images from the Shadow World.
Through dense fog, the outline of Polant's capital, Hersalem, loomed faintly.
The chimes of the Hersalem Clock Tower rang out through the tense, quiet air, reminding the people of Polant that their darkest hour had arrived.
The view then shifted toward the Polant Parliament Building, where the tension was almost palpable.
The politicians were no longer locked in heated debate; their faces appeared exceptionally grim beneath the dim lighting.
Heavy, dark clouds smothered the sky. Occasionally, wyvern war knights from the Horning Empire could be seen sweeping overhead, and trenches were already dug across the streets.
This was the Shadow World status left behind the last time Loren's student had opened a live broadcast:
[Quest Objective 1: Find the key to defeating the Blood Clan. Completed.]
[Quest Objective 2: Raise the human faction's probability of victory against the Blood Clan above 1% by the time the Shadow World concludes. Current win rate: 0.0007%.]
[Quest Objective 3: All challengers must survive until the end of the 45-day time limit. Currently surviving: 3/3.]
Quest Objective 1 had already been completed.
Yet the most crucial objective, Objective 2, had made no progress whatsoever—in fact, it had regressed.
[Current Status of the Polant Empire]
[Public Morale: 586 → 705/1000 (Popular support and social cohesion)]
[Parliament: 175 → 32/1000 (Support among the Polant Empire's ruling elite)]
[Military Strength: 199/1000 (Calibrated against the Horning Empire)]
[Treasury: 325 → 337/1000 (Current productivity status of the Polant Empire)]
[Diplomacy: 232/1000 (Diplomatic relations with the Demon Realm and neighboring states that have not yet surrendered)]
[Overall Win Rate: 0.0007%]
After Lanqi returned to the Polant Empire, [Public Morale] had continued to climb steadily, yet it proved utterly futile.
[Military Strength], [Treasury], and [Diplomacy] had essentially stalled.
Most fatal of all, [Parliament] had plummeted straight past the warning threshold of one hundred. This indicated that the Shadow World had entered an uncontrollable berserk state.
The win rate had dropped back from 0.0074% to 0.0007%.
Barring any miracles, Loren's isolated student would soon be impeached, at which point this seventh-tier Shadow World would reach its end!
And somewhere in the mortal realm, a horrific catastrophe would descend.
"I... know what to expect."
Loren stared at the cold projection and took a deep breath, trying his best to quell the turmoil in his chest.
"Loren, your student has now driven this Shadow World into complete collapse. Do you admit that he was trained under your tutelage, and that you bear undeniable responsibility for his reckless entry and subsequent failure?"
Duke Acares, Minister of Justice for the Kingdom of Hutton, spoke with a stern countenance.
"...Yes."
Loren choked slightly.
In truth, Lanqi was not someone he had taught at all. But at a time like this, he couldn't possibly push the blame onto his student. Lanqi could never bear such a burden, and Loren refused to ruin the boy's future.
"I orchestrated everything," Loren said, lowering his head.
His words seemed to contend with reality itself, every syllable carrying the weight of a boulder.
"Very well, Loren. Since you say so, I will question you no further on the causes, details, or outcomes. The joint investigation team comprising the Southern Continent United Kingdom Council, the Southern Continent Shadow World Management Association, the Southern Continent Disaster Prevention Bureau, and the Kingdom of Hutton Security Bureau has already produced an exhaustive report," Chief Inquisitor Duke Acares continued.
The conclusions landed like heavy hammers, pounding again and again upon the hearts of everyone in the courtroom.
The inquest bell of Old Bailey tolled, thin light interweaving with the oppressive atmosphere.
All eyes gathered upon Loren, as if placing the entire weight of the hearing square on his shoulders.
Across the Kingdom of Hutton, people held their breath as well; even at this early hour, broadcasts of this critical hearing were airing everywhere.
Even among the inquest panel and gallery, a few gazes remained filled with deep concern for him. Yet they were a mere drop in the ocean, powerless against the flood of public opinion.
On the inquest panel, the Paladin Commander of the Church of the Goddess of Fate, who had journeyed all the way from the Kingdom of Canbera, clenched her fists tightly.
Today, she wore not her customary heavy armor, but an unassuming dress, leaving Loren entirely unable to recognize her.
*My dear friend...*
Even now, the Paladin Commander firmly believed her friend was a mature, prudent man incapable of making such an error. While she desperately wanted to step forward and speak on his behalf, she carried the heavy duty of investigating the mysterious Cardinal for the United Council of Kingdoms. She could not let personal ties compromise her neutrality and drag the entire Church of the Goddess of Fate into the mire.
Torn by inner conflict, she turned her head away and ceased looking at Loren.
At this moment, she felt that all was lost, sitting as though on pins and needles.
Before the first ray of morning sun could arrive, the hearing was already nearing its conclusion, and everything fell silent once more.
Just when everyone assumed this noble, revered High Priest was destined to fall from grace and face disgrace here today—
The outdoor giant screens across the Kingdom of Hutton, which had been broadcasting the morning news, suddenly cut to black. In their place, an emergency transmission from a Shadow World began to play.
It immediately drew a wave of startled glances.
For a Shadow World broadcast to interrupt normal programming at a time like this, it was bound to be significant.
Hearing the audio, more and more people in the courtroom turned toward the projection.
Sure enough, Lanqi had reopened his live broadcast of the Shadow World!
"This must be the final transmission from the Shadow World."
"I imagine Loren's student thinks so as well."
"With a win rate of 0.0007%, what's the point of struggling any further?"
The hearing was temporarily suspended, and hushed whispers gradually spread through both the panel and the gallery.
In the projection, the setting sun was sinking westward, casting its afterglow over the Hersalem River. Golden light rippled across the water's surface, while the spire of the adjacent Parliament Building, framed against the twilight, still lay cloaked beneath an uneasy shadow.
Air raid sirens wailed intermittently, lending a chilling air of dread and uncertainty to the otherwise tranquil evening.
The usual bustling crowd around the Parliament Building was gone, replaced by heavy military guards and a scattering of journalists.
Some stood frozen, gazing at the fading sunlight over the Hersalem River; others looked up silently at the Parliament Building, praying in their hearts for the empire.
This afternoon, inside the Hersalem House of Commons, Prime Minister Wilfort was scheduled to deliver an address that would be broadcast nationwide by radio.
Three days prior to the speech, various news outlets had already begun sensational coverage, leaving people from all walks of life waiting on edge, eagerly anticipating its arrival.
The prime minister's current predicament within the war cabinet was common knowledge across the Polant Empire.
This address...
Was also being dubbed by the media as what might very well be the Prime Minister's—
Final speech.
Chapter 600