All in all, Annan was quite satisfied with this little witch. Now that she wielded supreme power and acted with absolute authority, countless people envied, hated, and viewed her as a bitter enemy, but naturally, many also worshiped her as an idol. Hapi was one of the latter.
Originally, Hapi had been merely an ordinary clerk who entered the Bureau of Political Affairs through the civil examinations, but Annan had noticed the girl at a glance—her eyes overflowing with admiration for her. Step by step, she gave Hapi opportunities to distinguish herself, and Hapi never disappointed her favor. Each time, she completed her missions flawlessly, even accurately anticipating Annan's intentions and taking it upon herself to do dirty work that was inconvenient for Annan. Thus, despite coming from an unfavored branch of a mid-sized family, she had been promoted to become the Bureau's Thirteenth Witch.
Naturally, Annan had considered whether Hapi might be faking it, but even if it were an act, what did it matter? How many people in this world were both capable and upright? If Hapi truly was an ambitious performer who took pains to curry favor and draw close to Annan, it meant she had wagered her entire destiny on Annan. What reason did Annan have not to feel at ease?
As long as an underling was comfortable to use and effective, they were a good subordinate. What was more, Annan was preparing to bring down the blade on the financial cartels, and right now she needed a cold, ruthless, swift knife. A "lackey" like Hapi, willing to obey her commands unconditionally, was far more practical than an upright "pillar of the realm."
Annan had intentionally let Hapi view the evidence of the Xitisi family's crimes to test whether she had the caliber to serve as that blade, and the result left Annan thoroughly satisfied. Although Hapi had always had a distant relationship with her father, ever since she became the Thirteenth Witch, he had repeatedly tried to mend relations and pull her back into the family's embrace.
Hapi taking up the mission to punish her own family without hesitation proved she had no intention whatsoever of returning to them, staking her entire life and future wholeheartedly on the Witch Bureau of Political Affairs. This was the blade Annan needed—a blade still in its sheath could never excise Gospel's chronic maladies.
"First Witch." "First Witch."
When Annan arrived at the banquet hall, everyone she passed nodded in greeting. This was a buffet-style banquet where guests milled about freely. It was not a formal diplomatic summit, but then, the Blood Moon envoys had no way of making a formal state visit either. As the very first state exchange between the two nations, only the Empress herself was qualified to receive them under standard protocol. Now, for reasons that could not be spoken aloud, the Empress could not appear, so the high-level meeting between the two nations had to be downgraded to this more casual format.
At a glance, she spotted the three people of the Blood Moon in the center of the hall: two men and one woman. Among them, a petite youth trailed a large, snow-white tail—evidently a member of the Moon Shadow clan. The beastman youth with ape-like arms and a wasp waist, along with an aloof elf woman, both had blood-red eyes; nothing could make their identity as Blood Saints clearer.
"First Witch, allow me to introduce them," said Annan's mother, Second Witch Qinna of the Bureau of Political Affairs. "This is Melda, Deputy Director of Blood Crime and Diplomatic Ambassador; Dudu, Commercial Counselor; and Bishop Silvan of the Church of Supreme Love."
"Hello, First Witch!" The werewolf youth waved his hand energetically, speaking in a bright, crisp voice. "I'm Silvan. Just call me Sil!"
The elf Melda and the beastman Dudu both nodded slightly. Melda wore a cold, unapproachable expression, while Dudu squeezed out a terrifying smile. Annan was not surprised. After all, the nations had engaged in no diplomatic affairs for over a thousand years, and everyone was now being thrust into it unprepared. Moreover, the true core institutions of the Blood Moon Country were the research institutes and the churches. The Blood Crime Research Institute was one of the four great institutes, and its deputy director had been made diplomatic envoy not because of exceptional diplomatic ability, but because she was the person in charge with the highest authority to make decisions on the fly.
"Welcome to Gospel. I am First Witch Annan Dolan." Annan looked at them and raised an eyebrow. "I hope you find yourselves reluctant to leave Gospel."
"Of course. Gospel is a truly wondrous country," Dudu said in a hoarse voice. "We would also warmly welcome the First Witch visiting the Blood Moon Country."
"I will go. Several of my friends hail from the Blood Moon Country, and I have always wondered what kind of soil could nurture such magnificent souls."
"The friends you speak of," Melda suddenly asked, "do you mean Yaxiu Heath?"
The rustling murmurs in the hall vanished in an instant, and the temperature of the air seemed to drop several degrees. Ever since the unification of the five nations, that name had become a taboo by tacit agreement; no one dared discuss the living legend who had swept the rankings of the Weaving Ceremony a year ago.
"...Not only him," Annan said pointedly. "Why? Is he your friend too? You seem quite concerned about him."
Melda continued heedlessly, "Half a month ago, the Stars handed down a decree. The demigod sorcerer Yaxiu and his cohort have been heavily wounded and afflicted with curses; they are certain to be secluded within the five nations to heal. Anyone providing valid information will receive divine grace, and may even obtain the supreme shelter, stepping into the divine realm and attaining the rank of angel."
Annan's expression turned slightly subtle. "I thought you would at least temporarily hold to the Blood Moon faith..."
"To Blood Saints, faith is a ladder for advancement; to Moon Shadows, it is a code of conduct. As long as a new faith gives Blood Saints a path forward and guides Moon Shadows to do good, the Blood Moon and the Stars make no difference to us," Melda said. "Furthermore, the law of the jungle and survival of the fittest are the ways of nature and society alike. Since the Supreme Lord of the Blood Moon has abandoned us, why should we cling fondly to a faded Blood Moon?"
Among the four nations, Blood Moon was likely the quickest to embrace the rule of the Stars, followed by Gospel, then Abyss. The resistance was fiercest in Paradise, where mass suicides of sorcerers dying for their homeland were said to have occurred several times. Although the ruling classes of Gospel and Abyss were not particularly devout, in their hearts they still worried whether the God-Leaders might stage a counteroffensive one day to settle scores, and whether surrendering so quickly would lead to liquidation. Thus, even while submitting to the Stars' rule, they tried to preserve traces of their former God-Leaders as much as possible.
Only Blood Moon bore zero psychological burden, welcoming the favor of the Stars with near-frictionless ease. As for the reason, it was naturally because Blood Moon sorcerers were entirely driven by self-interest. That was not to say sorcerers of other nations were not greedy, but the desires of sorcerers in Gospel, Abyss, and Paradise mostly involved family legacy, eternal fame, and the like. Simply put, they had weaknesses.
Yet in the highly atomized Blood Moon Country, every Blood Moon sorcerer stood entirely alone, without family, without descendants, and without even caring about the future. The entire society was steeped in an atmosphere of carpe diem and living in a drunken stupor. At the same time, social competition was brutal in the extreme, and selfishness was practically the foundational logic engraved into their souls. Consequently, even the favored kindreds—the Blood Saints and Moon Shadows—harbored not the slightest shred of loyalty to the Supreme Lord of the Blood Moon.
Every single Blood Saint had crossed the single-plank bridge against thousands of competitors to earn a spot in the research institutes, and having finally become a Blood Saint after immense struggle, they naturally believed it was all the fruit of their own hard work. As an aside, the Blood Saint clan had a subtle side effect: it generated a lethal dosage of love. In the distant past, Blood Saints often loved their family members so intensely that they routinely made enemies of the entire world, willing to fight any faction to the death for their brothers and sisters. But modern Blood Saints had no families, let alone blood relatives. Their lethal dosage of love could only soak into themselves, with the inevitable result that every Blood Saint was more or less narcissistic and conceited.
The Moon Shadow clan, on the other hand, was not selfish, but their sheer, unadulterated kindness meant they had no self-interest; as long as an option benefited everyone, they were willing to accept it. Their minds could not comprehend matters as complex as religious wars; all they needed to know was that the Church of Supreme Love had to revere the Stars to keep operating and caring for the people of the world. Thus, they had promptly smashed the statues of the Supreme Lord of the Blood Moon and welcomed the Star Supreme into the church.
"I wonder whether Gospel has complied with the decree and searched the entire country," Melda said. "According to our nation's prophecy sorcerers' deductions, Yaxiu Heath is extremely likely hiding within Gospel Realm at this moment. After all, Gospel Realm's cultural climate is very well suited for seclusion, not to mention that you, First Witch, are an old friend of his... Perhaps you are even hiding him in the imperial palace right now."
"A hilarious joke." Annan narrowed her eyes. "I am a Star noble who has already received the blessing of the Stars. Yaxiu Heath is a wanted fugitive proclaimed across the world by the Stars. How could I violate the supreme principle of 'upholding the interests of the Stars' to harbor a fugitive?"
"I thought it impossible as well," Melda said. "Yet you hardly seem to have taken this decree to heart, given that you haven't conducted a nationwide search to hunt for traces of Yaxiu Heath."
"Our nation is occupied with affairs and has other plans," Annan said coolly. "There is no need for the envoy to trouble herself over it."
Not only were her words far from polite, but Annan's face had darkened visibly, her eyes turning so grim that she looked ready to smash a cup as a signal to strike at any second. The surrounding guests fell silent as cicadas in winter. Second Witch Qinna and Third Witch Evalyn stepped back to either side, signaling the Imperial Secret Guard to seal off the hall.
"Hence, we have a proposal." Melda's emotional intelligence seemed so abysmal that she was utterly blind to Annan's expression. "Let our two nations search for traces of Yaxiu Heath together and strive to obtain the rewards of the Stars together. How about it?"
Annan was almost infuriated to the point of laughing. "In our realm of gospel sorcerers, what help could you of the Blood Moon possibly offer us?"
"We can help very, very much." Melda lightly clapped her hands. "For instance..."
"Three legendary sorcerers standing by at all times."
In an instant, hundreds of bats swarmed into the banquet hall, an invisible ultrasonic force field blanketing every corner. All the guests were jolted as their blood surged and their minds were thrown into turmoil. Amidst the storm of bats, three Blood Saints descended quietly, recklessly spreading four virtual wings as their arrogant legendary pressure cowed the entire hall!
Chapter 1199