Chapter 20 Don't do it, we are one family
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The original owner was not familiar with this target, only knowing that the person was currently the Captain of the Guards. Basic information that anyone with a little influence could find out.
In the original owner's plan, he intended to investigate this Viscount further after becoming a Beyonder. But unforeseen circumstances arose, and the original owner sacrificed himself to save someone on the very day he became a Beyonder, leaving his body to Lin Ruo.
However, the original owner's unfamiliarity with Viscount Stratford doesn't mean Lin Ruo was in the dark.
Or rather, in a sense, Lin Ruo couldn't be said to 'know' Viscount Stratford well, but having read the original novel, he knew that the Viscount served the King of Loen directly and was directly involved in the major plot of the fifth volume, the George III's attempt to become a god.
"This is really... a coincidence!" Lin Ruo crossed his legs, momentarily speechless.
Others might not know, but how could he not? The various things involving Capim behind the scenes were also related to this matter. A large part of the reason he was involved in human trafficking and the slave trade was to supply living people to the royal family. And the reason the royal family needed these living people was to prepare for George III's ascension ritual.
Lin Ruo had originally planned to settle accounts with George III, that bastard who disregarded human life, after he reached a higher level. But now it seemed that this matter could also evolve from an action solely belonging to Lin Ruo into an act of revenge for the original owner.
Of course, without further evidence, this was just Lin Ruo's speculation, or perhaps just a mere coincidence. However, based solely on the keywords "7 years ago," "rebellion," "an important figure you can't afford to offend," and "Viscount Stratford," Lin Ruo didn't think it could really be just a coincidence.
But even if it wasn't a coincidence, this matter needed careful consideration. After all, the George III's attempt to become a god involved not only the Loen royal family but also the Aurora Order, the Demoness Sect, the Psychology Alchemists, and other hidden sects.
This was not something that Lin Ruo, currently only Sequence 9, could participate in. Rash action might instead alert the enemy, leading to his own demise—of course, yesterday's situation was special.
"Indeed, I should prioritize raising my Sequence first..." Lin Ruo exhaled a long breath, feeling somewhat emotional. "The task is heavy, and the road is long!"
........
.....
...
Lin Ruo was a little dumbfounded.
He was truly dumbfounded, and not just dumbfounded, but cold sweat almost trickled down his forehead in an instant.
Because at this moment, he had been pulled to Klein's side again, but that wasn't the main point. The main point was that Klein was currently standing in an office. Not far from him, a man wearing a white shirt and a black vest, looking to be about thirty years old but with a receding hairline, was looking at him with obvious astonishment in his deep gray eyes.
Dunn Smith!
This is the Blackthorn Security Company!
This is the Tingen Nighthawks team branch!
The current time is when Klein in the original story was followed by the Secret Order and came to seek Dunn's help!
Lin Ruo reacted almost instantly, and at the same time, he realized something else: because he had been pulled over too suddenly, he hadn't used the Secrecy Badge to enter a state of concealment, and Dunn had obviously seen him directly.
Then, in about a millisecond, Lin Ruo made a decision. He presented the Secrecy Badge to the other party before Dunn could take action, and at the same time, he released the artifact's inherent ability to conceal itself, revealing the aura of the Night that belonged to it, and said:
"My name is Lin Ruo, a Blessed of the Goddess. If you don't believe me, you can directly set up a ritual to verify with the Goddess."
Since he had already been seen by Dunn, Lin Ruo didn't plan to use the Secrecy Badge to enter a concealed state anymore. After weighing the pros and cons, he decided to reveal his identity as a "Blessed"—there was no other way. If it happened once, it could happen again. Since he could be suddenly pulled over this time, facing the Nighthawks, then it might happen again and again. In that case, it would be better to reveal his hand directly.
Moreover, Lin Ruo wasn't worried about the verification. After all, the Evernight Goddess had already given him the Secrecy Badge. In this situation, if Dunn sought to verify his identity as a Blessed, there was no reason for the Evernight Goddess to deny it.
Even if she really denied it, she would most likely give a reasonable explanation, so he wouldn't have to worry about the aftermath.
This time, it was Dunn Smith's turn to be dumbfounded. He had originally planned to take action, but his movements suddenly froze, and his gaze landed on the badge Lin Ruo had taken out.
Of course, he didn't believe that the other party was a Blessed of the Goddess based on Lin Ruo's simple words, but as a member of the Nighthawks, as a devout believer of the Goddess, he truly felt the aura of the Goddess on the badge in the other party's hand.
That was definitely not the aura that an item could possess after a simple ritual magic and prayer to the Goddess. It was so thick that it was beyond Dunn's imagination.
So, after hesitating for a moment, Dunn said, "Can I take a look at your badge?"
"Sure!" Lin Ruo nodded and handed the Secrecy Badge in his hand to Dunn. At the same time, he emptied his mind as much as possible, making his brain blank, without thinking about anything.
This was to prevent him from unconsciously thinking about 0-08 and being detected by the other party—in the original story, Klein relied on a similar method to avoid 0-08's perception when hunting Ince.
Klein also realized what had happened at this time. He first looked in the direction of Lin Ruo, then looked at Dunn, who was examining the Secrecy Badge, opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
What should he say? Say good things for Lin Ruo? But the other party didn't seem to need it.
Moreover, a Blessed of the Goddess... Klein suddenly recalled the answer the other party gave when he asked if he was an official Beyonder, and his forehead was immediately covered with black lines.
A Blessed of the Goddess is considered half an official Beyonder? Even though he hadn't learned much mysticism knowledge yet, Klein knew how rare things like God's Blessed were. There might not be a few in the entire church.
However, even though his inner thoughts were exceptionally complicated, Klein didn't show it. With his acting skills almost maxed out, he just quietly looked at Dunn, waiting for the other party's conclusion.
Dunn didn't study it for long, but after only a few tens of seconds, he returned the Secrecy Badge to Lin Ruo. His deep gray eyes stared straight at Lin Ruo and said, "I still need to perform a ritual to ask the Goddess for an answer. During this time, you cannot leave my sight and cannot have any suspicious actions. If you really are a Blessed of the Goddess, I will apologize for my rudeness afterward, but please cooperate with me now."
Although Dunn had already believed most of Lin Ruo's words after actually studying the badge, out of caution and responsibility for his team members, Dunn still decided to set up a ritual to ask the Goddess for an answer.
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