When the plot-skips players into the game world

Time flew by, and it was already Sunday.

Aiwass was still at the Guardian's residence, but by tomorrow morning or tonight, he would have to return to school.

He had finished reading the books he borrowed earlier, and there was still a week left until the next advancement ceremony.

He now planned to read some mysterious books on the Path of Devotion to improve his Priest career level.

Although Yulia's health had been restored and Aiwass lost a person to practice with, fortunately, these past days at the Guardian's residence allowed him to improve his proficiency in the Illumination Art.

After Aiwass settled in, the training intensity for David and Emily suddenly increased.

Under their parents' fierce attacks, their forms could only be described as awkward.

But it was precisely because of this that their strength grew rapidly. After all, both George and his Gryphon Philip were at the fifth Energy Level, while his wife and her Gryphon were at the fourth.

In other words, David and Emily were each being double-teamed by a Transcendent creature of the fourth and fifth Energy Levels—

Despite being beaten badly, this kind of sparring was something ordinary people could only dream of but could never achieve.

Luckily, both David's and Emily's fundamentals with their respective Gryphons were very solid, which allowed them to quickly absorb enough experience. Just two days of training was equivalent to the past half-month.

The Guardian could well afford to hire Priests.

The reason for not training like this usually was because it wasn't necessary—if normal training was this painful, David and Emily might develop an aversion, which could actually reduce efficiency. Furthermore, they might even lash out at the Priests who come for healing.

David even avoided going to school, so naturally, he would avoid training that was more painful than studying. He had not escaped now, largely because he took a liking to Aiwass, thus he did not want to show his flaws in front of this mild-mannered and knowledgeable elder brother.

After all, Aiwass was a guest, and he would soon leave.

It was for that reason that the Guardian had an excuse for David to undergo crash training—since Aiwass would be returning to his classes on Monday, it was a rare opportunity.

David, of course, could not refuse. Consequently, even if he was very resistant to training normally, he obediently took up his Sword and spear to train for six hours a day.

And Aiwass's healing techniques also surprised the Guardian.

Many Priests who graduated from the Theological Seminary two or three years ago did not possess Aiwass's proficient and stable healing capabilities. He even noticed that Aiwass could heal with both hands—not just using his non-dominant hand, but simultaneously using his left and right hands to treat David and Emily at the same time.

—It's no wonder Meg wanted to secure a spot for Aiwass.

The Guardian thought.

This time the Holy Nation was willing to teach humans the Advanced Divine Art, providing only nine spots in total. There were three within the school and another six to be selected from the Bishops after graduation.

These six Bishop spots were exactly filled by the six Clergy Councilors. Upon hearing this news, Meg insisted on allocating one spot to Aiwass. With that, there were actually only two spots left.

At the time, the Guardian thought it was because Aiwass had a close relationship with Princess Isabel.

Only a few people knew that among this generation of the royal family, Meg's favorite was Isabel. With her straightforward personality, she preferred to act decisively and abruptly and did not like to fuss with others. That's why many people thought she supported Prince Andrew.

But only when those Transcendents of the fifth Energy Level gather in private, they know that Meg detests him.

—Because he's too arrogant.

Indeed, Andrew was mighty.

Now in his early thirties, he had already reached the fourth Energy Level with his soul intact, untroubled by the impulses of any other Path. It was estimated that he would have the opportunity to attain the fifth Energy Level by thirty-five and that he could afford to fail two or three times.

Beyond that, he had obtained dual degrees in law and philosophy from the Royal Law University. As early as five or six years ago, he had started to meddle in politics and even formed his own "Andrew Club." He had recruited many talented youths—ties from his university days, now indispensable pillars of Avalon.

He didn't have any vices. He was neither lecherous nor a drunkard; he could even be said to be strictly disciplined.

Moreover, Andrew was straightforward, spoke his mind, and assumed a tough stance. He could be considered fair in settling disputes... although he was somewhat prone to favoritism. But overall, he was the type that grand Guardians greatly favored.

But Meg did not like him.

As for why, the old lady replied:

"Because he believed he could inherit the throne even when he was far from being the primary heir. And even with the Royal Family enduring such a degree of the Curse, he has no intention of marrying and continuing the bloodline... as if he believes that he will not be killed by the curse. This baseless confidence is infuriating."

Her words were actually quite tactful.

To put it more straightforwardly, it was that Meg suspected Andrew might be involved with the Curse.

There was no evidence of this. But her intuition was alerting her to be cautious.

The intuitions of senior Transcendents are indeed worthy of attention.

It was for this reason that the Grand Justice and grand Guardians would take half a step back, not standing too close to Prince Andrew.

The old lady had a venomous tongue. For Isabel, also unafflicted by the Curse, she commented: "Because she's so useless, she's safe enough."

Since Avalon lacked high-ranking Transcendents on the Path of Transcendence, they were always unsure of the source of the Curse. They couldn't even be certain whether it was a Curse or poison. The Round Table Hall obviously enjoyed this situation and would not do anything for the Royal Family—they were controlled by oaths of loyalty, and now there were fewer and fewer who could manipulate them, which was certainly a good thing.

But at least one thing was certain: the cruel slaughter of the Royal Family must have come from external forces. Considering the border disputes, the culprits were likely Star Antimony or the Iris People.

From the perspectives of the Star Antimony People and the Iris People, Isabel was the most suitable successor to the throne.

She was inherently weak, willing to abide by advice, and a student of Master Yanis, ensuring that Avalon would not implode from within. Thus, the situation in Avalon could stabilize, and they would be open to accepting various trade agreements from Star Antimony and the Iris Flower.

At the same time, she was not on the Path of Authority, so the core link controlling Avalon's power would thus be broken.

She lacked confidence and was unaggressive. Most importantly, she was kind enough—not to worry that Avalon, once recovered, would launch invasions of its own.

The greatest strength of the Gryphon Legion lay in its mobility.

If they were fighting a defensive battle, the threat of the Gryphon was not nearly as significant.

—This was also why the grand Guardians were always not worried that the Curse would lead to the extinction of the Royal Family.

Because if the royal line were to die out, Avalon would fall into chaos, military factionalism—and ultimately, whoever seized the throne again would be an uncontrollable variable. It was even entirely possible for the decaying Avalon to shed its shell and be reborn from the fire... and this was what they did not wish to see.

At the same time, both Star Antimony and the Iris Flower had fallen into internal strife.

They could not possibly occupy Avalon... that would mean sending a large number of officials away from their homeland to manage the colonies. And this could potentially lead to new problems in the precarious balance of power, or even allow forces that were initially lower to move to Avalon to avoid the war and then recover by lifedraining.

If it had been the Avalon of old, it would have likely been involved in the war by now.

But since Crown Prince Lohar, the standing of the royal house of Avalon had begun to weaken. Now, two hundred years later, Avalon's economy, mineral resources, and light industry had developed quite well. Conversely, the strength of the Knights had been steadily weakening.

In their generation, those explicitly loyal to the royal house—who were of the fifth energy level Transcendents—had dwindled to a handful.

In the first two hundred years since Avalon's founding, this number was more than double, and at its peak, there were twenty-eight.

In a world where top combatants can directly influence the course of wars, a reduction in the number of such combatants signifies a weakening of national power. The Holy Nation had territory less than one-sixth the size of Avalon's, yet it had at least fifty-plus individuals of the fifth energy level combatants and the world's strongest, the only sixth energy level Transcendent.

It was precisely for this reason that the Eternal Theocracy held the confidence to remain permanently neutral, proactively mediate wars between other nations, and maintain peace.

And it was because of the Holy Nation's interference from outside that the opposing side could not launch a war of extermination, nor could they wage too intense a war of aggression. From the perspective of the force that released the curse, their goal was to have the weakest successor wield Avalon, the sword that is easy to attack with but hard to defend.

——That would be Isabel.

Therefore, as long as Isabel did not change her character, she would be safe. Avalon would not lose its royal line.

This was also the reason Yanis was willing to take her on as a student. It was also the reason why Avalon had always maintained silence on this matter.

Because the true heir was not Andrew—the queen's designated successor was only one person, and that was Isabel.

Accordingly, Aiwass's status was also consequently elevated because of his close relationship with her.

If Isabel succeeded the throne, then this Moriarty would be the Crown Prince to aid her. Unlike Isabel, the young Aiwass appeared all smiles, but he was actually cunning inside, had plenty of malice, and was adept at manipulating people's hearts.

Setting aside the issue of being too flirtatious, he was the best candidate for Crown Prince.

Furthermore, Isabel was the queen's most beloved child and was the only one to inherit the queen's enlightened thinking. These old things looked at Isabel as they would at Princess Sofia in her younger days.

The only difference was that Sofia back then was much more confident and mischievous than Isabel.

Confidence can be cultivated, and abilities can be entrusted to others. But character and morals are difficult to alter later in life.

This was also why the Grand Guardian was quite favorable towards Aiwass, even taking the initiative to introduce David to him; it was also the reason nobody doubted the excuses Aiwass gave.

It was not just because Aiwass was outstanding, but because they had no choice.

Isabel liked him—what could they do?

They could at most ask Aiwass not to be too flirtatious...

"Your Excellency, Grand Guardian..."

But just then, George's butler handed him a letter with an anxious expression.

...What's the matter?

The Grand Guardian said to himself.

But he did not voice it aloud, merely silently opened the envelope.

After reading it, his expression slightly changed.

He immediately strode into the courtyard and interrupted Philip and Emily's sparring.

"Aiwass, something has happened."

"...Is it something I need to be aware of?"

Aiwass tilted his head somewhat confused.

"Indeed."

George simply replied, "The Royal Curse that hasn't struck in a long time has occurred again."

"...Who?!"

Aiwass's expression immediately changed, his voice rising a bit.

His heart tightened—could it be that after he changed history, something had happened to Isabel?!

Thankfully, it was someone else—

"Prince Andrew,"

The Grand Guardian said, "But I still think it is best you visit the Hall of Silver and Tin."

"...With such a big occurrence, is it appropriate for me to go now?"

Aiwass hesitated slightly.

"You should visit."

The Grand Guardian just shook his head, "Princess Isabel is very scared... but Her Majesty the queen is very busy right now."

Hearing this, Aiwass understood.

He relaxed slightly, nodded mildly without further protest.

"Alright."

He responded gravely, "Leave it to me."