I upgraded and added points in the Holy Inquisition

"It doesn't matter. We have lowered our posture and taken the initiative to get to know him, which is enough to show our sincerity and demeanor. However, he doesn't seem to be aware of our identity and power. He gave up this precious opportunity himself."

"Yes, and for someone of his background, this kind of opportunity may only come once in a lifetime."

"You two, don't be so harsh. After all, he is still young, and it is normal for him to be resistant to socializing. Moreover, on a stage like today, he, who has no background, will only feel cramped and inferior. Naturally, he would rather stay with his classmates, so that he can find some sense of security."

"I understand. I just think that he is wasting the efforts of the Grand Knight Commander. If I had an opportunity like today, I would never behave so badly... But I have to admit that he has a beautiful appearance, which is a far greater advantage than you and me."

"Yes! This is the first time I've met such a handsome man..."

"Shut up, you slut! Have you forgotten what I said before? In this situation, there is no room for you to speak."

"Sorry! Sorry! I was so abrupt!"

"Alright, alright, don't speak too loudly in a place like this, and don't forget to maintain your manners. Don't embarrass your family."

Lloyd was listening to these people whispering loudly and couldn't help but turn his head to look at his big brother.

What on earth did this unreliable guy say to these people?

And what on earth are these idiots doing here?

While I was complaining in my heart, Brother Fu beside me sneered, then looked at the other students present and said:

"I bet these guys are from the families of congressmen and politicians. I've met a few of these officials' children before, and they are all equally disgusting and stupid."

The three students present were all extraordinary people of high rank, with attributes higher than the average of their rank. Naturally, they could hear clearly the whispers of those second-generation officials.

"Who would participate in such a no-brainer gambling game? I can just chase them away."

The fat classmate answered with a hint of anger, and then made a gesture to stand up. The honest classmate next to him with a kind face quickly pulled him back, then shook his head silently before letting him sit down again.

Lloyd also shook his head, indicating that it was unnecessary.

He was too disdainful to bother with these mortals, and didn't want to affect today's ceremony.

However, those second-generation officials kept going too far...

"So what should we do about our bet today? Should we continue?"

"Why not? You know, I've been eyeing your limited edition racing car for a long time."

"But today's protagonist is not easy to get along with? Do you want me to hold my nose and go to him again? Spare me! If my father knew that I hired a stupid poor boy to be my bodyguard, it would be very embarrassing..."

"Yes, and even if he agrees, it will be very difficult for us. He doesn't look like a very powerful extraordinary person. I don't feel the pressure of a powerful person in him. Asking him to be a bodyguard is irresponsible for our personal safety."

"Haha, and he's so handsome, aren't you afraid that he will seduce the women in your family?"

When the three classmates around Lloyd heard this, their faces darkened at the same time and they stood up in unison.

That gold lapel clip for top students means a lot to them. Anyone who dares to slander the holder of this lapel clip will have to pay the price for his outspokenness.

Instead, Lloyd quickly grabbed the three of them and told them not to be impatient and to listen to what these guys were trying to do.

"Although our protagonist is not very cooperative, there are still many extraordinary people who will be present today. So why don't we modify the rules of the bet and invite other extraordinary people. Whoever invites the highest rank in the end will be the final winner and take all the bets."

“A great proposal that combines both entertainment and practicality.”

"Haha, then shouldn't we start with His Excellency the Grand Knight Commander? He must be the strongest transcendent here, right?"

"Then I advise you not to waste your time. This is obviously impossible. Don't just focus on the stakes. Don't forget that our main goal is to find a suitable bodyguard who is as strong, smart, and politically literate as possible."

Lloyd couldn't help but wonder, are these four guys crazy or what? Why are they looking for bodyguards in a place like this? If they go to those civilian investigation groups or the Super Club and shout, wouldn't there be a lot of people rushing to come?

And why would four people get together to do such a stupid thing? Because stupidity is contagious?

Lloyd was just feeling strange when he heard the honest classmate next to him say:

"It seems that they are indeed the children of officials. They are keen on hiring extraordinary people recently. They have also started a wave of enthusiasm, causing several experienced and skilled people in my investigation team to resign."

"Ah? Can something like this really cause such a craze? Whether it's hiring bodyguards or security consultants, isn't that a very common thing?"

Lloyd became even more confused and asked further.

In the end, it was the fat classmate who answered:

"Well... I'm not questioning your statement, but this may be a bit one-sided. In fact, it is quite rare for a family to hire a full-time extraordinary bodyguard... It's just that as an S-level top student, the level you can access is definitely different from ours, so this kind of thing seems very common to you."

Well... this was the first time Lloyd had met someone who could describe "out of touch" so subtly...

But then again, Lloyd knew that the only families that hired extraordinary people as bodyguards or security consultants were Viya's family and Miss Desta's family.

One is an old, declining nobleman, and the other is a newly minted real estate tycoon. They are indeed not universal...

As for little Olga, her whole family are extraordinary people, so they would not even consider this.

And from the market conditions that Lloyd had briefly learned about at the club, even for hiring third- or fourth-level transcendents, the price was outrageous, much higher than the military salary paid by the cult. He had even considered this when he was short of money before.

This is bound to have no cost-effectiveness. In a place like the Brilliant City that is safe enough, there is really no need to hire a full-time bodyguard as long as you don't run around and commit suicide.

After briefly pondering it, Lloyd became more curious and asked again:

"So what's going on with this inexplicable craze?"

As a result, the three students shrugged their shoulders, saying that they were not in that circle and did not know much about it. They could only make some guesses and thought that it might be related to the obstruction of the great development?

Just at this moment, Lloyd's unreliable elder brother came closer and explained with a smirk:

"I'm sorry, little brother. I didn't expect someone to come uninvited. I will find a way to drive these guys away later."

"I see. You came here uninvited?"

"Yeah, there's nothing I can do. I want to help you hold the ceremony in a decent manner, so it's inevitable that the news will leak out. And these guys are all from the parliament. As you know, politicians are shameless, so I arranged for their offspring to come here by force."

"Ha...as expected, you guessed it right."

Lloyd smiled at Mr. Fu and asked:

"But if they are here to socialize, I have no objection, but why would they think of hiring bodyguards for such an occasion?"

"Well... this matter involves a rumor of unknown origin that has been going on for some time."

The elder brother paused as he spoke, first checking the soundproofing around Lloyd, and then continued:

"The origin of the rumor is unknown, and the time it was spread is unknown, but it was at least half a year ago. There are also multiple versions of the content. Some say that the second doomsday is coming; some say that the environment is about to undergo a major change and the entire world will become very dangerous; and some say that the true master of this world is about to descend."

As soon as he finished speaking, the fat classmate sneered and took over the conversation:

"I've heard about this, too. We've even organized several investigations into this, and the final conclusion is that it's nonsense. I don't know who spread these rumors, and those politicians are best at lying. How could they believe this?"

Big Brother replied:

"Not many people believed it at first, but the guy who led them recently poached a seventh-rank knight commander from the cult in a very high-profile manner. He even held a cocktail party for the occasion, which attracted a lot of attention, and then attracted others to follow suit."

Lloyd had discussed this topic with Big Brother, his girlfriend, and his fiancée before, and was familiar with the organizational structure of the Brilliant City, so he knew that the 'leader' Big Brother was referring to was the Speaker of the Parliament.

The political structure of this world has no corresponding counterpart on Earth. Although each city is ruled by a religious sect, there is no warlord dictatorship, nor is there a combination of politics and religion. Instead, administrative management and religious affairs are clearly distinguished.

Even the extraordinary people are not allowed to interfere in politics, they are only allowed to provide supervision, and the archbishop of the church is responsible for this.

Of course, the city council cannot interfere with and direct the cult. The cult has the final say on major directions and decisions. For matters like large-scale development, it is useless for the council to oppose it. The council must also take responsibility for management and logistical support.

It is said that this was the rule established by the Saint of Redemption, and it has been used ever since.

In short, it is entirely possible to regard the parliament and those bureaucrats as playing a role similar to that of a 'steward'.

It's not that administrative management is not important, but some people have been "stewards" for too long and have become somewhat carried away, causing some "anti-Tian Gang" conflicts, especially in large-scale development that many people believe is a waste of money and labor, which is what the parliament has always strongly opposed.

Big Brother has complained about the power-obsessed archbishop more than once.

Perhaps he forgot where the little power he had came from, and began to fantasize about being able to restrain or even control the cult.

But these worldly disputes were not Lloyd's main concern. He was more concerned about the rumors, and thus his thoughts gradually extended to the group of ancient survivors.

Although there is no solid evidence, I have an inexplicable suspicion that those rumors were spread by that group of survivors.

Maybe he was thinking of causing social unrest, or raising some lackeys?

I always feel that those self-important survivors and these self-important bureaucrats have a lot in common...

After some thought, Lloyd said:

"I think it's necessary to investigate the origins of those rumors."

"Hmm? Is this necessary?"

Big Brother obviously doesn't know about the ancient survivors, so naturally he doesn't quite understand.

The other three students also looked at Lloyd with confusion, wondering why he cared about these groundless rumors.

But Dean Hazlade had specifically told us not to make the matter of the ancient survivors public for the time being, so Lloyd was not in a position to explain the truth and could only answer implicitly:

"In addition to investigating the origins of the rumors, it would be best to check whether these bureaucrats have colluded with certain evil forces."

"Dark and evil forces?"

The other four people present were even more confused.

Although they think politicians are very stupid, they are not that stupid, right?

Under the day-to-day attacks of various religious groups, those evil forces have long been beaten into rats in the gutter. Even the notorious consultant has been silent for a long time. What benefits can be gained by colluding with these insignificant rats? Do we still expect these people to counterattack the religious groups?

But Lloyd did not explain, he just said seriously:

“It’s necessary.”

"Okay, I'll try to talk to the people at Sheng'en Court later."

"I'll try to help too."

As everyone was talking, a few noisy uninvited guests appeared at the entrance of the venue. The eldest brother had no choice but to stand up and volunteered to say:

"Why are there a few more shameless people here who came uninvited? Sigh... It's all my fault. I'll deal with it."

The three classmates looked coldly at the four second-generation officials and stood up at the same time.

Those guys were having a great conversation with a few extraordinary people that Lloyd was not familiar with, at least that was what it looked like on the surface. Those extraordinary people concealed their boredom and impatience very well and it was obvious that they had strong social skills.

And this time, Lloyd naturally did not stop him.

As the host, some things are not convenient for me, so it is better to let my classmates handle them.

As the surroundings became temporarily quiet, he listened a little more to what the new uninvited guest was saying to Big Brother.

Oh? You also brought soundproofing equipment?

But it's useless, the quality is too low...

Lloyd quietly took out a cartoon-style toy trumpet from his storage bag, touched it lightly with inspiration, and heard what these people were saying.

Huh? You're here to look for a bodyguard as well?

Damn, are you sick?

It must be said that the life form chosen by Big Brother for himself is sometimes quite useful, as it prevents others from seeing his gradually darkening complexion.

But the tone could not be concealed, and he said impatiently:

"Are you blind or stupid? Do you think I can have a illegitimate child?"

"Lloyd is not a relative of anyone. He is just an executioner in District 18. His sister runs a magazine with poor sales, that's all."

"Why can't I preside over the ceremony for him? I just like this young man. Why? Do I need your approval?"

"Whatever. It's up to you who you want to be your bodyguard. I won't chase you away out of courtesy, but you'd better sober up and don't ruin the atmosphere here."