The First Order

"Don't speak.

"Don't look all over the place.

"Don't be scared."

Faint static buzzed in Melgor's ears.

As he listened to the voice, Melgor felt as though he were walking inside a quiet alley as he proceeded down the red carpet in Winston Cathedral.

Rows of dark red benches stood in the cathedral, and the red carpet that ran between them seemingly represented a long, bloody pathway.

There were no statues of the Winston family's sorcerers in the Winston Cathedral, only those of the Berkeley family's archmages.

Those gray statues stood on both sides of the cathedral's interior, and Melgor felt as if they were watching him as he walked down the carpet.

The Knights of the Inferno's elites stood on both sides of the red carpet armed with their lances. They looked straight ahead and did not bat an eyelid when Melgor walked past them.

There were no members of the Winston family present, and it seemed like the House of Berkeley had deliberately cleared the place before Melgor's arrival.

The Berkeley family's patriarch stood quietly in the apse of the cathedral where a white statue was, with his back facing the main entrance.

Hundreds of candles had been lit on the chandelier hanging from the cathedral's dome. As such, even though the sky had already turned dark, the interior of the cathedral was still bright as day.

The light shone down from above and illuminated the back of the Berkeley family's patriarch. His imposing figure in his knight's armor cast a large shadow on the ground while his red cloak drooped silently off his back.

Melgor recognized the white statue in front of him. It was a sculpture of the Berkeley family's patriarch's ancestor, and also the first person to discover the spell Song of Flames. His name was Grantham Berkeley.

"I'm already in position for an attack.

"Act natural. Just be yourself.

"Speak factually.

"Don't worry, you might die if the other party really makes a move on you, but I'll make sure he dies together with you."

When Ren Xiaosu's voice came through the earpiece, Melgor became even more flustered.

At some point, Melgor even wondered if Ren Xiaosu was deliberately trying to make him look more flustered by saying he might die.

He could not be sure.

What made Melgor feel even worse was that Ren Xiaosu was clearly nowhere to be seen in the vicinity, so where did he get the confidence to say he could take down the Berkeley family's patriarch?

'If you're gonna go with tough talk, you should at least stand close. Moreover, those recent incidents were all started by you….'

Melgor muttered as he walked forward. Actually, he was not really blaming Ren Xiaosu, but he had to think of something to distract himself and suppress his anxiety.

At the next moment, the Berkeley family's patriarch turned around and looked at Melgor. "We met two years ago."

The man was wearing a red cloak. When he moved around, his armor clanked, and his long, flowy cloak resembled the mane of an angry lion.

An air of authority—this was Ren Xiaosu's evaluation of the Berkeley family's patriarch. Even through the scope of his black sniper rifle, he could sense the other party's conceit.

In the Kingdom of Sorcerers, a patriarch's authority was even greater than one could imagine. After being in this position for a long enough time, one would naturally develop the aura of a leader.

Such an aura was rarely seen even in the leaders of the Central Plains organizations.

Melgor placed his right hand over his chest and bowed. "Yes, Lord Berkeley."

The full name of the Berkeley family's head was Michel Grantham Berkeley. Between sorcerers, there was no need to kneel to pay respects.

"It's a blessing that you and I reunited today." The Berkeley family's patriarch walked towards Melgor with a smile. "How was your training at the frontier the past two years?"

"Although it was a little tough, it has honed my will."

The Berkeley family's patriarch praised, "Men should train themselves more. Only then can they pierce the enemy's throat like a longsword. Don't learn from those sorcerers who sink into an easy life. That sort of behavior is undesirable."

Unlike the other sorcerer clans, the Berkeleys had always advocated the martial arts. All members with the potential to become sorcerers were required to join the Knights of the Inferno to gain experience. Only those who had no talent were left to enjoy themselves all they wanted.

But when it came to choosing an heir, the hedonists would not be able to participate in the selection.

A dauntless atmosphere was prevalent in the House of Berkeley, which was probably the reason why they were the first to step forward to challenge the status quo in this chaotic world.

At this moment, the Berkeley family's patriarch looked at Melgor in surprise and said with a smile, "Oh? You aren't afraid anymore? Your legs have stopped trembling."

When Melgor first came face to face with the Berkeley family's patriarch and the Knights of the Inferno, his legs were shaking nonstop. But as time passed, Melgor got better and no longer trembled.

Melgor hesitated for a moment before saying, "My legs have gone numb…"

The Berkeley family's patriarch burst out laughing. "Don't be afraid. I don't have any other intentions for finding you today. I won't do anything to you. I just wanted to have a casual chat."

Ren Xiaosu muttered, "You don't have anything better to do?"

Melgor muttered, "You don't have anything better to do?"

The Berkeley family's patriarch was speechless.

Ren Xiaosu was speechless.

The moment those words were uttered, the Berkeley family's patriarch started sizing Melgor up seriously. "You're quite brave. Not bad."

When Ren Xiaosu heard this, he was stunned. "This head of the Berkeley family is really quite the odd one. Does he like it when others act tough in front of him? And don't fucking repeat this line I said!"

Before Melgor could say anything, the Berkeley family's patriarch continued, "I heard you know the Boiling Airburst spell?"

Melgor hurriedly said in honesty, "No, you've got the wrong idea."

Before he came here, Ren Xiaosu had instructed him to be honest about the recent incidents. Melgor was not good at lying. The moment he lied, he would definitely get found out by the other party.

However, the Berkeley family's patriarch did not believe this answer. He smiled at Melgor and said, "There's no need to deny it so quickly. So what if you know the Boiling Airburst spell? Why? Are you afraid that I'll find out you're related to the House of Norman?"

Ren Xiaosu sighed in his head. Jumping to conclusions was really a scary thing.

Some people were just a little too smart for themselves. A sweet idiot like Melgor was actually not that scheming to begin with, but the other party felt that he was definitely more than met the eye. That was because he had never encountered such a simple person in his environment before.

Therefore, when such people faced Melgor, they would always furnish their understanding with details that even Melgor himself had not thought of. It could purely be considered as reading too much into it.

The Berkeley family's patriarch said, "I know you're backed by the House of Norman, and I also know you all are seeking to damage the House of Tudor's strength. I can overlook whatever you all have done in my key city in the south, but you need to help me pass a message to the House of Norman."

Ren Xiaosu immediately understood. Actually, the Berkeley family's patriarch had called Melgor over today for no other reason than to establish a secret alliance with the House of Norman to deal with the House of Tudor together.

Melgor said awkwardly, "Lord Berkeley, I don't know anyone from the House of Norman…."

The Berkeley family's patriarch smiled and said, "It's fine if you don't want to admit it. I'll get Qian Weining's trade caravan to continue heading north. He's a capable right-hand man of mine. I'll have him escort you back to the House of Norman. I guess that should reassure you, right?"

Melgor nearly cried at this moment. What the heck was there to be reassured about?

He really did not know the House of Norman. Why did the patriarch have to insist on sending him to the House of Norman? So that they could offer him as a sacrifice?!