Hate me, Miss Witch!

Norton extracted a crystal from his bosom and then crushed it violently.

This was the primer for a secret medicine he had made Shiayar take earlier.

In principle, as soon as this primer shattered, the secret medicine Shiayar had ingested would be activated, transforming into an intensely lethal poison.

Norton even envisioned the tragic scene: in a few seconds, Shiayar's flesh would putrefy, his body decaying into a puddle of filthy pus.

But—

Five seconds passed.

Ten seconds passed.

Still, nothing happened.

"Lord Norton, it seems the Sage's Blood has truly addled your mind," Shiayar sighed and spoke calmly. "Do you take me for an idiot?"

"Since I had already decided to betray you, would I really have allowed you to keep a hold over me?"

As time went on, Norton's spiritual power, which had been agitated by the Sage's Blood and was spiraling out of control, calmed somewhat.

A flicker of clarity returned to his aged eyes.

He recovered from the fury of having the Divine Throne snatched from his grasp at the very last moment, plummeting from the pinnacle of his ambition, yet he regained his usual composure.

Cunning and conspiracy: these had always been Norton's greatest weapons for defeating his enemies.

He had indeed come perilously close to success, but he was far from defeated.

"So that's how it is—" Norton mused aloud, a flicker of understanding in his eyes. "The poison… it was nullified by a Space-type skill, something akin to dimensional storage, wasn't it?"

"This means you weren't someone who, blinded by greed, decided to betray me on a whim upon seeing an opportunity to usurp the Authority of Deities after joining my plan."

"Rather, you infiltrated our family with premeditated intent from the very beginning…"

A grave expression settled in Norton's eyes.

He appraised Shiayar, no longer with that condescending gaze from before, but as an equal.

"To fabricate an orphan identity, seamlessly integrate you into the family, and remain undetected under my very nose for all these years…"

"Tell me, which faction supports you?"

"The Abyss? The Lost Kingdom Beast King? Or an evil cult?"

"The Dark Shadow Council? The Black Tower? Or the Empire, or the Princes' Alliance?"

Norton rattled off several names, all of them colossal entities of Legendary renown on the continent.

In his mind, only such titanic powers could orchestrate the infiltration of a sleeper agent into the Brunestadt family, allowing them to lie dormant for over a decade.

"Of course, if you're unwilling to name the faction supporting you, that's fine as well."

"I know some factions, those self-proclaimed paragons of the Order Faction who cherish their reputations, wouldn't want to be tainted by the infamy of endangering the populace through research into an Evil God."

"Since they were capable of planting a sleeper agent like you, I acknowledge that the faction behind you is qualified to collaborate with me."

Norton's words regained their confident and cunning tone.

"A sealed Ancient God Half-Body, completely powerless to resist."

"Even if we don't aim to supplant it and monopolize its power, there are still many ways to develop and utilize it."

"We could create a small opening in the seal and gradually siphon off the Twilight Divine Power for our use."

"We can also mass-produce 'Contaminated Ones' and use them to secretly proselytize across the continent, converting the Power of Faith for ourselves."

He spread his arms wide, slowly circling the underground plaza, his voice laced with a hint of temptation:

"Of course, this incident has caused too much of a stir. It will likely attract considerable attention, especially from the Dawn Church."

"Such troubles might require the faction behind you to intervene from the shadows to smooth things over."

"However, this also presents a good opportunity."

"We can attribute the deaths of the family elders to those invading evil followers. Then, once the Family Head is also killed in the siege, I will become the true authority in the Brunestadt family, and the Azure Garden Dukedom will become my sole domain, where my word is law."

"At that point, conducting any research will be far more convenient."

Norton's mouth spun alluring propositions, but his cold eyes remained fixed on Shiayar, searching for any flicker of lowered guard.

After scheming for the Divine Throne for so long, how could I truly be willing to share it with outsiders? During this brief exchange, I've already pieced together what just transpired. The injury Shiayar inflicted on me was due to some special alchemical material. Now that I'm on guard, it's unlikely he can replicate that success. My current condition is poor; I must not only harmonize the rampaging Twilight Magic Power within me but also divert focus to suppress the loss of control over my soul's foundational spiritual power. I probably only have about fifty percent of my peak combat strength. However, facing Shiayar, who is merely 3-Ring and hasn't even reached the 4-Ring Master Rank, I still hold an absolute advantage. My only concern is that Shiayar might suddenly pull another trump card from his sleeve, like that 'Sage's Blood' bullet—something I've never seen or even heard of before. But this isn't an insurmountable problem.

Norton's gaze locked onto Shiayar's hands.

Using a Space-type skill to retrieve items has tell-tale signs. If I'm prepared, I can naturally devise a counter-strategy. I still hold the advantage. Although the ascension ritual was interrupted, the 'key' is still here. As long as I kill the boy before me, with no one to stop me, I can still resume the interrupted path.

But the next instant—

CLAP. CLAP. CLAP.

Shiayar applauded, remarking with genuine amusement, "Elder Norton, you truly have a vivid imagination. I haven't said a thing, yet you've already started concocting a backstory for me."