I Ascend to the Divine Throne through Arcane Means

Red Copper Tavern,

After Richie left, Kelleb looked at Lis and asked:

"What's wrong? I feel your attitude towards Richie is somewhat strange."

"Did you know Richie before?"

Kelleb did not suppress his voice.

He felt that Lis had already set up a Silence Barrier around them, so the surrounding dwarves would not notice the situation here.

Facing Kelleb's inquiry, Lis smiled and said:

"No, I haven't met this Lord Richie before, but I've heard of him from you."

"I remember you mentioned that communication with the Royal Court was thanks to this Richie, right?"

"Indeed it was, but due to the recent attack by the Evil God believers, Richie's situation hasn't been good lately."

"He also can't be of much help in this cooperative negotiation."

Kelleb said with some helplessness.

"Are the negotiations not going well?"

Lis took a sip of wine and spoke.

"Certainly, it's been quite headache-inducing."

Looking at the troubled Kelleb downing his drink, Lis chuckled.

At this moment, Kelleb seemed nothing like a Legendary Strongman, more like a middle-aged uncle with a face full of worries.

Kelleb, sipping his drink, started narrating the recent situation to Lis.

Lis listened to Kelleb's complaints without interrupting him.

Slowly, Lis started to understand the details of the negotiation between the War God Church and the Dwarf Royal Court.

The main disagreements were clear: the War God Church wanted to align with the Dwarf Kingdom to jointly invest their Strength in maintaining the order of the Phillips Crystal area.

Additionally, the War God Church sought broader cooperation with the Dwarf Kingdom.

However, the Dwarf Kingdom showed little interest in the War God Church's proposal.

It was obvious that the attitudes of the dwarf ministers in the negotiations were quite perfunctory, and they seemed unconcerned about the stalled talks.

Kelleb mentioned that these issues could be related to the Dwarf King, but Lis felt it was unlike him.

If it were truly the decision of the Dwarf King Preston, it would not be so delayed.

Agreement would be agreement, disagreement would be disagreement.

It wouldn't be endlessly dragged out like this.

However, Lis didn't say much.

He couldn't tell Kelleb that he had been in contact with Dwarf King Preston and knew he wasn't that kind of person.

Lis didn't want anyone to know the secret of the dwarf "Ris."

After a moment of Silence, Lis smiled at Kelleb and said:

"I think there might be other issues at play, and perhaps even the Dwarf King isn't aware of this."

"After all, the influence of the War God Church is substantial; no force should treat you like this."

"I've guessed that too, but not sure how to change it..."

Kelleb raised his glass, furrowing his brow, and said:

"It would be great if I could meet that Dwarf King."

This is the most troublesome part.

The Dwarf Kingdom, after all, belongs to another Extraordinary Race, and Lonely Mountain City has recently been attacked by Evil God believers.

At this time, Kelleb couldn't possibly escalate the matter just for the sake of cooperation.

Doing so wouldn't do any good for the War God Church.

The Dwarf Royal Court would inevitably cease further cooperation with the War God Church.

Lis shook his head and looked at Kelleb, saying:

"Don't think too much about it, let's go."

"There's an interesting thing I want to show you."

"What is it?"

Kelleb heard him and was somewhat intrigued.

But Lis, in a mysterious manner, didn't answer him.

Subsequently, they left the Red Copper Tavern.

...

Lonely Mountain City,

The night sky was like a giant deep blue velvet, weighing heavily overhead Lonely Mountain City.

The windows of the buildings on either side of the street emitted a dim and weak light, as if covered by a layer of sheer fabric, struggling to penetrate the increasingly dense quiet in the air.

The usually bustling and lively street now seemed soulless, leaving only a dead silence.

Each step on the pavement sounded as if it were infinitely amplified by the darkness, echoing in the empty alleyways.

Richie hurriedly maneuvered through these silent streets, heading towards home.

He tightened the old leather coat he wore for disguise, pressing the gray hat low, almost obscuring half of his face.

His steps were urgent and forceful, with a hint of haste and anxiety, as if something terrifying were pursuing him.

The surrounding buildings seemed like silent giants, towering and grim in the night.

Occasionally, a cold wind rustled the leaves beside the street, sounding like countless tiny footsteps whispering in his ears, causing Richie's heartbeat to quicken unwittingly.

For unknown reasons, while at the Red Copper Tavern facing Lis and Kelleb, he couldn't shake off a sense of unease.

This was why he took the initiative to bid farewell.

Otherwise, as a World Tree Favored, Lis was a big figure worthy of association with, and such a rare opportunity shouldn't be missed.

But now, Richie no longer had such a mindset, solely focused on returning home.

On his way home, at an indistinct time, a faint gray mist began to quietly permeate from the street corners.

It was like eerie tentacles, gently and silently entwined with everything around.

Where the mist reached, the starlight and lights became increasingly dim, and the outlines of the surrounding houses began to blur, as if the entire World were draped in a mysterious veil.