Chapter 54: Plotting

Initially, Leon had considered using Dead Servants to slip away from Kassel College's radar before setting off to track down Norton.

However, he ultimately decided to maintain contact with the college for the time being.

The primary reason was that Leon only knew the amnesiac King of Bronze and Fire resided somewhere in Brooklyn, without any precise address.

Moreover, with his current strength, rushing in blindly to awaken the Dragon King Norton carried a degree of risk, even though the entity was little more than a semi-crippled shell of its former self without having consumed its sibling.

If Leon wanted to rapidly ascend in levels, leveraging the resources of Kassel College was unquestionably the fastest route.

This applied to both [Crafting Apprentice (Alchemy)] and [Hybrids].

It was not as though Leon had never entertained the possibility of cooperating with Odin. After all, the entity's ability to rewrite the memories of the entire world seemed potentially useful for fulfilling the second advancement prerequisite of the [Immortal] class.

Yet, after careful consideration, he chose to abandon that notion.

First, the advancement requirement for the [Immortal] class explicitly stated: [Participate in and predominantly direct a hyper-large-scale (standard planetary scale) ritual (x) with the thematic element of 'True and False'].

Note the word: predominantly.

Clearly, if Odin orchestrated the event, this condition could never be met.

Second, this King of Space and Time had pursued absolute power from the very beginning. If it ever learned that a technique existed in this world capable of surpassing Nidhogg without being bound by its influence, the entity would likely go mad.

...Though Leon suspected that without the assistance of a system panel, mastering [Qi Alchemy] would be entirely unrealistic for Odin.

'Let me think. At this present juncture, Odin's brother Li Wuyue is thoroughly dead, and Odin has not yet managed to devour Fenrir and the White King. Its power should not be overwhelmingly terrifying.'

'If I can complete my class advancement to reach the Second Tier, and secure either Norton or Teacher Dami as backup, I might actually stand a chance at slaying it.'

At this thought, a gleam flickered in Leon's eyes.

For him, slaying a Dragon King would undoubtedly yield extravagant rewards, whether in the form of an anticipated ocean of experience points, or Odin itself.

Besides, since Odin had made the first move, it was only fair that Leon reserve the right to retaliate.

'Tsk, if only I possessed the ability to command spirits, I could directly extract detailed records of the Seven Alchemical Kingdoms straight from Odin.'

Countless days had passed since he last reminisced about the Eight Extraordinary Techniques.

'For now, I'll just wait for the college to dispatch someone else to make contact. I wonder who they'll send this time.'

'Furthermore, if I reveal the truth about Chu Tianjiao to Chu Zihang, the odds are high that he'll assist me in dealing with Odin.'

'Still, once all preparations are complete, how exactly should I go about finding Odin...?'

Leon stroked his chin and sank deep into thought.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck his mind.

'Herzog! That old bastard has ties to Odin. When the time comes, I'll just go straight to him.'

Leon trusted that Odin would not sit idly by while his preordained chess piece was dismantled; the entity would inevitably be forced to show its hand.

'Regardless, the foundational priority remains strengthening my power. Kassel College should be sending fresh personnel to approach me any moment now.'

With such a monumental incident having occurred, Leon hardly imagined Kassel College would simply let the matter rest. He was merely curious as to who would ultimately arrive.

......

Just as Leon anticipated, in the wake of the large-scale Dead Servant assault in New York, Kassel College convened an emergency board meeting overnight.

Anger gazed at the intelligence report in his hands and chuckled half-jokingly, "Ha, I actually believe now that the kid is holding onto the legacy of a Dragon King."

"Though it looks rather like he stole it."

Hearing this, Flamel beside him nodded in agreement.

Both of them currently suspected that the alchemical documentation in Leon's possession had been purloined from the tomb of that very Dragon King, or at the very least, from the tomb of some Second-Generation or Third-Generation pure-blood dragon.

Otherwise, why would an ordinary person be hunted relentlessly by Dead Servants?

Of course, the most crucial detail was...

"The Zhou family has already responded, stating they have never laid eyes on this kid."

As those words fell, a playful smile touched the corners of Anger's lips. His interest in Leon had truly been piqued.

Meanwhile, Flamel leaned back lazily against his chair. "Are you planning to go see the brat yourself?"

Having spent countless years alongside Anger, Flamel naturally understood him inside and out.

Anger lowered the dossier and looked over at Flamel. "Care to come along? Flamel, you ought to be quite interested in the alchemy documents he's holding, aren't you?"

"Pass. The kid isn't exactly a stunning beauty." The old man in the floral shirt waved a hand dismissively, then pulled a document out from behind him. "Here is some alchemy knowledge for trade. Take it with you."

Though he failed to get the response he desired, Anger took it in stride.

He simply accepted the alchemical treatise handed over by Flamel, casually flipping through a few pages. "You didn't try to fob the kid off with some cheap, mass-produced garbage."

"He's hardly an idiot; common alchemy knowledge can be found on the Hunter's Web with a simple bounty," Flamel rolled his eyes. "This is practically the limit of what I can spare. Handle it however you see fit."

Having witnessed the [Galahad Scale] (Youth Edition), this Secret Party grandmaster of alchemy knew all too well that Leon possessed a fundamental understanding of the discipline.

Attempting to appease this young man with pedestrian trifles was clearly a fool's errand.

At that moment, an elderly man with pale skin and fine scales covering his entire body suddenly spoke up: "Anger..."

"How much longer are you going to play these childish dragon-slaying games?"

The room instantly fell silent.

The speaker was Beowulf, the heir to the current generation of [Dragon-Blood Slayers].

Moreover, he had opposed the founding of Kassel College from its very inception.

"Since the Zhou family claims they've never seen the hybrid, why not simply capture him and interrogate him?"

"I am far more interested in knowing which tomb he looted those treasures from."

Beowulf's tone was frigid.

He held no interest in alchemy; his sole fascination lay in pure-blood dragons.

Hearing this, Anger's smile slowly faded. "Beowulf, your mindset is hopelessly outdated."

"The Secret Party requires fresh blood. Have you looked in a mirror lately to remember just how old you are?"

Beowulf scoffed at Anger's remark. "You old codger are practically my age, yet you have the nerve to lecture me."

"Whatever. You shouldn't have summoned me today in the first place."

With that, the hundred-and-thirty-year-old Dragon-Blood Slayer severed his video feed.

In the wake of his departure, the room remained quiet once more.

After a long silence, Anger spoke again:

"That will be all. Everyone is dismissed."

Tossing out those words, he likewise departed from the meeting.

Observing this, Flamel could only shake his head.

"These two old stubborn fools..."