Witch, Fireball and the Evil God of Steam-Chapter 818 - 149: Staying True to the Original Aspiration

Ilya clenched her fist in some resentment, feeling somewhat lost. Her most reliable weapon was ineffective, and she truly didn't know how to deal with this man who was impermeable to reason.

She walked absentmindedly against the flow of people, momentarily unsure of where she should go, wandering aimlessly through the streets of the Imperial Capital. Cedric Thorn and Sera were no longer willing to trust her, and the Third Princess and Fabius had become strangely unusual, suspected to be under the control of a Witch.

She wanted to expose Ethan's true nature, but didn't know where to start.

Until someone called out to her.

"Holy Mage, please stop."

Ilya looked up, and to her surprise, it was the Imperial Chancellor. His status was on par with Duke Ash, and he held even more real power in his hands. He was the one who had been handling the empire's disputes for Henry VI over the years, proposing improvements to the games of the brave, and various methods to deflect hatred.

Describing the man in front of her as Henry's most trusted person would not be an exaggeration.

"I heard you seem to have had some unpleasantness with Lord Ethan."

The Chancellor proactively initiated the conversation, "I wonder what your thoughts are on the recent rumors in the Imperial Capital?"

"What rumors?"

Ilya asked cautiously.

In fact, her relationship with the Chancellor was not close. Unlike noble families like the Simpler Clan, the Chancellor was born into a baron's family in Gear City. His father was not well-known, and his mother did not come from a noble family. This young Chancellor gained the favor of Henry VI entirely through his own series of performances, rising step by step to his current position.

As a result, he was at odds with most of the great nobility in the Imperial Capital.

The great nobles did not like his rapid ascent and secretly gossiped about his impure bloodline.

But Henry VI needed someone who could solve problems for him, allowing him not to worry about internal empire disputes.

Nobles like Duke Ash, who only used slaughter and fear to consolidate rule, clearly couldn't meet Henry VI's expectations.

"Of course, it's about the rumors concerning the Witch."

Ilya suddenly noticed that the Chancellor's expression was somewhat similar to Ethan's, a faint smile that was not dismissive while hiding his true thoughts, but those sharp eyes, staring at hers, made her feel as if her mind was being seen through.

This was also the reason why Ilya didn't like dealing with the Chancellor; he was one of the few people on whom her charm didn't work, and in almost all past "encounters," the outcome was always as the Chancellor intended.

In such moments, Ilya felt like she had swallowed a fly.

The Chancellor was adept at judging the situation, often feigning weakness before those nobles who deliberately made things difficult for him, making it feel like a powerful punch landed on a cushion.

Often, when they thought they had the upper hand and celebrated, the Chancellor had already achieved his goals.

"It's a misunderstanding."

He was the only one Ilya couldn't consider a comrade, and she replied against her better judgment, "Moreover, in the Simpler Clan's manor, we've already resolved the misunderstanding, and this matter is over."

"In that case, Holy Mage, please set aside your prejudices and enjoy the festivities."

Ilya nodded and headed towards her residence.

She couldn't yet determine the Chancellor's stance, and she even suspected that Ethan and Lindong's arrival might be related to this man, because when she visited the Third Princess in the Royal Palace today, she overheard some discussions from the servants.

Originally, Henry VI was suspicious of the Third Princess's proposed celebration. It was the Chancellor's strong recommendation in front of Henry VI that changed his mind, to the point of offering the "flame" as a reward.

Perhaps…

The Chancellor should also be included as an investigation target.

Balmon-Margaret.

From a frontier trading city, from a family so small that no one had heard of it.

...

Meanwhile, another meeting was in full swing.

Little Dark, as the initiator of the meeting, stood first on the coffee table.

"I think their fall from grace is understandable."

Today at the registration site, she lay on Ethan's shoulder the whole time, ear keenly attuned to Ethan's conversations with the aristocrats of the Imperial Capital.

This wasn't because she had become obedient recently, but rather that when a noble privately approached Ethan to inquire about the festival project, willing to offer his family's property deed as remuneration, she was deeply shocked. This was the first time Little Dark had faced the temptation of power so closely.

"Do you know what promises they made to Senzi?"

Little Dark propped herself up, entering a state of speech.

She admitted that she was extremely tempted.

"What promises?"

Lindong asked casually.

"Houses, cars, heirloom jewelry, and their lovely daughters!"

Lindong, initially uninterested, perked up immediately, "Tell me more about their lovely daughters, and how he refused them."

Lindong was very confident in Ethan's resolve. However, those nobles had numerous tricks and liked to get hands-on, even often creating "two people accidentally falling into each other's arms" types of accidents, which were really hard to guard against.

Having seen plenty of women's tricks, nothing was new to her.

After all, the times she had tackled Ethan were already in the double digits, across different occasions, environments, and atmospheres.

Deliberate, accidental, or intentionally accidental—it seemed she had tried most scenarios.

Ethan might have been a prodigy unprecedented in the field of Elemental Magic, but that didn't mean he was perfect; at least, he had many common weaknesses of Elemental Shapers, not physically weak per se, but enough for her "tackle actions" to succeed each time.

This was indeed dangerous.

For example, imagine Ethan as a juicy piece of Michelin three-star pork belly in a city filled with dogs starving for five or six days in the Silver Radiance Empire's Imperial Capital.

"Especially the ones trying to create accidents; how does he handle them?"

As Lindong inquired of Little Dark, she sniffed Ethan attentively.

Good, still the scent of snowberries, not tainted with any peculiar wild game.

A cat very sensitive to smell, Lindong was confident that anything amiss could escape her eyes but never her nose.

"It's no different from rejecting that Holy Mage just now… But that's not the point! The point is if Ethan had agreed to their requests, he would already be the richest person in the Silver Radiance Empire!"

Little Dark didn't know what the "flame" really was to make these nobles chase after it.

She was genuinely curious about how Ethan was so steadfast, not making mistakes. If it were her, she would want everything being given, whether houses, jewels, or girls, all stuffed into her storage space first.

"Very well."

Lindong crossed her arms, nodded satisfactorily, "Do you remember our previous competition?"

"What competition?"

"The Cat Contest."

Little Dark immediately remembered. It was to win in that contest against Lindong that she went out to observe stray cats and stumbled upon the Demon King, leading to this series of events. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Why? Are we competing now? I'm not ready!"

"I can give you a few more days to prepare."

Lindong said, "Tomorrow, you can perch on his shoulder, and if anyone tries to get handsy with Ethan, hiss at them, bare your teeth, and show your claws. If they don't heed your warning, scratch them, not their clothes—remember to aim for exposed areas."

"Alright…"

Little Dark nodded, then turned to Ethan, a surprising idea flashing in her mind.

"Have you thought about the festival's events?"

"There are clues."

"Tell me now!"

"Why the sudden interest?"

"Senzi, I think we can take action on separate fronts."

"What do you mean by separate fronts?"

"You maintain the good image of fairness before them, and at night, I'll sneak into their places to collect bribes. This way, won't we have both a good reputation and money?"