Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon
Chapter 319 - 318 The Choice in One’s Heart

Chapter 319: Chapter 318 The Choice in One’s Heart

Assaulting the police station to the west of Magnificent Castle and even targeting the chief’s old home, as well as directly clashing with GaoTian Mining, all these acts were without a doubt proof of impulsiveness. However, he had almost never harmed the innocent. Even when the battle against the Heretical Cult officially began in the city, and explosions resonated throughout the night, she rarely heard of residents being affected, which indicated that the other party was quite rational.

There was also something Shandela hadn’t mentioned to anyone.

She believed that Mr. Zhao wasn’t "just one person"; he was mostly a Divine Envoy, taking care of Paradise’s operations. And at times, he would become the Paradise Master himself, or rather, the Paradise Master would descend upon him.

Therefore, his attitude was often the attitude of Paradise.

After warming his palms by the fire, Ryan flipped them over, "...what you mean is, that Executive Priest is not a good person?"

"The premise is if she was truly killed by Paradise. Right now, everything is only speculation, I’m just speaking hypothetically," Shandela said with a pout, "After all, the Furnace Cult is a small sect in the west, I know nothing about their ways."

"It is said that divinities are blacksmiths skilled in crafting weapons and armor; followers of such a sect can’t be all that bad, right?"

"I hope so..."

The two fell into silence.

Time ticked away second by second, but both seemed to wish that this wait could be a bit longer.

Almost half an hour later, Ryan finally withdrew his hands, taking a deep breath, "Shandela, I mean, just in case... if the Paradise Sect and the Alliance Army were to clash, what would you do?"

A heaviness crept into Shandela’s heart.

That’s right, no matter how long she waited, this question wouldn’t disappear. Perhaps the reason Ryan came knocking at her door in the dead of night was precisely because of this.

"If Mr. Zhao does not stop us from seeking revenge, or if he outright sides with Wilson Longjiu, I don’t want to consider Paradise an enemy," she said after musing for a long while. "Besides, Mr. Zhao once saved my life; I have no reason to get involved in the conflict between the two parties."

"Even if Elise orders you to?"

"..." Shandela couldn’t help but clench her fingers. As a soldier, obeying orders was her duty, and it was utterly inappropriate for her to judge the merits of orders.

Did she really have the resolve to be a good soldier of the Kingdom Army?

"I..."

"Forget it, don’t answer that. Just thinking about it is depressing," Ryan unexpectedly interrupted her thoughts.

Shandela looked at him with some surprise, only to see that the Lieutenant Colonel’s face no longer bore its prior seriousness. He shrugged with a smile, "This is all under the assumption that the conflict between the two sides is irreconcilable, but we don’t need to wait until things get to that point to take action. Miss Elise is surely not close-minded, and neither is Duke Rosha. I think we need to report this sooner rather than later, and create an opportunity for both sides to meet. Who knows, Paradise might even join us, becoming allies against the Longjiu Family."

"What...you had already thought about this?"

"Exactly, and no matter how you look at it, this is the best way to handle it," Ryan turned around, his back to the fire as he spoke earnestly, "Has Mr. Zhao forbidden us from spreading news about Paradise? Has he treated the plan to open a company in Thistlefort as top secret? Not at all! In other words, reporting this news doesn’t amount to stabbing Paradise in the back."

"Moreover, based on your understanding of Mr. Zhao, do you think he is averse to negotiation, prefers acting alone? The answer is also no. He is not only willing to talk to the nuns, the Haiwei Clan, but also to the Envoy Delegation sent by the royal family. If he weren’t open-minded, Finis’s fleet would probably have been feeding the fish long ago."

"I have the gut feeling that Mr. Zhao has no conflict of interest with the Alliance Army. Paradise’s destination, though also the City of Defense, knows nothing about the Divine Artifact. So, before the conflict becomes irreconcilable, we can certainly give them a heads-up, don’t you think?"

Shandela was momentarily stunned, then she let out a soft laugh, "I didn’t see it coming, but you actually know how to think."

She really did feel much more relieved.

Right...there was no need to keep it a secret, after all, Paradise was just planning to pass through Thistlefort, and this didn’t conflict with Duke Rosha’s plan to gather resources. More importantly, if the fog over the City of Defense could eventually be cleared, whether it was finding the Divine Artifact or gaining momentum for the Alliance Army, it would be highly beneficial!

With that in mind, she immediately got up, donned her coat, "In that case, let’s go find the Duke/Duchess right away!"

"Uh...won’t it be too late?"

"Don’t worry, the people at the top never sleep."

Just as Shandela reached the door, hurried footsteps sounded from outside.

"Shandela, are you asleep? It’s me!"

"Miss Elise?"

She gave Ryan an unexpected glance, then opened the door.

Elise, panting and out of breath, walked into the room; clearly, she had run all the way here, "Mr. Ryan is here too? Good... saves me the trouble of notifying everyone individually. There’s been a change of plan, we’re taking action tomorrow. We don’t have time for a pre-battle meeting; we’ll decide how to attack Thistlefort on our way there."

Shandela was stunned.

"Wait, what do you mean by attacking Thistlefort? Aren’t we heading to the City of Defense anymore?"

"Thistlefort has been taken by the enemy, reportedly by an organization called the Paradise Sect! Zhaixing City’s patrol team encountered fleeing defeated soldiers, and that’s how the Duke learned of it! The local border troops have been annihilated, two thousand men, with less than five hundred escaping," Elise said with indignation. "They dare to openly attack the Kingdom’s garrisons — these heretical cultists are completely lawless!"

How could this have happened...

Shandela could hardly believe it; Mr. Zhao was only supposed to set up a company there, how could they have even wiped out the military?

And in any case, Paradise could not possibly be connected to a heretical cult!

"Are you sure the news is accurate and reliable?" Ryan asked, frowning.

"The garrison commander is named Airco. I was present when he reported it," Elise nodded. "This sect seems to have appeared out of nowhere; they only emerged four days ago, but it took them just one day to defeat the border camp. By nightfall, they began to purge any dissenters in the city. The local lord’s fate is unknown; he may well have been murdered. What’s worse is that this organization might be related to the Longjiu Family, and their occupation of Thistlefort is intended to cut off our plans to reach the City of Defense. Even if they are simply a fanatical cult, we cannot venture into the City of Defense without a stable rear."

"In any case, the Duke/Duchess has begun gathering food and supplies, and the Kingdom Army will deploy ten thousand troops to take back Thistlefort. No matter where this Paradise Sect came from, we must prioritize eradicating them! Both of you get some rest; I still have others to notify."

After saying this, Elise headed outside.

"Wait—"

Shandela wanted to hold onto her friend but suddenly calmed down.

"Is there anything else?" The other turned back.

"No... you get some rest too," Shandela said, watching her leave before slowly closing the door.

"Why didn’t you tell her?" Ryan was puzzled.

"It’s too late, we can negotiate until contradictions are irreconcilable, but now, with the Kingdom’s border troops slaughtered and the city taken, anything I say would be useless," she shook her head, her mind as clear as a mirror. "You saw it... the decisions in the Alliance Army aren’t made by just the general’s daughter. If I emphasize that I once served Paradise, it might backfire, and it wouldn’t be strange to end up imprisoned."

Ryan looked into her eyes and suddenly realized something...

She hadn’t given up, nor would she sit and wait for death.

"Are you planning to..."

"War involves both sides. Stopping Duke Rosha seems hopeless, but I can go to Thistlefort and stop Paradise! If the Paradise Sect has indeed swallowed the whole city, then Mr. Zhao must be there too," Shandela said in one breath. "I’ll leave tonight; the city guards won’t notice for a while, and I’m counting on you here."

You know the cost of doing this? Being branded a deserter in the face of battle would warrant execution, and any lifelong accumulated honor and reputation would be swept away.

Ryan did not voice the question.

Because he understood she must be aware.

Even with a glimmer of hope, she did not want to see the Alliance Army and the Paradise Sect go to full-scale war.

Ryan nodded, ultimately offering only one piece of advice.

"Be careful on your journey."