Chapter 80

Under Sigma's hint, the originally efficient and decisive Foreign Affairs Department displayed two hundred percent enthusiasm for work, welcoming the Church's inspection team with an extremely rigorous process and impeccable etiquette. One welcoming segment after another flowed in, from hanging gold chains, wearing garlands, cleansing faces with willow branches dipped in clear water, to stepping over saddles to enter the door... The welcoming ceremony drew on the strengths of various traditions, incorporating both elven customs and human courtesies, even touching on the habits of beastmen, and mixed with Sigma's whimsical and imaginative ideas. In short, the poker-faced necromancers of the Foreign Affairs Department seemed to have instantly become the most learned and courteous masters of etiquette, and the gloomy city of Atlas suddenly became a culturally rich and historically profound city.

The people from the Church were clearly flustered by this sudden grand ceremony but could only be at the mercy of the necromancers. After all, the more grand and complex the welcoming ceremony, the more it demonstrated the other party's enthusiasm and respect. Interrupting the ceremony to suggest simplification at this moment would lead to what? It was easy to imagine. After all, outside the spacious main hall of the Foreign Affairs Department, dozens of necromancers looked at them with sinister expressions. One could imagine that if a Church member said something like, "That's enough, this is too troublesome," these clearly ill-intentioned necromancers would shout slogans like, "You dare to despise our grand hospitality? This is the greatest blasphemy against Atlas!" and start a brawl that would clearly put the Church members at a disadvantage.

The Church's clerics frowned as they crossed a specially made metal basin filled with lava—this thing was concocted by Sigma, supposedly symbolizing the burning away of all impurities. To the clerics, this was clearly an insult. "You damn necromancer, daring to say that a cleric has impurities?" Moreover, this basin of lava had clearly been tampered with. If they didn't protect their vital areas with holy light while crossing it, the hot currents mysteriously bubbling up from the lava would obviously scorch their little friends...

But in any case, the welcoming ceremony should have ended—everyone looked at the side door of the hall with a mix of relief and worry, fearing that more necromancers with strange items would come to torment them. However, it was clearly over.

But before they could breathe a sigh of relief, Sigma, who had been waiting for a long time, gave a sinister laugh.

He cleared his throat and began to speak formally, delivering a speech to welcome the clerics. He highly praised the Church's great contributions to the peace and stability of the Nolun continent and recalled the long-standing friendship between Atlas and the Holy City of Shim. Prince Sigma expressed that the Kingdom of Death was willing to establish a comprehensive partnership with the Church of Holy Light, respecting the clerics' chosen path of adolescence, supporting each other on core interests and major concerns, and strengthening exchanges and cooperation in all aspects... In short, his eloquent and continuous speech, filled with impressive and profound words, left the clerics dazed and even made the necromancers listening on the side nod their heads in admiration—they felt that the chatty Sigma, who could bring the dead to life with his words, was now producing a sound that was surprisingly pleasant...

The clerics were not fools, and many of the shrewd ones came to their senses halfway through—this guy was talking a lot, sounding very reasonable, but it was all bullshit.

At this point, even the most simple and honest among them could taste the flavor. This pretentious necromancer was extremely cunning and was clearly looking for trouble.

But even so, they still couldn't react. This was the Necromancer Academy, and they were an inspection team under the guise of a friendly visit. Sigma had not used any underhanded tactics or unreasonable behavior; he was completely using legitimate means to annoy them. They also had to respond with legitimate means; otherwise, they would be breaking the rules—breaking the rules in the enemy's stronghold would be foolish.

So they had to endure and listen to Sigma's speech until the end.

By the time the necromancer finished speaking, it was already dark. Sigma, still not satisfied, smacked his lips, making everyone, friend or foe, twitch their mouths—this guy, even if he had no talent for magic, could definitely make a living as a bard. Just his skill in padding words could outshine most bards...

"It's getting late, it's time to eat. I know the members of the Church advocate frugality and oppose extravagance, so we won't make a big fuss." Sigma nodded to a temporary assistant, "Please escort the clerics to the largest canteen in the academy for a meal. Remember, do not neglect them, and have the head chef prepare the banquet."

The assistant clearly knew what the head chef of the academy canteen was like. Besides managing the canteen, he also held the position of alchemy instructor and ran a pharmacy, specializing in making various types of drugs. The food he made, though non-toxic, was highly nutritious for necromancers but had a taste that was a double attack on both the mind and body, similar to drugs.

So the assistant turned around, expressionless, to notify the chef, his steps becoming noticeably lighter.

"I won't be joining you for dinner; I have to report to the administration," Sigma bowed apologetically to the clerics, "There are other Grand Masters to keep you company, so please don't doubt Atlas's sincerity."

Seeing him about to leave, the Grand Cardinal finally couldn't hold back, stepping forward and whispering, "What about the visit to the angel..."

Sigma took the visit schedule, pretended to look at it for a moment, and feigned confusion, "Visit the angel? It doesn't seem to be on your inspection team's official agenda..."

The Grand Cardinal laughed softly, "It's a private visit, a private visit..."

"A private visit, huh..." Sigma's face changed faster than turning pages, and he bluntly said, "I'm sorry, I refuse."

The white-haired cleric, who didn't expect Sigma to be so disrespectful, suddenly turned grim. Clerics were stubborn; once they decided on something, they wouldn't change. If Sigma continued to obstruct this, they might have to use some necessary means to achieve their goal...

Sigma glanced at the frowning cardinal and smiled, "There's one more thing you should know. Your group is arranged to stay at the academy's guest hotel. Please don't wander around after dark, especially in the senior faculty residential area. The patrol intensity has tripled recently because there's a shameful underwear thief in Atlas, specifically stealing male necromancers' underwear. If a cardinal's people wander into the senior faculty area at night, especially if they accidentally enter my house, and are caught as a perverted fetishist, that would be one thing. But if they are discovered by the Grand Masters responsible for local security and are killed on the spot as suspected intruders, wouldn't that be a tragic death?"

***

PS1: First update of the day. I said there would be three updates today. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, everyone.

PS2: Thank you for your support... I've already said all the soft words yesterday, so there's no need to be sentimental now. I will remember your kindness and show my gratitude through my actions.