Ch 284: Ashes To Ashes, Dust To Dust; The Wicked Shall Reap What They Sow

After seeing Lien and his party off, Bal and Phia began helping the orphanage children pack their things.

“Bring everything from the courtyard back into the rooms, quickly.”

Bal directed the orphanage children, for reasons unknown. Although Bal had been gone for over a year, the children still felt a familiar sensation when facing him.

“Uncle Barn, why are we packing things into the rooms? When moving, shouldn’t we just take our luggage and go?”

Cody walked to Bal’s side, still holding the sheets and pillowcases he had just taken from the clothesline.

“Because I have a rather novel way of moving, you can move along with the house and everything inside.”

“Can that really be done?”

“Don’t worry, it’s definitely possible, but only my wife can do it, oh.”

“Wow, then Sister Fei’er is really amazing!”

“Wait a minute, you brat, what did you call my wife?”

“Sister, what’s wrong?”

Cody tilted his head, looking at Bal with confusion in his eyes, not understanding why Bal was making a fuss.

“Wow, you call me uncle, but you call my wife sister. You really like to stir things up.”

“I thought it was something else. Look at your scruffy beard, anyone would believe you’re an uncle.”

Phia walked over from behind Bal, apparently having overheard Bal and Cody’s conversation.

“I’m different, I’m forever a legal young girl, calling me sister is appropriate.”

Although Phia had hidden her tail and ears, Bal could tell from her smug expression that her tail was wagging high.

“Your age could be their great-grandmother’s.”

Bal muttered under his breath, but Phia still heard him, and she tugged his ear.

“What did you say? I think you’re itching for a beating, come here, I’ll tighten your skin.”

Hearing Phia’s threatening tone, Bal didn’t back down; he walked directly in front of Phia and hugged her before she could make a move.

“Hey! What are you doing!”

“My dear wife~”

Cody, who had witnessed everything, quickly left with the sheets and pillowcases in his arms, muttering as he went.

“Wow, so mushy, you two. So sickening.”

Seeing Cody leave, Bal let go of Phia’s hand and sat with her on the bench in the furthest corner of the church.

“You know, this spot used to be my regular seat.”

“So far away?”

“Because sitting here to shirk responsibilities and read wouldn’t be noticed.”

“That’s you. So you brought me here for more than just this, right?”

“So smart.”

Bal gently pinched Phia’s cheek, then looked at the statue in the church.

“When I was a child, I hated attending services and praying. Back then, I thought, what’s with all this god stuff? Don’t I solve my own problems?”

“And now?”

“Since regaining my memories, I’ve changed my mind a little, although not much. Overall, God does exist, they are watching us, but we still have to walk our own path.”

“I really want to paint your expression just now, it’s interesting, amusing.”

Bal stood up, and Phia followed him out of the church.

“I’ll trouble you tonight, pack up here and then come back to get me.”

“You plan to infiltrate the Royal Palace?”

“No, it’s the Chancellor’s Mansion. It’s better to get rid of this power-hungry villain as soon as possible, lest he harm the kingdom and its people.”

“What if the next Chancellor is the same?”

“That’s none of my business. To be honest, if this Chancellor didn’t have a grudge against me, I wouldn’t care if he lived or died. Killing him means I’m completely cutting ties with the kingdom. From now on, no matter what happens to the kingdom, whether it’s destroyed or there’s a coup, I won’t interfere. Unless they try to destroy that town.”

“You’re quite open-minded.”

“What about you? Don’t you want to go back to the Demon Race?”

“I don’t have that much affection for my kin, I just hope they can be a little more peaceful and stop causing trouble. After all, I’m influenced by Merry now, my family is already by my side, so I won’t go back.”

“It’s getting late, let’s say hello to Nirvana.”

“Mm.”

The two went to Nirvana’s Tavern, which was still deserted.

“The shopkeeper is waiting for you inside.”

After seeing Bal and Phia, the bartender immediately opened the door behind him, where Nirvana and Wu Xian were waiting for them.

“You’re here.”

Nirvana was sitting on his sofa; this time, he had a child next to him.

“Cohen? What are you doing here?”

“Oh, Uncle Barn!”

Cohen waved to Bal; looking at his energetic appearance, he seemed to be fine.

“This kid, Cohen, refused to leave, insisting on coming back with me. I had no choice but to bring him back.”

Wu Xian came out carrying a tray with four glasses of wine. Bal and Phia picked up their special drinks.

“I can only say your taste is still so unique, Bal.”

Nirvana took a sip of wine, smiling at Bal. Cohen beside him was dumbfounded.

“Bal? Isn’t he Barn?”

“Hahahaha, kid, you’re better off not knowing.”

“Tch, miser.”

Bal raised his glass, and the four glasses clinked together.

“Cheers! To a successful night!”

“Cheers!”

After drinking, Bal and Phia left the tavern with Wu Xian; their goal was to give the Chancellor a surprise.

Phia returned to Guangyue Town first, bringing magic items to help move the orphanage, while Bal and Wu Xian went straight to the Chancellor’s house.

“Whose head are you after?”

Bal carried his long sword on his back, having retrieved the short sword that had been confiscated.

“Lien! That guy is the one who kidnapped Cohen.”

“I understand, let’s go, finish this and leave.”

Bal and Wu Xian jumped onto the roof of the Chancellor’s house; they didn’t bother to find a specific entry point, and directly burst into a room from the roof.

“Oh? Chancellor, what a coincidence. How have you been lately?”

Bal was lucky; he crashed directly into the Chancellor’s room, but Wu Xian was less fortunate, crashing into the Chancellor’s son’s room.

“Who…who are you?! Since you know I’m the Chancellor of the Ferenti Kingdom, why did you trespass into my home? Aren’t you afraid I’ll arrest you?!”

“It seems your memory isn’t good. Let me remind you: Udel and the Dragon Knight Corps.”

Hearing Udel’s name, the Chancellor’s expression changed for a moment, but quickly recovered.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Still playing dumb? Should I tell you about your glorious achievements?”

“What do you mean?”

“At the end of September and the beginning of October last year, a young hero, against all odds, defeated the Demon King. Someone worried that this hero’s achievements would damage his power, so he sent the hero’s friend and the kingdom’s Imperial Guard, namely Udel and the Dragon Knight Corps, to silence the hero. Afterward, the hero was recorded as dead, along with the entire Dragon Knight Corps.”

“You… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Sweat beaded on the Chancellor’s forehead.

“Don’t worry, this is just the beginning. At the end of October of the same year, the Godchild Nia, who was sent to God’s Country as a hostage, disappeared. Of course, this has nothing to do with you, because Nia escaped on her own. But at this time, you set your sights on an orphanage. Because the two most famous children from that orphanage died and went missing, you could conveniently take over the land for your own use.”

“What evidence do you have to say this?”

“Look, you’re getting anxious again. This spring, a spell from God’s Country destroyed a research facility in the Royal City. Let me guess, it was where the evidence of the young hero’s victory was stored, the now-ruined Demon King Armor. You tried to study the Demon King Armor, hoping to replicate something similar. Officially, you intended to enhance the troops’ fighting strength, but in reality, you were trying to enhance the fighting strength of your own loyal troops. Unfortunately, that magic destroyed everything; the armor, along with the experimental records and data, all vanished, so you set your sights on another country.”

“So? What evidence do you have to incriminate me?”

“None, all this is my speculation, consider it a story. The failure of the armor project made you furious, so you incited the King to massively recruit soldiers domestically; you intend to start a war. Whether this war is won or lost, you will benefit. If you win, you can consolidate your position; if possible, you can also take over God’s Country’s territory. If you lose, your property will not suffer any losses, even if God’s Country annexes the kingdom, you can escape unscathed. Because you’ve made all the preparations, you intend to betray the country.”

“I betray the country? Nonsense!”

Bal threw a throwing knife, pinning the Chancellor’s palm. The Chancellor cried out in pain.

“I said, please let me finish. You had plans to betray the country a long time ago, but at that time, the kingdom still had its purpose, that is, to block the invasion of the Demon Race. You secretly contacted the High Command of God’s Country and leaked all the information about the kingdom’s border defense troops. That’s why the Border Camp was attacked a few days ago. I know, empty words won’t make you confess, so I got the evidence.”

Bal took out a document he had found in the room of the Okto Priest in God’s Country and placed it on the table.

“Look at this, Chancellor. No, I should call you traitor Dtorey. Yesterday afternoon, the kingdom suddenly sent troops to attack God’s Country, was this your private deployment of troops? You can ask General Deritry, ask him if he knows a young man named Leonidas.”

Bal pulled out his short sword and stabbed it into the table, sitting down and looking at the speechless Chancellor.

“I don’t care about all the above, because there are laws to judge you. But what I can’t tolerate is that you allowed your subordinates to attack innocent children. You thought Bal and Nia were dead, that no one was protecting the orphanage, so you escalated your actions. Vena must be your masterpiece, right? I found evidence of your involvement in the underground research institute outside the city in the documents. Are you curious why I was able to find out so much in such a short time and go to so many places?”

Bal lifted his Mask.

“Because I am the person you fear the most.”

“Ba…Ba…Bal?!”

“That’s right, it’s me. Didn’t expect me to be alive, did you?”

“What do you intend to do?”

“Use your methods against you.”

Bal took out a piece of paper, the confession he had written for the Chancellor. Bal placed the confession on the table and forced the Chancellor’s bleeding hand onto it to leave a print.

“Good, confession done, now die.”

Bal took the Dagger ornament from the wall of the Chancellor’s room and stabbed it into the Chancellor’s abdomen.

“Die in despair.”

Having finished, Bal put on his Mask to find Wu Xian. Wu Xian had already beaten Lien to a pulp.

“Are you done on your side?”

“Mm, just one last step left.”

“Need my help?”

“No, go back first, I’ll find you at the tavern later.”

“Okay, take care.”

Wu Xian left the Chancellor’s Mansion; Bal drew his long sword and ripped off the entire roof, raising his sword towards the sky.

“I’m counting on you, Mom.”

Instantly, a beam of sacred White Light descended from the heavens, Sphia appeared in the White Light in the form of a god, recounting the Chancellor’s crimes, before disappearing with the White Light.

“Thanks.”

Bal left the Chancellor’s Mansion, and Phia came to his side.

“Finished?”

“Mm.”

“Going home?”

“Let’s say hello to Nirvana.”

“Okay.”