Chapter 2238

2238 - The Lord's Strangeness

“…” Blokan furrowed his brows deeply.

It was clear that Lord Robin completely agreed with his son’s words; otherwise, he wouldn’t have changed the subject like this.

Did he truly want to continue his conquests and meddle with my empires of the Cradle and the Grave after everything that happened with the Executioner?

What exactly was he thinking?

Blokan’s silence lasted for three seconds, during which Robin did not try to force him to speak, but instead kept looking at him, maintaining his smile.

Blokan had clearly shown that he still believed he could influence Robin’s decisions, and that was a bad sign.

When managing an entity of this size, anything other than listening and obeying was dangerous.

So, a very small test was necessary…

If Blokan pressed further on the matter of the empires and his personal affairs, he would be excluded from any future plans.

But if he responded directly to the request, that meant there was hope for him.

“…” Blokan continued staring at Robin for a few more seconds before finally nodding. “I can easily bring more Law Dominators to protect the Gate, but the secret won’t remain a secret that way.”

Robin’s smile widened this time.

"It's fine. Activity on Planet Donara is dense, and it's only a matter of time before someone notices this many beasts and the Nouta fleets. So there's no logic in you, Althera, and Morgana staying here to fight alone. You three are the backbone of the Star Academies, and your role should be administrative."

Then he stared into Blokan's eyes.

"You must bring more helpers and recruit more academies. Even if you don't like my personal affairs, I won't ask you to interfere in them, and I'll give you enough funding to expand and strengthen the Star Academies. Is that fair?"

"..." Blokan nodded. "Fair."

"Good." Robin nodded. "Find a number of good candidates, have them take an oath like the one you took upon yourself before coming, then bring them here to guard the Gate from crises and young and adult Space Beasts. And make sure to tell them they'll be compensated appropriately. I don't think the number of Star Academies is small, so I believe you can find replacements for yourselves fairly easily. As for conventional fighting, leave that to my forces, which I've gathered from my personal affairs that don't interest you—the academies don't need to worry about it."

“…I see.” Blokan wanted to say something, but he held himself back. It was clear that he had given a bad impression of himself, and that it was best for him to remain silent for the time being.

Robin nodded when he saw Blokan take a step back in his attitude.

In his view, this was a good sign.

Blokan was not accustomed to submitting to anyone.

Even the Cosmic Elder, the leader of the Star Academies, was not there to give them instructions or orders.

Technically, he had been his own master for most of his life.

Therefore, it was only natural that it would take some time to fully subdue him.

“What do you remember from the Golden Avatar’s conversation with the Executioner?” Robin suddenly asked.

“…” Blokan glanced at those standing around Robin, then looked back at him as if asking whether he was sure about discussing this matter in front of them.

When he saw Robin silent and confident, he nodded.

“Every word and every letter.”

“Oh…” Only then did Robin confirm that the All-seeing God had indeed not placed any barrier around them, neither auditory nor visual. He had appeared truly intent on killing everyone as punishment for the summoning method he had used.

“He is the All-seeing God, right?”

“…?” Robin furrowed his brows tightly at the sudden question.

"The All-seeing God… The All-Knowing God… The All-Capable God?" Blokan fixed his gaze intensely on Robin's eyes. "It's that entity that has always chosen candidates—people with golden limbs… and some with golden eyes. People who know nothing but war and destruction."

"...And if so?" Robin asked calmly.

He was surprised by the question.

But not by the fact that Blokan knew who the All-seeing God was.

Even Hedrick knew.

So what about the head of an ancient academy like this?

He had likely read all the historical records of the academies, or at least most of them.

"We have always placed that entity in the realm of fear and suspicion. No one knows what it is, and no one knows its intentions. We treated it like a demon—an entity that wants destruction but doesn't want to do it itself, so it whispers to the elite and pushes them to carry it out through those heavy tasks."

Then he continued:

"...You are one of those elite. One of those candidates. We had speculations, and we've been watching you for quite some time, following your news and tracing your origins."

"..?" Robin flinched slightly.

The Star Academies had been looking at him this way?

"Of course, all of that collapsed when the Cosmic Elder announced his support for you. Someone like him would never back a corrupt person. As for me, I said it might have been a false alarm, and that those eyes we saw you using were just some technique of yours or something like that… but you really are a Candidate."

"Oh?" Robin smiled. "And why did you kneel to a bad Candidate who follows a devil like me?"

"The All-seeing God's words didn't sound like the words of a devil," Blokan replied. "They sounded like the words of someone afraid for us, or I should say, afraid for Universe B-14. I don't know exactly what he was doing with those missions and those candidates, but he's certainly not a bad person. At least, not bad for us in our current situation."

Then he continued with clear tension:

"The All-seeing God's words about turning the Court upside down whether you succeed in stopping the Executioner or not… do you think he'll succeed? Do you think he'll stop that coming calamity?"

Robin chuckled.

"Do you even know what the Court is, Blokan?"

Then he shook his head.

"Don't count on him. That person's timing is terrible… ask me about it."

"…" Blokan nodded several times, already thinking about what was to come.

Then he gave a slight bow.

"I will now return to the headquarters of the Academy of the Cosmic Holy Covenant to begin the arrangements."

Then he turned toward Morgana.

"Can I leave matters in your hands and Lady Althera's for just two days until I secure replacements?"

"...." Morgana cast a glance toward Althera, who was still collapsed on the ground, muttering unconsciously, then looked back at Blokan.

"It's better if you take her with you. If it's only two days, I'll be fine."

"...." Blokan nodded, then walked over to Althera and Zara, crouching down beside her.

"Come on, Lady Althera, it's time for you to rest a little. It's been a tough few mo—"

BOOOOOOM

At that moment, Althera's eyes and mouth lit up intensely, and the sky above them began to behave strangely!