Mars, Another Storyteller

Mars clapped Du Chen heavily on the shoulder, grinning as he asked, “That’s wonderful! What kind of story do you want to hear!? By the Heavens, I’ve got stories to tell, enough to fill a lifetime!” He instantly glowed with excitement, his face flushed. In Du Chen’s words, Boss Mars was a man with an insatiable urge to share!

Du Chen stumbled from Mars’s slap and gave a wry smile. “You must know, those two scoundrels, Jamis and Bovin, have been freeloading at my door for years. Previously, I tolerated them out of pity! You saw what happened today; though Jamis’s paintings almost landed me an unjust accusation, I must admit he might very well be the most outstanding painter since the Painting God himself! But how old is he this year? He looks barely thirty. To possess such mastery of art at such a young age makes me incredibly curious about him!”

“You want to hear Jamis’s story? Don’t worry, every instructor in Battle God Academy has their details backed up in the Enforcement Temple. Trust me, I know them inside out!” Mars thumped his chest confidently, licking his lips with a sly smirk.

Du Chen laughed heartily. “Excellent, I’ll have someone prepare good wine, and summon Aliza, then we can slowly listen to your tales!”

At that moment, little Beibei, riding on Andy’s back, was so furious that her cheeks puffed out. She pulled the bag from the Snow Wolf’s back and made to toss out all the painting scrolls! “Hmph, what worthless junk did Lord Bare-butt send Papa!? He almost got Papa wrongly accused! Oh, and Sir Yellow-fang isn’t any good either; we can’t keep his stuff either!”

Lord Bare-butt and Sir Yellow-fang were the nicknames little Beibei had given to the two scoundrels.

Mars, who had been chuckling lowly, enticed by Du Chen’s mention of “good wine,” hastily said upon seeing Beibei throwing things, “Whoa there, little niece, don’t throw them! These are treasures worth a fortune!”

Du Chen chuckled, “Rarity makes something precious. The reason the Painting God’s genuine works are priceless is that only seven paintings have been passed down through generations! But I have at least a hundred of Jamis’s works; even if their artistic conception is profound and his skill outstanding, they’re no longer valuable!”

“What a pity, why don’t you burn some, and just keep one or two paintings? Eh!? Votive Paper!? By the Heavens, it’s Votive Paper!” Mars stared, dumbfounded. Following his gaze, Du Chen saw his daughter tossing out a thick stack of what looked like coarse paper!

Two fingers wide, ten fingers long, scribbled with a few lines like mystic talismans. The paper was yellowish, just like Old Bovin’s yellowed teeth!

Mars seemed to have discovered some priceless treasure. He snatched the coarse paper from the little one’s hands, staring intently, and began counting them like he was tallying currency. “One, two… thirty-one, thirty-two… Francis, Boss needs to discuss something with you, alright?”

He smiled like a child, “Those two scoundrels at your door, lend them to Boss for a couple of days…”

Du Chen found it amusing. “Boss Mars, you fancy these scraps of paper? My servants from the St. John Parish orchard obtained them from Old Bovin; they were used to pay for fruit!”

“Fruit? Do the fruits your family sells come forged from peak-grade magic crystals!?” Mars exclaimed. “These are Votive Papers! Votive Papers worth tens of thousands of Gold Coins each! They allow the Divination God to perform astrology for you once, allowing you to foresee the one thing you care about most in the future!”

Du Chen and little Beibei exchanged strange glances, appraising Mars.

Mars shook his head, sighing dramatically, then pulled Du Chen forward. “Brother, you know too few stories! Today, Boss will tell you one, called… ‘The Divination God’s Seclusion: Leading Eighteen Heroes into the Divine Academy!’”

“The Divination God? Are you talking about Old Bovin?”

Mars chuckled slyly, “Precisely him! Many years ago, Bovin’s moniker in the Clandestine Circles was ‘The Divination God’! And now, his dossier in the Enforcement Temple is Crystal-tier! If you weren’t also a Godfather, I wouldn’t dare tell you his story!”

Du Chen was caught between laughter and tears. “That Old Charlatan… I’ve witnessed the old gentleman’s astrology, and it has never come true!?”

“His astrology isn’t accurate? By the Heavens, impossible! He once bamboozled Boss Pontiff so thoroughly he was dumbstruck; how could it be inaccurate!?” Mars shook his head repeatedly, dragging Du Chen into the tent!

On this side, Du Chen listened with keen interest to the story, but on the other side, Bairu was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan!

The day’s events had stemmed from him, yet in the end, it proved he’d made a colossal blunder. Not only had he mobilized many only to lose face, but he had also cast the Papal Curia in an unfavorable light, giving the impression of abandoning Francis to his fate—the Pontiff would surely punish him!

“Damn it, I absolutely cannot sit idly by! I must re-prove my worth to His Holiness!”

Bairu racked his brains. He heard someone call for him to meet the Pontiff, but he paid it no heed, instead rushing into the Enforcement Temple’s tent. “Quick, get me all the Battle God Academy files! What? Your boss is busy telling stories and doesn’t have time to approve a clearance slip!? Damn it! I am Godfather Bairu, a long-time friend of your superior, Mars, the Battle God! Quickly, find me what I need!”

After quickly retrieving some files from the Enforcement Temple, Bairu finally regained his composure, but still hurried with frantic steps to see the Pontiff!

In the Eye of Heaven Temple, from the moment Bairu entered, announced his presence loudly, then prostrated himself in obeisance, the Pontiff didn’t even lift an eyelid.

Bairu crawled forward, speaking respectfully, “Your Holiness, Bairu’s crimes today deserve death a thousand times over!”

The Pontiff remained silent for a long time. Only when Bairu, who dared not use battle qi in the Divine Presence, knelt until his knees ached, did he speak calmly, “Since you acknowledge your guilt, why haven’t you gone to the Shadow Temple to confess!? What are you doing here?”

Bairu’s heart pounded, and he said urgently, “Today, Bairu mishandled affairs and damaged Your Holiness’s divine prestige, indeed deserving of death! But please, Your Holiness, hear one more word from Bairu…”

After a moment of silence, the Pontiff did not object, and Bairu rejoiced. “Your Holiness, Bairu has just thoroughly investigated the background of the painter who created the works for Belmonde! His name is Jamis; according to records, he is only twenty-nine years old this year, an art professor and administrator at the Water Pavilion of Battle God Academy!”

“Bairu, your words should be more concise!” the Pontiff stated blandly.

“Yes! Your Holiness is wise, Bairu was indeed long-winded!” Bairu quickened his pace, saying anxiously, “Speaking of Jamis, one must mention another person: Bovin, the Divination God, who seventeen years ago prognosticated your fate, saying, ‘For twenty years, none save the Dragon Clan shall contend against you!’”

The Pontiff’s fingers, resting on his knee, twitched slightly. “You may elaborate further now!”

“As you command!” Bairu’s heart felt somewhat calmer, and he slowed his speech. “Since leaving his tutelage on the Arcania Continent forty years ago, for the first thirty years, Bovin, the Divination God, was arrogant and aloof. Though he prognosticated many fates with astrology, earning him the title of Divination God, he also offended too many people. So, for the subsequent ten years, he changed his appearance, hid in Battle God Academy, and sought Zigurd’s protection!”

The Pontiff sneered inwardly. If Bovin hadn’t found a patron to hide behind, he would likely have perished long ago! Aside from others, twenty years ago, when he prognosticated for him, the first half, “For twenty years, none save the Dragon Clan shall contend against you,” filled him with joy. Yet, immediately after, the second half came: “After twenty years, Your Holiness should seek your own blessings!”

Sama IX was naturally not a narrow-minded person who couldn’t bear unpleasant words, but the most crucial thing was that the first half of Bovin’s prognostication had come true! Thus, the latter half, “seek your own blessings,” couldn’t help but make one’s heart race! He was now recruiting masters at any cost, partly to expand his power, but on the other hand, wasn’t it also out of concern for Bovin’s “seek your own blessings”!? Hmph, if Bovin hadn’t hidden in Battle God Academy, he would have long since captured him and made him elaborate on his fate twenty years hence—no, seventeen years have already passed, so it should be, why must Sama IX, the living representative of the Gods, “seek his own blessings” three years from now!?

Similar to himself, there were simply too many people who wanted to capture or kill Bovin—that Old Charlatan had been too blunt back then, angering and making too many people suspicious!

Bairu continued, “Although Bovin offended too many people back then, his astrology also saved many. Among them, seventeen Battle Gods, deeply indebted to him, willingly followed Bovin. These individuals eventually retired to Battle God Isle with Bovin! However, when Bovin retired to Battle God Isle, he brought eighteen people! The extra one was Jamis, who at the time was recorded as only nineteen years old but possessed outstanding painting skills! He appeared suddenly before Bovin entered Battle God Isle, his origin unknown, but Bovin was very close to him and personally pleaded with Zigurd to make Jamis a professor at the Water Pavilion!”

The Pontiff nodded slightly. “So, there must be some secret between Jamis and Bovin!”

Bairu said, “Yes, Bovin’s astrology is terrifyingly effective. Trying to monitor or investigate his secrets is almost impossible. So, over the years, even the Enforcement Temple’s finest spy—Miss ‘Rose’—had toiled in vain. However… Miss ‘Rose’ truthfully recorded everything she observed about Bovin and Jamis. It’s just that this intelligence consisted entirely of daily trifles, so the Enforcement Temple classified it as Bronze-tier and did not report it to Your Holiness! But now, it seems this intelligence, though merely a record of daily trifles, can prove one thing!”

“Speak!” The Pontiff was unruffled!

“It proves… that Bovin, the Divination God, and Jamis, whose painting skills rivaled that of the Painting God himself, are very interested in Francis! Furthermore, not only did Jamis gift Francis works comparable to the Painting God’s, but Bovin, the Divination God, also gave Francis, in an almost comical manner, many… Votive Papers—the only way to request his astrology after his seclusion!”

Bairu concluded his report there. He knew in his heart that with these words, His Holiness the Pontiff already understood what he intended to convey! There was no need to further display his wisdom; doing so would only be pandering for applause!

The Pontiff pondered for a long time. It wasn’t that his thoughts were slow, but that the implications were simply too numerous!

He slowly said, “Bairu, Jamis is not a concern! The key is Bovin, the Divination God! There should only be seven unused Bovin Votive Papers circulating across the Three Continents, yet he gave Francis a full thick stack! Probably over two hundred papers! This indicates that Bovin is willing to perform astrology for Francis many times over! Conversely, Francis possesses enough leverage to interest the Divination God! And his leverage is even greater than what I offered to gain Bovin’s trust back then! Francis, I refuse to believe that Du Chen, the Divine, behind you, is more powerful than I am. Therefore, besides Du Chen, the Divine, you must be concealing something even more powerful, something that can attract Bovin, the Divination God, even more!”

Bairu listened intently. Hearing this, he stepped forward and declared loudly, “Your Holiness, Bairu is willing to investigate this matter for you!”

The Pontiff nodded slightly, and Bairu breathed a complete sigh of relief. Regardless, he had proven his capability to His Holiness! He had earned a chance to atone for his misdeeds!

As Bairu turned to leave, the Pontiff suddenly called out to him, “Classify Miss ‘Rose’’s intelligence as Crystal-tier and present it to me! Furthermore, Miss ‘Rose’ did exceptionally well this time; she deserves a reward! She has suffered much these past years; transfer her to a more comfortable environment! Bairu, you know which environment I speak of!”

Bairu paused, then smiled. “Your Holiness, Miss ‘Rose’ has already received her transfer order and gone to the environment you mentioned! It was arranged by Mars, the Battle God!”

“Mars? Heh, that boorish fellow, he must have stumbled into it, coincidentally aligning with my intentions, eh? Ah, if only he always had such luck!” When mentioning Mars, the Pontiff’s tone unconsciously softened, a rare upturn of his lips gracing his face!

After Bairu left, the Pontiff stood up and commanded, “Someone, summon Francis to meet the living representative of the Gods…”

“Bairu, you’re still a bit green! But that’s fine. If you could fathom how I, the Pontiff, will leverage the intelligence you’ve gathered next, then I wouldn’t be considering granting you a chance to atone, but rather how to dismantle your influence…”

He sighed inwardly. How wonderful it would have been if Mars, the Battle God Enforcer, had unearthed this intelligence today. Then, the position of Director of the Gods’ Tribunal would have a suitable candidate. Alas, it was Bairu who unearthed it…

Lost in thought, the Pontiff loudly continued his command, “Concurrently, invite Zigurd to the Eye of Heaven Temple! All personnel of the Papal Curia of Godfather-tier and above, except those assigned guard duties, shall attend! The time limit for this order is fifteen minutes! Those who fail to arrive on time shall be punished for blasphemy!”