CHAPTER 379: Elder

The Dark Mantle stronghold in the Valley of Sunshine wasn't very large, and it lacked both personnel and resources compared to those in other cities, but the oldest member here was actually the one sitting in the most esteemed position!

Even Han Shuo had ignored the existence of this person in the Valley of Sunshine all this time. All Han Shuo knew about him was that he smiled all day while guarding the shop to hide the existence of the Dark Mantle base inside. He had never imagined that the man was a founding member of the Dark Mantle.

The old man looked at Han Shuo with bright eyes. Laughing, he nodded his head at Han Shuo and said, "What, do you not recognise me?"

"No, I just didn't expect to see you here. I'm just surprised." Han Shuo said seriously.

"Bryan, this is Teacher Sabakas. He is the former Fifth Dark Sun. The Valley of Sunshine is the place where Teacher Sabakas has retired to, so this identity was naturally false." Candice maintained his sinister expression. However, he stood up when he introduced Sabakas to Han Shuo as a sign of respect.

Han Shuo was actually unable to sense any hint of the Elements from Sabakas, causing him to be shocked. He immediately understood that Sabakas was either an ordinary person who did not know any spells or fighting techniques, or he was a powerful person whose strength even Han Shuo could not tell. The fact that he could sit in such a place obviously meant that he was not an ordinary person who knew nothing, so Han Shuo could already imagine how powerful Sabakas was.

"Greetings, old sir!" Han Shuo bowed respectfully and greeted him with a smile.

Sabakas nodded and waved his left hand. The room around Emily twisted for a moment before an alabaster chair identical to theirs landed beside Emily. Sabakas smiled at Han Shuo, "Have a seat."

Han Shuo thanked the elder as he walked over to the chair and sat down, leaning against Emily. After Han Shuo sat down, Emily leaned close to Han Shuo and whispered, "Sabakas is Cecilia's grandfather, the Space Sacred Magus of the Lancelot Empire. The dean of your Babylon Academy of Magic and Strength, Emma, was also taught by him. The large-scale magical transportation Matrixs as well as all the teleportation formations here were set up by him," she said.

Han Shuo was shocked and couldn't help but look at Sabakas again, remembering what Emily had said to him in the underground the last time. Emily had said that Cecilia's grandfather was a truly amazing person, and Han Shuo had seen him before. For a long time, Han Shuo could not remember who it was, and now he finally understood.

An old woman with loose skin that was wrinkled into furrows on her face was sitting with Sabakas. Her two hands were constantly turning and toying with a crystal ball, while her grey eyes were full of loneliness, which made her seem different from the other people there.

When Han Shuo entered, the old woman who looked like a witch didn't pay any attention to him. She just sat there in silence as if she was asleep. However, the crystal ball in her hands continued to rotate as if to remind everyone that she was still listening to their conversation.

"This is the mysterious Seer, Grace. I've only just learned of her existence from my older brother, but I don't know exactly what she does. However, the mysterious existence of a seer was apparently able to see the future. I don't know if it's true or not." Emily explained again for Han Shuo when she saw him looking at the old witch.

Han Shuo sat down properly without saying anything, only nodding slightly to show that he'd heard Emily's introduction. His eyes swept over Sabakas and the witch-like old seer, Grace. His heart was filled with shock. One of them was a Space Sacred Magus, the other a Seer who was beyond mysterious.

These two people should be on the level of an elder in the Dark Mantle. Add to that the fact that the three heavyweights of the Dark Mantle were present, and Han Shuo truly felt a bit of anticipation for the upcoming meeting. He sat there without moving an inch, preparing himself to listen to what they were going to talk about.

"Bryan, I know all about what you did in the Valley of Sunshine. Hehe, you're not bad, hmm? We can all have our own opinions when we discuss here. Since you are sitting here, you can also give your opinion on the things we are discussing here. Sabakas chuckled as he looked at Han Shuo.

Han Shuo thanked him before continuing to sit with a proper posture and saying too much. Han Shuo looked at the thirteen people present and understood that those who could sit here must be the true leaders of the Dark Mantle Organisation. His heart was filled with curiosity, for he didn't know what kind of thing could cause these people to gather together.

After a while, Han Shuo began to understand why these people had gathered. It was also because of the power struggle between the princes.

When a new king had to be elected in a country, the country would be faced with another bloody bloodbath. No matter what power a person belonged to, it was unlikely that they would distance themselves completely. Even normally neutral organisations like the Dark Mantle had to make this headache-inducing choice.

This Dark Mantle organisation, which served the king directly, would also become the Hand of Shadows for the new king. After the new king was chosen, he would definitely choose the person he trusted the most to lead this huge and powerful organisation. If the Dark Mantle chose the wrong side now, the management of the Dark Mantle would be washed clean in the future.

After listening to them for a while, Han Shuo noticed that they seemed to want to remain neutral, but several princes had already sent them a clear invitation. All three Dark Mantle heavyweights had been invited by the princes, but all three had declined the invitations and remained neutral. However, they understood that if they remained truly neutral, each of the princes would exclude them from their trusted followers.

The Dark Mantle organisation had always been the king's most trusted entity, and if they were unable to gain the new king's trust, then the leadership within would be refreshed. If that happened, it was unknown whether the three heavyweights would remain the current three.

Of these thirteen, some were leaning towards the first prince, Charles, who was the most powerful at the moment. They felt that Charles had the most right to the throne. Of course, one or two chose the other two princes for their own reasons. But no one thought much of Lawrence, the bastard son, so no one mentioned him.

"Bryan, I hear you're close to Lawrence, what do you think?" Cecilia suddenly looked at Han Shuo. While the Third and Fourth Dark Suns had already expressed their opinions, the two elders and the three heavyweights hadn't yet.

Han Shuo had been silent, just listening to everyone's discussion, so he was a bit shocked, not expecting Cecilia to suddenly ask him a question.

Suddenly, the eyes of all thirteen people in the room fell on Han Shuo. Han Shuo, who had recently become extremely influential in both the Dark Mantle and the imperial structure, was in a slightly different position to them. As a city in the east, Brettel City was beyond vibrant. As the city lord, Han Shuo had enough chips to side with anyone.

Han Shuo drew a blank for a moment, then thought about it without smiling, "I will help Lawrence with my identity as the city lord of Brettel City. Returning favours is my policy, no matter how bad you think his chances are, I will support him."

"Lawrence, that bastard son Lawrence?" Cecilia said contemptuously, shaking her head. "Everyone has a chance but him."

Han Shuo smiled without speaking, understanding that not everyone there would think Lawrence had a good chance. Some of the other envoys also had contempt on their faces as they ignored Han Shuo's attitude. Then they looked away from Han Shuo and towards Cecilia and the other elders.

At that moment, the crystal ball in Grace's hand suddenly emitted a soft light. At the same time, Grace's eyes slowly cleared as she moved her heavy eyelids to stare at the shimmering light within the pale green mist of the crystal ball in her hands.

The smiling face of the Space Sacred Magus, Sabakas, suddenly tensed as he looked solemnly at the old seer. Candide and the rest of the three heavyweights were also very shocked as they looked at the old seer, Grace, who had seemed to be asleep since Han Shuo had entered the room.

As the light in the crystal ball she was holding suddenly faded, the deep wrinkles on Grace's face suddenly trembled slightly. Then she began to cough violently, as if her life were about to end, like a candle snuffed out by the wind. Her coughing seemed to be tearing her apart, and in the end she even coughed up a mouthful of blood onto the crystal ball.

The crystal ball she was holding suddenly shattered as Grace's body shook and she almost fell from her sitting position. After a while, her violent coughing gradually stopped as her eyes filled with a blurred white again, as if her old eyes could no longer see clearly.

The Third and Fourth Dark Suns found it strange, but Sabakas and the Three Heavyweights looked at Grace with bright eyes, as if they didn't dare to breathe, as if they were waiting for something.

Grace, who hadn't said a word since the beginning of the meeting, suddenly looked at Sabakas and the three heavyweights with her blurred and lifeless grey eyes. Eventually, she fixed her gaze on Han SHuo, who was sitting in the corner. Sabakas and the three heavyweights were suddenly shocked as they also fixed their gaze on Han Shuo.

"Which way should we go in the future?" Sabakas looked at Han Shuo in shock, then looked at the old seer and asked cautiously.

"Sabakas, I'm a bit tired." The old seer replied with a shudder. She had already averted her eyes from Han Shuo as if it was just a casual glance.

Sabakas nodded, then looked at Candide and the rest of the three heavyweights, "I'll take her back to rest first. You guys keep talking, but don't make your decision yet."

All three heavyweights stood together and saluted both Sabakas and Grace before respectfully sending Sabakas, the Dark Mantle elder, out.

Sabakas smiled as a cloud of light enveloped him and Grace. The two of them disappeared as the light faded. Even Han Shuo could not sense a trace of their aura, so they seemed to have left the place already.

After Sabakas and Grace left, the three heavyweights said nothing more about the Dark Mantle's future path, seemingly waiting for Sabakas and Grace to lead the way. For the rest of the time, they only discussed the great events that had recently taken place with the Dark Mantle. The Third and Fourth Dark Suns all reported their problems, and then spoke of all the strange situations and threats to the security of the Empire that had occurred in their region.

"Bryan, what is the situation with Brettel City and the seven grand duchies?" Candide glanced at Han Shuo after everyone else had finished reporting and asked Han Shuo a question.

Although Han Shuo was the city lord of Brettel City, he was only a second rank Dark Sun emissary, making his position there the lowest. Upon hearing Candide's question, Han Shuo stood up from his seat and said with ease, ""The Dark Mantle stronghold in Brettel City is developing well. At present, its points had spread to every single major city within the seven grand duchies, with Brettel City as its centre. They would use letters to report any major events that happened locally to Brettel City via letters."

"Very good. The seven grand duchies should indeed be properly monitored, they have always been dissatisfied with their place," Candide replied.

"My Lord, do you know of Stratholme of Stranglethorn Valley within the seven duchies?" Han Shuo thought about it, then suddenly asked Candide before sitting down.

The moment he said that, the eleven people left after Sabakas and Grace left all wore ugly expressions. Candide even shook his head helplessly with a sullen expression and then looked at Han Shuo in shock, "You met that old monster?"

Han Shuo shook his head, "No, but I heard that he was the former imperial advisor of the Vanerdun dynasty. He originally had the strength of a Sacred Swordsmaster when the empire last entered the seven grand duchies. Apparently, he gave a warning to the experts on our side. I wonder if that really happened?"

Candide shook his head helplessly, "This is the shame of the Empire, if it weren't for the existence of that old monster, the Seven Grand Duchies would have been conquered long ago. How could the seven grand duchies stand against us without a single Sacred Magus? The only reason we haven't attacked with Sacred Mages is because of the existence of this ancient monster.

Han Shuo was rather shocked to hear Candide admit this. He fixed Stratholme more firmly in his heart and thought about whether he should be more vigilant against the Seven Duchies.