Lord of the Truth

Chapter 2238 Lordʼs Affairs -2

”....” Blokan furrowed his brows deeply.

It was obvious that Lord Robin fully agreed with his sonʼs words, otherwise he would not have changed the subject so abruptly.

Did he truly intend to continue his campaigns and keep meddling with the Cradle Empire and the Grave Empire after everything that had happened with the Executioner?

What exactly was he thinking?

The universe had just glimpsed a threat capable of crushing everything they knew.

The shell had been broken.

The Executioner had appeared.

The future had become uncertain.

And yet Robin seemed completely unwilling to alter his path.

Blokan remained silent for three full seconds.

During that time, Robin made no attempt to force him to speak.

Instead, he simply continued looking at him while maintaining his smile.

A relaxed smile.

A patient smile.

The kind of smile that made it impossible to tell whether he was waiting, testing, or warning.

Blokan had clearly shown that he still saw himself as capable of influencing Robinʼs decisions, and that was a bad sign.

When managing an organization of this scale, anything other than obedience and execution was a potential danger.

Especially now.

Therefore, a very small test was necessary...

If Blokan pressed further regarding the empires and Robinʼs personal affairs, he would be excluded from any future plans.

If he answered the request directly, however, then there was still hope for him.

”....” Blokan continued staring at Robin for several more seconds before finally nodding. ”I can easily bring more Dominators to protect the gate, but the secret will not remain a secret if we do so.”

He ultimately chose the practical answer.

Not the emotional one.

Not the argumentative one.

Robinʼs smile widened this time.

”Thatʼs fine. Traffic around Planet Donara is heavy, and it is only a matter of time before someone notices this many beasts and Note fleets. Therefore, there is no logic in you, Althera, and Morgana remaining here and fighting alone. The three of you are the backbone of the Cosmic Academies, and your roles should be administrative.”

Several of the people listening subconsciously nodded.

The statement made sense.

The three of them had already proven their worth.

Keeping them tied to a single battlefield indefinitely would be a waste.

Then he stared directly into Blokanʼs eyes.

”You need to bring more helpers and recruit more academies. And even if you dislike my personal affairs, I will not ask you to interfere in them. I will provide enough funding for you to expand and strengthen the Cosmic Academies. Is that fair?”

”.....” Blokan nodded.

”Fair.”

The answer came quickly.

Without resistance.

Without conditions.

Without negotiation.

”Good.” Robin nodded. ”Find a number of suitable candidates and have them swear an oath similar to the one you swore before coming here. Then bring them to guard the gate against crises and against juvenile and adult space beasts. Make sure they understand that they will be compensated appropriately. I do not believe the number of Cosmic Academies is that small, so I assume finding replacements for yourselves should be relatively easy. As for conventional warfare, leave that to the forces I gathered through those personal affairs that do not interest you. The academies do not need to concern themselves with it.”

”...Understood.”

Blokan wanted to say something.

He wanted to argue.

To warn him.

To insist once more.

But he stopped himself.

It was obvious that he had given a poor impression of himself, and that remaining silent for now was the better option.

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

In his eyes, that was a good sign.

Blokan was not accustomed to obeying anyone.

Even the Cosmic Elder, the leader of the Star Academies, had never been present to constantly give them instructions and orders.

The Cosmic Elder had guided.

Inspired.

Corrected.

But rarely commanded.

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

He had built his reputation.

Accumulated his power.

Made his own decisions.

Therefore, it was only natural that fully bringing him under command would take some time.

”What do you remember from the Golden Manifestationʼs conversation with the Executioner?” Robin suddenly asked.

The abrupt change of subject caught several people off guard.

”....”

Blokan glanced at the people standing around Robin before looking back at him, as though asking whether he was truly certain about discussing this topic in front of them.

This was not a casual subject.

Every sentence exchanged during that encounter carried terrifying implications.

When he saw Robin remain silent and confident, he nodded.

”Every word. Every single word.” He said.

A powerhouse of Blokanʼs level did not forget conversations like that.

Especially not conversations that could determine the fate of an entire universe.

”Oh...”

Only then did Robin become certain that the All-Seeing God had truly placed no barrier around them.

Neither auditory nor visual.

Not even the slightest concealment.

He had appeared with the genuine intention of killing everyone there as punishment for the summoning method Robin had used.

”Itʼs the All-Seeing God, isnʼt it?”

”...?” Robinʼs brows furrowed deeply at the sudden question.

”The All-Seeing... the Knower... the Capable One?” Blokan focused intensely on Robinʼs eyes. ”That entity that has always chosen candidates. People with golden limbs... and some with golden eyes. People who seem to know nothing but war and destruction.”

”...And if it is?” Robin asked calmly.

The question surprised him.

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

Even Hedrick knew.

So what about an ancient Academy Lord like this?

He had probably read every historical reference related to the academies, or at least most of them.

”We always placed that entity in the category of fear and suspicion. No one knows what it is, and no one knows what it wants. We treated it like a devil, an entity that desired destruction but did not wish to carry it out itself, so it whispered into the ears of exceptional elites and pushed them to accomplish it through those heavy missions.”

Then he continued,

”...You are one of those elites. One of those candidates. We had our suspicions, and we have been watching you for quite some time, following your achievements and tracing your origins.”

The old Academy Lord paused briefly.

As if recalling years of observations.

Years of rumors.

Years of reports that had gradually piled up around the name Robin Burton.

”..?” Robin twitched slightly.

The Star Academies had been looking at him that way?

”Of course, all of that collapsed when the Cosmic Elder publicly declared his support for you. A man like him would never support someone corrupt. As for me, I assumed it might have been a false alarm, and that those eyes we saw you using were merely a unique technique of yours or something along those lines... but you truly are a candidate.”

A complicated expression appeared on Blokanʼs face.

”Oh?” Robin smiled. ”And why would you kneel before a wicked candidate serving a devil like me?”

”The words of Lord All-Seeing God did not sound like the words of a devil,” Blokan replied. ”They sounded like the words of someone afraid for us... or perhaps I should say afraid for Universe B-14. I do not know exactly what he was doing with those missions and those candidates, but he is undoubtedly not an evil person. At the very least, he is not evil from our perspective in our current situation.”

Then he continued with obvious tension,

”Lord All-Seeing Godʼs words about overturning the Court regardless of whether you succeeded in stopping the Executioner or not... do you think he will succeed? Do you think he can stop that coming calamity?”

The question caused several nearby faces to tense.

The Court.

The Pantheon.

The Executioner.

These were no longer vague concepts.

They were real.

And they were coming.

Robin chuckled.

A surprisingly relaxed reaction.

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

Then he shook his head.

”Donʼt rely on him. That personʼs timing is unbelievably terrible... trust me on that.”

Robinʼs smile became somewhat helpless.

Among everyone present, perhaps only he had firsthand experience with how unreliable the timing of the All-Seeing God could be.

The old man always seemed to appear after the damage was already done.

Or moments before disaster struck.

Never comfortably in advance.

”...” Blokan nodded several times, already thinking about what lay ahead.

His expression gradually became serious again.

The future suddenly seemed much heavier than it had a few minutes ago.

Then he gave a small bow.

”I will return to the headquarters of the Sacred Covenant Cosmic Academy and begin the preparations.”

Then he turned toward Morgana.

”Can I leave the matter in your hands and Lady Altheraʼs for just two days until I secure replacements?”

”....” Morgana glanced toward Althera, who was still sprawled on the ground, muttering unconsciously to herself, before looking back at Blokan.

Her condition was honestly pitiful.

”Youʼd better take her with you. If itʼs only two days, Iʼll be fine.”

”....” Blokan nodded, then walked toward Althera and Zara before crouching beside her.

For the first time since arriving, a faint trace of concern appeared on his face.

”Come, Lady Althera. Itʼs time for you to get some rest. These past months have been exhau—”

DOOOOOOOOOOOOM

At that very moment, Altheraʼs eyes and mouth erupted with light, and the sky above them began behaving strangely!