When the plot-skips players into the game world

——The Fifteenth Rebellion.

Whether it's the preceding quantifier or the following verb...in any other country, it would feel like an earth-shattering event, enough to cause countless people to panic. Intuitively, these two words shouldn't be put together at all.

Yet only in Iris Flower, it feels just fitting.

Not only does it not feel out of place, it even sounds a bit funny.

"——Indeed.

But to the words of Aiwass, the old man known as "Ice Heart Duke" merely smiled contentedly and calmly acknowledged, "You guessed rightly, Aiwass."

It's not just Aiwass's guess that pleased him...even the term "grandfather" sounded so pleasing to the ear. This stern and cold man, giving off a sense of indifference, at this moment seemed to have a normal grandfather's kindness.

"Eh, Father...?"

On the other side, Annie's eyes widened in disbelief: "Why...are we doing such a thing?"

Her emerald eyes had the same color as Aiwass's.

As a young lady who once studied in Avalon, she was distinctly different from other Irisflower People — she didn't even dare to directly say the word "rebellion". For Irisflower People who dare to curse the parliament in the streets, this might even be considered cowardice.

"The current Iris Flower is already reaching its limit."

The old man spoke bluntly: "If things go on like this, our country will become an international laughingstock. At this point, there aren't many effective methods left."

"This..."

Annie and Arsene were rendered speechless.

While Sherlock let out a light laugh.

His laugh was gentle, kept to a low volume, yet in the silence of the room, aside from the crackling of the fireplace, it sounded crystal clear.

The Old Duke didn't glance back at Sherlock but moved his gaze from Annie to Aiwass, and his tone became a bit more relaxed: "Besides...time is running short, right."

"...Time?"

Annie muttered, repeating.

"Certainly."

Aiwass gently nodded: "A time of chaos is imminent...the Fallen Celestial Marshal won't be the last Celestial Marshal to descend, and the Path of Transcendence won't be the only path unlocked."

"...How do you know?"

Arsene couldn't help but question his wealthy father-in-law.

"Hmph," the old man just gave a cold snort, "Just think about it...if only the Path of Transcendence were unlocked, the Hourglass would have acted against the Transcenders long ago. They won't allow one path to surpass the others...it's against the Principle of Balance.

"But now the angels of the Hourglass are silent, with no response. I knew, this certainly isn't the end.

"At least...Celestial Marshals of the nine paths must take turns to descend. Not to mention whether the Celestial Marshals of the Path of Beauty and the Path of Love will descend upon Iris Flower, making it like Star Antimony before...even if they descend elsewhere, the balanced situation of Iris Flower's two parties would be disrupted. Would it not also descend into chaos? Remember to think before you speak, Arsene!"

The old Duke reprimanded his son-in-law Arsene.

Evidently, he didn't expect Annie to make any correct or crucial decisions, but he had considerable expectations for Arsene's talents. For this reason, the same question when asked by Annie wouldn't elicit a reprimand at all, but if Arsene posed an inappropriate question, the old man would immediately strike.

Aiwass, however, praised: "Didn't expect you to see this without understanding the situation in the Dream Realm..."

"Hmph...it's nothing."

The old man slightly closed his eyes: "When you're older, you'll know that matters of the world all come down to human affairs.

"Even those lofty, immortal gods, their essence is merely a bit more peculiar 'human'...whether it's Celestial Marshals or Pillar Gods, they're drawn by the nature of the Source River, bound by the rules of the paths. Predicting the intentions of these powers that shape history is actually simpler than predicting the mundane rulers...because the former has definite behavior logic, whereas mortals don't even know what they want, their minds are always muddled.

"——Isn't that right, Your Holiness?"

"Indeed."

Aiwass interlocked his fingers on his lap, relaxed on the sofa with an unrestrained posture.

He also didn't correct the "former Pope" issue but simply nodded slightly: "Your understanding of the deities is very apt. Pillar Gods are merely those of a singular nature, while Celestial Marshals encompass a few more. But they also have desires..."

"Anything with desires can be used."

The old man continued slowly: "Anything with expectations can be predicted."

"Exactly so."

Aiwass nodded: "Predicting the future is truly difficult. Even the best Astrologers and Prophets could have their predicted futures change; if you believe too much in such things, it can be detrimental to yourself. But knowing the objectives of the Pillar Gods allows one to see the direction of the future."

It's like the nobles and officials of the mortal world.

They certainly cannot know the future, but they can know the King's personal inclinations, know the interest alignment of the court officials. Knowing these directions of the "powerful ones" is tantamount to indirectly knowing the future.

"So... Father's meaning is that we need to seize the power of Iris Flower?"

Annie frowned slightly; she still couldn't grasp the purpose: "Would Iris Flower improve if we took charge?"

"Of course not."

The old man calmly stated: "Those issues are there, no matter who replaces whom, they can't be solved."

"Then..."

"——However, we can eliminate those things that trigger the problems."

The old man's words were cold: "For example, the Son of the Moon."

And suddenly Arsene understood something: "I see, that's why...the family collaborates with the Hawkeye Organization!"

He was once a member of the Hawkeye Organization.

According to the Hawkeye Organization's rule that "exiting without permission is considered betrayal", he should have been executed long ago by the "Rule Enforcers" within the group — assassins specialized in tracking, one-on-one, anti-stealth capabilities, tasked with assassinating other assassins. They could transcend and single-handedly kill those of the Fifth Power Level despite being at the Fourth Level, and they were crucial to the organization's cohesion.

Only when people realize that "rules" can be ensured will they believe and abide by them.

It was because the Duke of Vandome made some connections back then that he could live on.

And now, probably due to the Duke's permission...he could obtain the "Sword of Separation of All Things"!

Thinking of this, Arsene looked at Sherlock, slowly sipping tea.

He suddenly understood why Sherlock was not afraid.

——As early as when Sherlock sent out that letter, the old Duke had already understood everything. The old man's wisdom far exceeded his expectations, so much so that Arsene, who believed the old man might not understand or decipher the code before it was sent, realized it had likely been decrypted long before.

It makes sense...even if the Duke of Vandome himself hadn't deciphered it, there were other talents in the Duke Mansion. They couldn't unravel the secrets of the Third Rebellion, but that didn't mean they couldn't understand a coded message in a letter.

However, since Sherlock spared the old Duke's face by not choosing to tear things apart for rescue...the old Duke decided to return the favor and let Sherlock go. Thus, subsequently, he could get the dagger he had long wanted — precisely because the old Duke felt "the time had come" and finally gave it to him!

Thinking of this, Arsene's eyes showed a trace of fear.

Only now did he realize why he obtained this dagger so smoothly, without anyone pursuing him even in the Dream Realm...that was only due to the old Duke's consent.

The old Duke wanted to release Sherlock, but since Sherlock had sent out the letter, releasing him outright would seemingly appear as if the old Duke feared Sherlock; he needed a pretext. Therefore, sending Arsene to the Dream Realm to find Sherlock was quite a suitable move.

On the other hand, his lack of intervention in Arsene's venture deep into the dangerous Dream Realm was also a punishment for "betraying the family" and "behaving recklessly"!

He attempted to release the family's detained key prisoner, which was undoubtedly an act of betrayal; when entering the Dream Realm, he hadn't investigated how to enter another's dream, nor was he aware of the specifics of the Dream Realm; this showed arrogance and recklessness.

Everything was within the old man's calculations!