Chapter 190 An Su: I Will Strike in Radiant Form! (Two in One)
"What? Isn't the test tomorrow?"
There is always someone stronger.
An Su thought that Elf's two-hour tardiness was already shockingly enough, but he hadn't anticipated that his rural compatriots from the borderlands would surpass even that.
Lister and Arthur's earth-shattering act infuriated Demigod Rada beyond measure.
His face turned beet red, his bald head, shining with Holy Light, also flushed with blood, looking like a tea egg from the pressure, and he even found it difficult to breathe. Ever since he became the General of Suffering, wherever he went, he was greeted with courtesy; he had never been so humiliated.
To think he had been waiting here for two whole hours!
And last time, last time those guys actually had the audacity to get drunk before a meeting; that wasn't even the worst of it – the worst thing was that, though he was present, no one bothered to toast to him!
"Oh dear."
What made him even angrier was the Chaotic Saintess, Elf, looking all forlorn and desperate beside him, hanging her head like a frostbitten eggplant, gently biting her silver teeth, her face full of regret as she said, "I didn't expect I'd still be early! What a loss!"
Being outdone in the serious business of tardiness by believers from other sects was a considerable blow to the Chaotic Saintess's spiritual path.
She resolved to learn from this failure, and to do even better next time, she would arrive three hours late at the next gathering.
"Thanks for the timely reminder, Brother Su."
On the other end of the Magic Communication, Lister still remained composed; he prided himself on being an elegant nobleman, not one to panic over a little tardiness like Arthur, "It's just a small delay; I'll be riding on Arthur and arriving shortly."
The sound of galloping, as fast as lightning, came through the Magic Communication. At this moment, both men had reached the ultimate speed in their lives.
Even through the magic, An Su could hear the whooshing wind from the other side, like a hurricane blowing past his ear or lightning streaking across the sky, such was the urgency. Archduke Annand had told Arthur once that at a life-or-death moment, a Sun Warrior would activate the hidden Solar Bloodline within and break the boundaries of his limits, becoming a true warrior.
And now, that critical moment had arrived.
Arthur was indeed awakened.
Lister rode on the back of the blazing Arthur, rushing over with the speed of the wind and lightning.
"When we get there, we can sneak in through the back door; maybe Bishop Rada won't even notice us!"
Thanks to his years of experience with tardiness, Lister quickly thought of a plan.
Luckily, he thought to himself, An Su had arrived on time and warned them. As long as they made a mad dash for it, they would be, at most, only twenty minutes late.
"I was also two hours late," An Su said after a moment of silence, bursting Lister's bubble.
Lister was silent.
"And this is a magic space, there is no back door," An Su transmitted.
Lister's expression grew more pained, and cold sweat began trickling down his forehead.
"Bishop Rada has already called the roll."
An Su spoke in a gentle tone, as kindly as a doctor announcing a terminal cancer diagnosis.
He's called you two already.
Lister smiled, resigned to his fate.
Arthur, too, smiled in acceptance, abruptly throwing Lister off his back, reverting from his state as a Sun Knight and sitting down leisurely on the ground with a bright, sunny disposition.
No one had thought that on just the second day of their undercover lives, they would be prematurely concluding it due to being late.
"Let's come up with excuses for being late," Lister said, pushing up his glasses; he still intended to struggle, "For example, I could say that my father died, Bishop Rada will surely understand us."
"Yes, I could say my father died," Arthur chimed in quickly, "For the greater good of the Radiant Holy See, and for the life of a child, my father would surely be willing to die for a while."
"...I'm not yet dead."
While transmitting to these two, An Su observed Bishop Rada's expression and saw that in just a while, Rada's egg-like head had transformed from a tea egg to a marbled egg, "Besides, judging by Rada's current fury, I bet he'd be more than willing to send you two off to keep your deceased relatives company."
Find adventures on My Virtual Library Empire
Upon hearing this, the other two revealed relieved smiles again.
"By the way, what's the real reason you two forgot about the test?" An Su asked curiously.
"Money and women," the two men answered in unison, without a second's delay.
An Su's eyelids twitched.
Ever since the Cultists had figured out Arthur and Lister's human weaknesses, they had started to tempt them with what they liked, using beauty and money to distract them, ultimately making them forget about the test.
"I have a plan; if you want to live, listen to me." After all, as their father, An Su still planned to save his two good sons, "I'll provide cover for you, but you'll have to give me ten percent of the gifts you've received."
In this way, blackmailing for benefits, An Su's level of scumminess was no less than that of these two.
After hearing An Su's concocted plan, Lister and Arthur showed a look of admiration. True to Brother Su's genius across many fields, they had never expected his ability to lie with a straight face to be so strong.
After instructing the two, An Su ended the Magic Communication and turned his attention back to the bishops.
"Huff, huff. Shariputra is the emptiness of all dharmas, neither arising nor ceasing... Shariputra is..."
Bishop Rada was silently reciting the holy epithet he had heard in Heaven, gradually calming down. Whenever he was consumed by rage, he would chant this obscure prayer, and oddly enough, it always worked.
He decided that he would get rid of these two pests after the fall, exhaling slowly. As his mood calmed down, the redness of his bald head faded as well. Bishop Rada looked around at the Cultist prodigies and announced, "Let's not bother with them. Let's just start!"