Chapter 303
Chapter 303
Chapter 303
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 303 – Principal Lan Qi’s Insight
“I once lived in a Shadow World where my mission was to take the role of the demon race’s leader and help them survive a crisis. Through living among the demons, I gained a deep understanding of their culture and traits.”
As a principal, it was his duty to guide students whenever they sought him out.
This had always been Lan Qi’s professional attitude.
If the Duchess’s daughter, Chloris, had come to him as a great noble of the Imperial Capital to trade intelligence or negotiate cooperation, he might not have revealed much.
But since she had chosen to come to him as a student to ask a question—
Lan Qi would simply give her the answer directly.
“I see.”
It sounded casual, yet oddly logical.
The only problem was this so-called Shadow World… just what kind of absurd historical situation could have given rise to it?
Unfortunately, it was as if there was an exam question right in front of them: Lan Qi could write down the answer, but he could not take his subjective deductions and present them as hard evidence to convince everyone.
“I understand. Then, may I also ask Principal Rocky’s view on the current situation of the Protos Empire?”
Miss Chloris continued.
She was convinced the man before her possessed rare wisdom, talent, and charisma. But those alone were not enough for her to lend her support.
She was gambling: whoever wanted to influence the situation at present must also have vision and foresight—neither could be lacking.
The answer to this extremely broad and difficult question would immediately reveal the scope of one’s ambition and perspective. It would also decide how much she was willing to bet on Rocky McCarthy.
Yet—
Lan Qi showed not the slightest sign of hesitation.
“On the surface, the enemies are the Aetherthalan Kingdom and the Northern Principalities. But those who are willing to show themselves as enemies openly are often not so dangerous. If it really came to war, with the Resurrection Church’s strength on our side, it’s winnable.”
He leaned back casually, fingers interlaced, making his office chair creak as it tilted.
Most of his knowledge of the northern continent’s current state had been gathered after coming to the Protos Empire. Yet, much of it also came from his understanding of what would happen a year later, when war had already broken out.
“The key lies in the Holy See to the north. Their stance has remained ambiguous. Even toward the chaos on the southern shores, they act as if it has nothing to do with them. Outwardly neutral, in reality they’re far more dangerous than the Northern Principalities and Aetherthalan Kingdom combined. They are the true behemoth lying in wait to reap the spoils.”
“Farther north, whether it’s the domains of the Ancient Beings, or the nations that splintered from the old demon territories—they are all extremely powerful. But from a geographical standpoint, they are too far from the Protos Empire, blocked off by natural disasters and harsh terrain. The short-term threat is minimal.”
“If the so-called demons threatening the Empire’s northern borders are artificially created, then it is certain someone is deliberately trying to provoke a continental war. The real threat should be this invisible hand—some force manipulating the situation on the northern continent, trying to bleed humanity and other races dry, until they alone retain enough strength to dictate the final outcome.”
Chloris nodded as she listened. Clearly, she understood this point as well, or could at least deduce it from her own intelligence. His reasoning matched hers.
“But shouldn’t that still only count as a hypothesis? More like a potential enemy we imagine?”
She pressed further.
They had returned to the central question—
How to prove this force’s existence, so that others would believe it.
“Human lifespans are too short. If we only rely on history to predict the future, there will always be limits. If we don’t extend our vision further, we may face horrors beyond comprehension. Honestly, we don’t need to prove their existence. We only need to get one thing right or wrong.”
Lan Qi continued,
“In my view, if the Protos Empire truly intends to conquer the northern continent, the strategy was flawed from the very start.”
“In reality, the northern states have no good relations with the Holy See, which is a closed theocratic regime. The Holy See’s existence itself is bizarre. The Empire should have pinned the blame on the Holy See right away, then bypassed the northern states and launched a blitz against the Holy See. That would drag them into the mud first, with the northern states as a buffer in between—advance if victorious, retreat if not. Flexible either way.”
“Now it’s obvious someone wants to drain the Empire’s strength for nothing, using it as a fuse to ignite a far greater upheaval.”
He analyzed with calm seriousness.
“Stop, stop, that’s enough.”
Chloris raised her hand.
“……”
Even Professor Sido, slumped on the sofa, straightened up and stared at Lan Qi.
Wait a second. She wasn’t asking how the Protos Empire should properly conquer the northern continent. You’ve gone too far!
Yet Chloris smiled with great interest.
Lan Qi’s views were clearly different from what she expected—
But they did indeed highlight, from another angle, that this war brought no benefit whatsoever to the Empire.
He saw things with rare clarity. His way of thinking was simply unusual.
“So then, Principal Rocky, do you think the Protos Empire really has the potential to unify the northern continent?”
Chloris, before ending the topic, still wanted to hear his final conclusion.
“There’s no such possibility.”
Lan Qi shook his head with eyes closed.
“Why not?”
Chloris pressed further, intrigued by the sudden shift in his tone.
He had spoken with such certainty earlier—yet his conclusion now contradicted it.
“Because I am anti-war. I will not allow such a thing to happen.”
When Lan Qi opened his eyes again, his emerald gaze was as clear as water, yet deep with thought and compassion.
The eyes of a saint—bearing the weight of all life and suffering.
Even without words, he seemed to be telling Chloris—
What he sought was world peace.
Though, Chloris suspected his definition of “peace” might itself be… a little warped, belonging to an abnormal perspective.
“……”
She fell into long silence, hesitating.
In truth, her own answer would have been: the uncertainties in the extreme north were too great. If the Empire fought the north and suddenly some immortal being appeared—an ancient hero who had lived thousands of years, forgotten even by history—then any situation could be overturned at a critical moment.
And the northern continent indeed housed such beings.
Just like the ancient blood clans of the southern continent.
There was no evidence, no proof, but their existence was certain.
However, in terms of the current northern continent, these long-lived beings were greater random factors. The real threat to those who sought to manipulate the northern situation was exactly this randomness. Thus, before stepping into the open, they would try to maneuver from the shadows, forcing those unknown factors into the light.
But as she looked at this young man called Rocky McCarthy—
His very existence—
Was no less unpredictable than those hidden ancient heroes.