Chapter 406: Ranking of Schemes

When Harvey confronted Mercury, Qenna, Annan, and Banjeet quickly agreed to a ceasefire.

Annan wasn’t oblivious to the situation. With no chance of escape and a horde of hunters eyeing them hungrily, the prey had little choice but to seek protection from one hunter in exchange for being spared the slaughter.

Even though Annan detested Qenna, she had to admit that becoming Qenna’s plaything was far better than becoming a prisoner of the Red Hat or any other family.

“Harvey, Ashe, we surrender to Senhaeser!” Annan shouted loudly as soon as Qenna released her. “We are now Senhaeser’s spoils of war!”

“Hey, hey, does that mean we came here for nothing?”

“We can’t give everything to Senhaeser. At least Ashe Heath must face justice.”

“Archibald Harvey can’t be handed over to Senhaeser either!”

Three other Sanctuary sorcerers finally broke free from the constraints of the ‘High Imitation Golden Flow Area’ and hurried to the scene to join the spoils meeting. They were the Sanctuary sorcerer from the Kaesrei family, Azura’s ‘Weeping Sand Red Cap’ Cleos, and the Happy Family Firm’s ‘Red Cicada Dame’ Ina.

Qenna stood with Funeral and the others, waving her hand to release the soul-binding bullets that had restrained the group-leaving only a weak and helpless Ashe whimpering.

The remaining four Sanctuary sorcerers formed a semicircle around the group, all focusing pressure on Qenna.

“If you hadn’t caused such a ruckus earlier, we wouldn’t have this problem now,” Qenna said coldly.

“That’s nonsense!” Annan retorted bluntly. “Even if I had surrendered the moment I saw you, do you really think they would just let you take us away? If you had let us go earlier, none of this would have happened!”

Annan saw through everything clearly. This pursuit was a joint operation, which inevitably meant there would be disputes over the distribution of spoils, and these conflicts would be irreconcilable.

Although the Sanctuary sorcerers vaguely knew that Ashe Harvey was a ranked individual who had deceived Gospel, and that Gospel’s evaluation of them would certainly be flawed, their ranking might be fake. However, the prophecy of an apocalypse within fifty years from Gospel was undoubtedly real!

At this time, anyone who could reach the future was extremely precious. Even if Ashe Harvey was a counterfeit, seizing him would still be a gain! Otherwise, why would they travel all the way to Mephila to invade a private residence? Out of sheer altruism?

Not to mention that Harvey had a high chance of obtaining the Angelic Heritage in the future, potentially leading the top ten necromancy families and becoming the undisputed king in the Gospel’s apocalypse. Who wouldn’t want to take his place?

Ashe wasn’t as valuable, but Cleos wanted to use him to improve her ranking, and other families surely wanted this ‘ordinary male protagonist’ who appeared on two ranking lists in a row. So, Ashe’s value, though smaller, was only slightly less than that of ‘Necromancy King’ Harvey.

Annan couldn’t escape either. She was the number one on the Art Ranking and the head of the Firm. Everyone knew that Ashe and Harvey’s inclusion on the ranking lists was closely tied to her.

Thus, when Annan closed her right eye and opened her left eye’s “Calamity Vision,” she saw herself, Ashe, and Harvey shrouded in black mist, clearly marked by calamity.

Sure enough, the young man Mercury spoke up, “Since Senhaeser was the first to capture them, Senhaeser can choose one of the three important targets, and all other secondary targets also go to Senhaeser. How about that?”

Kaesrei added, “Whoever chooses Archibald Harvey must share his necromancy results-not just with us, but with other families listed on the Family Ranking as well.”

Cleos hesitated for a moment, then shook her head. “No, Annan is neither a fugitive nor a future offender. You have no right to decide Annan’s fate. Since she chose to surrender to Senhaeser, she belongs to Senhaeser. As for harboring charges, Captain Qenna will handle it herself. Captain Qenna, you only need to choose between Heath and Harvey.”

The ‘Red Cicada Dame’ Ina gave Cleos a deep look but nodded in agreement. “I align with the Weeping Sand Red Cap.”

Kaesrei and Mercury’s faces immediately turned grim.

Although Annan wasn’t as crucial as the other two, everyone had deduced from the first two ranking lists that Annan was absolutely a central figure in deceiving Gospel.

If Annan and the other outsiders continued to stay together, the Weaving Festival would undoubtedly be disrupted by them.

If it were any other time, they might be able to tolerate this. But the next fifty years were crucial for the survival of Gospel, and the Weaving Festival was the most important channel for observation. They absolutely couldn’t allow Annan to continue causing disruptions!

More importantly, if Senhaeser got her hands on the luxurious combination of Annan and any outsider, the advantage would be enormous. It would be equivalent to obtaining a ticket to the future!

Retreat, and the family would last a millennium; advance, and they could establish a dynasty!

In an apocalypse where resources were scarce, Senhaeser’s expansion would undoubtedly squeeze the survival space of other families!

Kaesrei and Mercury had many schemes running through their minds, but with Cleos and Ina subtly siding with Senhaeser, they were left with no choice.

There were only five Sanctuary sorcerers here. Other families either didn’t have any Sanctuary sorcerers or couldn’t spare them. Once a 3:2 situation formed, they could only watch as Senhaeser claimed a sweeping victory.

Qenna looked back, glancing at Ashe, who was protecting Lise, then at the necromancer burning with green flames, and finally exchanged a look with the young Banjeet and her daughter Annan.

“It seems I have only one choice,” Qenna said coldly, adjusting the brim of her Red Hat.

A disheveled Annan raised her eyebrows. “That’s right... free attack!”

“Senhaeser believes that Ashe Heath, Archibald Harvey, Annan Dolan, and all other targets should be under her control,” Mercury said calmly. “We are having a friendly discussion.”

Everyone immediately understood that this was a tense and exciting post-battle distribution meeting. The Six Heraldry clansmen instantly flew behind Qenna, while the rest of the Red Hats, Firm members, and family sorcerers stood on Mercury’s side.

The situation instantly reversed. Qenna’s side had fewer than ten people, while Mercury’s side had over forty. Although elite two-wing sorcerers couldn’t intervene in the Sanctuary battle, if Mercury could hold off Qenna, the elite sorcerer squads could seize the opportunity to attack Ashe and other captives, directly snatching the spoils.

Qenna also realized this, but instead of softening, she became even more resolute. “Mercury, Cleos, do you want them to get involved in a Sanctuary battle? They will die.”

Due to the presence of Sanctuary sorcerers, the intensity of the Miracles used in their battles is extremely high. If a two-wings sorcerer gets caught in the crossfire, they will die a gruesome death. The only reason Ashe and the others managed to avoid harm earlier was because the Sanctuary sorcerers deliberately held back, not intending to kill them.

The situation reached a stalemate. Although Mercury’s side had the advantage, it wasn’t overwhelming enough to crush their opponents. Qenna, Harvey, and Banjeet, the three Sanctuary combatants, were not to be underestimated. If a battle broke out, the casualties would be so severe that all factions would feel the pain.

As everyone pondered their next move, Banjeet suddenly let out a bitter laugh. Thick white smoke emerged from his body, and he began to shrink rapidly, melting until he became a small boy of about five years old.

The young boy looked at his oversized butler attire in confusion, waved his sleeve, and glanced around at the unfamiliar adults. His innocent face showed fear and panic, and tears quickly welled up in his eyes, on the verge of spilling over.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry, come with sister for some chocolate,” Lise decisively stepped forward and led the little Banjeet away. Seeing that his new companion was only a little older than himself, the boy managed to hold back his tears and followed her to the rear.

Ashe stared blankly at Annan and pointed at the small Banjeet. Annan nodded helplessly.

At that moment, Alice Harvey suddenly coughed heavily. The green flames on his body gradually extinguished, and a cloud of white mist left Alice’s body, entering a coffin. Alice immediately closed the coffin lid.

Ashe: “You...”

“I’m Alice,” Alice (Harvey) said cheerfully. “Harvey needs to rest in the coffin, so I’ll take over from here!”

Ashe was at a loss, unsure if this was Harvey’s split personality, a necromancer’s twisted sense of humor, or a side effect of a previous Miracle. Regardless, the outcome was the same-

They had just lost two Sanctuary combatants.

Meanwhile, the ‘Red Cicada Dame’ Ina had recovered her basic combat strength and rejoined the Sanctuary sorcerers.

The atmosphere grew tense.

Mercury coughed twice, and Qenna rubbed her forehead.

In terms of numbers and combat power, Senhaeser and her group were now at a significant disadvantage. No matter how strong Qenna was, there was no way she could lead the Funeral members away while being besieged by four Sanctuary sorcerers and dozens of elite sorcerers.

Exhausted, Annan walked over to Ashe, wrapped her arm around his, and leaned on him, as if she would collapse without support.

Everyone had done their best.

Initially, they should have been captured by Qenna, but Banjeet stepped in;

Later, Mercury should have captured Ashe, but Harvey intervened;

Those were unexpected turns, but now reality had set in.

“We’ll have to hand over Harvey,” Annan whispered in Ashe’s ear. “Don’t say anything. I’ll talk to Qenna.”

“Miss, don’t you have... a backup plan?” Ashe asked.

Annan glanced at him and nodded. “I do, but it might already be ineffective.”

“And in this situation, ordinary plans won’t work. We can only hope for a Miracle.”

At that moment, everyone’s Gospel Book popped open, revealing a gleaming bookmark inside.

“Now of all times?” Ashe and the others felt a surge of hope.

“Why now?” Mercury’s heart sank.

“Why at this moment?” Yvaren felt uneasy.

Although this was no time to be distracted, no one could resist the lure of the future. With various thoughts in mind, everyone opened their bookmarks and looked at the title of the third ranking list-

“Ranking of Schemes.”