"Destroying an enemy brings glory," Dr. Raven muttered. "Destroying an ally brings absolute ruin. The international community will turn against Belmontia completely. The other nations will close their borders. They will declare war on us. It is a diplomatic suicide mission. I am a highly educated politician. I would never commit diplomatic suicide."
Ken let out a silent sigh inside his mask. The puzzle pieces finally snapped together perfectly.
"He is telling the absolute truth," Ken concluded calmly in his mind. "He did not push the button. He did not order the launch. He is way too greedy to ruin his own trade routes. That means someone else took control of his toys."
Ken remembered his earlier theory. He remembered sitting on the sofa in the 13th Unit estate. He remembered telling Naomi that the giant flower and the monster invasion were just a massive distraction.
"The Black Magicians," Ken realized silently. "They stole the forbidden book from the Bluemoon vault. But they also did something else. They sneaked into the eastern mountains. They found Dr. Raven's secret missile silo. They hijacked the Solurious weapon. They fired it at the Bluemoon Kingdom to wipe out the grandmasters. They used a Belmontia weapon to do it. They framed our Empire for the entire tragedy. They want to start a massive global war."
It was a brilliant, incredibly flawless evil plan. The true villains manipulated multiple nations at the exact same time. They caused maximum chaos.
Lancelot stared at the panting politician. He had the answers he needed. Dr. Raven was completely useless to him now. The man was just a broken, defeated pawn in a much larger game.
"Your logic is sound," Lancelot stated coldly. His deep voice echoed in the dark. "You are too cowardly to execute an attack of this magnitude. Your ambition blinded you. You built a weapon you could not control. You allowed true monsters to steal your creation."
Dr. Raven flinched. The insult hit his massive ego hard. But he could not argue. He knew Lancelot was right. His secret facility had been compromised. His apocalyptic bomb had been taken from him. He was a complete failure.
Lancelot turned around. His black cloak swirled elegantly. He prepared to leave the shadow prison. He wanted to go back to the estate. He was very tired of talking to arrogant men in expensive suits.
"I am done with you," Lancelot announced dismissively. "You will remain in this darkness. You will rot in silence. You will have a very long time to think about your massive mistakes."
Lancelot raised his right hand. He snapped his fingers softly.
Snap.
A glowing purple portal ripped open in the fabric of the dark dimension. The portal hummed with intense magical energy. It offered a pathway back to the mortal world. Lancelot took a step toward the bright light.
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"Wait!" Dr. Raven shouted loudly.
Lancelot stopped walking. He did not turn around. He just tilted his masked head slightly to the side.
"You think you are the absolute master of this Empire," Dr. Raven sneered. His voice was filled with bitter, venomous hatred. He wanted to deliver one final, crushing blow. He wanted to ruin the shadow god's confidence.
Dr. Raven took a slow step forward. He pointed a shaking finger at Lancelot's back. The real conversation was about to take a massive, highly political turn. Dr. Raven was preparing to reveal a very dark, incredibly dangerous secret about the Upper Council.
---
Dr. Raven stood in the pitch-black room. He glared at the masked entity. He knew he was going to spend the rest of his life in this dark prison. He had absolutely nothing left to lose. He wanted to make Lancelot feel a fraction of the fear he was experiencing.
"You walk around acting like an untouchable god," Dr. Raven spat. His voice was harsh and cruel. "You think you control the shadows. You think the politicians bow to your every command. You think you are the ultimate protector of this pathetic Empire."
Lancelot stood perfectly still near the glowing purple portal. He did not say a word. He did not show any emotion.
Ken Eliot let out a long, dramatic groan inside his own mind.
"Why do they always have to give a final speech?" Ken complained lazily to himself. He wanted to roll his eyes. "I already got the information I needed. The interrogation is officially over. Now he just wants to monologue. Villains love the sound of their own voices. I should have brought a folding chair. Standing here is very bad for my posture."
Dr. Raven laughed a dry, bitter laugh. He crossed his arms over his torn suit jacket.
"You are completely blind to the reality of the Upper Council," Dr. Raven revealed maliciously. "You think they respect you. You think they value your interventions. They do not respect you, Lancelot. They are absolutely terrified of you."
Dr. Raven took another slow step forward. He wanted to make sure his words hit their mark perfectly.
"I sat in those secret meetings," Dr. Raven continued. He smiled a wicked, knowing smile. "I listened to the highest-ranking Senators in the capital city. I know exactly what they say behind closed doors when you are not around."
Dr. Raven pointed his finger directly at the glowing purple eye on Lancelot's mask.
"Sixty percent of the Senators completely fear you," Dr. Raven declared loudly. His voice echoed across the empty void. "More than half the ruling body of this Empire views you as the ultimate threat. They do not see a protector. They see a ticking time bomb."
Ken listened to the politician. He did not feel shocked. He did not feel angry. He just felt incredibly bored.
"Wow. Sixty percent," Ken analyzed casually in his head. "That is a very solid majority. I guess I really need to work on my public relations strategy. Maybe I should bake them some cookies. Or maybe I should just keep ignoring them. Ignoring people requires zero physical effort. I definitely prefer ignoring them."
Dr. Raven saw Lancelot standing completely still. The corrupt politician thought his words were causing the shadow god to panic. He thought he was finally breaking Lancelot's perfect composure.
"The Senators are not fools," Dr. Raven sneered triumphantly. "They run the numbers. They calculate the magical power scales. They know your strength is completely immeasurable. They know you bypass their laws effortlessly."
Dr. Raven lowered his voice into a dark, conspiratorial whisper.
"They believe that if you ever truly turn against them," Dr. Raven warned smoothly, "nobody would be able to stop you. If you decided you wanted the throne, no army could hold you back. No Royal unit could block your path. You could slaughter the entire Upper Council in a single afternoon."
Dr. Raven threw his arms wide open. He looked incredibly smug.
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