After Annan sealed his spellcasting ability, the atmosphere did ease down.
After the atmosphere calmed down a bit, everyone subconsciously chose to agree with Annan's previous idea: it's better to sit down and have a good talk.
After all, Annan took the initiative to suffer in front of everyone.
While no one benefits, there are always times when people think they should feel guilty.
The level of guilt was not deep. If Annan really asked them for something that would harm their interests, they would probably reject it immediately.
But Annan just made a proposal at this time that is good for everyone... at least it is not bad for everyone.
Then at this time, they will subconsciously obey Annan's harmless command.
This is an opportunity.
If Annan can grasp the initiative in the following conversation, then in the next step, Annan's words will still carry weight.
Although "Gerald" has no combat effectiveness, low status, bad background, and unattractive appearance. But people will still subconsciously follow his command.
This is due to the instinct of laziness in human beings.
Instincts that cannot be realized unless specifically pointed out.
Because it takes a lot of energy and the risk of isolation to discern "whether a new leader is trustworthy" in the group and stand up against authority.
Especially when the leader doesn't actually have so much power that they can shake their fundamental interests. Then it's not worth it.
This model is somewhat similar to class committee elections in the student period.
Students can often find that in the election of most class committees, although adjustments are allowed in principle. But often everyone will not choose the best answer, but continue the original choice.
So before encountering huge setbacks and temptations that shake the authority of the interim captain, people tend to continue to obey the command of the interim captain... even if everyone is convinced that this person is not the best choice.
And what Annan has to do is to be this "useless temporary captain" and let them form a thinking inertia.
If they are accustomed to following Annan's instructions, when they hear a harmless order, they will subconsciously think about "whether it is good to do it" instead of questioning "whether it can be done".
Then Annan mixed some personal work into the decision-making, and they would not be able to detect it.
Under the leadership of Uncle Ghirlandaio, the crowd came to a teahouse.
Although the disciples were dismissed, the tea leaves in the teahouse would obviously not be taken away... They haven't fallen to this level yet.
With the help of the transforming wizard Benjamin, they quickly made black tea. As Annan said, they decided to sit down and have a peaceful talk.
"Ugh..."
Claire took a sip of the warm black tea and breathed a sigh of relief.
She lay lazily on the table, as if melting into a ball.
Maria's emotionless ice-blue pupils were still moving quickly through the crowd.
"Speaking of which," she suddenly turned to Benjamin and asked, "I remember that you are the famous mentor of Zedi Heita..."
"You want to question why I was selected, right?"
Benjamin easily saw through Maria's meaning, and directly interrupted her conversation.
He looked at Gerald with a complicated expression, and was silent for a while, as if he was organizing his words.
On the other hand, Eugene Melvin, the idol school wizard, spoke for the first time after entering the White Tower:
"Because four of his students died cleanly.
"They were all killed by this... dark wizard David Gerald."
His voice is long and ethereal, as if it has some kind of divinity.
But what he said made people look at Annan again.
Many wizards know about this. But there are also those who don’t know, or only know roughly.
Annan also touched his nose, thinking about what expression he should use at this time...
—So he just lowered his head with a wry smile and didn't say much.
I see.
He muttered in his heart.
Is this what Salvatore was talking about before, the reason why Gerald must be killed
According to the time, Salvatore should have entered the Zedi Black Tower at this time, but he has not yet become Benjamin's disciple. And it was precisely because Benjamin's disciple was killed by Gerald that the black wizard Gerald was removed from the Black Tower and wanted...
But looking at Benjamin like this, it seems that there are other stories here.
Seeing the weird looks of the two, the faces of other wizards also showed a little interest.
— want to hear a story.
—but it would be too impertinent to say it directly.
"Speaking of which," Claire looked up from the table, looking at the thin old man with sunken cheeks, deep eye sockets, and a lack of energy, "if Her Highness Maria is a wizard of the Order School... then this person who has never been Speaker… "
"His name is Merlin Manning."
Maria glanced at him, and introduced softly: "It used to be... the 'Hand of Winter' of our country."
… The Hand of Winter!
Hearing this title, everyone's eyes froze.
The legendary disabled wizard who completely freezes his inner feelings, the emotionless watcher... the secret intelligence department of the Duchy of Winter—or, the elite thugs of the spy agency.
Hearing Maria introducing herself, the old man raised his head, stood up slowly, and bowed deeply to everyone awkwardly.
He pointed to his mouth and shook his hand.
Maria added: "Of course...he retired five years ago because of a leg injury. He doesn't have a tongue so he can't speak."
Without a tongue, it means that it is not easy to leak secrets.
After all, because of the old Hand of Winter, he knew too many secrets.
Even if the new generation of Winter's Hand can prevent documents and envelopes from going back and forth, verbal information transmission still cannot be prevented.
Information can be encrypted, cannot be written down, and can only be communicated orally a limited number of times. But there are soul-reaping wizards in this world... In the case of being able to directly control the mind at close range, cutting off the tongue is a simple, convenient and low-cost way to keep secrets.
Of course, they don't have to cut off their tongues, but in this way they can only live within the specified range.
Consciously cutting off the tongue is also to reduce the work pressure of the younger generation. Let there be fewer people guarding yourself, and your retirement life can be lighter.
... But even the retired Hand of Winter, no one dares to underestimate him.
This is a wizard who can hunt wizards.
Many spies are reapers.
It is not easy to defeat the Soul Reaper in a one-on-one battle. Although there is also the premise that they are extremely resistant to mind control... The Hand of Winter, which completely freezes the mind, can almost be said to be a soul-reaping wizard.
But being able to work until retirement without any obvious disabilities is enough to show the terrifying fighting ability of this dumb old man named Merlin.
"Since everyone knows each other."
Eugene Melvin, a white-haired teenager with a calm but divine voice, said, "I just had an idea and wanted to share it with you.
"I think everyone may not have noticed it before. A detail in the master's suicide note... that is, 'the murderer cannot kill'.
"-Have you ever thought that the place of Master Michelangelo's death might not be inside the White Tower? If this is the case, then the murderer should be able to kill people, because he did not trigger the spell.
"But if Master Michelangelo died in the tower, then there are only two possibilities... The first is that the murderer has taken away the master's curse, so he should have advanced to gold; the second is …”
When he said this, he paused slightly.
Everyone already understood what he meant.
In the silence, Annan was the first to speak.
He stared straight at the white-haired and white-eyed boy with a strange divinity on his body: "You mean...
"All of us, now in Master Michelangelo's nightmare?"
As soon as Annan said this.
The eyes of everyone changed immediately.
"...it's entirely possible."
Miss Clare said slowly.
The red-haired boy Jin also nodded silently.
Maria's brows were still furrowed, and she folded her arms and fell into thought.
Ghirlandaio scratched his hair in trouble.
Benjamin looked sad and sighed deeply.
The mute old man Merlin suddenly raised his head, his gaze was first on Annan, and then on Eugene Melvin.
Melvin's words gave everyone two directions of thinking.
well known—
The dead Transcendent, if no one collects the body, it will turn into a nightmare.
Well, if Master Michelangelo has become a nightmare.
Now, how can they be sure that they are not in a nightmare
If Master Michelangelo hadn't become a nightmare in the tower...
Then it shows that the method of killing to verify innocence is problematic.
Because Master Michelangelo died outside the tower.
So the murderer was not bound with a spell.
And if they are indeed in a nightmare...
Then killing people, dying in nightmares... wouldn't be a problem, would it
Annan frowned slightly.
These two thinking directions lead to the same result:
They have no way to win.
Have to think about who might be the murderer...
—and kill him.