"Dan hasn't come back yet?"

Although he became King, Isadore preferred his old office so he kept using it even after ascending to the throne. He just asked Christopher, the minister of finance and his long-time friend.

"No, Your Majesty."

The fat minister shook his head while saying that.

"Oh come on, no need to be polite when we're alone."

Feeling a bit uncomfortable, Christopher said

"N-no can do, Your Majesty. You're our king an-"

Isadore cut him off while retorting

"Before we're a 'king and his subjects', we are friends. It is for this reason that I only allow you to come here and speak of my secrets to you."

The fatty scratched the back of his head while smiling

"I'm flattered, Your Majesty."

Seeing the stubborn attitude of his friend, Isadore could only let out a helpless sigh. He glanced at the silent silver-haired woman sitting at the corner of the office before unfolding a small piece of paper he received a few minutes ago.

After carefully reading it, he sucked a deep breath and shifted his attention back to the busy Taliya.

"Taliya."

Hearing him call her name, the new adviser put down the papers in her hand and walked to him. He handed her the piece of paper he just got and said

"What do you think?"

After she finished reading the contents of the paper, the demon frowned and replied

"Are you sure of their authenticity?"

She was talking about the content of the small paper.

"Surer than sure."

Without realizing it, Taliya sat next to the king and started reading the small paper again and again.

"I, I don't think it's true. Arthur would never let Lucy go alone."

She looked at him and asked

"What about you? What do you think happened to them."

Isadore raised his hand innocently and retorted

"Hey, I'm not the one who's close to them. You should know them better than I do."

After that, Taliya spent a long time pondering before speaking again.

"No, it's impossible. Arthur would rather die than separate from Lucy."

Isadore creased his brows and asked

"To that extent?"

She nodded her head while confirming his suspicions

"More than you think. He would stop at nothing to guarantee her safety and it is for this reason that I think this information is either false or incomplete."

Hearing this, Isadore burst out in laughter, startling the focused Taliya who looked at him with a strange gaze.

"I also think the probability of them separating is close to zero. You mentioned that he can freely change appearance? Perhaps he's following them? Then again, how come the Overgod hasn't noticed him? Moreover, how will he infiltrate that place, after all, it's not a second-rate clan."

Taliya shook her head, indicating that she doesn't know what the hell was going on. With one finger unconsciously tapping the table, Isadore kept pondering

'Did he follow them or return to Astria? He isn't foolish enough to try and fight them alone but… who'll help him? The Kangs? Impossible, they aren't that deeply involved yet. Then why'd he let Lucy go back? Is it a trick? Did he send a clone? I need more information from Dan!'

***

Arthur accompanied the Whisperer King for a whole day before leaving the Ghost Nation. Time was running out and the Time Wraiths are becoming more and more numerous. He heard what he need to hear from the Whisperer King so he needs to complete the last task before succumbing to the Wraiths.

With a silver baby dragon in his arm, he teleported to a peaceful place devoid of any person. He rubbed the dragon's cute head while saying

"Never did I think I would spend my final days with you, Yamak."

The dragon licked his face, covering it with saliva. Yamak was as energetic as ever, its growth speed is truly monstrous. In just a short period of time, his size almost doubled and his strength rose by leaps and bounds.

As he glanced around, Arthur let out a sigh and mumbled

"It shall end just like it began."

***

A few hours after Lucy was 'guided' to this room, someone knocked three times on the door. Although Lucy completely ignored them, whoever was there refused to leave and patiently waited for her.

A minute passed, then an hour, then five hours. Feeling uncomfortable about this stubborn stranger who's still waiting outside of her room, Lucy was left with no choice but to open the door.

What welcomed her sight was a boy who looked fifteen or sixteen years old. He was short and looked weak and fragile especially with his reddened face and half-open mouth.

He hesitated for a few seconds before speaking

"H-hello Miss Eva. F-from now on, I'm your p-personal servant."

Not only he lacked confidence, he didn't even dare raise his dropped head, much less look at her. He heard that she's the Matriarch long lost daughter who finally returned home.

Surprisingly, this boy was a 6-Star God Monarch who supposed to be her 'servant' and 'guardian'. Although he looked young, Arthur could see his real age, which is different from what he looks like.

This boy is Teit and isn't a White Specter but a human. The clan recruits strong humans who are willing to serve the higher-ups. Those who are recruited are commonly fugitives who are blacklisted by their previous clan or sect.

Teit is actually 65 years old but he behaved like a total child for some reason. Lucy contemplated what to do before saying

"I'm not 'Miss Eva' but Lucy MoonStar and I don't need a servant."

She paid him no heed and slammed the door to which the boy became startled, taking a few steps back then falling on his butt. He tried to convince her to let him serve her but was too late to do that. The only thing left to do was wait in front of the door until she acknowledges him.

'We could use someone like him.'-Arthur

'Hmpf! Aren't you usually against me interacting with other men?'-Lucy

'Well… he seems harmless and timid. He's not threatening.'-Arthur

'Still, I feel disgusted by all men, young or old so I'll find someone else, a female who's willing to spy for us.'-Lucy

'I don't think it's going to be that easy. They're closely monitoring you.'-Arthur

…

A day passed yet neither Hobson nor Angelina visited her. Teit remained standing outside of the door, not budging or saying anything. He was told to serve Lucy and he mustn't fail. Although he is quite strong, he's still treated poorly due to his Race. Although not all of the specters, a few of them treat the Humans quite harshly.

Coincidentally, those 'few' happen to be those at the top of the clan, those who pull all the strings and control everything. The Matriarch is still the absolute ruler of the clan but due to her frequent absence, the matters of the clan are usually handled by Thordan and some others.

Time was pressing and the couple needed information about the clan sooner rather than later. In the end, although unwilling, Lucy had to use Teit, who was immensely happy when Lucy opened the door and told him to come in.

"M-miss E- I mean Lucy, I'm glad that you've finally accepted me. I'll be loyal and serve you properly!"

He did a ninety-degree bow and remained like that for ten seconds before raising his head. It is hard to believe that he's 65 years old but the results of Appraisal can't be faked especially if it's used with Arthur's eye.

'Claud, how much time do you think the ARK can isolate us?'-Arthur

'Isolate? Probably three hours but I can stretch it to four. Why? Are you going to do it now? Isn't it too soon?'

'Not now but I need to prepare.'-Arthur

Lucy crossed her arms and coldly stared at Teit, who dropped his head, too embarrassed to meet her gaze.

"How many people are there in the sect?"

The boy thought for a moment before replying

"Three thousand White Specters and a thousand humans."

"What about their…"

Lucy started questioning him and only stopped after one hour. Although he always replied, she couldn't fully trust his words, he could be a spy sent by someone antagonistic to her mother.

Still, the information he gave her was terrifying. Two thousand of those White Specters are actually the elite army of the clan and are always on standby. Almost all of them are God Monarch with the exceptions of three, who are Overgods.

The remaining thousand specters are either children or elderly and their cultivation varies. The thousand humans all have a cultivation above the God Realm and are like a 'cannon-fodder'.

There's also the Elders, which are divided into two types, Peak Elders and Regular Elders(like Benson). Peak Elders are strong Overgods and Regular Elders are 'new' Overgods. Any White Specter who breakthrough the Overgod Realm will become a Regular Elder.

The territory of the White Specter Clan is truly humongous but only a small part of it is habitable. The rest is used for resources, trials, or tournaments. There's also a forbidden area only accessible by the Matriarch.

After getting the much-needed answers, Lucy sent Teit out, telling him to bring her information about the terrain around the sect. What is the closest sect or clan? Are there nearby cities? Forests? Mountains? She wanted to know everything…

…

Inside the ARK, Arthur sipped some tea which was prepared by his copy and stared at the endless white space around him.

"What are you think about?"

Artur chuckled and replied with an absent-minded look

"Her mother brought her yet didn't even come to see her personally and her father is an asshole. I wish not for my wife to live in such a place and I'm sure she doesn't want to too. You ask me what I was thinking about?"

He leaned closer to Claud and spoke with a chilling tone

"I'm thinking about the day I bring my undead army here and demolish this place. I will make them regret bringing her… let's see if five thousand people can defend against an army of millions."

"Are you thinking of killing them all?"

A cold glint flashed across Arthur's eyes.

"Whoever raises a weapon to fight is an enemy. It matters not if it's a kid or a dying old woman."