"Merlin, is there really a chance for the Illusory World to recover?" Titus asked excitedly. He had despaired ever since Merlin came to the Almighty Beast World. The will of this world is strong and oppressive and it would be destroyed if only a little force was leaked from the Illusory World.

Moreover, there was no way to cultivate Mind Power, which made Merlin lose confidence in restoring the Illusory World.

However, his body had truly reached its limit with the integration of a large number of almighty beast worlds. Besides sacred beasts, Merlin was almost invincible now. There was no ultimate contender strong enough to threaten him. Despite that, he was still one step short, and that was a sacred beast will or the world's will.

The Almighty Beast World's will was scattered and incomplete. This was Merlin's chance to restore the Illusory World!

"Titus, perhaps we'll be able to leave the Almighty Beast World soon."

There was a smile at the corner of Merlin's mouth. It was the first time he felt hope in leaving. Of course, Merlin wanted to be able to use the Illusory World to materialize illusions into reality.

Only in that way could he become a Latitude traveler like Aruba and experience Latitude Cosmos after Latitude Cosmos.

"Haha, in that case, I'll wait for your good news, Merlin…"

Titus disappeared into the Illusory World again and Merlin slowly resumed his normal appearance. Now, his physical quality had reached a new level. Even if he did not shapeshift, he possessed terrifying strength that was not inferior to his power from before.

Merlin had been in the secret chamber for a few months but he had not felt the passage of time. Yet, the outside world had been turned upside down.

After he left the secret chamber and returned to the castle, Merlin listened to the direct report from Shiya of Phantom's Intelligence Team. Since Merlin defeated the Candora Trio-Lords and the others, the King abdicated, and Farron also disappeared. It was assumed that he wanted to retire and did not want to interfere in the affairs of the Holy Dragon Empire anymore.

Therefore, Merlin took over Phantom's Intelligence Team, and naturally, no one had any objections.

"Sir Minister, many things have happened in the Holy Dragon Empire. Since Her Majesty became King, she had begun to use the power of Phantom's Intelligence Team to organize several armies and use the royal family's financial resources as support to start an all-round attack on the rebels. Now, except for the three rebel leaders, all the other rebels are in a state of collapse. Half of the Holy Dragon Empire's cities are already in the hands of the empire. To be precise, they're in the hands of the royal family. The royal family did not confer any new aristocrats and lords."

Shiya slowly reported the changes of the Holy Dragon Empire in recent months. Since the Princess Royal became king, she has made large moves. The rebel forces greatly declined since two of the five rebel leaders died. As a result, Lisa launched an attack immediately, bringing half of the territory of the Holy Dragon Empire into her hands.

Moreover, there were no new lords and aristocrats, which meant that these cities would be directly controlled by the royal family. On the surface, it seemed like the Holy Dragon Empire was controlled by the royal family alone, but the truth was that it was actually ruled by both the royal family and the aristocrats. Some powerful lords and nobles could even compete with the royal family.

However, at the start when catastrophe swept over the whole of the Holy Dragon Empire, almost all lords and nobles disappeared, except the royal family, and their territories fell to the hands of the rebels; in turn, it created the best conditions for the royal family. After the royal family regained the city from the rebels, they managed it once more. 

Moreover, there would not be any aristocrats in the Holy Dragon Empire in the future, according to Lisa's plan. She had built a powerful empire that was completely controlled by the royal family!

Lisa had talked about these things in detail with Merlin but he was not interested at all. If he wanted to, he could seize any empire as his own, no matter how large it was. Not even Lisa knew how terrifying Merlin was at that point.

"Lisa didn't encounter any problems?" Merlin suddenly asked suspiciously as he raised his head.

"Not for the time being. The royal family's hidden power is still very powerful. Moreover, the Candora Empire has not intervened yet. They seem to be worried about the Minister," Shiya's eyes flashed as she said that. Originally, Phantom's Intelligence Team paid close attention to the Candora Empire. The Candora Empire also took advantage of the Holy Dragon Empire's chaos to bring its army in and cause mayhem. However, the Candora Empire had no intention of intervening at that moment and the royal family gradually gained control over the Holy Dragon Empire.

How powerful was Phantom's Intelligence Team? Naturally, Shiya knew that in the first battle, Merlin defeated the Candora Empire and he had even killed two rebel ultimate contenders. Merlin's name now resounded throughout the entire continent as the number one contender.

Therefore, the reason why the Candora Empire changed its mind was that they were too wary about Merlin. Just Merlin himself caused a huge empire to worry. It was inconceivable for Shiya to imagine. After all, Merlin had just become a full-shifter not long ago.

"Still, I'm afraid Her Majesty will encounter some difficulties. The three rebel leaders have joined forces. It seems they're ready for a decisive battle."

If the three rebel leaders really decided to fight to the death, the three elders of the royal family might not be a match for the three rebel leaders even if they recovered without the Sacred Lion Beast's head's aura to slightly suppress these ultimate contenders.

Furthermore, situations change rapidly on the battlefield and no one could say clearly what would happen in the end. It would be hard for Lisa to make a firm resolution without the guarantee of victory.

"It seems that it's time for me to enter the palace."

Merlin stood up. He knew that Lisa must be very distressed at this time.

"By the way, collect all information about the Candora Magic Mirror. Remember, I want the most detailed information. It can even be exposed to the intelligence personnel of the Candora Empire. Do anything it takes!"

Merlin ordered Shiya before leaving the castle. He got into a carriage and headed towards the royal family.

...

At this time in the palace, the Princess Royal, who was now Her Majesty, was frowning. As soon as she ascended the throne, she made big advances and attacked the rebels.

However, the effect was obvious after the series of attacks. The royal family recovered half of all cities, but when they pushed against the three rebel leaders' forces, they could not advance any further. That was because the three rebel leaders had joined forces and were getting ready for a decisive battle against the Holy Dragon royal family.

The three rebel leaders could fight to the death, but the queen could not. Therefore, the queen was in distress. The three elders of the royal family had not recovered yet, and even if they had, they would not leave the Holy Dragon City. Their duty was only to protect the royal family. As for the expansion of the royal family or recapturing the empire's cities, the three ancestors would not pay any heed.

"Your Majesty, Marquis Leon requests an audience with you."

"Leon?"

The Queen was slightly shocked but soon became ecstatic. Ever since Merlin went into isolation, she had sent several people to 'invite' Merlin, but there had not been any news. The Queen even thought that Merlin was not willing to interfere in the affairs of the Holy Dragon Empire.

She did not expect Merlin to come here now.

"Quick, quick, invite Marquis Leon in," the Queen said with delight.

Before long, Merlin came to the hall and saw Lisa, who was full of energy and carried a dignified aura. He called out calmly, "Lisa, I heard you seem to be in some trouble?"

The Queen did not mind Merlin's casual address. What was a mere title worth in Merlin's position? He was able to help the Queen quickly pacify the entire Holy Dragon Empire.

"Leon, you're just in time. I went to your castle a few times to look for you, but I was stopped by your housekeeper, saying that you were in isolation and no one was allowed to disturb you."

"It's thanks to your gift. I heard that you were in trouble immediately after exiting isolation."

Lisa frowned and sighed. "It's true that I've encountered some problems. They're problems that were handed down. The Shadow King, Phantom King, and the Liberator have completely united. They want to fight me to the death, but I'm not inclined to do the same. I'm afraid we will be defeated if we fight it out with them."

The Queen knew very well that she did not have the determination to fight to the death. Once a real war started, she would probably be defeated. That was why she was in distress. 

Merlin smiled and said calmly, "Last time, I let the Shadow King escape. Why don't you let me go this time? Take it as my repayment for your gift. After I finish this, I'll help you stabilize the Holy Dragon Empire. However, I'm afraid I'll be leaving after that."

"Ah? You're leaving?"

"Yes, I need the Candora Magic Mirror. It might help me make the final step!"

Lisa fell silent. Of course, she knew what Merlin meant by the last step. It was the dream of all ultimate contenders to reach the realm of the legendary sacred beast.

However, for a thousand years, no one had been able to take this step. No matter how amazing the person was, they all fell in front of this last step. Now that Merlin had made his mind up, Lisa knew that she could not stop him.

"Alright, Leon, as long as you can get rid of the Shadow King and the others, there'll be no power in the Holy Dragon Empire that can compete with the royal family.

Merlin nodded. "I want to advance as soon as possible."

"I'll arrange everything!"

After a momentary lapse of sadness, Lisa became shrewd and capable again. She was always ambitious and full of the desire for power. Perhaps, unifying the Holy Dragon Empire was just the first step for her but Merlin would not help her realize her ambition anymore. He still needed to find the last step to find a way to restore the Illusory World.

Merlin did not stay back in the palace. After leaving the palace, he soared in the sky and flew to the place where the Shadow King and the others were.