Chapter 413 Fruits of a Poisonous Tree (1/2)
”That's the fifth group so far” Arran lazily stretched his arroup of Rangers who stood watching a few dozen paces away ”At this rate, the entirety of Sacrifice will knohere we are by sundown”
They had set off for the Sanctuh the city's western outskirts in an atte attention The effort had proved to be in vain, however, as it quickly becaers' inquisitive eyes
Kaleesh shrugged ”Both nobles and soldiers gossip more than kitchen maids Give it another day or two, and it will be ih the captain sounded unconcerned, his words caused Arran to sigh in displeasure ”If so another attack, they'll have an easy ti us”
Kaleesh remained silent for several seconds, then finally shook his head ”I do not expect another attack Not soon, at least”
It only took Arran a”You think our connection to Lady Merem and Roshan will protect us?”
”It should,” Kaleesh said ”Word of your talk with Roshan will have spread by now, and it won't be long before our visit to Lady Mereure out what our relationshi+p with the both of theave a slow nod ”And with the nuht now, it would be impossible to strike unseen”
”Exactly” Kaleesh waved at the Rangers in the distance, his friendly srin when he saw their du his attention back to Arran, he continued, ”Right now, the eyes of our eneive us all the protection we could wish for”
”For now”
”For now,” Kaleesh adger things to worry about”
Arran could only nod in agreement Once the church discovered their deception — as it eventually would — the lordlings in Sacrifice would be the least of their worries
But there was no point in fretting over the ht be, the threat remained a distant one And before they became enemies to the church, they would first seize the treasures it had to offer
When they approached the Sanctuave Arran a cautious look ”I'd suggest not antagonizing them any further”
”I don't intend to,” Arran replied ”At least, not without cause”
This tiates, neither of them had eyes for the splendid terounds, nor did they pay attention to the curious glances of the priests and Rangers who filled the paths between the ht for the Hall of Blessings Their purpose in coh they did not say so out loud, neither wished to linger in the Sanctuer than necessary
Fortunately, they uards inside the Hall of Blessings looked at them with more curiosity than before, the Warlocks' amulets they carriedbefore they entered the third section of the Hall of Blessings oncethemselves faced with the same priestess who'd received them on their previous visit
A hint of despair flashed across her face when she saw Arran, but a forced smile took its place an instant later ”You have returned,” she said, unable to fully mask her displeasure ”Have you reached a decision on which bloodline you wish to receive?”
”We have,” Arran replied curtly He turned to Kaleesh ”Captain?”
”I shall take the Guardian's bloodline” As he spoke, Kaleesh glanced at the painting on the far right wall that supposedly depicted the Guardian — a fearsoh-impervious to injury
The priestess frowned — apparently, she had not expected that Kaleesh would select a bloodline as well — but after anod ”A wise choice The Guardian's bloodline will be of great value in the Desolation” Then, a trace of unease in her eyes, she turned to Arran ”And you said that you have reached a decision as well?”
Arran nodded ”In addition to the Master's bloodline, I've decided that I will take the bloodline of the Sage”
”The Sage?” The priestess briefly fell silent, her expression troubled as she appeared to struggle for words Finally, she said, ”Are you certain of this?”
Raising an eyebrow, Arran asked, ”Is there a problem with that?”
”It's not a problem, exactly It's just…” The priestess hesitated before continuing, ”The Sage's bloodline is not a coreater bloodline, isn't it? Are you saying it's lesser than the others?”
”Of course not!” the priestess hurried to say, her eyes darting toward the painting of the Sage on the far wall as she spoke ”But the full benefits of the Sage's bloodline are slow in co Even if your comprehension increases, that will do little to protect you in the Desolation”
Of course, this was soe's bloodline ht shorten the tihtenment, it would still take years of effort By then, he would long have left the Desolation behind
Yet although the Sage's bloodline would do little to help hi equally important — to break the seal left inside him by the oath disc
Even now, he could Sense two seals within his body, one left by the Shadowflaether for his life by restraining the seals
But the seals were still there, created by someone who clearly did not wish for him to keep his life And if there was one trap, there could yet be others, ready to be sprung at any moment
Moreover, the oath he took should prevent hi either the Imperium or its secrets If that was indeed the case, then he would have to break the seal before returning to the Shadowflame Society
In the end, the choice was an easy one
”I choose the Sage's bloodline”
For a moment, it looked as if the priestess was about to object, but she finally gave a sh ”Very well The decision is yours to make The both of you, please followany further words, she led thee spiral stairwell that descended below the Hall of Blessings It took several minutes before they reached the bottoed into a vast hall
Arran looked around with soer than the entire building that housed the Hall of Blessings, and the nuested that an entire city lay beneath the Sanctum
There were people, too — nuround space as they cast inquisitive looks at the newcomers
The priestess waved one of them over, a white-clad youth with a nervous look about hireater bloodlines Escort them to their cha clumsily as he spoke ”Please, come with me”
Arran and Kaleesh followed behind hies on the side of the hall, but after a few moments of silence, Kaleesh asked, ”She's important, then?”