"Bishop Fenrico, you can arrange it as you see fit."
Hearing Alessio's fate, Noah could only say he deserved it.
In the original plot, Alessio wasn't a good person either. He not only cooperated with both the Fisalia Family and the Fractsidus but also used Capollo as leverage to force Carlotta to raise a gun against Rover.
It's just that the Wuthering Waves plot didn't depict much about this character's final outcome.
After thinking for a moment, Noah continued speaking into the Terminal:
"Tonight, I might go with Carlotta to a tower ruin in the Order's forbidden area. Please restrain the people under you and don't let them come disturb us."
"Righteous One, forgive my frankness, but that forbidden area hides the truth concealed by the Order. Those who know the truth will be troubled by the Threnodian's whispers."
A steady voice came from the Terminal:
"The influence of such Threnodian whispers is even more pronounced for the people of Ragunna. I don't particularly recommend taking Second Lady Carlotta to learn the truth."
"Is that so—alright, I understand."
Noah nodded slightly.
In the plot, the day after Carlotta learned the truth, at the Carnevale, Rover removed the Laureate and met Cartethyia.
Then, not long after, Rover ascended the inverted tower and resolved the Threnodian whispers plaguing Ragunna.
Therefore, Little Potato from Montelli was extremely lucky not to be affected by the Threnodian whispers.
But in the current situation, with the Carnevale still a full eighteen days away, if Carlotta were to learn the truth now, she could indeed be contaminated by the Threnodian.
After clarifying these key points, Noah spoke again:
"Bishop Fenrico, I don't want to be the kind of person who accepts the Order's goodwill and then immediately backstabs them, so I must tell you something in advance."
"Please speak."
"Regarding the truth about the Sentinel, the pilgrimage ships—all these inglorious pasts related to the Order—I will gradually bring them to light."
With those words, a brief silence fell on the other end of the Terminal.
Noah's meaning was clear: even if the Order showed goodwill toward him, he would still stand in opposition to the Order.
If the truth were revealed, it would deal a devastating blow to the reputation of the Order of the Deep.
This could even destabilize the entire Ragunna, and by then, the one truly controlling Ragunna might no longer be the Order of the Deep.
"Righteous One, doing this brings you no benefit, but... I respect your choice, and to a certain extent, I even support your decision."
"Although the Order concealed the truth out of necessity, that does not mean the Order was right."
"It's just... the timing isn't right yet. Rashly revealing the truth now would only plunge Ragunna into Threnodian whispers, causing massive chaos."
Fenrico sighed, his tone growing somber:
"I implore you to give the Order a little more time. When the timing is right, I will personally atone for the sins I have committed."
"Alright."
"I promise you this: no matter what, as long as I still hold the position of Bishop, the Order will never be your enemy."
After ending the call, Fenrico took a deep breath, rubbing his faintly aching forehead. In a daze, intangible murmurs seemed to coil around him once more.
Lowering his gaze, his eyes settled on the Solaris Daily newspaper on the desk, dated last month, with the words "Jinzhou Hero" standing out prominently.
"Who would have thought that such a towering figure would come to Ragunna, and not a single person recognized him—heh—"
He gave a bitter laugh:
"Ragunna truly has been isolated for far too long."
Recalling the moment in the cathedral when Noah destroyed the Decree-defiling Mirror of Nightmare with words alone, Fenrico pondered silently:
"If he truly can revive the Sentinel and dispel the Threnodian whispers lingering over Ragunna..."
Perhaps the truth should indeed be unveiled, and Ragunna could lift its isolation.
With this thought, Fenrico sighed again. He didn't have much time left; he could only go all in.
At least this person was more trustworthy than the Fractsidus.
A knock sounded at the door. Fenrico straightened his posture:
"Come in."
A bishop of the Order entered the room and urgently reported:
"Report to Your Excellency the Bishop: according to the Echo surveillance placed in the Montelli Family, they are discussing publicly announcing the true culprit behind the Echo runaway incident..."
"I am already aware of this matter."
Fenrico raised a hand, stopping the report:
"No need to wait for them to announce it. Now, the Order will immediately 'confess' to this matter, send Priest Alessio—the 'mastermind'—onto a pilgrimage ship, and ensure all impact is minimized."
Perfect timing—the Order needed a scapegoat, and Alessio had made a mistake.
Sacrificing one priest would be enough to suppress the potential public backlash against the Order from this incident.
Thoughts racing through his mind, Fenrico lowered his gaze, his expression complex—
Alessio's fate was no different from what his own might be in the future.
The difference was that he at least had a little more time to arrange his affairs.
With this in mind, Fenrico waved his hand and ordered:
"Go bring me all the files on Acolyte Phoebe."
===
Averardo Vault.
"Has Uncle Capollo not returned yet?"
Delicately crafted silk gloves caressed a gleaming opal as Carlotta's brows lightly furrowed.
With Grandfather Francesco absent, Capollo was the one who could currently represent Montelli as the decision-maker. It should be Capollo who formally negotiated cooperation with Noah.
Yet Capollo had been gone for a long time, leaving Noah waiting far too long already.
After hesitating for a moment, Carlotta made her decision.
Allowing a distinguished guest to wait too long would be discourteous on the part of the Montelli Family.
Pushing open the understated yet luxurious door, Carlotta stepped gracefully into the room. Inside, Noah cast his gaze toward her and waved, greeting her.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting."
Carlotta sat down elegantly, gently stirring a cup of coffee before slowly pushing it toward Noah:
"Uncle Capollo has not yet returned, so allow me to discuss the next steps of our cooperation with you in detail."
"Haven't we already been cooperating?"
Noah took a sip of the coffee, savoring it carefully. Montelli's coffee had a silkier texture than Jinzhou's bitter tea, but it still wasn't sweet.
"Little Potato, what are your plans next?"
"It's like this: at the Carnevale eighteen days from now, the Montelli Family needs to claim the Laureate."
Carlotta organized her thoughts and spoke slowly:
"During this period, the Fisalia Family and the Order may cause various incidents. Some matters the Montelli Family cannot directly intervene in, yet ordinary people cannot resolve them either."
"For example, the Fractsidus?"
"Yes. According to intelligence obtained from interrogation, it was the strange red flowers provided by the Fractsidus that allowed the Fisalia Family's people to control the Echo runaways."
On the surface, the Fractsidus had not sided with any family; they only provided "assistance" in secret.
Currently, there had been no instance of Lorelei being controlled by the Fractsidus, nor had the Sea of Clouds and thunderstorms submerged Ragunna.
Without severely impacting the development of the Carnevale, Montelli could not directly provoke this powerful and mysterious external force.
Even in the plot, it was only after sending an invitation to the Black Shores—waiting for the Black Shores' leader, Rover, to personally arrive—that Montelli began taking action against the Fractsidus members.
And when they struck, they hit the Fractsidus' vital point directly, catching the various artisans off guard.
"To ensure our cooperation is pleasant, I want to know: if you encounter members of the Fractsidus, what would you do?"
As Carlotta posed the question, she saw Noah clap his hands together, his eyes lighting up:
"Beat them to death! Straight-up beat them to death!"
"Beautiful! Tall Chestnut! This is exactly what the Montelli Family hopes you will do. Our goals are completely aligned."
Carlotta also clapped her hands together, her expression excited:
"As repayment for the cooperation, Montelli is willing to cover all your expenses during your time in Ragunna and offer you ten million Shell Credits as cooperation remuneration."
"I don't want that."
The refusal froze the excitement on Carlotta's face.
Noah leaned back lazily into the luxurious chair and shook his head:
"I want you—"
"Huh?!" Carlotta let out a startled exclamation.
"To help me claim the Laureate."
"Huh?!" Carlotta let out an even louder exclamation, her eyes widening in shock.
No, bro.
Montelli needs to claim the Laureate to break the Order's shackles and sell free Terminals to the world—why would an outsider from Jinzhou want this Laureate?
Of course, to pull for Cartethyia early!
Noah tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Without becoming the Laureate, he wouldn't see Cartethyia mingling in the Carnevale. Without seeing Cartethyia, how could he pull from the banner?
Once he pulled Cartethyia, one sword strike—"Furious tides, split the heavens!"—splitting Leviathan from the inverted tower all the way to Jinzhou. Wouldn't that be satisfying?
And most importantly, this Laureate right now is essentially a deep-water bomb. Whoever claims the Laureate gets to "communicate" with the "Sentinel"—
Would anyone really want to communicate with the Threnodian Leviathan?
"No, that's the one thing that won't do. The Montelli Family must obtain the Laureate."
Carlotta shook her head, her bright white hair swaying wildly:
"Without the Laureate, how can Montelli break the Order's isolation?"
"Very simple!"
Noah smiled faintly:
"I'll just join Montelli."
"Huh?!" Carlotta let out a startled cry, standing up excitedly on the spot.
If a powerhouse like this could join Montelli... she didn't even dare to think about the benefits behind it.
"There's one more thing."
Noah raised a finger, looking a bit embarrassed:
"That... the heterogeneous armaments guarding the vault—there should be quite a few, right? Could you... let me farm some Echoes?"