Witch, Fireball and the Evil God of Steam-Chapter 909 - 188: Internal Collapse

"Holy Blood Stains the Far West! Bishop Solari Martyrized at the Border!"

"The vile dagger comes from the shadows! Our beloved Archbishop has been schemed against, may his soul return to the Courtyard of Life!"

"It's time to reckon with the blasphemers! The death of Bishop Solari is the Empire's most blatant provocation to the Far West!"

"Irrefutable evidence found at the scene! Margaret Clan emblem? A noble insignia of the Empire shockingly discovered beside the bishop's remains!"

In just one day, reports about the assassination of Bishop Solari sprang up like mushrooms after the rain. Each newspaper had a clear division of labor: while mourning Bishop Solari and praising his contributions over the years, they unanimously pointed their fingers at the Margaret Clan of the Empire.

The emblem of the Margaret Clan at the scene, along with the identity of the assassin as a former member of the Choir, combined with the incendiary statements of the newspapers, instantly ignited popular fervor.

This time, even the ordinary people of the Far West could sense the impending breath of war.

Early in the morning, Ave left home and, habitually flipping through the newspaper in the car, turned green.

Her hand shook, twisting the coffee cup into a ragged shape, splattering hot coffee all over her.

A bad day began with spilled coffee.

It was evident that this was an organized and premeditated action, with these highly inflammatory interviews likely prepared in advance. For the Empire, the most damaging evidence was the Margaret Clan emblem found at the scene, something that could not be casually acquired. Coupled with the accusation from the Far West that the culprit was a former member of the Choir, Ave found herself in a passive position in the international public opinion arena.

She had difficulty explaining why the Margaret Clan emblem would end up in the Far West. That was likely a historical leftover from Julius's tenure in power.

After Julius's downfall, she disbanded the Choir and terminated all related inhumane experiments.

My god! How could this new Pope Carlo be so despicable!

That man should have long been blown to bits in a fireplace explosion.

Next, she had to conduct a series of diplomatic activities to mitigate this event's negative impact on the Empire.

The approaching war made the current international situation somewhat delicate, yet in this realm, the Empire's image was extremely poor. After all, since humanity entered the Sixth Epoch, almost all major wars in recent history were instigated by the Empire, its hegemonic image long ingrained outside the Empire.

Given the previous public opinion battles between the Empire and the Far West, along with Pope Carlo's multiple public denouncements of the Empire at mystical conferences, everyone believed the news's authenticity. Before long, the Empire's Knight Order would be flattening the entire Far West.

In just one afternoon, the new cabinet received numerous hints from neighboring countries.

Before the outbreak of war, they already clarified their stance.

Everyone knew that once this war broke out, it would certainly become the largest and most widespread war the world faced since the Sixth Epoch.

From a historical perspective, the assassination of a bishop of Solari's stature was enough to become the trigger for war.

With the church power that the Far West represented being deeply rooted, a significant number of Divine Right Kingdoms would inevitably join the fight.

As night fell, after a whole day of busyness in the office, Ave finally found some leisure time and dialed Ethan's private line.

"I hear you've already entered the Far West."

Her voice was full of fatigue, and the golden hair on her head drooped lifelessly, "Why wasn't it Carlo who died, but Solari? He was one of the few neutrals in the church there!"

Only in front of friends like Ethan could she drop the facade of a politician and voice her true feelings, pouring out grievances with resentment.

"Senzi, could you give me a heads up on how many days until Carlo's fireplace explodes so I can arrange things in advance?"

Though unable to see Ave's expression over the phone, Ethan was certain that this was the most murderous he'd seen the girl since he met her.

"We've crafted a new plan, and Solari is a key figure in it."

Ethan, combining recent facts, roughly guessed Ave's original plan.

Pope Carlo was no different from the engine of this war; once he accidentally died, Ave would secretly work to support anti-war factions in the church, fracturing its influence in the Far West from within.

This was enough to prove that Ave had grown into an excellent politician.

But after meeting Solari, Ethan changed his view.

Even if Carlo perished accidentally, it was clear to all that the Empire could never absolve itself, and Ethan didn't believe that the Far West's hatred for the Empire would just vanish. Under Carlo's orchestration, he found that the populace here was full of prejudice and hostility towards the Empire.

The Life Divine Teachings now urgently needed an internal purification.

"He's still alive?"

Ave was stunned for a moment, but thinking that Bazatous accompanied Ethan this time, she was relieved.

For the omnipotent Celestial Father, even if Solari had died with only a few pieces of flesh left, Bazatous could reform his body and restore him. If Bazatous were willing to apply the Power to medical careers, perhaps a truly immortal nation could be created.

Of course, provided there was no hidden agenda in the treatment process.

"Leave it to me."