Argos excitedly revealed the Crimson Queen's plan, although these emotions and words should have been vented towards that hateful woman, but she was absent at the most critical moment.

He indeed wanted to kill the Crimson Queen, but not in such an easy manner.

Argos believed that no one understood lies and betrayal better than that woman full of deceit; she must have anticipated his sudden betrayal and had a backup plan ready. He would regain his freedom, and they would confront each other at the top of the Divine Tree, where he would righteously inform her of the reasons for his broken promise.

The black dragon named Ignatius was the last straw that broke the camel's back; the Crimson Queen's attitude, treating him like garbage no longer of use, forced him to make the final decision—without a doubt, the Crimson Queen was essentially no different from the man wearing the golden mask, devoid of emotions. Everything in this world was just a tool for her amusement, even the "companions" she personally raised.

She demonstrated through her actions that Ignatius's existence was merely to experiment with her theories, for spontaneous amusement. She could put Ignatius in pain, and even upon reunion years later, she would go to great lengths to mock him. How could such a cruel, indifferent woman truly keep her promises?

The moment the seal was broken, Argos couldn't wait to tell her that this time, she was the one being fooled, and he had never believed a word she said from the beginning.

"Haven't you realized yet? As long as Charlotte dies, the prophecy of fate will be fulfilled, and by then, she will no longer be bound by fate."

Argos raised his voice.

Due to the Crimson Queen's absence, he could only tell Ethan everything he had discovered.

He felt that he had progressed a lot over the millennia, seeing through the Crimson Queen's conspiracy at a glance.

"She must be hiding now, brewing a new scheme."

His emotions were intense, probably the most obvious emotional fluctuations Ethan had ever seen in an Old God.

For other beings in this plane, this was definitely not a good thing; the blue torrential rain was changing the world's landscape and ecological structure, and if left to continue, when he leaves the Divine Tree, he would be greeted by a world of metal and machinery.

"She is already dead."

Ethan reiterated.

"How is that possible? What evidence do you have?"

"I have my methods."

Ethan lingered on the dialogue box suspended in mid-air, having silently read the line of text countless times.

Precisely because the Crimson Queen died so easily that he immediately accessed the Guild Handbook, the resulting prompt box presented this striking line in front of him.

—『Administrator Crimson Queen, deceased』.

Along with the black-and-white faded avatar, she appeared to be someone who paid attention to detail; the avatar was meticulously crafted, facing the camera, showing an almost perfect maiden-like smile, with her right hand making a victory gesture. Anyone who saw such a character profile would naturally feel close to her.

No matter how many times he confirmed it, the words never changed again.

Previously, Guild Investigator Su mentioned that when the King of Gold died, all investigators on the same plane received such a message.

Su also said that the Guild Handbook was crafted by the Goddess, which was incredible—even the Guild's research department didn't know how it actually operated, but the information provided on the Guild Handbook was absolutely accurate.

Maybe the Crimson Queen could deceive Argos, could deceive him, but she could never deceive the Goddess who bestowed power upon her. Even as the Guild's administrator, she absolutely could not violate the fundamental rules of this world.

However, Ethan understood Argos's feelings.

"No, this isn't right, something must be wrong."

The voice from the rift fell into deep self-doubt, muttering incessantly, recalling the words the Crimson Queen said facing the mirror just a few days before.

She mentioned fate, and as the Guild's administrator, she was destined to die during a meeting with the "Chosen One."

She also mentioned the Goddess, a being above all guild administrators. Argos recognized that the Goddess mentioned by Crimson was not one of them.

And when the trick of "deceiving death" was exposed, Crimson candidly proposed terms to him—help her deceive fate, and she would tell him about the Goddess and the "Chosen One". Besides, he would regain his freedom, able to unleash his rage in this plane however he wished, without her interference in transforming this world.

The end is destined to come, and the human girl Charlotte is bound to die.

And by then, this plane would lose its value to her, and she would leave here.

It aligned with his perception of this cunning and deceitful woman; he was certain she was sincere when she proposed those conditions.

Because that's what those guild parasites do—for their own lives and desires, they would easily sacrifice anyone else.

"It seems she did one last thing before dying."

A purple bat whispered something in Ethan's ear, making his face instantly turn a bit unnatural.

This was the latest intelligence Rowena obtained, and the cuckoos had spread it through every corner of the Kingdom. Even under the corruption and erosion of blue rain, these mystical creatures continued performing their duties.

But in fact, there was no need for them to spread the news; all summoners in the Kingdom and this plane knew what was happening on the Divine Tree at that moment.

This was another kind of power unknown to him, allowing everyone to witness what happened on the Divine Tree at the moment the Crimson Queen expended her life.

No conversation, no explanation.

But everyone saw it, saw the noble Crimson Queen being killed; they also saw the arrival of the end times, and the youth riding the golden divine bird, bringing the apocalypse under the manipulation of mechanical locusts.

At this moment, everyone understood.

Rocket Team was an organization aiming to assassinate the Crimson Queen and lead the world to destruction.

For Ethan, even worse was that no warrant was needed, as everyone in this plane witnessed his face in those fleeting images.

This was indeed the Crimson Queen's plan, a plan set into motion with her death as its starting point.

Before long, a shining object in the dilapidated cabin attracted Ethan's attention; it was a crystal radiating a red light, placed on top of a thick sheepskin book, noticeably left so its owner hoped it would be found.

『Adventure Book (Scarlet)』.

The instant he picked up the book, such a dialogue box appeared before Ethan's eyes.

Every official Guild investigator would own an adventure book, recording the places they've been, the planes they've investigated; they could even jot down some mundane life details. According to the Guild trainers, the greatest value of an adventure book was that if one met an unfortunate end, the person who found it would learn his identity and what he went through.

You would not be forgotten.

After an investigator's death, the found adventure book would be sent back to the Guild Headquarters and treasured by the Guild.

Your name would be inscribed in the memorial hall, and the tales in the adventure book would be your epitaph.

Bestowing high honors to every departed investigator.

The above was what Ethan learned during Guild training; they also issued him his own adventure book—here was his first stop after becoming an official Guild investigator.

The pages, blank earlier, now filled with his glorious feats:

Formed Rocket Team.

Witnessed the death of Guild Administrator Scarlet.

The adventure book he held in his hand automatically opened to the first page, where it seemed Scarlet had left a message for him.

—Sir Ethan, open to read.