https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-881-Lance-Seeks-Ask-s-Guidance-Part-1-/12937215/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-882-Lance-Still-Couldn-t-Escape-Her-Part-1-/12937221/
Chapter 881: Lance Seeks Ask's Guidance (Part 2)
Chapter 881: Lance Seeks Ask's Guidance (Part 2)
Not only was he fully accompanying Talia and Sigrid, but he was also constantly helping Loren plan new routes in real-time and teaching him how to engage with his date.
Due to Huberian's appearance, Lance had to overturn his initial plan and adapt, updating Loren's optimal route and time nodes based on the situation.
Now, he himself was about to pass out.
"Our Super Wilcat combination has finally made it through the morning!"
Cat Boss ran back to Lance's bench with a little dance and jumped onto the chair to high-five him.
Having endured until now, it was almost time to leave the Golden Bee Amusement Park.
Lance had finally made it through.
"Did it work?"
Lance hugged Cat Boss, looking at his good friend.
"Meow, yes! Loren is about to leave the park with Juliana right after lunch, and then it's time for the afternoon performance at the Echire Opera House!" Cat Boss said excitedly.
At first, it thought Lance was taking a risky approach, but after witnessing his dedication, it was moved by his commitment.
This guy was truly going all out for his friend, and he would do his best to keep his promise, even if it meant risking his life.
"That's great."
Lance propped himself up and sat upright, trying to regain his mental clarity.
There was a crucial performance in the afternoon, and his mind was already on the brink of exhaustion. He needed to adjust his state quickly and find time to catch his breath, or else he feared he might not be able to hold on.
"Lance, your hair is a mess."
Cat Boss jumped onto the back of the chair and patted Lance's shoulder, ruffling his hair.
Lance had been watching Cat Boss's remote guidance the entire time.
When helping Loren and Florence, Lance's expression didn't change at all.
After chatting with Loren and Juliana, Lance's bangs moved slightly.
And when he finished talking with Loren and Armis, Lance's bangs would be damp with sweat.
The pressure of the engagement was overwhelming.
"Why is the Ice Maiden so strong today, meow?" Cat Boss wondered, realizing that appearances could be deceiving.
It had thought that the Ice Maiden's romantic thoughts would be as straightforward as Huberian's.
"It's common knowledge that the biggest gap for top laners is the difference in jungling. If you want to focus on laning against an opponent of similar skill, while also multitasking and laning against others, it's already a blessing if you don't get overwhelmed," Lance said, still feeling the aftereffects of the pressure.
Even when he faced his most dangerous opponent at the northern border of the Protoss Empire in Bandra City, he had never felt such immense pressure as he did today.
"And you can only stay under the tower, while I have to roam and help you with vision." Cat Boss sympathetically patted Lance's head.
On Lance's side, things were much easier because Sigrid would cooperate with him.
Talia often had her own ideas and could be difficult to control, making Lance break out in cold sweats.
As for Huberian, she was unpredictable, and all scouting spells were useless against her. Lance didn't dare get too close or too far, so he sent his support cat to help him keep track of her.
Cat Boss had never seen Lance looking so haggard, and for once, it felt like a cat mom.
Before they could continue their conversation, Cat Boss nimbly jumped back into Lance's shadow.
Lance understood who had arrived from Cat Boss's reaction.
"You've worked hard today, I had a great time," Sigrid said as she leaned against Lance, naturally resting her arm on his shoulder and pulling him closer.
"I'm glad you're happy, Bishop," Lance replied with a hint of a smile.
"But why are you so tired today?" Sigrid asked, observing Lance's eyes and caressing his cheek.
Multitasking should have been easy for Lance.
Compared to Lance, Sigrid should have been the one feeling exhausted. While on a date with Lance, she was also laning against the Ice Maiden and a mysterious expert, who was definitely not Loren, but someone Loren had hired as a strategist.
"I didn't get much rest last night," Lance said, blinking to stay alert.
"Is that so?" Sigrid stared at him, thinking for a moment as if deducing something.
Lance shouldn't have been this tired unless he had opened other threads and encountered unexpected factors, exhausting his computational power.
"By the way, Lance, aside from hanging out with me and Tata, have you been communicating with any men today?" Sigrid asked, voicing her suspicions.
"Yes," Lance admitted, his eyes widening in surprise before confessing.
"Was it Loren?" Sigrid asked further.
"Yes..." Lance replied, covering his forehead halfway through his answer as he realized the accuracy of Sigrid's guess.
He, too, had figured out many things.
He now understood why laning against Loren and the Ice Maiden was so exhausting and why the Ice Maiden's oppressive presence felt so familiar.
"Oops," Sigrid said, tapping her head.
She hadn't realized that she had been laning against Lance all this time.
It turned out that she was the one who had exhausted Lance.
They should have been evenly matched opponents, but Lance was also dealing with other threads simultaneously, which caught him off guard.
"I'm sorry, Lance. Please don't blame me. I didn't know it would tire you out so much," Sigrid apologized, hugging Lance's arm and shaking it.
"I have no reason to blame you. We were both unaware of the situation. How could I have known that while Loren was asking for my help, the Ice Maiden was also seeking yours? I should be the one apologizing. I promised to spend time with you, but I had to work at the same time," Lance said with a smile.
"Tata will be back soon, so I'll see you later at the theater," Sigrid said, sticking out her tongue. She knew Lance wouldn't blame her, but she was more concerned about his exhaustion.
She released Lance, gradually feeling at ease, and bid him farewell.
"Later..."
Before Lance could finish saying he would see her in the afternoon, he felt Sigrid suddenly lean in close.
"A little kiss!" She kissed his cheek and then ran off, giggling.
She never left empty-handed.
As she ran, she blew kisses at Lance, hoping to alleviate his fatigue.
"Oh, come on. A bishop shouldn't sexually harass the Son of Saint," Lance shook his head helplessly, but a smile appeared on his lips as he had no choice but to put up with his superior.
"She's getting more and more bold with you, meow. Today alone, she's kissed you twice already," Cat Boss said, emerging from the shadows again and lying down next to Lance.
From the moment Lance didn't resist Sigrid's actions earlier, Cat Boss knew that she was going to go all out.
"It's fine. I was planning to explain some things to them anyway. I just wanted to finish this last task for today before settling matters regarding the future," Lance said, looking down at his palm with a relaxed expression.
Lance and Cat Boss chatted leisurely for a while.
Soon after, Talia returned to the bench with two ice creams.
"Tata, you're back."
"Mhm."
Without even asking Lance which ice cream he wanted, she fixed her gaze on his face.
Talia gently touched Lance's cheek with her fingertips.
"What's wrong?" Lance asked, turning his head to the side, feeling a bit unnerved by Talia's silent scrutiny.
He admitted that as his morning schedule was coming to an end, he had relaxed a little from his tense state, but he didn't think there would be any issues.
"It's like someone just kissed you," Talia observed carefully.
Although it was faint, Talia felt as if someone had left a mark on Lance's face.
"Huh?" Lance's heart skipped a beat.
He hadn't expected Talia to be so sharp at catching him in the act, instantly transforming into a vigilant gray cat sheriff with an uncanny ability to observe.
Talia also had the power of lie detection, so Lance had to be truthful in her presence.
However, his mind was moving slowly now, like it was rusted, and he couldn't even think of how to respond to Talia.
If he didn't find a moment to rest before the afternoon play, he feared he wouldn't be able to maintain his full mental capacity on stage.
Just as Lance was deep in thought, Cat Boss quickly spoke up, "It was me! I just pounced on Lance's shoulder and played with him!"
"..." Lance was momentarily speechless.
He stared at the little black cat in front of him, who seemed to be guarding his happiness.
Having a friend like Cat Boss in this life was truly a blessing.
But he felt a sense of shame as he remembered how he had often tempted the cat to do bad things.
"Oh, I see," Talia said, relieved after learning it was Cat Boss.
Besides Cat Boss, there was no one else who would suddenly initiate intimate contact with her Lance.
Lance sighed or laughed softly.
He felt a strange sense of comfort.
Perhaps he should have listened to Cat Boss more often and not been so aggressive; true happiness was within reach, and a calm and ordinary life was the real treasure.
Lance watched from a distance as Loren, accompanied by Juliana, left the Golden Bee Amusement Park through the South Gate, marking the end of his morning work.
Despite having almost overcome the morning's ordeal, he was exhausted and felt like closing his eyes for a nap.
His mind was on the verge of shutting down.
Just then, as Lance was about to close his eyes, he opened them again in disbelief, staring at the distant figure behind Loren and Juliana.
There was someone following them, their face filled with worry and doubt.
Lance covered his mouth in surprise.
He knew that Huberian was also at the amusement park today, but he couldn't understand why she was secretly tailing Loren and Juliana.
Huberian was taking out her communication magic card, preparing to contact someone.
Lance glanced at Cat Boss beside him, who was vigorously shaking his head, his head turning into a black bread storm.
When Cat Boss had helped Lance scout the area earlier, Loren had been avoiding the section where Huberian was, following Lance's planned route. Now, Loren should have been able to leave the amusement park without being noticed by Huberian, but she had somehow managed to find Loren's location.
It was as if Huberian could use other methods to deduce Loren's movements.
Lance's brain throbbed with pain for a moment.
What was going on?
Why was Huberian following Loren, and how did she guess his trajectory? Could it be that Huberian had witnessed Loren's date with the Ice Maiden or Florence at the amusement park?
Or perhaps Huberian was supporting someone else, just as Sigurd was supporting the Ice Maiden.
This would explain everything.
Lance fell into a state of deep thought.
If Sigurd was supporting the Ice Maiden, was it possible that Huberian was supporting Florence, which made her speech so infuriating, as if she were provoking a cotton ball?
Was Talia's earlier question about friends related to seeing Loren on a date with Armis? Was Talia helping Juliana?
Lance felt like he had fallen into a time rift. He saw cornfields, snow-capped mountains, the sun and planets, and found himself in a vast and mysterious universe. His mind traveled from the origin of the universe to the birth of the first underwater life, from the law of universal gravitation to the equation of mass-energy equivalence. All the knowledge of the world passed through his mind.
Lance couldn't make sense of it anymore. He only knew that, without his realization, the threads were about to explode.
He had to stop Huberian from making that communication magic call!
But before he could take a step, he felt Talia's gaze on him.
"Where are you going?" Talia asked, easily sensing Lance's intention to move.
"..." Lance's temple broke out in a cold sweat, and time seemed to freeze in his eyes.
In this situation, Talia shouldn't meet Huberian, or she would surely suspect that Huberian was having an affair with him.
Moreover, his current situation was minor compared to what would happen if he went to find Huberian. If Talia and Huberian met, Loren's secret would be exposed, and they would confirm that Loren had been on dates with multiple women!
If he continued to watch Huberian, Talia would soon notice her as well and go to meet her.
If he ignored Huberian, Loren's secret could be exposed at any moment, and sending the cat to stop her wouldn't solve the problem. He had to go and stop Huberian himself and explain everything.
But it was already too late.
A dead end.
Lance's heart raced faster and faster.
From the beginning, the moment the threads intertwined, he had unknowingly set everything in motion, unaware of the impending chaos.
Six threads weren't scary; the frightening part was the connections between them.
With each step he took, he made more mistakes.
He was already trapped in a vicious circle and a deep abyss.
At this moment, if no one helped him untangle the mess of threads, they would explode.
The moment of reckoning was near, either now or in the not-too-distant future. The truth couldn't be hidden forever.
No matter how hard he struggled, he could only delay the inevitable for a little while.
Lance's heart grew colder.
Was he about to fail?
If so, not only would he be unable to help Loren, but he would also owe him even more.
A sense of sorrow and regret washed over Lance.
At this moment, he could only look north, the direction where his faith had once resided.
He never believed in gods or Buddhas, except for that man, the legendary seal master who faced danger with a smile and wouldn't utter a sound even if his head were cut off.
Dear Lo Sang, I'm at my wit's end.
Please, I beg you, show me the way.
[Child, sacrifice yourself.]
Lancy heard a voice like flowing sand in his ear.
It was like an echo of his mental world, a remnant of Ask Sang's legacy, or a call from hell.
"!"
Lancy snapped out of his thoughts and returned to reality. The winter breeze, free from the dense crowd, gently caressed his cheeks. The commotion of children playing, the musicians' performance, someone's laughter, and singing all reached him.
He was ready to do what he had to do.
Just as Lancy was determined to stop Huberian even if it meant his own demise.
Suddenly, he saw a figure emerge from the crowd and rush towards Huberian, reaching out to tickle her waist. Startled, Huberian turned around, alert and assuming a combat stance.
It wasn't until Huberian turned and focused her gaze on the figure that she lowered her guard.
"Sigrid, what are you doing here?"
Huberian was puzzled as to why Sigrid was at Golden Bee Amusement Park, alone and dressed so stylishly.
"It was so boring this morning, and then I found you. Let's go have some fun, just the two of us."
Sigrid rushed over and hugged Huberian, pleading with her.
"Wait, Sigrid, I don't have time to play with you today. I have something very important to do, and there's a performance in the afternoon, so I'm sorry."
Huberian refused solemnly.
But Sigrid seemed to be completely ignoring her words.
"Come on, Huberian, play with me."
She firmly grabbed Huberian's arm and shook it, pointing towards the roller coaster.
"But, but..."
Huberian was still trying to turn back and look in that direction.
As Loren and Julianna walked further away, she was about to lose sight of them, but Sigrid was getting closer.
Sigrid's hands quickly pressed against Huberian's cheeks, turning her face to look at her directly.
"Sister, don't you want to play at the amusement park with me?"
Sigrid's eyes had transformed back to the innocent look of Sigel, and she was coquettishly pleading with Huberian.
"Sig, Sig!"
Huberian knew it was Sigrid, but she felt like she had fallen into a fantasy.
Only in her dreams did she have the chance to imagine playing at the amusement park with her sister Sigel.
"Sister, sister."
Sigrid repeatedly pleaded with her.
"Alright, alright, I'll play with you, my Sigel!"
Huberian finally lost her rationality and hugged Sigrid, deciding to play with her sister.
In this way, Huberian was led away by Sigrid, seemingly powerless to resist.
Sigrid waved goodbye to Lancy without turning back, briefly regaining her composure.
She had done all she could to help Lancy.
In the distance, on a bench.
"..."
Lancy stared blankly at Loren and Julianna as they left Golden Bee Amusement Park.
In a fleeting moment, he experienced a mix of astonishment, relief, liberation, and excitement.
He had thought he would fail, but Sigrid had come to his rescue and saved the situation.
Sigrid, my beloved wife.
No one had ever given him such a sense of security, and he wanted to tell Sigrid this.
The day was not over yet.
He had to complete his mission.
"Lancy, are you crying?"
Talia placed her finger at the corner of Lancy's eye and noticed it was slightly damp.
Antanas had told her that the afternoon opera would be very moving, and the lead actor would be fully immersed in the performance, ensuring a great show.
But even before the afternoon performance, Lancy's tears had already ebbed and flowed.
"Meow, take a break."
This was the first time Cat Boss had seen Lancy so exhausted.
Any minor disturbance could be the final straw that broke him.
Even the Great Poet, who had never shown signs of mental breakdown, might have reached his limit today.
"No, I'm not."
Lancy wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
There was no time for reflection; he had to think about the next moment.
After a morning filled with variables and surprises at Golden Bee Amusement Park, the afternoon would be much smoother.
It seemed that the two hours at Echire Opera House, where Lancy couldn't direct Loren, would be challenging. Still, in reality, it would be much simpler than the morning.
Loren only needed to move between three boxes, a simplified version of Golden Bee Amusement Park, and Lancy believed Loren could handle it.
The only difficulty was at the end of the performance when Loren had to take Florence, Julianna, and Armis out of the boxes at different times.
Otherwise, during the curtain call, the theater corridors would be crowded, and Loren wouldn't be able to lead them out smoothly. With so many people around, there was a high chance of being spotted by the media, which could turn into a major scandal for the Emperor of Crete.
However, it didn't matter; Lancy, on stage, would give his all to ensure a flawless performance, keeping the media's attention on him and the leading actress, preventing any chaos.
This was his final task.
"Lancy, you look exhausted. Why don't I take you to rest for a bit?"
Talia sensed that after a morning at Golden Bee Amusement Park, Lancy felt like he had endured centuries in Eternal Punishment, and his entire being seemed on the verge of shattering.
"I need to go to the theater early. I might need to prepare backstage, and I can take a short break there."
Lancy shook his head, his eyes filled with determination.
It was the same look he had when he faced death alongside Lanke.
"Then I'll take you to the theater."
Talia was going to watch Lancy and Huobao's performance in the afternoon.
Brillada Opera House was just across the Yara River Bridge in the Echire North District, and they could get there quickly.
After lunch, Talia would send Lancy to prepare for the performance, and she could wait for the opera to begin or look for Huobao backstage.
"Okay."
Lancy agreed.
"Lancy, don't die, meow..."
Cat Boss looked at Lancy, praying for him.
He knew how much danger Lancy had faced that morning and the pressure he was under.
The brain is an organ that consumes a lot of energy, and Lancy's brain was probably close to overheating.
But he was still holding on.
He hoped Lancy could make it through the afternoon.
(End of Chapter)
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