Overturned Tower

"It turns out that the internal conflict between the church and the angels has become so intense..."

Russell mused.

While he was thinking, his hands kept moving. It’s like petting a cat subconsciously when imagining something.

He held the Paradise Bird in his arms and gently stroked her hair and back with his hands.

And the paradise bird also felt a sense of peace and tranquility.

At first, she just got into Russell's arms because she wanted to cry.

But she didn't expect that Russell's arms would be so warm, which made Paradise Bird couldn't help but think of her father, so she cried even harder... because she still remembered that Russell could become like her father. Although Russell had not transformed yet, in her mind, it was like her father holding her, and she felt an inexplicable sense of grievance that made her cry.

After she finished crying, she felt an attachment. Even though she had cried, she still stayed in Russell's arms and refused to get up.

It felt very comfortable to have Russell touching her hair. If she wasn't talking about something, she might be able to fall asleep slowly. You should still be able to sleep well.

And even though the Bird of Paradise was lying affectionately in his arms or on his lap, even if the Bird of Paradise was really cute... Russell surprisingly didn't feel the blushing and heartbeating feeling towards her that he felt towards the Delphinium.

Just as the memory of the blue bird affects Russell's view of Morgan - the memory that was absorbed by Russell and originally belonged to the "detective" also affects Russell's attitude towards the bird of paradise.

But the old man who always likes to cry and has a compassionate heart may be because he is too old... Although the power of holy order allows him to maintain a relatively long lifespan, his heart has long been old. . As an old man, he has a daughter, and his attitude toward Paradise Birds is closer to that of "grandfather and grandson" than "father and daughter."

In a sense, Paradise Bird can be regarded as a type that lacks fatherly love.

However, after Russell inherited the detective's love for the bird of paradise, he no longer had that old age. Instead, it became the love of a young father who just had a child.

I have to say, this feeling is also very novel.

Russell himself has not been married yet, or even strictly speaking, has been in love, but he has already had the experience of being a father...

But this feeling is not bad.

It's not the same feeling as being a hairdresser...because Morgan's attitude towards Ultramarine is like a friendly big sister. Only the "godfather" who inherited Blue Songbird's body could move her.

And the Bird of Paradise knew everything from the beginning.

Although she had seen the "detective" transformed by Russell, she knew that it was Russell's incarnation.

She developed a feeling of intimacy and attachment to Russell even though she knew that he was not her real father.

Perhaps part of the reason was because Russell saved her with her father's ability; but more importantly, it was because Russell's ideas and kindness moved her.

Precisely because the person she is attached to is "Russell" himself and not the incarnation of "Detective", Russell's feelings for her are sincere and not an act after switching personalities.

The experience he got from it was also completely different - it was "father's love" that was completely based on himself.

From this perspective, Russell is very happy to be a colleague with Paradise Bird.

But from another perspective, Russell also has to worry about the safety of the paradise birds.

Paradise Bird probably hasn't realized yet...how complicated a situation she's involved in.

On the one hand, she is a human being, a saint who has mastered the power of the angelic holy order by her own strength alone, which makes her naturally belong to the church camp.

But just like the old saying "the last person who wants an angel to come is the pope himself", the power of the church lies in their right to interpret doctrine.

This has been true since before the word "cyber" was included in the name of the "Cyber ​​Church".

If there were no angels, the church would not be able to fight against the "Big Seven" and they would have killed all the angels long ago. Because the angels were not the same as them from the beginning, they were just tools used to defeat the mages.

What the Church holds is "compromised goods," while angels are "pure flashes."

——Paradise Bird is too talented and too pure, which also prevents her from being fully trusted by the church's superiors.

The church itself is far more political than the company.

The hierarchy within the company emphasizes more on interests and capabilities. Especially for a behemoth like the head office... If you become a director, you can rewrite the fate of tens of millions of people on an empty island at will. And even if it is a few levels lower, there is no doubt that it is glorious and wealthy.

Because of this, waste can never go up. Each level up represents a geometric expansion of wealth.

But this is not the case with the church.

It emphasizes checks and balances, and at the same time must consolidate the unity of opinions and interests of all parties.

It is different from the company's simple logic of "everyone makes money together", "money earned is distributed according to status", and "all decisions are made for everyone to make money"...

The interior of the church can be said to be full of hills.

Just the forces Russell is aware of so far include the pope who is half angel and half human, the elf chairman Selon as the second-in-command of the church, the true devout director Amyrus, and other cardinals who are human beings. Those who sell angels are those who hate the existence of angels, those who do not participate or support but look on coldly, those who oppose the sale of angels, those who sympathize with mages, those who are hostile to mages, those who hope to have a good relationship with the church, and those who do not trust the church. …

These people are not pure villains. All of them were recognized by the power of the Holy Order and have not lost it to this day.

This means that they don't think their actions are evil, it's just that everyone has their own purposes, opinions, and plans, most of which they won't tell anyone else.

Each party has its own ideas and plans. All are trying to expand their influence and maintain the interests of the church as a whole while attacking political opponents. Rather than "climbing up at all costs," it's more about "pushing others down at all costs."

In this case, the church must make only one voice to the outside world. This requires that all opinions be unified so that the overall decision can be relatively recognized by everyone.

There is no doubt that this is no longer the level of "business war" and "office struggle", but has entered the realm of politics.

Judging from the fact that a small part of the angel was unfrozen, the current situation in the church should still be at a stalemate.

Otherwise, they will either unfreeze none of them and hide the secret until the angels are eradicated; or unfreeze them all and use the angels to fight against the company for the right to speak; or recruit new angels to fill the gap; or simply use them directly. The orphanage resources controlled by the church have developed a production line...

But it is because everyone's opinions are not recognized by others that the church finally makes such a half-baked move - unfreeze a group of angels to suppress the mages, compete with the company for the right to speak, and demonstrate the power of the church to the people, but regardless of No matter what happens, new angels will no longer be unfrozen.

Although Russell didn't know what was going on within the church, he could tell from just this move that the church was deeply torn.

In this case, the existence of Paradise Bird is undoubtedly the key to breaking the situation.

Her life experience and composition are extremely complex. She is first of all the child of a rebel angel, but her father and mother have also helped many humans and elves in the upper city. At the same time, she is also a natural uncoded person. The technology that gave birth to her is illegal and taboo... Her relationship with the angels He has a very good relationship, and he knows many mages in Xiacheng District. He also has contact with the godfather in Xiacheng District, and has a good relationship with the hero "Ultramarine".

She is like an anchor at a crossroads, a versatile material.

And the reason why she was thrown here by the church was definitely not just to "be the godfather's contact person" and "the surveillance angel should not have too deep contact with the company."

Although Russell could not see the whole plan, he could directly tell that she must have been used as a pawn in a certain plan by the church.

For example, if the godfather is found to have had a deal with the church, then it will be Paradise Bird who will be blamed. The excuse of "a born saint was deceived by the godfather" can appease most believers. After all, it is reasonable for the church to trust saints. ;Similarly, if the church decides to break up with the Tianen Group, then "their natural saint was harmed by the company" is a good excuse.

In this case, Russell can probably guess what kind of deal the church plans to initiate with the "Godfather".

——They plan to "export" angels to other mages through the Godfather, or directly export the original liquid of the source of Holy Order.

Although the war of teachings almost destroyed the world, the church can actually accept the existence of mages... On the contrary, the old mages have a deep hatred for the church. After all, the church is winning.

The Godfather is a special mage. Judging from his attitude towards the Birds of Paradise, he does not have a deep hostility towards the church; and judging from his ruthless methods of exterminating traitors some time ago, the Godfather himself is not a good person.

The original sales channel for these sources of holy order was probably through the elf bishops to the elf mages.

But there is no profit at all. Moreover, the elves’ right to speak will expand infinitely due to the resources provided by the mages on the land...

——In other words, one force intends to smuggle angels to other mages through the channel of the Godfather.

This is a big list and a big case.

If we can negotiate, then the current situation will be revitalized instantly.

With support from within the church—even just covert help—the company could no longer suppress the godfather’s infiltration into uptown;

And the handle he holds in his hand can in turn check and balance the church;

If the church provides him with raw materials such as "angels", then he can secretly save some of them by controlling the transaction price between the two parties without being suspected by the church, so that they can join his own forces;

If the church provides him with the finished source of Holy Orders, Russell can also break into the camp of other mages in the dream world through his relationship with Teacher Zhonggo;

And most importantly, the identity of "detective" is specifically used to confront the "godfather", which is immediately rationalized.

By lowering the identity of the godfather, you can in turn raise the identity of the "detective". It's like a seesaw... and this deal is the fulcrum.

Moreover, the most important thing is not to let the godfather get the list. But don't let anyone else get it.

Once the underground forces have the support of the church, they can easily compete with the godfather. In that case, their original plan would be completely ruined.

If after the turmoil in the upper city, talents did not flow to the godfather, then everything would return to the previous state of separatism in the lower city. When Xiacheng District fights on its own, it cannot threaten the company... If it cannot threaten them, it will not be possible to legalize Xiacheng District.

And if Xiacheng District fights on its own first, it will be even more satisfying for the company.

"...I have to say, you are really my lucky star."

Russell murmured softly: "Every time it appears, it gives me an opportunity to break the situation..."

"……Um?"

The Paradise Bird, who was about to fall asleep, looked up a little sleepy and confused, and was patted down gently by Russell: "It's okay, go on to sleep."

He said warmly: "We'll leave after you wake up."

"Uh-huh."

The paradise bird responded vaguely and retracted into Russell's arms.

Although I said I wanted to take a stroll before.

But as early as when the bird in the paradise felt sleepy, he had already adjusted the music to melodious light music without leaving any trace, and turned down the volume to one-third. The bird of paradise fell asleep after being patted on the back by him.

While holding the bird of paradise, he thought of the delphinium in his heart.

If he could marry Delphinium in the future... he also wanted a cute girl like Paradise Bird.

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