novelones Chapter 115: Aiwass: Count Me In, I’ll Fake It Too
Chapter 115: Aiwass: Count Me In, I’ll Fake It Too
After sealing the deal, Vice President Boca took Aiwass to a small banquet.Fewer than ten people attended, all mid-level Lloyd’s Society members, clearly not among the rare Transcendents within the organization.
Boca avoided any mention of the Noble Red Society, and they seemed oblivious to its existence.
Boca announced that he personally invited Aiwass Moriarty, recently honored with the Holy Sword Medal by the queen, to join Lloyd’s Society.
With the stern, serious vice president’s endorsement, the attendees were effusively warm.
These were prominent Glass Island merchants, the least wealthy among them holding the second-largest construction company in Lloyd District.
As “corporate members” of Lloyd’s Society, their status surpassed “individual members” who borrowed or insured personally.
Some even knew Aiwass from past dealings with old Moriarty, one having been introduced to the Society by him.
They were unaware of Professor Moriarty’s death.
Upon learning Aiwass joined, their first reaction was celebration, assuming it meant Moriarty intended Aiwass to inherit the family business, hence Boca’s invitation to meet these “old friends.”
Of course, these people might not be reliable.
If they learned of Moriarty’s “demise,” some might turn against Aiwass.
Boca brought him here to publicize “Aiwass, invited by Boca, joins Lloyd’s Society.”
Though it might not make the papers, these loose-lipped merchants would spread the news through their circles.
Soon, Glass Island’s well-connected would know Aiwass was with Lloyd’s Society, aligned with Boca’s faction.
This amused Aiwass.
Boca’s move wasn’t exactly proper in the eyes of President Lloyd.
From Aiwass’s fresh intel, York, Boca, and President Lloyd were Noble Red Transcendents.
Yet Boca seemed reluctant to introduce Aiwass to Lloyd, bypassing him to present Aiwass to mid-level members first—a clear sidestep to prevent Lloyd from rejecting Aiwass’s entry.
This was entirely against protocol.
Recruiting a key figure—spy, strategist, spokesperson—without showing them to the boss or seeking approval?
In their talks, Aiwass learned too much sensitive information.
If he refused to join, they’d have to eliminate him.
Similarly, if he agreed but Lloyd rejected him, they’d still need to silence him.
Aiwass sensed urgency—not just from York, under a kill order, but from Boca too.
This led to a bold deduction: Boca and President Lloyd were at odds, and York was a fence-sitter, undecided until now, forced to side with Boca.
As a half-giant and cultivated Transcendent, President Lloyd likely leaned toward Noble Red, acting as the glue between the two groups.
He was probably the one pressuring York to kill Sherlock.
Boca, a fence-sitter, embodied a merchant’s greed, aiming to exploit or even absorb the demonologist society while resisting yielding profits to Lloyd, perhaps even eyeing his position.
That’s why they urgently recruited Aiwass.
It was a risky move, but merchants thrived on risk for profit.
They knew Aiwass was a first-level demonologist, held leverage over him via force and politics, and tempted him with inheritance and demonology knowledge.
Yet the plan was precarious, teetering on collapse.
Their haste, despite the risks, hinted at Boca’s shaky position.
This was unsurprising.
As a Transcendent close to Lloyd’s level, Boca naturally sparked vigilance and crisis in Lloyd’s mind.
But there was a Path trap here.
Transcendents couldn’t deliberately suppress rising peers unless absolutely necessary.
Such actions contradicted the essence of “transcendence,” signaling fear of stagnation or weakening, which could expose vulnerability to subordinates.
Suppressing others also veered toward the Path of Authority, risking deviation from Transcendence.
To avoid being surpassed, one had to keep advancing relentlessly—stop, and you’d be overtaken, losing everything.
Thus, Transcendent competition thrived among peers or through betrayal from below, while superiors often treated subordinates kindly.
Lloyd knew this taboo, so he couldn’t openly move against Boca, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t wary.
Transcendence wasn’t a friendly race to the top.
The most legitimate plunder came from defeating a stronger foe as the underdog.
The more spectacular the victory, the greater the spoils, fueling growth through path resonance.
Devouring the defeated to grow was the essence of Transcendence.
Conversely, bullying the weak dulled one’s Transcendent will, risking stagnation or regression.
Star Antimony’s war excuses—“restoring its former glory,” “making it great again,” “expanding its reach”—avoided “suppressing neighbors” for this reason.
To prevent being overtaken, Transcendents stripped their targets bare, destroying them completely to eliminate revenge.
Boca was clearly gunning for Lloyd’s seat.
Lloyd, aiming to fulfill Prince Lloyd’s dream of usurping the crown, couldn’t openly suppress Boca without cause.
But he could “incidentally” undermine him—like rejecting Aiwass for “offending Noble Red” and killing him to silence him, derailing Boca’s plans and implicating York.
Boca likely foresaw this outcome, hence his risky push to lock in Aiwass’s membership.
The rift between Noble Red and Lloyd’s Society was nearing a breaking point.
Merchants and Transcendents, bound only by shared interests, needed a common enemy to unite.
With the crown weakened, nearing collapse yet enduring, they turned on each other on the eve of victory.
[Since tensions are this high, it’s simple,] Aiwass thought.
He knew his move.
After repelling the demonologist attack, he’d stage a scene: traces of a demonologist ritual summoning a Shadow Demon to attack him in his dorm, then vanish, leaving his wheelchair to suggest abduction.
Shadow Demons were hard to contract but easy to summon for destruction.
Aiwass, owning one, could leave authentic evidence.
What would Boca think?
That Lloyd acted to kill Aiwass and sabotage his plans.
Lloyd, knowing he didn’t, would suspect Noble Red’s distrustful members acted independently—after all, the Great Purple master and apprentice, Noble Red members, had summoned a Shadow Demon before.
Noble Red, knowing they didn’t act, would suspect Lloyd’s Society.
Other groups could use oaths to prove truth, but Noble Red’s Breach of Oath art rendered oaths meaningless.
A first-level demonologist like Aiwass, whose knowledge came from Noble Red, would be seen as an innocent victim.
Summoning a high-tier Shadow Demon wasn’t something just anyone could do.
Then, Aiwass could direct his Shadow Demon to attack Lloyd’s Society.
His plan was simple, targeting the giant’s weakest point: