Published at 24th of September 2026 6:50 am

Chapter 1143: Questions

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The man stared at Asher for a moment, the smile on his lips returning as he asked, "Do you know of anyone’s plans to harm the Empire or the Algorith Frontier?"

"No," Asher replied yet again.

The man nodded, then asked, "Were you sent here by anyone, or was this place recommended to you?"

"No to both questions," Asher replied without a change in expression.

The man didn’t speak, nor did he ask any more questions. He stared directly into Asher’s eyes as though they were engaged in a staring standoff. After a moment, the man raised a hand and snapped his fingers, a portal opening at the side as he spoke.

"You may leave," he stated, the file on the table vanishing as he spoke.

Asher nodded, then turned away, stepping through the portal without looking back. As Asher left, the man called the next number to come in. Acker opened the door and stepped in, his footsteps calm.

"Amitabha," he spoke as he stood opposite the man.

Another file appeared in the man’s hand. He stared at it, then it vanished, as it contained nothing. He had a file on each applicant, with each file containing information, as background checks had been performed on everybody during their time in the waiting hall.

"Buddhist Acker Holloway," the man began to speak. "Are you a spy by any chance?" he asked, getting straight to the most important questions.

Acker Holloway shook his bald head as he replied, "I’m not. I’m only here because of the Tenth Sun."

"Hoo!!! Because of the Tenth Sun, you say?" The man’s eyes narrowed as he added, "Mind expanding on that?"

Acker nodded his head and began going into detail about how Asher was the Hero who would save the world, cleanse it of sin, and free it from pain. His voice was filled with hope, determination, and happiness for the future.

As Acker spoke so passionately, the man simply stared at the Buddhist, unable to help but wonder how this delusional nutjob had made it here in the first place.

’He would make the worst spy,’ he mused to himself, but his opinion didn’t stop him from asking his questions.

"What plans do you have for the Zarethorne Empire?" he followed up with another question, breaking Acker out of his delusional speech.

Acker paused for a moment as though thinking, then shook his head as he replied, "I have no plans."

"Which Crownstar Life Ranker of the Vandross Empire got you to the Zarethorne Empire?" the man in purple followed up yet again.

"No Crownstar Life Ranker agreed to get me here," Acker answered truthfully without missing a beat.

The man arched an eyebrow as he couldn’t help but ask, "Then how did you get here?"

Acker simply gave the same story he had told Asher about two Crownstar Life Rankers fighting. He also explained how he had met a group of soldiers along the way who pointed him in this direction, and then how he had met the Tenth Sun on the way.

The man stared at Acker as he wondered what sort of convenient coincidences were happening around the boy.

"Do you have any plans to establish a temple for your Buddha within the Zarethorne Empire?" he asked.

Acker shook his head as he replied, "I don’t. That was my goal in the past, although that was for the Vandross Empire, but things have changed." His tone remained level.

"What things have changed?" the man asked without missing a beat.

"I met the Tenth Sun, and besides, I don’t have the time to oversee a temple at the moment," Acker answered calmly.

The man tapped his fingers on the table as he asked, "So, if your Emperor contacts you and tells you to plant bombs throughout the Zarethorne Empire or this Frontier, what would you do?"

"Ignore him." Acker didn’t hesitate to reply.

"And will you report this to your superior if you are accepted here?" the man pressed.

Acker paused for a moment as though considering the question. "I don’t know, as I can only make a decision depending on the variables of that moment," he answered truthfully.

The man shook his head as he countered, "But if you will only make a decision based on the variables of the moment, doesn’t that mean that you could choose to plant said bombs depending on the variables of the moment?"

Acker Holloway shook his head as he replied, "Doing such a thing would get me thrown out of the Hero Party, and Buddha might forsake me after such an act. That is a path I can never follow, no matter the variables."

The man stayed silent for a moment, his ability telling him that every syllable that left this monk’s lips was the utter truth.

"I will accept you into the Frontier on one condition," he stated as he leaned back into his chair.

Acker didn’t speak, but he was ready to hear what the condition was.

"Give me any valuable intel on the Vandross Empire that proves you are not a spy, and I will accept you," the man in purple stated, a smile appearing on his lips.

Acker was stunned for a moment. He had no valuable intel. He was simply a Buddhist commoner with no ties to anyone powerful back in the Vandross Empire. How was he supposed to have any information?

"It seems my journey to the Hero Party won’t be so easy," Acker finally spoke as he shook his head.

Hearing Acker’s words, the man in purple simply stared at him and said nothing. He raised a hand and snapped his fingers, a portal opening, the same portal that Asher and everyone else before him had entered.

"You may leave," he stated calmly.

"Amitabha," Acker responded as he turned and entered the portal with his hands clasped before him in prayer.

Lyra’s turn came, and she entered with an expressionless face, her eyes falling on the man in purple. She stood before him and simply waited, like everybody else.

"Miss Lyra, what other goals do you have aside from protecting the Tenth Sun?" the man asked.

"Apart from growing stronger, nothing else," Lyra replied flatly.

The man smiled as he replied, "I appreciate the honesty, then."

He snapped his fingers, a portal opening as he didn’t doubt Lyra’s identity. The question he asked was all he needed to confirm everything there was to confirm.

Kent followed next. As he entered, he looked around, a bit nervous, as though he was hoping to join the Frontier through some misunderstanding by the man before him about him being unawakened.

"Mr. Kent," the man in purple spoke, his eyes falling on Kent as he continued, "I thank you for delivering the Tenth Sun to us, but it seems your duties end here." His tone was gentle, as he seemed to have a soft spot for the unawakened.

Kent gave a weak smile as he understood that his thoughts had merely been wishful thinking. He sighed and took out the Teleportation Scroll that Asher had given him yet again when they were within the waiting hall. Then he tore it, his body vanishing as he wore a sad smile.

But what Kent didn’t know was that the destination of the Teleportation Scroll was Azaron’s current location, and his journey would bring him directly back to the Duke.

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