## Chapter 27: Exchange of Interests
Eivass didn’t actually know the specific process of the Advancement Ritual.
This was mainly because the official had no Dream Realm map, and the player’s experience during advancement was not complete. Among the required ritual materials, only a few were slightly more expensive; the rest were merely supplementary items.
As long as these materials were gathered, a Dungeon could be opened.
Before level 50, the Advancement Ritual would open a gateway to a nine-person Dungeon, with only one slot available for each Path. Then, these nine people would enter the Dungeon and, without fighting any lesser monsters, directly confront a randomly selected BOSS that was not too difficult.
After the Dungeon, all players would be randomly judged on whether they passed. The higher the level of the advancement Dungeon, the greater the probability of failure. Without using additional materials to increase the success rate, the number of people who passed the advancement during a full moon would be twice that of a new moon.
Initially, the success rate was quite high. When advancing from level 9 to the second Energy Level, six out of nine people could pass, even in a new moon Dungeon, three people could advance smoothly. However, as the levels increased, advancement became increasingly difficult. When advancing from level 49 to 50, only the full moon Dungeon had a guaranteed minimum of at least one successful advancement. New moon Dungeons could even result in all nine players failing to advance.
Players had grown accustomed to this.
It was like not getting good drops from gacha rolls; they had come to see it as a normal occurrence.
From level 59 onwards, subsequent advancement Dungeons became high-difficulty solo instances.
In the 0.0 version, the level cap for most Paths was opened to level 85. Authority and Wisdom were opened to level 90 earlier, while other Paths were unlocked successively later. The final advancement from level 89 to 90 was terrifyingly difficult, to the point that despite the level cap being raised to 90, the vast majority of players were stuck at level 89. Only a few top players who were both diligent, spent heavily, and possessed excellent hand-eye coordination could truly max out their levels.
It was estimated that only after all nine Paths had their level 90 cap fully unlocked would the difficulty of advancement Dungeons for earlier Paths be specifically reduced.
This was exactly what the official had done when the level cap was previously raised to 80.
However, while Eivass didn’t know how NPCs advanced, he could at least understand one thing.
That was, when NPCs advanced in their first 50 levels, they would definitely be matched with nine people of the same tier but from different Paths within the Dream Realm. If nine people couldn’t be gathered, the ritual couldn’t be established. Of course, for low-level advancement rituals, it was certainly possible to gather enough people.
If enough people could be gathered, the nine closest individuals would be prioritized. If enough people couldn’t be found locally, they would reach further to attract one or two, ensuring the shortest possible distance between the nine participants.
According to the explanation of the Advancement Ritual in the Occult Classics of The Path of Beauty, the Advancement Ritual was described as “Wishing Moon for shared prosperity, New Moon for mutual loss.”
According to speculations from top players, perhaps full moons were for PvE and new moons for PvP. This could also explain why the success rate of the ritual was higher during a full moon.
And tomorrow is the full moon, a Dungeon that requires a certain degree of cooperation.
This means that tomorrow, Eivass will enter the Dream Realm as “The Path of Devotion.” Sherlock will be from the Path of Wisdom.
The Path of Balance and the Path of Authority should both be from Avalon. It was uncertain where the advanced individuals of other Paths would come from.
On the other side, after a brief exchange of pleasantries with Oswald, Sherlock began to discuss business.
This thin man with a somewhat lazy demeanor, who seemed indifferent to everything, took out a dark-covered book from his pocket.
Sherlock placed the book face down, with the title hidden, and handed it to the old butler, casually saying, “I’m just here to deliver something from Mr. Kent to Eivass.”
“This little matter, I thought that young lady with no sense of time would be doing it.”
Oswald clearly remembered Haina’s two-hour lateness.
He handed the book to Eivass, not looking at the book’s title himself.
This was Oswald’s respect as a butler to his masters—since this book was a gift from the Inspection Bureau to Eivass, he would not read it.
Eivass took the book and generously turned it over, looking at its title.
《Shepherd’s Secret Manual》.
It was also a Grimoire. He had no recollection of its contents.
However, judging by its format, it should be an ancient skill of the Path of Devotion…
It was quite a good reward, Eivass thought.
Or rather, it was too generous—an ancient skill worthy of being called a “Grimoire” was at least on the same level as the Church’s Sacred Skill. Sherlock had only received a Grimoire of the Path of Wisdom from the Inspection Bureau after he helped them solve a major case.
…For such a simple low-level Dungeon, you’re giving me such a good reward?
Perhaps you should just beat me up instead. I feel uneasy holding onto this.
“Please open the book and take a look first, Mr. Eivass. Confirm that you can open it normally.”
Sherlock’s expression was calm, and his tone was low, like a government employee working overtime, exuding a perfunctory indifference. “If you cannot open this book, then I will have to take it back to the Inspection Bureau. Mr. Kent will give you another Grimoire that you can open.”
Hearing this, Eivass flipped through it roughly.
Finding that he could indeed open it, he didn’t pay attention to its contents, closed it, and placed it on his lap.
Seeing that Eivass had confirmed it, Sherlock lightly removed his hat.
“Hello, Mr. Eivass.”
With a faster pace than before, Sherlock matter-of-factly relayed, “Mr. Kent plans to hold a commendation ceremony next Thursday. The location is the White Dance Shoe Club in the Red Queen District, at 5:30 PM. There will be a banquet after the ceremony.
“The nature of this commendation ceremony is to ‘honor outstanding Inspection Bureau personnel who have made extraordinary contributions to eradicating evil in the name of the Queen,’ and to summarize the important events of this quarter. Mr. Kent invites you to attend. The General Inspection Bureau will present you with a Crystal Cross medal at that time.”
Upon hearing this, Eivass immediately understood.
—This was the Inspection Bureau trying to get him to do something, and they were giving him a deposit beforehand for fear that he would go back on his word.
What recent matter could Eivass help with, and more importantly, only he could help with?
That would likely be the matter that Eivass was reported in the newspaper today.
He independently solved such a big case, personally eliminated a dangerous wanted criminal, and even found and cleared out a meeting point of the Noble Red Society within Glass Island… The premise of him becoming a “hero” and “celebrity” was built upon the Inspection Bureau’s incompetence.
After sealing the Pelican Bar and investigating further along that lead… the Inspection Bureau could easily discover that it was a long-standing transnational black market on Glass Island. Even non-Extraordinaries often purchased contraband here, or even exchanged highly confidential information.
If they were to follow this clue, let alone minor matters like Demon Scholars or forbidden books of illegal Paths, they might even uncover major cases of smuggling, espionage, and treason.
But conversely, if they were to directly investigate along the lead of the Pelican Bar… it would be equivalent to slapping their own face.
Such an important stronghold, unnoticed by the Inspection Bureau for so long, had become an almost open secret among ordinary people, a significant market for illegal goods. In the end, this secret was discovered by a university student who wasn’t even a proper Extraordinary, a crippled man in a wheelchair.
The Inspection Bureau would likely be in trouble.
Therefore, Director Kent’s intention was probably to ask him to make a statement—as long as he could mention at the commendation ceremony that “the matter of discovering the Pelican Bar was related to the Inspection Bureau.”
For this, he even sent Eivass a rather valuable Grimoire.
Moreover, as long as Eivass accepted this book, it would be equivalent to accepting this commission.
It also meant that Director Kent owed him a favor.
So, Eivass thought for a moment and revealed a sly, fox-like, delighted smile.
“—Inspection personnel?”
He feigned confusion, but he believed that both Sherlock and Oswald would understand his intention: “But I’m just an ordinary person. I’m even a student who is still in school.”
Sherlock indeed understood Eivass’s meaning.
“That’s not a problem.”
He said without hesitation, “You are not an official inspector, but even students can become advisors to the Inspection Bureau. Just like me, you can have a nominal position in the Inspection Bureau. And there will be no substantial missions; you only need to declare yourself as part of the Inspection Bureau at critical moments. Afterwards, if you are interested in any incident and wish to participate in the investigation, you can join as an advisor.”
Sherlock’s words were very fluent. It was obvious he was directly reciting Director Kent’s original words.
Given Sherlock’s status as an advisor, he could make such a promise directly to Eivass, which clearly indicated that Director Kent had considered Eivass’s reaction before Sherlock left.
Director Kent must have consulted Haina in detail beforehand about Eivass’s personality, abilities, and what he had done.
When he realized that Eivass was an intelligent person who couldn’t be easily fooled, he immediately arranged more tangible benefits for Eivass.
“Mr. Kent’s original words were, ‘This is a reward for your heroic actions, and also a pre-payment for your attendance at the commendation ceremony.’
“Of course, if you really don’t want to attend, it’s fine. You can still keep the book, and I can refuse Mr. Kent on your behalf.”
Sherlock put his hat back on, pulling the brim down.
“—So, what is your answer?”
“Of course, I agree. Please tell Director Kent that I will attend on time.”
Eivass smiled gently, but made no mention of the book, 《Shepherd’s Secret Manual》.
It was only now that he truly understood the weight of his identity.
He was no longer a player without a background and without backing… He was Eivass Moriarty.
When James was still alive, and Avalon had not fallen, no one could swallow his accomplishments. Nor could anyone treat him as a tool to be bossed around. As long as they wanted Eivass’s help, they had to exchange benefits with him and could not act with impunity.
Immediately after, Eivass also realized something else:
—Good heavens.
So, when I was a player, I was secretly cheated out of so many things by these people!
