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Turning Chapter 721
🕑 Added 2023-12-16 05:02:18 +0000 UTCChapter 721
The events that followed were easily inferred without hearing them. Those who claimed to have come from the central stronghold of the Star of Nagran were likely bewildered and panicked, having their identities and intentions thoroughly exposed before they could even infiltrate the Cavalry.
"The Star of Nagran, even if belonging to the same group, members from different strongholds barely know each other. With internal strife brewing beneath the surface and the Cavalry's recruitment of new members causing upheaval, coordination in such a situation was unlikely."
It was Yuder who had anticipated the likelihood of their downfall due to internal conflicts, based on memories from his previous life. And it was Kishiar who had spread the news of the massive second batch recruitment of members without conditions, and had planned to weaken the Sage’s and Nahan’s group by leaking the list of the Cavalry's collaborators.
Now, these predictions and plans were coming to fruition, benefiting them as expected.
Yuder looked at the faces of his colleagues and the former Awakener members of the Star of Nagran, who were smiling despite being embarrassed.
He had already guessed from the west that the sage would start acting seriously from his stronghold in the south. The original plan was to weed out the applicants in the south before leaving and clean up the surroundings.
But he hadn't anticipated that things would be resolved in this manner before he even made his move. It felt quite novel to him, especially the method used for selection being a ruse. Even Yuder, had he been here, would not have thought of such a tactic.
The ruse conducted by the southern branch members and the successful applicants of the Star of Nagran was, in fact, quite simple.
First, the successful applicants loitered near the Awakeners from the central stronghold, dropping conversations that hinted they were from the same Star of Nagran. Then, the members acted as if the situation in the Cavalry was dire, sneakily leaking fake information desirable to any spy, and pretending to share serious inside information with the applicants.
To the central stronghold's Awakeners, it seemed as if these applicants were on the same mission as themselves and had already infiltrated the Cavalry, gathering sufficient information – a perfect misdirection.
In their eagerness, these individuals approached the applicants first, unwittingly revealing their own identities and intentions. The Cavalry members successfully identified all of them without shedding a drop of blood.
‘If it were me, I would have just used my powers on all the applicants to quickly reveal their true colors. Even the Cavalry of my previous life would have done the same.’
However, the fact that the present members chose a different method, a ruse, was probably because they had a similar experience in the west and discovered that it could be surprisingly effective.
Who had given them that experience? It was none other than Kishiar La Orr standing before them.
The fact that the same person can make entirely different choices depending on their experiences and what they learn had been observed several times by Yuder while watching the Cavalry members, but it had never struck him as clearly as it did today.
"Anyway, yes. It was a splendid method to uncover the enemies' identities, but before we could capture them, something unexpected happened. In fact, that's the real cause of what's happening right now."
As Yuder regained his composure, Kishiar smiled and began to speak. His gaze swept over the confused enemies and the suspicious figures caught in between, their whole bodies concealed.
"All the spies we thought we had identified were accounted for, except for a southern Awakener witnessed by the successful applicants. You must have heard by now who that is, right?"
"Are you referring to the person who was the temporary leader of the southern stronghold?"
Was her name Sera? Yuder mulled over the unfamiliar name.
"Yes. Surprisingly, at the time the spies were active, she did not target this branch but aimed elsewhere. Can you guess where?"
Yuder's mind raced.
If the children, including Jack, were not mistaken, then she must have come here with a purpose. It wouldn't have been strange for someone entrusted with a critical mission of overseeing the stronghold in the sage's absence not to come to this branch, especially if she wasn't aiming to infiltrate the Cavalry. If infiltration wasn't the goal, it would have been logical for her to assist or guide the central stronghold's Awakeners who were unfamiliar with the south.
But instead, she targeted somewhere else at the same time?
Then why, for what reason, and where did she aim?
There was only one other plausible answer.
'She was said to have formed close ties with the Southern merchants. And those behind the recent death of the second prince of Herne were precisely them. Considering their objective wasn’t just to overturn Herne but also to frame and harm the Cavalry...'
The conclusion that the 'others targeting the Cavalry' Aton had mentioned after being knocked out by Yuder were the Sage and the Star of Nagran.
Reversing this line of thought, the situation appeared in a new light.
What would the Southern merchants have thought if they had early access to the sage’s plans in the South through their cooperative relationship with Sera? Naturally, they would have devised a way to inflict the maximum damage on the Cavalry, adding the Sage's plans to their own schemes.
'Once entangled in a cooperative relationship, it can intertwine two or three times more.'
The word 'cooperation' implies mutual support. If the Southern merchants had helped Sera and the Southern stronghold, then it meant that Sera would have also assisted the Southern merchants when they requested help.
The scenario of the Southern merchants proposing to help Sera and the Southern Stronghold again, cunningly interjecting themselves into this plan, easily formed in Yuder’s mind. The stronghold was already at great risk due to internal conflicts, so refusing their help would have been more surprising.
It was uncertain how much the Sage knew about the Southern merchants, but ultimately, it seemed clear that Sera had moved with them.
The Southern merchants must have known how the Star of Nagran would move and even how the Second Prince of Herne would die. The next target for them could only be one thing.
'The people who left the Cavalry branch for a while to investigate the death of the Second Prince of Herne they had killed.'
More precisely... the center of the Cavalry, Commander Kishiar La Orr.
He was an Awakener, but his exact abilities remained unclear, and many doubted and questioned even his possession of the Divine Sword. Known to be physically frail, not very bright, foolish, and fond of frivolities, there couldn’t be an easier yet impactful target.
Moreover, Kishiar had sent even his deputy Nathan Zuckerman ahead somewhere after concluding the investigation of the Second Prince of Herne’s body and had boarded a carriage with only Yuder.
Yuder's reputation had indeed soared after resolving the incident in the west, but it hadn't reached the level of his previous life where his mere existence inspired fear. He was still a novice, not even a year into revealing his name to the world, and he had not directly confronted the Southern merchants during his time in the west. If they considered him merely an inexperienced youth to contend with, it wouldn’t have been strange for them to feel confident, especially with the additional strength of Sera and others from the Southern stronghold on their side.
And in fact, even Yuder had secretly disembarked from the carriage midway.
Kishiar had been alone on his return to the branch.
The moment Yuder realized this, a chill similar to a shiver ran through his entire body. His eyes deepened, and a dark, ominous voice flowed from his parched lips.
“Don’t tell me, they even targeted the carriage carrying the Commander?”
Although he phrased it as a possibility, his conviction was almost certain.
And as if confirming Yuder’s thought, Kishiar slowly nodded.
“That’s correct.”
A deep, silent sigh escaped. A mix of incredulity and anger bubbled up from deep within.
Knowing Kishiar’s true abilities, he was aware that Kishiar would not fall victim to a sudden attack. What infuriated him was the fact that he himself had not been there.
Yuder, trying his best to calm his emotions, asked,
“…Does the blood on your clothes also stem from that incident?”
"It would seem so," came the nonchalant reply.
Comments
Shrak Prince
Is that boss music I hear?
4theLoveofAnime
Ah damn…the beating Aton received will seem like a ticklefest to what might happen these people. 🙏🏾Praying that they make better decisions in their next life 😂
SchaheraZade
Mama of the Cavalry is mad that the Dad was targeted! ✨️😳
