Elon glanced at Shane and said, “Shane discovered a problem while repairing the Ashstone. He believes the damage wasn't natural, but deliberate.”
“He immediately realized there was a mole in our midst. Combining that with the incident of the rampaging undead during the day, he had a rough idea of who it was. However, acting rashly might not have secured any concrete evidence, so we set this plan in motion.”
Alicia nodded. “So, the so-called banishment and barrier were all just to make the mole think they had an opportunity?”
“Yes.”
Elon nodded, a look of gratification in his eyes as he looked at Alicia. “To be honest, this plan had quite a few loopholes. If you hadn't noticed something off about me, helped reduce the night watch, and ultimately brought the guards to intervene, the mole would have probably escaped.”
Alicia shook her head. “I didn't know what you were thinking at first. But when you mentioned continuing the Oasis Project, I realized something was wrong. Besides, knowing your personality, you wouldn't have been so passionate.”
“So I knew you were targeting someone, or sending some kind of signal.”
Elon smiled wryly. “Was it really that obvious?”
“No.”
Alicia smiled. “It's just that you are usually terrible at lying, Mentor, so I simply went along with your lead and played my part.”
She glanced over at “Cole's” corpse in the distance. “The fewer people who know a secret, the better. That was precisely why the mole let his guard down. You don't need to blame yourself; I trust your judgment and arrangements.”
Elon took a deep breath, suppressing his emotions. “To have your trust like this is the greatest honor of my life.”
“You flatter me, Mentor.”
Alicia shook her head slightly. “I am the one who should thank you. Even at a time like this, you are still looking out for me.”
As the two of them looked at each other, Shane stood to the side, his lips twitching slightly. The scene reminded him exactly of the interactions between a top student and a teacher back in his school days.
A moment later, Elon turned to Shane, his tone filled with gratitude. “For things to go so smoothly this time, we must also thank Shane for his cooperation. If you hadn't discovered it and warned us right away, the losses would have been far worse.”
Under the astonished gazes of the guards and attendants, he placed a hand over his chest and bowed respectfully. “Shane, thank you.”
Shane raised an eyebrow, not expecting this gesture. He replied in a low voice, “You're welcome.”
Alicia chuckled softly and walked over to Shane. “Mentor is right. Thank you, Shane Leynas. If not for you, we might have walked right into someone else's trap.”
Shane said flatly, “I just didn't want anyone ruining the place where I plant my trees.”
“I know.”
Alicia's smile didn't fade. “But the thanks still need to be said.”
Then, her smile vanished as she looked at the corpse. “In the end, this is my fault.”
“Everyone who came here volunteered. I thought we were all close, so the screening before we departed wasn't thorough enough. If I had been more cautious, perhaps there wouldn't have been a mole.”
Elon was about to offer some comforting words when Shane interrupted, “Wait!”
He frowned, directing a skeleton to hook out a silver-gray chain from “Cole's” neck. Hanging from the end was a dark green magic stone pendant the size of a fingernail, its surface covered in fine, intricate patterns.
After examining it closely, Shane asked Alicia, “Your Highness, have you seen this before?”
Alicia shook her head. “As far as I can remember, Cole never wore jewelry.”
“Then this must be it.”
Shane stood up and had the skeleton snap the chain.
In the next second, “Cole's” face twisted, and a completely unfamiliar face emerged a few moments later.
He looked to be around thirty years old, with an ordinary, nondescript appearance.
Elon stepped forward in surprise to identify him.
Shane voiced his suspicion. “He was probably swapped out before you even departed. The pendant is a disguise-type alchemical tool. As for the real Cole, I'm afraid...”
The atmosphere instantly turned freezing cold. The guards exchanged uneasy glances, and the attendants instinctively pulled away from each other, casting suspicious looks around.
Alicia drew herself up, her cold gaze sweeping over the surroundings.
Elon placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don't worry, I will handle this.”
Alicia's expression softened slightly. “Mentor, you have a way?”
Elon nodded, which calmed her down.
The princess suddenly turned to Shane. “Mr. Leynas, you said earlier that he was sent by the heart of the Empire. What is your basis for that?”
Shane unhurriedly held up a single finger. “First, the timing. According to Elon, nothing went wrong before you arrived at the oasis. The Ashstone was only damaged after you decided to stay.”
“This proves that the other party's goal wasn't to harm you on the road, but to make you leave as quickly as possible, preventing the Ashstone from being repaired.”
The princess nodded in contemplation.
Shane held up a second finger. “Second, the actions.”
“Damaging a small amount of Ashstone, controlling skeletons to attack, and contaminating the water source—these actions didn't cause severe damage to the group. They were crises, but not fatal ones. This proves he didn't want to harm you; he only wanted to force you to leave. It shows that the mastermind behind this knows that any harm coming to Your Highness would be disadvantageous to them. This attitude, combined with such roundabout methods, leads me to believe that only the upper echelons at the heart of the Empire would act this way.”
Shane did not have a deep understanding of imperial politics, so this was the extent of his deduction. However, these words carried a far deeper meaning for the princess. She stood silently, her red hair fluttering in the wind. Though her expression was calm, her aura had become as sharp as a sword drawn from its scabbard.
Elon stepped forward to advise her, “Your Highness, we have no concrete evidence yet. Excessive speculation...”
“I know, Mentor.”
Alicia exhaled slowly, composing herself. “Without evidence, speculation is meaningless. For now, let's focus on the present.”
Elon nodded in relief. “Your Highness is wise.”
“So, Mentor,”
Alicia revealed a confident smile. “What do we do next?”
“Since we've disrupted their plans, the other party won't just sit idly by. Something else is bound to happen next.”
Elon stroked his chin, displaying the wisdom of an elder. “Faced with this situation, there are only two choices: either lie low and hide, or...”
He glanced at Shane, then looked back at the princess. “Make a scene so big that the entire Empire hears about it!”
The princess's eyes lit up. “Mentor is right. Let's make a scene—the bigger, the better!”
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