Chapter 1638 - 105: Fox and Mouse Game (15)

Chapter 1638: Chapter 105: Fox and Mouse Game (15)

[Maplestone City Army Academy]

"Something happened?" Siegfried saw the old blind man approaching with the kind of speed a blind man shouldn’t possess. He put away his longsword, wiped the sweat off his forehead, and casually asked, "Right? The bell is so loud."

In view of Count Harlan’s contribution to the anti-Empire cause, having effectively become a member of the teaching staff at the Maplestone City Army Academy, Jeska reciprocated kindness by relaxing his restrictions, allowing him free access to the detention room, and permitting him to tour the campus with "accompaniment"—though in fairness, the remote logging camp didn’t have much worth seeing anyway.

"Yes," the old blind man said solemnly, "Something happened."

"What happened?" Siegfried’s lips curled into a subtle smile. Even though he’s currently working temporarily for the rebels, this doesn’t diminish his pleasure over their misfortune.

"The military supplies warehouse was set on fire," the old blind man replied succinctly.

"Set on fire?" Siegfried’s smile widened. "That must have been a considerable loss, huh? Seems you have quite a few enemies within."

"Well," the old blind man paused for a moment, "If I have to say, it involves you too."

"Involves me?" Siegfried’s eyebrows rose at the news, then furrowed deeply, his sword-wielding hand clenched tightly as a terrifying thought flashed through his mind, "Did something happen to Elizabeth?"

Seeing the Imperial Guy reaching for his sword, Jeska’s service soldier immediately took a nervous step forward, as did the surrounding "guards" who drew their short sticks.

With a gesture, the old blind man indicated to the service soldier to step back, and directly told Siegfried, "Elizabeth Li Yang was assassinated last night."

"And then?" Siegfried stared at the old blind man, stepping forward.

"I don’t know," the old blind man shrugged.

"Don’t know?" Siegfried took another step forward, his teeth clenched as he asked, "Dead or alive, don’t you know?"

"I don’t know, no one knows if Elizabeth Li Yang is alive or dead now. I only know that she was attacked at a party yesterday," Jeska said calmly, "I suspect someone deliberately withheld the news, intending to lure the snake out of its hole."

Siegfried quickly grasped it—the rebels want to capture someone, and he’s indifferent to that. However, if this was an ambush, the assassination was controlled, and Elizabeth probably wasn’t in any real danger.

Nevertheless, though he had grasped this, Siegfried still felt congested in his chest, an unnamed fire with no outlet. He took another step forward, smiling grimly as he asked, "Now the snake’s out, and it bit you all as well, satisfied?"

"Don’t know," the old blind man replied, "Because I didn’t plan this affair."

"Divisions even among rebels?"

"No, just responding to your question."

Siegfried said no more, merely squinting as his sword grip shifted from inverted to upright.

"Stand back!" Guarding students swiftly surrounded him, "Drop the sword!"

Siegfried surveyed the "guards" encircling him, sneering lightly as he thrust his longsword heavily into the ground, turning and walking directly back to his cell.

The students who expected blood today exchanged confused glances. One student stepped forward, attempting to pull out the sword "Lord Earl" had driven into the earth, only to find it stuck deep and firm, unmoved with one hand.

The other students, spurred by competition, tried in turn, yet not one could draw it out single-handedly.

At last, a student used both hands, exerting his back and waist force to successfully retrieve the sword, only to fall heavily.

Inside the detention room, Siegfried sat at the bedside, head lowered, lost in thought.

"Why didn’t you run me through?" The old blind man stepped in, feeling his way to sit at the foot of the bed, puzzled, "You surely could have done it."

Siegfried remained silent.

"I don’t know what agreements Elizabeth Li Yang had with the ’Four Pillars’, nor do I know if they’ve assured Elizabeth Li Yang of anything, yet..." The old blind man fell silent for a long while, "Emotionally, I cannot accept such things. A battlefield fight is one thing; assassination is another. But I also don’t understand the difference between killing someone on the battlefield versus at a party. Does life on the battlefield fetch less value than at a party? I dislike intrigue but cannot blame the children, their decision..."

"Children?" Siegfried chuckled darkly.

"You, them, and those little brats outside, you’re all really still children," the old blind man said softly, "Yet you forget, and we pretend not to know. If we don’t pretend to forget, we can’t wage war."

Siegfried said nothing in reply.

"I have no right to apologize; nor do they intend to apologize to you. But having aided us so greatly, we’ve hurt your beloved; someone surely owes you," the old blind man struggled to rise, leaning on the rail, "I’ll make amends—I will work to arrange a meeting with Princess Elizabeth, soon."

"Weren’t you curious why I didn’t run you through earlier?" Siegfried suddenly spoke from the shadows.

"Very curious, they shouldn’t have been able to stop you."

"As I was thinking to do it, a thought suddenly emerged: ’What if Liz were here, what would she say,’" Siegfried smiled briefly, "She’d likely be anxious to tears, desperately shouting at me, ’I’m okay, don’t be rash.’"

Jeska quietly listened.

"The only reason I didn’t do anything is because—I don’t want to drag Elizabeth Li Yang down anymore," Siegfried said solemnly, "Piercing you all with holes is simple, yet the aftermath burdens others, there’s no sense."