CHAPTER 801: INVESTIGATION 2

The elf’s eyes instantly became blank, and his body relaxed as he leaned against his seat. The moment the hypnotic technique successfully took control of the elf’s mind, Aldrian asked him,

"Are you Frelix?"

"Yes," the elf answered without hesitation.

"Are you the one responsible for checking any food and drinks that come out from the kitchen, including those served to Empress Sylphia?"

"Yes."

"Did you put poison specifically in her drink?"

"No."

Aldrian narrowed his eyes. If the one responsible for the food and drinks was not the one who put in the poison, then the number of suspects became much wider. The poison could have been added by the person who directly made Sylphia’s drink. It could also have been placed by someone outside the kitchen after the drink was prepared.

The possibilities were many, but he would look for the answer until the end of the night.

"Do you have any connection with the devils? Have you ever interacted with them in any form in the past?" the avatar asked again.

"I don’t have any connection with the devils. I had a few encounters with them in the past, and every time I fought them. That is the only interaction I have ever had with the devils."

Aldrian nodded. "Do you know who personally brewed the tea for Empress Sylphia this morning and who prepared the wine for her at the banquet?"

"The one who brewed the tea was a maid named Loriene, and the one who prepared the wine specifically for Empress Sylphia at the banquet was Butler Elka. In fact, he is the one responsible for the department that prepares all the wine for the banquet before I come for inspection, before the drinks are served to the guests."

"Could you bring the two of them here?"

"Yes." After that, Frelix took out a communication artifact from his drawer and spoke to the other side, asking for Loriene and Elka to be called. Aldrian also created a gap in his spatial barrier so the two incoming guests could enter. Two minutes later, two elves finally entered—one man and one woman.

The moment they entered, they were stunned when they saw another figure already inside the room.

"Excuse me, Sir Frelix, did you call us—" the male elf said, but before he could finish, both he and the female elf were already under Aldrian’s hypnosis. Their gazes became blank, and they stood still as if they were puppets waiting for someone to move them.

The avatar turned his head toward them. "Come here," he said while pointing to the place beside him. Both of them walked over and stood at his side.

"Are your names Loriene and Elka?" the avatar asked.

"Yes, I’m Elka."

"Yes, I’m Loriene."

Both of them answered. Aldrian nodded and immediately asked the key question.

"Did you put poison into the drink specifically prepared for Empress Sylphia today?"

"No."

"Yes."

Aldrian’s gaze turned to the butler, Elka, who had answered yes. Now that he already had his answer, he could focus on this man.

"Why did you do it, Elka? Do you work for someone else?"

"I did it because of an order from the higher-ups. They told me to put a thousand year black lily poison inside Empress Sylphia’s drink. I work for one of the noble families, the Reinclad family, because my origin is from their territory. All this time, I have been their eyes and ears inside the imperial palace."

The avatar nodded in understanding. The Reinclad family was one of the families in the opposition faction. If this man was simply following orders from his superiors, then it was almost certain that the opposition faction was behind all of this. No, he could say with certainty that they were, based on Grand Duke Freindor’s feeling at the banquet.

"Do you have any collaborators inside the imperial palace? Others who act as spies for the opposition faction? Do any of them hold important positions?" the avatar asked again.

"There are several of them, but none hold high positions. In fact, I have the highest status among those from the opposition faction in the palace."

The avatar nodded, then took out an information crystal and directed it at Elka before giving the order.

"Reveal to me your name, your occupation, your real origin, what you did to the wine specifically prepared for Empress Sylphia, how you did it, and the reason you did it. Also, reveal the identities of all your friends or collaborators inside the imperial palace who act as spies for the opposition faction."

Elka then began to do as he was ordered, speaking without reservation. He revealed everything in detail, and all of the information he provided became valuable evidence.

After Elka finished giving all the information, the avatar took the information crystal and said to Elka and Loriene,

"Elka and Loriene, you may leave this room. Once you are outside, you will forget about our meeting here. You will forget that you entered this room and were called by Frelix. You will remember nothing about what we discussed."

After that, they walked out of the room, and the avatar turned to Frelix.

"Frelix, the same applies to you. You will forget about our meeting here and you will remember nothing about what we discussed after I disappear."

A split second later, he was already gone, and moments later Frelix’s eyes regained clarity as he blinked a few times.

He turned his head left and right in confusion. He felt something strange, but he did not know what it was. After a few moments, he shrugged and returned to thinking about the other problems he had been considering before meeting the avatar, mainly regarding the banquet. The strangeness in his mind and heart slowly faded and was forgotten, buried by the strong hypnotic technique that had overwritten his memory.

Loriene and Elka outside felt the same. At first, they were confused about why they were in front of Frelix’s room. However, their confusion quickly turned to normal, and they continued their own business without thinking about what had just happened to them.

They did not even question why they were standing in front of Frelix’s room. They simply assumed they must have passed by and forgotten what they were about to do.

At this moment, the avatar had already returned to the main palace building. He was now searching for another place, the location where Baron Stargis was being held.

However, finding that place was not something he could simply ask anyone about. The location was likely known only to a few people. The one who might know for certain was, of course, the Empress herself.

Since he did not want to waste any time and it was the easiest way, he decided to meet her directly.

He decided to cancel his stealth technique and walked toward the Empress’s private room, the place where she discussed matters with Sylphia this morning.

When he arrived in front of the room and met the two imperial guards, he asked one of them,

"Is Her Majesty, Empress Vilena, inside?"

The two guards knew that he was Empress Sylphia’s guardian, and since he was looking for Empress Vilena, it was likely related to the incident at the banquet. One of them replied,

"My apologies, but Her Majesty has not yet returned here, sir."

"Do you know where Her Majesty might be?" the avatar asked.

The guard seemed hesitant as he looked at his companion. Seeing the hesitation, the avatar understood that she was probably somewhere the guard was reluctant to mention. Realizing this, he decided to press further.

"I was ordered to investigate the incident tonight under Empress Sylphia’s command, and Empress Vilena has already given her approval. So, could you please help me by telling me where Empress Vilena might be?"

The guard finally nodded in understanding before answering.

"Although I don’t know exactly where Her Majesty is, since I haven’t heard anything about her location since the banquet, I can make a guess. I think at this moment, she is in the dungeon where Baron Stargis is being held."

The avatar nodded. "Could you take me there?"

The guard nodded. "I can, sir."

After that, the guard guided Aldrian to the deeper part of the palace. They walked for quite some time, leaving the main palace and passing through several separate buildings before finally arriving near a dark cave located in a rather remote area, far from any other structures.

The cave was guarded by several imperial guards, and one of them was even someone at the low pseudo immortal stage!

The strongest among them, an elf with a burn scar on his face, looked at the avatar and the guard leading him. As they approached, he decided to stop them.

"Stop. What is your purpose for coming to this restricted area?"

He did not recognize the avatar, as he had never seen him or Empress Sylphia directly. Because of that, he assumed the guard had brought a stranger to this place.

The guard bowed his head toward the man.

"My apologies, Sir Barmun, but this is Empress Sylphia’s personal guardian, and he is looking for Her Majesty. I thought she might be here, so I brought him. He came with the intent to assist in the investigation, and Her Majesty has already given her approval based on this sir’s explanation."

The elf named Barmun raised his eyebrows and looked at the avatar. He observed him for a moment, and to his surprise, he could not sense any cultivation from him. However, as the Empress’s guardian, this man had to be strong.

The fact that he could not sense anything from him likely meant that the avatar had concealed his cultivation so completely that even a pseudo-immortal cultivator like him could not detect it.

After thinking for a moment, he nodded.

"Alright. Follow me. You may return to your post," he said to the avatar and the guard.