Chapter 56: Snow Cherries

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Ethan sensed that something was amiss. Before the expeditionary force set out, the old steward seemed to have obtained insider information from somewhere, knowing that the young boy named Lance was destined to die on the empire’s border. However, he could not yet determine whether the family had bribed knights within the expeditionary force to kill Lance when necessary, or if the mission itself was a suicide operation.

If it was the latter, many of the questions he had while organizing the documents found their answers.

There was no detailed intelligence, no concrete battle plan, and even before the fighting began, the troop movements were flaunted openly…

At least in Ethan’s understanding, such carelessness was taboo in combat against high-level supernaturals.

Then the question arose: if even a low-level investigator stationed in a border town could see these issues, could the strategists and decision-makers in the imperial capital not see them?

Unless those people deliberately concealed vital information, with the purpose of letting all the elite soldiers in the kingdom’s army perish here.

That thought instantly sent cold sweat down Ethan’s spine.

Lady Bian’an was the kingdom’s knight commander personally appointed by the king; the “upper echelon” capable of issuing such orders was undoubtedly a figure wielding immense power in the imperial capital.

As people often said, some matters were better left unexamined—those who did would meet their demise.

Ethan watched Bian’an chatting and laughing with Ivy, feeling she might be entirely unaware of the gravity of the situation.

He cleared his throat lightly and asked, “Lady Bian’an, I carefully reviewed the briefing sent by the sub-bureau. The description of the Dream-Eater members was extremely vague, barely mentioning any distinctive features for quick identification. All that’s known is that they operate in pairs.”

Not even their most crucial supernatural ranks were mentioned.

The “Fallen Saints” was a popular theory about the Dream-Eater members among civilians, but it was never officially confirmed.

In truth, their movements were elusive; by the time the empire’s high-level supernaturals arrived upon hearing the news, the Dream-Eaters had long vanished without a trace.

Ethan still clung to a last shred of hope, wishing he was indulging in conspiracy theories on this matter.

Yet Bian’an responded with a radiant smile, “It seems you did your homework beforehand. That’s all there is.”

“All there is?” Ethan confirmed again.

“Mm-hmm.” Bian’an nodded nonchalantly, adding to Ivy, “Now I understand why you care so much about him.”

Ethan did not feel pleased by others’ praise; he just wanted to hurry to Hearthbay and find the old steward, hoping to glean some vital information.

Bian’an approached him again, casually patting his shoulder, “I have high hopes for you. The Containment Bureau is a good place—work hard there. But if one day you can’t keep up, you’re welcome to join the kingdom’s army!”

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Is the kingdom’s army really so easy to enter?

At that moment, Ethan empathized with Ivy’s helplessness; the knight commander seemed a bit too unpredictable, speaking as if words came straight from her whims.

Fortunately, Captain Haig was home sick; otherwise, this would have been another painful blow to him.

It was known that Haig had struggled immensely and ultimately failed at the third trial stage of the kingdom’s army.

“Lady Bian’an, Captain Haig—”

“Eh?”

Ethan’s prepared explanation was interrupted by Bian’an’s strange behavior. Just as he intended to tell her how Captain Haig had been injured fighting a monster—a drunken brawler—Bian’an suddenly grabbed his arm with both hands, rose onto her tiptoes, and pressed the tip of her nose against the top of his head.

Ethan was so shocked by this unexpected scene that he froze on the spot.

“Hmm, not here.”

Bian’an sniffed along his hairline, then, upon catching the scent of his shoulder and chest, exclaimed, “Why do you smell like snow cherries? Where did you buy them? Does Creekwood Town even sell snow cherries?”

“Snow cherries?”

Ethan snapped back to reality and immediately stepped back two paces, putting distance between himself and Bian’an.

He felt her gaze was off, as if she wanted to swallow him whole. He could only cast a pleading look at Ivy, who stood with her golden hair on her hips, seemingly laughing heartily.

Ivy took on the role of explainer, “Snow cherries are a rare fruit native to the northern region of the empire.”

“Don’t question my sense of smell!”

Bian’an puffed out her chest proudly. “My subordinates say my nose is even sharper than a dog’s. If they sneak out for a midnight snack, I’ll definitely catch them!”

“They probably aren’t complimenting you.”

Ivy sounded exhausted. She had heard that before Bian’an became knight commander, she set a rule for her troops: stealing snacks was allowed, but they had to bring her along.

“Oh, that must be Zhao Cai’s scent.”

Ethan understood. He had also noticed the peculiar fruity aroma on Zhao Cai when he went to bed last night.

“Zhao Cai?”

“She’s a ragdoll cat who recently returned to town after a trip. Maybe she had snow cherries somewhere along the way.”

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“Oh, so it’s the cat.”

Bian’an understood. She looked up at the sky and said wistfully, “It’s said that snow cherries were first found deep in the snowy mountains by cats raised by northerners. Ah, it’s been so long since I last tasted snow cherries. I wish I could have some again.”

Eventually, Bian’an’s attention was drawn by the evening banquet, and she dismissed the snow cherries from her mind.

After bidding farewell to the group, Ethan hurried home, the ominous premonition growing stronger. He had to make a trip to Hearthbay as soon as possible.

He prepared dinner for Zhao Cai and Miss Chloe, barely nibbling on a few bites of hard bread himself before changing into his mage garb. Before leaving, Zhao Cai jumped onto his shoulder from a cabinet, tidying his crooked mage hat and messy bangs, then quietly watched him depart.

That night was destined to be turbulent beneath the surface.

About ten minutes after Ethan left home, a shadow appeared outside the apartment’s living room window.

The ragdoll cat, supervising Miss Chloe as she tidied her alchemy tools, spotted a smiling mask outside, leapt down from the cabinet, jumped onto the windowsill, and then sprang onto the path outside the apartment.

Without looking back, she led the way, with a black-haired woman wearing the smiling mask silently trailing behind, vanishing around the corner in the blink of an eye.

“First, I must clarify—I’m not here to disturb you intentionally.”

In a corner where even moonlight failed to reach, the black-haired woman stopped with the ragdoll cat and spoke calmly.

The cat led her here in silence, then looked up with its eerie red eyes, reminiscent of a murder scene, making her skin crawl.

She tentatively said, “Maybe you should call out a few times? I’m scared.”

“Meow!”

The cat obliged and then leapt onto her shoulder like a swift arrow.

“Ow, my face! Don’t scratch!”

The black-haired woman struggled, saying, “We’ve been targeted by the empire’s knight order. Their leader is the empire’s knight commander.”

The cat stopped scratching and calmly met her gaze, awaiting more.

“The Elders’ Council wants no survivors.”

The black-haired woman paused before continuing, “That aligns with your intentions, doesn’t it? Once the empire’s knight commander dies here, it won’t be long before this country falls into complete chaos.”