The capital of the Auldo Kingdom, Crystal Radiance Fortress, was still shrouded in a tense and murderous atmosphere.
Although some time had passed since the Royalist Party army retook the Royal Capital, the martial law had not eased in the slightest. Sentries stood every five paces and guards every ten, while patrol soldiers often stopped anyone they deemed suspicious and interrogated them down to their eighteenth-generation ancestors.
The once-boisterous taverns were all deserted. Customers came in, bought their drinks, and left in a hurry. The few who sat down to drink merely exchanged a few words about everyday matters, with none of the usual drunken bluster about politics and grand affairs.
A carriage sped toward the Royal Palace. Inside sat a tall, thin man with a walrus mustache. He was none other than Earl Merlin, who oversaw the kingdom's intelligence network.
At that moment, Earl Merlin had his eyes closed, seemingly calm and unruffled to any outsider. In truth, however, he was exceptionally troubled.
On the night the Princess led the army to retake the Royal Capital, a massive fire had broken out at the capital's granaries. Nearly nine-tenths of the large quantities of grain and fodder stored there had been burned. The fire had caused serious consequences, directly disrupting the Royalist Party army's plans to march south and suppress the rebellion.
Fire prevention had always been the top priority in the granaries' daily management, with extremely strict precautions in place. Even if a fire had broken out, it should have been impossible for nearly every warehouse to catch fire.
Clearly, this was a provocation—a grave provocation. The traitor Giles was plainly slapping the Royalist Party in the face: You think you've won? I've still got plenty of ways to deal with you. Right under your noses, too. Didn't see that coming, did you?
It went without saying how furious Her Highness the Grand Princess Catherine had been. During the emergency meeting held after the fire, the Princess had drawn her sword in a fit of emotion and cleaved the table before her in two, swearing that she and Giles could never coexist under the same sky.
As the person in charge of intelligence, Earl Merlin had naturally been ordered to investigate the truth behind the fire. Yet the more he investigated, the more bewildering the case became. He repeatedly sorted through the information currently in his possession, pondering how to report the case to His Majesty the King and Her Highness the Grand Princess.
Auldo's current king, Rodney XVI, had finally escaped the clutches of illness. After his daughter brought him back to the Royal Capital, his health had gradually recovered, and he was now able to attend court and handle state affairs.
After being thoroughly searched by the Royal Family's guards, Earl Merlin entered the Royal Palace. These were extraordinary times, and even a core member of the Royalist Party was no exception.
He hurried to the door of Rodney XVI's study. An attendant reported his arrival, and His Majesty the King immediately granted him permission to enter.
When Earl Merlin entered the study, he discovered that Her Highness the Grand Princess Catherine was already there.
"Lord Merlin, how is the investigation into the granary fire going?" His Majesty the King waved aside Earl Merlin's formal greeting and went straight to the point. Rodney XVI, nearing forty, was normally a kind-faced monarch, but after laboring over state affairs day and night, wisps of white had already appeared at his temples despite his relatively young age by noble standards. At that moment, the King wore a worried expression, obvious concern lingering between his brows.
"Your Majesty, I have failed you. The investigation has yet to make any substantive breakthrough."
Though Earl Merlin was pained to bring such bad news to His Majesty the King so soon after his recovery from a serious illness, after agonizing over it repeatedly, he ultimately chose to report the truth.
Princess Catherine, standing beside the King, asked, "Have you encountered difficulties?"
"Yes, Your Highness. Please allow me to explain." Earl Merlin took out a roll of parchment and began reporting the information currently in his possession.
"According to the sentries on duty, the fire broke out only after the warehouse supervisor, Fowler Bart, entered. When Fowler Bart went inside, another soldier volunteered to go in and light the way for him, entering alongside him. No one else entered at any other time."
"You mean the culprit was one of those two?"
The Earl nodded. "Let us begin with the soldier. We gathered his records. He comes from a clean background and has served under Viscount Klein for more than three years. Everyone who knows him has a good impression of him. Even Klein knows him and does not believe him to be a spy. None of their recollections contain any suspicious behavior on the soldier's part. The military camp is relatively closed off compared to other places, after all. It would be nearly impossible to deceive everyone."
Catherine said, "Then it is less likely that the soldier was the culprit. What about that Bart?"
The Earl continued, "The warehouse supervisor is indeed highly suspicious. You should know this supervisor."
Catherine replied, "Yes. In my impression, he is very capable and has always worked diligently. During his tenure, the warehouse never suffered theft, embezzlement, or anything of the sort."
"We questioned everyone in his circle of relationships—colleagues, friends, superiors, and subordinates—but none of them reported anything unusual. He was also quite loyal to the Royal Family in his daily life. During the Hals Rebellion, the rebels even made things difficult for him because of it."
"Then what about his relatives?" The Princess realized that something was missing from the background Earl Merlin had listed.
Earl Merlin nodded again. "Your Highness is wise. According to Mrs. Bart, this supervisor was somewhat unusual."
"In what way?"
"Supervisor Bart had no suspicious points in any other regard. Because of his position, he met grain merchants from all over the kingdom every day, making it difficult to determine whether any of them were suspicious. His greatest point of suspicion, however, was his recent mental state."
Catherine frowned slightly. "Are you saying that Supervisor Bart was actually insane, and that suddenly going mad and burning down the granary was only to be expected?"
Earl Merlin hurriedly replied, "That is not what I mean, Your Highness. Supervisor Bart's mental state had always been perfectly normal before this, and there was no history of related illnesses in his family. The suspicious behavior began nearly two months before the fire."
"That was around the time Giles began his rebellion?"
"Yes, Your Highness. According to Mrs. Bart, her husband suddenly began suffering from insomnia during that period. He could not sleep night after night. They tried every kind of medicine that was supposed to help with sleep, but none of it worked. After a painful and exhausting period, Supervisor Bart finally managed to fall asleep again. However, he then began talking in his sleep. Mrs. Bart swore that despite sharing a bed with her husband, she had never heard him talk in his sleep before."
Catherine was astonished. "What did Bart say?"
Rodney XVI, who had been sitting behind the desk and listening silently, also straightened up, waiting for Earl Merlin's answer.
Earl Merlin lowered his head to look at the records and replied, "Most of it was indistinct muttering. I recorded several lines that Mrs. Bart was able to make out clearly."
He held the parchment in both hands and placed it on the King's desk. After the King and Princess finished reading it, they saw the following sentences recorded on it:
"Who are you? Stop following me!"
"Where am I? Why can't I get out?"
"I don't want to listen to your nonsense. Get out of my head!"
"I've done everything you asked. Everything has been put away. No one will find it. Please leave."
"I don't want to do this! I'll be hanged!"
"Let me go! Please, let me go!"
"Master, Master, I will continue to heed your sacred teachings. Do not abandon me."
"Your servant will complete the mission even unto death, my supreme master!"
Earl Merlin added from the side, "The last two statements are particularly suspicious. The final one was the last bit of sleep-talk Mrs. Bart heard. Although the supervisor had suffered from insomnia for some time, he still retained his habit of going to bed early. Worried about her husband, Mrs. Bart stayed awake. Not long after her husband said that line, he woke up and said he was going out for a walk to get some fresh air. After that... the warehouse caught fire."
Catherine and Rodney XVI exchanged a glance, both seeing the question in the other's eyes. "What does this mean?"
As he watched the confused King and Princess, Earl Merlin—who was himself completely baffled—suddenly came up with a strange idea: Had Supervisor Bart been affected by some kind of magic or sorcery?
He quickly shook his head, driving the absurd and laughable thought from his mind.