Standing by in full battle array

Starlight sprinkled over the small town of Red Ridge.

Misty moonlight bathed the town as its residents slept soundly in their beds.

Inside a secret room at the Solar Energy Laboratory.

The old servant's words sent ripples through Reilo's heart. Had he, without even realizing it, been dragged into the King's power struggle?

"Are you sure His Majesty the King sent Prince Chen here?"

Reilo confirmed for the third time.

"Yes."

The old servant replied calmly, "His Majesty rarely interacts with the Prince directly. Yet, three days ago, he secretly dispatched his personal attendant to Prince Chen's chambers and mentioned you."

"His Majesty the King knows of my existence?"

Reilo found it unbelievable, even suspecting it might be Prince Chen's ploy to draw him into his power struggle out of distrust.

The old servant, however, gave Reilo a deep look.

"The Prince obtained Prince Ling's corpse from you. How could His Majesty not know?"

Reilo paced the room.

The struggle for power was like a bottomless vortex, dragging anyone who dared approach into a zero-sum war where the winner took all.

Reilo was completely unprepared for all of this.

"The Prince has accumulated some influence over the years. If he wanted to flee the palace for safety, he had far better options. Yet, he traveled all the way to this barren and desolate Dubit Province. This was all arranged by His Majesty."

The old servant sighed, "As it turns out, His Majesty did have arrangements. If not for the rescue from those people along the way, we would never have reached here."

The townspeople had fallen asleep.

But everyone at the Solar Energy Laboratory was on high alert, like facing a formidable enemy.

Reilo stood by the window of the lounge, gazing at the territory under constant construction, his mind