Divination

Because of the emergency, Knight Yiman stayed in the guest room to avoid suspicion, and the planned banquet was naturally called off.

Not only that, but Albert, Green, Eight-Fingers, and the other senior figures of the domain all came to Aaron's study.

"This matter... won't be easy to handle."

Albert furrowed his brow. "We can't completely confirm that Knight Yiman is innocent... Your safety must be protected as thoroughly as possible... And since this involves a noble, I think we should notify Sothoth Castle immediately."

"And then what? The matter blows up... and the Upper Forest people who sympathize with Yiman turn against us completely, severing ties? Anyone with eyes can see that such a clumsy assassination attempt couldn't possibly succeed. Perhaps they're just trying to frame Yiman. After all, he has a good reputation in the Upper Green Forest, so this could win him widespread sympathy... And my father..."

Aaron shook his head. "He might not care whether Yiman is innocent. Instead, he'll see this as an opportunity to strip Knight Yiman of his domain... After all, I still have a younger brother!"

Lady Sonia would certainly push hard for that.

"So we need to uncover the conspiracy as quickly as possible, catch the real culprits, and then... keep the fallout to a minimum."

He concluded.

"Mika's condition is poor. He'll probably be difficult to question, and we won't get anything out of those assassins..." Albert furrowed his brow and hesitated.

"It doesn't matter. You can all leave for now."

Aaron sent everyone out, then took out a detailed map of the domain, along with candles, incense, essential oils, a pendulum, and other tools.

He couldn't be bothered to look for evidence and solve the case. Since the spirituality of the 'Chrysalis' was still with him, he might as well use the occult to handle it!

"Divining someone's location is on a completely different level from ordinary wayfinding. It counts as a fairly advanced occult ritual."

"Besides, it's easily disrupted or resisted. The divined person's occult standing, whether they carry other occult objects, or even whether they're protected by a higher being—all of these can interfere!"

Lin, for example, had once been difficult to divine. Not only did she possess a standing equivalent to that of the Son of Burning, she was also tainted by the Mother Tree of Flesh. That taint amounted to a form of observation, making her exceptionally difficult to divine. In the entire Black Sun Cult, only the High Priest could manage it.

But in the real world?

"Everyone here is a mortal. Even without counting the dream world, my occult standing alone is half a step above everyone else's... And unless the Foreign God—[Grandmother Green Banyan]—really exists, there won't be any higher being protecting the mastermind... So there'll be almost no interference!"

"As long as I can complete the ritual, I'll find the mastermind!"

Aaron quickly sketched the ritual diagram on the table and infused it with his spirituality.

Then he lit the candles, sealed off the room, and added essential oils and incense, helping himself enter a meditative state more quickly.

Whoosh!

It was as if invisible walls sprang up around the sealed study.

"Since there's no god in this world, I can't communicate with the version of myself in the dream. But I'll still make myself the focus of the ritual..."

With that thought, Aaron stirred his spirituality and spoke in the language of another world:

"I beseech... the Creator Above the Creator!"

"The Absolute Observer beyond the many veils!"

"Spirit of Unknown Void, Absolute Neutral Entity, Silent Observer!"

"Grant me the ability to perceive fate!"

In a haze, Aaron seemed to hear his own voice echoing in his ears, but he didn't try to respond to the prayer.

After all, he had tried several times before, and failed every time.

He simply picked up the pendulum, placed it over the map, and let it begin to swing clockwise.

"The location of the mastermind behind the assassination!"

"The location of the mastermind behind the assassination!"

"The location of the mastermind behind the assassination!"

At the same time, Aaron silently repeated what he wanted to divine.

One turn, two turns, three turns...

At last, in defiance of the laws of physics, the pendulum tilted toward a spot on the map, as if drawn there by some invisible force.

"It worked."

Aaron stared at the map, a cold smile appearing on his face. "So the culprit's hiding in my domain?"

He memorized the location on the map and ended the ritual.

The next moment, Aaron's vision went black, and he nearly fainted.

"My spirituality's completely drained... It hasn't even been a day, and it's dissipating even faster. Still, that's to be expected."

"Too bad. The spirituality of the 'Chrysalis' was pretty useful."

"But what I want most is the ability to heal and live forever, along with powers of mental manipulation..."

In a world without magic, if Aaron could choose a supernatural ability, he would naturally favor mental manipulation and longevity.

With the ability to control people, he could easily gain a large workforce and wealth by taking over some great lord—or even a king—and then stay behind the scenes, manipulating everything.

Given enough time, ruling the world wouldn't be a pipe dream!

Unfortunately, with spirituality dissipating this way, immortality was out of reach. That was why Aaron preferred to find a path focused on charming people and controlling their minds.

Mixing different paths could lead to hidden dangers of instability. He preferred something pure.

"Hm?"

As Aaron tidied the table, he suddenly looked at his pendulum. It was just a small piece of crystal threaded onto a fine cord, and the crystal wasn't even very high quality.

But now, the crystal seemed a little clearer.

"There's a sense of spirituality to it, though it's faint and slight—almost as good as nothing... Has it been affected by the ritual and my own influence?"

Aaron mused, "Perhaps spirituality doesn't dissipate in this world; perhaps its concentration simply spreads out. Just as water flows from high ground to low ground... The little bit of spirituality I brought here dispersed into the world like a drop of ink in the ocean, so it's as good as nothing?"

"That's a fascinating subject for study."

He put everything away and called the others back in. "I've confirmed that the mastermind is here!"

Aaron pointed at the map. "Get ready, and bring Knight Yiman here."

Albert looked utterly bewildered. What had he missed?

Why had he only been gone for a moment, yet the baron had confirmed there was another mastermind and even found the hideout?

Eight-Fingers and the others gave it even less thought. They simply followed orders and brought Knight Yiman over.

"Your Excellency, Baron..."

Knight Yiman looked somewhat tired, but still bowed meticulously.

"Knight Yiman, I've found the real culprit. Are you willing to go and bring him to justice, proving your innocence?"

Aaron smiled.

"Of course!"

Yiman raised his head, his eyes alight with surprise and fire. "I'm willing!"