Support from Cain

Synthesizing this intelligence, Ye Wei'an reached a conclusion: the ambush was indeed premeditated, and the target was none other than himself.

Grumman's memories were reliable.

Thus, whether it was the contact's suspicious servant-like status or the principle of following the money, the identity of the mastermind pointed to one person: his cheap father's legal wife, Baroness Selina of the Xiaxing family.

The motive was not hard to deduce—the Baron's attitude toward this illegitimate son was far too favorable, enough to make any legal wife feel uneasy.

In Faerûn, in Cormyr, and among those families who prided themselves on noble bloodlines, illegitimate children were mostly "forgotten accidents." Most of them would never receive recognition of that sacred surname, let alone step through the castle gates.

Children born to maids or servants were lucky if they could serve as stewards on the estate; the unlucky ones spent their entire lives in the stables among the fodder.

Someone like the original owner, raised in the castle since childhood and groomed with the standards of a formal heir, was a rarity.

Not to mention, the Baron had spared no expense to send him to the Battlemage Academy in Suzar.

One had to understand that even in the supposedly prosperous Kingdom of Purple Dragons, Cormyr, cultivating a spellcaster was an investment that would make any noble wince. The annual tuition at the Battlemage Academy alone was as high as five hundred Gold Lion Coins, not including living expenses—the cost of living in the capital, Suzar, was not something a backwater place like Firefall Valley could compare to.

As the saying goes, the scales of Waukeen, the Goddess of Wealth, always tip in favor of those willing to spend.

Putting himself in her shoes, if he were Baroness Selina, seeing her husband treat a "bastard" with such favor while her own children were mediocre, she would naturally suspect that her husband was harboring improper thoughts regarding the succession.

Now that the Baron was critically ill, this illegitimate son had been urgently summoned back to Firefall Fortress.

At this critical juncture, to ensure the inheritance of her legitimate son, Baroness Selina choosing to strike first and intercept him on the road was logically airtight.

If she allowed the illegitimate son to return to Firefall Fortress safely, and the Baron were to become delirious from his illness and make an unexpected decision—such as granting him a portion of the territory or even changing the succession—the future consequences would be endless.

By comparison, making this trouble disappear forever on the road home was undoubtedly the "cleaner" choice.

Thinking this, Ye Wei'an realized clearly what kind of trouble the original owner's background had dragged him into.

This wave of attacks was likely just the beginning.

Once the Baroness learned that the assassination had failed, she would never let it rest. The threats he faced would only come one after another.

No, he could not remain so passive.

At this thought, Ye Wei'an's gaze turned cold.

In this world, apart from that critically ill, cheap father, the original owner had almost no reliable social connections.

And as a newcomer, relying solely on the power of a Level 3 Spellfire Sorcerer, he could not possibly confront a Baroness who held real power and had managed the territory for many years.

If he did not want to abandon his identity and flee for his life, he had to turn passive into active and seize the initiative in the situation.

The intelligence he had just obtained from the interrogation seemed to have parts he could exploit.

After a moment of thought, the outline of a plan quickly took shape in his mind.

But for this plan to be executed perfectly, he needed the cooperation of one person.

Thinking of this, Ye Wei'an did not hesitate and turned to walk toward Knight Cain, who was directing the cleanup of the battlefield.

Seeing him approach, the knight immediately stopped what he was doing and stepped forward. "Young Master, the casualties and spoils have been preliminarily tallied."

"Speak."

"In this battle, we lost three men, six were seriously injured, and nine sustained minor injuries." When mentioning the dead, Cain's voice grew heavy, but he quickly brightened. "Thanks to your magic, praise the mercy of the God of Guardians, Helm—no, praise your generosity! The brothers who were seriously injured have all been saved, and everyone is very grateful for your kindness, Young Master."

"Everyone fought to protect me; this is what I should have done." Ye Wei'an waved his hand. "Tell me about the enemy."

"Yes, Young Master." Speaking of this, Cain's voice was much louder. "A total of twenty-one enemies were killed, sixteen escaped, and five were captured, including their leader. It can be said that this band of robbers, which has plagued Firefall Valley for years, has been completely wiped out."

"That can be considered ridding Firefall Valley of a scourge." Ye Wei'an nodded slightly. "And the spoils?"

"Regarding the spoils, we have collected eight leather armors that are still usable, and eleven that are damaged and in need of repair. There are twenty-five crudely made swords and axes of various types, and seven rotten wooden shields. In addition, there is one greatsword in decent condition, four inferior short bows, and four warhorses."

Cain paused, fished a small pouch from his belt, and handed it to Ye Wei'an. "Furthermore, we recovered three Gold Lions, thirty-two Silver Eagles, and over three hundred Copper Thumbs. The vast majority of the gold coins and half of the silver coins were found on the leader, Grumman. There are also some miscellaneous valuables, the specific value of which still needs to be estimated."

In Cormyr, currency is minted uniformly by the Royal Mint.

The obverse of the gold coin bears the royal crest, and the reverse features a lion; it is called a "Gold Lion."

The silver coin is called a "Silver Eagle," and the copper coin is called a "Copper Thumb."

Like other parts of the continent, currency exchange in Cormyr follows a decimal system.

"It seems the leader took all the money from this bandit group, and the others were paupers." Ye Wei'an sighed, his understanding of the "winner takes all" nature of this world deepening.

"The Young Master is right." After reporting, Cain looked at Ye Wei'an. "How should these spoils be handled? Please, Young Master, give your instructions."

Ye Wei'an was certain that if it were before today, Cain would have arranged the spoils himself without ever coming to ask for his instructions.

From this perspective, he had initially gained the recognition of this guard unit.

But this was not enough; now was the time to strike while the iron was hot.

Thinking of this, Ye Wei'an spoke without hesitation: "Of the captured wealth, I will take only the three Gold Lions. I will not take a single cent of the rest."

Cain was slightly stunned and was about to speak, but Ye Wei'an raised a hand to interrupt him. "All captured leather armor, weapons, and shields are to be collected and sealed, then sold uniformly after we return to the territory. As for the money obtained, along with the remaining silver and copper coins, prioritize a portion for the pensions of the brothers who died in battle. The rest... distribute it on the spot to all the brothers who participated in the fight, according to their combat merits and the severity of their injuries."

A look of obvious astonishment finally appeared in Knight Cain's eyes.

Earlier on the road, he had heard the maid complain that this Young Master had been looked down upon by his classmates in Suzar because he was too destitute.

He had assumed that such a Ye Wei'an would value money highly, but he never expected him to be so magnanimous.

"May the dawn of Lathander be above; you are truly generous." He clenched his right fist and tapped it lightly against the armor on his left chest. "I thank you on behalf of the soldiers, Young Master."

"They bled for me, and this is the least I can do," Ye Wei'an sighed, then naturally shifted the topic. "Setting that aside, Cain, I recall you took a hit to the shoulder from that Barbarian's greatsword. How is the wound?"

"You are too kind to worry, Young Master." Cain glanced at the deep gouge on his shoulder plate and gave a hearty laugh. "Fortunately, the armor took the brunt of it. For a Purple Dragon Order knight, a minor scratch like this is nothing."

That was true enough.

Normally, a warrior could heal by mobilizing their own blood energy to perform Second Wind.

However, reality was not a game where one automatically gained abilities upon reaching a certain level.

Most rogue warriors had to fumble their way toward strength, and even Second Wind at Lv.1 was not something everyone mastered.

That was why the people of Cormyr flocked to organizations like the Purple Dragon Order, which could provide systematic training.

Ye Wei'an nodded and cut straight to the point. "Cain, what is your take on this ambush?"

Cain's brow furrowed. He removed his slightly deformed helmet, revealing a weathered face and short brown hair.

"Young Master, if I may speak plainly, this does not resemble a typical bandit raid."

"My father was once a knight for the Baron, and I served in the Purple Dragon Order for three years before returning to inherit my father's duties at the old Baron's request. Whether following my father in my youth or clearing out border bandits with the Order, the bandits I have encountered all share the same temperament: they crave wealth, value their lives, and always pick the softest targets."

He looked up, speaking earnestly: "Our party not only has nearly ten guards and several formal professionals, but we also fly the Summerstar Family crest. Seeing such a group, ordinary bandits would steer clear from afar. But these bandits not only dared to attack, they signaled from the start that they were willing to pay any price to force a breakthrough... This defies logic."

"Then what do you think is going on?" Ye Wei'an asked.

"There are only two possibilities," Cain analyzed. "Either they knew from the start that they had to complete the mission, or the reward they were promised was high enough to make them risk everything and endure such heavy casualties. Either way... it proves this was no accident."

At this, a flicker of worry crossed the knight's eyes: "Young Master, forgive my presumption, but the target of this attack was very specific. They were not after wealth; they were after your life."

Cain was indeed a battle-hardened knight, having deduced the truth based solely on his battlefield judgment.

But Ye Wei'an also noticed a problem.

This Cain's temperament was completely different from the average noble; in some respects, he was a bit... dense.

A noble's illegitimate son being assassinated on the way to his family's territory—anyone with a modicum of political intuition would realize this likely involved noble feuds or internal family strife.

As a subordinate to Baron Summerstar, most people would be confused by such an affair, yet Cain pointed out the issue directly.

A man like this was either truly insensitive to the intricacies of noble circles, or he was one of those old-school knights who upheld traditions of justice and honesty.

The original owner's memories confirmed this: Cain's Orm Family was famous for generations for adhering to the ancient knightly code and for being loyal and upright.

Simply put, this was a man who could be "deceived by his own integrity."

"Your intuition is sharp, Cain." Ye Wei'an affirmed the knight's judgment, then tossed out a portion of the interrogation results. "I just dug something out of that bandit leader's head: this attack was indeed not a spur-of-the-moment decision. Someone issued them a contract to assassinate me. If they succeeded, they were to go to Firefall Town to collect a high reward from a contact."

Ye Wei'an omitted the key detail that the "contact" likely hailed from Lady Xiaxing's camp, his tone remaining steady. "The meeting point was set at the Dissolute Dragon tavern, with a four-day deadline. As for the true identity of the contact, Grumman himself wasn't sure; he only knew the person by the codename 'Gray Crow,' a long-term client he had worked with."

Cain's gaze sharpened. "Young Master, you mean..."

"I mean that if there is a first attack, there will be a second. We cannot sit here and wait for things to take their course. The mastermind is likely still waiting for good news, which makes this the moment their defenses are weakest and our best chance to drag them into the light. If we miss this, they will retreat back into the shadows, and we will be completely on the defensive."

Ye Wei'an looked toward the direction of Firefall Town and laid out his plan. "Our group has many people but few horses, plus we have the wounded, prisoners, and heavy supply wagons. We are too large a target and move too slowly. I intend to take only a small, elite force, led by you and me. We will travel light on horseback, taking backroads and riding through the night to reach Firefall Town before word leaks out, then use the intelligence to find the contact and expose the mastermind."

Cain did not hesitate.

He struck his right fist against the armor on his chest, performing a standard knight's salute. "Your judgment is sound. I will go immediately to select men and prepare the horses. We must not let the criminals who dared to strike at you go unpunished!"

"Go, and be quick about it." Ye Wei'an nodded slightly.

He then turned back toward his carriage to pack a few necessary personal items.