Then Alan sank into profound fear.
He knew perfectly well that if the First Domain and the Seventh Domain went to war, the Fourth Domain could never stay out of it.
Sure enough, that afternoon, two letters arrived in the Fourth Domain almost simultaneously.
The first letter came from Duke Henry.
The letter arrived under the escort of a First Domain Knight Squad.
Their leader did not dismount. He simply had an attendant place the letter before the city gates, then declared in front of everyone from the Fourth Domain:
"His Grace requests that Domain Master Alan come to the First Domain and explain in person whether he was involved in Sima Ji's killing of Baron Henry."
Everyone could tell that this was no invitation.
It was an interrogation.
If Alan refused to go, Duke Henry could conclude that he had something to hide.
If Alan went, whether he returned alive would no longer be up to him.
The second letter came from the Seventh Domain.
That letter was delivered at night.
The messenger did not enter through the city gates. Instead, he emerged from an old waterway beneath the desert and was nearly cut down by the Puppet Guards.
There was no signature on the envelope, only a snow-white ice-patterned seal.
Sima Ji's message was brief and to the point.
[The First Domain will inevitably purge everyone whose loyalty wavers.]
[If the Fourth Domain still clings to illusions, the First Domain will strike it first.]
[I hope Domain Master Alan can use his Domain Master Skill to move the Fourth Domain beside the Seventh Domain.]
[Our two domains can support one another and resist the First Domain together.]
At the end of the letter, Sima Ji added one more line:
[I hope you understand whose becoming Star Lord would