Chapter 923

What?!

Upon hearing Lyon’s third question, not only did the emerald-eyed girl gasp in shock, but all four Cleaners from the Scorpio Branch also involuntarily shuddered, staring at Lyon in utter astonishment.

No way?

The female Cleaner said with wide-eyed disbelief:

“I’ve already checked with the Director—though the Krook royal family keeps to themselves, they’ve had plenty of activity in recent years. Even last year’s anniversary ceremony, the King of Krook gave a public speech. It’s hardly possible they’ve been almost entirely wiped out, is it?”

“Senior Mona, I’ll explain why I suspect this later—please don’t interrupt me now.”

After giving the female Cleaner a firm glance, Lyon fixed his gaze on the visibly unsettled emerald-eyed girl and said without room for refusal:

“Princess Filia… though I still don’t know exactly what’s going on with you, I’ll address you as such for now… I need your direct answer: Is there a third living member of the royal family? Yes or no!”

“Of course there is!”

After being interrupted by the female Cleaner, Filia regained some composure and blinked her large eyes:

“I don’t know about others, but my father and mother are both still alive, and all the people I know are fine. The day before you kidnapped me, I even greeted my mother.”

This… did I guess wrong?

Upon hearing this answer, Lyon furrowed his brow slightly, while Franky in the sheep’s mouth, after assessing Filia’s soul state, cautiously said:

“I’m not very sensitive to soul matters, but I understand a little—what she said is probably true.”

“…”

Phew… I barely got through that…

Watching Lyon, who neither disputed Franky’s judgment nor spoke a word, only frowning in silence, Filia quietly exhaled in relief.

She hadn’t expected that her small moment of triumph while feigning unconsciousness to eavesdrop would be her undoing—nearly exposing everything, even guessing part of the royal family’s situation. This was truly…

After a fearful glance at Lyon, though deprived of her body’s computational support and unable to achieve perfect realism, Filia still followed her usual “behavior model,” blinking her eyes with a pitiful, fragile expression:

“Ask me anything you want—I’ll answer everything. Just don’t hurt me. I’m telling the truth, I swear.”

All true…

Looking at the timid, adorable emerald-eyed girl, Lyon’s furrowed brow lifted slightly, as if struck by a crucial insight. He turned his gaze back to Princess Filia.

Truth doesn’t prove anything! When I dealt with Internal Investigations in the Cleaner Bureau, didn’t I always tell the truth? But did that stop me from attacking the palace?

“Alright, I’ll ask again, differently.”

Realizing his mistake, Lyon’s brow relaxed. In the emerald-eyed girl’s trembling gaze, he spoke again:

“Apart from you and Prince Andre, are the other members of the Krook royal family still in their original bodies? Are their souls still their original souls?”

Or more precisely—does their state of ‘being alive’ resemble that of a normal person: able to run, jump, eat, talk—or is it merely that they still ‘exist’?”

“…”

…

As Princess Filia struggled to answer, overwhelmed and uncertain, Prince Andre—who was usually lazy and never missed his daily sunbathing on the palace balcony—suddenly boarded the royal airship and arrived at the Krook Palace.

“Dong~~~”

Accompanied by the resonant chime of a massive pendulum striking a bell, the steam-powered clock towers flanking the palace gates slowly rotated. The ancient bronze doors, with their oversized gear wheels, parted left and right, revealing a brightly lit glass corridor.

The corridor, wide and ornate, hung with countless lanterns, flanked by spotless glass walls that divided the grand hall into two symmetrical halves. Hundreds of small display platforms were arranged in orderly clusters throughout the hall.

More than a royal residence, this building resembled a vast exhibition hall. On each display platform—marked with clock-face graduations—lay one intricate, exquisitely crafted mechanical device after another.

Airships, hovercrafts, mechanical hearts, massive differential engines, mechanical giants nearly five meters tall… and on the largest platform to the left stood a full-scale miniature model—clearly resembling the entire Krook Kingdom, constantly twisting and rearranging like a Rubik’s cube.

Beneath these exquisite displays, carefully sloped ramps detailed the inventors, functions, iterative designs, and even the core conceptual reasoning behind each machine—each one a rare treasure.

Yet Prince Andre, his face weary, ignored all these treasures that could drive any kingdom mad. With a blank expression, he walked through the glass corridor, passed through a clock-shaped circular vestibule, and pushed open the door into the main hall behind the grand hall.

“Who?”

The moment Prince Andre entered the main hall, a voice of mild confusion echoed from its depths.

Prince Andre turned toward the sound and saw, seated on the high throne directly opposite the entrance, a vigorous middle-aged man in royal robes, holding a scepter adorned with gemstones and a clock hand. The man stared at him in surprise.

“You’re…”

The emerald-eyed man studied Andre for a moment, then widened his eyes. He glanced at the twelve-year-old boy beside him, then at the young man before him—roughly twenty-seven or twenty-eight—and asked, baffled:

“Who are you? Why do you look exactly like my Andre?”

Compared to the vast, empty front hall filled with displays, the main hall of the Krook Palace was much smaller—but far livelier. This private chamber, with its sealed windows and enhanced secrecy, held over thirty rows of seats, nearly one hundred fifty people seated in them.

Upon hearing the vigorous man’s question, the seated figures turned in unison, staring at Prince Andre, then murmuring in astonishment.

“It really is…”

“He looks exactly like him!”

“In fifteen or sixteen years, Prince Andre might look just like this.”

“True, but his expression is too cold—he’s not as cute as Prince Andre.”

“Hey! Who are you?”

“Rude fellow! Guards! Where are the guards?!”

“Where? Where is he? Let me see too!”

Strangely, no matter what words they spoke—including the man on the throne—all figures in the main hall remained seated, straining their necks to stare at the entrance.

The main hall wasn’t especially wide, so some could not see Prince Andre’s face no matter how they twisted their necks—even though shifting their buttocks slightly would have solved it. Yet not one rose. They preferred contorting themselves into unnatural poses rather than leave their seats.

“…”

After standing silently at the entrance for several seconds, Prince Andre ignored all questions. He strode directly into the main hall, stepped across the central red carpet, passed between the thirty rows of seats, and stood before the vigorous man.