Chapter 1266: New Empire Model, Yilisi

In the memory of Maikade, a Teleportation Spell based on Magic Web Background Fluctuation positioning is a skill that every High Mage going out on a mission must master.

As for a Teleportation Spell positioned by Six-dimensional Coordinate, it does not exist in Maikade's memory; from this, Xia Duo also speculates that either too much time has passed since the fall of the Empire, or some spells have been lost.

But the Arcane Empire had a Library, so preserving some spell data should not be difficult; Xia Duo is more inclined to believe that the higher-ups intentionally blocked it.

After all, Six-dimensional Coordinate contains too much, too specific information; as long as one High Mage defects or is captured, it could lead to an entire base being exposed to the vision of the Elf.

At that time, it is estimated that below the rank of High Mage, not a single person would be able to survive.

In Maikade's memory, before he achieved the rank of High Mage, he lived in a large underground base where everyone had to accept institutionalized, lifelong Magic Education.

And in such a base, living is not a happy thing, and reproduction even less so; everyone who has not become an Official Mage before the age of sixteen must pair up to produce at least two offspring, and even if they become one later, they must still reproduce.

And if one cannot become an Official Mage, it is even more miserable; one must reproduce endlessly. For males, it is fine—it is just a monthly injection task, mostly causing psychological discomfort—but females simultaneously endure both psychological and physiological pain.

Even if the base's top brass comes up with various brainwashing rhetoric, this pain itself is very difficult to soothe.

As for after becoming an Official Mage, if one cannot become a High Mage, one must spend their whole life in the base, either becoming a Magic Technician or becoming a human battery for High Mages (and above).

Only by becoming a High Mage does one have the Permission Level to go out, but it is limited to going out; wanting to return to the base requires saving up enough points.

Besides saving points, the only way to return to the base is death; after death, one will be resurrected once for free in the base, but the price is carrying an extremely heavy debt.

Recalling the bits and pieces inside the base, Xia Duo feels quite puzzled by Maikade's constant obsession with wanting to return to the base.

Of course, if he had not abandoned information involving Subconscious thought patterns when organizing Maikade's memory, he might be able to understand Maikade's thoughts now.

……

After the teleportation was complete, Xia Duo was surprised that he had appeared in a forest, and he could even see a group of Elf Commoners gathering fruit together not far away.

Just then, a cold voice came from behind a large tree, "A very beautiful scene, isn't it? The Empire was once like that, even more beautiful than that!"

Xia Duo hurriedly turned to look, only to see that the person who had arrived was a short-haired woman wearing light green Elf sword attire with a long sword at her waist.

But Xia Duo did not dare to be the least bit negligent, just because this woman named "Yilisi" was Maikade's direct superior, and furthermore, a Senior Arcanist.

In a place like the 【Vengeance Tribunal】, for a woman to become a Senior Arcanist instead of being reduced to a reproductive tool shows just how formidable she is.

Such a person, even in Netheril, is not often seen.

"My Lady, Maikade reporting to you!" Xia Duo bowed respectfully in Maikade's tone.

The woman did not speak, but walked slowly to Xia Duo, looking directly at him with her sharp gaze, as if observing something, and only after a long time did she say:

"The mission failed. Except for you, only Pide returned. Do you have anything to explain?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Duo felt that something was wrong. Clearly, when "Maikade" escaped back to the Temporary Shelter, there were four people; how could it be that only Pide returned?

"We encountered an ambush. The Cormanthor Demon already knew we were going there. If it weren't for the fact that no high-level demons participated in the ambush, I would never have been able to return alive."

Xia Duo said this almost through gritted teeth. After finishing, he did not forget to unbutton his jacket, revealing half of his body eroded by Negative Energy.

But Yilisi was not moved in the slightest by this, her eyes not even flickering, as she continued to ask: "Then what do you think caused the leak of your attack target?"

"I dare not say." Xia Duo hesitated for a moment, but still did not directly shift the blame to Pide, because he did not yet know what Pide had said upon returning. If he shifted the blame to him, this mutual finger-pointing might very well lead to them being treated as two people conspiring to betray.

There is no need for clear evidence; as long as there is suspicion, one can be legitimately assigned a mission with certain death. Although the Arcane Empire has fallen, its foundation is still deep; a mere High Mage newcomer is just a consumable.

But he could not say nothing either, otherwise, it would very likely turn into him taking the blame himself.

Xia Duo's hesitation made Yilisi frown. She snorted coldly and spat out a sentence, "I order you to speak!"

"My Lady, I clearly remember that all four members of our group escaped back to the 025 Temporary Shelter, but later I temporarily fell into a coma while trying to heal my wounds. When I woke up, they were gone."

"You mean—as members of the same mission group, they abandoned you while you were still alive?"

"Uh—"

Xia Duo also did not know how to answer. Perhaps what Pide said upon returning was that the three of them discovered pursuers and intentionally went to lure them away, then two died, and only Pide returned.

But it is also possible that Pide said Maikade was the traitor.

Even, Yilisi might not be telling the truth right now; perhaps all four of them returned, who knows!

In this way, if he were to make wild accusations, wouldn't he be confirming his identity as a traitor?

Xia Duo guessed that if other survivors had returned, they might also be treated this way; the so-called return of Pide alone might just be Yilisi's version of the story.

Perhaps Jiesen among the four was still alive, or perhaps they were all dead; except for Maikade, which is now Xia Duo, no one else was alive.

This is simply an alternative Prisoner's Dilemma.

Xia Duo could only choose to tell the truth, "I am not sure if they abandoned me, but it is a fact that I did not see them after I woke up."

He is now also unsure if the traitor is Pide, but what is certain is that the traitor must be one of the four of them.

Otherwise, the traitor could be Yilisi, or even someone higher up; in that case, it would be too terrifying.

Just as Xia Duo was imagining Yilisi saying "Welcome to join us" with a straight face, he heard Yilisi's cold voice from the outside—

"Kill them!"

Following Yilisi's gaze, Xia Duo understood that the "them" in her words referred to the group of Elf Commoners gathering fruit not far away.

Xia Duo could not help but frown. If it were "Maikade," he would naturally be able to kill the commoners without any hesitation, because this was his mission, but now that "Maikade" has a new "core," Xia Duo does not really approve of such an approach.

But it seems that, aside from crazily attacking various living forces of Cormanthor, including commoners, what else can the current Arcane Empire do?

A head-on confrontation is definitely impossible to win. Without a large population as war potential to support it, even if every battle can be won, it will eventually fall into an unstoppable decline.