Chapter 715: Betrayal, Name

After a moment of silence, Xia Duo gradually detached himself from his intense inner dissatisfaction; things had reached this point, and he had no other choice.

Looking at the calm-faced Aozikaer opposite him, Xia Duo suddenly smiled and asked in a flat tone, "What do you want me to do?"

Aozikaer did not seem to expect Xia Duo to accept reality so quickly—it was a reaction somewhat unlike a young man's—but he still gave a look of approval for this reaction from Xia Duo:

"Lord Xia Duo, you have made the correct choice. Rest assured, I guarantee you will survive with one hundred percent certainty."

Heh, Xia Duo dared not rest assured regarding a teammate who was considered hostile not long ago. Compared to Aozikaer, he would rather trust Greta, who had tricked him into coming here.

However, Greta could not be fully trusted either. What Xia Duo truly trusted was himself; he believed that if he were fully prepared, he would have the strength to fight even against a Great Arcanist.

"Rodney Lord, let's talk about the situation of the mission. How exactly is the assassination carried out? If I know nothing, I would rather face the Princess's fury!"

"That's more like a young man!"

Rodney Lord smiled, then his expression turned solemn as he began to introduce it seriously, "I don't know how much you know about the Rodney Territory, but what I want to tell you is that the current Rodney Territory is no longer under my control.

"From the moment they saw you and confirmed your identity, you could face assassination at any time, even in this hall. If it is an assassination by an ordinary person, then I must congratulate you; this mission will truly be an incredibly easy trip to the Rodney Territory!

"If it is an assassination by a Spellcaster, I also have great confidence in stopping the opponent before the assassination arrives. The most dangerous is an assassination aided by an unknown Magic Item. This kind of uncertain factor is something I can hardly block absolutely, even as a Senior Arcanist. You must understand this point!"

"I understand!"

"That is good. To prevent them from giving up the assassination, I will not cast any Protection spells on you, but I will provide you with a few protective Magic Items. I hope you can survive!"

"Who are they?"

Xia Duo finally asked the most critical question. Before Greta came, she had only said that Rodney Lord had defected to the Seven Towers Group because he had offended a Great Arcanist. As for who it specifically was and the specific reason, Greta had not said.

And now, Aozikaer told him again that the Rodney Territory was no longer under his own control. Why was this? Xia Duo could not figure out the crux of the matter for a moment.

But the person involved was right in front of him; it would be too stupid not to ask.

Facing Xia Duo's inquiry, for the first time, Aozikaer's face showed a true emotion different from the feigned joy and enthusiasm he had displayed when the two met earlier.

Anger, fear—so real that it could even infect Xia Duo, which made Xia Duo unable to help but be moved.

To be able to make a Senior Arcanist reveal such real anger and fear, the target referred to by "they" was self-evident—

An alternative existence different from a normal Great Arcanist; at least in terms of following unwritten rules, that existence was very unqualified!

For an instant, Xia Duo even felt like retreating. A weakling who does not follow the rules can be crushed directly; if the one who does not follow the rules is a powerhouse, then it is troublesome!

But at the same time, Xia Duo also realized that if that existence did not expose itself, so be it; once exposed, it would definitely be rejected by the mainstream, or even destroyed, depending on the severity.

Perhaps he was currently standing on the high ground of the mainstream.

Just at this moment, Aozikaer also spoke the answer that he found somewhat difficult to utter, "They are my former subordinates, my subjects, my original friends! Of course, there are also those who came from over there!"

So that was it; so it was this kind of hollowing out!

Xia Duo could not help but wonder what kind of existence possessed such great power that even subordinates, subjects, and friends would betray!

Listening to what Aozikaer meant, it seemed that the vast majority had betrayed. This was not something that could be achieved by simple power; there must be some factor in it that he did not yet understand.

Perhaps it was some kind of control magic, perhaps some kind of brainwashing education of thought or belief or faith, or it was even possible that the people themselves had been replaced; perhaps it was a combination of multiple means.

Xia Duo had read many novels, movies, and TV series; what was acted in them was not necessarily true, but at least they could provide many quite feasible brain holes.

As for which one it was, perhaps even Aozikaer did not necessarily know; of course, even if he knew, he would not necessarily say.

"Who is behind them?" Xia Duo asked in a deep voice.

It was impossible for Aozikaer not to answer this question, and if he did not know the answer to this question, Xia Duo would not be able to sleep peacefully.

"I cannot say his name, and I cannot even reveal matters related to him. The only thing I can tell you is—he was recently targeted by that person from the Gray-White Spiral Tower!

"If you have some understanding of the recent situation in Netheril, then you know who I am talking about. If you don't understand, I advise you best not to guess wildly. I don't care if you commit suicide, but don't you dare harm me!"

Aozikaer's look of profound mystery made Xia Duo feel a bit cold. In fact, when Aozikaer mentioned the Gray-White Spiral Tower, a name had already appeared in Xia Duo's mind.

The most terrifying thing was that he had mentioned this name himself not long ago, and even asked Niya to inquire about that person's situation. If this name really carried some kind of taboo, then—

That was truly courting death!

"Rodney Lord, I probably know who it is! I want to know why his name cannot be spoken?"

"It's not that it cannot be spoken, but that if you say it, he will know, and might even directly see what is happening here." Aozikaer's face was gloomy, as if he had thought of some unpleasant things.

Such an existence?

Xia Duo immediately thought of the Longevity Ritual he had once seen in the Arcane Temple underground in the Temple District of Seventon. According to what Greta revealed, that Archmage Sandro would possess a kind of extraordinary Perception ability after the ritual.

As long as others mentioned his name, they would be perceived by him.

Could it be that that person from the Tower of Wisdom had also performed a Longevity Ritual? Or was it some kind of special Scrying spell?

As for what the truth was, it was estimated that only that person himself knew.

For a time, Xia Duo's thoughts flew very, very far. He knew that perhaps his name was already placed on that person's desk; he was truly unlucky!

……

And on the other side, at the Town Hall of South Tower Town in the Rodney Territory.

Lali sat in the main seat with a gloomy face, looking at the people below exchanging glances. The impatience in his eyes finally accumulated to the extreme. He walked straight to a gray-robed Mage and asked coldly:

"How long are you going to discuss? Is the Master's order no longer effective?"

The gray-robed Mage in front of him seemed to be cowed by Lali's power and turned his head to avoid Lali's gaze, but this action of his only further angered Lali.

Lali was about to rebuke him when a middle-aged Mage in the neighboring seat suddenly spoke, "Enough, Lali. The Master told us to follow your instructions, but the Master did not tell us to follow your instructions to invite trouble! Don't you know who that Lord Xia Duo is? Why invite trouble for the Master?"

"No, I didn't!"

Lali subconsciously retorted, but he quickly realized that he was the greatest one here. Even if the other party was an Archmage he once needed to look up to, hadn't they now become a subordinate to a small low-level Mage like himself!

The Master was the greatest!