Chapter 491

“L-Lord Commander… H-Hou Jue… Your Grace…”

Upon seeing the Lord Commander and Hou Jue, Solat and Willard could not suppress their trembling.

The Lord Commander and Hou Jue, however, wore grim expressions and offered no reply.

Instead, their gazes turned to Gervas, awaiting his explanation.

Gervas did not delay, “Lord Commander, Hou Jue, and all noble lords—you guessed correctly. These two are the spies I spoke of, who aided the beastmen in burning our grain stores and smuggling them into our ranks!”

Whoosh!

“Them? Willard is even a Supervising Officer!”

“And Solat isn’t ordinary either—he’s a scion of the Lieshi Clan!”

The crowd erupted in chaos.

The Lord Commander’s gaze turned icy, “If I recall correctly, you are Willard—the Supervising Officer sent from the Southern Frontier this time, and the Scribe of Eagle City!”

“And you—Solat Lieshi—formerly Deputy Commander of the Vanguard Battalion? Also a scion of the Lieshi Clan!”

Willard and Solat naturally denied the accusations, immediately protesting, “Lord Commander, listen to our explanation—this is pure slander by Gervas! How could we ever betray the Kingdom?”

“Yes! Lord Commander, we’ve never set foot in the Northern Frontier before—how could we possibly be beastmen spies?”

“Gervas is framing us—he wants us dead!”

Yet as the two men desperately pleaded for their lives, one man in the crowd furrowed his brow.

That man was Lieshi Hou Jue.

He had been puzzled earlier by Gervas’s glance toward him.

Now, seeing Solat and Willard, he understood everything.

And his heart sank.

It was true that Solat and Willard had sent messengers to relay Gervas’s information to the beastmen.

As for burning the grain stores and letting the beastmen into the city, he could not be one hundred percent certain they were responsible.

But it no longer mattered—whether or not they were truly spies, as long as they were proven to have contacted the beastmen,

they were dead.

Of course, Solat’s death would be no great loss—he was merely a collateral branch scion.

The Lieshi Clan had thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of such collateral scions.

But what Lieshi Hou Jue feared most was that these two would crack under interrogation and reveal how to exit the city.

After a moment’s thought, Lieshi Hou Jue suddenly spoke, “Lord Commander, Solat is only a collateral branch scion of my Lieshi Clan, but I have met him several times.”

“He has performed his duties faithfully within the army—there is no way he could be a beastmen spy!”

“More importantly, this is his first time in the Northern Frontier—he has always lived in the heartland of the Kingdom, within our Lieshi Hou Jue Domain. He likely has no idea how to even contact the beastmen.”

“As for being a beastmen spy—that is even less possible. Could this not be a misunderstanding?”

The Lord Commander glanced at Lieshi Hou Jue, frowning.

He understood Lieshi Hou Jue’s meaning clearly—it was obvious he was trying to protect Solat.

If he had evidence, it would be one thing—but without evidence, matters would grow difficult.

Before the Lord Commander could respond, Gervas spoke again, “Lieshi Hou Jue, this is no misunderstanding. I received this information directly from Moral himself!”

“So if you shield these two, you betray the souls of the tens of thousands of soldiers who died!”

Whoosh!

Gervas’s words were not light.

To be accused of shielding beastmen spies was a crime that would make the Kingdom despise you.

Worse still, Gervas was accusing a Hou Jue.

A Zi Jue accusing a Hou Jue—this had never happened before.

In the past, no minor noble would have dared such a thing.

Not even a Count or a Hou Jue would have dared confront a Hou Jue so openly.

Instantly, the nobles began whispering among themselves.

Not only discussing whether Willard and Solat were truly spies,

But more so, discussing how Gervas had offended Lieshi Hou Jue.

Lieshi Hou Jue’s face was like frozen water.

In all his years, he had never been publicly accused by a minor noble.

“Zi Jue Gervas, do you have proof? If you have no proof and accuse me of shielding Solat, that is insubordination—I, Lieshi the Great Hou Jue, will demand an explanation from you!” Lieshi Hou Jue’s voice was icy.

If this boy could not produce evidence, he would show no mercy.

If he did not crush this boy, he would no longer be worthy of the title Lieshi the Great Hou Jue—he would be laughed to death by every noble in the Kingdom.

Yet Gervas, facing the threat, merely curled his lips slightly—he had anticipated all of this.

“Lieshi Hou Jue, I do have proof—and this man is the witness who proves they are spies!”

Gervas pointed to Doka Di , who knelt trembling on the ground, silent since Gervas and the others arrived.

Doka Di had already understood from Gervas’s words what the Lord Commander and the others had come for.

As one burdened with guilt, he was terrified, shaking uncontrollably.

Feeling the eyes of the crowd upon him, his soul nearly fled his body.

“Doka Di , do not be afraid. Stand up—I have questions for you!” Gervas ignored everyone else, stepping forward to Doka Di and lifting him with both hands.

Doka Di trembled, glancing at Gervas, then at the Lord Commander, then quickly lowering his head again.

“Doka Di , you saw what Solat and Willard were about to do, didn’t you?”

“If my men had not arrived, you would already be dead from their ambush?”

“And you know why they wanted to kill you—so I ask you: do you regret doing what Willard made you do?”

“I… I…” Doka Di opened his mouth, wanting to speak.

“Doka Di , don’t say anything foolish—if you do, you’ll die too!” Solat, ever clever, suddenly warned Doka Di .

Doka Di instantly clamped his mouth shut.

Gervas glanced at Solat and gave him a sneering, contemptuous smile.

Then he turned to the Lord Commander, “Lord Commander, I have a request.”

“Speak, Gervas.”

“Lord Commander, I ask you to promise me this: if Doka Di can redeem himself by truthfully confessing his past crimes, spare his life.”

The Lord Commander immediately understood Gervas’s intent, “Agreed. If he tells the truth, I promise he will not die.”

“And if he helps uncover other spies, I will further reduce his punishment.”

Gervas nodded in satisfaction, “Doka Di , you heard that—the Lord Commander has promised: if you cooperate, your punishment will be reduced.”

“I know you were merely coerced and misled by Willard—so the true guilt of being a spy does not lie with you.”

“Now, whether you wish to live or die—it is entirely up to you. The chance is before you—if you waste it, I cannot help you.”

“I… I’ll speak, Lord Commander. I admit it—all of it was ordered by Willard and Solat. I didn’t mean to…!”

No clever tactics were needed—only the promise of a path to life.

Combined with the murderous intent Willard and Solat had shown him, Doka Di spoke without hesitation, revealing everything he knew.

For example, Willard had ordered him to deliver messages to the beastmen.

And he had received tokens from the beastmen in return.