Chapter 177 - Light Sleep (1/2)
The ‘supplementary setting’ mentioned by Gawain sounded like a fresh term to Amber and Philip, but the explanation of the meaning wasn’t complicated. Gawain took just a few words for the duo to understand the meaning of the term.
“It also means that the castle is conducting a theatre show, and each individual in the castle is actually an ‘actor’ who doesn’t know they are inside a show?” Sir Philip spoke of his understanding. “Normally, they are living in a hypnotized state, and due to the long-term spiritual interference, they don’t realize anything is out of sorts in their daily life. But an outsider like us arrived and broke the ‘logic’ of the theatre show, making the plot no longer fitting to the facts and causing the show to be interrupted. Therefore, the mastermind of the show had no choice but to supplement his ‘plot’?”
Amber took a few glances at Philip until the upright and sincere young man felt a chill before she said, “Blech… When you say it like that, I feel like I’ll have even more goosebumps!”
“Your Excellency, I think we should immediately stop this evil ritual!” Philip didn’t bother about Amber and spoke with a stern expression. “The Kant territory probably didn’t just start the capturing of refugees recently. Their hideous behavior might have been conducted in secret for dozens of years! During this period of time, those missing and innocent people that entered this territory must have been sacrificed to maintain the illusion. In order to put the entire castle under the sorcery’s influence, a huge price must be paid!”
“Yes.” Amber displayed a rare proactive attitude. “Every minute and second, people’s lives are being lost!”
Gawain frowned and looked at the duo. “How do you think we should do it?”
“If nothing works, simply put everything on the table with the old lord and confront him directly. If he admits it, you will hack him. If he doesn’t admit it, then think of a way for him to admit it, and hack him,” Amber urged. “There shouldn’t be anyone who can defeat you in the castle. At that time, you will also go first.”
Not only Gawain, even Philip was already used to Amber’s style of ‘it doesn’t matter who goes first, I am not going either way’. He simply looked at the half-elf with contempt before nodding his head. “Your Excellency, without a doubt, Viscount Victor Kant is the mastermind for all this. In the entire Kant territory, he is the only person with the motive and the capability to conduct such evil acts…”
“Victor Kant is the mastermind, huh…?” Gawain didn’t directly respond to the duo’s suggestion and spoke of his own doubts. “Actually, there is something I don’t understand. Even if the Kant territory doesn’t really contact the outside world, there must be at least two or three visits from guests. Could we be the only ones that caused a loophole in the ‘large-scale illusion’ at the castle? Didn’t anyone who visited the place notice it? That Madam Lilith Kant would exit the north tower and would walk around the castle every night. Did none of the servants see her before? If other servants had seen her before, then why didn’t they mention to the people on the territory about ‘the castle having a living viscountess’ when they left the castle to carry out tasks?”
Amber frowned in response. “It is easy to explain about the visitors. A normal visitor wouldn’t act like us and go around investigating and asking for information. As for the people in the castle… they are hypnotized, right? Maybe once they leave this castle, their perception and memory would be completely altered?”
Seeing that Gawain was still pondering, Amber finally couldn’t help nagging, “If I were you, I wouldn’t hesitate. Something is obviously wrong with that old man. You just have to catch him and beat him up to find out everything!”
Sir Philip might normally be very inflexible, but his mind functioned better than Amber in such situations. “Are you worried that if we make a wrong judgment, our actions might unsettle the entire southern region’s noble society and cause them to be vigilant towards Cecil territory?”
“Actually, I am not really worried about them as the feudal lords in the southern region didn’t leave any impression.” Gawain shook his head and said, “I just feel that we are missing out on something. The entire matter might be pointing at Victor Kant, but… is it really that simple?”
An evil cult heretic or a noble enticed and controlled by an evil cult heretic would definitely be extremely vigilant and crafty, especially when he was conducting a shameful evil ritual. His vigilance would be so overwhelming that even if an outsider merely stood in place, he would be extremely uncomfortable. But Victor Kant appeared to be excessively at ease and negligent from start to end.
Was this purely exceptional acting skills? Or was it because he had ample support? Therefore, he wasn’t afraid of being exposed? Or… was the mastermind that controlled everything not Viscount Kant?
Snap… Rumble!
A series of giant thunder suddenly echoed in the skies. The sky outside the window was instantly illuminated like daytime. A few seconds later, bean-sized rain started dropping down with pitter-patter sounds. The castle’s stony walls and crystal windows were sprinkled with concentrated noise.
Subsequently, the curtain of night descended; a new storm had descended on this land.
Lightning flashed and passed through the narrow windows, suddenly lighting up the study. Viscount Victor Kant who sat behind the study table suddenly lifted his head and had a vacant expression. The flash of lightning lit up behind his back and turned him into a bundle of shadows due to the backlighting. His shadows were cast on the opposite side of the study table and onto the nearby old butler, Carter.
When the flash of the lightning faded, the study regained its dusky illumination, and the magic crystal lamp’s radiance made the room eerie and cryptic again. Everything felt as though it was fuzzy and indistinct.
Viscount Victor Kant suddenly spoke without any reason, “Carter, you have served the Kant Clan for many years.”
The old butler suddenly walked forward to the front of the study table, or should it be said that he was walking towards the back of the old master. The butler had an indifferent expression and spoke in a low and vague tone, “The intruders have detected the Grade 2 consciousness, and the barrier on the subconscious mind is starting to loosen.”
Victor Kant could only watch this scene quietly. “Old friend, your devotion has already exceeded your responsibility. I wanted to say thank you to you since a long time ago but wasn’t able to do so. I am very regretful for it…”