stjorthotic Chapter 147 "Caught Red-Handed"
Chapter 147 "Caught Red-Handed"
Chapter 147 "Caught Red-Handed"
His gaze suddenly froze on a servant in the corner of the image, who was preparing to pour wine for Aubrey.
The servant's movements seemed slightly uncoordinated; his lowered eyelids and quick glances swept over everyone present.
That look in his eyes—it was not the humility and numbness that an ordinary servant should have; on the contrary, it carried a sharp, quick, and assessing quality.
"That servant!"
Kyle pointed sharply at the crystal mirror. "His eyes are off!"
Holm's eyes narrowed, and he immediately ordered, "Zoom in on the image of the servant in the lower left corner! Analyze his life field and energy fluctuations!"
The wizard who was manipulating the magic circle immediately carried it out.
The image on the crystal mirror magnified rapidly, focusing on the unassuming servant. Intricate runes flowed along the edge of the mirror, being analyzed.
A moment later, the results came out, and the wizard's tone was tinged with surprise: "My lord, the self-identified life field strength is abnormal! Far exceeding that of ordinary people! The energy fluctuations are extremely weak and restrained, but the attributes—the attributes cannot be fully analyzed, seemingly possessing some kind of extremely sophisticated disguise or concealment!"
The skeletal scan shows a discrepancy between the information and the records for this servant!
"That's him!"
Kyle is almost certain.
"He's definitely not an ordinary servant! He's very likely a trained assassin of the Ed family, or—he's an inside man for those attackers!"
Holm's eyes flashed with a cold light: "Something's definitely fishy! Notify the first squad to take control of that servant first! Alive! Everyone else, prepare to move! Arrest all core members of the Ed family on suspicion of colluding with external forces to attack and plunder important resources of the Tower of Eternity! Anyone who resists will be killed on sight!"
The last four words, carrying a chilling killing intent, seemed to lower the temperature in the entire monitoring room.
"yes!"
The order was relayed instantly.
Inside the council chamber of the Eddard family manor.
Having just finished his "wait and see, and strike when the time is right" strategy, Aubrey Ed took a puff of his cigar in a rather pleasant mood and was about to enjoy some wine.
Sudden-
Boom! Bang!
Almost simultaneously, huge impacts and explosions were heard all around the manor!
The sturdy doors and walls were torn apart like paper by the violent magical energy!
Countless figures, clad in crimson and silver-trimmed battle robes from the Eternal Tower, wearing metal masks and exuding a cold and powerful aura, stormed into the manor from all directions like divine warriors descending from the heavens!
"Enemy attack!!"
The piercing alarm belatedly sounded, but was instantly drowned out by even more intense explosions and the roar of battle!
The guards of the Ed family were terrified and tried to resist, but they were facing the most elite "Sun" force of the Eternal Tower!
Often, they are defeated, subdued, or killed in a single encounter with a fierce attack!
"What's going on?!"
"The Tower of Eternity?! Why are you attacking us?!"
Aubrey, Marcus, and others in the council chamber were so shocked that they stood up abruptly, their faces drained of color, filled with disbelief and terror!
They simply couldn't understand why, just a moment ago they were discussing how to use the Eternal Tower to trip up the Arnold family, and the next second the Eternal Tower's sword was falling on their own heads!
"Seize that servant!"
A squad leader from the "Sun" squad shouted sharply and charged straight at the suspicious servant that Kyle had identified.
A flash of panic crossed the servant's eyes, followed by a ruthless glint, and his previously faint aura suddenly erupted!
He actually reached the level of a formal wizard!
He suddenly threw the wine jug in his hand, which exploded in the air, turning into a thick cloud of black mist that obstructed vision and perception. At the same time, his body retreated rapidly like a ghost, trying to break through the window to escape!
"Hmph! There was definitely a trap!"
The squad leader snorted coldly, as if he had expected this. A golden light flashed in his hand, instantly dispelling the black mist. At the same time, a net of light flashing with runes descended upon them!
The servant was extremely agile and narrowly avoided the light net, but he was ultimately a fraction too slow.
Just as he was about to break through the window, another member of "Yoshita" appeared beside him as if by teleportation, delivering a heavy chop to his neck with precision!
The servant groaned, his eyes dimmed instantly, and he collapsed limply, quickly subdued and sealed.
All of this happened in the blink of an eye!
Aubrey and the others stared blankly at this sudden and incomprehensible upheaval, at the family guards being easily crushed, and at the hidden trump cards being instantly removed!
"Why?! Holm! Why is this happening?!"
Aubrey saw Holm stride into the messy council chamber and Kyle, who was following behind him with eyes that seemed to spit fire, and he shouted in shock and anger.
"Our Ed family has always been law-abiding and has never offended the Tower of Eternity! There must be some misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstand?"
Holm approached step by step, his powerful second-level wizard aura pressing down on Aubrey and the others like a mountain, making it almost impossible for them to breathe.
His cold gaze swept over the terrified faces of every member of the Ed family present.
"Aubrey Ed!"
Holm's voice was like a cold wind from an icy plain.
"You colluded with unknown forces, set a trap, and attacked and robbed my Eternal Tower of vital resources! The evidence is irrefutable! And you still dare to claim it's a misunderstanding?!"
He suddenly waved his hand: "Search! Search thoroughly! Find that thing! Find all evidence of their collusion with outsiders!"
The "Sun" team members, like tigers among sheep, quickly subdued all the core members of the Ed family and began a thorough search of the manor.
When Aubrey heard the words "attack" and "seizure of Eternal Tower supplies," his vision went black and he almost fainted!
He understood instantly! This was a frame-up! A trap! An extremely vicious and deadly conspiracy against the Ed family!
"Injustice! A terrible injustice!"
Aubrey was in tears, trying to struggle and explain himself.
"We absolutely didn't! How could we dare do such a thing! This is a setup! It's the Arnold family! It must be them!"
"Shut up!"
Kyle could no longer contain himself, took a step forward, and roared.
"You treacherous vipers! You sent someone disguised as a deacon to frame my sister and steal the treasure offered to the Tower of Eternity! Now that you've been caught red-handed, you still dare to deny it?!"
"We didn't! That servant—"
Aubrey wanted to explain the servant's situation, but at this moment, any explanation seemed pale and powerless in the face of the "conclusive" evidence and the towering rage of the Eternal Tower.
Just then, a member of the "Sun" team strode over, carrying a beautifully decorated mithril box that had just been retrieved from a secret underground chamber in the manor.
"My lord! This box has been found in a secret compartment of the hidden room! It has a powerful seal on it, and the energy fluctuations are similar to the residual energy of the target object!"
Holm and Kyle's eyes immediately focused on the box!
When Aubrey saw the box, his pupils contracted sharply, and he exclaimed, "That—that is—"
It was an ancient artwork that he had acquired by chance not long ago. He liked it very much because of its unique shape and the faint magic it contained, so he kept it in a secret room. It was not a "container" at all!
But Holm didn't give him a chance to finish speaking. He waved his hand and broke the seal on the box, opening it abruptly!
Inside the box lay an ancient silver brooch, engraved with intricate thorn patterns, radiating a faint and pure silver glow. Though extraordinary, it was by no means the "thing" they were looking for!
"This isn't—" Kyle was taken aback.
Holm's face instantly turned extremely ugly.
He picked up the brooch, examined it closely, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
This is indeed a fine ancient magical ornament, but it is definitely not that "thing" containing special power that needs to be offered to a certain master in the tower!
Could it be—that there's a mistake?
Just as a doubt arose in Holm's mind, the captured servant, who had been sealed away, suddenly began to convulse violently in an extremely bizarre manner!
His eyes snapped open, his pupils flashing with an ominous, deathly white light, like burning ashes!
A twisted, insane, shrill laugh, seemingly composed of countless voices, suddenly erupted from his throat, echoing throughout the chaotic council hall: "Hehehehe—Eternal Tower—Foolish—East—already—already—sent away—"
Before the words had even finished—
boom!
The servant's head exploded like a ripe watermelon! Red and white matter flew everywhere!
A chilling, deathly still, grayish-white energy wave, carrying an aura of utter despair and destruction, spread out like a shockwave!
"Self-destruct curse!"
Holm's expression changed drastically, and he suddenly erected a protective barrier to shield Kyle and the others around him!
The grayish-white energy struck the barrier, producing a corrosive sound that made your teeth ache. Although it was blocked, the extremely dense aura of death and evil made everyone feel a shiver from the depths of their souls!
This is definitely a very high-level necromancy! And it's an extremely vicious evil spell that uses souls and lives as fuel!
After the explosion, the council chamber fell into a deathly silence.
Aubrey and the rest of the Ed family were so terrified that they collapsed to the ground, their faces ashen. They were completely unable to comprehend this horrific scene.
Kyle was still shaken; the aura of death he had just felt made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
Holm stared at the headless servant's corpse on the ground, rapidly being corroded by the remaining death energy, then at the silver brooch in his hand that had only a similar magical fluctuation but was completely unrelated. His face turned ashen, and his eyes flickered uncertainly.
Necromantic magic! Self-destruct curse! And those dying words!
All of this seems to point to that "incident"!
Could it be that the Ed family is just a pawn being used?
Was even that servant a pawn, pre-arranged to mislead and frame others?
The real mastermind had already planned everything, even anticipating the Tower of Eternity's reaction and the results of the investigation.
Holm felt a chill creep up his spine.
If that's the case, then the enemy they face will be far more terrifying than anyone imagined!
The Eddard family, the first victims thrust into the spotlight during this storm, seem to have transformed from a misunderstanding into part of a deeper, darker conspiracy.
The Tower of Eternity's wrath has been ignited and found an outlet, but its true target remains hidden deep within the mist.
Holm took a deep breath, suppressing the shock and doubt in his heart, and his eyes became cold and resolute again.
Regardless of the truth, it is a fact that the Ed family is inextricably linked to this incident!
He glanced at Aubrey Ed, who lay sprawled on the ground like a lost soul, and coldly ordered, "Take all the core members of the Ed family back! Interrogate them thoroughly! Especially about this servant! Dig three feet into the ground and uncover their secrets!"
"yes!"
The sudden attack came to a temporary end with the complete collapse and control of the Ed family.
"Nia, I've kept my promise to you. Don't let the adults down—"
Looking at everything before him, in the distance, Sean murmured to himself—