Above The Sky
Chapter 466 - 466 436 So the Traitor is Undercover and Forming a Group Huh 33

466: Chapter 436: So the Traitor is Undercover and Forming a Group, Huh (3/3) 466: Chapter 436: So the Traitor is Undercover and Forming a Group, Huh (3/3) Some time had passed, and Ian tasted the braised squid in sauce that the steward had highly praised.

The flavor was indeed very fresh and delicious, and the texture was crisp.

The chef’s skill was quite refined, the squid’s doneness was just right—any more and it would have turned rubbery, and the taste of the sauce was extraordinarily savory and fragrant.

The shrimp stewed with chicken was also very good, but Ian felt that the dish he made at home might be a bit tastier, as he actually enjoyed making stews or clay pot dishes at home.

As a compensation for making Ian wait a bit longer, the shop gave him a small serving of sweet soup and biscuits, a kind of sweet mushroom soup that was quite thick and served hot, meant to be eaten with the biscuits.

He finished these by dipping the biscuits into the soup and, incidentally, ordered another serving of fried fish, with its golden and crispy skin and an aroma that was tempting to the nose.

“Do you need anything else, sir?”

As Ian hadn’t eaten much this time, the shop specifically came to ask.

“No, thank you.”

The young man smiled and shook his head.

Actually, it wouldn’t have been a problem to order more—the Terra World had no shortage of people who could eat a lot—but given that he had partaken in Marquis Barton’s banquet of magical beasts yesterday, theoretically, a First-Level Sublimator like him should still be using a Primordial Seed to digest, so having more would be unreasonable.

Of course, disguise required professionalism.

Although Foresight View hadn’t spotted any unusual individuals, even if there were no voyeurs around, it was vital to maintain a proper cover.

However, just as Ian habitually activated Foresight View to scan the surrounding crowd and buildings, he let out a soft exclamation of surprise.

At another end of the street in a casino, he saw the shadow of a Second Energy Level individual.

The casino looked rather luxurious, even for the bustling Nauman City, and it was extremely eye-catching with glittering and opulent decor—having Sublimators there for leisure wasn’t strange.

But seeing a Second Energy Level in Nauman City was certainly uncommon.

“What’s the deal with that casino?”

While paying, he left a little tip and inquired with the shop owner, who pondered for a moment before responding, “That’s a casino opened by the Er family, known for its impeccable services in the city.

Rumor has it that it has backing from the Canaan Moore side, but it’s never been confirmed.”

“When the public academies were disbanded back then, the Er family borrowed a huge sum from elven merchants to purchase the land of one of the academies and build the casino that stands today…

but regardless of whether it’s true, the service there is very exquisite.”

“Wait, what did you say?”

Ian felt he might have heard wrong and frowned, saying, “You mentioned the disbanding of public academies?”

“Yes, the land was rather cheap at that time.” The shop owner nodded slightly, seeming to be somewhat regretful, “It’s a pity that my family was indecisive back then; otherwise, we could have bought a piece and our shop wouldn’t be this small.”

The shop owner’s main concern was clearly different from what Ian was interested in, but he decided not to continue inquiring.

As the young man left the House of the Tides, his heart was filled with complex emotions as he gazed at the casino.

Decades ago, under the reforms of the Former Emperor and Hiliard, important cities throughout The Empire had established public academies to impart all kinds of knowledge for free and to popularize basic education.

Thanks to this campaign for education, literacy rates in The Empire rose significantly.

Even after the education initiative was discontinued, literate parents continued to teach their children as much as they could.

Ian’s mother was one of those who sought to learn various kinds of knowledge as much as possible even after the Dark Moon upheaval.

It was precisely because of this that Ian had a basic understanding of the common language and was able to quickly learn a series of knowledge from Terra.

He had long been aware that the educational campaign had ended after the Dark Moon turmoil…

and it was not even that the Guardian Axer had insisted on dismantling it; rather, the entire campaign had been the sole decree of Inega II, who funded, launched, and enforced this political task autocratically.

As long as he was alive, things were manageable.

But he died.

Upon hearing this news, his rare good mood vanished.

If it weren’t for the fact that he saw the Second Tier Powerhouse from the casino heading towards the exit, Ian might have thought about going straight back to the Silver Bazaar Company to read and prepare his luggage for the upcoming trip to the Imperial Capital.

The Second Tier Powerhouse walking out from the casino seemed out of place with the casino’s own atmosphere.

She was an elven female knight with light purple hair.

The knight was adjusting her fur-lined cloak, looking a bit distressed.

Beneath her cloak, she wore a light military-style white shirt covered with a thin layer of brown leather armor that accentuated her slender and graceful curves.

Ian noticed that she had two short swords and a pair of pistols hung at her waist, clearly marking her as a Gun-Sword Knight from Canaan Moore, especially since the pistols had bespoke mounts for loading Elemental Crystals, which were very expensive alchemically crafted custom weapons.

The Elven Knight was very perceptive; when Ian openly scrutinized her, she noticed his gaze and showed a somewhat puzzled expression.

Given her appearance and temperament, the Elven Knight didn’t think it strange for someone to pay attention to her, but what she found really curious was that she hadn’t seen such a young First-Level Sublimator like Ian in Nauman City before.

It was normal for Sublimators to take notice of each other.

Ian turned his head naturally and walked towards the Silver Bazaar Company, while the Elven Knight also turned and headed towards the eastern district.

Her expression was grave, somewhat impatient, and there was annoyance as analyzed by the Silver Core Chip.

“Purple hair, Gun-Sword Knight…”

Musing to himself, Ian thought, “The Purple Maple Knight, Canaan Moore’s undercover agent in the Dragon Worship Cult?”

Compared to the ‘accidental’ insight provided by the Foresight View earlier, this encounter seemed more genuinely coincidental.

However, considering there were only a few streets suitable for dining and entertainment in Nauman City, the chances of an unexpected meeting were not small.

But what he didn’t quite understand was why the other’s expression was so anxious and annoyed.

“Is it related to Master Oak’s actions?”

Connecting to the moment he had arrived in Nauman City and encountered Master Oak heading south, Ian speculated in his mind, “Yes, it was an official action by the Canaan Moore government, tailing the Dragon Worship Cult, but not only did they fail to acquire the ‘Key Metal Alloy Stone,’ they also exposed their undercover agent who had probably reached the middle ranks within the cult.”

“The Purple Maple Knight must have wanted to bring back clues related to the Ancient Dragons, but in doing so, she overlooked Anfa, resulting in a total loss—even letting a captured member of the Dragon Worship Cult from Canaan Moore escape prison.”

“Plus, with Master Oak’s actions not involving her, whether it’s questioning her reliability, simply ‘brushing her off’ or ‘protecting’ her, all are reasons enough to make her feel frustrated and upset.”

Thinking this, Ian couldn’t help but chuckle, “In that case, does this somehow involve me?”

“If it weren’t for ‘trading me back after being kidnapped by the Dragon Worship Cult,’ even if Marquis Barton had been in cahoots with the cult from the start, their escape wouldn’t have been so easy, right?”

Ian was well aware that Marquis Barton must know about his identity within the Dragon Worship Cult—not to mention, Elder Mantle must be deeply cooperating with the officials of Nauman City.

Their opponent was the ‘official side of Canaan Moore,’ the actual location of the Ancient Dragon Labyrinth.

After all, if the Canaan Moore Federation could figure out the location of the Ancient Dragon Labyrinth, what concern would it be of other powers?

They would just close the doors and carry out the exploration themselves.

Therefore, both parties had to try their best to slow down the exploration speed of the Canaan Moore officials, to delay their progress until they themselves got the vital intel, and then propose a ‘collaboration.’

The Purple Maple Knight was the key to Canaan Moore’s side breaking the stalemate, but unfortunately, she failed, not only exposing her identity but now possibly also having some conflict with Master Oak’s team.

However, their goal was definitely the Dragon Worship Cult.

With that in mind, Ian detoured at the crossroads, taking a long way around, to monitor the Purple Maple Knight’s whereabouts from afar using the Foresight View and the Silver Core Chip.

—Anyway, he needn’t concern himself with Elder Mantle, Anfa, and Sio; they had the Fourth Level King of the Mountain backing them up.

But since he had joined them, he should do something; after all, he was idle anyway.

After following for more than twenty minutes, Ian noticed that the Purple Maple Knight was also very cautious, always taking detours through the streets, even casually buying a grilled fish on the way as if she were just another Canaan Moore tourist sightseeing in Nauman City.

But in the end, she arrived at her real destination.

Within the Foresight View, another purple mist was approaching her.

The young man watched attentively, then recognized a familiar presence.

It was Knight Chris of Magnetic Light.

The two met in a storeroom of a company, appearing to have been in touch before, so there wasn’t much small talk before they began their formal exchange.

“Hey.”

Seeing this, Ian immediately felt amused, “What’s the occasion today?”

“The traitors and the undercover agents, all coming together now?”