Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress
Chapter 953: The Secret Alliance

Chapter 953: Chapter 953: The Secret Alliance

Alwin eyed her seriously, urging her to spill it.

"Their tactics seem familiar," Arabella pointed out.

"Oh, reminded of yourself," Alwin responded sarcastically.

"Don’t ask if you’re not going to listen," Arabella glared at him.

"I’m all ears. Spill it," Alwin smiled, glad he could insult her after so long.

"I wasn’t alone in doing all those. I’m sure you know since you recognized Nadia and Odette were among my comrades in my past life. What I usually did was provide information where I could. However, those who actually did things were the organization I joined," Arabella explained.

"You mean..."

"The Secret Alliance. I’m not sure if it’s them, but these kinds of tactics were their style.

First, they sow small discord here and there so it won’t be noticeable.

Over time, they make it bigger and bigger, but it could barely be blamed on an outside force since it looked like it began inside.

This was how they usually did things.

What happened in Safiro was due to both the greed of the neighboring local lord and interference from outside. You have already verified they were from Fynnia.

But this time, the instigators and the butler did not seem to have the same connections as Lindon, or perhaps, they were simply in the lower echelons.

Or, they could be from a group here in Eliora who were against the Empire.

Lindon and his comrades were more direct in their actions and did not mind making monsters attack in huge groups.

Meanwhile, the culprits here in Sibruh seemed to like to lie low and make the situation fester by instigating the people.

They are less direct and seem not to mind that the fruits of their labor take longer to manifest.

This was how the Secret Alliance worked."

Arabella explained in detail, and Alwin nodded his head as he contemplated it.

In her past life, when she joined the Secret Alliance, they had not taken action yet since they lacked information.

But if they were truly the culprits here, it meant that they had already begun their operation long before Arabella joined them.

"Hmm... That’s true. Then, perhaps, it’s time for us to crack down on that alliance," Alwin suggested.

"We can’t be reckless without proof. They had members from powerful families from various kingdoms. We might end up triggering a huge war."

Arabella reminded him why they did not immediately try taking down the Secret Alliance, even if they already knew about it.

It was because they could not justify their actions without proof.

Further, some of the members Arabella knew from her past were not yet members now.

Meaning, what Valeria does now could affect their decision to join it.

This was exactly why they were trying to improve Ferdinand’s reputation and be friendly with other nations.

Valeria had been on its own in the past, so when members of the Secret Alliance convinced their kingdoms that it was time to strike Valeria, the approval did not take long.

Prudencia and Safiro were both still in the process of recovering.

The war with Crux had just ended, and now, they were busy with the locked-down territories.

They were busy with a lot of matters on their hands right now, so it would not be a good thing to wage another war.

Their resources and manpower were already divided as it is now.

Of course, they still had a lot of troops and provisions. But another war meant focusing their most capable people there.

Alwin had just recovered, too, so it’s not good to make him work on too much already.

"And remember, your elders are still worried that you might do something again. You have to lie low for now. They are suspicious of your behavior and are seriously pondering what could have prompted the changes in your behavior," Arabella added.

His elders were also not into sending him on very dangerous missions alone, especially after how reckless he had been lately.

They feared Alwin might just do something reckless again while they were not looking.

It was to the point they even warned Arabella to rein in Alwin when necessary, even if Alwin gets hurt by her words, what was important was his safety.

If they did not need Alwin to experiment with Ivan to analyze the plant disease, they might have even already sent him back to Estrella to study more about the magic they had not taught due to the rules.

"I won’t do anything reckless again. What happened last time was because of the circumstances," Alwin promised.

"Yes, and circumstances might force you to do things again, so they are trying to be careful where they send you," Arabella countered.

"Fine, alright. Let’s wait and see then. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going back to Sibruh now," Alwin sighed.

"What? Why Sibruh?" Arabella tilted her head.

"To start the experiment. Your assistant and I should be able to finish it quickly."

"No, not tonight. I just told Ivan to rest. Do it tomorrow, and better if it is daytime so he won’t be cutting on more sleep.

I’ll attend the morning Court Session again before heading to Sibruh, so you can go first and start the experiment. Perhaps, you can follow that schedule in the following days too."

"Ah, right. You did tell him to rest. Then, I can just start on my own," Alwin said like it was nothing.

"No. You were told not to overwork yourself, yet. And you must study it with him to make his contribution even greater. He had been looking forward to working with you, too. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him to work with you in an experiment."

"Fine. Alright. But don’t you think you are showing him too much favoritism?"

"I do favor him, but it’s to prepare for the future. I need him in a good position since we will need him more in the future. This is all for the sake of our plans," Arabella clarified.

Of course, she does care about Ivan and all her assistants.

They may seem like chess pieces she was using to set the stage for the future, but they were also valuable comrades and people to her.

Helping and using them were beneficial not only to her but to them as well.