Chapter 1543: My Inference
The three of us are now proficient in stealth, moving through the heavily guarded palace as if entering uninhabited territory. Although we saw many soldiers patrolling, courtiers discussing matters, and servants at work along the way, not a single one could spot us.
Speaking of which, I’ve been assisting the Princess with official work for several days now, and I have a certain understanding of the Hesse Duchy’s court operations. I am quite impressed with this system.
The Hesse Duchy has a relatively complete administrative system, with departments that are perfect and meticulous. Each department is responsible for a clearly defined set of powers and duties, and they cooperate closely with each other, achieving a balance between efficiency and function to a certain degree.
Here in the palace, guards patrol and maintain their posts according to their routes under the command of knights. Scribes rush back and forth between departments with documents, relaying information. Courtiers receive vassal lords in the reception halls, listen to reports from various regions, and then summarize them for the Princess.
Even if the Grand Duke leaves his territory and completely hands over control, this system can function normally for a long time, maintaining order within the territory. As long as the Princess doesn’t issue any orders that would collapse the system, it can even operate pretty much however she pleases to some extent.
Therefore, when the Duke said he was letting the Princess manage state affairs, he was actually giving her an opportunity to adapt and train. If she really couldn’t do it well, it wouldn’t matter much, as the system wouldn’t collapse in a short period. The main thing was to determine if she had the talent to be a ruler.
We bypassed everyone and descended to the underground levels. The underground area is where the servants live; they are responsible for cleaning and maintaining the palace, and for serving the important figures like knights and courtiers.
“How do you feel?” Although I didn’t feel it directly, after reaching the fourth underground level, I saw Via and Lorna as if they had emerged from underwater, which told me they had undergone changes.
“It seems… we’re out. Our bodies are no longer being suppressed. The power of the barrier only extends this far,” Lorna said, floating in mid-air as she looked at her hands.
As expected, the third conjecture was also true. The barrier did not extend into the underground. White werewolves were not restricted in their activities underground, which is why she could unleash such powerful strength. I don’t believe the werewolf I fought back then was still suppressed.
“What’s the point of this? The barrier rejects werewolves, but doesn’t go deep underground to suppress them. Then she can move freely?” Lorna asked with doubt.
“No, it’s not without purpose. The barrier extends three levels underground, meaning the werewolf cannot reach the surface. If there are no other secret passages underground, she shouldn’t be able to leave,” I said.
“Is she under house arrest underground? But that’s pointless. If the werewolf really wanted to leave, she could just dig a tunnel and get out, right?” Via said, as werewolves are very skilled at digging.
“Then if she could get out so easily, why didn’t she just dig a tunnel and leave, but instead wanted to ask her kin to help her steal the National Stabilizing Artifact from the top of the palace?” I countered.
“Huh?! Wh-why?” Via was suddenly stunned. That didn’t make sense.
Instead, Lorna pondered for a moment and then said, “Unless… she never intended to leave from the start.”
“Exactly, you’ve found the blind spot. She likely didn’t need to leave. This is her home, she has a comfortable bed here, and plenty of food. Why would she want to leave?” I affirmed Lorna’s conjecture.
From the moment I entered the werewolf’s room, I noticed that her room was actually quite nice, spacious and luxurious, with complete furnishings. Outside, there was also a kitchen and a meat cellar.
She was being treated like a distinguished guest. At the time, I even suspected the werewolf might have been a secret lover of the Grand Duke’s, but I never expected that creep might be into that kind of thing. Terrifying.
“Then if she doesn’t need to leave and doesn’t want to leave, why would she ask her kin to steal the National Stabilizing Artifact? That makes no sense at all,” Lorna also asked.
“Indeed, that’s a good question. If we assume that the werewolf’s goal is indeed not to leave, then what necessity is there for her to destroy or take the National Stabilizing Artifact?” I asked again.
This time, Via and Lorna both shook their heads. They were beginning to get confused and couldn’t figure it out. The werewolf’s actions were filled with contradictions or unnecessary components.
“Let me give you another hint. The Grand Duke deliberately maintained the barrier of the National Stabilizing Artifact at three levels underground, not affecting the werewolf’s living conditions but preventing her from going up, and deliberately adjusted the barrier to have the strongest suppression effect on werewolves.”
“It’s the upper level! The Grand Duke’s purpose in adjusting the National Stabilizing Artifact was only to restrict the werewolf’s range of activity to the lower levels, preventing her from going up. Imprisoning her was just symbolic,” Via quickly reacted.
“But what impact does it have that she can’t reach the upper levels? It seems pointless?” Lorna hadn’t quite grasped it yet.
“It has a huge impact. For example, it prevents patrolling soldiers from directly seeing the werewolf, thus avoiding conflict. Secondly, it ensures the safety of those living on the upper floors, preventing them from being attacked by the werewolf,” I said.
Most of the guards’ patrol routes were confined to the first floor. Very few soldiers went down to the basement, as I had seen on the patrol route and guard post arrangement map from the Princess’s office.
“Wait! Why would the werewolf painstakingly try to destroy the National Stabilizing Artifact? If she didn’t need to leave, but wanted to… go up? Did she not tell the truth to those werewolves in the city from the start?” Lorna finally understood.
“It’s not necessarily a lie, just that she didn’t say everything. Even she had to keep something back. If those werewolves were caught, they might have confessed her words to the soldiers, just as we learned part of the truth from the werewolf, didn’t we?” I chuckled.
“So, I don’t have a brilliant mind like Parul (Sister). Can she just tell us what she wants to do?” Lorna leaned over and pouted at me.
“It’s not that I’m deliberately being coy and not saying anything, but rather that I have no evidence; it’s only an inference. I suspect the werewolf might be an important relative of the Grand Duke, which is why he keeps her in the basement. However, she might have a tendency to harm other family members, which is why the National Stabilizing Artifact is used to restrict her activities,” I said.
“Harming the Grand Duke’s family? The most important family member on the upper level now is… the Princess?!” Via’s eyes lit up as she understood.
“Yes, she’s definitely still in the palace, just hidden, and we can’t find her. That’s why I want to find the werewolf and protect the Princess. However, this is all just my inference. Perhaps her target isn’t the Princess, but these are things we need to verify. Let’s go, let’s go find the Princess,” I said.
We walked back to the upper levels. I still had one clue: the list I found in the werewolf’s room last time.
