Vol. 1 Ch. 187

At Victor's place, Leon only told him about his reason for returning to the Empire.

As for what happened after Leon’s capture, his relationship with the Silver Dragon Queen, and his suspicions about Constantine’s collaboration with the Empire—Leon didn’t mention a word of it.

Because Victor was different from Rebecca.

That crazy girl had been thoroughly vetted—first by their master, then by Leon—before she was added to the group of “weaklings.”

So the traitor who backstabbed Leon all those years ago had to be either Victor or Martin.

The more he said, the more he might slip up, and Leon wasn’t about to let the excitement of seeing an old friend make him forget the true reason he was here.

In the room, after hearing Leon’s account, Victor reacted much like Rebecca had earlier.

First, he was shocked, and then he mentioned how he had also fallen under an illusion spell at the time, and by the time he snapped out of it, Leon had already been gravely injured.

“Oh, so it was a large-scale group illusion, huh,” Leon said softly.

“Yeah, too bad I was too slow to break free. Otherwise, maybe I could have saved you,” Victor added.

Leon’s eyes flickered as he quietly studied Victor.

That statement was rather subtle.

"Maybe I could have saved you"—wasn’t that essentially saying, “I’m not the traitor”?

Interesting, Leon thought.

But he didn’t show any of this on his face, only nodding in response. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. I’m fine now, aren’t I?”

“So, what are you planning to do next, Captain? Are you going to find Martin?” Victor asked.

Leon raised an eyebrow at the question but didn’t rush to answer. Instead, he glanced over at Rebecca.

The twin-tailed loli was sitting by the table, idly strumming Victor’s old guitar with his ivory-white pick.

Well, it seemed that the only person in this world who could communicate with Leon through eye contact and initiate "team voice chat" was Rosvisser.

Leon redirected his attention back to Victor.

“No rush. Martin’s family situation is complicated; we won’t be able to meet him so easily.”

Although Rebecca had mentioned that Martin was always mistreated by his stepmother, he was still the youngest son of a royal court minister—not someone you could just meet on a whim.

Victor thought for a moment before speaking. “It’s actually not that hard to meet him.”

“Oh? Do you have a way?” Leon asked.

Victor nodded. “Two days from now, his stepmother is hosting a birthday banquet. She’s invited various friends, politicians, and ministers. We could disguise ourselves and sneak in to find Martin.”

Leon pondered this. “That does sound like a good opportunity…”

But... was it too much of a coincidence?

Leon had just returned to the Empire, expecting it would be hard to meet Martin, but suddenly his stepmother’s birthday was around the corner—Leon didn’t mind her having a birthday, but the timing felt suspiciously convenient.

He didn’t voice his concern outright but kept analyzing Victor while thinking fast. Finally, he asked,

“What’s Martin’s relationship with his stepmother like? I just want to make sure Martin will definitely attend the banquet.”

Victor hesitated slightly before replying, “From what I remember, they’re pretty close. He once gave her a very expensive piece of jewelry.”

Leon let out a long “Ohhh” and then glanced at Rebecca.

The crazy girl had, at some point, moved to stand behind Leon. Her cute little face was icy cold as she met Leon’s gaze in silence.

Leon didn’t say anything either and turned back to Victor. “This is very timely information, Victor. Alright, we’ll go to the banquet in two days.”

“No problem. By the way, what are you planning to do once you find Martin? How will you figure out who betrayed you back then?” Victor asked.

Leon gave a mysterious smile. “I’ve already got a plan.”

Victor paused, then smiled back. “Ah, I see. Since I’m also a suspect, I won’t pry any further.”

“Thanks for understanding.”

After a brief pause, Leon added, “Oh, and since you brought it up, I’ll be direct. For safety reasons, I’d like you to stay here at the bar for the next two days. You know what I mean, right?”

Victor wasn’t stupid. Someone who had risen to second-in-command in the army would naturally understand what Leon was implying.

The so-called “for safety reasons” wasn’t to ensure Victor’s safety but rather Leon and his team’s.

If Victor really was the Empire’s mole, and he managed to sneak off and warn someone, Leon and the others would be doomed.

But if he stayed at the bar and Leon’s group kept watch outside, it would cut off any potential contact with the Empire.

As for why Leon wasn’t worried about any Empire agents already lying in wait outside—

That was thanks to their master!

If any Imperial agents had been lurking nearby, their master would have already stormed in to alert Leon.

The "weaklings" group all played a crucial role.

A well-coordinated trio could easily clear the Empire’s mole "dungeon."

After understanding Leon’s reasoning, Victor nodded. “Got it.”

“Good. Sorry for the trouble. We’ll come back for you in two days.”

“Alright.”

Without lingering, Leon got up and headed for the door.

Rebecca was already ahead of him, stepping outside first.

As they passed the table by the door, Leon glanced at the guitar.

He suddenly stopped and said, “You’ve been using this guitar for years. Haven’t you thought about getting a new one?”

Victor laughed bitterly from behind. “Life’s been tough. As long as it works, I keep using it.”

Leon gave a quiet “Oh” as his gaze fell on the pick beside the guitar.

The translucent ivory-white.

Victor always liked to pursue a sense of refinement and taste in these small things, Leon thought, as he stepped out of the room.

After closing the door, they left the backstage area, passing through the vibrant, smoky bar and out into the cool night air.

Rebecca took a deep breath of the fresh air, stretching her slim body, her flat figure on full display.

“So, what do you think? Is it him?” Rebecca asked.

Leon frowned, deep in thought, and shook his head. “It’s hard to say. We can’t make any assumptions until we meet Martin.”

Rebecca chuckled and twirled her twin tails as she skipped up beside Leon. “You’re still as cautious as ever, Captain.”

“Being cautious never hurts,” Leon replied.

“And yet, you still got backstabbed by a traitor.”@@novelbin@@

“...”

Well, well. Even though this girl couldn’t communicate with Leon telepathically like Rosvisser, she sure knew how to hit where it hurt—just like that dragoness.

Always poking at Leon’s sore spots.

“But seriously, Captain, what if this birthday banquet Victor mentioned is a trap? What if they’re luring you in, only to kill you and silence everyone? Are we really going to go?”

Rebecca’s concern was something Leon had already considered.

“This is a good chance to get in touch with Martin. If we miss it, who knows how long we’ll have to wait for another opportunity. So yes, we’re going,” Leon said firmly. “But…”

He gave a small chuckle. “We won’t be showing up on time.”

Rebecca’s little head just about kept up with Leon’s thinking. “Not on time? Are we going to arrive late?”

Leon shook his head. “No, quite the opposite. We’re going to arrive early.”