Chapter 179: [179] Lie Detector

Eliron took a deep breath.

“One of you in this room is a traitor….”

The room was silent as he let them feel the sheer weight of his words. A traitor in a circle as close as this was a threat to the very foundations of the barony.

This meant that vital information about the estate could be leaked at any time. In the grueling, deadly world of kingdoms and lords, there were always nobles more than ready to capitalize on secrets.

The baron’s gaze hardened and he took some time to glance at every one of his men. From

The butler, to the guards, down to the last man.

Then his gaze stopped on Eliron.

“Lord Eliron, I appreciate your willingness to help me get to the bottom of this issue. But what you have just said is an insult to the men seated here, and as a result an insult to me.”

He paused for a brief second. “Do you have any proof to back up your accusations?”

Eliron smiled.

’Typical.’

That was the problem with humans, they were the least logical among the major races. Driven by heavy emotions, they would sometimes discard common sense in place of emotional whims.

“Surely, you do not believe your brother just happened to find the catacombs himself did he?”

The baron shifted uncomfortably.

The location of the baroness was a secret even Duke was not meant to know, there was no denying that there was a leak in their chain of command.

Eliron glanced at Duke.

“As your son must have told you, he was actually fed this information by a third party. This third party clearly meant no good, as instead of revealing himself, they spoke through letters…”

This was what Eliron had found out after a long chat with Duke.

The case would have been ended with a simple who told you the location? But the culprit was smart enough to keep himself hidden.

According to Duke, Marcus was likely privy to his identity. But he was a little too dead to ask…

Duke stared down at the floor, still feeling the shame of his actions.

The baron placed a finger on his chin and nodded slightly.

“You are right. There is a leak somewhere. But these are honourable men, I may sound foolish when I say this, but I can swear on my life that neither of them would betray me!”

The baron said boldly.

Eliron raised a brow. “Oh? Your confidence in your people is really inspiring. I can understand where you are coming from, I would be hard pressed to believe any of my people would turn their back on me as well.”

The elven lord leaned back on his chair, thrumming his fingers on the table. His expression became serious.

“But Baron Pieter, surely you have two eyes just as I do. You can see that there is foul play involved—”

Bam!

One of the guards stood up, his fist tightened with rage.

“It is one thing to be accused of treason, but it is another thing to talk to the baron in such a manner—!”

“Silence. If you lot were loyal to your lord, you wouldn’t be in this mess and the young master would still have both eyes.” Artie spat, clearly not holding anything back today.

Her usual filter, her sweetened words, they were gone, replaced by cold unfiltered truth.

The knight’s mouth dropped open and he stared at her, speechless.

But Artie words only went on to anger his second, the young knight who had barely said a word since they arrived.

He glanced at Artie, his black eyes unforgiving.

“That is Sir David, survivor of the dread war.”

Vwooosh!

A large gust of wind exploded out of the young knight’s body, his astute mana flooding the room in an instant.

“You would do well to mind your tongue.”

’Interesting…’

From what Eliron could see, the young man was already in the second realm of minor commander. He was a true prodigy.

“What a paltry display.” Artie said coldly.

Swish!

Her own mana swelled out of her body, causing an electric tingle to fill the air, sparks darting along the table.

The two manas clashed, sending a gust of wind cutting past them.

“Artie…”

“Samuel—”

Both Eliron and Baron Pieter said at the same time. Immediately, the mana quenched, the room returning to normalcy.

“Tch.” Artie hissed, while the knight’s frown deepened.

Baron Pieter slowly shook his head. “I admire that fierce loyalty of yours Samuel, but he is right, there is a leak.”

“I have absolute faith in you all, but that doesn’t mean you may not have let it slip accidentally in one way or the other.”

The baron sighed and stared at the table for a few seconds, deep in thought.

Then he raised his gaze and asked. “What do you have in mind, lord Eliron?”

Eliron clapped. “Aha, now you are talking, baron. If you will permit me, I would like to personally investigate every single person in this room.”

[SSS—Ranked Skill. Divine Sinners Scale]

Eliron secretly activated the skill, his expression as impassive as it had been before he did.

The divine sinners scale was a skill that would alert him the moment a person committed even the faintest trace of sin.

Lies, murder, lust, greed… as long as the sin was committed in the space of five minutes, the scale would alert him.

He glanced at the butler. “Cornelius, as loyal as a wolf. He has stayed on the side of the barony for two generations.”

“May he have grown wary of the baron’s incessant demands? Does he have ambitions to take the seat for himself?”

“You can only go so long admiring a gold necklace before you have the urge to try it yourself.”

The butler frowned, a vein ticking on his jaw. “I would never dream of betraying my lord, I am incapable of betraying him.”

[Ding—]

Eliron slowly waited for the scale to report.

[Sinless]

Considering how suspicious the butler seemed, Eliron was pleasantly surprised.

He shrugged. “We’ll see about that.”

He turned to the next man, the stout intelligent looking individual.

“Ah, this is an interesting one. Damian, the chief of communications. A position that would allow him time to plot as much as he could without so much as a single suspicion.”

Eliron leaned slightly on the table. “Tell me, how frequent were your conversations with the late Marcus?”

Damian’s gaze faltered. Eliron picked up the reaction instantly.

“I send only what I am instructed to deliver. I have no real reason to betray my lord.” He replied calmly.

[Ding—]

[Sinless]

“Mmhm, that is what they all say.” Eliron said in a mocking tone.

At this point, the baron could not hide his surprise, considering by the wealth of information Eliron had on his estate’s inner affairs. But if he had anything to say or ask, he kept it to himself, at least for now…

For Eliron, getting the information had been rather easy. The baron’s daughter and him had a very friendly buisness relationship, while his son was practically loyal to him now.

He had all the information he could have ever needed.

Eliron glanced at one of the knights, the older of the two.

“Prehaps after many years, a guards salary no longer appeals to you?”

Eliron’s eyes moved to the younger one. “Or perhaps, you seek the glory and fame only a greater noble house can assure….”

“Do not trample on our honour. We are bound by oath.” The older knight spoke for both of them.

[Ding—]

[Sinless]

’So the old man really believes in honour and oaths? Typical of a knight.’

“They say money answers all things, Sir David. Marcus swore an oath as minister did he not? Yet, look at where we are.”

“Do you really think something as measly as an oath is enough to dissuade suspicion?”

Sir David balled his hands into a fist but said nothing in return.

“My lord.” Eliron turned back to the baron. “All these charades, they really don’t matter, because I already know who the culprit is—”

?!

The baron sprang up to his feet. “Then pray tell, who is—”

Knock Knock—!

Just at the highlight of the moment, when Eliron had caught the attention of everyone present…

There was an auspicious knock on the door.

The entire room became silent, all eyes locked on the wood frame.

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