Support from Kane

Based on this intelligence, Ye Wei'an concluded that the attack was indeed premeditated, and that his target was him.

Grumman's memories are credible.

So, whether it's the contact person's suspected male servant identity or the principle that the beneficiary is the most likely culprit, the mastermind's identity points to one person: his father's legitimate wife, Baroness Serena of Xiaxing.

The reason is not hard to guess—the baron treated this illegitimate son too well, so well that it would make any legal wife uneasy.

In Faerûn, in Cormier, and in those families that prided themselves on their noble lineage, the illegitimate sons of nobles were mostly "forgotten accidents." Most of them would never be recognized by that sacred surname, let alone step through the gates of the castle.

The children born to maids or servants, if lucky, could become stewards in the manor; if unlucky, they would probably spend their entire lives in the stables, feeding the fodder.

People like the original owner, raised in a castle from childhood and raised with almost the same standards as a formal heir, are extremely rare.

Not to mention, the Baron spared no expense to send him to the Battle Mage Academy of Susar.

It's important to understand that even in the supposedly prosperous Kingdom of Purple Dragons, Cormir, training a spellcaster is an investment that would make any nobleman wince. The tuition for a year at the Battle Mage Academy is a whopping five hundred gold lion coins, not even including living expenses—the cost of living in the royal capital, Susar, is incomparable to that of a rural place like Firefall Valley.

As the saying goes, the scales of the goddess of fortune always tip in favor of those who are willing to spend money.

Putting himself in her shoes, if he were Lady Serena, seeing her husband so favoring a "bastard" while her own children were so useless, he would naturally suspect that his husband had some improper thoughts about the inheritance.

Now that the Baron is critically ill, this bastard has been urgently recalled to Firefall Castle.

At this critical juncture, in order to ensure her son's right to inherit the throne, Lady Serena chose to strike first and intercept him halfway, a move that logically fits perfectly.

If the bastard is allowed to return safely to Firefall Castle, and the Baron becomes confused and makes some unexpected decisions—such as granting him a portion of the territory or even changing the succession—the consequences could be dire.

In comparison, letting this trouble disappear forever on the way home is undoubtedly a "cleaner" choice.

Thinking about this, Ye Wei'an clearly realized what kind of trouble the original owner's identity and background had dragged him into.

This wave of attacks is likely just the beginning.

Once the Baroness learns of the failed assassination attempt, she will not let it go. The threats he faces will only increase.

No, we can't continue to be passive like this.

Thinking of this, Ye Wei'an's eyes turned cold.

In this world, apart from his critically ill adoptive father, the original owner had almost no reliable social connections.

As a newcomer, he was no match for a baroness who held real power and had managed the territory for many years.

If he doesn't want to abandon his identity and become a fugitive, he must turn the tables and seize control of the situation.

The information obtained during the interrogation seems to have some potential applications.

After a moment's thought, he quickly sketched out the outline of a plan in his mind.

However, for this plan to be executed perfectly, it also requires the cooperation of one more person.

With that thought in mind, Ye Wei'an no longer hesitated and turned to walk towards the Knight Kane who was directing the clearing of the battlefield.

Upon seeing him approach, the knight immediately stopped what he was doing and stepped forward, saying, "Young master, the casualties and spoils have been preliminarily tallied."

"explain."

"In this battle, we suffered a total of three dead, six seriously wounded, and nine lightly wounded." Kane's voice lowered when he mentioned the dead, but then he became more spirited. "Thanks to the young master's magic, and thanks to the mercy of the guardian god Heim—no, thanks to your generosity! All the seriously wounded brothers have been rescued, and we are all very grateful for the young master's kindness."

"Everyone is fighting to protect me; it's what I should do." Ye Wei'an waved his hand. "Tell me about the enemy."

"Yes, young master," Kane's voice became much louder when he said this, "a total of twenty-one enemy soldiers were killed, sixteen escaped, and five were captured, including their leader. It can be said that this bandit group that had been entrenched in Firefall Valley for many years has been completely wiped out."

"This can be considered rid Firefall Valley of a scourge," Ye Wei'an nodded slightly. "And what about the spoils?"

"Regarding the spoils of war, we received eight sets of leather armor that were still usable, eleven sets that were damaged and needed repair, twenty-five crudely made swords and axes, seven rotten wooden shields, a greatsword in decent condition, four inferior shortbows, and four warhorses."

Kane paused, then pulled a small pouch from his waist pouch and handed it to Ye Wei'an: "In addition, we also found three gold lions, thirty-two silver eagles, and over three hundred bronze thumbs. The vast majority of the gold coins and half of the silver coins were taken from Chief Grumman. There are also some miscellaneous valuables, the exact value of which still needs to be estimated."

In Cormier, currency was uniformly produced by the Royal Mint.

The obverse of the gold coin features the royal coat of arms, while the reverse depicts a lion, hence the name "Golden Lion."

Silver coins were called "Silver Eagles," while copper coins were called "Copper Thumb."

Like other parts of the continent, Cormier's currency exchange follows a decimal system.

"It seems the leader took all the money from this bandit gang, and the rest of them are penniless," Ye Wei'an remarked, his understanding of how the strong dominate this world deepened.

"Young Master is right," Kane reported, then looked at Ye Weian. "What should we do with these spoils? Please advise, Young Master."

Ye Wei'an was certain that if it were before today, Kane would have arranged the spoils of war himself and would never have asked him for instructions.

From this perspective, I can say that I have initially gained the approval of this guard.

But that's not enough; now is the time to strike while the iron is hot.

Thinking of this, Ye Wei'an said without hesitation, "Of the seized goods, I will only take three gold lions. I will not take a single penny of the rest."

Kane paused for a moment, about to speak, but Ye Wei'an raised his hand to interrupt him: "All captured leather armor, weapons, and shields will be collected, sealed, and transported back to the territory for unified sale. The proceeds, along with the remaining silver and copper coins, will be used first to generously compensate the fallen brothers, and the remainder... will be distributed on the spot to all the brothers who participated in the battle, according to their merits in killing the enemy and the severity of their injuries."

A look of obvious astonishment finally appeared in Knight Kane's eyes.

Earlier on the road, he had overheard the maid complaining that the young master was looked down upon by his classmates in Susar because he was too poor.

He had assumed that Ye Wei'an was very materialistic, but he never expected him to be so open-minded.

"By the dawn of Los Santos, you are truly generous." He clenched his right fist and gently tapped his left breastplate. "On behalf of the soldiers, I thank you, young master."

"They shed blood for me, and that's all I could do," Ye Wei'an sighed, then naturally changed the subject, "Compared to that, Kane, I remember you also took a blow to the shoulder from that barbarian's greatsword. How is your injury?"

"Thank you for your trouble, young master." Kane glanced at the deep scratch on his shoulder armor and laughed heartily. "Fortunately, the shoulder armor covered it. For a Purple Dragon Knight, this minor injury is nothing."

That's correct.

Normally, warriors can heal themselves by mobilizing their own blood and energy to "recover energy".

However, reality is not a game where you automatically gain the abilities of a certain level once you reach it.

Most rough-and-tumble warriors learn to become stronger on their own, and even the Lv.1 [Qi Recovery] skill is not something everyone can master.

That's why the Cormier people flock to places like the Purple Dragon Knights that offer systematic training.

Ye Wei'an nodded and cut to the chase, "Kane, what's your take on this attack?"

Kane frowned, took off his slightly deformed helmet, revealing a weathered face and short brown hair.

"Young master, please forgive my bluntness, but this is not like a typical robbery."

"My father was a knight of the Baron, and I myself served in the Purple Dragon Knights for three years before returning at the old Baron's request to inherit my father's duties. Whether following my father in my early years or clearing out bandits on the border with the Knights, most of the bandits I've met have the same temperament: greedy for money, afraid of death, and always picking on the weak."

He raised his head and said seriously, "Our team not only has nearly ten guards and several formal professionals, but also bears the Xia Xing family crest. Ordinary bandits would avoid such a team from afar. But these bandits not only dared to attack, but from the very beginning they made it clear that they would attack at all costs... This is illogical."

"So what do you think happened?" Ye Wei'an asked.

"There are only two possibilities," Kane analyzed. "Either they knew from the beginning that they had to complete the mission, or the reward they were offered was high enough to make them take the risk and suffer such heavy casualties. Either way... it means this was no accident."

At this point, a hint of worry flashed in the knight's eyes: "Young master, forgive my presumption, but the target of this attack is very clear. They are not after money, but after your life."

Kane was indeed a battle-hardened knight, and he arrived at an answer close to the truth simply by judging the battlefield.

But Ye Wei'an also noticed a problem.

This Kane is completely different from the average nobleman; in some ways, he's a bit... clueless.

The assassination attempt on the way back to the family territory by a nobleman's illegitimate son could be seen by anyone with a little political acumen as likely to involve feuds and infighting among nobles or family feuds.

As Baron Xia Xing's subordinate, most people would be confused in this situation, but Kane pointed out the problem directly.

Such a person either genuinely lacks sensitivity to the intricacies of the inner workings of the aristocracy,

Or they are the old-school knights who uphold chivalric traditions such as justice and honesty.

The original owner's memories also confirmed this: the Orm family, to which Kane belonged, was known for generations for adhering to the ancient knightly precepts and for their loyalty and integrity.

Simply put, this is someone who can be "deceived by force".

"Your intuition is sharp, Kane." Ye Wei'an affirmed the knight's judgment, then released part of the interrogation results. "I just extracted some information from that bandit leader's mind: this attack was indeed not a spur-of-the-moment decision; someone issued them a mission to assassinate me. If the assassination succeeds, they can go to Firefall Town to find their contact and collect a hefty reward."

Ye Wei'an omitted the crucial information that "the contact person is likely from Madam Xia Xing's command," and said in a normal tone, "The meeting place is set at the 'Wild Dragon' tavern, with a four-day deadline. As for the contact person's true identity, Grumman himself is not sure, only knowing that the other party's code name is 'Grey Raven,' and that he is a long-term customer of his."

Kane's eyes sharpened: "Young Master, you mean...?"

"What I mean is, if there's a first attack like this, there will be a second. We can't just sit around and wait. The mastermind is probably waiting for good news right now, which is the moment when their defenses are most relaxed, and also our best chance to expose them. If we miss this opportunity, they'll retreat into the shadows, and we'll be completely at a disadvantage."

Ye Wei'an looked in the direction of Firefall Town and explained his plan: "Our team is large but short of horses, and we also have wounded, prisoners, and wagons and supplies. We are too big a target and our movement is too slow. I plan to take only a small number of capable people, and you and I will personally lead the team. We will travel light on horseback, taking shortcuts and traveling through the night, to reach Firefall Town before the news leaks out. Then, we will find the contact person according to the intelligence and find out the mastermind behind it all."

Kane acted almost without hesitation.

He clenched his right fist and slammed it heavily against his breastplate, giving a perfect knightly salute: "Your judgment is absolutely correct. I will immediately go and select men and prepare horses. We must not let the criminals who dared to lay a hand on you go unpunished!"

"Go, and be quick." Ye Wei'an nodded slightly.

He then turned back to his carriage to pack some necessary personal belongings.