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The “video call” with Salvatore concluded. Having patiently waited at the doorway, the Winter’s Hand entered the room after a courteous knock.
The person was a rather thin old man.
He looked tall and thin, like a dried-up scarecrow or a thin, ghostly figure.
His pupils were silvery white as if clouded by mist. At a glance, he looked like a blind person with pure white eyes.
Interestingly, the most noticeable thing about him wasn’t the ice ring on his left pinky but rather the scarf around his neck.
The old man wore seven dark gray wool scarves, wrapping him from the noise to the shoulders. Other than his silver-gray eyes, his features were concealed.
“Your Highness, the results of the interrogation are out.” A deep, soft voice sounded from beneath the scarves, “Can I report to you now?”
“Go ahead, Uncle Zorgen.” Annan nodded slightly. There was a touch of respect in his voice.
Annan had lost his memory. However, he was informed that this Winter’s Hand member watched him grow up as a child. The old man also took care of Ivan during Ivan’s childhood too.
In Winter’s Hand, the “ring finger” was dedicated to housekeeping, and the “thumb” was in charge of administrative work.
The “pinky” was referred to as the “unneeded finger,” or alternatively, the “secretive finger.” Their responsibilities entailed tasks “hidden from the public’s eyes”, carrying out operations such as espionage, interrogation, assassination, and the fabrication of false evidence.
Generally speaking, the Winter’s Hand’s members were elites who had advanced from the Energy Falteration Wizard profession. However, taking up the pinky finger role required a Lurker profession.
They said that before Annan was eight years old, Zorgen intercepted at least ten assassination attempts on Annan. Moreover, Zorgen also protected Annan’s mother, Anya Rasputin, before Annan was born.
The reason why Annan faced assassination attempts again was that he was separated from Ivan.
At present, the Winter’s Hand was incomplete. However, given the authority involved, having vacancies was better than filling them improperly.
This new approach came into being after the defection of the Winter Insurgent, Vladmir. Before that, the “Ten Fingers” were always filled up. There were even many candidates vying for reserved positions, which led to internal conflicts within the Winter’s Hand.
“The Winter Insurgent” was a wake-up call.
He reminded Ivan that the real power of Austere-Winter Dukedom was not in the hands of those ministers but in the hands of the “ten fingers” of Winter’s Hand.
The previous ‘Right Pinky’ was also among the defectors. Since then, all of his disciples had been thoroughly purged… Until now, the ‘Right Pinky’ faction was still being managed by Zorgen.
The rule of Winter’s Hand was that “the left hand managed the internal affairs, the right hand managed the external affairs”, just like the left hand was used to block attacks and protect vital points, while the right hand was used to wield weapons and attack.
At present, the right hand of Winter’s Hand had four vacancies. The other four rings had no owners except for the most important “thumb” as the commander, which Ivan designated the respective ring to be under “Victor’s” possession. Those authorities were passed to the left hand.
The spies sent to foreign countries stopped receiving instructions. They would be living their lives as usual; those passing intelligence back to Austere-Winter Dukedom were ordered to go back undercover. For example, the “Father” was in this situation.
[TN: “Father” is the ritualist Annan faced in Chapter 257, a spy Austere-Winter Dukedom sent to Noah Kingdom.]
These Noah spies couldn’t pass the information back at all.
This situation baffled Old Bread Daryl, who was wondering about the “sudden reduction in Austere-Winter’s intelligence personnel”. It was essentially due to a shift in the “Ten Fingers'” powers, reducing them to six fingers… not because of any significant internal changes within Austere-Winter, or any secret intelligence they didn’t want outsiders to know.
At the same time, this was the true secret that the Noah Kingdom must not find out.
“Judging from your report, our top priority is to arrest Urie immediately.”
Zorgen stood up straight, his lean body resembled a tall ghost, and his hands pressed tightly against his trouser legs. Without referring to any notes, he proficiently recited the intelligence obtained from the interrogations directly to Annan.
Simply put, the Northern Alliance was involved. To be precise, it was the private actions of three members within the Northern Alliance – Viscount Peter, Viscount Ostoff, and Count Urie.
They weren’t simply trying to assassinate Annan.
After comparing with Winter’s Hand’s previous investigation, Zorgen keenly discovered a strange transaction in the Frostwind Territory. On the surface, it was labeled as “purchasing everyday use Green Fire”. However, upon careful investigation, it was discovered that the money was channeled into the underworld, specifically to a town named “Saltpeter Ranch”.
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The ruler of this town, “the Bloodhand Brothers”, had an inexplicable relationship with the Noah Kingdom’s Natta County. The “Mushroom Eaters” gang produced a large amount of Demon Blood, but only a small amount flowed into Noah’s local. The rest were sold to Saltpeter Ranch.
Afterward, the Demon Blood flowed into the Frostwind Territory in the north of Austere-Winter through the Saltpeter Ranch.
“Yuri Frostwind was sued for researching taboo rituals before. He paid a large amount of compensation and handed over three manors to escape prison. The taboo rituals were related to ‘communicating with dream world creatures’. The rituals required the use of ‘Hermes’ Poison Dust,’ which necessitated a material known as the ‘Pure Hearted Fallen.'”
“Looking back now… those materials were likely just the remnants left from a failed attempt to create a demon. They probably didn’t even manufacture poison dust, let alone communicate with creatures from the dream world.”
The old man’s eyes were cold and devoid of emotion, “Considering that they may have successfully created a demon, I think it is necessary to dispatch the Frost Beast troops to seize it. Anyone related to the taboo ritual should be arrested.”
Permission from “Forefinger” and above were required to dispatch the Frost Beast troops. The old man’s proposition overstepped his authority.
An operation like this might also startle the Northern Alliance.
Annan thought momentarily, then asked, “Have you told my father?”
“Grand Duke Ivan instructed me to report to you first, Your Highness Annan.” Zorgen replied.
“Let’s not act hastily.” Annan suggested, remaining silent for a moment as he furrowed his brows. “Did you mention that the assassin’s weapon is venom?”
“The weapon is a standard curse vessel [Venom – Heart Failure]. Once it strikes, the blade shatters and sends fragments into its victim’s muscles. At the same time, the blade remnants inflict a ‘Heart Failure’ spell on whoever it’s in contact with every three seconds.”
The old man replied calmly, “This is the technology of the Searing-Fang family in the United Kingdom.”
His words were devoid of emotion as if Annan’s previous response hadn’t existed—there were neither counter-questions nor follow-up inquiries.
The old man was like a cold puppet.
“So, let’s start our investigation from there.” Annan tapped the table with his index finger and said slowly, “We must find out who is involved in this, which will help us identify who our enemies are and their potential goals. Only then can we determine who can be persuaded to our side and who cannot be trusted.”
We have few available personnel in the underground city, making it difficult to conduct an efficient investigation in Saltpeter Ranch.”
The old man responded emotionlessly, “But we have three spies who’ve become ‘Diggers’ in the underworld. However, if they were to surface, it could expose them, leading to the loss of their rights. Although we’re uncertain, the ‘Wise’ could be a troublesome hindrance. You’d have to consider using these spies as expendable pawns.”
“No, there is no need to mobilize our spies.” Annan had a new idea.
Speaking of which, Lin Yiyi and the others were at Saltpeter Ranch.
Annan could let the players investigate it.
Annan smiled with triumph and confidence.
The silver-haired youth narrowed his eyes. He spoke slowly, “I should be able to obtain fairly accurate information quite soon.”