One-Eyed Monster

Lord Popovich looked at Igor and his companions with a kind of gratified gaze.

For a moment, he felt these two young men were truly exceptional. He even felt a bit envious of his old friend Hoffman for having the luck to encounter them at a time like this.

Igor’s interruption caused everyone’s thoughts to drift outside for a moment; after all, the matter of Xiso and Bigas had once been a sensational topic throughout the Empire. However, now everyone’s attention was drawn back by the organization known as the Soul Guardians.

"Why do you think there’s a connection between the Reaper and the Soul Guardians?" Coban Kangen was evidently a little surprised by Igor’s opinion.

"Well, I think it must be some sort of deduction!" Igor scratched his head and said, embarrassed. He wasn’t entirely confident about this deduction, so when speaking his words came out a bit hesitantly.

"Deduction?" Everyone was very curious about Igor’s statement, wondering what exactly this young man’s occupation was—it seemed like a grand integration!

"Um, I just tried to link some things together, and naturally felt there was a relationship between the Reaper and the Soul Guardians!" Igor was still not confident, as the looks from everyone were indeed somewhat unusual.

Everyone’s unusual gazes were out of surprise. Like Lord Popovich, everyone was quite astonished at Igor’s keen perceptiveness. To draw such a conclusion in such a short moment was truly unexpected.

Now, upon careful thought, it seemed the young man made a lot of sense, as there really might be a bit of a connection between the Reaper and the Soul Guardians.

"Did I say something wrong..." Igor didn’t understand the situation. He thought there was a problem with his expression.

"No, we’re just curious about how you thought of this. After all, these are two organizations that seem unrelated!" Coban Kangen continued, in his eyes, the Soul Guardians of the Kangen family were strictly trained, their existence aimed to protect all kinds of secrets.

"Didn’t you mention your family discussed the Reaper? Then suddenly I thought of the connection between the Reaper and the Soul Guardians. What you said made me think of these things." Igor continued scratching his head, thinking these connections were obvious, why did everyone find it so difficult?

The current situation was actually simple—it was just that everyone was trapped within their own viewpoints.

Having experienced the encounter on Guru Mountain, Igor had some contact with the Soul Guardians. From a certain perspective, Estev was also considered their mentor. For some secretive matters, Igor was naturally very sensitive. So, when Coban Kangen mentioned their family previously discussing the Reaper, his immediate reaction was the connection to a traitor among the Soul Guardians.

There were things Igor didn’t know; he only knew that the wizard who once invaded Guru Mountain was bewitched by a traitor among the Soul Guardians. That traitor was none other than Estev’s friend Willem, the leader of the Black Crow.

It was difficult for anyone to link the Reaper with this already obliterated organization. The Black Crow had been eradicated by the Alchemy Workshop, which was an indisputable fact. Moreover, the existence of the Reaper predated the Black Crow, so no one would associate the prior relationship between these two organizations.

"I don’t know much about the traitor of the Kangen family. It seems to be related to the Soul Guardians." Coban Kangen also felt things seemed to be aligning.

"Yes, Estev once mentioned this traitor of your family, apparently he was also a rare genius!" Igor said.

"You know Estev?" Coban Kangen was quite surprised—this young man indeed had many aspects worth exploring!

"Yes, we encountered him on Guru Mountain. He’s considered our mentor!"

"I can’t reach the team of the Soul Guardians, but I know of Estev and the others because this traitor from the Kangen family indeed caused a sensation throughout the Empire. Estev and his group have been pursuing this traitor, but without much success, it seems."

"Wasn’t that traitor the Black Crow’s leader Willem?" Kadi added from the side, finding it strange—weren’t they just talking about the Black Crow’s leader?

"Hmm?" Everyone looked at Kadi in surprise. Honestly, they hadn’t really thought of Willem.

"How many traitors has your family encountered in total?" Igor was puzzled by Coban’s expression—now he wasn’t even sure if they were discussing the same traitor.

"The Kangen family only had this one traitor. But how could this traitor have established two organizations..." Coban expressed his doubts.

"Hmm, yes, perhaps there’s something peculiar here!" Igor also frowned.

"Why are you all chattering? Why not just go directly to your family and ask for clarification?" Kadi exclaimed on the side—he never liked these discussions that always seemed full of meaningless chatter, without substantial progress.

"The Kangen family has never been lenient with traitors. But why hasn’t the Kangen family eradicated this traitor over these many years?" Popovich also fell into a kind of contemplation.

Ancient families generally did not interfere with each other, only uniting and cooperating during times of crisis for the Empire.

Lord Popovich naturally understood this, yet now, things always defied people’s imagination, deviating from conventional methods. Thus, he couldn’t address them with standard approaches either.

Coban Kangen widened his eyes—he couldn’t believe Igor and Kadi would suggest such an idea.

Going directly to the Kangen family was a bold thought. But now, it seemed this was really the only way.

Regarding the Reaper, perhaps only the Kangen family had deeper insights. Any additional information was of no use.

"I really think it’s necessary to visit the Kangen family!" Popovich suddenly said.

In general, words like these would never be spoken by someone from an ancient family, but now it was a special case.

Popovich’s proposal ignited an idea in Coban Kangen.

"Sir, I’m willing to assist these two in traveling to the Kangen family to clarify everything!"

"That would be great!" Igor and Kadi said. With Coban Kangen’s guidance, they wouldn’t be left to unfamiliar surroundings.

Moreover, they might even meet Senior Xiso...

"This matter concerning the mysterious invader of Bistal makes it necessary to investigate the Kangen family thoroughly. I’ll write a confidential letter to Lord Kangen, and when the time comes, take these youngsters with you for the investigation." Popovich fully supported this proposal.

Coban Kangen also wanted clarity on what was happening. Regarding that traitor who had always lingered in the ears of the Kangen family, he wanted to find out what was really going on.

This time, he could return to his family again, and although there wasn’t the excitement of returning in triumph, at least he shared the blood of the Kangen family, and there was still a touch of excitement.