Chapter 164: Report to The Alpha King
{Third Person}
The banquet hall remained under heavy guard long after the guests had been escorted away.
What had once been a place of celebration had transformed into the centre of a royal investigation.
Guards stood at every entrance and exit, preventing anyone from entering or leaving without authorization.
Servants who had participated in the banquet were gathered together and questioned one after another, while investigators carefully examined every table, chair, serving tray, wine bottle, and piece of cutlery that had been used during the evening.
The leader of the royal guards personally supervised the entire operation.
Under King Sebastian’s direct orders, nothing was to be overlooked.
Every servant who had handled food or wine was questioned repeatedly. Those who provided useful information were separated from the others for further investigation.
Unfortunately, many of them knew very little. Some were so frightened that they could barely answer a question properly. Others genuinely had no idea what had happened.
The royal guards showed little patience.
Several servants were punished after giving contradictory statements or repeatedly failing to answer simple questions.
Once the punishment was carried out, they were dragged away and locked inside the palace dungeons. Whether they were guilty or innocent no longer mattered at the moment.
Until the culprit was found, everyone connected to the banquet remained under suspicion.
As the investigation continued throughout the night, reports were constantly sent back to the King’s palace.
Each report seemed to worsen the situation.
King Sebastian sat in his private study, surrounded by ministers, senior guards, and royal aides who came and went with updates. His mood had steadily deteriorated as the hours passed.
The latest report had just arrived.
The royal guard delivering it knelt respectfully before him. "Your Majesty, the investigation of the wine has been completed."
Sebastian immediately looked up. "And?"
The guard swallowed a gulp of saliva. "No poison was found."
The room became silent. For several seconds, Sebastian simply stared at the man.
"No poison?" he repeated, finally.
The guard lowered his head further. "No, Your Majesty. Neither the wine served to His Highness nor the remnants recovered from his glass contained poison."
Sebastian leaned back in his chair. His expression darkened considerably. The report made no sense to him.
Alexander had vomited blood in front of hundreds of witnesses.
The mages themselves had confirmed poisoning, yet every examination conducted so far was producing the same conclusion.
There was no poison in the wine. No poison in the food. Nothing that could explain what had happened.
The contradiction irritated him more than he cared to admit.
"If there was no poison in his food or wine," Sebastian said slowly, "then how was my son poisoned?"
Though his voice was calm, everyone in the room already knew the storm brewing inside of him. And unfortunately, they did not have an answer to his question.
The guard remained kneeling in silence as the ministers exchanged uneasy glances.
The tension inside the study continued to rise.
Fortunately, before Sebastian’s temper could worsen further, another knock sounded at the door.
A moment later, several royal guards entered alongside a group of mages from Elder Mage Seraphina’s delegation.
The moment Sebastian saw them, his attention sharpened immediately.
He rose from his chair. "Well?"
One of the mages stepped forward and bowed. "Your Majesty, Elder Mage Seraphina instructed us to report that the Alpha Prince’s condition has stabilized."
The entire room seemed to relax. Even Sebastian’s shoulders visibly eased. For the first time since the banquet, genuine relief crossed his face.
"And?"
The mage continued, "His Highness is no longer in danger. Elder Mage Seraphina expects him to make a full recovery within a few days."
A long silence followed, then Sebastian slowly sat back down. His precious son was alive. That was all that truly mattered.
Everything else could wait.
Unfortunately, only for a moment, because soon, the unanswered questions returned.
Sebastian folded his hands together and looked directly at the mage. "Explain something to me."
The mage inclined his head respectfully. "Your Majesty."
"If there was no poison in Alexander’s food or wine, then how did he end up poisoned?"
The mage exchanged a brief glance with the others before answering. "We are not entirely certain."
Sebastian’s expression immediately hardened.
Realizing his answer was unsatisfactory, the mage quickly continued. "However, we have developed a possible explanation."
That immediately captured the King’s attention.
The mage chose his words carefully. "The drug discovered in His Highness’s wine may have reacted with the curse affecting his body."
Several ministers frowned, but the mage continued before anyone could interrupt.
"The curse places a significant burden upon His Highness’s system. It is possible that the drug interacted with the curse in an unexpected manner, creating a toxic reaction neither would normally produce on its own."
Sebastian remained silent as he considered the explanation.
It sounded reasonable, yet it still felt incomplete.
The mage appeared to share the same concern. "It is only a theory, Your Majesty."
The King nodded slowly. "You believe there may be something else involved."
"Yes."
The response came immediately.
"There may be another factor that reacted with the drug. Something connected to His Highness’s health. Something within the banquet environment. Or another unknown element that produced the result we witnessed tonight."
The room fell silent again.
Finally, the mage continued. "Elder Mage Seraphina has instructed several of us to assist with the investigation."
Sebastian’s gaze narrowed thoughtfully. Unlike the guards, the mages possessed knowledge that ordinary investigators lacked.
If magic, curses, or unusual substances were involved, their expertise would be valuable.
After a brief moment of consideration, he nodded. "You have my permission."
The mages bowed immediately.
Sebastian’s expression turned serious once more as he said, "I want every possibility examined." Then his gaze swept across the room.
"I do not care whether the answer lies in poison, magic, curses, or something else entirely."
Nobody spoke or tried to interrupt.
Then the King delivered his final order. "I want answers by tomorrow morning."
The warning hidden beneath those words was impossible to miss.
The mages bowed again, and the guards saluted.
Within minutes, new orders were being issued throughout the palace as the investigation intensified.
Alexander’s life was no longer in danger.
Now, King Sebastian wanted to know who had dared put it in danger in the first place.