The Martial Unity

"Charles DiVilliers...The Underworld Prince..." Master Reina considered his words thoughtfully.

"I can confirm that he is one of my conspiring death-wishers," Rui replied.

"One of?" Master Reina raised an eyebrow. "How do you know there are more?"

"...I am eighty-nine percent certain that the little briefing was not arranged by Rajak or the Underworld," Rui replied, narrowing his eyes. "It's not their modus operandi. No...this is the work of someone who is not nearly as accustomed to covert and furtive operations of the kind that is being attempted. The Underworld would have sacrificed the luxury in favor of practicality. They would have briefed us in the middle of a trash valley if it meant lesser probability of being tracked."

"That's true," Master Reina nodded thoughtfully.

Rui narrowed his eyes defiantly. There was still something that didn't add up. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like this was not an initiative from the Underworld so much as an initiative that came from elsewhere and made use of the Underworld's services.

'Yes, that better describes what's happening,' Rui realized. 'The Underworld wouldn't need to use Charles DiVilliers' place as a getaway if it truly was intent on killing me with everything it had. Their own capacity to hide the Kandrian Empire far exceeds that of Charles DiVilliers. The resources that were employed were more reminiscent of someone powerful who is working with their hands tied.'

their absolute control, such that they could use it to

witnessed from my death-wishers ever since being informed about them perfectly fits that of a group of individuals with immense power at their disposal, which they cannot employ

loyalty from their faction. The royals

in their manner of getaway. These three had much greater control over their power and resources than the royals did, and while they all feared the Martial Union too much to use their own Martial resources, which would lead to them being identified and caught, there would be more refinement in their modus operandi even in their

not have demonstrated the nuanced understanding of the operation that I witnessed in the briefing," Rui narrowed his eyes. "These are organizations who are accustomed to outsourcing services to the experts and leave the matter entirely to them with the constraints and objectives specified. They would have simply asked for my covert death

reduced the probability of the true culprit being

for them to trust each other," Rui realized that the probability of the Kandrian government being the true culprit was limited as

the inconsistencies with the modus operandi of the Underworld and what he witnessed, thereby reducing the probability that it was the Underworld. By comparing the known modus operandi of the four suspects

possibilities that he had shortlisted two weeks ago

likely that one or more royals had

Kandrian Throne War and Prince Raul. Since, as hard as it was to believe, the

want me to assassinate them?" Master Reina asked

Master Reina did, he knew that she wasn't jesting in the least.

heaved a sigh, shaking his head. "That