blueteamnovel Chapter 373. Trying to be smart - 2
Chapter 373. Trying to be smart - 2
William looked at the three women with a calm expression on his face. There was no concern or tension in his eyes despite the attack that had just taken place. Instead, the corners of his lips slowly curved upward into an amused smile.
"They are planning something, but it is definitely not my assassination," he said before letting out a chuckle.
Samantha frowned in confusion as she stared at him.
"What could it possibly be?" she asked, still unable to understand what he meant.
"I think I know."
Tamasya suddenly spoke, drawing everyone’s attention toward her.
"The outside world knows very little about William. They have only seen him properly on two occasions. The first time was during the Archon’s speech, and the second was when he reclaimed his empire."
She paused for a moment as she organized her thoughts.
"Both of those events created an image of William that is completely different from reality. He has a habit of making extremely bold statements with absolute confidence. To people who have never personally met him, that would naturally create a very different impression."
A faint smile appeared on her face as she looked at William.
"They probably see him as a sixteen-year-old young man filled with arrogance, hot blood, and an uncontrollable temper."
She released a quiet sigh before continuing.
"So what happens when a person with that temper is suddenly attacked in the middle of the night in his room?"
Tamasya looked around at the others. The women slowly widened their eyes as realization began to dawn on them.
William continued from where Tamasya had stopped.
"They must believe that I would immediately declare war against the Crimson Wolves. And with the backing of an empire, the master mind knows very well that I possess enough strength to erase an organization like them from existence."
His voice remained calm throughout, almost as if he were discussing an ordinary matter.
"That is why their objective was never to kill me."
Silence spread through the room.
"They want me to go to the Crimson Wolves’ base."
William leaned back slightly as he spoke.
"There are two possibilities after that."
"The first possibility is that the mastermind has prepared an ambush for me. However, that is highly unlikely. Anyone capable of arranging something this elaborate would also have seen the broadcast of founder festival and know that I have someone beside me who can kill Primarchs."
He lightly tapped his finger against his arm.
"So the second possibility is far more likely to be the case."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"The mastermind has probably planted misleading clues inside the Crimson Wolves’ base. Clues that would guide us toward believing that some other faction or individual was behind this assassination attempt."
William finished speaking.
The women standing before him felt a chill run through them as the entire situation suddenly became much clearer.
If William’s assumptions were true, then the mastermind’s true goal was terrifyingly simple. Someone wanted to make them perceive another faction as an enemy and force them into conflict.
William quietly walked toward the bed and sat down on its edge. Crossing his arms, he closed his eyes and fell into deep thought.
A few seconds later, he raised his hand and clapped once.
Instantly, several figures emerged from the shadows of the room as if they had always been there.
One after another, they kneeled before him. Barash and Ronin stepped forward and lowered themselves respectfully.
William remained seated with his arms crossed and his eyes still closed.
Then he finally spoke.
"Barash, prepare a complete list of all assassin organizations operating in the northern areas. Be sure to include Riverdale, Babylon, Sylvaris, and even empires whose influence may seem distant from our current location, but is still within reasonable reach. I want every organization that someone could freely commission without exposing their identity, and is bold enough to go against high-profile people."
Barash lowered his head.
"It will be done."
William nodded before turning toward Ronin.
"Ronin, take the legion members and capture the top leader of the Crimson Wolves. Place a slave mark on him and bring him to me."
His tone remained casual, but every word carried authority.
"If he isn’t present, then bring whoever stands highest in the hierarchy."
He paused briefly.
"Use light poisons and toxins to subdue every member of the organization. Avoid killing them if possible."
Ronin silently listened.
"Try to enslave as many as you can. Leave a few high-ranking members alive and let them escape."
A faint smile formed on William’s face.
"After they escape, burn down their headquarters and bring everyone else into my domain; leave some corpses behind; it should feel to the survivors that everyone is dead."
He paused before remembering something.
"And stop recruiting new servants for a few days."
William issued a series of orders to the fifty personnel under his command without the slightest hesitation.
At the same time, he understood that it was becoming increasingly necessary to expand the size of his legion.
For now, however, he would have to make do with the numbers he possessed.
Fortunately, every member under him was highly ranked and more than capable of handling a low-level assassin organization.
Soon after, William summoned Grimlock and Amorphous from the Domain of Infinite.
Among everyone under him, these two had enjoyed the most free time after finishing their initial assignments. William had specifically instructed both of them to focus properly on cultivation.
Grimlock had reached the Ascension Realm.
Meanwhile, Amorphous had advanced even further and had reached the Divine Authority Realm.
It had taken him only twenty days to achieve that progress. Inside the Domain of Infinite, however, those twenty days had translated into twenty years.
William stared at him for a moment before shaking his head. It seemed that he really needed to improve the overall growth speed of everyone under him.
Without wasting time, he instructed both of them to accompany Ronin and assist him in dealing with the Crimson Wolves organization.
After finishing everything, William finally turned toward the women.
All of them were staring at him with wide eyes filled with questions.
He looked back at them for a few seconds. Then he yawned.
"Let’s go to sleep."
The woman stared at him in disbelief.
After giving so many orders and uncovering a conspiracy, this was his reaction?
Anastasia finally could not hold back anymore.
"Why did you ask Barash to make a list of assassin organizations?" she asked. "Are you planning on commissioning them?"
William had already lazily leaned back against his pillow by then.
He rubbed his forehead and replied without even opening his eyes.
"No. Those organizations are likely going to be used by the mastermind against the other target on our behalf."
Seeing the confusion on their faces, he continued.
"If they intend to throw us into conflict with someone, they won’t only ignite the flames on our side."
His eyes slowly opened. "They will do the same thing on the opposite side as well."
William looked toward the ceiling. "They’ll create fabricated evidence and point it toward us."
A dangerous glint appeared in his eyes.
"If we can identify which assassin organization or which tool the mastermind intends to use, then we can trace him directly without getting dragged into the fire he wants to create."
The room fell silent again.
Then William suddenly turned his head. "Mom."
Anne looked toward him.
"Please stay vigilant. Keep an eye out for any unusual incidents, strange happenings, or suspicious attempts on the lives of important individuals in other empires."
His voice became serious for the first time that night.
"Because if what I feel is right, then this mastermind won’t stop just because we were able to uncover some dirty trick. Until we have an army and the empire is stable enough, we need to control the amount of aggression we show as an empire and not give anyone the warrant to start a war on us."