Witch, Fireball and the Evil God of Steam-Chapter 804 - 143: Become an Evil God

Ethan didn't expect to meet his former companion Zophie earlier than Lance.

In Lance's description, Zophie was a legendary assassin responsible for intelligence gathering. His intelligence had often given the squad the upper hand in battles against the Demon King. Zophie himself was like the stereotypical Assassin Master—silent and taciturn, always maintaining a cool demeanor in everyday life.

Ethan found it hard to connect the "pet" crawling at the feet of the Third Princess of the Empire with the Assassin Master as depicted by Lance.

Zophie was also the reason Lance pretended to faint, aiming to infiltrate the Duke Ash Clan undercover. He was sure that Ilya and the Empire's nobles wouldn't kill Zophie easily. After capturing him, they would likely use Zophie's dire state to provoke him, and at that moment, he would suddenly erupt and rescue his good brother.

"Surprised? In the Imperial Capital, this is normal."

Ilya smiled and explained to Ethan, "Even steel-like willpower is nothing in the face of drugs and contract spells. The Third Princess is an experienced pet trainer, and Zophie is only a minor challenge for her."

While speaking, Ilya quietly observed Ethan's expression.

She had listened to the Imperial Army's report. Unlike those foolish citizens, she didn't trust this young noble who appeared out of nowhere, nor did she believe he had "coincidentally" picked up the slack, bringing the unconscious Lance to the Imperial Army camp when Lance and the Simpler Duke's assassin fought to a standstill.

There were too many suspicious points here.

M.I.A. assassin, the strangest part was that the Imperial Army couldn't capture any of the Rebel Army except for Lance. According to the testimonies of nobles who were aboard the crashed airship, the Rebel Army deployed a lot of personnel, all well-trained and armed with muskets. This group would be a threat in any city.

According to the account Ethan provided to the Imperial Army, the assassins sent by Duke Ash killed many Rebels, and the survivors escaped into the deep forest. Curiously, before attending this banquet, she specially contacted the Security Office of Gear City, and there wasn't a peep; the Rebel Army didn't appear in disarray even after supposedly losing their leader.

Ilya knew Lance.

A righteous, genuine swordsman.

Therefore, he would definitely find every way to ensure the safety of those refugees.

Ilya tried to put herself in Lance's position, think through his perspective, and the answer became obvious—he would use himself as bait to draw the Imperial Army's attention, providing enough opportunity for the refugees to evacuate.

This way, all the doubts could be explained.

The Simpler Clan, driven mad by their illegitimate child's death, and those Achievement-obsessed Kingdom Army eager to return Lance to the Imperial Capital for rewards, they wouldn't focus on the refugees' movements at such a critical moment.

After all, compared to the "Strongest Man in the Empire," the Hero Squad's Great Swordsman, and the Rebel Army leader Lance, everyone else was insignificant. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

However, Lance still needed someone to execute his plan.

Ilya's gaze fell on Ethan. She couldn't yet determine the relationship between Ethan and Lance because all the nobles in Gear City knew Ethan. He didn't seem to know Lance beforehand, and Ilya was confident they hadn't encountered this young man during their expedition against the Demon King.

After all, his appearance was decent enough to attract many noblewomen in the Imperial Capital, and if encountered, certainly would've left a deep impression on her.

Whether this was Lance and Ethan plotting together, or Ethan being coerced by Lance post-abduction...

Such doubts wouldn't last long.

The Security Office of Gear City brought good news. Late tonight, a crew member from the crashed airship fled back to Gear City, claiming he was at the Rebel camp and witnessed many events. He needed detective protection to be escorted to the Imperial Capital to personally report the Rebel Army's movements to His Majesty Henry.

Now that crew member was on the way to the Imperial Capital; it wouldn't be long before the true identity of this "young noble" would surface.

Ilya intentionally made contact with Ethan. Early during the banquet, she had been quietly observing Ethan. This "young noble" gave her a very special feeling, hence she invited Ethan to attend this gathering, and Ethan's response to the pet party further confirmed her suspicions.

As a noble, Ethan was too "detached from material desires."

In reality, Duke Ash wasn't unfair to him, specially providing him an entry invitation, knowing that those eligible to attend this gathering were notable figures in the Silver Radiance Empire. Associating with any of them could alter his future trajectory. Any socially adept noble, even if risking disdain, would surely network and promote themselves with thick skin.

With minor embellishments, he could take credit for "capturing the Strongest Man in the Empire" for himself.

Yet Ethan didn't do that. Before Ilya approached him, Ethan was sitting in a corner playing with his cat. Could this young man possibly expect those significant figures to initiate conversation with him?