Wizard: I devour the stars with swarms of insects.

Furthermore, during his previous observations, Wayne recalled that the bite wounds on the corpses did not show any signs of disease.

If it was indeed caused by biting and contracted drought disease, why are there no pathological traces of any disease around the wound?

Having studied biology and pathology in his previous life, Wayne felt that this situation was... somewhat abnormal and illogical.

"..."

Wayne thought for a moment and suddenly had an idea.

So, Wayne went over to the food scraps that had been on the table in the living room.

Gazing at the fleas lurking on it, Wayne had a sudden inspiration and summoned the [Hive] intelligence, opening the Hive network.

"Initiating connection."

Wayne said.

Next, I will cast the sorcery spell [Spirit Binding Threads].

Scattered threads of spiritual binding emanated from between the eyebrows, their ends connecting to the flea in front of the eyes.

[Connecting... Connection complete!]

Now that his mental strength has reached the level of a second-class wizard apprentice, connecting with these simple creatures, fleas, is effortless.

Therefore, in the blink of an eye, it has connected and included all the fleas around the food scraps in its own "hive" network, making them several information nodes.

Furthermore, after activating consciousness sharing, multiple images appeared before Wayne's eyes, showcasing different scenes from the perspective of the [Flea]: food scraps, a tabletop, dust...

Next, Wayne issued commands using his mind.

So the fleas hopped and jumped onto Wayne's arm.

then.

Wayne went to the spot where he had seen the rats in the kitchen, crouched down, and used his mind to control the fleas.

After hopping and landing on the ground, it quickly leaped onto the rats, hid, and buried itself in their fur.

Because Wayne used [Thorn Tongue], writhing under the counter like a venomous snake, he circled around the rats.

So the mice were so frightened that they huddled in the corner, too scared to move.

They could only let the fleas fall into their fur.

Next, Wayne slowly left the kitchen and went into the living room.

After I left and walked away, the rats seemed to calm down a bit and began to rustle as they fled the scene, moving around the corners and under the counter.

Soon, they seemed to have arrived at the place where they had dug the tunnel before, and they buried themselves inside.

At that moment, Wayne activated the [Hive] network in front of him.

Within the [Honeycomb] network, several screen nodes appear, displaying the [Flea's] perspective.

Because these fleas are now lurking on the rats.

Therefore, what I see is the scene around the rat. The flea is being carried away by the rat, leaving the central city and heading to other areas.

"Yes, that's it!"

Wayne's eyes lit up.

My plan is to let these rats take the fleas away, and then see what's going on with the rats from the fleas' perspective.

Let's see if they really are... the "culprit" behind the spread of drought!

"Start recording the mice's movements and archive the 'flea' footage to build a database!"

[Dynamic monitoring has been enabled and is currently in progress!]

A notification from Hive Intelligence came to my mind.

So, Wayne closed the [Honeycomb] interface in front of him and started the background automatic running mode to dynamically detect the movement of the mice.

A few minutes later, when Wayne came outside the room, Holman saw him come out and asked.

"What's up, Junior Brother Wayne? Did you find anything inside?"

"It's nothing," Wayne shook his head and said, "Let's go."

Next, the two left the city center.

In the other districts most severely affected by the drought plague, Wayne had Holman lead him on a tour of all of them.

Many areas in the city have been sealed off, with roads and entrances blocked by wooden stakes and barricades.

The defending soldiers were fully armed, with their faces covered by cloth, as if they wanted to protect themselves down to their teeth.

Only Wayne and Holman, two wizard apprentices, dared to enter the deadliest part of the plague outbreak and investigate the plague and disease.

Midway through, Wayne used an excuse to separate from Holman for a while, and then repeated the same operation as before.

Connect several fleas to your own hive network, then manipulate them to approach the surrounding mice and jump on them.

Establish files and conduct continuous 24-hour monitoring.

Finally, Wayne connected to nearly a hundred flea nodes within the [Hive] network.

In any case, using the [Honeycomb] AI to connect to and control these fleas with their simple biological structures is an incredibly easy task.

With his mental strength as a second-level wizard apprentice, he was already capable of handling such a scale of information.

Finally, a huge data network was laid out and established around the central urban area, creating a dynamic monitoring cellular network.

Soon, evening arrived.

The sky, shrouded in a heavy mist and bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, took on a blood-red hue. As night fell, even fewer pedestrians remained on the streets.

The surroundings were deserted, like a ghost town.

"It's getting late, let's call it a day, Junior Brother Wayne!" Holman said with a somewhat helpless expression.

"After all... this isn't something that can be rushed."

Previously, I had spent nearly half a year investigating this place, but I hadn't found anything.

It's impossible to make any breakthroughs in just a short time today, is it?

"You must have had a long and tiring journey here, and haven't eaten yet, right? I'll take you to try Victoria Territory's specialty, 'clam chowder,' it's quite delicious."

Holman said.

"Okay, thank you for your help, senior brother."

Wayne said.

"Oh, what are you saying! Junior Brother Wayne, you're too kind."

Holman said with a smile.

"You've come to help, so I'm the one who should be thanking you. Please don't blame your senior brother for not being hospitable enough."

Thank you for your trouble.

So, Holman then led Wayne and the others to the Lord's Hall of Greyhawk Keep.

Soon, they arrived at the Lord's Hall, where Earl Victoria resided.

The guards at the gate bowed respectfully and greeted Holman.

"Young Master Holman, welcome back!"

Although this young master Holman was never home before, he has only been back for half a year this time.

However, they dared not show any disrespect to the eldest son of the Earl of Victoria; on the contrary, they treated him with extraordinary respect, even more so than the Earl of Victoria himself.

Because this young master is a legendary wizard...

Those extraordinary beings that exist in people's legends, capable of summoning wind and rain and possessing all sorts of mysterious and unpredictable abilities.

Holman nodded slightly and asked casually.

"Is Father feeling any better today?"

"Reporting to you, young master, the Earl looks much better today. This afternoon, he even accompanied Miss Lilith for a walk in the garden."

One of the guards answered.

He wore three feathers on his helmet, making him appear to be the leader of the guards.

"Is that so..." Holman's eyes brightened, and his expression became much lighter. "That's good."

Next, Holman led Wayne and the others, preparing to enter the courtyard through the gate.

Just then, suddenly...

Whoosh—!

A magnificent, heavy carriage suddenly sped out from the courtyard of the lord's hall.

The carriage was made of dark hardwood, and the carriage was decorated with a beautiful violet pattern.

As the carriage passed by them, its speed did not decrease at all, and it did not care whether it might hit the pedestrians next to it, speeding past like the wind.

The heavy wheels rumbled, kicking up turf and splashing mud everywhere. As the carriage hurtled towards them, Holman and Wayne quickly dodged to avoid it.

They narrowly missed the tall, heavy carriage.

"Damn it...who is it?!" Holman's words trailed off as he looked up and saw the markings on the carriage's exterior. His expression shifted slightly as he said, "This is..."