Raise Joan of Arc to be an empress, then discard her.

In Dylan's words, Lister was an absolute beauty. He described Lister not only as having hot springs but also as a renowned summer resort, abundant in coconuts, with a royal palace and the former residence of a queen. The town was elegant and quiet, its inhabitants refined in speech; there was no better place in the world to escape the sweltering summer.

When discussing the speculative trading, Dylan even invited Aaron along, suggesting that what Dylan really wanted to do was offer Ristla a job rather than pursue Carol.

This is understandable. Dylan is just a baron, and he is obviously more interested in pursuing wealth than power. Sending Carol to Lister for the summer would undoubtedly bring Lister a lot of prestige, which would be equivalent to a flood of wealth for him. That's why he is so eager to please Carol.

The Duke's daughter could certainly spend the entire summer in Lister, but Aaron had neither the time nor the interest. He put down the invitation and intended to write a polite rejection letter.

*

Esgard, the city center.

The entire city was alarmed, and pedestrians were discussing it on the streets because they had woken up this morning to find a small building in the city reduced to ruins.

The good news is that the explosion was small and there were no casualties. The bad news is that two nearby buildings were also affected, and people in the vicinity are in a state of panic.

The sirens blared incessantly in the streets. Mounted police arrived late at night and were maintaining order. They breathed a sigh of relief when they found no one was injured. By morning, the police had arrived and began collecting clues from the scene.

The explosion occurred in the city center, near the residences of many important figures. Some of these figures showed concern, which alerted even the sheriff, who came to oversee the situation personally.

The sheriff rode a tall white horse, wearing a police hat and a crisp uniform, his face serious, looking very serious about the case.

A detective crouched in front of the ruins, carefully collecting pink dust from the ground and putting it into a plastic bag. After finishing, he sighed deeply.

The detective was incredibly unlucky this time. The explosion happened right on his patrol route. Not only did he lose his year-end bonus, but the reputation he had worked so hard to build would also be completely destroyed with the explosion. He felt utterly terrible.

The worst part was that there were no clues about the bombing, the cause of the explosion was unknown, and there were no eyewitnesses. They searched inside for half a morning but found nothing useful. They couldn't even find anything flammable or explosive in the house, only a pile of pink dust. Thinking about this, the detective felt desperate.

Don't be fooled by the sheriff riding behind him on a white horse, seemingly calm and collected; he's actually watching with predatory intent.

He knew very well the nature of his blustering but cowardly police chief. To get the job done, he wouldn't hesitate to use any means to force his men to comply. He would likely be the first to be sacrificed, and the thought of that future filled him with despair.

The detective sighed and was about to hand the evidence to the sheriff when suddenly a chill ran through him as he sensed a dark figure appear behind him.

The sight of this in broad daylight was truly startling. He immediately turned around, flashed his badge, and discovered that standing behind him was a young man in a black robe. The young man looked to be about the same age as him, wearing a long black robe, and was squinting at the pink powder in his hand.

"Who...who are you?"

Seeing the young man's black robe, the detective dared not react too violently. All the police officers in Asgard knew that Asgard was full of hidden talents, and that even a brick thrown at someone could hit a knight. They dared not lose their temper easily.

The young man showed off the ring in his hand: "Obsidian Knights, let me see what you have in your hand."

"The... Obsidian Knights?"

The detective examined the ring on the young man's hand with trepidation. When he discovered that it was very likely genuine, he was stunned. He never expected that his case would arouse the interest of a dignified Obsidian Knight.

"Can I see that thing?" the knight asked, seeing the detective's stunned expression.

The detective hurriedly handed the pink powder to the other party.

The young man held the pink dust to his head, examining the dust inside the plastic bag in the sunlight, and casually asked, "Were there any casualties?"

Even though the other person wasn't his superior, the detective immediately replied, as if the other person possessed some kind of magic: "No... no casualties have been found."

"Where are the explosives? Have they been found?" the knight asked again.

"No, no explosives were found at the scene... It's also possible that our investigation wasn't thorough enough..."

"Such a huge explosion, and there weren't any casualties? Not even any limb remains were found?" The young man frowned, scrutinizing him, making the detective uneasy.

The detective had no choice but to say:

“No, sir… Although we also think it’s impossible… we’ve searched the place thoroughly, and we haven’t found a single explosive device… The only thing left at the scene is pink dust, which is truly incredible… We believe… it’s a supernatural event.”

When the detective faced a powerful figure and felt at a loss, honesty seemed to be the only thing he could rely on. Without realizing it, he revealed everything he knew, and he didn't even know that he could be so honest in front of such a powerful person.

The young man remained silent, staring at the pink powder in his hand.

"Such a huge explosion, and you didn't even find a trace of gunpowder? Didn't you even catch a culprit? What were you doing?"

The sheriff, who had somehow appeared behind the detective, had just finished reprimanding him. Now, with a fawning expression, he said to the young man, "Lord Aaron, how did this case come to your attention?"

The young man's name was Aaron? The detective thought. Even the sheriff wanted to curry favor with him. He truly deserved to be called the Obsidian Knight. However, thinking about his own future situation, the detective lowered his head in disappointment.

“I happen to live around here,” Aaron told the sheriff.

"So it was the explosion that alerted you, sir. We will investigate this case as quickly as possible! We will absolutely not disturb you knights!" the sheriff said.

Hearing the sheriff's words, the detective felt a pang of sadness; it seemed the pressure would ultimately fall back on him.

Aaron glanced at the sheriff, shook his head, and turned to the detective, saying, "Are you sure there's no trace of explosives at the scene, and no injuries whatsoever?"

Facing the young man's gaze, the detective felt immense pressure. At this moment, the sheriff chimed in, "Answer my question, sir: are you sure you've searched thoroughly?"

"Yes, I'm pretty sure. There were no traces found at the scene. This explosion... it's like it happened out of nowhere. We all find it very strange... but we're trying to find clues. Maybe we've missed something..."

Despite his desperation, the detective persisted in sticking to his judgment.

The detective, with his eyes closed, had already endured the barrage of questions from the other man. But after a while, he heard the man say, "Good, just as I predicted."

"The same..." The detective opened his eyes in disbelief.

"But there were no explosives... no casualties... not even a trace... so how did the explosion happen?" the detective couldn't help but ask.

“Extraordinary power? If things involve extraordinary power, aren’t these things quite normal?” Aaron said.

"Supernatural powers?" the detective thought. "That's a really useful excuse. I wish all detectives could just blame supernatural powers when they investigated cases."

“But sir, true supernatural events are very rare, and you’ve taken away the only clue… how are we supposed to investigate this case…” the detective said blankly.

"This is not something you can investigate."

“You did a great job and were very perceptive, but when you go back, transfer this case from the police station to me. I will handle this matter, and after that, this case has nothing to do with you.”

After saying that, the knight left with pink dust, leaving the detective standing there dumbfounded, feeling a sense of helplessness after surviving a disaster.

*

"Spontaneous detonation, only a pure self-detonation would leave behind this pink dust."

At the Obsidian Knights headquarters, the intelligence officer spoke to the pink dust that Aaron had brought:

"These pink dust particles are the byproducts of the self-destruction, but usually such self-destructions leave behind some limb remains. It is rare for a self-destruction to leave no limb remains at all, which proves that the body was fully burned during the self-destruction process and turned into fuel for the self-destruction without any waste."

Roach Acerlin, that's the name of the intelligence officer sitting in front of Aaron. He's the Obsidian Knight, the Knights' intelligence expert, a supernatural power expert, and one of Aaron's most trusted subordinates.

"Is this supernatural power?" Aaron asked.

Roach shook his head: "Does Lord Aaron believe that some people's extraordinary abilities are self-destruction? Perhaps, but it's not him. I'm more inclined to believe that it's a kind of human modification technology."

"I remember a year ago this technology of turning people into explosives was still in the theoretical stage. Has it now been put into practice?"

The Obsidian Knights are among the most closely connected individuals in the kingdom to the secrets. They all know that since the development of self-destruct technology, despite differing opinions on the technology, all nations have been actively researching it.

Roach shared his opinion: "From a purely military perspective, I don't think that having superhumans self-destruct is very efficient, but the big shots don't think so. Many big shots believe that this technology can change the future."

The Lusset leadership has always believed that low-level superhumans cannot influence the battlefield. However, if self-destructive human modification technology becomes possible, even ordinary people could harm a superhuman. This power both terrifies and entices the powerful, so naturally they want this technology. Aaron and Roach both know this.

"Why would someone self-destruct there? What's the point of self-destructing there?" Aaron asked.

"Lord Aaron, are you aware of a secret research institute in the kingdom located nearby?"

There are places in Lucert that are not marked on maps, where the Lucert Research Base is located. The location of such research bases is always classified, and it is difficult for even low-ranking officers to know about them, let alone ordinary people.

"You mean, there's a spy?"

"We received a message an hour ago that the No. 7 secret research institute was burglarized last night. Based on the information we have, the incident is roughly as follows: the spy stole the secret research institute's data and fled towards the city center. Unable to escape, he chose to self-destruct in the city center. The problem now is that we don't know what data he stole or whether he passed the information out."

Does the research institute have any valuable information?

“We have always been ahead of other countries in research, even in this kind of self-destruct technology. However, other countries obviously think that instead of doing their own research, they might as well steal the research results of other countries. Unfortunately, they may have already stolen them.”

Aaron stared at the research report Roach had taken out and said, "But I remember this self-destruction technology. The self-destruction itself isn't the key; the material is. This technology requires a very crucial material called pink crystal." Aaron said, while looking at the plastic bag filled with pink dust.

“The sir is right.”

"I remember this substance is extremely rare, there aren't many in the whole world, but half a year ago, we discovered a deposit rich in it in the high cliffs within our territory. His Majesty attached great importance to it at the time, and mining should have started long ago," Aaron added.

“What you say is very true, sir. That mine should have been almost completely mined out. Our people are responsible for protecting that mine.”

At this point, both of them fell silent. After a long while, Aaron said, "We can't be complacent. The spies may have already spread the news, and they may have already discovered the mine."

Aaron fell silent again. This time, Roach did not interrupt Aaron easily. After a long while, Aaron asked, "Who is in charge of guarding that mine?"

“It is Lord Charles,” Roach replied.

"Pass on my orders to Charles, instructing him to strengthen the defenses. Also, send people to investigate the leak at the research institute. Report to me immediately if anything happens, as they are very likely to launch an attack within our borders."

"Launching an attack on our territory? Isn't that tantamount to starting a war?" Roach's eyes narrowed. "Sir, although it's not quite right to say it like that, I think it's making a mountain out of a molehill."

Unlike other knightly orders, the Obsidian Knights have never had a strong sense of hierarchy, so Roach dared to offer his suggestions to Aaron.

Aaron shook his head: "Only two countries in the world can cultivate such extraordinary individuals who can fully burn their bodies and turn them into fuel. One is our Lusset, and the other is Chernobog. As for the others, don't say anything more, just do as I say."

"Yes, Lord Aaron."

Chapter 26 Unveiling the Conspiracy

A month passed in the blink of an eye, and a lot happened during that time.

Aaron warned Charles, who was guarding the mine. For a while after receiving the news, Charles was very vigilant and frequently sent people to investigate the surrounding area, looking for any signs of potential danger.

But all indications suggest that there is no danger near High Cliff Valley. High Cliff Valley used to be a desolate place, and it still is. Apart from the crisscrossing ravines, there are only a few scattered migrants. Aaron's worries seem unnecessary.

At first, people were very concerned about the possibility of the intelligence being leaked, but as time went on, the opinions of the Knights began to split into two camps. One camp suspected that perhaps the intelligence had not been leaked at all.

Those who support the claim that the intelligence was not leaked argue that there is no evidence that the spies actually discovered the High Cliff Valley. Even if they did, it is unlikely that the enemy would actually attack there. The High Cliff Valley is located in the center of Lucerne. Would the enemy really fight them inside Lucerne?

Moreover, even from a preventative standpoint, they have already stationed over a dozen Obsidian Knights there, making the local defense level very high.

The opposition argues that the high cliff valley where the mine is located is far from Esgard, the stronghold of the three major knightly orders, and is situated in central Lusset. The terrain there is complex and treacherous, with plenty of places to hide. If the enemy has the patience, they could lie low for months or even years, waiting to strike when the enemy is at their weakest.

However, the supporters argue that if the enemy had indeed discovered the mineral deposits, they should have attacked the moment the intelligence was leaked. Why wait until now? Based on Occam's Razor, they believe that the absence of an intelligence leak best explains the situation, and that Aaron is simply making a mountain out of a molehill.

The supporters' argument is not without merit. If they wanted to attack High Cliff Valley, they should have launched an attack the moment they discovered it. That way, they could have caught the Obsidian Knights off guard, and Lucret would have had no window of opportunity to send reinforcements.

They've been dragging their feet, giving the Obsidian Knights ample time to prepare. Even if we assume they have a plan, what are they waiting for? High Cliff Valley is a place even crows don't want to linger. It's been unchanged for millennia, and there's almost no change there. You can't find a town within ten miles. What are they waiting for?

It seems this matter will have to be put on hold. The supporters' arguments appear more reasonable, while the opposition's arguments lack supporting evidence.

Moreover, they have already stationed more than a dozen Obsidian Knights there. A dozen Obsidian Knights can handle most situations. Although it's not entirely worry-free, the security level of High Cliff Valley is still very high. There are other more dangerous places in the kingdom that need their protection.

Even those who supported Aaron had nothing to say, because they also had to admit that the High Cliff Mountains were a place that remained unchanged year after year. If they were to wait, what were they waiting for?

Late at night, at the headquarters of the Obsidian Knights, Aaron sat quietly in the dim shadows, with occasional flickering firelight illuminating his slightly tired face.

He worked late into the night again, and when he came to his senses, he realized that he hadn't been home for several days.