Chapter 144: In Front of Everyone

Ravian had laid bare the falsehood in Sylvan’s performance with hardly any effort. All it had taken was applying pressure to the right weak point, and not a single thing Ravian had said was a lie the others could seize upon.

The supply records really did concern the kitchen. The storeroom was Sylvan’s responsibility. Sylvan had also been slow to return to Aldric and Mirai because he had not known for certain who the killer was, and his wariness of the killer had slowed his steps even further.

Every word was true.

And every implication had silently done its work, shining a light on his mistakes.

Somehow, all the blame in that hall had settled on Sylvan, as though he had done everything short of raising Talia’s hand and making the accusation on her behalf, when in truth, he bore no responsibility for the choice she had made.

’How did simply taking longer to reach and rejoin them turn into all this?’ Sylvan thought as his gaze finally settled on Ravian.

In the end, Sylvan nodded.

But the look he gave Ravian afterward was no longer the same, and Ravian noticed the change the instant it appeared.

Ravian watched Sylvan without allowing his gaze to linger on him for long.

Sylvan was neither the most dangerous person in the palace nor the sharpest mind around the table. Even so, Ravian did not allow himself the luxury of underestimating him.

The frightened man who had once correctly directed his suspicions toward the Correspondence Office after Elena’s death was entirely capable of doing so again.

And next time, he might not voice those suspicions calmly, nor might he stand alone when he did. That was why Ravian treated him with caution. In fact, he treated everyone cautiously, keeping his interactions with them superficial unless he had already singled them out as his next target.

’My God, why have I suddenly started thinking like a serial killer? This cannot be good for my mental health.’ Ravian shook his head.

At that moment, Aldric clapped his hands once.

The sharp sound cut through the heavy silence and drew every gaze toward him.

"We’re changing the way we work. From this moment onward, no task will be assigned in private. Any order concerning work in the palace will be issued here, in this hall, in front of everyone."

Mirai and Ravian immediately nodded once in agreement, as though they had been waiting for this, though, of course, each did so for a different reason rooted in their own interests.

Bran hurriedly added, "That’s fair. And any exchange of tools or keys should be witnessed by at least two people. That way, no one will be able to make up excuses later."

Garrick’s brows drew together.

"That’s all? It doesn’t prevent communication. It only increases the number of people who witness it. Each of us will convey something to someone else dozens of times a day, and the only difference is that it will happen in front of an audience."

"And that is exactly what we need," Ravian replied.

Garrick turned toward him.

Ravian continued calmly, "Talia’s mistake wasn’t merely that she thought she had witnessed communication. She confused seeing an action with witnessing actual communication—a meaning passing between two people—and assumed, based solely on her memory, that a second witness had been present when there had been none. If every necessary communication takes place openly and is recorded, we’ll know who spoke to whom and when. No one will ever again confuse an assumption with the confirmed presence of two witnesses."

’I feel as though I am doing more work here than any of them...’ Ravian thought as he looked around at the others with a bored expression. ’But so far, everything is going according to plan. I hope it stays that way and that no one ruins it.’

Aldric looked at him with unmistakable interest.

He took out his notebook and placed it on the table like a verdict waiting to be written.

"There’s something else," he added, tapping its cover once. "Tonight, there will be no final round of conversations in the hall as before. The written record will take its place. Whatever stands as the final entry beside each person’s name before the first toll of the Black Bell will be treated as that person’s last known communication—witnessed, recorded, and beyond dispute."

’Hmm? But that does not change anything, does it?’ Ravian frowned as he watched Aldric speak.

Then he noticed the glance Aldric and Mirai exchanged.

It was barely noticeable; Aldric’s eyes merely flicked toward her for a fraction of a second as he uttered the words "witnessed and recorded."

’...They communicated in secret,’ Ravian guessed. ’In fact, they even made a plan in advance and decided not to reveal it.’

Ravian’s expression grew colder as he looked at them, and he sensed a hint of danger.

’But how did they trust each other?’ The question hung unanswered in his mind.

Then Ravian’s eyes widened in realization before he restored his usual expression.

’One of them is the Mage... and the other knows it,’ Ravian realized. ’I have been far too lenient with them.’

Whatever understanding existed between them had been formed beyond his notice, and that alone made it dangerous. Until he discovered which of them was the Mage and what agreement bound them together, he could no longer afford to treat either of them as a secondary concern.

Yet someone else was watching Ravian at that very moment, paying no attention to anything Aldric was saying.

He had dark blond hair and a slender build, and his gaze then shifted to Mirai and Aldric.

’Something is going on here...’ Sylvan thought with certainty, briefly closing his eyes before refocusing on Aldric.

What he did not notice, however, was that at the very moment his gaze left Mirai and Aldric, a pair of crimson eyes fixed intently on him, as though their owner had noticed something and then...

made a decision.