Two hours ago, Madam was dragged out of her home on Xike Street by the Duke's Mansion's personal guards and escorted into the dungeon.

The guards slammed the documents searched from Madam's home onto the interrogation table, which contained correspondence with the Black Robe Society. Then, under Madam's shivering gaze, a guard used a red-hot dagger to lift her veil. The blade was less than two centimeters from her tender white cheek, the scorching heat burning her skin. Madam's pupils shrank sharply, revealing a look of terror.

The guard warned in a cold voice, "If you don't tell us everything you know, I'll use this dagger to leave a lifelong, unhealable scar on your cheek."

Madam was merely an ordinary member of the Black Robe Society, not a core figure. She had neither much loyalty nor had she ever received anti-interrogation training. Her eyes filled with tears, and with almost no excessive interrogation, she sobbed and confessed everything.

The Black Robe Society used single-line contact, so Madam didn't know much, but she knew of a few important members in the Xike Street district. One was the already dead Hammerhead Shark, and the other was the Duke's currently most favored manservant, Bai Yu.

Madam also confessed that the Black Robe Society had issued instructions through her, ordering Bai Yu to mix a type of powder into the Duke's tea, with the agreed time being right before the regular meeting started.

And right now, Bai Yu was accompanying the Grand Duke, attending the regular meeting.

The guard did not dare to delay and immediately went to the regular meeting, whispering in the Duke's ear to explain the entire situation.

Consequently, Bai Yu noticed that Imuel, who was beside him, suddenly tensed up.

The Grand Duke's face turned pale as gold paper. His lake-blue eyes first showed disbelief, then anger, and finally turned into silent sorrow.

...The doctor was from the Black Robe Society?

The Black Robe Society was the most notorious underworld gang in the local area. On the surface, it was just an unpresentable gang, no different from the various large and small gang groups in the streets and markets of Illyria. However, in reality, the man in power behind it was Imuel's own uncle, who was the chief culprit behind the Duke's injury and fall from the cliff. The two factions were irreconcilable enemies, mutually incompatible like fire and water, with absolutely no possibility of reconciliation.

The doctor came from such a gang.

The news was too sudden and entirely unexpected. Imuel shut his eyes tightly and clenched his fingers, his nails almost digging into his palms, but he couldn't even feel the pain. He just thought blankly:

—In this way, many things could be explained.

For example, why the inherently cold and indifferent doctor had come to be selected as a manservant; why Hammerhead Shark and Madam had chosen to talk at the doctor's door; why the doctor had torn up a note and thrown it into the sewer; and also... why the doctor was so good to him.

The doctor was indifferent by nature, but towards the Duke, he immediately cared about his health, intervened in his meals and accommodation, minded his staying up late, and his refusal to eat vegetables, and so on and so forth... At first, Imuel was quite pleased with himself, thinking he was different and that the doctor had a strong preference for him, but now he realized that this wasn't the case.

Those kind treatments were merely part of his undercover work.

Imuel lowered his eyes, suddenly curling his lips in self-deprecation, revealing a mocking and sarcastic expression. He thought apathetically that he might have gotten one thing wrong.

What Bai Yu liked was the kitten, and the kitten was never Imuel.

To Imuel, the kitten and the Duke were one and the same. With the doctor, they both felt cared for for the first time, were kissed for the first time, hugged for the first time, taken care of when sick for the first time... and purely liked for the first time.

At the same time, they both equally longed for and relied on the doctor's body temperature, and equally yearned to demand more love from the doctor. But this was only true for Imuel; to Bai Yu, they were two completely different things.

The kitten was the doctor's pet, looking cute and endearing. It could be picked up by the doctor with one hand, placed on his shoulder, and tucked into the quilt. The one Bai Yu had held, kissed, and liked was always that fluffy platinum kitten, and the one he took proper care of was also that platinum kitten.

But what was the Duke?

The Duke was the highest ruler of Illyria, a cruel and dictatorial tyrant, the enemy of the Black Robe Society, and the target the doctor needed to carefully lurk around, waiting for an opportunity to assassinate.

Over these past few days, the Duke had dressed up grandly in front of the doctor countless times. He possessed the most brilliant face and the most luxurious robes in the entire city-state, yet the doctor never showed the slightest interest.

He never had any interest in Imuel.

The doctor's attitude toward the Duke consisted only of cold disregard and perfunctoriness. The few times they were close were right before the regular meeting.

Actually, given the doctor's personality, he shouldn't have let Imuel sleep against his knee, shouldn't have earnestly adjusted Imuel's belt and bowtie, shouldn't have interfered with Imuel's meals and accommodation, and certainly shouldn't have let Imuel... have the illusion of being favored.

Every single act was merely to get Imuel to bring him to attend the regular meeting, just to sprinkle the unknown powder into his tea.

The favoritism Imuel thought he had was nothing but his own wishful thinking and self-deception.

The Grand Duke's expression was truly awful, and the air pressure around him was extremely low. The guards' legs trembled in fear. Not daring to say much, they only probed quietly beside the Duke, "Then, Grand Duke, the regular meeting is about to convene. Should your subordinates take Bai Yu away first?"

"..."

Silence.

Imuel pinched the teacup with his fingertips and said astringently, "Take him where?"

Guard: "...Uh, the dungeon?"

This question was truly bizarre. Where else could a spy of the Black Robe Society be taken if not the dungeon for strict interrogation?

"..."

A deeper silence.

The Grand Duke's lips pressed into a straight line, and he closed his eyes with a trace of exhaustion. He opened his mouth to speak but finally said weakly, "...This matter has not yet been fully investigated. There is no rush, hold off taking action for now."

The guard was taken aback: "Grand Duke, that woman has confessed everything, and the evidence is conclusive. We have already investigated—"

Before he could finish, he heard the Duke reprimand with a flash of anger, "Shut up."

He wearily raised his fingers to rub his brow. "I said it hasn't been investigated clearly, so it hasn't. There are still many doubtful points. We'll discuss it after the banquet is over."

Exposing the undercover identity in front of everyone was tantamount to sealing the coffin and passing a final verdict. When that happened, there would be no room for a turning point.

When the two spoke, they deliberately distanced themselves from Bai Yu, so Bai Yu couldn't hear anything clearly.

After Imuel sat down, Bai Yu poured tea with his usual expression. However, two tall and sturdy guards walked over from the corner, wearing sabers on their belts. One in front and one behind, one on the left and one on the right, they perfectly blocked Bai Yu in the middle, completely cutting off any possibility of him making contact with Duke Imuel.

Bai Yu's movements paused.

System 55 lay on his shoulder, peeking around. "Has our undercover identity been discovered?"

Bai Yu: "Perhaps."

The Grand Duke's attitude had changed so drastically that there was only one explanation: his identity had been discovered.

System 55 set off a small party popper on its screen. "Then can we go home?"

The Main System had carefully selected the simplest task for him. The Bai Yu in the original book was purely an NPC with simple scenes and a stereotyped character. But it ended up turning out like this. If things dragged on any longer, System 55 would start crying.

Bai Yu remained noncommittal.

His expression remained normal, as if he knew nothing. He took his seat naturally, showing neither panic nor asking any questions, allowing the several guards to surround him in the center, forming a vacuum zone.

The dishes at the Grand Duke's Mansion were exquisite, and everything served tasted good. Bai Yu raised his hand to eat but suddenly felt two gazes from the banquet seats sizing him up.

One was at the very end of the banquet, coming from Miller. Although he had provoked the Grand Duke's disgust, he was still of noble birth and hadn't been stripped of his title. He was currently staring heavily at Bai Yu.

The other sat at the head area, at the first table below Grand Duke Imuel. It was an elderly man with sagging eye bags, a hooked nose, and graying hair, who was also looking at Bai Yu with an unkind expression.

System 55: "It's the old man you saw at the Black Robe Society that day, the one who drugged you."

Bai Yu withdrew his gaze.

If his guess was correct, this person was Imuel's own uncle, and also the main culprit who caused the Duke to fall into the water.

The regular meeting passed without a hitch and the meal finished quietly. Meanwhile, that bag of white powder was kept close to Bai Yu's chest in his breast pocket, never moving from its place.

The nobles left one after another, and the attendants stepped forward to clear up the messy cups and plates scattered everywhere. In a short while, the hall became completely empty.

However, Imuel was still sitting right in the middle.

The Duke didn't show the slightest intention of moving. Several guards stood between him and Bai Yu.

As soon as the banquet ended, the guards searched Bai Yu's body and found the white powder in his pocket. Now, that powder was placed in front of the Grand Duke, the pure white crystals gleaming faintly.

Imuel lowered his eyes, his fingers pressing tightly against the tabletop. His expression was extremely gloomy, and a silent storm seemed to be brewing in the hall. The guards all lowered their eyes and heads; no one dared to look up.

The folk rumors in Illyria about the Grand Duke being ruthless and ferocious didn't actually come from nowhere. Imuel had killed his five older brothers with his own hands using swift and clean methods. He had also never been soft-hearted when purging the underworld gangs. He had killed so many people that the soil of the West City Execution Ground had been dyed blood red by him.

Being a traitor under his rule, one could easily imagine the outcome.

Meanwhile, Bai Yu had just put down his knife and fork, his face calm.

They remained in a silent stalemate for a long time—or perhaps Imuel was in a stalemate alone, while Bai Yu was calm and at ease.

Imuel gripped the tin tableware in his hands, squeezing tighter and tighter. The metal bent and clashed, making a teeth-aching sound.

Finally, the Grand Duke was the first to speak, breaking the silence. His tone was peculiar: "Bai Yu, looking at the way you are, you already know why I sent people to surround you?"

Bai Yu nodded: "I know."

Imuel laughed out of extreme anger: "You know? Then do you know what the consequences are for being a traitor in my place?"

His voice was very deep and full of pressure, but if one listened closely, it was also a bit hoarse.

Bai Yu: "I also know."

Imuel sneered: "You also know? Looking at your appearance, it seems like you don't."

The tortures of the Duke's Mansion were enough to break anyone, making even the most iron-willed man kneel and beg for mercy.

Imuel stood up abruptly. "Butler, come and tell Mr. Bai, how did we deal with the last member of the Black Robe Society?"

When the Grand Duke was enraged, it was also when he was the most unruffled. He had almost no expression on his face, but the tin tableware was already overwhelmed, with deep finger marks left on its surface.

The butler didn't even dare to breathe too loudly, speaking submissively: "The last member of the Black Robe Society attempted to launch a terrorist attack at the celebration. After bringing explosives into the center of the celebration, he was discovered by the guards, detained on the spot, and sent into the dungeon. Our guards snapped his fingers one by one, poured boiling wax oil on his skin, mouth, tongue, and ears, and then mounted him on a torture rack, whipping him with a barbed whip for three days. Only then did he confess the origin of the gunpowder and his upper and lower line accomplices. Subsequently, we rounded up everyone involved in one fell swoop."

Imuel's cold gaze landed ahead, looking at some unknown spot in the hall. His eyes were unfocused and lacked any purpose, merely avoiding making eye contact with the doctor.

And in a place the doctor couldn't see, the Duke's nails clawed at the tabletop, scraping off large flakes of wood varnish.

Imuel: "Do you know what that man looked like when he was carried out?"

The butler: "When that man was carried out, he had screamed himself hoarse. He had no good skin left on his entire body, exhaling more than he was inhaling. Before we could even carry him to the execution ground, he died."

"..."

Bai Yu's cold eyes finally rippled slightly. He sighed imperceptibly: "By telling me this, what does the Grand Duke want me to do?"

Torture was for interrogation, but the Black Robe Society used single-line contact, and Bai Yu had no extra intelligence to give here.

"..."

A deathly silence.

Imuel silently curled his fingers.

Why did he tell the doctor all this?

Was it to scare the doctor, to make him afraid? Was he preparing to carry out these punishments, to make the doctor feel terror?

No, none of that.

Imuel simply held a faint hope in his heart; he hoped Bai Yu would offer a few words of explanation, even if it was just uttering some useless nonsense.

Say that he wasn't a spy, that he had been framed, say that he didn't know what the white powder was, say that he never intended to put the powder in the tea, say those lies that absolutely no one would believe... In short, saying anything would be fine.

But Bai Yu didn't say anything.

He openly and generously admitted to the charge, perfectly candid and open, without the slightest hesitation or resistance, as if to say: "That's right, it's exactly what you think. I am an undercover agent, I am here to kill you, and everything I showed you before was just to better assassinate you on this day."

...

Imuel's body trembled imperceptibly, and he immediately supported himself against the table.

After the assassination attempt, his health had been poor. He was prone to dizziness and tinnitus. Bai Yu had adjusted his diet and carefully nursed him for some time, and recently, Imuel no longer had these symptoms.

But now, the feeling of blood loss and dizziness made a comeback, and he had to support himself against the dining table just to stand straight.

The butler probed cautiously: "Grand Duke, this Bai Yu?"

According to common sense, he should be locked into the dungeon and subjected to severe torture to pry out as much information as possible. But seeing the Grand Duke in this state, they really didn't dare to take matters into their own hands.

Imuel took a deep breath.

His soul seemed to have already detached from his body. He spoke hoarsely in a cold and placid tone: "Take him away."

The butler: "Take him where?"

Imuel paused for a long time, gritting his teeth as he said:

"...The dungeon."