“So, her goal was indeed the Free Humans,” Wittral sighed, “It seems the Brimgan Empire has grown stronger in the past few centuries. They truly have begun considering themselves as leaders of the Free Humans and are starting to exercise their weight.”
“I…was informed of some things by the Clan Leader through the Water Slip Zakzak brought.” Wittral said upon seeing Nurnur’s confusion, “It seems the strength of the Brimgan Empire’s Emperor is steadily catching up to our Chief.”
“That’s impossible!” Nurnur blurted out in shock, “How can something like that be possible? That’s not true.”
“The one who said this statement was the Chief himself.” Wittral said and observed the figure of Inala approach the mine entrance, “Therefore, to showcase themselves as the leader of Free Humans, the Brimgan Empire is probably targeting the Free Humans under us.”
“By freeing the Free Humans from under our grasp, they’ll make a bold statement.” Wittral concluded based on the information he received, “The great Cooter Clan had to abide by our terms and free the Free Humans under their captive. This, is the Brimgan Empire’s unshakable might.”
“They’ll release a statement like that.” He concluded.
“Did they send Inala as a messenger?” Nurnur frowned, “Is a single person enough for such a large-scale project?”
“Her role is to create awareness among the Free Humans under the Cooter Clan to the glory of the Brimgan Empire.” Wittral analysed, “And once the Free Humans become dissatisfied towards us and start rebelling, the Brimgan Empire will send its main force.”
“Then Inala is dangerous!” Nurnur said and flared up her Prana, “I’ll kill her immediately before she brainwashes our servants.”
“No, let her do it.” Wittral held her back, “If she’s killed, the Brimgan Empire will merely send another.”
“Are you serious?” Nurnur shouted, “What if she succeeds?”
“Let her succeed then,” Wittral shrugged as his eyes turned cold, “What’s the outcome of her success?”
“A mere five thousand eight hundred brainwashed Free Humans,” He snorted, “We can casually wipe them out and replace their numbers. The population of Free Humans being reared at our headquarters is continuing to increase.”
“The death of some Free Humans isn’t worth worrying about. Instead,” He stated, calmly, “We’ll be able to understand the methods devised by the Brimgan Empire against us. By understanding it better, we’d be able to prepare countermeasures accordingly.”
“The Brimgan Empire’s plan will fail before it can even take off.”
‘Amazing, he analysed everything in mere moments.’ Nurnur thought in praise as she clicked her tongue, “Does that mean Inala gets to live longer?”
“From a few days to a couple of months,” Wittral nodded, “The Chief expressed his interest in her, since no Free Human from the Brimgan Empire dared to come this far. He wants to see how far the Human Avatar building process of the Brimgan Empire has developed.”
“Are we leaving early?” Nurnur asked in disappointment, “I wanted you to continue training here until the next personnel shuffle.”
“It’s not much of an issue. I’ll be returning here after three months anyway.” Wittral shrugged and nudged Nurnur upon seeing Inala return, “That was a short trip.”
“I’ll send a body to monitor her,” Nurnur said as a body appeared next to her and walked in the direction of the stone house where Inala was staying.
Once the both of them left the area, a stone nearby cracked open as the Empyrean Zinger Scout let out a high-frequency shriek and returned to hiding. When Wittral came out of a tunnel, a stone fell into it.
There was an Empyrean Zinger Scout within it. Hence, right as Wittral released his Prana, it committed suicide by causing a singularity in its body, losing its life as it shrunk into the size of a grain.
This way, when his Prana washed over the stone, Wittral didn’t sense anything amiss. The Empyrean Zinger Scouts remained absolutely alert, ready to commit suicide at a moment’s notice. Even though many lost their lives over the days due to various unfortunate accidents, there were still enough that managed to relay sensitive information to Inala.
Seated on his grass bed and hearing the footsteps of Nurnur, Inala smirked subtly, already aware of the conversation they had. From the start, he had been purposefully driving their thought process in the direction that Wittral analysed just now—a spy from the Brimgan Empire intending to free the Free Humans.
It was a ground-breaking objective and hence captured their entire attention. What they weren’t aware of was the fact that such a project never existed. The Brimgan Empire wasn’t strong enough to egg the Cooter Clan into a political war.
It was merely his orchestra. If not for the volume of information relayed by the scouts, it would have been impossible for Inala to do anything. Thankfully, he swapped the rest of the Cooter Clansmen on the island with his puppets.
They were feeding Nurnur ‘information’ that they had discovered by tracing through Inala’s activities. They were the ones primarily feeding the narrative.
‘It’s a mess, since things have accelerated.’ Inala thought, slightly anxious, ‘If the ship is coming in two days, then I’ll have to hurry up. It would have been perfect if I had a bit more time, since I can organise and feed Wittral more fabricated information. But anyway, it is what it is.’
‘Changes have to be made promptly at the first sign of a variable.’ He told himself and took out a tiny puppet that held Gannala’s voice. He seeped Prana into it and activated it, resulting in a voice so faint even he couldn’t hear it, despite holding it next to his ear.
But that was enough, as through his Secondary Nature, he was able to faintly pick up something. His growth wasn’t at a level enough to hear the content, but he could still recognise that as a baby Empyrean Tusk’s cry.
[I’m Here!]
He swallowed it immediately after and fell asleep, hearing Nurnur’s footsteps creep closer until they stopped right beside his head. She just stood there, still like a statue, observing Inala’s sleeping face.
Leh Island!
Seated deep within the mine in a narrow tunnel were Gannala and Asaeya. Upon hearing the baby Empyrean Tusk cry, she closed her eyes, making an observation based on the number of cries that had been transmitted, similar to a code, “Two days, huh?”
She stared at Asaeya, “We need to hurry up then. Let’s get going.”
Accompanying Asaeya, Gannala stealthily exited the mine, brought out the Sumatra Ship, and began sailing in the direction of Fral Island, making a mental note of the map of the region based on Ralral’s data.
There were many shallower spots around Fral Island. Depending on which direction the ship goes after Inala boards it, Gannala will select the respective shallower region and set up the trap there.
She focused on her stomach biome and observed the Boar King puppets, “Everything will depend on the success of their performance.”
The Sumatra Ship sped across the Dralh Sea as the Pranic Beasts in the ship’s vicinity lost their senses. Downing the contents of Prana Bombs nonstop was Asaeya as she repeatedly used her ability, preparing for the moment when she’ll play the most important role.
It was time to kidnap Wittral!
