Lord of the Truth

Chapter 1908 Sector 97 playground

”...Is it really normal for him to call you by your name? Is it normal for him to send you a message directly?!” Niri frowned slightly, her brows drawing together as unease crept into her expression.

The very first thing that frightened her when she saw the message was the Behemoth explicitly mentioning Robinʼs name-more than that, the terrifying fact that he knew a human was the one controlling the Grave Empire and the Shadow Swords.

And yet, despite possessing information of such gravity, the Behemoth brushed all of it aside and began speaking casually about the conflict against the Millennium Holva Empire instead!

”No, Niri, itʼs not normal for him to know this information at all. Based on our publicly visible movements, everything related to this should have remained strictly confidential,” Robin said, staring down at the ground with tightly furrowed brows. ”But at the same time... itʼs not entirely shocking”

”There are two possible ways he could have learned my identity.” Robin raised two fingers calmly. ”The first is through people who already knew me beforehand and they are not few. Even if we put my followers aside, we still have, first, the Twilight Spectrum Empire. Thereʼs Althera, and possibly someone else within the Academy. Thereʼs Gragnach, the lord of the Eternal Turtle Empire faction, who knows about my relationship with the Grave Empire. And then thereʼs the Soul Society-who know my underwear size.” Timari was visibly shocked by those words. ”No-no, we would never-” ”Save it,” Robin waved her off dismissively, then continued without pause. ”Those three parties and there are certainly more who know me in one way or another- any of them could have leaked the secret. Or perhaps he managed to capture a Shadow Sword and somehow search their soul domain, though that would be extremely difficult and costly to pull off.”

He then lowered one finger. ”The second way is much simpler: conducting an investigation and spending some money. The truth of my involvement with the Grave Empire is no longer difficult to uncover, especially after the Wings recently joined the Grave Empire.” He shook his head slowly. ”Tracing the place that once gathered all those forces, then tracing their descendants, and in the end, they would inevitably reach me... and I donʼt regret that. I was already prepared to make my involvement with the Grave Empire public back then.”

He rubbed his short beard lightly, his expression growing more serious. ”The real problem is how he learned that Iʼm human... Is it because of the innovations spread throughout the Grave Empire? The number of people who know that detail is extremely small.” His brows tightened sharply. ”Unless... one of those who know my true identity has already leaked the information-or sold it.”

”What are you going to do now that he knows all this about you?” Niri asked quietly. ”What if he sends someone to assassinate you directly?”

Robin waved his hand again, unconcerned. ”Hmm... my identity is a sensitive matter, but in this situation Iʼm not particularly worried about it being exposed. He already knows almost everything about me-and maybe that isnʼt such a bad thing after all.” He shrugged lightly. ”The only reason I was worthy of receiving such a personal message and a prior threat is, first, because Iʼm Lord Human, and second, because Iʼm hiding within the Dawn light Stellar Academy. Sending someone to assassinate me would be impossible-unless he decides to move personally.”

”...From his point of view, he has no choice but to place some real pressure on me if he wants to win the struggle for power over mid Sector 99 without suffering catastrophic losses. In his eyes, I am the key to everything-because of my innovations, my influence, and my wealth. At the same time, he canʼt eliminate me easily due to the protection of Monarch Althera. Thatʼs precisely why Iʼm still here instead of residing within one of my empires. So, rather than striking directly, heʼs trying to intimidate me and shake my resolve.”

He then smiled calmly. ”But thereʼs no room for fear here... I chose mid Sector 99, and that decision is final.” He turned toward Timari. ”Fairy, have there been any major movements by Zarghul over the past fifteen years?”

”Yes, human lord,” Timari replied as she snapped her fingers, causing an enormous number of reports to appear in rapid succession. ”The Spell Galaxy has begun a large-scale incursion into mid Sector 97 due to a dispute involving a Centennial Empire there. Most factions believe this is merely a convenient pretext used by the Sorcerer Behemoth to justify his intervention in the sector. As a result, the situation there has become extremely tense and unstable.”

”Please look here-I believe this report will be particularly useful to you in your capacity as the Lord of the Shadow Swords,” she continued, pointing toward a specific document and enlarging it. ”Over the past several decades, the presence of the Shadow Swords has accelerated noticeably across multiple sectors, including mid Sector 97. Just twelve years ago, they provided that Centennial Empire with extensive intelligence support and large quantities of equipment, allowing it to survive multiple major battles and several carefully prepared ambushes. Afterward, that Centennial Empire began forming small armadas and adopting the same combat doctrine and warfare style once employed by Lord Hedrick.”

”...The presence of the Shadow Swords and their direct involvement in that conflict was exposed very quickly. They themselves issued a public statement, declaring that they would stand on the side of justice and support the free local powers, just as they had supported Lord Hedrick against multiple Behemoths in the past. Not only that, but they succeeded in convincing several other small empires to enter the war to defend the sector. Itʼs even rumored that they are currently negotiating with the few Millennium Empires present there, attempting to draw them into coordinated action.”

”.....” Robin raised his eyebrows in clear astonishment, then suddenly burst into loud laughter. ”Hahahaha!!!” He turned toward Niri, still laughing. ”There you have it another reason for his anger, hahaha!”

”What are you laughing about?!” Niri stomped her foot hard against the ground. ”Are you so short on open fronts that you feel the need to interfere in yet another distant sector? Poor Emily is already struggling to compensate for the gaps on those open battlefronts, and youʼre creating even more of them?!” ”Do you really think I have many alternatives?” Robin replied, his brows knitting slightly. ”Making things more difficult for Zarghul in mid Sector 97 means heʼll have fewer forces available to interfere in mid Sector 99-your host.”

”...” Niri fell silent all of a sudden. When it came to anything related to her safety and protection, objections ceased to exist.

”I was wondering why he still hasnʼt officially intervened to protect the Holva Empire under some flimsy pretext,” Robin continued thoughtfully. ”It turns out Theo has already begun playing heavily over there.” His brows tightened slightly. ”But Theo wouldnʼt have acted at this time unless Zarghul himself had already started intervening personally in mid Sector 97. He grew greedy for the sector, made his move, and in doing so, brought the Shadow Swordsʼ intervention down upon himself.”

He then fell silent for a few moments, his expression darkening. ”Just what has happened to the Behemoths over the past few years? Have they all lost their minds? Are they truly all convinced that the Cosmic Elder is inevitably dead?!” He raised a single brow slowly. ”Perhaps... I should contact that old man after

all.”