The Innkeeper

Chapter 695 Background

Dressed in the local attire of Polebitvy, which looked awfully similar to the arabic thobe back from earth, Lex was casually strolling through some hills. Since he was supposed to be conducting an investigation, it was obvious that he needed a local identity and cover. Fortunately, the rebels did not have a comprehensive list of the citizens in the areas under their control, so making up an identity was not really much of an issue. All Lex needed to do was memorize some information about his place of origin and pick up some general information about the planet. Then he just needed a good explanation for his whereabouts during the most recent conflicts.

Alexander had already taken care of all of that and just provided Lex with a dossier that he had just memorized. Moreover, he had been smuggled into the rebel territory, and then dropped off. Now, all he needed to do was make his way to the refugee camp, and then he could slowly begin his investigation.

Despite the utter seriousness of the matter at hand, Lex was actually having a lot of fun. Dressed in a foreign and exotic way, he was undertaking a covert mission with a secret identity. He had to investigate conspirators and unveil the grand design behind all the chaos that was spreading across the planet.

He felt like he was in a detective show. Or, if he went by the standards of the books he read, he was acting as a member of Jianghu. Out in the wilderness, with nothing to rely on but his own strength and abilities, he sought to bring change through the consequences of his actions. It felt like an adventure.

Sure, there had been no shortage of adventures in his life before this either, but back then, he was always too weak to focus on enjoyment. Now, at least, he knew it wasnʼt so easy for him to die. That self confidence allowed him to take pleasure in even the simple things during this adventure.

He ʼwalkedʼ through changing sceneries, taking in the beauty and harmony of nature. The landscape, even here far from habitation, showed signs of war and combat. Long and deep ugly scars marred the topographies he crossed, though admittedly the wounds to the lands were healing. Grasses and various trees had begun to grow in them, or natural lakes had formed filling them. Soon, it would be forgotten that a brutal war had been fought here, only if the actual war eventually finished.

After traveling as such for nearly a day, Lex eventually reached his destination: a massive fort built directly into the side of a particularly large hill. All the greenery from that particular hill had been removed, as anyone approaching the hill would be easily identified from far away.

This, for Lex, was not an issue, as there were lines of people coming in and going out. As if it was something he did all the time, Lex joined the line to enter the fort quite casually. There was a noticeable difference in the demeanor of the locals and of Lex. More specifically, all the people around him seemed worn and beaten, or as if they were undergoing some incredible trial that put an immense amount of mental strain on them. Lex, on the other hand, looked like he was having a great day, and was out for a stroll in the lovely weather.

Not only were his clothes noticeably cleaner and newer, but even the aura near his person was fresh and invigorating.

Standing out like this might not have been the best idea, as it would prompt an investigation, but that was something Lex had opted for, and specifically told Alexander to tailor his cover story accordingly.

The cover he had was of someone who had just come out of a cultivation retreat. He would claim to be cultivating in a secret location for his breakthrough into the Golden core realm. His realm was new enough for that to be a convincing ploy.

The sense of energy and his good mood could also be explained from his recent breakthrough, not to mention that he would have missed out on all the fighting due to the fact that he was in retreat.

By having himself investigated beforehand, he was creating a psychological barrier where anyone who would be curious about him would directly turn to the most recent report on him. Since he had already been investigated once, no one would think to look into his past again and more deeply.

Of course, if Lex did something too suspicious, someone might want a more thorough report. This was where Lexʼs own planning fell short, mostly because the time he spent in the cultivation world was still too short. Even though he had been increasing his general knowledge, it was not as if he had a specific curriculum to follow, so he could only grope about randomly.

At higher levels, which he was now reaching, background search and investigations were not limited to the simple clue and hint hunting followed by reasonable and logical deduction. More mystical aspects came into play, such as divination, auguring, and the use of various other investigative techniques.

For the most part, Alexander took care of such things as the Jotun empire already had many mechanisms in place to counter such methods. But the tools at their disposal were ultimately limited. He was warned that a more thorough or skilled search would overcome their means.

He especially told Lex never to let anyone get ahold of his blood, and in fact hinted that Lex should learn a technique that would automatically destroy any blood that fell out of his body.

This was because if someone had his blood, it would make Lex vulnerable, and not just to simple investigation.

But regardless, for now, Lex had his identity in place and was not concerned about a simple search. As predicted, when he reached the gate, the guards singled him out and called him aside for further questioning.

At the same time, countless machines and formations scanned him. Alexander had already briefed him on the use of these procedures. He was mainly being checked for dangerous weapons, or any connection to the ʼTyrant rulersʼ and the rebels labeled them.

Though his smiling face drew a lot of suspicion, he ultimately passed all the tests and was allowed to proceed. He knew that he would probably be followed for a while, and that his previous claims were probably being investigated.

That is why he would not begin his own search immediately, either. His objective was not one that could be rushed, and first Lex had to immerse himself in the local environment. If he had been a true refugee, he would have headed towards the free housing, thus effectively turning himself over to the rebelsʼ disposal.

But he was not one, nor did his cover claim him as one. Thus, he made his way to a local Inn and got himself a room, paying for his stay in advance. He ordered himself some food, and in the meantime, made small talk with some locals as he understood the situation in the area.

His questions werenʼt targeting anyone specifically, and seemed perfectly in line with the curiosity of someone who had moved to the fortress for the foreseeable future. Questions like how safe the fortress really was, and what were the chances of being pulled into a draft if he stayed in the camp?

The situation, predictably, was not so great as the rebel and official forces fought nearly everyday. There was no way to promise that the fight wouldnʼt be dragged over to the fortress, and in fact it was even likely as the whole point of the fortress was to provide protection.

Of course, he didnʼt actually care about that. By asking these questions, he was indirectly gathering information on the situation. Whether there would be drafts or not depended on the strength in numbers of the rebels, and whether they would be involved in a fight told whether the rebels were attacking or defending as the current trend.

From this information he could roughly guess the actions of the rebel leaders or make certain predictions. The more detailed information he had, the more accurate his predictions would be. Thus, it was when certain actions fell completely out of the scope of his predictions hinted that there was some information he lacked, and that would be the direction of his search initially.

Just recently he had played the role of a King, so he had a good understanding of the mentality of leaders. Now he could use that to his advantage, and guess reasonably what the general trend was. Of course, he could also try to create some disruptions to create opportunities for closer observation.

For the sake of it, he began planning out how he could theoretically topple the rebels from the inside. But when his plan started to take shape, and it began feeling like it was entirely plausible, he had to suddenly stop himself.

”I am not some secret villain,” he reminded himself as he wiped the imaginary sweat off his brow. He really believed he was the good guy, so why then did the prospect of playing with the rebels to death excite him so much?