Kafka, smug and triumphant, was about to throw out a few more taunts when he suddenly paused, furrowing his brows slightly as a hint of doubt crept into his tone.
"But wait a moment… Why did you bring all the spies with you?"
"That's way too stupid. Even if you wanted to escape, shouldn't you have split up to reduce suspicion?"
Durin couldn't help but internally roast the situation.
Yeah! What the hell?! Does this guy have a hole in his brain? How could he not know something so basic?
Was he trying to get caught? This move is way too dumb! Did he think dying faster was a good idea?
The captured traitor duke looked utterly dead inside.
He slowly lifted his head, his gaze vacant and hopeless as he spoke in a raspy voice filled with despair.
"You… You had everything planned from the start…"
"Of course… Of course, I wasn't stupid enough to expose myself on purpose…"
Taking a deep breath, as if summoning the last of his strength, his voice cracked with exhaustion.
"It was… It was a message from within Shadewhite… urging us to escape immediately!"
At these words, he suddenly snapped his head up, glaring at Durin with rage and resentment burning in his eyes.
"The Emperor! You… You actually planted a spy inside Shadewhite?!"
"You forced us to reveal ourselves… A brilliant move!"
His teeth clenched as he spat out each word like venom, his face twisted with hatred.
The moment he said this, Duke Kafka and the others froze.
They glanced at each other, their faces filled with shock and confusion.
Then, as if enlightened by some divine revelation, their expressions suddenly changed.
"So that's it! This was all part of His Majesty's plan!"
"No wonder… No wonder His Majesty has been acting alone these past few days…"
"He must have been secretly communicating with the spy inside Shadewhite!"
"My god! His Majesty has even infiltrated Shadewhite's inner ranks?! This is beyond incredible!"
Their gazes toward Durin became even more reverent, as if they were looking at a divine being.
Durin stood there, his face frozen in absolute horror.
He felt like he was suffocating.
What the hell is happening?!
None of this makes sense!
When the hell did he plant spies in Shadewhite?!
He didn't even know where their headquarters was!
How was he supposed to have spies there?!
He opened his mouth, wanting to explain—but where would he even start?
After all, he still had to maintain the dignity of the Emperor.
But seriously—how did this happen?!
All he had been doing the past few days was hunting birds. How did that lead to him having a spy network inside Shadewhite?!
Then, a sudden realization struck him.
I see now…
This idiot must have exposed himself by accident, but he didn't want to die as a failure.
So he deliberately claimed that it was all my doing—this way, even if he was responsible for the entire Shadewhite spy network getting wiped out, he wouldn't be seen as a traitor.
Instead, he'd just be a tragic casualty of my brilliant schemes.
And of course, he shifted all the blame onto me—the Emperor.
Durin silently marveled at the traitor duke's incredible ability to throw blame.
Impressive. Truly impressive.
As he thought this, a confident smile appeared on his face.
Yes. That must be it.
Seeing Durin's calm, knowing smile, the officials around him became even more in awe.
"Look at His Majesty's confident smile! Everything was within his control all along!"
The traitor duke, seeing this, let out a bitter sigh and closed his eyes, accepting his fate.
But internally, he was already gathering the last remnants of his mana, preparing to send one final message to Shadewhite.
Suddenly, he vomited a mouthful of blood, and the last traces of life disappeared from his body.
Using his very life as fuel, he unleashed one final spell.
The traitor duke's sudden death instantly caught everyone's attention.
"No! He's burning his life force to send intelligence to Shadewhite!"
The ministers panicked and turned toward Durin in confusion.
None of them had been overly concerned before—after all, His Majesty the Emperor was right here.
But to their shock, the Emperor did nothing to stop him!
At that moment, Durin was on the verge of cursing out loud.
How the hell was he supposed to stop it?!
He was just a regular guy, okay?!
And to make things worse, the traitor had used Concealment Magic—there was no way Durin could interfere!
"What the hell is wrong with Shadewhite?! Why would you willingly burn your own life force to send information?! Are you all insane?!"
Durin mentally raged, feeling that the situation was utterly ridiculous.
Now, it looked as if the mighty Emperor had just stood there helplessly, letting a major intelligence leak occur.
And even worse—if Shadewhite used this information to launch a counterattack, things would get very dangerous.
But just as Durin started to genuinely worry, a new thought flashed through his mind—and suddenly, his concern vanished completely.
Wait a minute… The information he sent might be completely useless.
After all, the traitor duke still needed to protect his reputation—he wouldn't admit that he was the one who screwed everything up.
So, logically speaking…
He'd probably blame everything on me.
Think about it—he was most likely going to tell Shadewhite that he fell victim to my brilliant scheming… rather than admit that he got caught because he was an idiot.
And if there was actually any critical intelligence, he would have sent it earlier.
At this point, the only thing he could transmit was what had just happened.
Realizing this, Durin completely relaxed.
With a casual wave of his hand, he said:
"Don't worry. That intelligence is meaningless. Let Shadewhite deal with their own internal conflicts."
The moment he said this, the ministers were all stunned.
Wait… What does that mean?!
Is His Majesty saying… he intentionally let them send that information?!
Duke Kafka, shocked to his core, took several steps back, his face filled with admiration.
"Unbelievable… Not only did His Majesty let the intelligence be transmitted, but he probably even manipulated it!"
"Shadewhite must have received a distorted version of the truth… fabricated by His Majesty!"
"Shadow Magic is truly this terrifying…?!"
"If this intelligence reaches Shadewhite, their entire leadership will probably descend into chaos! A counterattack on humanity would be nothing more than a fantasy!"
Kafka immediately cupped his hands and bowed deeply.
"Your Majesty's brilliance is unparalleled. With a mere gesture, you have thrown all of Shadewhite into internal strife. I, Kafka, am in absolute awe!"
Durin blinked.
Wait… How did this intelligence report cause Shadewhite to collapse?
Even if you want to flatter me, there has to be a limit…
He instinctively waved his hand, about to explain—but Duke Kafka cut him off immediately.
"His Majesty waves his hand—clearly, he has no doubts about my analysis! That means I was absolutely right!"
Kafka stood tall with pride, sweeping his gaze over the bewildered ministers.
Fools! They still don't understand the Emperor's deep wisdom!
Only I, Kafka, have truly grasped His Majesty's supreme intellect!