Above the mage

Chapter 261 [The Realm of Honesty]

"This is the irrigation water for Jinhui wheat seedlings."

Standing before Mount Castella, Elder Grant pointed to the pool in front of them and explained it to the two men.

"In the North, there is almost no natural water source; most of it is thawed from ice and snow. Only here at Mount Castella can such a natural pool of water appear," Elder Grant emphasized subconsciously.

Gao De and Luo Yiqi approached the pool.

The edge of the pool was covered with a thick layer of moss, a common sight in the North.

The moss must be a type of green moss, its verdant green contrasting with the blue of the pool, creating a color combination extremely rare in the North.

The soil around the pool is moist and fertile.

The water in the pool was crystal clear, and you could even see a few small fish swimming leisurely in it.

"The water source of the pool is groundwater inside the volcano. This groundwater is filtered through volcanic rock layers, making it exceptionally pure. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be any insect eggs here," Elder Grant said, pointing to the other side of the pool.

Visible to the naked eye, a continuous stream was flowing into the pool.

The water still carried a hint of warmth, a stark contrast to the frigid environment of the North.

Gao De squatted down, while Flora, sitting on his shoulders, carefully observed the pool.

You can see that small bubbles are constantly rising from the soil at the edge of the pool.

These bubbles are an indication of underground heat sources.

Although the Castella volcano has been dormant for a long time, its underground heat source remains very active, keeping the water temperature in the pool at a relatively stable level and preventing it from freezing due to the temperature in the north.

Flora has also finished her observation.

"This water is indeed very pure, with no ice worm eggs present, and it also contains minerals suitable for the growth of golden wheat," Gao De stood up and gave Flora's conclusion.

"However, the ice nematode eggs in the golden wheat field did indeed come from irrigation water, which Lady Flora can confirm," he added.

This is Flora's innate ability, information obtained through "communication" with plants.

Plants don't lie.

"All the irrigation water for the Golden Wheat Field comes from the pond in front of us, without exception?" Gao De asked Elder Grant to confirm.

"Without exception," Elder Grant said with absolute certainty. "Although we don't understand what minerals you're talking about, we've long discovered that irrigating Golden Glory Wheat with the water here can make it grow better and slightly increase its yield."

"Therefore, we strictly stipulate that we can only use water from here when watering the golden wheat."

"Who is usually responsible for fetching water and watering the plants?" Gao De frowned, thought for a moment, and then asked.

Since there are no ice nematode eggs in the pond, but the ice nematode eggs in the wheat field clearly come from irrigation water, the ice nematode eggs must have appeared during the process of drawing water and then irrigating.

Clearly, Elder Grant and Loich also reached this conclusion.

Elder Grant's expression turned unusually solemn. He thought carefully for a moment and then uttered three names.

"Usually, Ethan, Evan, and Simon are responsible for fetching and watering the plants. They have been working here for almost ten years and are very reliable. They are also very familiar with the Golden Glory Wheat."

"Are you sure we haven't missed anyone? Do we include those who aren't responsible for watering the plants but still have access to the pond?" Gao De nodded and then asked.

It's not that I don't trust Elder Grant, but based on experience, in this situation, most people's answers are always one-sided and will miss some special cases.

Often, these special cases are the final answer—because general cases are too easy to investigate.

Elder Grant understood God's caution. He thought for a moment and then said, "And Thomas, he used to be in charge of planting golden wheat, but he had to step down because he injured his back and couldn't do the work anymore."

"I saw that he was conscientious and responsible at work, and I was worried that he would have a hard time getting enough to eat if he left here, so I took him in as a servant."

"Normally, I come here at least once a day to check on the condition of the Golden Wheat," Elder Grant said. He was a very responsible person.

"However, there are times when I'm too busy to leave. Thomas is a servant in my household and has experience in growing golden wheat, so at those times, I'll ask Thomas to go to the fields for me."

"A few days ago, I was so busy with the things your saintess had asked me to do that I had Thomas watch over the golden wheat field for me for a whole day."

Gao De and Luo Yiqi exchanged a glance.

The timing was so perfect that it was impossible not to have suspicions.

"Then we'll have to trouble Elder Grant to summon Thomas. We have a few questions to ask him," Loich said.

"Alright." Elder Grant nodded in agreement, his expression grave.

Thomas was a middle-aged man, not old yet.

When he was called over, he seemed rather timid and hesitant.

When he saw that besides Elder Grant, there were also two outsiders, Loich and God, waiting for him, a hint of unease and tension flashed in his eyes.

Before Thomas arrived, Loich cast a spell to prepare for the upcoming questioning.

He extended his right index finger, drew a circle in the air, and then pointed it towards the ground.

With Loich's gesture, magic rippled through the air.

An invisible ripple spread out along with the magical energy, covering a spherical area with a radius of 15 feet around him.

Second-level enchantment spells.

[The Realm of Honesty].

Rare universal spells—the spells mastered by these Iceborn are mostly different from those in the outside world, spells that Gaudí did not learn in his universal spells class.

Gao De glanced at Loych with a hint of surprise.

"This is a spell formula I bought from your out-of-town mage," Loich casually explained to God. "He was an out-of-town mage who wanted to make his fortune in the North. He almost died in the jaws of wolves, but I rescued him and he even followed me for a while."

Loich did not elaborate further.

【Truth Realm】 is a utility spell. It has no offensive power and does not help in combat, but it has powerful spell power in interrogation.

Because within the realm of honesty, the subject cannot intentionally lie.

However, the Realm of Honesty still has many flaws and is not omnipotent.

The most prominent feature is that the subject can become aware of the existence of the honesty domain, and therefore can actively avoid answering questions that would normally be answered with a lie.

They can even be evasive and downplay the important points when answering questions, because as long as they don't go beyond the scope of telling the truth, there is no problem.

After all, it's only a second-circle spell.

Of course, in most cases, the Realm of Honesty is sufficient.

Thomas froze the moment he stepped into the Realm of Honesty.

He had already become aware of the existence of the Realm of Honesty.

"Thomas, they have some questions for you. Just cooperate with them and tell the truth," Elder Grant advised.

"I understand, Elder, I will cooperate with them," Thomas replied somewhat hesitantly and nervously.

"Ask away," Elder Grant said, crossing his arms and stepping aside.

Loich made no attempt to hide anything, directly asking Elder Grant, "Is the pest problem with the Golden Radiance Wheat related to you?"

He didn't bother asking about things like ice nematode eggs and irrigation water step by step; he went straight to the core issue.

"What?" Thomas was stunned for a moment, as if he hadn't reacted yet.

"You only need to answer yes or no, don't say anything else," Loich said sharply.

"No." Thomas shook his head repeatedly, looking flustered, and kept explaining, "It's not my fault."

Upon hearing this answer, Loich glanced at God and then shook his head.

It means that the other party was not lying.

Is Thomas unrelated to the pest problem?

Gao De frowned slightly, feeling that something was wrong.

He began to ponder it in his mind.

Soon, Gaode raised his head again.

It is clear that the mastermind behind this is a high-ranking member of the Snowfield Guardians.

Therefore, the mastermind behind this was fully aware of Loich's abilities. When framing Catherine, he erased all scents from the scene to prevent Loich from tracking down the killer by scent.

Similarly, this mastermind behind the scenes may also know about the [Domain of Honesty] that Loich possesses.

So, is it possible that the mastermind behind the plan to infest the insects had already considered the [Realm of Honesty] and made corresponding arrangements from the very beginning?

For example, they could use a "white lie" from the beginning to get Thomas to do something, and Thomas would believe it.

Within the realm of honesty, the subject of the ritual cannot intentionally lie.

This is the spell effect of [Domain of Honesty], but it is also its limitation.

The Realm of Honesty can only restrict the subject's subjective act of lying.

What if the person being manipulated is also deceived into believing that they are telling the truth?

Even if it is a lie in fact, as long as he believes it to be true from the bottom of his heart, he can still pass the judgment of the Realm of Honesty.

"Five days ago, when you inspected the Golden Wheat Field on behalf of Elder Grant, did you do anything beyond your official duties, for better or for worse?"

Gao De stared into Thomas's eyes, carefully considered his words, and only after making sure there were no loopholes did he ask the question.

Loich, who was standing to the side, was stunned for a moment, and then showed an expression of sudden realization.

He glanced at Gao De with slight surprise—he had already guessed Gao De's thoughts from the question Gao De was asking, and was amazed that Gao De could come up with these ideas in such a short time.

Thomas's expression changed the moment he heard Gaode's question.

"What constitutes something outside the scope of my responsibilities?" Thomas asked, trying to remain calm.

"Answer yes or no, don't change the subject!" Elder Grant had already seen the problem, and his eyes turned cold.

He was a sentimental man, and it was because he saw how hard Thomas had worked in the golden wheat fields for so many years that he took him in as a servant after Thomas was injured.

The result was that, if it weren't for Gao De's intervention, Jin Huimai's death would have been a major event, enough to cause him to fall from his position as an elder and ruin his reputation in his later years.

The thought of being betrayed like this made Elder Grant's heart burn like fire.

Thomas looked into Elder Grant's cold gaze, and his forced composure crumbled instantly, tears streaming down his face.

"Elder, Elder, I really didn't do anything! The pest infestation has absolutely nothing to do with me. You kindly took me in, and you've been incredibly kind to me all these years. Even if I were heartless, I would never betray you!"

"Elder, you must believe me."

"Then answer his question directly," Elder Grant said coldly, unmoved.

No matter what Thomas says, it's useless; his reaction and attitude at this moment already say it all.

Hearing Elder Grant's icy tone, Thomas turned ashen-faced. He stared intently at young Goddard's face, then nodded desperately, "Yes."

"What did you do?" Elder Grant then asked.

Now that he had confessed, Thomas decided to go all out and stop hiding it. "I was asked to bring a magical pet into the volcanic field five days ago."

"That's all I did; I really know nothing about the pest infestation afterward."

"What magical creature?" Elder Grant, uninterested in Thomas's pale explanation, continued, "Who commissioned it?"

“A toad-like demonic creature.” Thomas replied, “I don’t know who’s behind it. They’re using my family to blackmail me, and they only contact me through letters. I can never actually see them.”

Sure enough, even in this stage, the mastermind behind the scenes didn't leave too many clues.

Gao De thought to himself.

"How long has this been going on, with your family being used to coerce you?" Elder Grant asked again.

"It's been almost ten years."

"Where is that toad-like pet?" Elder Grant's face grew increasingly grim—anyone would be upset to know that they were being targeted like this, with a spy planted next to them for nearly ten years.

"That person just told me to bring the toad pet into the volcanic field with me, and I didn't have to do anything else. After I came out, the toad pet left on its own."

"I have no idea what happened in between, or what that person's intention was in making me do this."

"The matter of Catherine's arrest is related to the other of the two guests Elder Grant received the day before yesterday. Is it related to you?" Here, God had already skipped over the insect infestation and jumped directly to the matter of Catherine, which he was more concerned about.

Thomas's struggling explanation came to an abrupt halt, as if he had gotten stuck.

Seeing his reaction, Loich's face lit up with joy—clearly, Thomas, if not a participant, knew some inside information about this matter.

We've finally found a useful clue.

"I can't say, I can't say! If I say it, my wife and children will be doomed!" Thomas suddenly cried out in despair.

The next instant, black blood and white foam suddenly began to ooze from his mouth, then his head lolled to the side and he collapsed.

(End of this chapter)