The "Outcast Islands" woke up to the news of a devastating earthquake in Sector Four of the Raven mines. To the slaves, it was another day of funerals; to the Noble family, it was a financial and political disaster. They had lost a Rank 1 overseer, and more importantly, their scion "Arkon," a Rank 2 cultivator.
In the cold interrogation room, Ether sat in his tattered clothes, covered in mine dust. Beside him was Kai, who had become a trembling human wreck, unable to utter a single word.
"Acting is the art of hiding competence behind a veil of helplessness," Ether thought, bowing his head and feigning shock.
The investigator, "Victor," a cultivator of (Advanced Rank 2), entered. His eyes were narrow as blades, and he emitted a spiritual pressure intended to break the will of the interrogated. Behind him stood two guards holding ledgers to record every detail.
"Tell me, slave," Victor said in a hoarse voice. "How did two insects like you survive a collapse that crushed the bones of a Rank 2 master? Arkon wouldn't have misjudged the structural integrity."
Ether raised his eyes slowly. There was no golden flare from the essence he had absorbed; instead, there were dull eyes filled with fake tears. Secretly, Ether used his (Hybridized Eye of Insight); he didn't direct it at Victor, but at the investigator's "auditory nerves," sending low-frequency vibrations that suggested sincerity.
"Master... Lord Arkon was trying to save us," Ether said in a trembling voice, weaving a perfect lie. "He pushed us toward the side tunnel when the ceiling began to collapse. He shouted for us to run... then... then I saw the giant rock fall over his glowing eye. I couldn't do anything but run."
Victor slammed his fist onto the table. "Liar! Arkon wouldn't sacrifice himself for scum!"
"The benefit of a lie lies in making it touch the 'pride' of the listener," Ether thought coldly. "Master, perhaps he didn't do it out of love for us, but because he needed living workers to finish the harvest. He was a master careful with his property."
Victor paused. This explanation aligned with the noble mindset. "Stingy" Arkon protecting his tools (slaves) was more logical than "Hero" Arkon.
Through his spiritual microscope, Ether saw Victor's heartbeat begin to stabilize. He had swallowed the bait. But Ether didn't stop there; he began to plant seeds of "doubt" elsewhere.
"But Master... before the collapse, I saw Lord Arkon fighting a 'shadow'... something like Paul's raven phantom, but it was pitch black. I thought they were training, but it was the shadow that shattered the support pillars."
Victor's eyes widened. "A shadow? Paul's raven? Are you implying that Paul caused the collapse?"
"I don't know, Master... I am just a frightened slave. All I know is that Paul disappeared minutes before the incident."
In a flash, Ether shifted the blame to "Paul" (whom he had erased from existence). Now, the Raven family would search for the "Traitor Paul" everywhere, while Ether enjoyed his (Peak Rank 1) in silence.