Turning time back a little.
Thaddeus was in a dark underground room which had inscriptions that deflected the probing of external mental energy.
He was standing in the middle of the room and a woman kneeled in front of him.
"So, what's the matter, Hazel? Why did you want to see me so suddenly?"
Thaddeus spoke to her in an annoyed tone.
The woman in front of him was Hazel, the huntress in Kurt's group!
"Vance has gone to the Bare Dungeon all by himself. I didn't know what to do so I came here looking for your orders."
She replied with her head lowered.
"He is probably looking to increase even more the boost of the Blood drain spell, that kid really can't contain himself. I think his body must be near the Pain Tribulation."
Hazel listened to his words and her mind was filled with shock, she couldn't help but raise her head to ask more questions.
"Is he reaching a rank 4 body already? But he isn't even twenty! He would be on my level after that breakthrough, I don't know if I'll be able to handle him if he tries to rebel then."
Apparently, Thaddeus had ordered her to keep an eye on Noah and, if the situation required it, to suppress him.
"Don't worry, I'm not certain about that either. I'll involve Newton in the operation too just to be safe. You can go now, remember to inform me as soon as he comes back."
Hazel lowered her head again before standing up and leaving the room, leaving Thaddeus there deep in thought.
'He is growing even faster than I imagined. It seems that I'll have to have another talk with him about the Royal Inheritance as soon as he is back in the city.'
His eyes shone with greed as a golden rune appeared in front of him and made him disappear in an instant.
The events inside the Bare Dungeon unfolded themselves and became public knowledge, Thaddeus had a more detailed version of them of course.
'The surviving rank 4 creature from the last cleaning operation is dead, Daniel and Vance sure make a fearsome duo. However, Noah has yet to return to the Capital, he is probably undergoing the Pain Tribulation. Such talent, such will, the Royal family has to bring him on its side.'
However, weeks passed but there still was no trace of Noah.
'Is he dead? Impossible! He survived the Forging of the Seven Hells nourishing method in his youth, passing the Pain Tribulation should be easy to him.'
Worries kept accumulating in Thaddeus' mind, he was considering sending an investigative troop in the dungeon to discover more about his position.
'No, two heirs have died there, our soldiers would be too eye-catching. He is probably taking it slow to become accustomed to his new body.'
Like that, more weeks passed, inevitably reaching the day after the scheduled meeting between Noah and Daniel.
Thaddeus was a bit anxious, his control over Noah was strong inside the Capital and when he was with Kurt's hunting group.
However, there was only so much he could do when he went hunting alone, he couldn't just place a cultivator in the heroic ranks as a personal guard of a man with a rank 2 dantian.
Also, if discovered, it would only worsen the already precarious relationship that he had with Noah, he had to give him some space.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty! You have to see this!"
A servant hurriedly ran in the room where he was resting, holding a sheet in her hands.
"What?"
Thaddeus felt annoyed but still took the sheet, his servants were well trained, they wouldn't dare to enter unannounced in the room where he was staying if the situation wasn't serious.
The sheet depictured Noah and there were some lines of text below it that described the known information about him.
Thaddeus stared at the sheet with wide eyes and hurriedly took out a token from his space-ring.
"Father, we have a problem."
.
.
.
Back to the present, Cecil escorted the four nobles toward the Royal Mansion.
Thaddeus was waiting for them right in front of the main entrance and he bowed at the sight of so many powerful cultivators.
"Thaddeus Elbas greets the nobles."
Thaddeus' position was lower than his father, he was only a professor in the academy on the surface after all.
"Cecil, why did you bring us here?"
Ian spoke with a tinge of arrogance in his voice.
He knew that those events were the perfect opportunity to bring more noble families on the Cause's side so he didn't hesitate to openly show his aversion toward the Royals.
"My son is the one in charge of the matter of the academy, he can explain the events linked to Vance better than me."
"His name is Noah Balvan, son of Rhys Balvan and a concubine."
Thomas spoke.
The three nobles next to him were slightly surprised by that information but hid their reactions.
They were using Thomas to discredit the Royal family after all, they needed to appear as stern as possible.
"Vance, no, Noah has hidden his identity well, not even our network could discover such a thing. I believe he has fooled everyone."
Thaddeus spoke with sincerity, his acting abilities were surely incredible.
"Do you really want us to believe that you didn't know his true identity? Would you rather pass as incompetent than speak the truth?"
Fred spoke, his words were filled with a subtle killing intent.
He had lost his son in the battle near Vonduhr, he was aware that the Royals were using criminals for their needs and he couldn't help but wonder if Noah had something to do with it.
"Fred, remember that you are speaking to the rulers of the nation and that you are next to our Mansion, I would watch my words if I was you."
Killing intent began to radiate from Cecil, he couldn't allow being openly offended by those nobles.
"Cecil, we came here for the truth. Please, tell us where this Vance is."
Meredith spoke, trying to pacify the situation.
Cecil's expression became ugly and he turned toward Thaddeus.
The other cultivators did the same and they expectantly waited for him to speak.
It was with hesitation that Thaddeus opened his mouth to say three words.
"He has disappeared."