Chapter 53: The Lingering Question of the Patriot Alliance

“There’s one thing I’ve never quite understood,” Fran confessed to Borg. “Teacher Borg, tell me… why was the organization called the Patriot Alliance the only one to send a rescue team?”

Teacher Borg pondered for a moment, stroking his chin. He seemed a little perplexed by Fran’s question, only replying:

“The Patriot Alliance, I only know a little about them. They’re a small organization. Most of their members are veterans from the last World War, or their family members and descendants. They’re quite stubborn, not large in scale, but very independent. Still… what exactly is the problem?”

“The problem is this,” Fran said, tapping the table as he meticulously analyzed the situation. “When the Teutons first spread the news in the tavern, they used Teutonic to make the outcome more believable, right?”

Borg nodded. Alina had provided him with a full account of the incident, and he added:

“Precisely. Considering that most of our organization’s members don’t understand Teutonic, they wouldn’t necessarily grasp the full implications. To avoid exposing your identity, we simply cautioned everyone to remain vigilant and not act rashly, without detailing what had actually happened.”

“Exactly! And there lies the problem. Our people didn’t understand, so it’s unlikely the Patriot Alliance’s members would have either, right? Moreover, after the tavern was targeted, not many anti-Teuton organization members would have gone there.”

“So, how did the Patriot Alliance get the news? And why did they only act several days after the message was released?”

Fran was already close to an answer in his mind as he speculated. Borg considered the implications of Fran’s words, then clenched his fist and spoke:

“Are you suggesting someone provided information to the Patriot Alliance, intending for them to rescue people, only to capture them all in one fell swoop?”

“No, that shouldn’t be their objective!” Fran shook his head, immediately refuting the idea. The Patriot Alliance was merely a small group, and capturing their members wouldn’t be particularly significant.

Crucially, this was clearly a fishing scheme. If the real fish hadn’t taken the bait yet, wouldn’t it be rather self-deceiving to just find a small group to force the hook?

This individual, having grown impatient when no one took the bait for several days, must have used certain channels to disseminate information to the Patriot Alliance. They likely assumed that this small group wouldn’t dare to execute a rescue plan alone and would surely communicate with other larger organizations.

This way, even if the true target wasn’t caught, larger organizations would undoubtedly become entangled, potentially leading to more substantial gains.

But…

Who could this person be?

Fran meticulously explained his deductions to Borg, who nodded frequently. Borg then extended a hand, lightly tapping the table twice with his fingers, before asking Fran:

“Who do you think… is the most likely person to have delivered this message?”

“I think…”

Hmm…

Fran began to ponder. The primary suspects were essentially the three cadres of the Purburg station: Yuli, Lyon, and Quidar.

First, Yuli. She… she seemed the least likely person to do such a thing.

How should he put it? It wasn’t that he underestimated Yuli, but from their interactions over this period, her understanding of espionage matters was probably not even as good as his own, a half-baked agent trained by his teacher for a short time.

For one, she wouldn’t come up with such a scheme. For another, from an emotional standpoint, he believed Yuli wouldn’t want any rescue teams to appear.

She wouldn’t want even a shadow of suspicion to fall upon Fran.

As for Quidar…

His motive was the strongest. Broadly speaking, he wanted to capture the anti-imperial organizations, validate his suspicions about Fran, and earn merit. More narrowly, after not seeing any rescue teams for an extended period, it was plausible he might have become desperate and sought someone to fill the numbers.

After all, if no one came, while the loss wouldn’t be significant, it would be a blow to his pride, whether it was causing trouble for Fran or something else.

But…

Fran thought for a moment, then felt something was amiss. There was a core question here:

Through what means would Quidar have notified this small organization again?

If he truly had such a suitable channel, would he have bothered with the charade in the tavern to spread the word?

He had only just arrived in Purburg, so where would he have acquired so many resources? Moreover, it was clear that during the interrogation of the rescue team members, he had no knowledge of the Patriot Alliance’s existence.

Therefore, Quidar’s suspicion was also cleared.

That left only one person.

Lyon.

Hiss—

The mention of this man made Fran feel extremely wary, even more so than with Quidar.

Though young, about the same age as Yuli, Lyon was entirely different from Yuli’s clueless state. He was professional and resourceful.

Previously, even before Quidar arrived, the Purburg station had already launched an investigation into Fran. At that time, only two people were in charge of the entire Purburg station, inside and out, and Yuli was unlikely to be the one who issued the order.

Thus, the person who ordered the investigation into him was most likely Lyon.

The fact that he could initiate an investigation against Fran indicated that, at the very least, he had some connections and channels within Purburg.

This fulfilled the first condition for a suspect: the ability to relay information.

Secondly, he had previously harbored suspicions about Fran’s identity, though… Yuli had likely suppressed the matter.

But how could such a professional easily abandon his investigation?

Perhaps… Quidar’s sudden investigation into Fran, and even the idea of using him as bait, was not unrelated to Lyon.

From this perspective, Lyon also had a motive.

Lyon’s suspicion in Fran’s mind instantly soared. He relayed his thoughts and conjectures to Borg, who paused, then nodded, indicating his general agreement with Fran’s suspicions.

But…

How did this Lyon manage to transmit the message to the Patriot Alliance?

Fran pondered for a moment, then suddenly clapped his hand to his head and said to Borg:

“Could it be that Lyon has a mole planted within the Patriot Alliance? Yes… yes, Lyon should have many informants in Purburg. Could the message have been passed through an informant?”

“Hmm… very possible!”

Borg nodded in agreement, then earnestly asked Fran, “Fran, have you thought of any suspicious individuals? Someone who might be Lyon’s informant…”

“This…” Fran scratched his head helplessly. How could he possibly know? He wasn’t a member of the Patriot Alliance, nor did he know the specific individuals within their organization.

But…

There should be someone. And Colonel Raif had said earlier that they went to rescue him after someone told them the news of his ‘capture’.

But who could this person be?