In a dimly lit hidden room within the empire''s capital, Anselm and Karion sat across from Ragnar.

    The moment Ragnar revealed what he had discovered, both men''s eyes widened in shock.

    Anselm leaned forward slightly and tapped his fingers on the table. "You''re saying that you found their base?"

    Before Ragnar could respond, Karion slammed his fist onto the table. He glared at him. "Are you serious? You expect us to believe that you, of all people, managed to find something we couldn''t?"

    Ragnar chuckled. He leaned back in his chair. He was unfazed by Karion''s hostility. "Believe it or not, Karion, I did. Unlike you, I don''t just sit around barking orders. I get things done."

    Karion''s glare intensified. He leaned forward and wanted to argue with him, but Anselm raised his hand to stop him once again. "Let him explain." Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

    Anselm then turned back to Ragnar. "If you really did find their base, how can you do it?"

    Ragnar only smirked. "Simple. I let one of my precious items get stolen by them. Then I tracked them back to their hideout."

    Karion clenched his fists tightly. "You let them steal something from you? That''s reckless, even for you."

    Ragnar shrugged nonchalantly. "Risky, yes. But effective. Once they had what they wanted, they thought they were safe."

    Ragnar then shook his head. "They didn''t even bother to cover their tracks. They led me straight to their base."

    Anselm frowned slightly after hearing that. "I see. And where exactly is this base of theirs?"

    Without a word, Ragnar leaned forward and tapped a specific location on the map spread across the table. "It was here. It was inside a volcano and not far from here."

    Anselm studied the marked location. "A volcano... that explains a lot. No wonder none of our searches turned up anything. They''ve been hiding in a place no one would dare look."

    Karion snorted and crossed his arms. "Typical of you, Ragnar. Always acting recklessly, thinking you''re better than everyone else."

    As he reached the exit, Ragnar glanced back briefly. "See you in two days... if you''re ready, that is."

    Ragnar then left the room with a grin. He never respected them at all, even though they had more authroity than him.

    Anselm and Karion remained in the room. Karion slammed his fist on the table once again and cursed. "That arrogant bastard! He''s always playing games, thinking he''s better than us."

    Anselm frowned and placed his hand on Karion''s shoulder. "Calm down. Let him have his moment. He won''t be arrogant for long. Once all of this is over, he''ll have to put up or shut up."

    Karion gritted his teeth but said nothing. His anger was just simmering beneath the surface.

    ---

    Savra was genuinely surprised after hearing what Lucius just said. "What do you mean that one of the materials is here?"

    Lucius glanced back at her calmly. "It is exactly what I said. One of the Red Dragon materials is here in Volcaria Estate."

    Savra frowned. "But wasn''t it already stolen? The only material we had was the blood essence, and it''s gone."

    Lucius shook his head and clarified it. "I''m not talking about the blood essence, but I''m talking about another material."

    Savra leaned forward slightly and asked. "How the hell could they know about it when we didn''t even know something like that was here?"

    Lucius shrugged lightly. "I don''t know how they figured it out. All I know is what I overheard. Their information points to one of the materials being hidden somewhere in this estate."

    Savra fell silent for a moment. She was thinking hard. After a brief pause, she straightened and glanced at Lucius seriously. "Come with me. If what you say is true, we need to check the Treasury."

    Lucius nodded without hesitation He gestured for Luna and Liora to follow as Savra led the way out of the hidden room.

    They were heading toward the deepest part of the estate, which was the Volcaria treasury, where all their most valuable items were kept.