Alexander had already taken care of all of that and just provided Lex with a dossier that he had just memorized. Moreover, he had been smuggled into the rebel territory, and then dropped off. Now, all he needed to do was make his way to the refugee camp, and then he could slowly begin his investigation.
Despite the utter seriousness of the matter at hand, Lex was actually having a lot of fun. Dressed in a foreign and exotic way, he was undertaking a covert mission with a secret identity. He had to investigate conspirators and unveil the grand design behind all the chaos that was spreading across the planet.
He felt like he was in a detective show. Or, if he went by the standards of the books he read, he was acting as a member of Jianghu. Out in the wilderness, with nothing to rely on but his own strength and abilities, he sought to bring change through the consequences of his actions. It felt like an adventure.
Sure, there had been no shortage of adventures in his life before this either, but back then, he was always too weak to focus on enjoyment. Now, at least, he knew it wasn't so easy for him to die. That self confidence allowed him to take pleasure in even the simple things during this adventure.
He 'walked' through changing sceneries, taking in the beauty and harmony of nature. The landscape, even here far from habitation, showed signs of war and combat. Long and deep ugly scars marred the topographies he crossed, though admittedly the wounds to the lands were healing. Grasses and various trees had begun to grow in them, or natural lakes had formed filling them. Soon, it would be forgotten that a brutal war had been fought here, only if the actual war eventually finished.
After traveling as such for nearly a day, Lex eventually reached his destination: a massive fort built directly into the side of a particularly large hill. All the greenery from that particular hill had been removed, as anyone approaching the hill would be easily identified from far away.
This, for Lex, was not an issue, as there were lines of people coming in and going out. As if it was something he did all the time, Lex joined the line to enter the fort quite casually. There was a noticeable difference in the demeanor of the locals and of Lex. More specifically, all the people around him seemed worn and beaten, or as if they were undergoing some incredible trial that put an immense amount of mental strain on them. Lex, on the other hand, looked like he was having a great day, and was out for a stroll in the lovely weather.
Not only were his clothes noticeably cleaner and newer, but even the aura near his person was fresh and invigorating.
Standing out like this might not have been the best idea, as it would prompt an investigation, but that was something Lex had opted for, and specifically told Alexander to tailor his cover story accordingly.
The cover he had was of someone who had just come out of a cultivation retreat. He would claim to be cultivating in a secret location for his breakthrough into the Golden core realm. His realm was new enough for that to be a convincing ploy.
The sense of energy and his good mood could also be explained from his recent breakthrough, not to mention that he would have missed out on all the fighting due to the fact that he was in retreat.
By having himself investigated beforehand, he was creating a psychological barrier where anyone who would be curious about him would directly turn to the most recent report on him. Since he had already been investigated once, no one would think to look into his past again and more deeply.
Of course, if Lex did something too suspicious, someone might want a more thorough report. This was where Lex's own planning fell short, mostly because the time he spent in the cultivation world was still too short. Even though he had been increasing his general knowledge, it was not as if he had a specific curriculum to follow, so he could only grope about randomly.
At higher levels, which he was now reaching, background search and investigations were not limited to the simple clue and hint hunting followed by reasonable and logical deduction. More mystical aspects came into play, such as divination, auguring, and the use of various other investigative techniques.
For the most part, Alexander took care of such things as the Jotun empire already had many mechanisms in place to counter such methods. But the tools at their disposal were ultimately limited. He was warned that a more thorough or skilled search would overcome their means.
He especially told Lex never to let anyone get ahold of his blood, and in fact hinted that Lex should learn a technique that would automatically destroy any blood that fell out of his body.
This was because if someone had his blood, it would make Lex vulnerable, and not just to simple investigation.
But regardless, for now, Lex had his identity in place and was not concerned about a simple search. As predicted, when he reached the gate, the guards singled him out and called him aside for further questioning.
At the same time, countless machines and formations scanned him. Alexander had already briefed him on the use of these procedures. He was mainly being checked for dangerous weapons, or any connection to the 'Tyrant rulers' and the rebels labeled them.
Though his smiling face drew a lot of suspicion, he ultimately passed all the tests and was allowed to proceed. He knew that he would probably be followed for a while, and that his previous claims were probably being investigated.
That is why he would not begin his own search immediately, either. His objective was not one that could be rushed, and first Lex had to immerse himself in the local environment. If he had been a true refugee, he would have headed towards the free housing, thus effectively turning himself over to the rebels' disposal.
But he was not one, nor did his cover claim him as one. Thus, he made his way to a local Inn and got himself a room, paying for his stay in advance. He ordered himself some food, and in the meantime, made small talk with some locals as he understood the situation in the area.
His questions weren't targeting anyone specifically, and seemed perfectly in line with the curiosity of someone who had moved to the fortress for the foreseeable future. Questions like how safe the fortress really was, and what were the chances of being pulled into a draft if he stayed in the camp?
The situation, predictably, was not so great as the rebel and official forces fought nearly everyday. There was no way to promise that the fight wouldn't be dragged over to the fortress, and in fact it was even likely as the whole point of the fortress was to provide protection.
Of course, he didn't actually care about that. By asking these questions, he was indirectly gathering information on the situation. Whether there would be drafts or not depended on the strength in numbers of the rebels, and whether they would be involved in a fight told whether the rebels were attacking or defending as the current trend.
From this information he could roughly guess the actions of the rebel leaders or make certain predictions. The more detailed information he had, the more accurate his predictions would be. Thus, it was when certain actions fell completely out of the scope of his predictions hinted that there was some information he lacked, and that would be the direction of his search initially.
Just recently he had played the role of a King, so he had a good understanding of the mentality of leaders. Now he could use that to his advantage, and guess reasonably what the general trend was. Of course, he could also try to create some disruptions to create opportunities for closer observation.
For the sake of it, he began planning out how he could theoretically topple the rebels from the inside. But when his plan started to take shape, and it began feeling like it was entirely plausible, he had to suddenly stop himself.
"I am not some secret villain," he reminded himself as he wiped the imaginary sweat off his brow. He really believed he was the good guy, so why then did the prospect of playing with the rebels to death excite him so much?
Chapter 696 Anomalies and oddities
Lex quickly realigned his mentality with his normal thoughts and vanquished any lingering impulses to manipulate everyone into self destruction. As a mortal, his random yet dangerous impulsive thoughts were along the lines of leaping off when at high place, putting his hand into a beautiful fire, or maybe walking into ongoing traffic. These were, of course, things he did not actually want to do, but random thoughts that would pop into his mind from time to time.
But now, as a cultivator, his random yet dangerous impulsive thoughts involved toppling organizations and manipulating the masses. Of course, there was still the odd impulse to walk into ongoing traffic, but even that was now more dangerous to those in cars than himself. Truly having power changes a man.
With his thoughts returning to normalcy, Lex went out for a stroll after the meal to familiarize himself with the fort. The entire fort covered around 40 acres, so it was quite large, but Lex soon found that the places he could go were very limited.
There was the tent housing for the refugees, a small town which housed the locals who lived inside the fort permanently. Basically, it was where the workers and soldiers normally stationed inside the fort lived. That is also where Lex was staying, since it also had the local tavern, grocery stores, various trade workers and all in all anything involving one's general needs.
Besides that there were some free areas where one could explore or walk, but everywhere else was restricted, allowing only authorized personnel. Besides the normal amount of curiosity, Lex did not pay much attention to those places as if they weren't of any consequence to him.
Eventually Lex made his way to the local apothecary and bought some pills to help him 'stabilize' his new realm, and made some friendly conversation with the guy as well. His shop was the busiest, which was predictable given it was a time of war. But he did not spend too much time there, and eventually returned to his room and began to cultivate.
He spent the next few days maintaining an ordinary routine, while slowly building a relationship with the locals and gathering information covertly to the best of his abilities.
One night, while Lex was cultivating, he suddenly opened his eyes as a gleam flashed through them. Whoever was 'spying' or monitoring him had left, and he had passed the initial stage where everyone suspected him.
Now, he could truly begin his investigation. But he didn't act immediately, and continued to cultivate. In the morning, the first thing he did was reflect on all the information he had gathered. The target Alexander wanted him to investigate was called Fernando, and while he was not the highest authority in the fort, he was up there. As such, learning his whereabouts from the common folk was nigh impossible.
But even if he did, Lex did not plan on sneaking to him and following him around anyway. Lex did not have the stealth capabilities for that, nor would that be helpful. Lex's greatest tool at his disposal were his abnormally sharp senses.
From the comfort of his room, he focused on the thought of discovering the abnormalities in the fort, and then allowed his instincts to take over. To his great surprise, he immediately discovered not one or two, but three extremely significant abnormalities. While two of them were inside the fort, deep within the restricted areas, one of them was at the fort wall.
Lex frowned. Unlike the forts of mortals, forts used by cultivators had hidden complexities that were the real reason forts could be used as strongholds. The walls would not only be much stronger than that of normal forts, but would also mark the edges of the protective formation in place, and protect its vulnerable parts.
As such, not only were walls kept well repaired, they were frequently monitored and checked in case an issue with the formation should appear. This was what he had recently learned. So how could an abnormality appear on the wall?
It was unlikely that this had anything to do with the motives of the terrorists, but it could still be a lead of some kind. Who knew if the terrorists weren't pretending to support Fernando, only to fatten him up and then reap the rewards when they were ready. The foundations of the rebels hold on this entire territory rest in the steadiness of the fort. If it was compromised, this would soon become another spot of heated conflict.
With many possibilities arising from this abnormality, Lex decided to scrutinize it first. It also helped that it was the easiest to access. If Fenrir would finish his task in the tower, then such investigations would be much easier. But since he was still busy, Lex had to make do.
He exited the tavern, extending casual greetings to some of the regulars he saw on the way. As if all was normal, he embarked on his daily stroll through the fort. More than once he had shared with his most recent acquaintances that walking around helps him clear his mind since he had spent so long in retreat. As such, many people had become accustomed to his roaming.
He followed the path he usually took on his strolls, which allowed him to cover all the areas which did not require special clearance, when he encountered something unexpected! Among the droves of people he crossed he suddenly passed someone who was awfully familiar to him, so that he was sure they had met, but he could not recognize her.
Ordinarily, this was a normal thing. In fact, Lex often forgot people after meeting them, leading to awkward encounters later. Yet with how his memory had improved after cultivating, this was no longer an issue.
He could always perfectly recognize people, yet this time he failed. If it weren't for his instincts confirming that he had just crossed someone familiar, he would think that he was imagining things.
Unwilling to draw attention to himself, he turned and glanced at the person who had crossed him. It was a lady, as far as he could tell, though he could see none of her features from the back as she was garbed in the conservative clothes that were the norm on Polebitvy. Beside her though were two kids that Lex recognized. He had seen them the first time he had arrived on Polebitvy, and they had been staying in the room adjacent to him.
He tried to imagine what kids who could live in the protected area of the Jotun would be doing in the rebel refugee fort. The instance was too mundane, and he did not find anything suspicious about it other than the fact that he did not recognize the woman.
Still, he took note of it and made a mental note to remember that they may be somehow involved in this messy situation. But since he felt no threat from them, and his instincts noted nothing else of interest other than their familiarity, he decided to stick to his plan.
But the portion of the wall he needed to investigate was a part of the restricted areas, so to access it he had to do so from the outside. He exited the fort and seemed to head in some far off direction. Once he was out of sight, he immediately picked up speed and began running in a different direction. After spending twenty minutes running to and fro, Lex felt confident that he was no longer being supervised or followed. Although he did not sense any followers even beforehand, he had enough spy books to know one was always supposed to ensure they were not being followed.
Then, finally, he stealthily made his way back to the fort. Although Lex was not adept in stealth, he still tried his best as he approached the wall. Since the hill was bare there was no way he could merely walk up without being noticed, so he cast an illusion technique around himself to make him blend in with the scenery.
Such a technique would not survive close scrutiny, but fortunately Lex did not plan on coming too close to the wall. Once he was half way up the wall, he used the In-Law effect to directly teleport to the place he felt an anomaly.
Aware of his own shortcomings in this field, he did not try to devise an unnecessarily complex plan. Instead, he relied completely on his instincts to guide him, and let him know where and when to teleport.
Although he felt relying solely on his instincts was not the best practice, sometimes he would have to make do.
When he reappeared, he was inside a dark and narrow tunnel directly below the wall. Unlike what one would expect, this was not a service tunnel used to maintain the formations. Instead, it was a tunnel dug right through the dirt and stone below the wall, and it was filled with unmarked wooden barrels.
Sensing extreme danger, Lex froze.
Chapter 697 Injured
The extreme and sharp sensation of mortal peril gripped Lex's heart, causing him to freeze lest a single movement provoke an irredeemable accident. Let alone move, he even halted his breathing and subdued his own heartbeat so that his presence would cause menial changes to the environment.
For the first time in a long, long time Lex felt the scent of death surrounding him. Whatever was in those barrels was exceedingly dangerous, and even the slightest exposure would outright kill him! There would be no steady decline, no time for retreat and treatment. It would be instant death. At least, that is what his instincts were telling him.
In fact, even sealed in those unassuming wooden barrels, whatever was inside seemed to be affecting Lex's health already. He felt his stomach lurch and grumble and an unbearable pain began to develop in his lungs.
But while the situation had suddenly turned extreme, Lex did not allow his thoughts to fall into disarray, nor did he panic. Calmly, as if he was in no jeopardy at all, he assessed the situation.
Other than the overseer from the Jotun empire and the head of the family controlling Polebitvy, there should be no Earth Immortals on the planet at all. Even then, both those immortals were restricted from freely displaying their power. As such, the general peak of this planet was considered the Nascent realm.
The fort, correspondingly, should also be of the Nascent realm, with formations, spirit tech and other treasures to ensure security. If that was the case, Lex was absolutely sure that whatever was in these barrels was overkill.
If the purpose of whoever prepared this trap was merely to destroy the fortress walls, he need not prepare such a deadly weapon. If this was meant to destroy the whole fortress, and not just the wall… Lex still felt like it was too much. There had to be some other purpose behind this tunnel.
Unable to gain any significant information, Lex used his spatial bangle and put on his Fancy Contact lenses in hopes that its database had some information. To his pleasant surprise, it was able to reveal something to him, though it was not as much information as he had hoped.
It had identified the wood used to make the barrels as Void wood. Void wood, according to the lenses' elaboration, was a generic term used for any kind of wood gained from trees that grew in the vacuum of space. The most common kind of void wood was from a species of trees that flew on comets and meteors and was resistant to high temperatures and radiation.
This kind of wood was extremely resilient, and was often used to store extremely hazardous materials, as it could even prevent the permeation of higher forms of spiritual energy.
Which specific kind of tree this Void wood was from was not mentioned, as the lenses could not detect it. If the specific tree was determined, then Lex could accurately gauge the danger level of this substance contained in the barrels, as the wood from different trees had differing resilience.
For a moment, he considered daring to take one of the barrels with him. If he stored it in his spatial bangle, it should stay safe, right? That way he could transport it to be identified later.
But he ultimately decided against it.
Spatial equipment all contained a small, relatively stable space in which items could be stored. But relatively stable was not the same as completely stable, or else even living beings would be able to enter spatial equipment.
Endless thoughts were running through his mind as he considered and discarded one plan after another, when he realized something. His left eye's ability, which he had gotten so used to ignoring, picked up on something.
Yet as exactly one second passed, Lex felt the urge to cough. He suppressed it to the best of his abilities, but he could feel the sensation building up like a volcano. With his health deteriorating fast, Lex decided to withdraw as quickly as possible.
Once again he used the In-Law effect and teleported away. Since he no longer needed precision in his teleportation, he teleported far away from the hill so he no longer needed to concern himself with hiding.
Finally he allowed himself to cough, but that brought only pain instead of relief. He merely coughed out some blood at first, but then the situation only got worse until he felt something rip inside his chest, and he coughed out a piece of his lung!
For a moment the gruesome sight of his innards haunted him, until the sigh became even more horrific. All the blood he had coughed out turned green, and the piece of his lung began to rot right before his eyes. In seconds, nothing was left except for ash.
Fortunately, the feeling of illness faded, and Lex no longer needed to cough. He felt weak, as if all the energy in his body had been drained in the fight against some disease.
Whatever was going on, it was a lot more dangerous than Lex had assumed. Only a few days ago he was walking freely and confidently, thinking that he would not be hurt so easily, and yet today he nearly died inexplicably.
He recalled what he had seen from his left eye. Some green particles were escaping from the barrels, yet neither his normal eyesight, his spirit sense or the contact lenses had been able to detect them. But the source of his sickness made sense at least.
He looked down once more at the place he had coughed out his lung. There was nothing left, or he might have tried to bring it with him so that the cause could be diagnosed.
Lex checked his surroundings and made his way to a relatively hidden place in the wilderness before teleporting back to the Midnight Inn.
While he had promised to help Alexander, he also needed to ensure he was in good health for the upcoming wedding. If all went well, he would once again resume his investigation after the wedding was over.
Moreover, he and Alexander had an agreement. Alexander would check in at the Inn every 20 hours in case Lex needed to make an emergency report. This way they could easily communicate without carrying any communication talismans or devices, which if discovered could cause problems.
As soon as he arrived at the Inn, Lex informed Mary to deliver his message to Alexander while he himself teleported to a Recovery Pod. To Alexander he had not mentioned much, and instead asked him to find Lex in the pod so they could talk face to face. His investigation had been short lived, and not so exciting, but at least he discovered something that might be useful.
He also checked his own status to see if the Inn could provide some information on his condition. Unfortunately, other than mentioning that he had an injured lung, it mentioned nothing else..
With not much else to do, he lay down in the pod and went to sleep. Since he had a technique that would boost his recovery while he slept, this would be the best way to spend his time.
Sleep came to him instantly. It felt as if only a bare moment had passed, and Lex had only just closed his eyes, when he was roused to the sight of an anxious Alexander standing above him.
"What happened?" Alexander asked, imagining the worst. "Were you discovered? Did they attack you?"
"Nothing of the sort, though I don't know if that's good or bad," he said weakly. He was not sure how long he slept, but his recovery had barely begun. He still felt weak and exhausted, and in fact his body felt almost frail now.
Perhaps earlier it was the adrenaline from the situation that kept Lex from feeling the full extent of his injuries.
Lex explained exactly what had happened, giving special emphasis to the only two matters worth regaling. The first was the mysterious woman, and the second was the incredibly dangerous and hazardous material stored under the wall. If Lex had to venture a guess, he would say that those materials were prepared to target an immortal, at the very least.
Since his condition was so serious even without any actual exposure, he couldn't even begin to guess how deadly the actual stuff was.
Alexander frowned. This was not exactly what he hoped Lex would find, but at least it was a start.
"While keeping your identity a secret, I'll share your report of the hazardous materials under the wall. If they truly are dangerous even to immortals, then we have to approach without arousing any attention. We cannot just go ahead and start digging, lest the culprit detonate it beforehand.
"I'll update you on any progress we make. Are you able to return once you've healed?"
"It'll have to wait a bit," informed Lex. "My own task is at hand."
With the wedding so close now, guests had already started to arrive in Babylon, and pre-wedding events had already begun. It was time he turned his attention to his most important quest yet!
Chapter 698 Rousing from slumber
Five days before the wedding, Lex was woken up from his slumber by Mary, who had been instructed by Lex to do so. To his dismay, upon waking, he did not feel reinvigorated and refreshed. Instead, the dull pain in his chest indicated his injury to his lung was still persistent.
While the feeling of exhaustion was greatly relieved, it was not at the level he had hoped. Was it too much to ask for to heal completely to full health and strength after an encounter in a quick and concise manner? After all, video game characters did it so often. Why couldn't reality be as convenient?
Shaking his head, Lex slowly got out of his Recovery Pod. In truth, he knew his thoughts were a tad unreasonable. This was a flaw of his spirit being merged with his body. Whenever he suffered a wound, it would affect his spirit as well. With a compromised spirit, it was natural that Lex had odd or unusual thoughts.
The matter was not too serious, and would only become a serious hindrance if his wounds were drastically greater than they were now.
While he recovered from his drowsiness, Lex reflected on his short period of acting as a spy. In his own opinion, his performance was subpar. It seems he had become too relaxed lately. He seriously needed to upgrade his repertoire of techniques. Sure, it was understandable that offensive techniques would be a weak point for him, but was it too much to ask for to have completely unsurpassed stealth skills, investigative skills, limitless knowledge on all matters he might encounter and and other useful techniques?
It seemed that Lex was suddenly feeling dissatisfied with Evisceration, his remarkable versatility due to his mastery of arrays, his unsurpassed defenses and potentially limitless options to accumulate various techniques.
Or perhaps it was the knowledge that the pup Fenrir surpassed him in stealth that was truly irritating him in his mentally vulnerable state.
Stifling a yawn, Lex got up and stretched his arms far apart as he loosened his body up. For a moment, he wondered if he should go back to that tower the Jotun empire was protecting. Passing a few more levels should help him grow, right?
Ultimately, he decided to do so later. No matter how random his thoughts were, he knew that he had to prioritize the wedding.
"Anything I need to pay attention to at the Inn?" he asked, even as he teleported to his office.
"Alexander delivered a message. Initially there were some issues convincing his team to get involved in the matter you discovered. No one wanted to get their hands dirty with the war. Eventually, though, they relented and investigated. So far there has been no concrete discovery, for anyone who has entered the chamber under the wall has lost contact, without exception. Even Nascent realm cultivators were no different."
Lex frowned, but did not comment.
"Besides that, for now, there is nothing too major. There are a few applications from several guests who wish to hold some events at the Inn that you need to review. The most significant one, at least from what I can tell, is the one being hosted by Vera Joel. She's using almost all the MP she got from you to host a Prophets Convention."
Lex raised an eyebrow out of curiosity and looked at the application. The event was planned for a couple of months later. The curious thing was that to attend the event, an attendee would need to first deliver the correct password. Yet the marketing for the event, as well as the password, were only to be published a day after the event was already over. He supposed only those who were able to divine out the event beforehand could attend, thereby automatically proving their abilities.
There were a few more events that guests had applied to host at the Inn, but none were as interesting. They mostly included birthday parties, weddings and the like. He approved them and forwarded the details to the relevant departments to begin planning.
He scanned the Inn once just to ensure that all was well, before diverting all his attention to the Crystal realm. Using his Remote Presence ability, a projection of him appeared at the tavern.
The mood in the main hall was drastically different from what it normally was, and there were no sailers for traders occupying the tables today. Instead, a host of refined ladies and gentlemen sat comfortably in their seats and talked in soft voices. On the small stage in the corner, a number of tiny fairies played soothing and relaxing music.
It felt more like he had entered the parlor for an exclusive country club rather than a local tavern, but it only made sense. The richest and most prestigious people from across the Hum nation were to arrive in Babylon, and the tavern was the central location where they would gather.
Of course, due to the small size of the tavern, only the most essential parts of the wedding would take place here, which would be limited to the most important guests. That meant the less important guests would have to use the few days prior to take in the prestigious yet rustic aura of the tavern.
Surprisingly, even the most particular and spoiled of these nobles did not make a fuss, for the tavern had truly seen numerous upgrades after the star rank upgrade. It was not just the Dribble Oak wood, which kept the air in the tavern fresh and filled the air with a reinvigorating scent, that kept these nobles humble. Each nail holding down the floor planks, each window, each utensil and everything else imaginable used in this tavern absolutely screamed opulence, while retaining a humble and simple aesthetic.
The grandeur was overwhelming, yet the blatant indifference to cosmetics and extravagance was a new experience for them, allowing them to enjoy it even further. In fact, the more astute guests at the tavern could already predict that a new trend of extremely valuable items disguised as everyday, mundane items was about to sweep the empire.
By being at the source of this new trend, they could gain ideas and inspiration, and be first to profit from it.
Others simply took this as a novel experience, and allowed themselves to live out their fantasies of traveling the lands and rubbing shoulders with the common folk.
Of course, there were always trouble makers. Naki, Nami and Nani, the triplet waitresses at the tavern, were always popular. Moreover, their budding extroverted personalities did not allow them to hide much of themselves. As such, their low-born origins were immediately picked up on by many guests.
Not many minded, and some in fact thought that they had been purposefully employed to add realism to this experience of living like a commoner. Some, however, decided to take them home for one evening. This had happened while Lex was asleep.
Naturally, since Lex's sleep was not disturbed by Mary, the situation was resolved without needing his assistance. To be specific, the personal guards of the Phillips family intervened before anything happened to escort the guest away from the town.
Jolene had strongly impressed upon her husband how important the tavern and Lex were, and that they should use every opportunity to ingratiate themselves. Although they were more than certain that the tavern could have handled the situation without their aid, they were all too eager to help. So now everyone knew not to mess with the tavern staff.
Of course, that was before Rick returned from his travels with the monster catfish in tow. Lex was not sure how he had done it, considering that monsters had a very aggressive nature, but Rick had somehow… tamed the catfish monster.
The monster at the peak of Nascent realm was hard to ignore, especially when it followed Rick around like a loyal puppy… eh, no, like a loyal monster fish. To fit into the tavern, the monster even shrunk its size. Considering that Rick had returned Zagan's scale, Lex was not aware of how he managed to tame it. He would look into it, but later.
For now, Lex first checked up on all the floors of the tavern, ensuring that it was alright, before sending someone to call the Noel and Phillips families. He had to brief them on the fact that some 'important' guests will also be attending the wedding, so that they could be prepared.
Moreover, he had to make preparations in case the situation developed negatively. His experience with the Crystal race was enough to wake him up to the fact that things wouldn't always go according to his plans. He had to make contingencies.
Fortunately, Zagan's scale would allow him to muster up a force consisting of monsters. Still, considering that the elite of the entire realm were coming, his emergency measures had to be adequate. Since he himself could not travel freely in the Crystal realm at the moment, he had to make use of others.
More specifically, he had to make use of all the secrets the Noel family had buried under Babylon.