“I wasn't aware that the path of an Oracle had a grading system," Shiyuan said hesitantly. “When did this get developed?”

Bai Longxia eyed the ashen tone of his skin, feeling rather suspicious. “Not aware? Quite a strange frame of mind coming from someone who claims to be amnesiac. Are you sure you don't remember your past?”

He should tell her in detail if he was hiding anything like that. She could protect him better that way, and should his past turn out to be a threat to their conjoined fate, she could eliminate the problem at the bud.

But how could she convince him to be honest about it?

Shiyuan shook his head despondently, with none of the signs of dishonesty she had learned to detect over the years as a ruler.

“As I've told you earlier, I have a good understanding of quite a broad range of topics, definitely due to methodically studying them. The gap in my knowledge is in how and when I learned so much. There is nothing associated with the real world in my mind.”

“In short, your amnesia may have been the result of an intentional action,” Bai Longxia muttered thoughtfully.

“It is possible,” Shiyuan said. “And if true, whoever did it must have a law spirit above the Golden rank. That's the only path of power capable of accomplishing such a surgical, but abstract task."

Bai Longxia nodded in agreement, her heart growing heavy. Law spirit sorcerers were the most varied bunch among the three paths of power. She personally knew several experts who could toy with memories and mental states. None of them were below the Golden rank.

“Finding out who did it to you may not be an impossible task, you know?” she said, seeing his face turn gloomy. “The number of Golden rank law spirit sorcerers throughout the continent is not high. And those who deal with memories are just a small fraction among them.”

It delighted her to see his face light up with hope. As long as her oracle was in a good mental condition, her chances of getting accurate predictions would get boosted. This principle had its exceptions in history, but looking back at Shiyuan's behaviour so far, she was certain that he didn’t belong to the category of humans who thrived in gloom and sorrow.

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“I was thinking something along those lines too!” Shiyuan said with growing excitement. “And I already have a lead. Since my knowledge falls short of understanding the classification of an Oracle's path, it can be concluded that I am from a part of the civilization where oracles are considered a rarity."

“That would be Sector One, Two, and Four,” Bai Longxia remarked. “Searching in Sector Four is a simple matter. My Bai Clan has a good hold over it. Sector Two more or less belongs to Prince Ming, but that's where my clan's ancestral home is. So our search there should not be too difficult. Sector One, on the other hand, will be tough to crack. First Prince Shen is... well, it's hard to communicate with him. Our relationship isn't good."

Shiyuan's expression was a clear indication of his confusion. But he recovered quickly enough and flashed her a grateful smile. “That's a lot more than the help I was expecting. Thank you, your highness.”

So easy to please?

Bai Longxia controlled her glee and said, “I wasn't finished. There is another clue to chase after. The detailed classification of the Oracle's path was popularized throughout the last thirty years. So your lack of awareness about it could also mean that your loss of memory goes back as far as about thirty years."

“...That would make me older than thirty,” Shiyuan said, sounding puzzled for some reason. “But I'm just in my early twenties, from the looks of it. That doesn't add up."

Bai Longxia sighed, watching him examine his reflection in the glass screens around them.

“Can you guess how old I am, Minister Shiyuan?”

The formal address caught his attention. Eyes narrowed, he turned back and scanned her from head to toe slowly. Bai Longxia felt another pang of despondence, foreseeing the troubles she'd have to go through to rebuild his common sense.

...Or maybe he does know how inappropriate he's being? Is it intentional?

She would definitely teach him a painful lesson if that was the case!

“Judging by your appearance, you're no older than me, your highness,” Shiyuan finally spoke up, his eyes bright. “I'd say you're no older than twenty!”

Bai Longxia decided not to pursue his slight. It had nothing to do with her feeling flattered.

“Am I right?” Shiyuan asked insistently.

“Wrong. But that's not the point I'm trying to make. You simply should know better than to guess someone's age by judging their appearance, even less so in the case of a martial warrior like me.”

“But I'm not a martial warrior,” Shiyuan said, tugging his sleeves up and flexing his arms. “Or am I?”

“Most definitely not. Don't delude yourself.”

Bai Longxia' gaze lingered on the exposed ‘muscles' for a few seconds longer than she needed to gauge the quality. But she had a justification for the delay, since he had been so inappropriate while trying to guess her age.

Now, the scores were even!

“So how can my age be more than what my appearance suggests? Please enlighten me!" Shiyuan requested, clearly oblivious to her chaotic thoughts.

“There are plenty of methods to slow down aging, albeit being expensive and prone to cause problems in the long run. Using law spirits is the most common path, since many high rank sorcerers can master the procedure and operate on others."

Bai Longxia watched with interest as Shiyuan hurriedly checked the back of his body using the glass screens surrounding the platform. She couldn’t be bothered to explain that such operations wouldn't leave visible traces.

“The exiled royal preceptor, for example, was at least two hundred and twenty years old, going by the historical records. But he never set foot on the warrior's path. My father, King Xuanwu, is a martial warrior. And he is supposed to be even older. Yet the last time I saw him, his hair had just started turning grey.”