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Chapter 51
Chapter 51: Business
On the main road connecting the Western Territory to the Central Region, a convoy of carriages and horses slowly headed east.
After the army of undead was destroyed, several nobles reported one after another that a band of thieves had taken advantage of the chaos to steal the wealth they had treasured for many years.
According to reports from secret agents, by the time this band of thieves arrived at the ruins of Loess City, their numbers had already grown to nearly five hundred. Every one of them was mounted, and they had plundered a large amount of gold, silver, and population from Loess City before heading east and vanishing without a trace.
Duke Trist had grown somewhat numb to it all. The palace guards had suffered heavy losses and had long since returned to the Royal Capital. The Western Territory’s knight order was not in much better condition either, so naturally, it needed time to rest and reorganize. How could they still have the energy to suppress bandits?
Е̇ n̊ů m̊ а̇_. í d̈
Besides, they only numbered five hundred. That was hardly a serious threat.
However, for safety’s sake, when he set out for the Royal Capital this time, he still arranged for Knight Commander Saut to escort him.
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The journey was rather dull. Along the way, Trist kept making awkward conversation with the Hero and the others.
Perhaps because he did not pay much attention to his child, Duke Trist knew nothing at all about the bad blood between Leia and Thorne’s group.
He merely kept saying that his daughter was their classmate, so they must all know her, and so on.
Thorne turned his face away, barely able to keep a straight face.
Е ṅ uṁа̌. і ď
What kind of late-but-inevitable parent-teacher meeting plot was this? The parents of students at the Noble Academy had gone to school themselves back then. Did they not know how things worked? Did they think that as long as someone entered those school gates, everyone within the four seas became brothers?
The academy was divided into factions. It was not some gathering of righteous heroes. If everyone truly got along in perfect harmony, the headmaster would probably flee overnight.
For some reason, Lilith was in a very talkative mood. She rode her horse close beside the Duke’s carriage, and even when Leia was mentioned, she praised her with a smile, as though she truly admired this junior schoolmate.
Thorne did not want to take part in such a topic, so he tugged on the reins and slowly rode over to Annie’s side.
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Ever since she had been rescued, Annie had spent most of her time in silence. Toward Thorne, she was not distant, but she had no intention of becoming closer either.
In truth, Thorne did not know what to talk to her about either. With nothing better to say, he asked, “Where is Maria? Why don’t I see her?”
Е̇n ū m̌ а .і̌ d̄
“She’s over there. She is catching up with Commander Saut,” Annie replied flatly, turning her head aside.
“Catching up? They actually know each other?” Thorne looked over when he heard this. Sure enough, the two of them were conversing with solemn expressions. There was not the slightest trace of kindness in Saut’s eyes; he seemed to be lecturing Maria.
Thorne frowned and was just about to go over when Annie blocked him with her riding crop.
“Do not interfere with this. When Knight Commander Saut was young, he was a knight of the Holy Knight Order. He is also Maria’s senior and elder. Do not… disturb them.”
There were some things Annie could not conveniently say.
To Maria, Saut was more like a stern but loving godfather. In the previous life, Knight Commander Saut had helped them a great deal. He had even helped form and train the Hero’s personal guard.
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He cared deeply for Maria. When he suddenly learned that Maria had become another man’s woman but did not even have the status of a wife, he flew into a rage and nearly cut down Thorne, that studhorse, with a single sword strike.
Because of this, Saut had been gloomy and depressed for a very long time afterward.
If Thorne had truly succeeded in defeating the Demon King and become a great hero whose name would be remembered for all time, as he had in the original story, perhaps Saut might have been able to let go of this knot in his heart.
But in the previous life, everything had ended in tragedy.
“When you set out from my place for the Northern Territory, I was very worried. How was it? Duke Oswald did not make things difficult for you, did he?” Saut asked with a stern face, staring straight ahead without glancing aside.
Maria shook her head repeatedly. “No. At the time, the Duke was not in Ice City. I only met Luna and Miss Eileen.”
Ӗ.ñū ḿ ā
Saut snorted coldly. “He really let a maid help him govern his territory. What an absurd fellow.”
“Miss Eileen is actually also from a noble family, and she is a very capable person. That is why Duke Oswald values her so highly.” Even Maria had not expected that she would one day praise her rival in front of her godfather.
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That was simply the kind of person Saut was. In his eyes, the more capable a person was, the more attention they should pay to their own virtue and conduct.
If he did not admire Oswald’s abilities, he would not have mentioned him at all.
“However, although he did not agree at first, the Northern Territory later still held the Grand Prayer Ceremony.”
“Praying to the goddess is something we should have been doing in the first place. There are too many flashy festivals. If people have that much leisure, they would be better off holding more celebrations to revere and love the goddess. Those can likewise promote the movement of people and economic prosperity.”
Е ṅu̇m̊а́
Saintess Maria… I think that idea was somewhat extreme.
“As the Saintess, it is good that you have the heart to hold such a ceremony, but in the future, do not run around everywhere. Disasters have been occurring frequently this year. Perhaps some wicked person is stirring trouble behind the scenes. You and your friends are still young, and your strength is still somewhat lacking. You must learn to calm down and improve yourselves.”
When her godfather lectured her, Maria did not dare refuse to listen. She lowered her head and replied, “Yes. I understand.”
There were indeed far too many unusual things in this life. Because of that, Maria inevitably became restless and often felt uneasy.
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But what her godfather said was correct. Strength was the true foundation.
Through her clash with the metal puppet, she had finally discovered that the nun who had publicly criticized royal authority in the previous life was not merely good with words. Her control over goddess magic was no weaker than Maria’s, even though Maria was the Saintess. This gave Maria a faint sense of crisis.
Е̊n̂.ü m̀ а
If word spread that she had been defeated by a nun, it would be difficult to say whether she could still sit firmly in the position of Saintess.
“By the way, I have another piece of news here. You must pay attention to it.”
“Please tell me, Godfather.”
“For some unknown reason, Princess Diana has gone to the Northern Territory. I cannot see clearly what kind of political signal this is. You wrote before that you and the princess are friends, but I must warn you, child. During this period, you must never blindly choose a side for the sake of friendship. I estimate that the palace and Ice City will make major moves very soon.”
As those words entered Maria’s ears, her mind buzzed.
What exactly had happened? Why had Diana gone to the Northern Territory? What was she…
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Pete had been having a very enjoyable few days lately. The wine still flowed, the dancing still went on, and Ice City’s nightlife had once again opened its arms to him.
Of course, enjoyment was secondary. The main reason he held banquets was to launch the cosmetics he had newly developed. Without the circles of high society opening up recognition for him, this business of his was becoming harder and harder to run.
Pete was dressed in flamboyant splendor, like a flower butterfly flitting among groups of young ladies, stirring up waves of laughter. Meanwhile, Old Count Morphy sat in a corner on pins and needles, feeling as though thorns were pricking his back.
Who could understand the soul-jolting experience of returning home last night, lighting the lamp, and seeing Eileen’s crimson eyes staring back at him?
Oh, right. There had also been Red standing beside her, his face so stiff that it looked distorted…
He would rather have faced a demon. He would rather have faced Duke Oswald, who would at least invite him to dinner.
W е̄ b n̂ о̇ v̇е̇ĺ. Е̇.n̆ûm̂ а̊
That very night, in order to prove his political stance, Morphy immediately sacrificed a minor noble from the Southern Commercial District.
This man was named Sam. His title was not high, but he was very wealthy. In private, he had already reached an agreement with Princess Diana to provide the princess with two hundred warhorses from the Northern Territory every year.
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Sam swaggered into the count’s residence. At first, he did not take the matter seriously, thinking that Old Count Morphy was putting on some mystifying act. Why was he kneeling to a young woman in a black dress the moment they met?
Heh. Could the kingdom have a second princess?
The woman with red hair turned her head. Her expression was cold and stern, and her black gemstone earrings swayed gently.
“My name is Eileen.”
Ẁ.еbn̊ о̂ v̌ӗl Е num а̊
With a thud, Sam dropped to his knees.
“In other words, I am the Chief Secretary they speak of.”
THUD! THUD! THUD! This time, Sam’s face became even stiffer than Red’s. Cold sweat poured from his entire body as he kowtowed frantically.
It did not matter if he did not understand how much weight the title of Chief Secretary carried. As a noble of the Northern Territory, it was enough for him to know that she also held the title of Executive Deputy Lord.
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To put it bluntly, the last person who had mobilized troops to oppose her was Lady Luna. After that, every noble in Ice City at the time, regardless of rank, knelt before the Duke the very next day.
In short, whoever sided with Lady Luna lost their head.
Ẅebn̂о̀ ṽ е l Еn̂ũm̂а
“Such fine flooring. It would be a pity if you damaged it.”
That was the last thing Eileen said. After that, Sam fully confessed the details of his conversations with the princess, as well as the other nobles involved. In addition, he included the criminal facts of how he had exploited the people over the past few years.
Morphy recorded it, while Red organized it. Only after Sam pressed down the final fingerprint did Eileen pick up the documents. Without even glancing at Sam, she lightly brushed the dust from the hem of her dress and got up to leave.
Back at the current banquet, the more Morphy looked at the nobles circling around the princess, the more frightened he became.
On one hand, the Duke had ordered him to lead the nobles in warmly entertaining the princess. On the other, he had ordered Eileen and Red to monitor them in secret and collect evidence…
There was nothing he could do, brothers and sisters. Since matters had already reached this point, this old brother of yours was powerless too.
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Enjoy this final revelry while you can.
The old count drank alone in silence. Bitter wine slid down his throat, and his heart ached. He had never imagined that one well-intentioned action of his would become the key link that caused the Duke to draw his blade.
From the very first moment he saw Eileen in his home, he had known that things were bad.
The Duke had indeed anticipated that the princess might try to win over the nobles. But the Duke’s side had only just begun planning, and Morphy had already exposed the fact that some nobles had taken concrete action…
Sigh. No matter how he thought about it, this should not have happened. Why had the Duke not known?
Eileen: Yes. Why indeed?
Еń u m_а̀
The old count understood it better than anyone. Concealing nothing was the greatest loyalty. If the person in power knew absolutely nothing about something that was already underway, then it would evolve into an extremely serious political incident.
Just as he had expected, at this moment, almost every servant inside the Ducal Estate was trembling under the oppressive atmosphere, not daring to make a sound for fear of disturbing the Duke.
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Inside the office, Oswald held that report in his hand and paced over to the window, pasting the pages onto the glass one by one.
The sunlight was blocked out, and the room grew increasingly dim. Eileen and Red, who knelt on one knee on the floor, gradually had a layer of shadow fall over their faces.
Oswald’s gaze was obscure and unreadable. After he finished pasting the final page of the report, he stepped forward with great interest. Among the densely packed words and names, he saw only two words.
The South.
Ẇе̊ b̂ n ōv ė l Ê nŭm̂ â
Most of those in the South’s commercial districts were merchant nobles. Perhaps even now, they still believed that they were openly and honorably doing business with the princess.
But Oswald did not share their political assumptions. He only focused on one point.
These densely packed commercial clauses, from iron ore, leather, sugar, grain and fodder to warhorses and weapons, added together, were enough for anyone to raise a regular army of no fewer than ten thousand people within the kingdom in one year.
In my previous life, I do not think I confiscated this much from their houses…
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Oswald’s interest was piqued. Perhaps in the previous life, these nobles had long since reached agreements with certain people and secretly transferred their assets.
The South bordered the Central Region, and river shipping was also controlled by the nobles. If they wanted to secretly do something, Oswald truly would not have been able to discover it.
Ӗ n u ṁa . і ḋ
Could it be that in my previous life, the nobles made a fool of me, and this time, the princess made a fool of me again?
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