The fall of Chancellor Langston.
The appearance of Duke Elias.
The new royalist faction, which was on the verge of disintegration due to Julian's crisis, rallied together around Duke Elias.
They hunted down each and every one of those who had plotted a rebellion with Chancellor Langston.
All those who helped the prime minister raise an army, those who moved with him, and those who assisted him were detained.
Then, influential figures who were trying to keep the new royal faction in check came forward.
"It's true that the King was missing and that his personal safety was in question to the point that he couldn't wake up until now! The prime minister had that much authority at the time!"
"Treason! He only led the army for half a day, and as a result, no casualties occurred. How can that be considered treason?"
"That's right! As soon as they discovered His Majesty, he disbanded the army according to procedure. What crime did he commit?"
"In a situation like this, the prime minister, who is supposed to represent the King, should be doing his job. What are you going to do if you detain him?"
These were the remaining nobles of Chancellor Langston's faction and the nobles who pretended to be neutral and were keeping the neo-royalists in check.
They were convinced that Julian would never wake up.
They argued that, given the circumstances, mistakes should be overlooked to some extent and the prime minister should be released to stabilize the situation.
The rising neo-royalists even went so far as to criticize Chancellor Langston for driving him into a corner.
But some stopped them.
It wasn't the New Royal Family or Duke Elias.
"Chancellor Langston has plotted a rebellion!"
"This is treason! Execute the prime minister!"
"Execute him!"
They were the people.
The people gathered in the square raised their voices in support of Julian and the new royalists.
Among them were the families of soldiers who had gone to the palace at the orders of the prime minister, those who had benefited from Julian's relief policies, and those who were grateful for Bridget's charitable activities.
Before long, Julian's popularity among the people had skyrocketed.
Changes were occurring in places no one expected.
The artists that Bridget sponsored supported Julian with their work.
About Julian, people have written, drawn, and played instruments.
Orphans left flowers and letters in front of the main gate of the palace, wishing Julian a speedy recovery.
Julian, who had been criticized and called a tyrant, was now supported and called a saint.
In particular, artists often used the relationship between Julian and Bridget seen at the banquet as a subject for their works, which unexpectedly helped greatly in improving Julian's image.
The beautiful romance of a tyrant.
The people sympathized with Julian and felt close to him.
Bridget heard the people in the square raising their voices in support of Julian.
If she could win the hearts of the people, her belief that the people would protect Julian if he lost power would be realized.
The nobles who supported Chancellor Langston could no longer speak out for fear of what the people would think.
Thus, Chancellor Langston was executed for treason.
Meanwhile, the investigation into Bruce, who started this incident, also progressed quickly.
The police raided the base of the Resurrection Church believers disguised as a bandit group and rescued the girls who were being held there.
Chloe was in there too.
"He kept whispering to me to testify that my sister, Bridget Florence, was a witch! The people there were shouting that my sister was a witch, that they should kill her...!"
Surprisingly, Chloe remembered the faces of many of the people she had seen when she woke up from her spell during the regular lecture of the Resurrection Church.
She was of great help in weeding out the Resurrectionists who sympathized with Bruce.
Most of them were nobles from the Duke of Linchester's faction.
Bruce, the bandits, the sorcerer, and Nigel were brought to trial one after another, thanks to the secret ledger created by Bridget.
Lucas Linchester somehow drew a line, insisting that his brothers' misdeeds were committed independently of the Linchester family.
Through Lucas's trickery, all the Duke of Linchester's corruption and crimes were covered up by Bruce and Nigel.
The new royalists were indignant.
"It's clear that it's all the Duke of Linchester's doing!"
"What a coincidence that there was a fire at the Duke of Linchester's residence...!"
"What a coward and a mean man. To go away without paying the price for his crimes."
Lucas, the new heir to the title, evaded much of the family's responsibility by cutting off Bruce and Nigel.
Bruce was the third son with no authority in the family, and Nigel had long since left the family and become independent.
Lucas regrets his failure to properly manage his brothers, and he tries to end things by giving up part of his family fortune as a moral responsibility.
Even.
"Bridget Florence was there when the farmhouse burned down. Isn't that strange? I have to find out the truth about my father's death!"
Lucas even went so far as to name Bridget as a suspect in the arson.
However.
"Who said that the Duke of Linchester was dead?"
Bridget muttered something incomprehensible.
She handed Duke Elias a note with an address on it and said:
"The Duke of Linchester is alive."
The day the fire happened.
Bridget sent the Black Knights into the burning building to find the Duke of Linchester.
In fact, she did not act with the expectation that the Duke of Linchester would be there.
Nobody knew.
When the fire broke out, the Duke of Linchester was in the cellar, playing with his beloved magic and superstition stuff.
During the chaos, even the butler did not know his location, and everyone was unable to find the Duke's whereabouts.
Only the black knights found the Duke lying in the smoke-filled cellar.
A situation where the identity of the arsonist is unknown.
Bridget secretly conspired with the Constable to keep the Duke of Linchester alive and to have him kidnapped.
Although Queen Beatrice's records were burned, Bridget's visit there was not in vain.
Duke Elias, having found the Duke of Linchester alive at the address Bridget had given her, came to a conclusion.
"There is no way Miss Bridget, who saved the Duke of Linchester by treating him and saving his life, could be the arsonist. Besides, the Duke of Linchester will pay the price he deserves."
***
"My father is alive?"
Lucas was shocked to hear the news.
"That!"
He was indignant and kicked his subordinate.
"What are you doing like this?"
After a long struggle, he finally gave an order in a haughty tone.
"I will give you a chance to make up for your mistake."
He had no choice but to grind his teeth.
"Find my father immediately and kill him without anyone knowing. He must be locked up in the palace dungeon. Bribe the guards with any amount of money you want. Do whatever you want to kill my father!"
***
As Lucas had expected, the Duke of Linchester was in the palace dungeon.
"Ugh...Ugh..."
He had burns on his arms, legs, and face.
Bridget wouldn't let him die.
She sent doctors to treat him.
That's why he was locked up on the top floor of the dungeon, a place with a pretty good environment.
It was a place where many people came and went, including guards, doctors, and soldiers.
Lucas's men, who had bribed the guard, went to the Duke of Linchester disguised as guards.
"Ugh... Ugh..."
The Duke, exhausted from the pain and falling into a shallow sleep, groaned occasionally in his sleep.
'This time, for sure.'
There should have been no mistakes.
He was an old man who had already suffered deep burns and was dying.
If he failed to properly deal with one such old man, he would die at Lucas's hand.
The moment he picked up the dagger he had hidden in his bosom and was about to stab the Duke of Linchester...
Goooooo-
Sensing danger in the shadow of the Duke of Linchester, the Black Knight leapt out and grabbed him.
It was the black knight that Bridget had attached to prevent the Duke's death.
Chaenggrang!
The dagger fell and made a loud noise.
Lucas's men were perplexed.
'Why is there a black knight here?'
No way could happen..
Julian was clearly on the brink of death!
The fact that Bridget's eyes had turned red was not yet known to the world.
The Duke of Linchester woke up to the sound of a crashing iron.
"Wh, what!"
He opened his eyes wide as he saw the face of the one who had tried to attack him through the bandages covering his face.
"You..!"
It was a familiar face.
Lucas' subordinate.
The Duke of Linchester was shocked.
"Then you tried to kill me..."
He was faced with a painful truth that he didn't want to know.
"This can't be! This can't be..! Keuuuk!"
The Duke of Linchester, who had never shed a tear even when on the brink of death, shed tears for the first time.
His eldest son, whom he was proud of and to whom he wanted to pass everything.
He was betrayed by Lucas.
It was different when he was betrayed by Charlotte or his son-in-law, the Count of Highbury.
It was the Duke of Linchester who regarded Lucas as his own alter ego.
"Ahh! That can't be! That can't be!"
The Duke approached Lucas's subordinate and grabbed him by the collar.
But the bandaged hand couldn't hold anything.
Lucas's men tried to run away, but could not escape the Black Knight's grasp.
Meanwhile, Bridget, who had received a signal from the Black Knight, sent out the guards who had been waiting, and Lucas's men were captured in vain.
***
The Linchester family, which had ruled the world for hundreds of years with fame, power, and wealth, was wiped out overnight.
The King's secretaries all at once exposed all the evidence of the Duke's corruption that Julian had dug up.
There was so much corruption that it was impossible to pinpoint just one.
The Duke of Linchester was stoned to death by a mob on his way to the execution grounds.
It was a miserable death, worse than that of an animal.
Lucas Linchester was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Tower for murdering his father and attempting to cover up many other crimes.
Bruce Linchester was beheaded along with other members of the Church of the Resurrection for the crime of trafficking girls for human sacrifice.
Nigel Abington was sentenced to 25 years' hard labor and had all his property confiscated.
The Linchester family's property was completely divided, with half going to the national treasury and the other half divided among those who had suffered damages from the Duke of Linchester.
It was a complete victory for Bridget.
So, now...
"You just have to wake up, Julian."
Bridget held Julian's hand and pleaded.
But Julian was just sleeping with a calm face.
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment