As the protests began to intensify, the Emperor immediately met with the High Priest, Hermann.
“I can’t stand it anymore!”
Hermann questioned the Emperor in an angry voice.
“You said you only needed to trust Enoch Blois, but didn’t you make things worse?”
“Calm down, Your Majesty. How could I have known they would react like this?”
The Emperor was also annoyed by this situation.
Now the entire empire was doubting him.
The deaths of the Duke and Duchess of Velvet, which were thought to have been buried, have resurfaced.
In addition to the fact that the successor Lucius's qualifications were already being questioned, there were many complaints about the opaque use of tax money.
“This is driving me crazy, really.”
The High Priest pressed harder, even as he watched the Emperor suffer.
"The Pope is very angry. The faithful dare to test his divine power. Do you think this makes sense?"
“So why did you find out about it and make this mistake?”
“Are you saying it’s the Pope’s fault now?”
“No, that’s not what I meant...”
"Your Majesty."
At that time, the chief chamberlain approached the Emperor and reported.
“Count Enoch Blois has requested an audience. What should we do?”
The High Priest, who heard the sound from the side, raised his voice.
"That's a good thing. Please invite him in. I'm looking forward to hearing what excuse he'll come up with."
The Emperor nodded to the chief chamberlain and spoke.
“Tell him to come in.”
After a while, Enoch entered the audience room alone.
“Greetings to Your Majesty.”
Enoch seemed to have expected the High Priest to come, and did not seem particularly surprised to see him.
“High Priest, you’re here too. How have you been?”
“Ha! Look at me going back now! Do I look like I’m doing well?”
He was angry at Enoch's shameless composure.
“I even lent you the temple weapons on purpose, but you can’t even take out a single person. What is this?”
“Isn’t it too much to ask for when you’ve only lent me a weapon?”
“What? Just one weapon?”
“Yes, stop it.”
The Emperor mediated between the two.
“Your Majesty, aren’t you completely indifferent to that guy’s behavior?”
“How could I not be offended? I summoned the Count of Blois as soon as it happened.”
The reason the Emperor left him alone was not only because he was afraid of the repercussions of imprisoning the Count of Blois, but also because he promised to come up with a better plan.
“First, the High Priest should sit down and listen to the Count’s story.”
At the Emperor's words, the High Priest barely managed to calm down and sat down again.
Enoch sat opposite him and looked at the High Priest with a meaningful gaze.
“Your Majesty, why do you think Killian is causing such a stir in the temple and the palace?”
“Well, isn’t that why he wants revenge on those who ruined his family?”
“That’s it.”
“Then what would be the ultimate goal of revenge?”
“Final goal?”
“Isn’t that treason?”
The Emperor's expression immediately hardened.
It was something he had expected from the moment it was revealed that Killian was Adrian Velvet, but hearing it come out of someone else's mouth made it feel like reality.
“Killian must be framed as a traitor and executed.”
"Who doesn't know that's the easy way? There's no evidence right now!"
The Emperor sighed in annoyance.
“If we arrest Killian too, what will happen to public opinion when the people of the empire are already resentful of us?”
“What does it matter what those ignorant people think?”
Enoch said it was no big deal.
"Assemble the nobles, declare Killian a traitor, and arrest him. This was decided by the noble council, so who would object?"
The High Priest, who was listening to Enoch, also nodded.
“You can’t afford to lose the trust of the nobles by keeping an eye on the commoners, so call a meeting as the Count of Blois suggests.”
But still the Emperor was deeply troubled.
“I would like to, but I’m worried that the nobles who were friends with the Duke of Velvet during his lifetime are already actively interacting with the Marquis of Starr.”
“Then we should also drive them into treason.”
“Count Blois, do you know who they are when you say such things?”
The Emperor looked at Enoch as if he was frustrated.
The two most prominent families in the empire, the Duke of Howard and the Marquis of Huppert, were both friendly to Killian.
“Your Majesty has the Duke of Sadie. What could be the problem?”
“What does that mean?”
“Think carefully. Isn’t the Duke of Sadie in love with Madame Starr?”
Enoch recalled the time when he had been invited to the Duke of Sadie's house.
Pretending not to notice, pretending not to be offended, the fact that he brought up the fact that the Duke of Sadie and Emily were engaged was actually to see how the Duke would react.
If the Duke still had feelings for Emily, there were many things he could do to use them.
'So this is how you use it now.'
Enoch smiled wickedly to himself.
“Entice Duke Sadie to eliminate Killian and get Madame Starr.”
Lucius had asked him to connect him with Madame Starr, but there was no reason to grant that useless child's request.
“...That’s a bit difficult.”
The Emperor frowned and looked serious.
“I was the one who broke off the Duke of Sadie’s engagement, so how can I say anything else?”
At those words, the High Priest who had been silent intervened.
"Isn't this the time to be concerned about face? Duke Sadie is a sword master, and we need to secure his allies to deal with Killian."
“Hmm....”
"That's right, Your Majesty. From what I've seen, the Duke of Sadie still clearly has feelings for Madame Starr."
“Is that so...?”
“The most efficient and easiest way is to use that emotion to move the Duke.”
The Emperor, who had been pondering for a long time, slowly opened his mouth.
“Good. Then I will convene a council of nobles soon.”
Before starting his rebellion, Killian gathered his followers one last time.
But Duke Howard did not hide his displeasure towards Messina and Endymion, who were sitting opposite him.
“I understand that the Starr family is the Marquis’ people, but I’m worried that you’re dragging other mafia organizations into this important matter.”
“Are you saying you don’t trust us because we’re the mafia?”
Messina frowned.
“You have to understand that.”
The Marquis Huppert spoke, supporting the Duke.
"This isn't a simple fight. We're up against knights who have trained for decades."
“It seems like you think we’re just a bunch of gun-toting thugs.”
“I know what you two are concerned about.”
It seemed like it could easily escalate into a war of words between the two groups, so Killian quickly stepped in to mediate.
“But don’t worry, Rezetta and the Gotio family are far more capable than you and won’t cause trouble in this matter.”
Killian doesn't open up to people easily, so it was his first time saying such words of acceptance to someone.
Messina and Endymion, who knew his character, looked at Killian with moved faces.
“Yes, just tell us what we should do.”
“I will do my best to help you.”
Everyone owed their lives to Killian at some point, so their desire to help him was genuine.
But still, Duke Howard opened his mouth with an uneasy expression.
“Even if that’s true for you, can you guarantee that none of their subordinates will betray you?”
"In our world, the boss's word is law. Questioning the boss's decisions means immediate death. So who would betray us?"
Endymion said firmly.
“Hmm...”
"It's not just knights who swear allegiance. We, too, swear a blood oath when we join an organization, pledging our loyalty to our boss."
“Really? I didn’t know that.”
“Those who are with us now are like family to us, people we can stay with until death.”
Killian explained to Duke Howard.
"And we plan to keep this coup from spreading beyond the palace as much as possible. The Rezetta and Gotio families will be of great help when dealing with soldiers inside the castle."
Because the indoor space was limited, it was difficult for knights accustomed to long swords to demonstrate their skills.
As Killian said, it was actually useful for mafias who had a lot of experience fighting at short range.
“I see. You must have thought about it, too.”
Eventually, Duke Howard gave in to his stubbornness.
“Now, tell me how to divide and move.”
The people gathered there opened the map of the palace while listening to Killian's explanation.
“How should our soldiers move?”
"If you look at this way on the map, you'll see a waterway connecting here. We'll enter the palace directly through that waterway."
Upon entering, the command was to be given to the Marquis of Huppert, who was familiar with the internal structure of the castle.
“Duke Howard, please keep a close watch outside the palace to prevent any royal family members from escaping.”
“Yes.”
“The Gotio family will take charge of the temple, and the Rezetta family will enter the palace with us.”
If a large number of enemies were to swarm, there would be little time to reload, so troops capable of using daggers and shortfire were needed.
And there were many people in the Rezetta family who were outstanding in that area.
"Good."
"All right."
As the meeting was nearing its conclusion, Pete came inside.
“I have something urgent to tell you.”
“What’s going on?”
“While eavesdropping on the audience room, I overheard the conversation between the Emperor and Matteo. They said they were summoning the nobles tomorrow.”
The Marquis of Huppert, who was listening from the side, laughed in vain.
“It’s so funny because it’s going exactly as expected.”
Duke Howard also clicked his tongue and said.
"Marquis Starr, we must move quickly. Once the Emperor convenes the noble council, our next order of business will be to arrest you."
Killian nodded.
The day when they can break the tenacious bond of ill-will is just around the corner.
“I can’t stand it anymore!”
Hermann questioned the Emperor in an angry voice.
“You said you only needed to trust Enoch Blois, but didn’t you make things worse?”
“Calm down, Your Majesty. How could I have known they would react like this?”
The Emperor was also annoyed by this situation.
Now the entire empire was doubting him.
The deaths of the Duke and Duchess of Velvet, which were thought to have been buried, have resurfaced.
In addition to the fact that the successor Lucius's qualifications were already being questioned, there were many complaints about the opaque use of tax money.
“This is driving me crazy, really.”
The High Priest pressed harder, even as he watched the Emperor suffer.
"The Pope is very angry. The faithful dare to test his divine power. Do you think this makes sense?"
“So why did you find out about it and make this mistake?”
“Are you saying it’s the Pope’s fault now?”
“No, that’s not what I meant...”
"Your Majesty."
At that time, the chief chamberlain approached the Emperor and reported.
“Count Enoch Blois has requested an audience. What should we do?”
The High Priest, who heard the sound from the side, raised his voice.
"That's a good thing. Please invite him in. I'm looking forward to hearing what excuse he'll come up with."
The Emperor nodded to the chief chamberlain and spoke.
“Tell him to come in.”
After a while, Enoch entered the audience room alone.
“Greetings to Your Majesty.”
Enoch seemed to have expected the High Priest to come, and did not seem particularly surprised to see him.
“High Priest, you’re here too. How have you been?”
“Ha! Look at me going back now! Do I look like I’m doing well?”
He was angry at Enoch's shameless composure.
“I even lent you the temple weapons on purpose, but you can’t even take out a single person. What is this?”
“Isn’t it too much to ask for when you’ve only lent me a weapon?”
“What? Just one weapon?”
“Yes, stop it.”
The Emperor mediated between the two.
“Your Majesty, aren’t you completely indifferent to that guy’s behavior?”
“How could I not be offended? I summoned the Count of Blois as soon as it happened.”
The reason the Emperor left him alone was not only because he was afraid of the repercussions of imprisoning the Count of Blois, but also because he promised to come up with a better plan.
“First, the High Priest should sit down and listen to the Count’s story.”
At the Emperor's words, the High Priest barely managed to calm down and sat down again.
Enoch sat opposite him and looked at the High Priest with a meaningful gaze.
“Your Majesty, why do you think Killian is causing such a stir in the temple and the palace?”
“Well, isn’t that why he wants revenge on those who ruined his family?”
“That’s it.”
Enoch chimed in and continued speaking.
“Final goal?”
“Isn’t that treason?”
The Emperor's expression immediately hardened.
It was something he had expected from the moment it was revealed that Killian was Adrian Velvet, but hearing it come out of someone else's mouth made it feel like reality.
“Killian must be framed as a traitor and executed.”
"Who doesn't know that's the easy way? There's no evidence right now!"
The Emperor sighed in annoyance.
“If we arrest Killian too, what will happen to public opinion when the people of the empire are already resentful of us?”
“What does it matter what those ignorant people think?”
Enoch said it was no big deal.
"Assemble the nobles, declare Killian a traitor, and arrest him. This was decided by the noble council, so who would object?"
The High Priest, who was listening to Enoch, also nodded.
“You can’t afford to lose the trust of the nobles by keeping an eye on the commoners, so call a meeting as the Count of Blois suggests.”
But still the Emperor was deeply troubled.
“I would like to, but I’m worried that the nobles who were friends with the Duke of Velvet during his lifetime are already actively interacting with the Marquis of Starr.”
“Then we should also drive them into treason.”
“Count Blois, do you know who they are when you say such things?”
The Emperor looked at Enoch as if he was frustrated.
The two most prominent families in the empire, the Duke of Howard and the Marquis of Huppert, were both friendly to Killian.
“Your Majesty has the Duke of Sadie. What could be the problem?”
“What does that mean?”
“Think carefully. Isn’t the Duke of Sadie in love with Madame Starr?”
Enoch recalled the time when he had been invited to the Duke of Sadie's house.
Pretending not to notice, pretending not to be offended, the fact that he brought up the fact that the Duke of Sadie and Emily were engaged was actually to see how the Duke would react.
If the Duke still had feelings for Emily, there were many things he could do to use them.
'So this is how you use it now.'
Enoch smiled wickedly to himself.
“Entice Duke Sadie to eliminate Killian and get Madame Starr.”
Lucius had asked him to connect him with Madame Starr, but there was no reason to grant that useless child's request.
“...That’s a bit difficult.”
The Emperor frowned and looked serious.
“I was the one who broke off the Duke of Sadie’s engagement, so how can I say anything else?”
At those words, the High Priest who had been silent intervened.
"Isn't this the time to be concerned about face? Duke Sadie is a sword master, and we need to secure his allies to deal with Killian."
“Hmm....”
"That's right, Your Majesty. From what I've seen, the Duke of Sadie still clearly has feelings for Madame Starr."
“Is that so...?”
“The most efficient and easiest way is to use that emotion to move the Duke.”
The Emperor, who had been pondering for a long time, slowly opened his mouth.
“Good. Then I will convene a council of nobles soon.”
***
Before starting his rebellion, Killian gathered his followers one last time.
But Duke Howard did not hide his displeasure towards Messina and Endymion, who were sitting opposite him.
“I understand that the Starr family is the Marquis’ people, but I’m worried that you’re dragging other mafia organizations into this important matter.”
“Are you saying you don’t trust us because we’re the mafia?”
Messina frowned.
“You have to understand that.”
The Marquis Huppert spoke, supporting the Duke.
"This isn't a simple fight. We're up against knights who have trained for decades."
“It seems like you think we’re just a bunch of gun-toting thugs.”
“I know what you two are concerned about.”
It seemed like it could easily escalate into a war of words between the two groups, so Killian quickly stepped in to mediate.
“But don’t worry, Rezetta and the Gotio family are far more capable than you and won’t cause trouble in this matter.”
Killian doesn't open up to people easily, so it was his first time saying such words of acceptance to someone.
Messina and Endymion, who knew his character, looked at Killian with moved faces.
“Yes, just tell us what we should do.”
“I will do my best to help you.”
Everyone owed their lives to Killian at some point, so their desire to help him was genuine.
But still, Duke Howard opened his mouth with an uneasy expression.
“Even if that’s true for you, can you guarantee that none of their subordinates will betray you?”
"In our world, the boss's word is law. Questioning the boss's decisions means immediate death. So who would betray us?"
Endymion said firmly.
“Hmm...”
"It's not just knights who swear allegiance. We, too, swear a blood oath when we join an organization, pledging our loyalty to our boss."
“Really? I didn’t know that.”
“Those who are with us now are like family to us, people we can stay with until death.”
Killian explained to Duke Howard.
"And we plan to keep this coup from spreading beyond the palace as much as possible. The Rezetta and Gotio families will be of great help when dealing with soldiers inside the castle."
Because the indoor space was limited, it was difficult for knights accustomed to long swords to demonstrate their skills.
As Killian said, it was actually useful for mafias who had a lot of experience fighting at short range.
“I see. You must have thought about it, too.”
Eventually, Duke Howard gave in to his stubbornness.
“Now, tell me how to divide and move.”
The people gathered there opened the map of the palace while listening to Killian's explanation.
“How should our soldiers move?”
"If you look at this way on the map, you'll see a waterway connecting here. We'll enter the palace directly through that waterway."
Upon entering, the command was to be given to the Marquis of Huppert, who was familiar with the internal structure of the castle.
“Duke Howard, please keep a close watch outside the palace to prevent any royal family members from escaping.”
“Yes.”
“The Gotio family will take charge of the temple, and the Rezetta family will enter the palace with us.”
If a large number of enemies were to swarm, there would be little time to reload, so troops capable of using daggers and shortfire were needed.
And there were many people in the Rezetta family who were outstanding in that area.
"Good."
"All right."
As the meeting was nearing its conclusion, Pete came inside.
“I have something urgent to tell you.”
“What’s going on?”
“While eavesdropping on the audience room, I overheard the conversation between the Emperor and Matteo. They said they were summoning the nobles tomorrow.”
The Marquis of Huppert, who was listening from the side, laughed in vain.
“It’s so funny because it’s going exactly as expected.”
Duke Howard also clicked his tongue and said.
"Marquis Starr, we must move quickly. Once the Emperor convenes the noble council, our next order of business will be to arrest you."
Killian nodded.
The day when they can break the tenacious bond of ill-will is just around the corner.
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