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Chapter 84: A Prepared Reversal (3)

‘I-it’s…!’

“Greetings, Your Majesty, my name is Lightning Kale. I’m a mage from the Magical Spire.” Kale bowed respectfully to the emperor.

The moment Kale and the two bodies entered the room, Aubert looked shocked while Eisen was full of joy.

The corners of Eisen’s lips rose as he confidently said, “Your Majesty, this is the second piece of evidence.”

“T-that’s the tenth sword, Salmora, isn’t it?”

“That’s correct, Your Majesty. This is Salmora, the tenth sword and the leader of the Viper Knights, and Pip, the commander of the first unit.”

“What is going on? How can the tenth sword be dead?”

Salmora’s death was truly shocking. The Imperial Ten Swords were the empire’s most powerful military organization, whose skills even the emperor acknowledged. The death of the tenth sword proved that the empire’s defense system was weak.

The emperor wasn’t the only one that was shocked. The other Patrician Family members were, too.

Eisen smiled and thought to himself. ‘Everything is going as he said it would. I sure have an eye for recognizing good people.’?

Henry had anticipated it all, from the emperor’s reaction to Aubert’s attempt to turn the tables on Eisen. Now all that was left was to go along with Kale’s statements since Henry had already tamed him.

Kale and Eisen made eye contact, and Kale nodded slightly. At the signal, Eisen began to speak again, “Your Majesty, before I speak, I have to confess that I have committed a great sin.”

“Sin? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The deaths of everyone here—Salmora, Pip, and all the members of the first unit—are my fault.”

“What? You\'re saying all of this is your doing?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. However, if I hadn’t killed Salmora first, I would have died, so I had no choice but to fight.”

“Are you saying that Salmora led the knights to assassinate you?”

“That right, Your Majesty.”

“That’s a lie, Your Majesty!” Aubert raised his voice. However, the emperor had already begun to lean toward Eisen’s side due to the shock of seeing Salmora’s corpse.

“Be quiet! If anyone dares to speak another word, I will punish them. Keep that in mind!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The emperor’s anger had almost reached its boiling point. Aubert had no choice but to shut his mouth and the silent Patrician Family members grew even more tense. Eisen was the only one who could speak freely, like a dog running off leash.

“Your Majesty, I sent a letter to Salmora and Aubert as soon as I obtained the bodies of the third unit members a few days ago.”

“You mean, before you called this reporting order?”

“Yes. After I obtained the bodies, I advised Aubert to turn himself in and admit his crimes. However, Aubert replied by sending Salmora and his troops, along with a wizard from the Magical Spire, to kill me.”

“Is this the wizard you’re talking about?’

“Yes. He is the wizard that was sent to assassinate me. However, he knew that it was wrong and gave me a heads up, which saved my life.”

This was all that Eisen had to do, the rest was up to Kale.

The emperor turned his attention to Kale.

“Kale, is it?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Is Eisen speaking the truth?”

“Yes, it’s all true. Your Majesty, Marquis Aubert was afraid that another reporting order would be called, so he ordered Salmora to assassinate the count. In order to pull this off, Salmora asked for my help.”

“Why did they ask for your help?”

“The distance from the capital to the Shonan region is very far, so they needed a wizard’s help to teleport there.”

“And why did it have to be you?”

“Because I’m Salmora’s childhood friend, and we grew up in the same hometown.”

The emperor asked many questions, but Kale answered just as Henry had instructed him.

“Ha…” As the information piled up, the emperor grew more anxious and his expression turned dark.

Aubert turned deathly pale. Eisen was full of excitement. Kale reported everything in detail, even things the emperor didn’t ask about.

“Enough.” The emperor stopped Kale, as his patience had reached its limit.

The room was dead silent and it felt as if everyone was walking on thin ice.

“Aubert,” said the emperor.

“...Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Do you have anything to say?”

“...” Aubert closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. After opening his eyes, Aubert looked at Duke Arthus and Marquis Alfred, who were sitting next to him. They looked back, but their eyes showed neither good intentions nor encouragement. They seemed to only express farewell.

‘It was all worth nothing.’

Aubert had become a part of the Three Great Families with absolute power, and he had believed that they would have a strong sense of solidarity. However, that had been a delusion.

When Aubert was about to lose power, the two immediately turned away. This was the reality in a world of power struggles.

The emperor stood, and it seemed that his anger had finally exploded.

Shring.

The emperor grabbed a nearby soldier’s sword and slowly walked toward Aubert.

“Aubert.”

Aubert didn’t say anything, but instead nervously looked at the emperor.

“You have no intention of making any excuses?”

“...I apologize, Your Majesty.”

“I really trusted you…”

It wasn\'t a matter of picking sides. Aubert’s problem was that he had looked down on the emperor and used his army to harm his people. The enraged emperor raised the sword high above his head. What was about to happen next was obvious. Everyone looked away from the two, but Eisen spoke up, “Your Majesty.”

The emperor answered Eisen without taking his eyes off Aubert, “What is it, Count?”

“I believe releasing Your Majesty’s anger on Aubert right now is a rash decision.”

“It’s rash?”

“Yes.”

Everyone, including the emperor, looked surprised. The emperor lowered his sword and turned toward Eisen. “Then what do you think I should do?”

“Although Aubert looked down on Your Majesty and tried to harm your people, I believe it would be a wiser punishment to make him regret his wrongdoing rather than kill him right away.”

“Are you saying I should put him in prison?”

“No.”

“Then?”

“His crimes are too great, so why not exile him to Salgaera?”

“To Salgaera?”

“Yes, I believe it is appropriate to not only strip him of his title but also to deport his entire family to Salgaera.”

It was a much harsher punishment than death. In addition, Eisen decided to include everyone from the Crimson family in the punishment as well.

Aubert’s eyes trembled at Eisen’s words.

“Hmm, exile to Salgaera…” The emperor seemed intrigued, and he stroked his chin and nodded. “That’s a good idea. It would be much better to make amends at the scene of his crime than to put him in prison. I will accept your suggestion.”

“That’s a wise decision, Your Majesty.”

“Hey, stamp the foreheads of all the Crimson family members, including Marquis Aubert, with ‘traitor’ and send them all to Salgaera. This is a royal command.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Clank!

The emperor dropped his sword and walked up to Eisen. He tapped him on the shoulder and said, “I didn’t realize how loyal you were. Forgive my ignorance, count.”

“No, Your Majesty! I only did what I had to do as an imperial subject.”

“You really are loyal. I will give you ten wagons of gold as a reward and if there’s anything else you want, feel free to ask.”

“No, Your Majesty. I’m fully satisfied that I have once again been able to restore Your Majesty’s reputation and the authority of the imperial family. I only wish to be in charge of Salgaera and make things more transparent and less corrupt.”

“You impress me even now. I understand, go ahead.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The exhausted emperor quickly left the room with the court ladies. As the soldiers led Aubert out, he stopped in front of Eisen and looked him in the eye. “You must have thought hard for this to work, Eisen…!”

Aubert’s eyes were filled with anger and resentment. Now that Salgaera was under Eisen’s control, Aubert would never be able to set foot inside the empire again.

Eisen chuckled and said, “Maybe you should have thought harder as well.”

“W-what…?”

“Tsk tsk, all I do is sit at my desk all day, so of course I don’t know what’s going on outside. What are you waiting for? Drag this shameless criminal away.”

“Yes, sir!”

The soldiers dragged Aubert out of the room. There were only five Patrician Family members left. The room was silent and everyone\'s attention was on Eisen.

Eisen spoke, playing innocent, “Is there anything you want to say?”

Not all Patrician Families were the same. The two counts who were the last to become members of the Patrician Family averted their gaze, but the duke and marquis did not.

Alfred spoke first, “Did you really have to go this far?”

“What do you mean ‘this far’? We have an obligation to act with integrity and loyalty for the prosperity of the great Eurasian Empire.”

“I always thought you were a fool, but you’ve become quite clever. You must have known why Aubert had managed Salgaera the way he did.”

“So? What does that have to do with me now?”

Alfred began to release a murderous aura. “Alright, then I’ll make it clear. You’d better not think you’ll become marquis just because Aubert is gone.”

Eisen laughed and said, “Thanks for your concern. Why don’t you worry about yourself, just in case you collapse like Aubert?”

“What?”

“This is the end of the reporting order. My business here is done, so I shall get going.”

Step step.

Kale quickly followed Eisen out of the room.