Episode 219
“That damned Saxon brat…!”
Thud!
In the grand estate of Viscount John Lancaster, brother to the Duke of Lancaster and his representative in part of the duchy, the air was thick with tension. John slammed his fist on the table, his anger palpable. The nobles gathered around him froze, their expressions turning icy.
The loyalty of the people, once steadfast, was now swaying like reeds towards Charlotte Lancaster.
Storytellers roamed the duchy, spreading tales that painted Charlotte in a favorable light while disparaging John and the Eurys family. The impact was far greater than John had anticipated.
Nobles within the duchy, who should have been under his influence, were beginning to abandon him one by one. In a desperate move, John had sent assassins to deal with the situation, but all that returned were their severed heads.
“Father…”
“Silence! How dare a mere girl speak out of turn!”
At that moment, his eldest daughter, Linne, tried to speak, but John cut her off with a shout before she could utter a word.
“I’m sorry.”
Linne Lancaster flinched and bowed her head. Just then, another voice broke the silence.
“Please, let her speak, Miss Linne.”
“Lord Ray…!”
Ray Lancaster, who had been silent, finally spoke. Linne swallowed nervously, but Ray remained unfazed.
“As long as Miss Linne is present, she has every right to speak.”
“I just wish Father wouldn’t be so angry…”
But before Linne could finish, John raised his voice again.
“Have you forgotten that all this is because you were born a girl?”
“I’m sorry!”
Linne bowed her head once more. Watching her, Ray Lancaster continued.
“She is your daughter. Please choose your words more carefully.”
“Ray, do not be mistaken just because you bear the Lancaster name.”
John’s voice was cold as he spoke.
“I appreciate the Red Tower’s support, but we will never become your puppets.”
His words were laced with blatant hostility and suspicion.
”…”
Ray Eurys remained silent, while Linne’s shoulders shook as she tried to hold back her sobs.
“Then, as one who does not carry Lancaster blood, I shall take my leave.”
With that, Ray turned away, gently taking Linne Lancaster’s hand.
In the private chamber of John’s estate, Linne Lancaster was a truly foolish woman. She would burst into tears over the smallest things, utterly lost.
“Lord Ray…!”
Ray looked at Linne, who was sobbing into his chest, with an expression devoid of emotion.
“What frightens you so?”
“I’m just so scared…!”
Linne wept as she spoke.
“I’ve heard that the ‘Black Prince’ of Saxon is the most ruthless and terrifying man in the world! The thought of Father and you fighting against such a notorious figure terrifies me…”
At the mention of that name, Ray’s expression hardened. That name again.
“I heard it was the ‘Black Prince’ who used the wedding as a pretext to assassinate Uncle and Prince Richard!”
“Indeed. And it was also he who defeated Prince Michael.”
Linne, an innocent girl who knew nothing, believed wholeheartedly in the Red Tower’s claims that all the tragedies befalling the Lancaster family were the work of Saxon. She trembled at the thought of the fear the ‘Black Prince’ would bring.
“But you need not worry.”
Ray smiled as he gently wrapped his arm around Linne’s pale neck.
“I will never let the ‘Black Prince’ of Saxon harm my wife.”
“Oh, Lord Ray…!”
Linne managed a faint smile through her tears at Ray’s whisper.
“I’m so happy to be with you, I can hardly believe it.”
“I feel the same.”
Linne blushed and smiled shyly. Ray held her silently, his expression still emotionless as he looked past her.
Linne Lancaster was indeed a foolish and naive woman.
“It seems the Guild of Storytellers is successfully carrying out their mission.”
Mistress Titania reported, and the Black Prince in the Lancaster ducal estate let out a wry smile. The true nature of the blue web was becoming clear.
“So this is the ‘unspeakable feat’ the Blue Tower mentioned.”
“Didn’t I tell you? We have been devoted to you long before the Shadow Lord realized his own potential.”
Titania smiled. It was true.
Every time young Dale made a name for himself in the northern wilderness, his exploits spread across the continent. His reputation as the empire’s greatest genius, and his victory over Philip in the black-and-white duel, were no exceptions.
But how could such tales spread so swiftly and accurately in a world without cars or planes?
It was the work of enthusiasts, and the reason these stories reached every corner of the empire was because those enthusiasts were part of a meticulous and organized ‘guild.’
The Guild of Storytellers.
The fact that this guild was the very blue web itself was no longer a surprise.
In other words, from the beginning, the Blue Tower had been working behind the scenes to build Dale’s reputation as the empire’s greatest genius and the ‘Black Prince.’
“You grow more suspicious by the day.”
Dale replied coldly.
“How did you know about my potential as the Shadow Lord before I even realized it?”
“Well, I’m just a mere puppet of the Blue.”
Mistress Titania spoke cryptically.
“I’m just a small part of the web spun by our tower master, the mastermind of the Blue. How could a mere puppet like me fathom the thoughts of the tower master?”
”…”
Dale remained silent. But the silence was short-lived.
“Master Baro.”
“Oh ho ho, I didn’t hear a thing.”
At the end of the silence, Dale turned his head, and Master Baro feigned ignorance with a carefree smile.
“Who asked you? Just come and give your report.”
“Oh dear, my apologies. But I must insist, I truly heard nothing.”
Master Baro rose and approached the map on the table Dale was examining. It depicted the Lancaster duchy and the territories of the vassal nobles surrounding it.
On the map, several spots were marked with blood-red ink.
And to the few unmarked spots, Master Baro added more blood-red dots with his quill.
These marks indicated where the Shadow Lord’s 《Grave Walkers》 had engaged in ‘honest conversations’ with the nobles loyal to John Lancaster.
Aside from John’s viscounty and its immediate surroundings, most strongholds were marked with red.
“The people’s hearts are like reeds, and as long as they lean towards us, they have no choice but to act.”
Mistress Titania smiled as she looked down at the map.
“Soon, the battle will begin, Shadow Lord.”
“Using force in this situation would mean giving up the people’s hearts with their own hands. We have no reason to refuse.”
“Oh my, how astute you are.”
Titania smiled with delight, but Dale did not return the smile.
“Charlotte Lancaster.”
While Dale was calmly assessing the situation, Charlotte Lancaster was also playing her part.
In this invisible war, it was Dale’s role to sway the hearts of their enemies.
But it was up to Charlotte, the head of the Lancaster family, to capture and solidify those hearts once they leaned like reeds.
Amidst the Rose Cross knights and vassals of the Lancaster estate, Charlotte turned her head.
She was no longer clad in the armor of the Night Raven Knight, but in the attire of the Lancaster family, adorned with the red and white rose.
“I have something to discuss.”
Dale bowed respectfully, and Charlotte nodded silently.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
Leaving her loyal followers behind, Charlotte rose.
The two of them headed to a private room in the Lancaster estate.
“Whew, this is exhausting.”
Only then did Charlotte’s stiff expression soften. The Charlotte Dale knew was there.
“Being the head of a family isn’t easy, is it?”
“Yes, I can’t even imagine how much your father must be struggling.”
Charlotte laughed, and Dale smiled silently.
“Soon, Viscount John Lancaster will gather his forces.”
“The time has finally come.”
Charlotte replied, unsurprised.
“Behind him stands the Red Tower. While they can’t act openly, they will surely move powerful forces to seize the Lancaster duchy.”
If the imperial family were to overtly move against the Lancaster family, it would raise suspicions among the empire’s nobles. But by using a proxy, they could act as if it were a separate matter entirely.
Viscount John Lancaster himself is hardly a threat. In fact, the number of knights loyal to him is, in a sense, not particularly significant.
Yet, the reason he can make such a reckless move is because he has the backing of the Red Tower.
And the Red Tower, in its ambition to swallow the Lancaster family whole, will not merely play along for appearances.
For Dale, this would be his first battle against the full might of the Red Tower, and that was no exaggeration.
During the War of Unification, knights were hailed as the flowers of war.
However, when the Red Tower’s red-robed sorcerers appeared on the battlefield, soldiers revered them and called them by a different name.
Gods of War.
This battle was a fight against those very gods of war.
“I told you, Dale.”
Despite everything, Charlotte remained unfazed.
“Because I am Charlotte of Saxon.”
”…”
“Never forget that I am a sword wielded solely for you.”
“Alright.”
Charlotte spoke, and Dale nodded quietly.
The invisible war over the reeds of the heart ends here.
From now on, the true, visible war would begin.