Chapter 345 - Agatha (43) <2-in-1> (2/2)

It had been a decision made out of impulse and anger.

It was stupid. Had he been in the right mind, he certainly would have first sent people to investigate where the 'assassin' truly was from. But the male lead did not do it, thinking with absolute confidence that it was that person. There would be no anybody else so hostile to the Duchess. He even told himself he had had enough of the royal consort's dark tricks.

So he made this move, coming alone. The 'assassin' was still being tortured by his subordinates somewhere.

In a sense, this showcased Andre Grey's arrogance. The male lead was not only letting emotions reigned on him. He had blind confidence in his deduction and believed he would successfully pull off the retaliation and then get away from it.

To be honest, with the plot as his backing, he would have no problem executing the poor plan.

Now a torn mask could be seen vaguely in the shadowy ground, which ruined Andre Grey's covertness and anonymity in this operation.

Yet the man only frowned. There was no other emotion in his face. He purposely did not answer the captain knight's question as he had no intention to let those around hear his voice.

”Apprehend the traitorous duke,” Francis IV said in a loud enough voice after appearing next to Agatha. Giving the male lead a glance, the man endured the headache and added, ”One of you, race to General Whyte and relay to him my order. Surround and capture the whole Grey Ducal House. None is to be allowed to exit without permission from me or the Chief Minister of Justice.”

Hearing the order, Andre was still silent, with no intention of retreating. Meanwhile, the knight captain immediately commanded his men to surround the male lead. The formation had become complete since the king had come back and no knight was no longer needed to ensure the safety of the fragile royal consort.

A few seconds quickly passed and the counterattacks from the knights became fiercer that Andre had begun to feel the difficulty of his mission. It left him no leeway to bar the chosen knight from leaving. He had to focus on defending more than attacking. And this made him scowl.

Some more time passed and he began to question himself.

At this rate, would he really be able to kill the witch?

Only three out of the dozen elites had been wounded mortally and forced out of the battle.

If killing was not an option, would he be able to force the villainess to use witchcraft in the presence of the king then? To make sure she would be put in a public trial?

The duke was not aware, but actually, the question he should be inquiring himself was whether Agatha would continue to lie low now that Francis IV was back.

The answer was no, obviously.

The woman temporarily forgot about the fake messenger and her happiness in seeing the king back in one piece. Agatha yelled with malice that was masked with urgency, ”My king, the duke didn't show panic when one of the knights sprinted out to fetch the General. It's making me suspect that there is a double in the ducal mansion acting as Duke Grey! I suggest that once we're back, we should put every member of the Duke Household in a trial as all of them could be involved in this treason!”

'Really a female villain.' While the king was nodding at Agatha's guess, Duke Grey's eyes flashed with murderous intent that the royal concubine saw and provocatively grinned at.

The male lead was initially not alarmed by the order given to the knight that left because he really had a double in the ducal manor acting as him. Even if a search was conducted, the general would see 'him' there.

But now…

”Just seize this one first and then invite the royal envoy from the Borley Kingdom. The whole ducal family is to be on a house arrest until then. With the royal envoy's communication device, we can contact the Pope of Penemue to confirm the truth about this assassination,” the king said emotionlessly.

'His Majesty believed the witch just like that?'

'And there's an envoy related to the Church of Wisdom in the palace?'

Andre blanked out for a moment before suddenly fighting more ferociously than before. His face turned gloomy and his gaze towards the king and the royal consort became hostile.

But it was already too late. He realized he had been had by his complacency.

People from the palace too were not idiots, he realized. It was he who was, especially when he let his mask fall without covering his face afterward.

Where the hell did he get the nerve to assume a simple scheme would not be seen through by them?

And even if he said he was simply taking revenge on his wife's behalf, would his stupidity and rashness be excused?

The duke tightened his grip of the sword.

Yet, what he really regretted was not that he had come here impulsively... but that he could not stop the knight headed for General White on time, and that he had not brought enough people to take the king hostage.

'What to do?' the duke asked himself.

Andre Grey's cold eyes settled on Agatha.