Chapter 180 (1/2)

Lawrence sat and stared into the air without turning on the lights in the study.

It had been three weeks since he was brought and imprisoned in his home.

The Guard soldiers guarded the inside and outside. Lawrence could speak to them, but by what order they had been given, there was no reply like a stone statue.

He was free to act in the house.

The meal came out as luxuriously as before. He was not disturbed wherever he went. He could be alone in the bedroom.

The management of the mansion was flawless, and in the morning the attendant came to change his clothes.

However, going out into the garden was also forbidden.

There were no visitors, and no one to carry the news.

The butler didn't show up. Not just the butlers, but most of the senior employees.

They were probably taken away for investigation. Lawrence could have guessed.

Even if they are not charged, they will never come back. It also has a purpose of preventing him from communicating with the outside world.

Lawrence didn't talk to maids or servants from the beginning.

However, as the attendant and butler to whom he spoke directly disappeared, he felt that fact anew.

When the soldiers didn't say anything and there was no one to talk to, he didn't open his mouth all day long.

“Whoo.”

Lawrence sighed as he poured his drink himself.

There must be some among the soldiers who observe him and report to the ones above.

However, he did not receive an answer to his request to call a superior who could speak to him.

Whether it's Gayan or Keyshore, he’d have to meet any one of the Guards before he could do anything, but that possibility was blocked at the source.

‘Are you planning on killing me like this, Father?’

He wouldn’t have the guts to do that.

Lawrence snorted.

The Emperor had no other option than him.

One of the two half-brothers, fearing the capital's political and social circles early on, fled to a distant provincial town.

Countess Eunice was greedy in her own way, but after regaining favor from her father and gaining some exclusive interests, she was satisfied there.

Grand Duke Roygar complained that his childhood was ruled by fear, and as he grew up he was deprived of his rightful rights. There was no way he could reconcile with the Emperor now.

So will he raise Cedric?

‘…….'

It felt like a possibility.

When the story of the Southern Conquest Army first came out, he remembered what the Emperor had said.

[“You are not qualified. Cedric, of course, but Roygar is worse.”]

If those words were sincere, it was true that the Emperor had high regard for Cedric.

Power comes from the tip of the sword. Cedric already has his sword.

Lawrence had a headache. He stopped thinking.

He couldn't judge anything without communicating with the outside anyway.

But, like every day, his headache was severe. Lawrence couldn't tell if it was the same migraine that Miraila suffered from, or if it was just stress.

That was then.

A servant quietly opened the door and entered without permission. And left the cheese plate behind.

Lawrence pulled the plate. There was a small note attached to the bottom of the plate.

[The Southern Conquest Army plans to attack Eimmel. Commander-in-Chief General Boyden. The special envoy is Grand Duke Roygar.]

Lawrence crumpled the note.

If so, it means that Cedric remains in the capital.

Whatever the case in the South is, one thing is certain; it will take a long time.

It takes months just to lead the army back and forth. Considering that negotiations with other countries would take place, it could take at least half a year, or at most a year or more.

In the meantime, Cedric can inflate enough of his own power in the capital.

‘If this is what Father is aiming for, then Grand Duke Roygar must have made a mistake in his judgment.’

The faithful are hard to obtain, but those who seek profit are everywhere.

So, it is unquestionably clear who can more easily usurp the opponent's sphere of influence.

And Cedric has already begun to compromise.

Lawrence thought so and burned the note with the candle.

Despite the headache, he was quick to judge and changed the way he thought.

It was as if there was ice inside his head.

He wasn't quite sure how it came to be. Maybe, it's because he's really in trouble.

But whether Grand Duke Roygar was at fault or not, or whatever Cedric did or not, now that Lawrence had lost his favor, he could not do anything.

According to the law, he is still not recognized as a bloodline of Krates.

It wasn't until he couldn't turn back that Lawrence realized it.

＊＊＊

After dinner, Artizea was resting comfortably in the living room.

Until something happened on Grand Duke Roygar’s part, Artizea’s side had nothing to do for the time being.

She was going to check the situation and make sure nothing unexpected happened.

Cedric was sitting with a headache over the homework Ansgar had brought him.

He first had to rewrite his will.

Since Artizea has no parents, he had to select several people, except for the nanny, who could act as patrons and guardians of the baby in case of emergency.

He had to ask not only the vassals of Grand Duchy Evron, but also the reliable great nobles of the capital.

She will give birth in the capital, so she must remain in the capital until the baby grows up to some extent.

“First of all, I will ask Chancellor Lin.”