147 The grandfather and the grandson
***[Heroine Oscar]***
After receiving a confirmation from Prince Emil, it is time to meet some nobles who will join.
There are many families who will definitely support Prince Emile, but there are still others who are hesitant to step in.
When the atmosphere is ripe, they naturally join in.
There is no need to be in a hurry.
But some of them needed to be pressed in advance.
In particular, families with deep blood ties to the royal family are important.
Such a family had a surprisingly large influence on the royal family, even if it did not show much in the income or military power of the territory.
It doesn’t have enough power to change the crown prince, but it has enough power to influence the king’s decisions.
The story is a little different, but that is why cross-confidence is harmful.
If you keep whispering something next to you, your mind is focused on that side of being a human being, and you start to think that it might be possible to do things that you concluded that you shouldn’t do that at first.
No matter how strong-minded and clear-minded a person is, if he is surrounded by such people for ten or twenty years, it is easy for his standards to change in that way.
The criterion, which stood upright in the center, shakes because of the narrowness.
It is difficult to step over the line drawn in your heart, but it is not difficult to take another step once you have already taken one step.
Even if you cross that line, your surroundings will still remain the same because you only change your position very slightly, and that delays you from noticing that you are in danger.
That’s why the liver is dangerous.
I knew that his words were only sweet and not good, but if I noticed at any moment, I realized that I was standing in a place of no return.
‘That’s why I must get them.’
Recalling some of the royalist families, I looked at the map.
A visit has already been made.
Of course you know what kind of business it is.
You should be fully aware of the fact that you have to decide your position before meeting me.
Maybe by now, I’m in a hurry and making a fuss about what to do.
‘I don’t know if it’s a different family, but I need to put a nail in the place that will affect the royal family.’
Changing the crown prince is not something that happens overnight.
It is necessary to show that Prince Emile is more suitable for the crown prince than Robert, and to spread such public opinion in the aristocratic society and drive the atmosphere.
You should pay attention to the popularity of the people, and you should pay attention to the first queen and her motherland.
And most of all, I had to try to change the king’s mind.
The more whisperers by your side, the easier it will be.
The earlier the work, the better.
Even if we start now, it’s already too late, yes, we have to start early.
‘As the officials said, a threat might be necessary.’
I’ve become a noble too.
Thinking so, he smiled bitterly and urged his words.
While moving from city to city, most of the things that come into sight are forests or open land.
Looking at the pristine surroundings, where few people go, I thought of my ex-wife, Renée.
I kept thinking about her.
What should I do, what should I do, whether it is right to kill her innocent even if she is a being that causes the destruction of this world.
It’s not that she hesitates simply because she was a wife in a previous life.
Is it right for humans to punish humans under the name of God’s will?
Will all the destruction I saw in my previous life really happen?
Maybe it’s God’s trick.
That thought made me hesitate.
“…”
Really, I’m not sure.
Igor, too, would have acted according to God’s will.
I don’t know what kind of future God showed me and what kind of future he promised, but anyway, he acted according to God’s will.
So what differentiates him from me?
What is the difference between a goddess and a god crossing the stars?
We already know that gods don’t always do things that are beneficial to humans.
Even the goddess is contributing to the cause of the world’s destruction.
Is it right to evaluate the goddess and the god of crossing the stars as good or bad as humans?
Can I say with certainty that it was right for me to obey the will of the goddess and that Igor was wrong?
How am I different from Igor?
What am I different from him?
When I thought about it, I came back to the starting point.
Even if I kill René, is that really justified?
Renee in this world has done me no harm, but I have to kill her in the name of a greater cause.
Adultery, even if it included past lives, was not a valid reason for taking a person’s life.
Of course, that’s not what I’m going to say, having already killed Kyungwan.
“…”
Besides, if the same thing happens, I will kill him again.
maybe like before.
Not even the slightest hesitation.
clearly.
I am an immature person who is swayed by emotions.
He is not a saint who obeys the noble will of God.
‘ha.’
Anyway, Robert and Renée are the main culprits of the goddess’ wrath.
It was probably because of this that the Demonic Beast appeared in the capital when Igor appeared.
It was probably because he was encouraging Robert, rather than the character of Igor himself being the problem.
In the recurring life before my coming, Robert was simply a figure acting under Renée’s influence.
But now, he too is a person who has strayed a little from the providence of this world.
It must have been something that was not originally intended and that Kyungwan’s spirit entered Robert.
It must have something to do with my return to this body, but I’m not sure why.
It is not the existence that Igor summoned officially when he held the ancestral rite, but I can only guess that it happened like that.
‘Looking at Robert’s behavior, he’s probably not awakening.’
Even looking back at his childhood, and looking back after that, he is a man of this world.
He showed no signs of remembering his past life.
I took a small breath.
Tick tock, time goes by.
A decision must be made sooner or later.
You have to kill them both before it’s too late.
I already have a conclusion, but it’s hard to decide.
I wondered if it could be solved without killing me, every hour of every day.
‘No matter how much I think about it, there’s no way.’
He had a self-deprecating smile on his face, but the official pushed aside.
“Duke, we’ll arrive in about an hour. I’d like to stop the procession for a while and tidy up the duke’s clothes and appearance, is that okay?”
“Are you ready already?”
When I asked, the official grinned.
“In that family, I think the lord has come out to the city entrance by now.
“Ah, maybe not.”
I laughed lightly.
It was the civil servants of the duke’s family who made this schedule.
Routes were chosen to minimize travel distance, and in the case of neighboring families, officials decided which place to visit first based on rank.
It’s easy if you have a family with a lot of gaps, but there are more subtly similar places, and in that case, the order itself becomes very tricky.
Because nobles live for face and die for face.
This caused the officials quite a headache for a while.
We have to consider our family’s relationship with other families, the family’s influence elsewhere, as well as how the order of this visit looks from the outside.
Officials well versed in diplomacy and other family affairs put their heads together, pondered, discussed, and decided on a schedule, but it seems that some places were unable to decide until the last minute.
However, there was one family that they decided with unanimous voices as the first place to visit.
A royalist aristocrat very close to the royal family.
It was once a place of great prestige, but now it has declined enough to say that only the family name remains.
However, that family is so close in blood that if the current royal family dies due to injustice, the next heir to the throne must be found in that family.
The relationship with the royal family was so close that it was difficult to find anyone who was not related to the royal family who entered the palace.
In other words, it was a family with nothing to look at but lineage.
It’s a place where I don’t have enough presence that I would normally be embarrassed to send a letter myself.
Being close to several royal families alone does not increase the family’s status or increase its strength.
But if you ask why such a family is the number one priority, it is none other than a threat.
To put it simply, how dare you, the duke, reply to a letter sent directly by me? i’m so mad If you give a poor answer, you can kill everyone, so be good, huh? That’s what it means.
According to the will of the official, the procession stopped at an appropriate place and a small tent was set up.
A wooden water bucket is lowered from the wagon loaded with goods, and a box of clothes from the wagon is also taken out.
As soon as I entered the tent, I started getting dressed.
“This time, I’d like to wear clothes that are a bit intimidating.”
“Then this color would be better.”
“Even some jewels are fine.”
“Then let’s do this.”
“I also need a sword. One big enough to cut my throat right now.”
“Is it better to use it in battle rather than a decorative sword?”
“Yes.”
While I closed my eyes, the official and the butler had a serious discussion, and a moment later I was covered in a black costume and a large hat that would be worn by a villain in a movie.
He looks like Captain Hook from Peter Pan.
‘No, it’s more like a villain than that.’
A sword that is too large to be worn around the waist is a prop for this costume.
It was really like going in to kill someone.
Hey, this must be going too far.
Putting everything else aside, I’m telling you to stick this big knife somewhere.
No, before that, when did you bring these things?
It was a knife I had never seen before.
Maybe he brought something out of the warehouse on purpose.
Even lifting it with one hand seemed difficult.
I understand what you mean, but you have to be able to hold it to be a threat.
I can also use a sword, but if I have to say, the bow is my main weapon, and in fact, I fight more with magic than with weapons.
Such a heavy and blunt knife, even if it was heavy, I couldn’t hold it while riding a horse for an hour.
While I was making a stupid face, the butler and the official looked at me quietly after finishing everything.
It seems that my thoughts have been seen.
The butler smiled and bowed politely.
“Master, I’ll keep the knife and give it to you when I get near the city.”
“Thank you for doing that.”
But butler, you’re older than me, is that okay?
can you lift
Even if it was possible, would your back support it?
I was a little worried, but the butler listened as lightly as if he was picking up tofu.
He held the blunt knife with his palms raised side by side, but he didn’t seem to be struggling at all.
‘I heard that Benno has escorts among the butlers, but…’
It’s like Benno, but it is said that there are some butlers who also act as escorts.
Every time I went somewhere, the butler next to me might have been escorting me.
Anyway, contrary to what it looks like, strength is a business, this butler.
I got on the horse again while admiring in my heart.
***[A count without blood]***
“Oh, maybe it’s good.”
“Father, what if you’re still saying that?”
“But it’s about changing the Crown Prince!
“I’ve said it many times, but dukes are the dominant force in the world now. What about the ducal family, which was originally strong?
“But if the first queen invades from her motherland just because she was kicked out of her position as crown prince.”
“Even if that’s the case, I think the duke will prevail. My father hasn’t seen it, but I’ve seen the magic arrows shot by the duke’s soldiers. There are not just one hundred or two hundred such soldiers.”
The other children standing next to his son, the heir, also nodded.
“Father, brother, you are right. Rumors I have heard say that he possesses a weapon with great power. It is said to be so powerful that it can make hollows in the ground. I heard that with that weapon, it can kill hundreds of people at once.”
“The duke himself kills the demons around him without any weapon. Father, really make up your mind now.”
At the words of his sons, the Count touched his forehead.
“But how easy is it to change the crown prince? It’s not just simple force.”
“It’s not just force.”
“Father, the duchy is currently lending the royal family a huge amount of money. You know that, too.”
“Honestly, just threatening to cut off funds from the duchy will do half of the crown prince replacement.”
“I think we should be thankful for putting our family on purpose, Father. We have to seize this opportunity.”
At the words of his sons, the Count swallowed.
Certainly, that also makes sense.
To be honest, I don’t know why the duke sent a letter to an insignificant family like himself.
I could have just ignored it and moved on.
“Now it’s about time to show up.”
The heir, the first son, murmured.
The Count threw his gaze away.
It had already been two hours since I had put on all my clothes and brought all my sons to the gate.
“Ah! Here he comes.”
The Count was also watching where his son was talking.
My knees started to tremble.
Soldiers are riding horses in front and behind several wagons.
All were armed with swords and bows.
And there are people who look like dukes.
He was riding a horse with a large sword on his back.
No matter how you look at it, it’s not like you’re going to visit another family.
‘Stand, no way.’
Was it because he was angry at the vague reply?
Even a few decades ago, that was commonplace.
The time when force replaced language clearly existed not too long ago, and among small families under the great nobility, there are often places where they run with their swords first when angry.
“…”
The drastic task of changing the crown prince is starting.
Perhaps they are trying to invade our family as an example.
“father.”
The first son seemed to think so too.
The face of the son who called him was white.
“It’s okay. The duke is a serious person. He sent a polite letter to our family first… I’m not angry yet. It’s just a threat.”
Having lived through a rough time in my own way, I was able to think that much.
But even if it was only a threat as he thought, this would be his last chance.
If you do not know the fraction here and behave incorrectly, you will be thrown away.
It is still unclear which family will join the duke.
However, it was certain that a significant number of families would attach to the duke.
The Count hurriedly descended from the castle wall.
“Open the gates! Hurry up!”
Cold sweat dripped down the count’s forehead as he shouted.
‘I thought he was a polite and decent person, but after all, that grandfather and that grandson. When it’s extreme, it’s extreme.’
If I knew it would be like this, I would have returned an affirmative answer when I received the letter, but I was wrong.
As he checked the cold face of the Duke approaching, the count wore an awkward smile on his face.