I Became the Narrow-Eyed Villain in a Dropped Novel

Chapter 128:

"Are you crazy?"

As soon as she entered the reception room, Regina's voice rose.

Although her voice was quiet due to the sensitive nature of the topic, her surprise was evident.

"Would you like some tea?"

"This is not the time to be talking about... Yes, one cup, please."

My nonchalant reaction made her grab her temples and slump into a chair.

Regina took a sip of the tea I offered and frowned.

"You're not very good at making tea."

"Oh my, you can't just resort to personal attacks because you're in a bad mood."

"No, I mean you're genuinely not good at it."

I wondered if I should practice making tea.

After taking a sip, it certainly didn't seem as good as the tea Ron usually made.

"...I'm sorry for saying you can't make tea. Can we get to the main point now?"

"Hah, did you think I'd be discouraged just because I heard I'm bad at making tea?"

I grumbled one last time and pulled out the documents I had prepared.

Regina took the papers, furrowed her brow slightly, and read the title out loud.

"Notice of Attendance at the Leitche Grand Duke Disciplinary Committee?"

"I've already sent it to everyone else. Ms. Regina, all you have to do is send it to the Grand Duke."

"He won't attend."

"I know. You could call it procedural legitimacy. It's to create a pretext."

"Can you really say that so openly?"

Regina, though bewildered, meticulously read through the contents of the document, one by one.

Things like the reasons for the disciplinary action and how the procedure would proceed.

"Reading this, it's even more certain. There's a 0% chance my father will attend this."

"That's the core point. Since he's disregarded the procedure, the Eight Council will have a legitimate reason to legally punish him."

"Now I understand why Leitche has been trying to reduce its relations with the Eight Council recently. But what does this have to do with the plan to replace the Grand Duke?"

This was only about how the Eight Council would handle the Grand Duke internally; ousting the Grand Duke from the Grand Duchy of Leitche was a completely different matter.

She had a right to be skeptical since I said I would put Benjamin in the Grand Duke's position but was talking about something else entirely.

"What do you think is a good way to replace the head of a country?"

"Things like a military coup, an internal revolution, or an external invasion."

"Don't the examples you just gave seem very troublesome? You just want to replace the head, but the entire body gets damaged."

"Are you saying the way to change just the head is the Eight Council?"

"You understand quickly. To be precise, it's about using the Eight Council to make him walk out on his own."

You know those conspiracy theories about a leader voluntarily stepping down after being threatened by a group secretly controlling the country?

I was thinking of recreating that.

"It won't be easy."

"That's why I need your help, Ms. Regina."

"...I haven't said a word about helping."

It would be difficult for her to readily agree to a suggestion that would betray her father and her country.

However, the fact that she hadn't stormed out to inform the Grand Duke was already half a success.

"How long do you plan to keep your brother cooped up in that stuffy hospital room? Of course, he won't die, but all he'll be is a bird forever trapped in a cage."

I began to circle busily around Regina.

Her eyes, oscillating between caution and anxiety, followed me.

"And is the Grand Duke even acting for the sake of the Grand Duchy? What does studying curses have to do with the Grand Duchy, anyway?"

"He did it because of the Eight Council..."

"Because of us? If I or the Eight Council had been interested, he wouldn't have had to do it in secret. It also goes against the Commander's will, no doubt about it."

"You still haven't explained why you need to replace the Grand Duke."

"I just want a more capable person as my colleague. A rational, reasonable colleague. For example..."

I stood in front of Regina and smiled.

"Someone like you."

"..."

"Even if Mr. Benjamin takes the position of Grand Duke, he won't be fully sound in body and mind, so wouldn't he need someone to help him?"

"Are you telling me to take on that role?"

"Why not? The real power behind the Grand Duke. Doesn't that interest you? I'm sure it does. After all, you're the same type of person as me."

Regina didn't deny it; instead, she sipped her unpalatable tea.

I took another step toward her.

"Imagine this. Everyone comes to you for advice before they go to the Grand Duke. If that sounds too materialistic, how about you working secretly in the shadows for the future of the Grand Duchy?"

"I'm not like that..."

"Of course, the decision is yours, Ms. Regina, and I don't intend to force you. Isn't it also perfectly splendid to be loyal to your father?"

Regina didn't respond but looked at me, as if assessing me.

Her eyes held neither anger nor horror.

For now, that was enough.

"By the way, what's happening inside Leitche these days?"

"Didn't the people from your headquarters tell you?"

"Just as an outsider's perspective is important, an insider's perspective is also crucial."

"It's complicated. If you want to know, I'll tell you all about it. If you pay a suitable price."

"Of course."

At my light reply, Regina emptied her teacup and smiled.

"To put it simply, it's a complete mess."

***

"That's the current situation with my father and the Grand Duchy of Leitche."

After a report that had lasted for several hours, Regina was finally done.

Honestly, I almost dozed off in the middle.

Not because it was boring, but just because it was too long.

The quality of the information, however, was superb.

Things I only vaguely knew from the original novel were being laid out in a clear, organized manner.

The Grand Duke of Leitche's despotic rule, the discontent brewing within the Ravens from the process of purging Benjamin, the instability caused by Vestol's economic infiltration, and the financial burden from the reckless pioneering project.

All of it was interesting, but the information that truly caught my attention was something else.

"The conflict with the Demons is quite serious, you say."

"The White Continent has always had a larger Demon population compared to the Black Continent where the Empire is. And with the pioneering project, we're clashing more and more."

In the original novel, the oppression of the Demons became so severe that it was easy for Noah to get involved.

Since the Grand Duchy was the country with the worst perception of Demons among the major nations, it wasn't surprising.

"How serious are we talking about?"

"Overt rebellions, mutual clashes, crimes of revenge... there's no end to it."

"But you're managing to keep it under control without major issues, is that right?"

"We're suppressing them with force. I don't know how long that will work, but for now, it's enough."

If there's no spark, no amount of accumulated discontent can ignite into a fire.

In other words, if you add the right kindling, the fire will spread quickly.

I started to get a rough idea of how to deal with the Grand Duke.

"Can we talk about the price now? I'd like you to return the Demon curse-weavers you captured last time."

That made me snap out of my thoughts.

The curse-weavers, whom we had captured after a bloody battle with the Ravens in Ruhindorf, had been sent to the headquarters.

"That's quite a high price."

"It's not a rip-off, is it?"

"Is it the Grand Duke's will for you to take those two back?"

"He said that if you didn't want to stab each other with swords right away, that's the least you should get in return."

Regina nodded.

If I were only dealing with the Grand Duke, I could just refuse and be done with it, but to persuade the Eight Council and deal with the political instability within the Empire, a head-on collision was not advisable.

"They are quite important informants."

"Didn't I already pay the price?"

"Haha, don't worry, I have no intention of taking it and running. It's just that returning them will take some time."

Although he had suddenly left, when it came to curses, we had Kaseph, the best expert available.

It wasn't absolutely necessary to have those two.

"That should satisfy my father enough. Enough that we won't have to worry about a head-on collision for a while."

"Are you saying it would be unreasonable to ask you not to engage in any underhanded schemes?"

"The same goes for you, doesn't it, Count?"

"Well, that's true."

I agreed quickly. Fresh chapters posted on novel⚑fire.net

It wouldn't work if I tried to do it myself but told her not to.

"This is the end of the Grand Duke's demands. He originally wanted more, but there's no need for that."

"It sounds like you're giving me a discount, is that right?"

"No, I don't intend to do business at a loss. It's just that the person you'll be paying has changed from the Grand Duke to me."

"You'll be taking a bribe."

"Let's call it a symbol of our cooperation."

This was basically her accepting my proposal.

There might be other intentions behind it, but it was not a bad thing to have her on my side.

"I'll listen."

"Lend me Ms. Til."

"Why should I?"

"Because of you, Count, I have some preparations to make, and honestly, I'm not confident I can do it without being caught."

She was saying she needed a bodyguard because her father wouldn't spare her just because she was his daughter.

Attaching Til, who had the highest combat power, was a bit of a waste, but someone of her caliber was necessary to protect this valuable internal collaborator.

"Understood. I'll package her with the curse-weavers and send them over. Please wait."

"Thank you. While I wait, can I check on my brother's condition?"

"As long as the doctor agrees, I don't mind."

As soon as Regina left the reception room after a polite thank you, a large man came in.

"Something up, Ron?"

"A very important letter has arrived, Count Valheit."

"From the Imperial Capital?"

"Yes."

Normally, a letter from the Emperor would be opened neatly, but I had no time or reason for that, so I tore it right open.

Reading the contents, it seemed Blaiher also got straight to the point without any formalities.

[Although it's quite wicked, I'll accept your proposal, Teacher.]

He didn't seem entirely pleased, but he understood that it was the most useful plan for the current situation.

[While some Dukes are satisfied with the current situation, Johann Geller is being very aggressive, so negotiations are not easy. He's practically leading the negotiations alone. We need to weaken his power. I'll trust you with this.]

"Trusting me with this," huh... It meant he was trusting me to handle everything on my own.

It's good that he knew where to draw the line.

I was strangely pleased as I moved on to the next sentence.

[However, I must inform you of this. It seems Johann Geller and the Grand Duchy of Leitche are in cooperation. Be careful.]

It took me a moment to process the information in the letter.

That stubborn old man partnered with a foreign power?

And with the Grand Duke, no less?

It wasn't strange for him to partner with Leitche if he felt his own power was insufficient.

What was strange was that Johann, who had always been so xenophobic, would partner with a foreign power.

What kind of offer did the Grand Duke make that made the old geezer accept?

I'll find out eventually, I thought, and handed two pre-prepared letters to Ron.

"Deliver these to Cesare and Avantnik."

"Yes."

"Oh, wait."

I called Ron back before he could leave.

I had been so distracted that I had forgotten to ask him something.

"Is there a merchant named Falsh that we trade with?"

Ron's face froze.

It was the first time I had seen that expression since I had been possessed.

...Who the hell is this "Falsh" guy?