Chapter 281: A Deadly Masquerade
Edriac was conversing with a group of influential rulers.
"Our harvests always take a hit during the winter months," Marcus von Rhein said, shaking his head and turning to Edriac. "How do you manage provisions during periods like that, Edriac?"
"We set up centralized warehouses in advance at every major hub," Edriac replied in a calm voice, holding a thin crystal glass in his fingers. "And we lower tariffs for the guilds that transport grain to the mountainous regions. As a result, prices don't spike, and the people don't go hungry."
"Hmm, a smart move," nodded a gray-haired king standing nearby. "And what about tax collection from small merchants?"
At that moment, Marcus von Rhein lowered his gaze and suddenly froze. Edriac's hand, holding the glass, was shaking violently.
Edriac hurriedly leaned down and placed the glass onto a passing servant's tray.
Marcus frowned, looking at Edriac's hand with anxious bewilderment, and then asked directly:
"Excuse me... but why are your hands shaking so badly?"
Edriac instantly flinched, his expression turning anxious. He clenched his fingers into a fist.
"Well... it's an illness," he lied.
Marcus and Faun exchanged glances, deep distress instantly showing on their faces.
“Oh, I'm sorry for bringing it up," Marcus said, shaking his head guiltily.
"No, don't apologize, it's fine," Edriac replied quietly with a strained smile.
Meanwhile, Lucius Feramir was walking down a long, spacious corridor. As he walked, he shook his head and cast a brief glance back toward the noisy hall.
And here I thought the matter involving me had finally been dropped, he thought to himself.
Then he turned away and continued walking, adding silently to himself:
Yeah... even after a fake death, the rumors still persist...
After that, he opened his left eye while closing his right and distinctly saw Valerius and Chris teleport directly into the castle at the pre-set coordinates, holding heavy backpacks.
Lucius cursed inwardly:
Damn it, are they seriously doing this?!
He immediately raised his right hand and pressed a finger to his earpiece, hissing:
"Hey, hey, hey, stop! What are you doing?!"
At that moment, Valerius was already looking around, swiftly darting from one corridor to another while unzipping his backpack on the go. Hearing the voice in his earpiece, he replied in bewilderment:
"Well, we're basically planting the bomb. You said so yourself!"
Lucius's eyes widened:
"Yeah, but I was kind of joking!"
Valerius stopped abruptly in the middle of the corridor out of surprise, freezing in total stupor:
"What...?"
Lucius stopped by a long catering table lined with crystal glasses and said quietly into the earpiece:
"Well, joking... I was just testing you. I honestly didn't think you'd actually follow through with everything I tell you."
On the other end of the line, Valerius's mouth fell open in bewilderment:
"Well, I mean... What else are we supposed to do? It only makes sense to blow everything up."
Lucius lightly ran his finger along the edge of the table, saying calmly:
"Yeah, but just imagine: dozens of aristocrats will die in this explosion. If they all die at once, rumors won't be enough to cover up what happened. Besides, not all of these rulers have heirs, and their deaths would plunge the common people into a massive crisis and chaos. Are you, for instance, going to manage the kingdom and sort out the mess yourself?"
Valerius shook his head immediately:
"No."
"Well, there you go," Lucius said coldly.
Valerius sighed, zipping his backpack back up with annoyance:
"So what do you suggest we do...? Look around, there's a hell of a lot of aristocrats here. There won't be a better moment."
"Oh no, trust me, the best moment is yet to come," Lucius replied calmly. "It's about time you started thinking logically. After all, you aren't working as court diplomats. You're working with me."
Valerius fell silent for a second. At that moment, all the time he'd spent watching, counting carriages, and checking the faces of arriving aristocrats flashed through his mind.
"What was the point of all this preparation if we're just sitting and waiting...?"
Carried away by indignation, he accidentally said it out loud.
"No, all of them are necessary," Lucius interrupted him in an even voice.
Valerius flinched, realizing he'd said too much out loud, and coughed awkwardly:
"Yeah... I get it, I get it."
At that same moment, the communication line cut off with a click.
Valerius lowered his hand from his ear, looked at the backpack with irritation, and then turned to Chris standing nearby:
"Well, that's it... We'll have to wait."
In the next instant, they vanished.
Lucius turned around and unhurriedly walked back down the corridor, heading toward the main hall. As he approached, the strange hum of voices grew clearer, punctuated by moments of ringing silence.
He entered the hall just as the King of Versailles, Volgar Bjornsson, stepped up onto the dais. Volgar held a silver spoon and lightly tapped it against a crystal glass, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
The hum of voices died down. Volgar swept a warm gaze over those gathered and then spoke in a loud voice:
"Ladies and gentlemen! Thank you for finding the time to come to our gala dinner today, setting aside all state and political matters. For this, I want to express my deep, sincere gratitude."
The guests responded with polite nods of approval.
Volgar smoothly raised a glass of rich, dark-red wine and smiled charmingly:
"To you, gentlemen!"
With these words, he took a confident sip. Some of the kings and aristocrats immediately joined in the toast, raising their glasses of wine and champagne and draining them. Other rulers merely sipped their drinks, maintaining an air of cool politeness. Some guests ignored the formalities altogether, continuing to talk quietly among themselves at the tables.
Lucius spotted an empty chair by one of the side tables, settled into it, and took a small round caramel candy on a stick from the buffet table. Popping it into his mouth, he narrowed his eyes and began watching Volgar closely through the hidden lens in his left eye as the king descended from the second floor, surrounded by his aristocratic entourage.
Lucius overheard a snippet of conversation at the neighboring table. Two aristocrats were arguing about the division of northern trade routes and their influence over the borderlands. Unable to bear their absurd reasoning, Lucius stood up, walked over to them, and spoke up:
"Actually, trade duties aren't tied to the volume of raw materials, but to logistical corridors, and if you block..."
One of the aristocrats cut him off sharply, looking the young man over with disgust:
"Damn it... Do you really think you know better than me, youngster?"
Lucius met his gaze calmly:
"Excuse me, but I simply couldn't help speaking up when I heard such a superficial argument."
The aristocrat flushed crimson with anger, clenching his fists:
"How dare you speak to me in that tone?! You're no different from a stupid ape!"
Lucius shook his head and smiled radiantly:
"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment."
The enraged aristocrat hissed through his teeth:
"Do you really want to ruin relations with the Kingdom of Aquitania? If so, you're going to be in a world of trouble!"
With these words, he turned away pointedly and strode off. The second aristocrat standing nearby looked at Lucius with contempt and retorted:
"An enemy of Aquitania means an enemy of mine."
Lucius bowed politely and coldly:
"I apologize, I was wrong."
That ruler clicked his tongue contemptuously and hurried off after his companion. Lucius straightened up, caught his breath, and opened his left eye. He clearly saw that Volgar Bjornsson was still chatting with other aristocrats at the far end of the hall. Then he shifted his gaze farther to the left and saw Henry inside Volgar's study.
Seizing the moment, Lucius slipped silently into a side passage. After turning a couple of corners, he strode down the corridor until Volgar's study doors came into view.
Two guards stood motionless at the entrance. Inside the room were several elite mages, camouflaged to match the interior and blend into the shadows, alongside the loyal servant Henry.
Lucius took a step forward, mentally locking onto the exact coordinates of the room he had recorded during his first visit, and teleported straight into the center of the study.
At that very moment, the camouflaged mages, caught off guard by the intrusion, immediately activated their combat spells and unleashed a barrage of attacks aimed at the center of the room.
A colossal explosion thundered through the study, its deafening roar echoing through the room as smoke shrouded everything.
Lucius gently took Henry by the chin and lifted his head slightly. At the same time, Lucius turned his head back—straight toward the frozen mages.
"You're probably seeing an explosion right now, aren't you?" Lucius said in a quiet, cold tone, addressing the mages trapped in the illusion.
Then he lowered his hand and ordered the servant in a cold voice:
"Go call your master here."
Henry flinched, turned around mechanically, and flung the doors open. The two guards on duty outside stared at him in bewilderment. But the moment Lucius took half a step forward and loosened his grip on his cane, letting it drop to the floor with a thud, both guards' eyes instantly glazed over as they fell under the illusion's spell.
Henry stepped out into the corridor and hurried to the hall, while Lucius remained inside. He vaulted over the desk and sank right into Volgar's plush armchair.
Rocking in the chair, Feramir raised his right hand, touched his earpiece, and gave a brief command:
"Valerius, you're up."
At that moment, Henry was already making his way through the crowd of aristocrats in the main hall. Approaching Volgar, who was politely conversing with other kings, the servant bowed deeply and said in a quiet whisper:
"Your Majesty, could you please step into your study? It is extremely urgent."
Volgar frowned imperceptibly, interrupting the conversation:
"What happened?"
"It is directly related to today's gala dinner, sir," Henry replied, lowering his eyes.
Volgar's gaze instantly turned icy. Apologizing to his interlocutors, he said curtly:
"Let's go."
Accompanied by Henry and two personal guards, the King of Versailles left the celebration and headed down the corridors toward his study. When he reached the doors, he noticed the guards standing motionless and calmly stepped across the threshold.
Volgar entered and quickly swept his gaze over the room. A stack of sorted and signed documents lay neatly on the desk. At first glance, the study seemed empty apart from Henry, who had closed the heavy doors behind him and stood motionless in his usual official posture. The mages remained hidden in their positions.
Volgar turned to the servant and asked with displeasure:
"Well, where...?"
At that moment, a familiar voice sounded from behind Volgar:
"Yo, Volgar, long time no see."
Volgar was struck dumb with surprise, his eyes widening as he spun around.
Right behind his personal desk, sprawled in the armchair with his feet propped up on the table, sat Valerius. A thin wooden stick from the small round caramel candy that Lucius had grabbed from the buffet table was visible between his teeth.