Chapter 278: The Second Prince’s Origin
A few days later...
"You have to be careful, Crown Prince." Spencer teared up. He stared at Leonard with reluctance on his face.
"The Black Mire is treacherous, but Ironvale is not a safe place either."
"No place is safe then." Leonard twitched his mouth. Ironvale held the heaviest military force, but they still held the banner of the Aldros Empire.
As the Crown Prince of Aldros, if he could meet harm at such a secure place, then what did that mean?
"I believe I should still accompany you," Spencer said and tried to barge his way in. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t get to go far when his own trained guards blocked him.
"Mr. Reed, please don’t make things difficult for us." One of the Crimson Guards smiled bitterly.
"Spence, stop the nonsense." Leonard had to remind him to stay in place.
"Yes..." Like a child that had been wronged, Spencer lowered his head.
There was not an ounce of imagination that could be seen in his butchering action. The fearsome man that almost everyone wished to avoid was now behaving like a guilty kid.
Who could have imagined such a stark contrast?
The nearby Crimson Guards also knew better than to wipe this part out of their memory. They weren’t Leonard Lawson, so they couldn’t afford to remember this scene.
"If I can’t come, should we up the security?" Spencer suggested.
"Any more and Father will be suspicious of my intention." Leonard shook his head. A Crown Prince was essentially the second ruler. But it was ultimately second, and not first. The first ruler was still the Emperor.
For the second ruler to have an army that vast would threaten the first ruler.
In such cases, those with evil intentions would censor him and accuse him of treason or attempt to stage a coup.
"Even so, your other siblings are already making moves." Spencer relayed the news he had received in the past days.
Ever since news of his departure spread, each one of them had made certain maneuvers. They lost their opportunity at Velastra and enabled him to earn a gold mine.
The wealth aspect had practically been secured by Leonard. Therefore, if they allowed him to also go to the Black Mire, which had to cross through Ironvale and lose the military forces there to him, that would become a catastrophe.
What really secured a Crown Prince’s position?
It was always the three main factors: money, connection, and military.
If Leonard was to secure military power, that would be two out of three factors secured.
Two-thirds was already more than half!
How could the other princes remain still and emotionless?
"Their movement was probably approved by Father." Leonard pursed his lips. He wasn’t unfamiliar with the unspoken approval for sibling war.
As the emperor, his main job was to balance and check all officials. The officials included his sons and daughters too.
"This is why I hate politics." Spencer suppressed his frustration. Had it been a talk of fists, he could have simply annihilated them all. But in the capital, he was restricted by too much politics and the consequences of possible aftermath.
"Alright, Spence, keep the capital stable for me. If possible, try to assist Eleanor and not be too hostile to her." Leonard warned calmly. He had heard about their farce previously.
Initially, he didn’t plan on intervening. But since Eleanor did him a favor, he decided to return them. Moreover, he did take some liberties with her. So it would be a scumbag move to still make things difficult for her.
Spencer felt like he had swallowed a mouthful of maggots. ’Curses, that woman must have said something to the Crown Prince.’
"I’ll try my best not to hinder her." He replied, but still corrected himself. "Under the premise that her action isn’t harmful to the Crown Prince."
"Got it."
"Make sure to return safely."
"Stop planting red flags for me."
"Red flags?"
Leonard didn’t bother to elaborate on the concept and closed the curtain of the carriage.
That was the signal for departure. Spencer gave a slight nod to the carriage driver.
Soon, the carriage driver held the reins and made the mounts advance ahead.
...
House Aldros
"The Crown Prince is departing now," Kaelric commented, his gaze fixed on the second prince, Derrick.
"And?" Derrick’s expression remained the same. "What does that have to do with me?"
"If it wasn’t for Mother’s repeated confirmation, I still find it hard to believe you’re my little brother." Kaelric frowned. He was the eldest, but somehow his little brother behaved more like the eldest.
"Too bad that my birth isn’t decided by me," Derrick replied.
"Do you seriously not understand the implication behind the Crown Prince’s actions?" Kaelric raised his voice slightly.
"The Crown Prince is headed to Black Mire on paper. But who doesn’t know that one has to cross through Ironvale to get to the Black Mire? And what is Ironvale? That’s where the heaviest military is stationed!"
Derrick finally had some change in his expression when Ironvale was mentioned. He was militaristic, so he naturally understood what sort of place Ironvale was.
In the past, he requested that Father be deployed there, only to be rejected.
Although the official reason stated that he was too green to be deployed at such an important place, the truth was more about the possibility of controlling the military forces.
There were at least 50,000 soldiers stationed at Ironvale.
Such a number of troops was enough to threaten the empire itself if they suddenly decided to rebel.
"Father summoned me yesterday," Derrick remarked. "He told me to head to Ironvale and suppress the barbarians at Skyreach Mountains."
A look of delight flashed across Kaelric’s eyes. "Fantastic! Our chance is finally here to take control of the military."
"My mother also said the same thing."
"Whose mother?"
Kaelric gritted his teeth. "Your mother isn’t Concubine Beatrice of House Viren, but Empress Valeria of House Aldros. You and I share the same Mother in reality."
Derrick’s eyes narrowed slightly. On the surface, he was the son of Beatrice from House Viren.
That was also something he believed back then until his real mother summoned him to the royal palace and revealed the astonishing secret.
Apparently, Empress Valeria gave birth to not just one son, but two sons at once. Derrick was a twin with Kaelric, albeit born a few minutes later.
During that time, Beatrice was also pregnant. Unfortunately, she had a miscarriage at the peak of her pregnancy.
House Viren was unstable at the time, with the control mostly leaning toward Concubine Elenya.
Beatrice knew that her miscarriage would potentially spell the end of her life, and so did Valeria.
Beatrice didn’t know what Valeria did to discover the secret, but she suggested handing over one of her sons to her in exchange for absolute loyalty.
It was a tempting offer that she couldn’t resist, so a blood contract was signed and established.
Since then, Derrick, who should have been a member of House Aldros, became a member of House Viren instead.
The throne was out of the question because once this secret was exposed, it would become the most lethal blow to him.
"We share the same mother by blood, but it was Mother Beatrice who raised and nurtured me since I was young." Derrick corrected him.
Although Derrick was shocked and disappointed at the time of the revelation, he harbored no hatred toward either party.
In fact, he was rather grateful because Beatrice really treated him with sincerity and care. Everything she did was for his benefit despite knowing very well his origin.
What defines a mother?
It wasn’t the one who gave birth to you, but rather the one who nurtured you.
Kaelric’s eyes flared up for a second. Soon, he softened them and approached Derrick.
"I know you probably hate me for being able to stay in House Aldros while you’re cast away to House Viren. But we are still blood brothers at the end of the day." Kaelric said.
"You are militaristic, so you can control the military and protect the empire once I ascend as emperor. Us two brothers can safeguard the Aldros Empire!"
Derrick remained quiet. Both he and Kaelric knew that was a lie.
If Kaelric ever ascended as emperor, the first person he would kill wasn’t going to be Leonard Lawson, but him.
After all, Derrick didn’t take the surname Viren, but Aldros.
That surname implication alone was enough to be a threat to Kaelric.
Not to mention, anyone who controlled more military power than the emperor himself was bound to become the emperor’s target.
How could an emperor feel safe when someone else held more power than them?
"I’ll depart to Ironvale via flying ship now." Derrick excused himself. The flying ship was lent to him by the emperor, which ensured his fast arrival in Ironvale as opposed to Leonard.
"Yes, I won’t keep you here." Kaelric smiled amiably and watched him leave the room.
As soon as Derrick’s silhouette was gone, Kaelric’s eyes turned cold.
"Hmph, what a vermin!" He clenched his fist tightly.
"Remove everything that Derrick has touched. Don’t let it dirty me." He ordered the nearby servants.