Volume 3, Chapter 17 – “Good News”

“Leave it be for now; let them take Lady Yumo.”

Qiu Mingtong spoke indifferently after ending the call with Xiao.

Upon hearing this answer, several members of the Blackrose Family behind her immediately showed expressions of anger and confusion.

“How can the Duke be like this? Is he just going to abandon Lady Yumo?”

“It’s not that he’s abandoning her, but rather that he’s leaving her be for the time being.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Duke’s meaning is very similar to what I said before; this is not the time for a blatant showdown. We cannot take action in full view of the public. Besides, these Royal Knights can actually do us a great favor…”

“Hmm?”

Hearing this, the family members behind Qiu Mingtong all looked puzzled. “Commander, what do you mean by this?”

“It’s simple. Lady Yumo has looked forward to the ‘male lead’ for a long time, and her inner favorability should be quite high. Before we make our move, we must do as much as possible to erode her goodwill toward Xue Tian’ao. In the eyes of these Royal Knights, Lady Yumo is the granddaughter of a sinner and a barbarian from the Northern Frontier, so they certainly won’t treat her kindly, let alone their attitude toward those servants. And since they happen to be Xue Tian’ao’s subordinates, if Lady Yumo feels displeased… hee hee…”

As she spoke, a strange smile gradually appeared on Qiu Mingtong’s face.

The ‘geniuses’ standing nearby nodded slightly, seemingly understanding but not quite grasping it.

Seeing this, Qiu Mingtong, long since accustomed to it, did not intend to explain further. She simply turned her head and left the roof.

“Commander?! Where are you going?”

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“To execute other tasks given by the Duke,” Qiu Mingtong said flatly.

“Eh? What tasks?”

“Two Heroes from the Ashurmos Church have gone missing, and naturally, they want to find out the truth, so they dispatched an investigation team. The Duke hopes we will uphold the Blackrose Family’s fine traditions of ‘hospitality’ and ‘altruism’ by ‘helping’ the Ashurmos Church’s investigation team search for clues regarding the two Heroes.”

“Oh?”

Upon hearing this, after exchanging glances for a few seconds, the members of the Blackrose Family present all revealed ‘kind and amiable’ smiles and began rubbing their palms together, eager to try…

At the same time, inside the Sky Dome Palace in the capital of the Snownight Empire, a handsome man with an enviable head of golden hair and a crown sat quietly leaning against the throne. Beside the man were dozens of gold-armored knights with terrifying auras who exuded an air of natural authority.

At this moment, these knights simultaneously released the horrifying battle aura from within their bodies. A terrifying pressure permeated the great hall, causing the guards and passing servants outside who lacked sufficient strength to tremble uncontrollably.

In the center of the hall, locked in the knights’ gazes, were several southern noble lords who had once supported the old emperor, Luojie. Due to the previous attack by the demon king tier Abyssal Demon, Inferno, the southern part of the empire had been severely damaged, and the power of these lords had taken a massive hit. Combined with the death of the old emperor, their strength was further weakened.

This was why they had been captured and brought back to the imperial capital by Xue Tian’ao’s subordinates without any ability to resist; their original plans to flee abroad had been completely ruined.

Feeling the cold eyes of the knights and the horrifying pressure weighing down on their bodies, the hearts of these lords almost leaped out of their chests, and their souls felt as if they were about to be crushed by the oppression within the hall.

As his psychological defenses gradually collapsed, one pot-bellied man actually crawled toward the throne in front of him and kowtowed for mercy without any dignity.

“Your Majesty! It was all a misunderstanding! I definitely did not help the late Emperor take action against your mineral assets! Someone framed me! This is truly a wrongful accusation, Your Majesty!”

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This once-overbearing lord was desperately kowtowing for mercy.

However, facing the man’s words, Xue Tian’ao on the throne merely gave a cold laugh.

His azure eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a look of disdain that he made no effort to hide.

After a moment of scanning and analysis, the evaluation from the system in his mind regarding the man surfaced. Once the evaluation appeared, Xue Tian’ao lost his last shred of patience.

‘Heh, only C-rank…’

‘He’s useless.’

‘There is no need to waste time trying to win him over.’

He would kill the chicken to warn the monkeys; he had to let the people in the empire know what the consequences of defying him would be.

Thinking of this, Xue Tian’ao glanced indifferently at the man on the ground.

“Count Ambornoen, for corruption, abuse of power, and even attacking the imperial family, is hereby sentenced to death according to the law. All assets are to be confiscated, and his family members are to be reduced to slaves and sent to the laboratory to assist with experiments.”

“No! No, Your Majesty, you cannot do this! I am a descendant of one of the founding contributors! You cannot do this!”

After Xue Tian’ao pronounced the sentence, the man named Ambornoen immediately let out a hysterical roar and even intended to rush forward to grab Xue Tian’ao’s leg to continue begging for mercy.

Unfortunately, with his fourth tier strength, it was impossible for him to get close to Xue Tian’ao. The moment he moved, he was hit by the powerful magic power fluctuations released by Xue Tian’ao, causing him to foam at the mouth and faint directly on the floor.

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Simultaneously, Xue Tian’ao’s gaze locked onto the other several richly dressed lords.

“Count Capone, General Vexi, and Viscount Koro, for attempting to assassinate the imperial family, are likewise sentenced to death. Their homes are to be raided, and their families and direct servants are to be sent to the laboratory to have whatever needs to be extracted, extracted…”

Xue Tian’ao’s indifferent pronouncement immediately caused these lords to show expressions of sheer terror. Just like Count Ambornoen, they also tried to continue begging for mercy, seeking Xue Tian’ao’s leniency. However, Xue Tian’ao had no interest in these existences who possessed no ‘value’.

With a casual wave of his hand, the surrounding Royal Knights hesitated not for a second as they forcibly dragged the pleading nobles out of the hall, even though some among them were descendants of founding members…

Once those noisy voices were gone, Xue Tian’ao leaned back against the throne with a sense of boredom.

“Tedious.”

After all that work, they were all valueless fellows like that, with not a single one worth recruiting.

‘A waste of my time.’

Just then, a man in military uniform with short orange hair walked slowly into the hall and knelt on one knee in the center. “Your Majesty, the diplomatic missions sent to the Sadik Empire and the Red Lotus Leaf Empire have reported back. They have successfully met with the emperors of both countries, and both emperors have stated they will send delegations to Sky Dome to participate in the coronation ceremony.”

“Hmm, well done. However, I didn’t expect the Sadik Empire, which has a blood feud with our Snownight Empire, to agree so easily. I thought it would take a bit more effort.”

“That is only because Your Majesty is brilliant and resourceful, having guessed the preferences of that new emperor.”

With a light chuckle, Xue Tian’ao waved his hand. “Heh, let’s skip the empty flattery.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the short-haired man replied respectfully. “In addition, there are two more pieces of good news to inform Your Majesty.”

“Oh? What good news?” Xue Tian’ao revealed a playful look.

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The short-haired man also smiled slightly. “Commander Aikino has sent word that the suppression of the Northern Frontier is complete. All key figures of the Duke Family have been arrested, and they have already set out to return to the capital. Everything went as Your Majesty predicted; we took control of the Northern Frontier with almost no losses.”

“Oh? Hahaha, that truly is good news. And the other one?”

“News has arrived from the Ashurmos Main Church. The Pope has agreed to let the Chosen Maiden come to Sky Dome as one of the representatives of the Ashurmos Church to attend Your Majesty’s official coronation ceremony.”

“What?!”

The moment he heard this news, Xue Tian’ao was momentarily stunned, and then a look of wild joy immediately surfaced on his face.

Slapping the throne hard, Xue Tian’ao stood up directly.

“Haha… Hahaha… Hahahaha!! As expected, those guys simply couldn’t refuse the temptation of the Magic Fission Bomb!”

However, hearing Xue Tian’ao’s words, a gold-armored knight standing close to him couldn’t help but ask, “But, Your Majesty, in order to exchange for the Chosen Maiden’s presence in the capital… giving the information on the Magic Fission Bomb to the Ashurmos Church, even if they are allies now… wouldn’t that be improper?”

“It’s fine.”

Regarding his subordinate’s concern, Xue Tian’ao shook his head dismissively. “It doesn’t matter. The most critical raw materials are always in my hands, and with their capabilities, they couldn’t possibly make it even if they had all the materials.”

“But, what if they actually do make it, wouldn’t the risk be…”

“Heh, it doesn’t matter. As long as Miss Mengxi comes to the imperial capital, this small risk is worth it.”

As he spoke, a greedy smile gradually appeared on Xue Tian’ao’s face.