Chapter 163 |
Battle for Ed Rothtaylor (3)
Lortelle Keheln grasped the situation swiftly. Surveying the area, he revealed his identity to the soldiers, slipped them some money to gather information about the incident, and was able to formulate a plan of action just by organizing his thoughts. During Lortelle’s carriage ride, chaos seemed to have erupted at the Rothtaylor residence, with Crebin defying the imperial power and summoning evil deities; it appeared that Ed and his companions, Yenika and Lucy, somehow thwarted the conspiracy.
The downfall of the Rothtaylor family seemed predetermined. The household members and servants all appeared compromised, and those holding royal positions were likely to be expelled.
A battle for the staggering power vacuum would ensue. To install their allies in these positions, the power players would hit the ground running, escalating the imperial succession dispute among the princesses.
Heightened conflict exudes the scent of money.
One can ride the wave and create a flow, which invariably leads to greater wealth.
However, this case was special. Ed Rothtaylor was directly involved.
“Hmm…”
Frankly speaking, Lortelle, who harbored a considerable rational admiration for Ed Rothtaylor, found his judgment clouded whenever Ed was involved.
Having won the trust of Princess Sella with his skilled politicking, he managed to extricate Ed towards the Elte Company. Still, the problem was that Lortelle wasn’t the only one with that idea.
“Ed is seriously injured. It’s proper for him to convalesce in Phulan and observe the situation. There’s no better place for healing and convalescence during the break. It’s also advantageous for shaking off pursuit.”
“Good water and fresh air alone won’t heal wounds. The high priests and medical staff from the Holy Capital might be a better…”
Lortelle, pressing his throbbing head, continued the conversation.
“Securing a hideout in a place with good water and air, preparing a capable medical team—I can provide all that. The problem is future strategizing, isn’t it?”
Drawing close to Yenika and Clarice, Lortelle lowered his voice.
“While mediating conflicts between political factions, can you really keep Senior Ed safe?”
At that remark, Clarice and Yenika were at a loss for words.
Lortelle was a master of intrigue.
Living on the business front honed his sense for navigating and moderating the interests of people—a talent neither Yenika nor Clarice possessed.
Under the pretext of guarding Ed at the Elte Company, he could take him away and murky the situation, buying time to find an alternative solution.
Once Ed was in the custody of the Elte Company, they were prepared with every reason not to hand him over to the palace.
“We’ll take Senior Ed to Oldec; it’s the safest.”
Once he recovers at the company’s facility, Ed himself would determine and decide his next steps.
“But if the royal family gets involved, we have no means of response.”
Clarice countered that point.
“Elte Company’s intelligence and negotiation skills are acknowledged, but essentially, all this is just craftiness. If you’re overridden by brute force with no logic, just a blunt demand to hand over Senior Ed… Will Elte Company still take an adversarial role against the royal family then? Even when their survival depends on the empire’s trade networks?”
“That’s precisely why we work to prevent such situations from happening at the Elte Company.”
“The Holy Capital has the presence to directly oppose the royal household.”
At that, Yenika and Lortelle were at a loss for words again.
The saint, Clarice, was willing to risk escalating a conflict between the Holy Capital and the royal family if it meant not handing over Ed.
The Holy Capital wouldn’t openly intervene to save one man. There had to be another pretext.
“Senior Ed needs to face the Holy Tribunal within the Holy Capital. He has harmed me.”
This was the pretext Saint Clarice came up with.
Ed Rothtaylor, having received the baptism of the Telos Order during his coming-of-age ceremony, is a devotee. Directly harming a saint requires him to face the Holy Tribunal as per the sacred law.
The Holy Tribunal rights lay solely with the Holy Capital. Before handing over a sinner, they have the authority to govern the sinner according to sacred law.
Naturally, with the saint in Ed’s favor, severe punishment is unlikely. It’s uncertain whether Ed’s mistake directly caused harm or the saint fell due to her own carelessness.
It was just a pretext needed for the Holy Tribunal. For now, it serves to detain Ed, and once the matter settles down, they can simply decree an acquittal.
“The distance between the Holy Capital and the royal household of Clorel is truly vast. If, out of your discretion, you, saint, protect Senior Ed and fail to access various bits of information essential for political restructuring or negotiation, what are your plans?”
“… What?”
“It’s essential not only to secure his safety now but also to resolve the situation and steer it favorably. So it’s right that Senior Ed receives protection by the Elte Company side.”
No one could outreason Lortelle.
It was unclear whether the Holy Capital would protect Ed, and even if it did, getting mixed up in the fray between the Holy Capital and the royal household would render Ed a sitting duck, hardly an ideal situation.
“Do we have to take Ed into custody to protect him?”
Yenika would not stay silent either.
“If the problem is being used by the high and mighty, isn’t the solution to escape to someplace without such figures…?”
Although her words were vague, Yenika was clearly striking at a critical point.
They needed to first pull Ed out of the political quagmire.
“I can escape undetected if I set my mind to it. Unlike Lortelle or the saint, I’m not tied down.”
Exhausted yet determined, Yenika was ready to flee with Ed to the ends of the earth.
“While I’m on the run with Ed, either fight or persuade to resolve the issue for the safest outcome.”
Whether it escalates to a confrontation of church and crown, or by cleverly manipulating Princess Sella.
Ultimately, all that depends on Clarice and Lortelle’s maneuvers… there’s no direct reason for them to keep Ed.
However, the other two were unlikely to accept this reality. Without personally securing Ed’s safety, they couldn’t smoothly proceed with follow-up measures.
Thus, the contest for who would take Ed became unavoidable.
While the reason is ostensibly noble and heartwarming—vying for Ed Rothtaylor’s safety—the situation is perilously cutthroat.
The spirit summoner, Yenika Faelover, who could, with exertion, reach the highest echelons of elemental spirits.
The wealthy industrial magnate, Lortelle Keheln, who could buy a frigate with the funds in his wallet alone.
The revered and sacred saint, Clarice, revered within the Telos Order as the highest of beings.
The stares amongst the three sparked tension, making even the distant soldiers gulp.
The murmurs of their exchange insinuated a critical political discussion.
In reality, it’s merely a contest of emotions over who should take Ed Rothtaylor, secured with hifalutin pretexts.
If it comes down to it, they’re the kind who’d throw a tantrum just to take Ed.
But to Ed Rothtaylor himself, these nuances aren’t easily discernible.
Whether to Phulan, the Holy Capital, or Oldec—his destination will starkly define his stance in the imperial power struggle.
A runner, a resister, a manipulator—each choice carries its merits and consequences, and any could be deemed a reasonable selection.
Yet, to the three girls, it isn’t just about what Ed should do…
Whether to follow Yenika, Clarice, or Lortelle—if it boils down to this, then ultimately, Ed must choose someone.
If he even slightly regains consciousness and declares whom he will follow…the other two will feel an acute sense of defeat.
A tense atmosphere had formed as if one could almost sense it.
Again and again, I have only spoken about Ed’s escape route.
It was the three girls who had begun to ascribe their own meaning, trying to justify Ed coming their way. As the atmosphere heated up, it ended in an overzealous conclusion. It was their own doing.
“Imperial forces will soon arrive and begin assessing the situation as they move through the half-demolished buildings. With their large numbers and well-training, they’ll wrap up the job quickly.”
There would be personnel mixed in to clean up the scene and collect bodies. Of course, the forces meant to take Ed away would also arrive.
Eventually, Ed would naturally fall into the hands of the Elte Trading Company. That was how Lortelle had designed the situation.
– Clack! Clack!
Just then, the sound of ceremonial spears being rattled by the soldiers guarding the garden could be heard. It signaled the arrival of a VIP.
The place had been full of dignitaries from the beginning. Faced with a visitor of such high stature that the soldiers even raised their spears must mean someone remarkably noteworthy was arriving.
Passing through the garden entrance and walking straight in was… Princess Sella of the Frost.
“Ah, there you are, Ed Rothtaylor.”
She was accompanied by all sorts of nobles.
The enraged nobility were shouting that the Rothtaylor line must be cut off. Sella, ignoring them and walking forward, looked at the girls.
The lack of even a courteous nod indicated that her interest lay solely with Ed Rothtaylor, who sat leaning against a tree.
To Princess Sella, the young boy, seemingly insignificant and with his eyes closed, appeared to be a key that could reshuffle all power structures.
Keeping him alive would only serve as a rallying point for any remaining Rothtaylor forces.
Yenika’s hand tightened around her staff. If anyone dared to harm Ed, she was ready to call upon Tarkan and flee immediately.
However, it was not Yenika who intercepted Princess Sella.
– Swoosh, bang!
A wind blade that rose from the sky split the space between Sella and Ed, scattering and disappearing into thin air, leaving only its aftermath to disrupt the hair of the people nearby.
As the dust settled, the figure of a girl came into view, blocking in front of Ed.
The girl, completely covered in dust, with her usually elegant hair wild and untangled, looked nothing like a noble.
That girl – Tanya Rothtaylor – stood cutting off the path between Sella and Ed, looking up at the princess.
“Don’t touch him.”
A defiance of imperial command.
It was a tough phrase to emerge from Tanya, who had always lived yielding to authority.
Yenika, Lortelle, and Clarice all had plans to whisk Ed away by any means necessary, as they had alternative destinations in mind.
Those with alternatives tend to steer the situation in the most positive direction possible.
But Tanya was entirely different.
To her, the Rothtaylor estate was the foundation of life itself. She was a girl who had lived only yearning for the glory of the Rothtaylor family.
Having lost much and been manipulated to exhaustion, her clenched fists held nothing more.
Standing before her were nobles filled with rage, demanding reparations for the damage caused by Crebin’s schemes.
“Tanya Rothtaylor. And Ed Rothtaylor.”
On seeing Tanya’s appearance, Sella and the nobles swallowed their breaths. Her usual elegance and nobility were absent.
Only Sella, who softly called out Tanya’s name, narrowed her eyebrows.
“As the siblings carrying the purest Rothtaylor blood, you shall both accompany us to the imperial court for an inquiry.”
Political disputes are ultimately battles for justification.
Princess Sella’s excuse for the inquiry seemed trivial, as if the real reason was something else entirely. Tanya felt an ominous chill but didn’t falter in her stand.
Sella let out a deep sigh, and surveyed the surroundings.
Many people were scattered around Ed, including Lucy, resting on his shoulder, and Tanya blocking his path.
With Yenika and Lortelle present, and Saint Clarice looking on with cold eyes, it seemed as though the elite had gathered to decide Ed’s fate.
Princess Sella intended to conclude everything before Ed regained consciousness.
As Lortelle would have it, Ed Rothtaylor was a clever and capable man, best eliminated.
Although Sella somewhat agreed with this opinion, her intent was to follow through with that recommendation, but…
“Yawn.”
As if heralding the end of this nerve-wracking standoff, a small yawn was heard.
Rubbing her eyes as though questioning the commotion, and standing up shakily was Lucy Mayrill.
“Wha…”
With her nonchalant tone, she remarked, glancing at the gathered crowd.
“Why is it so tense here?”
The mood shifted with the girl’s presence. Sella felt an odd sense of discomfort but didn’t halt her actions.
“Let it be known that everyone must step away from Ed Rothtaylor…”
– Whoosh.
Yet, a staff swooped down at an angle, blocking Sella’s path.
It was Yenika who had swung her staff, obstructing Sella’s way as if standing up to her.
Sella’s eyes narrowed as she gauged the atmosphere. Behind her, the enraged nobles shouted, but the scene before her was calm and quiet.
Before her laid the path towards Ed Rothtaylor.
Slumped against the tree of the central garden, he was unconscious.
Yet, those standing around him were not alone with their cold expressions.
Surely, if one were to secure Ed Rothtaylor’s person, the best opportunity would be now while he was unconscious.
Yet, without realizing it, Sella swallowed dryly.
She had known that the group related to Ed, but hadn’t anticipated this atmosphere.
It had been nearly a decade since she had felt such tension.