“Lord Tarja, come out! We have some questions for you!”
“Where are you, Lord Lydia?! Is it true that you ordered the royal army to restrict information coming from the central region?!”
“Come out! We demand answers! What are your intentions for containing such vital information?! Have you betrayed the kingdom?!”
Outside the closed gates leading to the military district, dissatisfied voices of the people resounded far and wide.
Even the royal army’s high commands could hear them from miles away.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck! Which vermin spilled the news?!” an Early-stage High Witch cursed inside a command center in the middle of the military district.
“If I find out who did it, I will dismember them into a thousand pieces and feed them to the bears, then gut them and put them together so I can do it again and again! I want them to suffer!”
“Before that, we need to figure out how to get out of here alive! And even if we do, it’s unlikely that Queen Sybil will spare us for failing the mission,” another Early-stage High Witch stated gravely.
“I’m sure the other commander-rank witches are already suspecting our involvement in the central region’s restriction of information and looking through the chains of command. Once they tie our actions to the betrayal of the kingdom, there’ll be no place for us here.”
“But given the current situation, there’s no way we can escape. I’m afraid our only chance of living is to convince them to join our side,” the Early-stage High Witch stated.
That said, their chances of success with that endeavor were minuscule at most.
It was true that among the supremacist faction, many had grown disappointed with Queen Henrietta’s neutral stance regarding matters related to the male labor force.
However, that didn’t mean they could convince enough members of the supremacist faction that it would tip the disadvantageous balance in their favor.
Even so, they didn’t have any other option to make.
They could only blame their bad luck for not getting enough time to convert more people over to Queen Sybil’s side.
…
Meanwhile, inside the Vossen household, the Vossens were rallying their members and troops to make a trip to the central region like multiple other families.
They were all curious about the changes in the central region, but more importantly, they also wanted to remove the hidden threats lurking in their kingdom.
The Vossens were one of the great families living in the capital, and they also shared a relationship with the Delarosa household through matrimony.
That said, their relationship became estranged in the later years due to Marquis Delarosa’s absence and her husband’s passing.
Nevertheless, as the members of the Vossen household gathered in the big courtyard, their actions attracted Linetta’s attention as she was training nearby.
Once she caught sight of a familiar figure among the gathering members of the household, she immediately made her way over for an inquiry.
“Grandmother, where are you all going? Why do you need to gather so many troops?” Linetta asked as she glanced at the crowd with surprise.
Arabelle Vossen, Linetta’s paternal grandmother and the matriarch of the Vossen household, was a woman of stature and beauty.
Although she had lived over three hundred and thirty years, she still retained the youthful appearance of her younger years and could be mistaken as one of Linetta’s sisters to the less-knowing.
Nevertheless, she had mothered over five children and was a grandmother to many more grandchildren.
The weight of time, familial responsibility, and duty as an Early-stage High Witch had turned her into a strict and rigid person.
However, the moment she heard and laid eyes on Linetta’s figure, her face immediately blossomed with a rare smile.
“Linetta, you’re here,” Arabelle smiled warmly before saying, “We’re preparing to head over to Sunpeak Town to check on the situation.”
“Supposedly, the Kingdom of Verdant Woods is scheming to take over our kingdom with the Holy Knight Empire. Thus, we need to eliminate their spies and check our borders,” Arabelle briefly explained the situation and their objectives.
Nevertheless, Linetta was baffled as the outside news had yet to reach her.
“Why does that require your personal involvement, grandmother? Isn’t that what the royal army is for?” Linetta wondered.
“Hahaha…” Arabelle softly chuckled with some contempt when the royal army was brought up. “The royal army was involved in the central region’s blockade, restricting important information from reaching us.”
“Right now, we don’t know how many people in the royal army had sided with Queen Sybil, so we can’t rely on them. We can only entrust the task of protecting our kingdom with our own hands!” Arabelle claimed gallantly with a gripped fist.
“Oh? In that case, can I come too, grandmother? My fiance is there,” Linetta stated before she suddenly received a soft nudge on the head from Arabelle, causing her to hold her head.
“You little imp, are you still using that excuse? Do you really think I wouldn’t be able to find out if you have a fiancé or not?” Arabelle retorted with a half-admonishing, half-joking look before saying, “If I didn’t have to use it as an excuse to turn down the marriage proposals of lesser households, I would have long called out your bluff.”
“How dare they even think of marrying their useless sons to my genius granddaughter?” Arabelle added as she recalled the marriage proposals with a contemptuous look.
“But it’s not really a bluff. I have someone I like there. We’ve even cooked the rice together, grandmother!” Linetta argued.
“You…” Arabelle’s eye twitched before she replied, “Do you think your innocence is something sacred? Why don’t you go ahead and say you also had a child with him? Then I’ll be impressed and annoyed.”
“That said, I’m really curious who this lucky bastard is, to dare deflower my genius granddaughter,” Arabelle added grumpily before consenting, “Fine, you can tag along. However, you have to stick by my side.”
“It can be very dangerous!” Arabelle stressed.
“Yes!”
Linetta rejoiced with excitement.
Although it had only been less than two months since she last saw Vahn, time felt much longer. As such, she longed to see him again.
It would be considered impressive if they even had half of Vahn’s capability.
Nevertheless, she was also a little worried about what her grandmother would do to Vahn if he didn’t meet her expectations.
Even so, she was prepared to intervene if she intended to harm him.
“Can I come too, grandmother?” Lillias peeked her head out from a corner with an impish smile.
When Arabelle saw her, she smiled for a split second before her expression turned stern. Then, she firmly rejected her, “Definitely not.”
“Boo! It’s not fair!” Lillias cried with outrage.
“This isn’t a picnic trip!” Arabelle said as she glared at Lillias admonishingly. “Your sister is at least a Senior Witch. But, you? You’re still a True Witch! You might also be a genius, but it hasn’t been long since your mana veins are repaired.”
“It’s far too dangerous for you to come, Lillias,” Arabella added.
Although Lillias sulked after hearing that, she no longer voiced her dissent. Her grandmother’s words were absolute in the Vossen household.
“I understand…”