🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 33
Suddenly the Grand Duke sensed a disturbance. He also noticed the hurried movements of the knights.
“…Ah, it seems we’ve already been discovered.”
His subordinates would have handled the scene on their own, but there was no reason to risk appearing suspicious at this moment.
The Grand Duke held his breath and waited for the commotion to die down.
After several dozen minutes.
A man asked cautiously, “By the way, why did you suddenly put Lady Reweiz on the list to be dealt with?”
She had clearly been a target for persuasion until quite recently.
“She was far too competent to ever be mine. Shouldn’t such a person be removed?” the Grand Duke replied.
Whether from sentiment or for political reasons, Lora had been acting with a deep awareness that she was Acel’s fiancée.
From that the Grand Duke gained a hint.
Lora would never be someone who could be won over.
“Shall we take care of her now?”
“…There will be another opportunity later.”
One thing in their favor was that Acel did not yet possess any decisive power or clear clues that could topple the Grand Duke.
Still, he remained cautious of him.
“We should avoid giving him any unnecessary pretext.”
For now it was wiser to keep some distance from the palace.
Of course, that did not mean abandoning the palace entirely.
“The alliance between Acel and his circle is stronger than I thought… I need someone to interfere up close and create cracks while they’re within striking distance.”
There were, of course, people already planted inside the palace.
People who functioned as the Grand Duke’s eyes and ears.
He wanted them to remain at the palace. They had preserved their covers for over a decade.
This operation, however, was dangerous; it required a disposable asset — someone to use once and then discard.
“Find me a person. Someone with no ties to me, simple in temperament, full of desires, and easy to control.”
And—
“It would be even better if they had no strong ties to the Empire either, so they could be cut loose at any time.”
Everything was for the great undertaking.
Even if it meant picking up and discarding a blade to be used in an instant, how could he be negligent about it?
