Chapter 281: The Struggle

Amelia's face turned pale. She didn't expect the Crown Prince to play an evil prank on her.

She swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "I was just exaggerating, Crown Prince."

"Curtis." Leonard ignored her and called out to him.

"Yes, Crown Prince?" Curtis arrived and bowed slightly. Still, his subtle gaze at Amelia wasn't concealed.

Amelia flinched slightly. She didn't fear Curtis as a person, but if she had to fight him, then that was another story.

Curtis not only led a portion of the Crimson Guards, but he had also been trained under Spencer.

Amelia was rebellious by nature, but she wasn't foolish by any means. She was arrogant previously because she could bargain for it. If there were no chips to bargain, that was equivalent to courting death.

Moreover, revenge wasn't obtained through impulsiveness.

Amelia's face was pale as she clasped her hands together and used her eyes to plead for mercy.

Leonard snickered at her sorry sight.

"The slave merchant carriage over there. Have the guards keep a close eye on them. I reckoned an incident might occur." He instructed coolly.

Curtis remained expressionless. He simply nodded and adhered to the command.

The slave merchant carriage's appearance was too suspicious in his mind.

The other carriages learned to take a step back when they overheard Leonard's cruel statement. Yet they refused to back down and even dared to follow closely behind.

As a commander of the Crimson Guards, Curtis' instinct was practically screaming at him about the nefarious intention.

Curtis excused himself, but gave one final look at Amelia.

'He definitely remembers my words.' Amelia smiled bitterly. Had she known he was outside, she would have kept her mouth shut and not boasted so openly.

"Want to stay safe?" Leonard suddenly asked.

"Yes!" She clenched her fist and responded instantly. Even though it was a trap set by him, she didn't dare to harbor any ill intent toward him.

"I didn't ask this during our first meeting because of circumstances. But now, let me ask you this. Who do you think set the trap on Bea?"

Although the investigation was concluded and the said culprit was dealt with, Leonard never believed they were the real mastermind.

Sure, they were the culprit.

But there was something that the majority would ignore.

Just because one person wasn't directly involved in a crime, they could be indirectly involved through subtle manipulation or maneuvers behind the scenes.

Leonard had witnessed such moves in his old world.

There were many fellow businessmen who ensured their hands stayed clean through subtle manipulation by a third party. The third party was a pawn that could be discarded at any moment and had no relationship, indirectly or directly, to them.

It was the equivalent of a burner phone that would be destroyed after single use.

"My suspicion is on the Houses, but no evidence has been found." Amelia exhaled deeply.

The Houses referred to each of the ruling houses that operated in the Aldros Empire.

Their powers and influences weren't something someone like her could infiltrate. This included Leonard's own house, House Lawson.

"I'll be honest with you then." Leonard seemed to have expected such an answer.

"Your revenge may or may not bear fruit in the short term. Even in the long term, it might be dropped."

"..."

Amelia lowered her head in silence.

Her expression was a mix of sorrow and agony. She knew how hopeless her revenge might be. But she still wished to cling to the hope, especially after the conversation with Seth.

'This is probably for the best.' Leonard didn't rush and allow her to calm down.

Spencer had relayed a message to him not to dabble further in the case of Bea's betrayal a few days ago.

When even someone like Spencer, who wouldn't hesitate to swing the butcher knife at others, said that, he knew it was time to stop.

The struggle of those in the top had too many things to consider. It was an inevitable consequence of said fate.

To defy fate, it was easier said than done. Not to mention, Leonard didn't hold much goodwill toward Bea to risk everything on her behalf.

Although she was forced by circumstances, she still ended up choosing the path of harming him in exchange for her family's safety. He wouldn't blame her for such a choice, but that didn't mean he would forgive her either.

A few minutes later, their carriage officially embarked onto the SIZ.

The atmosphere and environment immediately shifted.

There was an eeriness and a feeling of being pricked by multiple needles.

"There's fog here…" Leonard glanced at the window outside and noticed white fog forming up.

"These fogs are the residual that was spread from the Veil Marsh at Black Mire," Amelia explained. The fog wasn't too overwhelming because of the long distance.

However, it served as a warning of how perilous the actual fog would be in Veil Marsh.

"Is it common to have fog here?" Leonard extended his hand outside to feel some of the fog. The fog wasn't poisonous or anything, but it sure made one feel uneasy and impaired vision.

"No." She flatly replied and narrowed her eyes. "By logic, the fog shouldn't have made it this far because there should have been Wind Mages at Ironvale to deflect it."

"I see…" Leonard tapped his fingers softly on the glass.

Although she wasn't explicit in the explanation, it was more than enough for him to understand the implication.

Something must have happened in Ironvale that prevented the Wind Mages responsible for the black fog from working.

"Should we tell everyone to remain alert?" Amelia asked.

He shook his head. "The Crimson Guards aren't inexperienced."

He reckoned they must have figured something was amiss the moment they spotted the fog. Their experience and knowledge were definitely higher than his.

They probably already made advanced preparations.

10 minutes later…

As they closed the halfway mark in the SIZ, someone suddenly shouted in a panic.

"A breach!"

"The beastmen had broken free!"

From afar, multiple beastmen led by Dayton began to charge straight at Leonard's carriage.

"I'm starting to get sick of them." Leonard frowned.