Chapter 52 - 48: One of the Kingdom’s Wealthiest Families

Chapter 52: Chapter 48: One of the Kingdom’s Wealthiest Families

Two carriages slowly passed through the fifteen-meter-high inner wall, advancing toward the wide main street of the inner city.

The inner city was more prosperous than the outer city. Brightly colored buildings sparkled in the sunset’s afterglow, making the scene resemble a beautiful painting.

Magnificent carriages, dashing gentlemen, and elegantly dressed noblewomen were a common sight on the wide streets.

On the balcony of a villa across the street, an old man in a silk top hat was leisurely drinking coffee and reading a newspaper.

The newspaper article was about the fall of the Blue Moon Territory, caused by the Disease Witch running rampant. This story had dominated the papers for a while, though its coverage was shrinking; what was once a front-page headline was now just a small blurb.

Still, it put the old man on high alert, because he saw a carriage on the street bearing the emblem of the Blue Moon Territory.

At first, he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. After repeatedly wiping his reading glasses, he confirmed the blue moon emblem on the carriage.

His coffee cup fell to the ground, his eyes wide with shock.

It was as if the disaster chronicled in the newspaper was about to become a reality in the Green Shade Territory.

The old gentleman wasn’t the only one; pedestrians on the street also wore expressions of surprise.

"Heavens, why did Lord Lian bring people from the Blue Moon Territory into the inner city?"

"How could Lord Lian do this? He’s completely disregarding our safety."

"That’s right, I can’t believe Lord Lian would do such a thing. This is the inner city! This is where we nobles live."

"I heard Lord Lian has been treating those Blue Moon Territory refugees outside the High Wall for a while now. I can’t believe he’s actually brought them into the inner city. Ugh, I feel like the very air around me is polluted."

"Why isn’t Lord Lian doing any real work? What’s the good in saving a bunch of refugees?"

"The refugees from the Blue Moon Territory are all sources of the Plague! How can they be allowed in the inner city? They should be buried alive."

"Right, they should be buried alive."

The nobles showed no gratitude toward Lian. Instead, the sudden appearance of the carriages from the Blue Moon Territory in the inner city sparked discontent and panic. Someone even shouted the words, "Refugees, get out!"

Listening to their shameless comments, Mina clenched her fists.

"How can they say that? You’re a member of the Jackson Family, not some refugee."

Mina bit her lip, desperately wanting to throw open the carriage door and argue with them.

They too had once been high and mighty.

Catherine, however, sat composed in the carriage, as if she were already accustomed to such treatment.

"Miss Catherine, aren’t you angry?"

Mina’s cheeks were flushed with anger.

"Mina, don’t waste your emotions on pointless matters. If you can’t even endure this small injustice, then you can’t follow me anymore."

Catherine seemed to have anticipated this situation. Her voice was calm and devoid of emotion.

"I... I’m sorry, Miss Catherine. I just felt indignant on your behalf."

Mina’s eyes instantly grew red, and she lowered her head.

"Mina, don’t worry. Lord Lian will handle it."

Catherine reached out, wiped away Mina’s tears, and said comfortingly, "Since we chose to follow him into the Green Shade Territory, we should trust him."

Meanwhile, in the luxurious carriage up ahead.

Anna lifted the curtain for Lian and said gently, "Lord Lian, it seems your people aren’t very welcoming to those from the Blue Moon Territory."

"You’re too lenient with them," Annie said, her hand stroking the dagger on her thigh. "In the Rose Territory, this would never happen. No one dares to say no to Lady Mary." It was as if she were ready to act at any moment to teach these arrogant nobles, who showed no respect for their Lord, a lesson.

"If Miss Sophie were to use her Ice Magic now, it would surely quiet this noisy crowd."

"Sophie is a Guardian, not my assassin."

The words had barely left Lian’s mouth when he saw Sophie, who had been about to get out of the carriage, quietly draw back. She docilely stroked her fishbowl, her eyes innocently watching the small tadpoles swimming inside.

"Sophie... you weren’t actually thinking of using Ice Magic just now, were you?"

Sophie said nothing. Turning her back to Lian, she stuck a finger into the fishbowl and poked at a small black tadpole, evading his question.

Lian wiped the sweat from his forehead, straightened his collar, and stepped out of the carriage, flanked by his Guards.

When the nobles saw their Lord emerge, their chatter came to an abrupt halt, but expressions of displeasure remained on their faces.

"Everyone, you’ve misunderstood. The people in the carriage are not refugees. They are nobles from the Blue Moon Territory, the Jackson Family. They were once one of the wealthiest families in the Kingdom."

"The Jackson Family?"

The surprised nobles exchanged glances and began to murmur among themselves again.

"Didn’t the entire Jackson family die in the Blue Moon Territory?"

"Some of them actually managed to escape?"

"Even if they were nobles once, they have nothing now. What’s the difference between them and refugees?"

"Ahem."

Lian coughed, interrupting their conversation.

All eyes focused on him as a faint smile touched his lips.

"The Blue Moon Territory has not fallen. The Plague will end in a month, and the Church will send its people to perform the Purification on the lands, making them habitable once more. The wealth of the Jackson Family will not diminish one bit; the territory, mines, gold, and silver of the Blue Moon Territory still belong to them. So, ladies and gentlemen, please mind your words and actions. Show the refinement befitting the nobles of the Green Shade Territory."

Due to the effect of his [Master of Deceit] trait, enhanced by the power of his [Lord] title, the crowd was 100% convinced that Lian was telling the truth.

Ashamed and remorseful for their earlier slander, they began to apologize one after another.

"We’re sorry, we didn’t realize they were from the Jackson Family."

"That’s right. The carriages didn’t have the Jackson Family crest, either. We apologize for our rudeness just now."

"Since they are also nobles, they naturally have the right to live in the inner city."

Inside the carriage from the Blue Moon Territory, Mina beamed and took Miss Catherine’s hand. "Miss Catherine, you’re so brilliant! Did you know all along that Lord Lian would speak up for us?"

"Yes. If he intends to marry me, he wouldn’t allow people to call his fiancée a refugee."

A faint smile touched Catherine’s lips as well.

"It seems Lord Lian has many good qualities, aside from his reputation as a philanderer."

Mina commented admiringly.

Catherine nodded and looked out the window.

The sunset’s afterglow fell upon Lian, casting a red hue on his short golden hair and cheeks. He looked like a rising sun, its light gradually shining into Catherine’s lonely heart.

Although she knew she shouldn’t harbor such feelings, she couldn’t stop her heart from racing.

When Lian glanced back, she quickly averted her gaze.

Catherine only breathed a sigh of relief once Lian was settled back in his carriage.

A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched Old Knight Kage Mori’s lips. It made his blocky face seem less stern and rigid, as if a statue had come to life.