Chapter 371 - 369: Undercurrent

Chapter 371: Chapter 369: Undercurrent

Although the news Lloyd brought back wasn’t necessarily accurate, it at least gave Count Kais some direction. For the foreseeable future, he would pay close attention to the situation in the Akutas Kingdom.

After all, even though the King had been discreet about sending envoys to the Four Great Kingdoms, someone was bound to leak the information. The Akutas Kingdom, surrounded by the Four Great Nations, would surely become anxious and react.

For Duane, if the Four Great Nations truly intended to partition the Akutas Kingdom, it would present him with an opportunity to attack the Starfall Islands.

In any case, actively preparing for war would be the main task ahead.

「Inside Cyan Snake Fortress.」

King Eric had been mentally and physically exhausted lately. Besides pushing forward the plan for the four nations to partition the Akutas Kingdom, he also had to worry about his son’s marriage.

Sigmund and Orisien’s actions had infuriated him. He never imagined that his most valued son, the future heir to the Kingdom, was actually interested in men. No wonder he hadn’t been very interested in marrying Danika.

Fortunately, the Pruck and Hughes clans were related by marriage.

Sigmund’s mother was Duke Kelvin’s daughter, and the Hughes Clan didn’t want to lose face. In the end, after Queen Maya’s pleading, Sigmund’s own apology, and the King making numerous concessions, the matter was finally smoothed over.

Eric already had a low opinion of Orisien, and after this incident, what little good impression he had was completely gone.

So, he had him sent back to the Needleleaf Forest that very night, ordering him to stay in his Baron’s Territory and not return to the Royal Capital unless summoned.

Severus of the Holy Radiance Church Court had no particular opinion on the matter. To be precise, they hadn’t expected the Holy Son to get involved in such a disgraceful affair with Sigmund.

"So, Duane’s left arm grew back?"

Eric listened to the latest intelligence from his subordinate and asked again in utter astonishment.

Drake replied respectfully, "Yes, Your Majesty. Duane has made many public appearances at the Silent Shore. The arm he cut off himself has indeed grown back!"

Eric looked at the Criminal Law Judge beside him in confusion. "Could it be that Duane has reached the Ascension Level?"

He felt like Duane’s strength was shattering his understanding again and again.

It had only been a little over four years. Had this young man, whom no one had thought much of back then, actually become the Pruck Kingdom’s first Ascension-level powerhouse?

"Impossible!"

Severus denied it with great confidence. "Your Majesty, you may not be aware, but for a Scorching Sun Level Warrior to reach the Ascension Level, they must repeatedly tear apart and heal their body. This process takes at least seven or eight years, if not decades. When I last fought Duane, his strength was at the Scorching Sun Level at most. It’s impossible for him to have broken through to the Ascension Level so quickly!"

"Besides, even an Ascension-level Warrior would find it difficult to regenerate a severed limb."

As he said this, he felt a little unsure himself.

’If Duane has truly mastered the Power of Life, then my Corrupting Holy Seal will be useless.’

’Based on our last fight, if not for the Corrupting Holy Seal, I might not have been his match.’

’So, the next time I fight Duane, I’ll need someone like Count Kudro from last time to exhaust his Fighting Qi.’

Of course, Severus couldn’t bolster the enemy’s morale while undermining his own in front of His Majesty.

"I’m more inclined to believe that Duane simply reattached the arm he cut off."

He analyzed, "He took the severed limb with him that day. It’s possible he used some kind of Magic to dispel the effects of the Corrupting Holy Seal."

"Is that so?"

Eric’s brow furrowed. "Duane’s ’Celestial Python Bloodline’ is indeed very powerful. Could it be related to that?"

"It’s possible!"

Severus said, "Thomsen’s defeat at his hands back then seemed to be related to this bloodline. Your Majesty, this Duane could become a great enemy of yours in the future. If he cannot be made to serve you, you must take precautions against him as soon as possible."

Eric rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed heavily.

’One wrong step truly leads to another. If I had known Duane would have such opportunities, I should have used Carter’s death in battle as an excuse to keep him in the Kingdom. I would have even married Emily to him.’

’After all, back then, Earl Orlando’s son, Harrison, was even egging on Orlando to target Duane just because Emily was getting close to him.’

Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regret in this world. The Duane of today had grown to a point where he was difficult for the King to handle.

After weighing his options repeatedly, Eric decided to further ease the tensions with Duane.

"Send an invitation to Duane. Invite him to attend Sigmund and Danika’s wedding in July. As it happens, there are some matters for which I need his support."

A sudden idea struck Severus. "Your Majesty, should we use this opportunity to deal with Duane?"

"Are you confident you can kill him in one blow?" the King asked.

After a moment of contemplation, Severus shook his head. "I have a good chance of winning, but I can’t guarantee a one-hit kill."

"If you can’t kill him in one blow, then don’t try any more tricks on him, Your Excellency, the Judge!"

Eric said with a faint, unreadable smile, "I’d rather not have my son’s wedding turn into a bloodbath."

"Besides, dealing with Duane is not the most important matter at hand, as you should also be aware," he added.

Severus frowned slightly, then slowly nodded. "You’re right. Now is indeed not a good time to deal with Duane."

"Go now, Drake."

His Majesty the King commanded, "Have Sir Trenton make a trip to Black Forest Island and personally deliver the invitation to Duane."

Drake’s heart skipped a beat as he immediately understood His Majesty’s intention.

Trenton was the Kingdom Territory Surveyor. Duane’s Silver Jade Territory had been surveyed and its borders drawn under his supervision.

And His Majesty was already aware that Trenton had accepted Gold Coins from Duane and expanded the area of the Silver Jade Territory by three to four times.

Now, by having him personally deliver the invitation to Black Forest Island, His Majesty was undoubtedly telling Duane that he knew about the matter but had no intention of pursuing it.

This way, it could be considered a favor to Duane, an olive branch to soothe the recent unpleasantness.

A powerful, homegrown noble who possessed the ability to reattach a severed limb was indeed worth winning over.

At least, that was how the current situation should be handled.

However, seeing such importance placed on Duane left Severus feeling rather displeased.

After leaving the great hall, he couldn’t help but question Mitchell, "Why do I get the feeling His Majesty doesn’t trust us?"

The Saint Hall Grand Commander’s lips curved into a slight smile. "Since the day he ascended the throne, His Majesty has been paranoid, constantly worrying about betrayal, yet he lacks the power to eliminate these potential traitors and consolidate his authority. Now, although we have joined him, we represent a power he cannot fully control. It’s only normal for him to be suspicious."

Severus snorted. "I think it would be better to prop up someone obedient, like Andrews and Nerva did. I think Sigmund would be easier to handle. Besides, his relationship with Orisien is *very good*!"

He bit down hard on the last two words.

Mitchell shook his head with a slight laugh. "Sigmund still values his father highly. He would never betray him."

"Then what about Otto? The second prince doesn’t have much of a presence."

Mitchell said helplessly, "The power structure in the Pruck Kingdom is too complex; that method won’t work here. Besides, we need a stable channel to deal with the Kasa Kingdom, and His Majesty Eric is the most suitable candidate."

Severus fell silent. He didn’t agree with Mitchell’s point of view, but he didn’t object either.

"You’re right, it is more complicated here. That’s why we need more people!"

He climbed into the carriage and said to Mitchell, who followed him in, "You should write a letter to headquarters as soon as possible. Tell them we have a suspected Ascension-level Warrior here who is under twenty years old. We need more people!"

Mitchell was startled. "So, you suspect Duane is at the Ascension Level?"

"Who knows? That kid is very strange and not easy to deal with."

Severus said, "Doesn’t the Church Court have a few Cardinals? See if we can request one or two of them to come."

"I’ll try to make the letter sound as dire as possible!"

Mitchell wore a bitter expression. "But getting a Cardinal will probably be difficult. After all, the troubles on the Sunset Continent also require manpower."