Chapter 270 - 116: My Precious Granddaughter is Yours to Command

Chapter 270: Chapter 116: My Precious Granddaughter is Yours to Command

...

Fortunately, Edmund was a man who had seen his share of storms.

After a moment of astonishment, he didn’t lash out. He simply sighed softly and said, "Battalion Commander Lynch, do you know how many years it’s been since someone shot me down so publicly?"

He paused, leaning forward slightly. His blue eyes locked onto Lynch’s as his tone grew serious. "Give me a reason."

Lynch set down his teacup, looking perfectly composed. "The reason is simple. There’s an old saying from my hometown: ’Land the first punch to avoid a hundred more.’"

"Land the first punch to avoid a hundred more..."

Edmund’s brow twitched. He mulled the phrase over, and a light gradually kindled in his eyes. "Excellent," he praised. "What an excellent phrase! ’Land the first punch to avoid a hundred more.’ It’s succinct, yet it cuts right to the heart of the matter! The person who coined such a saying must have been someone of great wisdom, who weathered countless storms."

At this, Lynch’s expression turned serious. "Lord Commander, think about it. If I had let them go easily today out of respect for you, paid some money, and offered an apology, the matter might have seemed settled."

"But what would others think once word got out? They’d think, ’Oh, so that Lynch fellow who made a name for himself in the Red Ridge Mountains isn’t all that.’ They’d see that some unreliable whelp from the House of Hohenzollern can show up at my door with a few men, ready to kill, and in the end, get off scot-free with just a fine."

"Then tomorrow, might some Zhang Hohenzollern or Li Hengsoron decide I’m a pushover and come to take a shot? The day after, might some faction in the legion that dislikes me, or extremists from the Holy Light Church, see an opportunity and come to test the waters?"

"If that happens, I’ll be dealing with this one today and that one tomorrow, wasting all my time and energy on this bullshit infighting and scheming. When would I have time for my actual duties? I still have to train my troops, guard against Gnolls and rebels, and protect the peace for the several thousand citizens of Lakefront Town."

At this point, Lynch’s voice suddenly dropped, his tone turning severe. "So, I have to throw this punch, and I have to throw it hard. It’s the only way to make everyone see that if they want to make a move on me, Lynch, they first need to consider whether their bones are hard enough to withstand my counterattack."

"Of course, out of respect for the Legion Commander, I don’t plan on killing them. I’m just teaching them a proper lesson."

Edmund fell completely silent.

He had to admit, Lynch’s words made a good deal of sense.

Especially in this treacherous borderland, where the strong devoured the weak. If you weren’t ruthless, how could you possibly stand your ground?

Having spent so many years in the North Wind Legion, he had seen and met enough people to know that, more often than not, concessions and compromises didn’t earn you respect. They earned you escalating aggression and recklessness.

After a moment of contemplation, Edmund nodded slowly, his expression growing solemn again. "I understand. I respect your choice. Now, Lynch, I have another question, and I hope you will answer me honestly."

His gaze sharpened, boring into Lynch’s eyes. "The death of Andreas von Hohenlohe... did it truly have nothing to do with you?"

"Heh." Lynch chuckled, his smile filled with contempt. "Lord Commander, a death-courting princeling like Andreas, who wore ’I am a Hohenzollern’ on his face everywhere he went, terrified someone might not know he was rich and powerful... honestly, even bothering with him would have been a waste of my time."

"I did see him that day at the auction in Black Stone Castle. He made quite an impression. After all, it’s hard to forget a bidder as arrogant and domineering as he was."

In front of a sharp, intelligent man like Edmund, being evasive would only arouse suspicion. So Lynch didn’t hold back, recounting the events of that day in detail. He described their unexpected encounter with the Crimson Reaper’s attack on Andreas and his party, how the Crimson Reaper then targeted them, how they formed a battle array to fight back, and he even included the part about the Angel descending to aid them.

After finishing his story, Lynch added in a frank tone, "The reason I didn’t report this to the Legion afterward was that I was worried a great house like the House of Hohenzollern, so used to throwing their weight around, would lash out like a mad dog after a direct descendant died. They would have likely taken their anger out on us and accused us of fabricating the story."

"Back then, I was still small fry, and my battalion hadn’t amounted to much. Naturally, I didn’t want to get stuck with that pile of shit I couldn’t shake off."

He paused, a derisive smile touching his lips. "I just never imagined the sheer absurdity of the House of Hohenzollern would so far exceed my expectations. That Fritz actually dared to show up at my door to arrest me based on some flimsy, baseless ’suspicion’... TSK TSK."

After hearing Lynch’s account, Edmund’s expression softened considerably. "Since the death of Andreas had nothing to do with you—in fact, you even indirectly avenged him—and since Lady Mijanar, an Angel of the Divine Kingdom, can corroborate your story, then there’s no issue."

As he spoke, Edmund’s tone became much lighter. As long as Lynch didn’t have the blood of a direct Hohenzollern heir on his hands, things were much simpler.

"Wait!" Eleanor, who had been standing by and holding her tongue, finally couldn’t take it anymore. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she stared at Lynch. "Are you saying that the three of you killed the ’Crimson Reaper,’ the blacklisted fugitive? That infamous blood Mage?"