Chapter 390 184: Fell for It

"Miss Bofunova, your Kovloki Family seems a bit busy?"

As soon as he arrived at Kovloki Castle, Carlos noticed the servants bustling about the garden, each carrying boxes back and forth as if they were moving out.

"Doing some major cleaning? Getting ready for the New Year?" Carlos asked.

The anniversary of the Empire's founding was only half a month away. The Empire is composed of people, and the path of its people is guided by the Master. The Essex Empire History clearly states that the Master gave humanity light, granted them fire, and bestowed upon them wisdom. Only then did humanity learn to create, understand emotion, and develop the traits and habits that distinguish them from beasts. This enabled them to establish the Empire and cultivate their own civilization. For this reason, since the Empire's inception, the people have named this holiday the Day of Divine Grace.

The true New Year only began after the Day of Divine Grace.

Bofunova forced a smile and replied, "Mhm. It is our last New Year here, after all. We should certainly make it a good one."

"The last one?"

Carlos then remembered and laughed. "Oh, right, I'd almost forgotten. Isn't your term almost over?"

'Yes.'

'Or rather, it had already ended ahead of schedule.'

'The moment I personally brought Sean and his people back, this ancient, lavish castle stopped belonging to me, and to the Kovloki Family. And it was all thanks to the fucking idiot standing right in front of me.'

Bofunova, however, said nothing.

'This whole affair had been a "surprise" from Carlos. The intelligence on Sean was completely wrong. Not only was his personal Tier wrong, but the numbers didn't add up either. There was an extra Night Watcher, and Sean's Maid turned out to be a Grand Mage...'

'If I had known my enemy was that powerful, I'd have to have been crazy to walk right into a trap.'

'Of course, I knew Sean had deliberately hidden his strength, feigning weakness to lure his prey. But so what?'

'Fine, Sean knows how to hide his strength, but can't you investigate, Carlos?'

'Even if the false intelligence was 99% because Sean was just too good at hiding, is Carlos, who found absolutely nothing, really without any fault?'

'I didn't dare go to Sean for an explanation, so I could only pin this on Carlos.'

'So, I'm going to return the favor with a little surprise.'

"Cut the chatter." Bofunova feigned impatience—she was never one for small talk. "Did you bring it?"

"Of course." Carlos was long accustomed to Bofunova's foul temper and didn't mind. He smiled and said, "It's all on the plane. A three-year supply."

When they first started cooperating, Carlos had only promised the Kovloki Family one year's worth of materials. When Bofunova asked for more a few days ago, he added two more years' worth to the deal—a gesture of utmost sincerity.

He had made some inquiries before coming. The Kovloki Family had indeed fought a major battle with Sean's group. Several of Ivan Pharmaceutical's GMP plants had been destroyed, thousands of people were dead, and the entire production chain in the pharmaceutical park had ground to a halt. The losses were devastating.

They were all working for the Church Court, so they were colleagues, in a sense. Carlos could understand how Bofunova must be feeling. So, after confirming the facts, he had been uncharacteristically generous and tripled the original offer, both as a show of sympathy for the Kovloki Family's predicament and as a condolence for the comrades sacrificed in the operation.

"I've already made the arrangements. You can send your people to the plane to take inventory and make sure the numbers are right," Carlos said with a laugh. "But before that, Miss Bofunova, shouldn't you let me see your prize, Mr. Sean?"

Dorunla, who had been following silently behind Carlos, froze. 'Sean?'

'Is that the same Sean the head of the Royal Opera House mentioned?'

'Isn't he from Siracle State? What's he doing here?'

'And he managed to get on Carlos's bad side?'

Bofunova snorted. "He's in the Guest Castle. Go see for yourself."

Carlos laughed heartily. "Haha, you really get me, Miss Bofunova!"

Kovloki Castle was vast, with more than one place to receive guests. The Guest Castle, unlike the guest chambers, was a separate, villa-style building constructed outside the main castle. Its style was more modern and was used exclusively for hosting partners unaffiliated with Wizards. Carlos preferred this style, as the ambiance inside the villa was set by a piano rather than an old-fashioned vinyl record player.

Sure enough.

The moment he stepped into the villa, the soothing sound of a piano washed over him like a gentle, trickling stream.

In a corner of the resplendent hall stood a pure-white grand piano, where an attendant was playing with his eyes closed.

A man in black tails approached, bowed respectfully to Carlos, and smiled. "Good day, sir. My name is Ain, and I am the butler here. I will be at your complete disposal."

The butler's bearing was elegant, and Carlos mirrored it. He offered a polite smile, nodded, and handed his overcoat to the man. "Then I am in your hands, Mr. Ain."

He then pulled a bill from his bag. "And this is for you."

"Thank you, sir." The butler gracefully accepted the bill, hung Carlos's coat on the rack, and asked, "Would you care for something to drink, sir?"

"Tea, Champagne, milk wine... or perhaps juice?"

"Champagne," Carlos said with a smile. "Today is a day for celebration."

"One moment, please." The butler led Carlos and his party to the lounge, then departed for the pantry.

Two Maids were also stationed in the lounge, awaiting the guests' summons.

And there, before the fireplace that dominated the lounge, a man sat quietly on a stool, his hands bound behind his back.