Chapter 1076 - 880: Royal Capital (Part 2)

However, Lord Audric has a small request on this visit.

He hopes to select a few valuable items from the royal treasury to take back, as an exchange of sincerity for the Blood Gold Clan’s future investment. I have personally decided to present Lord Audric with three treasures from the royal treasury, but considering that your families have served the royal family loyally for generations, and have accumulated many precious heirlooms, I propose that several families also bring out some treasures to show sincerity to this distant noble guest. When the Blood Gold Clan support is in place in the future, your generosity today will surely be repaid doubly."

With these words, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became subtle and tense.

The clan leaders of the mentioned families stood in place, keeping an effort to maintain a respectful and proper expression, but the unrest and resistance deep in their eyes were almost ready to overflow.

The king’s words seemed to be seeking opinions on the surface, but in fact, he was openly exerting pressure.

Even the royal family has presented three treasures; are you nobles affiliated with the royal family bold enough to not give anything?

After a moment of silence, Marquis Cavendish was the first to speak.

His hair and beard were all white, and he leaned on a cane carved from Black Iron Wood, speaking with an aged yet clear voice: "Your Majesty, our family does indeed have an heirloom, named Star Fragment. According to my grandfather, this item was extracted from the core remnants of a meteor that fell from the sky hundreds of years ago, containing unknown Rule Power of starlight within. Our family has worshiped it in our family Divine Hall for generations, unable to unravel its mystery. Since Your Majesty has asked, I am willing to present it and allow Lord Audric to judge it."

The king nodded slightly, his aged face showing a hint of a satisfied smile.

With Marquis Cavendish taking the lead, the attitudes of the other families softened noticeably.

Next stepped forward Earl Ashton, who took out a small Purple Sandalwood Box from his bosom and opened the lid, inside which lay a deep red Crystal Stone the size of a pigeon egg, with flames slowly burning inside, flaring unpredictably beneath the crystal surface: "This item is called Dragon Flame Crystal, said to be naturally formed from the reverse scale of an ancient fire dragon buried deep within a volcano for ten thousand years. The wearer can greatly enhance affinity and resistance to the Fire Element. This was a trophy captured by my great-grandfather from the enemy commander in a battle, today it is offered to Lord Audric."

Viscount Blackwood followed closely, presenting a thin gauze woven from Shadow Silk, which under the candlelight shone with liquid shadow-like brilliance, cool to the touch like water: "This item is called Shadow Gauze, woven from the threads spat by extinct Shadow Silkworms, wearing it can completely conceal one’s form and breath. It’s the dowry of my grandmother and a treasure guarded by our family for generations."

After several core nobles expressed their stance, the remaining middle and small nobles also followed suit. Although the items they presented were not as precious as the previous ones, they were also treasures kept at the bottom of their family chests.

Soon, the crystal display table in front of the throne was piled with various exotic treasures, from Ancient Magical Beast Crystal Cores emitting a faint blue glow to old Magic Texts that could turn pages by themselves, dazzling in all sorts of colors.

Audric never stood up, nor did he show the slightest surprise at any of the treasures.

He simply leaned back in his chair, occasionally extending his hand to pick up a treasure and casually twirl it between his fingers before placing it back on the tray, like a merchant picking goods at a marketplace.

Only when Earl Ashton opened that Purple Sandalwood Box did his pale golden vertical pupil light up for a moment, taking the Dragon Flame Crystal up to examine it against the candlelight for several breaths, then slowly putting it back, a satisfied smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

He merely glanced at the other treasures and moved his gaze away, at most nodding slightly to indicate acceptance.

This attitude left many nobles present holding a fire inside, but none dared to act out.

This man is not only a guest of the king but also backed by a powerful family capable of crushing the entire Osseron Kingdom.

Their ancestral treasures are likely not considered collectibles in the eyes of the Blood Gold Clan.

Duke stood at the edge of the hall, holding his wine cup, seeing all this clearly.

When the king proposed that nobles donate treasures, he had already understood the true script of this banquet.

The king presented the royal family’s treasures as sincerity money and rallied all the nobles to together offer protection money to Audric, thus currying favor with Audric and sounding an alarm to those nobles possibly harboring second thoughts.

Audric naturally sat at ease, not even having to lift a finger, as a group queued to bring treasures to him.

This is how one plays with the backing of a mighty force, not even needing to act, to make these people willingly hand over their possessions.

The banquet continued, the band resuming the performance of a melodious court dance tune, pairs of young noble men and women spinning on the dance floor, their skirts and gown tails gently fluttering to the rhythm of the waltz.

On the surface, this grand banquet still upheld the dignity and elegance expected of the Osseron Royal Family, but Duke, holding his wine cup standing at the edge of the hall, took in those subtle details that were not easily noticed.

The king’s actions tonight, though seemingly to warmly host the guest from afar, were in fact a carefully designed political transaction.

The rebel army had swept through vast areas in the northwestern kingdom with overwhelming force these past months, fully exposing the royal family’s diminishing control over local territories.

Count Cadwell had for centuries held Divine Sacrifice rites on his land, using the lives of civilians to refine the Philosopher’s Stone, with the royal family turning a blind eye, which indicates either powerlessness or tacit consent, even secretly taking a share.

Though the rebel army has been destroyed now, those lands affected by the fires of war have been left with large power vacuums, disgruntled local nobles have long accumulated resentment towards the royal family, and the people’s trust has plummeted to the bottom.

The king knows better than anyone that the chair he sits on is already cracking.

Audric’s appearance now is like a drowning man grabbing onto a log.

The Blood Gold Clan’s investment promise not only helps him rebuild the army and restore the economy but more importantly threatens those idle-minded lords using external power to solidify the fragile royal authority.

Therefore, he won’t hesitate to have all nobles line up to submit to Audric in plain sight, using their ancestral treasures to collectively pay his protection fee.

And those nobles forced to surrender their treasures, although maintaining a respectful and dignified expression, the dissatisfaction swirling deep in their eyes is hard to fully conceal.

Old Marquis Cavendish remained silent after retreating back into the crowd, his fingers trembling slightly on the walking stick, be it due to age or fury.

Although Earl Ashton spoke elegantly while offering the Dragon Flame Crystal, upon returning to his place he tilted his head back to drain his wine cup, with a gesture clearly showing repression.

These noble families are the core forces that have loyally served the royal family for generations, their loyalty is essentially the foundation stone of royal authority.

But tonight the king publicly used their ancestral treasures to curry favor, putting a clear price on the nobles’ loyalty to the royal family, even if the foundation stone didn’t shatter there and then, it already has several dark fissures.

At this moment, Duke’s ears caught the low conversation among a few young nobles nearby.

They stood by the edge of the dance floor next to a marble column, with about five or six of them, all roughly twenty years of age, looking quite upset.

A tall, thin young man in a dark blue family attire was the first to speak, his voice pressed low but filled with resentment: "The more I think about it, the more sickening it is, this person has no relation to us, why should we offer our ancestral treasures to please him?"

"I heard the Wizard Plane was originally just a Middle Plane, while Elderlands in ancient times was a Top-tier Plane, with Level 9 Lives respecting our land three times. Now? This whole room lines up to tribute to them, our ancestors seeing this scene in heaven are likely to be maddened into oblivion, truly disgraceful!"