Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 219 Trust and Loyalty

Everyone in the secret passage waited anxiously for the outcome of Nicolai's negotiations.

Thales did his best and managed to activate one of the few remaining sins of the River of Hell, thus enhancing his hearing.

The conversation between the two people at the cave entrance finally reached his ears, albeit with difficulty.

"What?" Nikolai's voice came from behind. "Is the Scarlet Witch going to use her most powerful ability again?"

"You want to persuade me to surrender?"

The Scarlet Witch simply watched him quietly.

Her gaze was calm, yet earnest.

Even Thales, who was eavesdropping from a distance, felt a sense of unease, as if he were being watched closely.

“I told you, you’re on the wrong side,” Cassan said, her expression suddenly turning cold. “The White Blade Guard should be loyal to Exter, not some king.”

"Don't you think so?"

Thales, who was eavesdropping, frowned: What exactly is the Scarlet Witch trying to do?
Do you really want to talk about Jambudvipa?

The Meteorite gripped his knife tightly.

Nicolai snorted: "Isn't that a bit too harsh a statement for a regicide traitor?"

The Scarlet Witch raised her chin.

“Traitor?” A sharp glint flashed in Ms. Cassan’s eyes. “Do you really know what the King you serve, the King of the Commonwealth, is planning to do in order to perpetuate his family’s legacy?”

Nicolai slowly shook his head, and Thales guessed that he, as always, wore that unsettling, disdainful smile.

But the Meteorite's smile soon faded, as did Thales'.

Cassan glanced behind him and said coldly, "For example..."

"To disguise a child with no Walton blood as the heir to Dragoncity?"

Nikolai's back froze.

He wasn't the only one who reacted this way.

a bolt from the blue.

That's how Thales, who was eavesdropping, felt right now.

He gaped in shock and couldn't help but look at the sly little fellow who was deep in thought.

Oh my goodness.

The Scarlet Witch...

Miranda noticed Thales's unusual behavior and frowned: "What's wrong?"

Thales' mouth remained agape, his face filled with shock.

He widened his eyes, then awkwardly reached out and pressed his chin: "Um... let's move our chins a bit..."

Miranda raised an eyebrow and turned her head away.

But for Thales, the Scarlet Witch's cold words continued: "He still places his hopes on the power of the Star Kingdom, puts leverage in the hands of the Starry Sky family, and hands over the initiative in the Dragon Sky City succession issue to the Restoration Palace?"

There was no reaction from Nikolai's back.

But Thales guessed that his expression must be getting increasingly grim.

“Wait for the Star Kingdom, wait for the Secret Service, wait for that strange boy to turn Dragon City into their inside man in Exter,” Cassan’s tone was icy cold, a stark contrast to her former smile: “to turn it into a puppet of the Star Kingdom?”

In the distance, Thales closed his eyes and covered his face in anguish.

“It’s nothing,” Thales said weakly, waving his hand at Cohen who was looking at him with a puzzled expression. “My face is numb, I’m just rubbing it.”

The Scarlet Witch snorted coldly.

"As the leader of the White Blade Guard, the king's most trusted bodyguard captain, his right-hand man, Lord Serrey Nicholas," Cassan turned around, her eyes filled with complex emotions, "you knew all about these things?"

"Or do you also think that none of this matters?"

Nikolai's figure remained frozen in place.

His hand rested on the hilt of the knife, remaining motionless for a long time.

The Meteorite let out a difficult breath, and his voice reached Thales' ears: "You know."

“These things were indeed collected in the dark room,” the Scarlet Witch said, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Isn’t that enough?”

"So that's... that's your reason for regicide?" Nikolai's voice was disjointed, as if something was obstructing his airway.

“It’s a pity, but these things…” Cassan sighed, “If His Majesty had trusted me a little more and let me help him find a solution, instead of making decisions on his own, the outcome would have been different.”

Nikolai did not speak immediately.

If Thales could see his face, he would find that the Meteorite's eyes were calm and his pale face was slowly turning red.

If Michael were here, he would recognize this as a sign that his old friend was about to get angry.

Since the young Nikolai became commander twenty years ago, he has rarely lost his temper.

“A little more trust?” Nikolai gave a chilling laugh. “Why not a little more loyalty to His Majesty?”

Hearing this, Thales let out a breath and slowly shook his head.

The old king...

Did you die because of the disloyalty of your subjects? Or because of the distrust of your ruler?

Cassan narrowed her eyes.

"Why do you think he doesn't trust you?" The Meteorite's tone grew increasingly cold: "Do you think his wariness and suspicion of you came suddenly overnight?"

The Scarlet Witch remained silent.

“Twelve years ago,” Nikolai’s voice hardened, each word uttered with fury through clenched teeth, “When His Highness Sulir and his wife were assassinated, the assassin who infiltrated…”

Cassan remained silent.

But the moment Nicolai mentioned "assassin," a different, complex look instantly appeared in her eyes.

Thales was slightly taken aback upon hearing this.

The death of Suliel?
An assassin? The assassin sent by the Stars?

“That handsome pretty boy, remember him?” Nicolai said fiercely, “I intercepted him back then…”

“If it weren’t for your secret room,” Nikolai’s voice trembled slightly, “if it weren’t for your people interfering, I would have chopped that assassin to pieces long ago!” Thales raised an eyebrow.

He understood what Nikolai said and instinctively started to breathe heavily.

That assassin... an assassin sent by Starry Sky.

The assassin was actually... protected by the people in the secret room?
Cassan lowered her head slightly, staring at the ground, and fell into a long silence.

Nikolai gasped for breath: "Yes, I found out later, but His Majesty told me to keep quiet."

Thales noticed that the Meteorite's legs were trembling slightly.

Only the one who fell from the sky knew—those were two arrow wounds that had not yet been treated.

"You knew before that, didn't you?" Meteorite gritted his teeth. "You knew about the assassin's existence, you might even have known all along that Starfall would send an assassin!"

"Or is this just a charade you staged in the darkroom?"

"Was it only truly over after His Highness Sulier's death?"

Thales's expression changed several times as he listened to all this, his mind in turmoil.

what happened?

The assassin was sent by Starfall, but judging from Nikolai's words...

why?
Twelve years ago... did you witness, or even condone, the death of Prince Sulir in a dark room?
At that moment, the Scarlet Witch's eyes flickered slightly.

“Now,” Nikolai sneered, his words sharp as knives, “do you know why His Majesty doesn’t trust you?”

"Based on your cheap and fickle so-called 'loyalty'?"

The Scarlet Witch opened her mouth slightly, but no sound came out—the old woman, who had always been fluent and composed, seemed to have suddenly choked up.

“That matter…” After a few seconds, Ms. Cassan spoke softly, her voice filled with deep weariness: “It was an accident.”

"I was caught off guard too."

In response, Nicolai spat in disdain.

"His Majesty remains silent on this matter, and I have no idea what tricks you're playing. Perhaps that assassin is your mole in the Secret Service, or perhaps not..." the Meteorite said viciously.

"Perhaps it's for Exter's future, the King's interests, or an excuse to go south and start a war—anyway, you always have an excuse, and nobody knows if it's true or false; perhaps only the Black Prophet can tell the difference."

The Scarlet Witch's expression hadn't changed in a long time.

“But!” The Meteorite’s voice turned cold.

Nikolai's voice was filled with anger, as harsh as a torn bellows: "The king and his bloodline, what are they in your eyes? Existing beings that can be easily eliminated just because they don't conform to your expectations?"

Cassan slowly raised her head, her eyes revealing a subtle expression.

Please do not say such a thing.

Cassan shook her head, her voice filled with deep melancholy: "We're not the Secret Service, after all."

Thales's expression changed again.

He understood what Cassan meant.

[If things don't go as expected, they can be easily removed...]

We're not the Secret Service, after all...

These two sentences.

What do these two sentences mean?
Thales stood there, stunned.

Nikolai did not speak.

The Fallen Star's face returned to its pale state, and a dark undercurrent surged in his eyes.

“Search everything, doubt everything, eliminate all threats without mercy,” he spat. “They call you a ‘witch,’ and they’re absolutely right.”

"Once you have any doubts, all you'll ever want is some underhanded methods."

"This is the instinct deep in your bones, you people who live in the shadows—trust and loyalty are worthless to you," the Meteorite said menacingly, "whether it's you or the Secret Society—you are the festering sores left by the Empire."

But at that moment, the Scarlet Witch lost her calm expression.

She smiled slightly.

“Very good,” Cassan said softly, “Now, we can finally begin our conversation.”

Her tone suggested she had just seized the biggest bargaining chip.

Nikolai trembled slightly.

Upon hearing this, Thales frowned slightly.

He started to not understand.

“After the tragedy twelve years ago, His Majesty Nunn, in his later years, did his utmost to find a balance between the nation and the family, the territory and the bloodline,” the Red Witch smiled as always, her tone carrying a strange sorrow: “Now I can be sure.”

But Thales was completely baffled.

why?
Why did Cassandra's tone of voice suddenly change?

Nicolai's shoulders began to rise and fall.

"What do you mean?"

Nicolai's voice slowly came through: "What exactly do you want?"

Thales held his breath, wanting to hear the Scarlet Witch's answer.

Cassan stared at his expression for a full three seconds.

Then the Scarlet Witch smiled.

"I've come to find an answer."

“And,” she said calmly, “something I don’t have.”

“For example,” the Scarlet Witch walked up to Nicolai without hesitation, seemingly unconcerned about the danger he might pose to capture her, her eyes flashing with solemnity, “your unconditional loyalty to His Majesty Nunn.”

"And his complete trust in you."

From the 7th to the 10th, I will be going out to attend my brother's wedding.

As for updates... let's pray my writing goes smoothly.

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(End of this chapter)