I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 418 I Became the Villain

Morning light streamed through the gaps in the heavy velvet curtains, casting a pale golden band of light into the magnificent yet cold bedroom.

The air still carried the scent of incense from last night's celebration, as well as a... unfamiliar, faint, feminine fragrance.

Chris slowly opened his eyes. After looking at the familiar velvet curtains for a while, his consciousness slowly returned.

Oh, yesterday was the Harvest Festival. I got married and even had my wedding night. My wife was right there beside me.

Chris turned his head and saw Elena's flawless face and her wide-open amber eyes... Well, she had woken up earlier than Chris.

"Good morning, Elena."

Elena did not respond, but shyly pulled up the thin blanket to cover her face and her naked body.

Chris chuckled, then got up, naked, and stretched while suspended by a giant pendulum.

Ignoring her minor flaw of perhaps not being the smartest, Elena was an excellent wife last night, and her manners and appearance were impeccable.

She has fair skin, a curvaceous figure, and delicate features.

Although Chris had no feelings for her, or for him, it didn't matter; Chris believed that feelings would grow over time.

As for more, Chris doesn't ask for much. As long as Elena doesn't cause him any trouble in the future, he will be a decent husband.

"Ding Dong..."

Chris pulled on the rope beside the bed, and almost instantly, before the echo of the bell had faded, the heavy, carved wooden door of the bedroom was silently pushed open a crack.

Four maids, dressed in uniform plain gray cotton dresses, white aprons, and with their hair neatly pinned up, entered one after another with their heads bowed, like well-trained precision instruments.

All four were carrying clothes. Two of them stepped forward. One held a neatly folded, soft cotton towel soaked in warm water, ready to wipe Chris's body, while the other held the clothes Chris would be wearing that day... a dark gray, very well-tailored wool coat and matching trousers.

Their movements were fluid and coordinated; one draped Chris in a morning robe and fastened the belt, while the other began to tidy up the coat and shirt he would wear later.

Meanwhile, two other maids walked toward the huge wedding bed, which was haphazardly covered with deep red silk sheets.

Their gaze swept across the bed with remarkable professionalism, focusing on the dried, dark brown, and ambiguous-shaped stain in the center of the sheet.

That was proof of Elena's transformation from a girl to a woman last night, and also an important piece of evidence that the royal marriage was "completed".

Elena clearly noticed where the maids' gazes were fixed on her. Her face instantly turned as red as if it were about to bleed, and she shrank even tighter under the thin blanket, wishing she could disappear completely.

Chris was pleased with this, but he knew that if he continued to watch, it would only make his new wife more embarrassed. So, after the maid finished wiping his body with a damp towel and getting dressed, he turned and walked toward the door.

Outside the room, the expressionless clerk stood like a wooden figure in the corridor. Elena's maid, Martha, was looking at him with surprise and confusion, as if she had tried to talk to Chris before he did.

It was obvious that the clerk ignored her.

Upon seeing Chris emerge, Martha hurriedly bowed her head and bent over.

"Good day, your majesty."

Chris was in a good mood today, so he glanced at Martha a couple more times before turning to look at the clerk beside him.

"Today's schedule."

The clerk didn't speak, but simply handed the document to Chris, who took it and glanced at it.

First, we need to meet with the officers of the Blue Flag Army and have breakfast as a gesture of goodwill.

Yes, this is Chris's arrangement. Now that he has married Elena, he should make use of her identity to appease the Blue Banner Army officers who have recently joined the Kingdom of Bagnia and increase their sense of belonging.

"Let's go."

Only after His Majesty Chris left did Martha dare to raise her head and straighten up, watching his departing figure, her face slightly flushed.

Ah, His Majesty Chris is so handsome and so young!

However, this scribe seems to be quite special; at least he holds a very high position with His Majesty Chris.

Martha secretly kept this in mind, intending to report it to Miss Elena... no, Queen Elena, later.

……

The harvest festival does not end in a single day; this grand festival lasts for three to five days, the duration of which depends on the wealth of the King of Bagnia.

Chris would certainly extend the holiday for seven days, allowing the farmers and workers who had been busy all year to relax.

However, while ordinary people can relax and have a fun time, Chris can't slack off.

The day after his wedding night, he was to meet with officers of the Blue Banner Army to ease their sense of alienation and potential barriers, and to win over their sense of belonging to Bagnia.

After breakfast, Chris rushed to his office to deal with the documents that had piled up from yesterday's holiday celebrations... such as how many people the court had executed yesterday, he needed to find out.

The report revealed that many people died on the streets yesterday, at least forty or fifty. However, Chris did not feel sorry for them; they were just fools who had a reason to die.

Chris's only regret was that several young police officers and soldiers were seriously injured or even killed last night while maintaining order during the riot control efforts.

With this in mind, Chris personally drafted commendations for the wounded, edicts of condolence for the fallen soldiers, and praise and awards for the leaders who led the police and soldiers into battle.

After finishing these tasks, it was already noon.

The midday sun shone through the large French windows, casting bright spots of light on the polished floor of the royal study.

Chris sat behind a large desk with a simple lunch in front of him: grilled chicken breast, boiled vegetables, black bread, and a glass of water.

The food was simple, but it basically met Chris's physical needs. He ate quickly and efficiently, his mind clearly not on the food, but on a report about the progress of the new mining area exploration spread out next to him.

Chris had just finished the last bite of bread when the study door was silently pushed open.

The clerk, like a shadow that precisely marks the time, entered at a specific moment, holding an envelope sealed with sealing wax and bearing a special secret mark.

The sealing wax was a deep indigo blue, embossed with an abstract, crossed sword and gear emblem... This was the exclusive urgent secret code used by the two military commanders who were lurking within the Kingdom of Minicia.

"Your Majesty, urgent confidential documents from the direction of Minicia from 'Blue Falcon' and 'Night Owl'."

The clerk's voice, like his personality, was completely flat.

"Blue Falcon" and "Night Owl" were the code names for the two traitorous nobles. These code names reduced the chances of Charles finding fault with them. Upon hearing these code names, Chris immediately finished his meal, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and reached out to take the napkin.

The envelope felt slightly heavy, indicating that it contained a lot of information.

He scanned the unique sealing wax mark, confirming it was genuine, but didn't open it immediately. Chris suddenly remembered something.

"Wait," he called to the clerk who was about to leave.

The clerk immediately stopped, stood with his hands at his sides, like a statue.

“Go to the inner warehouse and take out two sets of ‘blue and white’ porcelain. They need to be complete sets, and in terms of condition… the price should be between one hundred and two hundred RMB. Then send them over.”

Chris had just realized something: he had neglected the two captains of the Five Armies. He had even visited and comforted the officers of the Blue Banner Army, but he hadn't tried to win over the two traitors at all, which was really wrong of him.

The blue and white porcelain set, which came from a later online shopping platform, was worthless in another world, but here it is obviously priceless.

Sending these two sets of items to the two military commanders is clearly a costless and beneficial gesture.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Without any questions, the clerk immediately bowed, accepted the order, and turned to leave.

Chris was left alone in the study.

He didn't look at the urgent secret letter, but leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest.

Less than twenty minutes later, the clerk returned.

Behind him followed two burly servants who carefully carried a heavy wooden box that was tightly wrapped and padded with thick velvet and shock-absorbing straw.

The box was opened, revealing two sets of blue and white porcelain pieces, each wrapped separately with silk, with a lustrous glaze, blue and white hues, and exquisite patterns, but with slightly different designs.

In the afternoon sunlight, the surface of the porcelain shimmered with a warm, jade-like luster, exuding an aura of "I am very valuable."

"very good."

Chris glanced at it and confirmed it was correct.

"Seal it away and prepare for the mission handover. Go and select a suitable 'Guard' to receive and deliver it."

"Yes."

The clerk instructed his attendants to carefully carry the box away and keep it safe.

After dealing with this unexpected matter of appeasement, Chris picked up the indigo-colored secret letter again.

He carefully used a knife to pry open the sealing wax and pulled out a thick stack of coded reports. These reports used codes known only to him and a few key intelligence personnel.

He read quickly, his eyes scanning the lines of text revealed by a special solution.

The first half of the report details the Minisian court's reaction upon learning of the successful marriage alliance with Bagnia, the movements within the nobility, and discussions on several trade policies that could be detrimental to Bagnia... These are all important, but not urgent.

However, when his gaze fell on the latter half of the report, on an urgent intelligence report from the southern border that was highlighted, Chris's brows furrowed abruptly.

Suvana, the Minisinian port city, has actually fallen!

Furthermore, after the residents of this port city were subjected to a large-scale sacrifice by the snake people, it was successfully transformed into a swamp.

Chris slowly leaned back in his chair, his eyes revealing not panic, but rather a sense of absurdity.

Wait, if Suvano falls into the hands of the snake people, then doesn't that make me the villain in a typical story?

Who is the righteous one?

Of course, it's the Church of the Earth Mother and the Church of the Goddess of Agriculture, the two groups that Chris reprimanded and transformed, along with two high priests.

Byron of the Church of Mother Earth, the former high priest who lacked political acumen and rashly proposed the formation of the "Holy Expeditionary Force," was stripped of his position and even labeled a "traitor." He was about to be placed in the Holy Expeditionary Force of the Church of Mechanism as a "redeemer" under an assumed name to face the most dangerous front lines.

This is a perfect template for a "tragic protagonist" who is suppressed by power, suffers injustice, endures humiliation and waits for an opportunity to prove himself!
Lydia, of the Church of the Goddess of Agriculture, fared even worse. The young, beautiful, and steadfast high priestess was now a prisoner of the kingdom. Although Chris had no intention of killing her, the dark, damp cell, the humiliation of losing her freedom, and the despair for the future of the church…

This is practically a script tailor-made for the "victimized saint"!

Her distraught, fearful, and desperate appearance perfectly matched the image of the "protagonist" during her darkest period.

According to the usual storyline, the two "protagonists" took immediate action after receiving a warning from the Church of the Sea God, wanting to form an army to wipe out the snake-people invaders before they could gain momentum.

In this story, Chris plays the role of a "foolish" villain who, for political reasons, suppresses the two's righteous actions and misses the opportunity to nip the snake-man disaster in the bud.

Thinking of this, Chris couldn't help but laugh.

Fortunately, he wasn't a typical villain. No matter what the players were like, as long as he didn't do anything reckless, they wouldn't attack him.

However, Chris doesn't regret what he did, and he would make the same choice again if given the chance.

The reason is simple: why should Chris clean up Charles's mess?
He is the king of the Kingdom of Bagnia, not the king of the Minesians. Their king caused the trouble, so why is Chris in such a hurry?
Is he stupid?
At this moment, Chris thought of the documents he had just been reviewing regarding the preparations for the "Holy Expeditionary Army." Minister Diu Ni Rem was still arguing endlessly about the logistical supply lines... Now it seemed that delaying the process was indeed the right thing to do.

However, ignoring it won't work either.

Chris thought for a moment, then picked up a pen and wrote a few short commands on a blank sheet of paper.

Starting immediately, all observation posts and patrols on the southern border will be upgraded to the highest level of combat readiness. At the same time, additional reconnaissance forces will be dispatched to the Suvano region to allow envoys to ascertain the size, movements, specific racial composition, and combat methods of the snake-people army.

Minister Diu Nirem was ordered to reduce all preparations for the "Holy Expedition"—including material gathering, personnel assembly, and equipment repair—by one-third from the original deadline. The objective was changed; it was no longer purification, but war.

Inform the newly appointed Foreign Minister, Marquis Dirac, to attempt to contact the envoys of the Kingdom of Minicia and inquire about their kingdom.

After he finished writing, he picked up the order and began to shout it out.

"Secretary."

"I am here, Your Majesty."

"Based on the above information, please help me write a document..."

(End of this chapter)