After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

"His Majesty."

A black-haired old man, dressed in a magnificent mage's robe and wearing medals on his chest, with the demeanor of a traditional soldier, came to the garden and solemnly found Frank resting in the pavilion.

The king seemed to be troubled by something. Hearing the voice, he slowly turned his head and raised his eyebrows in surprise when he saw who it was.

"You've come, Medivh."

The summer breeze swept across the water, creating ripples on the lake.

Medivh was a veteran minister who had served three kings. In his eyes, Frank was a qualified king, but the country was facing too many difficulties.

Frequent calamities, dukes with differing motives, newly formed groups, and unexplained conflicts... all these troubling events serve as warnings of future chaos.

But Medivh knew he had to keep His Majesty calm and the country at ease.

He then asked calmly, "What troubles Your Majesty?"

"If they all thought less about themselves and could share my burdens and solve the country's problems like you do, I wouldn't be so worried all the time."

Frank smiled as he stood up, stood by the railing, and looked out at the clear lake water with his hands behind his back.

Perhaps only when he is with Medivh can he confide his innermost thoughts.

"The Queen was too confident in her charm; she wanted the Duke of Oswald's support to elevate her own status."

"Indeed, her beauty could attract many men, but she didn't really understand a man like Oswald at all. From what I've gathered from various sources, Oswald is neither greedy for money nor addicted to wine and women."

"Such people are often the most dangerous. If the Queen were to go to the Northern Territory, she would likely be detained by Oswald and used as a bargaining chip to coerce the Duke of Dyer and some of my powerful subordinates..."

Frank couldn't bear the consequences. Barbara simply didn't understand her place. He was certain that Oswald wouldn't even blink when he beheaded her.

"Your Majesty, the best way to stop someone from rising in rank is not to block their path, but to find them several companions on the same journey."

There are some things that others cannot say, but only a "family heirloom" like Medivh can. He is loyal to the royal family and the country, acts with integrity, and rarely thinks of himself.

"Your Majesty is advised to marry several more princesses, and it would be best to prevent the Queen from becoming pregnant in the future."

As soon as he finished speaking, the palace maids serving him all changed their expressions. However, Frank was not surprised at all. After a brief moment of thought, he said calmly.

"Let's start by choosing from the families of the Guards generals. I'll feel more at ease if you oversee the selection."

Medivh nodded, his expression remaining impassive. "Yes, Your Majesty."

"I have another matter to report to Your Majesty," Medivh said, taking a worn-out candlestick from his large mage robe.

Frank turned around, glanced at it, and then looked away. He walked over, picked up the candlestick, stroked the bronze patterns on it, scraped off the remaining oil-like substance, and examined it curiously for a while.

"What is this? An antique?"

"If only it were an antique," Medivh sighed inwardly, before explaining to the king with a serious expression.

"This is an instrument needed for an evil secret technique. First, the person is disemboweled and all the internal organs are removed. While using healing magic to prolong life, the body is made into a mummy. Finally, the internal organs are crushed, and various materials are added to make candle oil. After placing it in a candlestick and lighting it, the mummy can be controlled."

"Forty years ago, this object also appeared in the royal city, causing quite a commotion. After that, it was called the Shadow Corpse."

Upon hearing this, Frank frowned slightly, returned the candlestick to Medivh, and casually wiped his fingers on his clothes... Such disgusting things, please say them earlier next time.

"Your Majesty, I have found this evil object at the site of the attack on the Northern Expeditionary Mission. As far as I know, the people who created the evil corpses back then were all from the Papacy, and I estimate that this time it is also related to the Papacy."

Holy See?

Frank was stunned. Absurd, utterly absurd!

"Why would the Papacy assassinate Miss Luna? Haven't they consistently championed human supremacy and repeatedly requested the royal family's support in the Northern Territory's war against the demons?"

Medivh shook his head. He was also unsure of John's motives. He could only bow respectfully and say, "Your Majesty, I have failed to ascertain the reason. If Your Majesty truly wishes to win over the Northern Territory, please pay close attention to the Papacy's movements during the delegation's stay in the capital."

……

A slender woman dressed and emerged from a mansion. She stretched, took out a mirror to touch up her makeup, sprayed on some perfume, and finally knocked on the door of the nobleman next door.

The door opened quickly, and a young nobleman ran out briskly, picked up the woman, and rushed into the room.

"Wow, that's the fourth one already! She truly lives up to her reputation as a queen bee!"

As the opposing side shifted its position, Lisa, who was lying on the roof, moved her telescope accordingly. Unfortunately, the young nobleman was still a bit too shy and actually drew the curtains.

"I feel like I've seen this woman somewhere before."

Luna put down her binoculars and blinked. Right, wasn't she the woman who followed the hero for a while, claiming to have been saved by him and reformed?

Why are you back to your old ways again?

Without thinking too much about it, Luna patted Lisa on the shoulder. "Alright, there's nothing fun to watch anymore. Let's go cool off for a bit; I'm practically melting from the sun."

"And you too." Luna elbowed Paul beside her, speechless. "Stop looking. You're making the Paladins look bad."

Paul looked bewildered, then pointed in a direction with his finger, "I thought you were here on serious business... Look over there, the houses behind those big trees, do you think they're observing the Duke's mansion?"

Upon hearing this, Luna immediately raised her binoculars and quickly located the house. Just as Paul had said, on the second-floor windowsill, there was a strong, somewhat abnormal man peering through binoculars.

Coincidentally, as if sensing something, the man suddenly raised his binoculars and met Luna's gaze.

The burly man pointed, and Luna quickly turned her head, slapping her hand against the telescope's observation port. Her face darkened as she said, "Overwhelmingly domineering!"

Paul sighed. "Stop being so arrogant. It's obvious they're here to deal with us."

On the other side, the man quickly put down his binoculars, strode downstairs, knelt on one knee before the woman on the sofa, and said, "Miss, we think we've been discovered. Please leave immediately."

"You're still as clumsy as ever." Nicole picked up her teacup, crossed her long legs over her other leg, and took a sip of tea casually.

"Volker, so what if we're exposed? This is the royal city; they have no reason to attack us."

Nicole never intended to clash with the delegation. Their best interests lay in ensuring the delegation's safe return to the Northern Territory and prompting the king to send troops south.

She simply wants to learn more about the future enemy.

However, did the Grand Master of Paladins become Luna Charles's bodyguard? Was this an arrangement by the Papacy, or some kind of political signal?

Moreover, according to Maria herself, Paul always obeyed her orders...

"Wolf, go see the saintess tonight and tell her I have something important to discuss with her."

"Yes, Miss."

As dusk settled, the summer wind brought patches of dark clouds, and a light drizzle began to fall.

Nicole stood by the window, raindrops sliding down the glass, the wind rustling through the leaves of the trees. Just as she thought Maria wouldn't be coming tonight, a carriage pulled up at the door.

Maria opened the umbrella and followed Wolf, pushing the door open and entering.

Maria was in a bad mood. She had also learned that Paul had become Luna's bodyguard, but when she went to ask the archbishop why, the archbishop was unusually angry with her.

Maria felt wronged after being scolded without understanding why. As soon as she entered the room, she complained to Nicole, "Your wolf cub is so much better. He's so sensible and obedient, and he only thinks of you in everything he does."

"It seems you already know." Nicole chuckled and waved for Wolf to leave.

Maria talked a lot about her past life, including her own experiences.

Paul, a minor character who would die in a few years and was manipulated by Maria, was not worth her excessive attention.

What really worries Nicole is that the relationship between the archbishop of her previous life and the Northern Territory seems a bit too ambiguous.

Everyone knew that Duke Oswald harbored rebellious intentions, and the fact that an immediate internal strife hadn't erupted was largely due to the efforts of Archbishop John. He was able to both appease the King and guide Duke Oswald to focus his attention on fighting the demons…

Therefore, in their previous life, they spent several years, along with a stroke of luck, to gain control of the Northern Territory.

"Many of the things you say will be proven true in this lifetime, but we must be cautious about the changes that have already happened or are about to happen."

After asking Maria to sit down, Nicole picked up her teacup and said with some concern.

Even if the flapping of a butterfly's wings can stir up a storm thousands of miles away, isn't the sudden outbreak of the undead calamity this year a bit too bizarre?

"Do you know why? The archbishop sent Paul to be Luna's bodyguard?"

Maria forced a smile back, shook her head, and said, "I don't know. The archbishop is in a bad mood, and it's not convenient for me to ask."

Noticing her low spirits, Nicole gently took her hand and said tenderly, "You need to be careful about this. We can't let the Holy See and the Northern Territory stand on the same side. No matter what, you must use your influence as a saintess to try to sow discord between the two sides."

"Yes, I will."

The moment Maria nodded, Nicole suddenly frowned and looked out the window.

With a loud crack, the glass window shattered, and at the same time, a black iron ball was thrown into the room.

With a loud bang, intense flashes of light emanated from every crack in the house, making it brighter than daytime. People hundreds of meters away found it incredibly blinding.

A cavalryman sped past the house. The young lady would occasionally assign some strange tasks, but as long as you did them, you would get a reward.

Just as he was about to circle back to the Duke's mansion, a furious shout suddenly came from behind him. A lithe man, carrying a knife, broke through the wooden wall and charged forward at breakneck speed, faster than a horse, rushing straight towards him.