Fangzhou Xier, starting with failing the art exam

When he saw the contents of the ledger, he gasped in shock.

"Sir...this..."

"This is beyond our control."

Suffolk closed the ledger, his expression more solemn than ever before.

"The Duke of Wellington... funding Deeppool... this is already shaking the very foundations of Victoria."

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the rain that was still falling incessantly.

“It seems things are about to change in Lentinium,” he said in a low voice.

"A bloody opera is about to begin..."

He picked up the account book and carefully wrapped it in an oilcloth.

“We must go back immediately, Your Grace… You must know all this right away.”

……

Holy Lytania Empire: Chapter 121: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind?

In the study of the Duke of Caesar's mansion, the fire in the fireplace burned quietly, casting a warm orange glow on the rows of heavy, finely bound books on the walls.

This is the Duke's private domain.

The Duke of Caesar, sister of the late King Alistair II, was sitting behind her desk.

She wore a well-tailored beige open-necked long dress, her gray hair was styled in a bun, and although time had left its mark on her face, it had not diminished the dignity in her eyes.

In front of her lay the ledger that Suffolk had snatched back.

There were only three people in the study.

Besides the Duke of Caesar himself, there was also the Grey-hatted Commander, a middle-aged man with a chiseled, cold face, codenamed "Butler".

And Sir Suffolk, who had just finished reporting all the details and was standing ramrod straight to the side.

Suffolk's left arm was still in a sling, but he placed his signature grey top hat respectfully on the small table beside him, his face devoid of its usual playfulness, replaced by solemnity.

"Suffolk, are you sure that Ursus man is connected to Wellington and Letania?" Duke Castle's voice was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

“Yes, Your Grace.” Suffolk bowed slightly.

"After I returned, I immediately checked with the 'Butler' and found that the eye symbol was an internal mark used by the intelligence department of Letania after the new emperor ascended the throne. It represents high attention or waiting for instructions."

"And that Ursus man, based on my observation, his modus operandi is not like that of a simple arms dealer, but more like he is carrying out an operation to eliminate and silence witnesses."

"He took the ledgers, seemingly just to retrieve evidence."

The "butler" added from the side, "Our people have analyzed the whole incident, and what Suffolk encountered was most likely a double-cross."

"Leytanian intelligence agents posed as arms buyers, tricked the Duke of Wellington's underlings into handing over the transaction ledgers, and then killed them to cover their tracks."

"And that Ursus man was a hired thug, or simply a peripheral figure in the Leitania's development in Ursus."

"Sir Suffolk's appearance was just an accident, but this accident allowed us to obtain something that should not have been seen by us."

“A piece of evidence delivered to our door,” Duke Caster said slowly, his gaze deep.

“Wellington…” she uttered the name.

"Our Iron Duke, the death knell of the Gallic Empire, the guardian of Victoria."

"On the one hand, they deliver impassioned speeches in parliament, vowing to wipe out the Tara rebels, while on the other hand, they secretly supply them with weapons. What a magnificent drama."

Suffolk whispered, "Your Grace, this evidence is enough to impeach him in Parliament! All we have to do is release it..."

"Announce it?" Duke Caster interrupted him.

"Do you really think you can bring down a Grand Duke who commands Victoria's most elite army and has a distinguished military record, with just a ledger that is difficult to verify?"

"He'll say it's a fabrication, a slander by his political enemies. What will those wavering fence-sitters choose?"

“What’s more…” She picked up the ledger, her eyes becoming increasingly sharp.

"This evidence came at the perfect time, like a hunter placing a plump rabbit on your path when you are at your hungriest."

"Have you ever wondered if there's a trap already set behind this rabbit?"

Suffolk's expression changed.

He was an excellent intelligence officer, but his thinking was more focused on execution and tactics.

The Duke of Caesar, however, saw the entire chessboard.

“Leytania…” the Duke murmured the name.

"That newly enthroned emperor completely annexed Syracuse in a week and partitioned Qazimir in half a month. Now, is he setting his sights on Victoria?"

"What does he want to do?" she muttered to herself.

She stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the Duke's garden shrouded in night.

"What he wants to do is probably more than just muddy the waters of Victoria."

"Does Your Grace mean... that Letania deliberately sent this ledger to us?" Suffolk asked again.

“It’s not a possibility, it’s a certainty,” the “butler” said from the side.

“We reviewed the whole incident. The Duke of Wellington’s smuggling channels were extremely secretive. No matter how capable the Leitania intelligence department was, it was impossible for them to pinpoint the location so accurately in such a short time and to arrange a double-cross that Suffolk would ‘accidentally’ get involved in.”

"It all came so naturally, so naturally, as if it had been arranged."

The butler paused, then continued, "Leytania's goal is not to help us."

"They want us to use this evidence to fight the Duke of Wellington to the death. No matter who wins or loses, it will be a victory for them."

"The Dukes of Victoria are bleeding from internal strife, while he can simply watch from the sidelines, waiting for us to both be exhausted, and then calmly clean up the mess."

Silence fell in the study once again.

Duke of Caesar: "Wellington thought he could use those Deeppool people to realize his ridiculous dream of restoring Tara."

"But he is at least still the Duke of Victoria, and his madness is confined to this land."

“And Lacey of Letania…” She paused, as if searching for the right word.

“He’s different; he’s a lucid madman.”

“His every step, from annexing Syracuse to partitioning Qazimir, was highly purposeful.”

"His appetite will not be satisfied with just causing internal strife in Victoria."

Her gaze seemed to pierce through the night, reaching distant Letania.

"What he wants is perhaps the whole of Victoria."

"Then what should we do?" Suffolk couldn't help but ask.

"Are we just going to let the Duke of Wellington continue to fund the rebels? Aslan's legitimacy..."

“Of course we can’t let him get away with this, but we can’t play by the script the Letanians have written.” Duke Kester turned around, a cold glint in his eyes.

She returned to her desk and sat down.

"Keep the ledgers safe and classify them as top secret. No one is to be allowed to disclose them," she ordered.

"But some of the contents can be revealed appropriately to those guys' informants."

"It doesn't have to be a complete chain of evidence; just some clues that can arouse their suspicion will suffice."

"Let them guess, investigate, and test each other with Wellington."

"What we need to do is temporarily step out of the chessboard and become the one observing the game."

The steward immediately understood the Duke's intention: "Let them fight it out first, and we'll sit back and watch them fight?"

“Not entirely,” the Duke of Caster shook his head.

“Wellington must be dealt with, but by us, at the right time, in our own way. We must not let the Letanians lead us by the nose.”

She looked at Suffolk: "Your mission, from now on, is to go to Charlettania."

“Yes, Your Grace!” Suffolk straightened up.

……

Holy Lytanian Empire: Chapter 122: Deep Pool Leader, Abrahana

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Trinitylme.

Lacey put down the document in his hand, which Gertrude had just presented to him, regarding the latest intelligence and developments on the Londinium side.

"The Duke of Caesar... sealed the ledgers and instead went to investigate our contacts with Deeppool?"

Lacey showed no surprise, but rather an expression of great interest.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Gertrude stood aside and answered respectfully.

"She seemed to have seen through our intentions and did not choose to immediately attack Wellington."

“As expected.” Lacey leaned back in her chair, her hands clasped in front of her.

“If she can’t even see this, then she doesn’t deserve to be the Grand Duke, and she doesn’t deserve to have protected Aslan’s legitimacy for so many years.”

“Although her teeth and claws are dulled, her combat instincts and intelligence are still top-notch; she knows which ones are the real threats,” Lacey said softly.

"That's good, very good."

Gertrude was somewhat puzzled: "Your Majesty, our plan has been thwarted..."

“No, Gertrude.” Lacey turned around, a confident smile on her face.

"The plan was not thwarted. Our goal was never simply to incite infighting among them, but to completely dismantle Victoria's old power structure."

"She thought she had stepped out of the chessboard and become a spectator."

"But she didn't know that the entire chessboard was on my table."

Lacey walked to the map on the wall, his gaze falling on the map of Victoria, his finger lightly tracing the area called "Little Hillshire".

"Since the lions of Lontinim are unwilling to step down easily, then let's make the flames of Tara burn even brighter."

He ordered Gertrude, "Inform Serafina that you may begin."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

……

South Victoria, Tara region, wilderness outside Little Hillshire.

The sky here is not as gloomy as in Lentinium, but it is always shrouded in a thin, persistent mist, just like the lingering melancholy in the hearts of the Tara people.

The rolling hills and damp marshes provided a natural sanctuary for the inhabitants of this land, and also kept them from outside prying eyes.

In a mountain valley hidden by dense forest, dozens of tents are scattered here and there.

This is one of the strongholds of the Tara resistance group "Deep Pool".

Inside the largest tent in the center of the camp.

Abrahana, the last descendant of the Drak people and leader of the Deeppool organization, sat quietly in the main seat.

She was wearing a combat suit that allowed for easy movement, and her light golden hair was casually draped over her shoulders.

An uninvited guest stood before her.

Serafina, Minister of External Relations of Letania.

She wasn't wearing the uniform of a Letanian official, but rather simple traveler's attire, with a gentle smile on her face.

But the fact that she arrived in Tara alone, traversing numerous blockades and sentries, speaks volumes about her extraordinary nature.

At this moment, several Deep Pool cadres inside the tent, including Mandra, the Filin girl known for being difficult to deal with, all had their hands on their weapons and stared at this woman of unknown origin with scrutinizing and hostile eyes.

They couldn't understand why their leader would meet with an envoy from Letania, a sworn enemy of Victoria.

“You’re very brave,” Abrahana finally said.

“This is not Triinttelme’s palace. My men could leave you here in this swamp forever at any time.”

“If I were afraid, I wouldn’t have come, Lady Abrahana.”

Serafina's smile remained unchanged. She glanced around, her gaze lingering briefly on a young woman with a complex expression standing beside Abrahina.