Chapter 85 - Blood and Fire in Platinum City (Part 1)

Chapter 85 - Blood and Fire in Platinum City (Part 1)

If Emperor Leopold had died without designating a crown prince, then legally, the primary heir to the imperial title would become—Lucheni Holovin.

Though Lucheni was deeply unpopular, he was, after all, the Emperor's younger brother, and his right to succession still existed. Moreover, Empress Mary knew that Lucheni truly coveted the throne—even if the person set to inherit it was his own son.

From the perspective of public opinion, however, if Leopold hadn't named an heir, the person most deserving of the throne should have been the Emperor's uncle, Ethel Holovin.

Ethel had been the crown prince during the reign of Leopold's grandfather. After Leopold's father, Joseph Holovin, forcefully seized the throne, he had also promised that upon his death, the throne would pass to his younger brother, Ethel. Thirty years ago, when the Oran Empire's capital was nearly breached by the Edisans, Leopold had also promised Ethel the throne if the Gato Kingdom dispatched troops to aid them. Ethel had indeed sent his soldiers.

Both Joseph's and Leopold's promises were made before numerous nobles, and in this era, the testimony of nobility carried legal weight.

Therefore, Ethel possessed a legitimate claim to inherit the throne.

Even Leopold's own daughter, Cassandra Holovin, held a right of succession.

The Oran Empire had previously known an Empress Regnant, Margaret Holovin. However, Margaret remained unmarried throughout her life and designated her nephew as crown prince immediately upon ascending the throne, which was how she secured the imperial family's support.

Cassandra, however, was already married and had a son bearing the surname Tonnei, presenting a significant disadvantage—the Holovin family would never permit the imperial title to pass outside their bloodline.

Otherwise, Henry Holovin would have faced yet another formidable competitor.

Of course, had Leopold personally placed the golden crown of the heir apparent upon Henry's head, then Henry would have been the most orthodox first-in-line successor, both legally and reasonably.

Regrettably, that had not happened.

Mary was an intelligent woman; it didn't take her long to grasp the meaning behind Leopold's brief final words.

Kneeling beside Leopold's corpse, which had already begun to emit a foul odor mere moments after his death, Mary managed to suppress the grief of her husband's passing relatively quickly and composed her emotions.

Mary Holovin harbored no great affection for her father, Alphonse. Throughout her life, she had never truly understood what went on in his mind. Yet, if there were things Mary could feel grateful to her father for, they were twofold: first, that Alphonse had accepted the request for a royal marriage alliance, and second, the cold temperament she had inherited from him—though perhaps still falling far short of Alphonse himself.

The former granted Mary her current power; the latter bestowed upon her the ability to remain composed in most situations.

Mary Holovin immediately ordered attendants to summon the other members of the Privy Council.

The Privy Council consisted of seven ministers: Lord Chancellor Marco Lehmann, Finance Minister Rade Paste, Minister of Military Affairs Dawid Boyan, Lord Privy Seal Uros Lindar, Royal Treasurer Pierre Holovin, Cupbearer Gilmore Butler, and Bishop Maitland Kontao of the Radiant Cathedral, who also served as Court Chaplain.

Among them, the Minister of Military Affairs, Dawid Boyan, concurrently held the position of Commander of the Royal Griffin Knights.

The Royal Griffin Knights bore the heavy responsibility of defending the western passages bordering the Edisa Empire. Consequently, Dawid Boyan was currently stationed at the border, not within Platinum City.

Aside from Dawid Boyan, the other six were present within the palace, attending Henry's wedding, and were swiftly notified.

Acting immediately in the name of Emperor Leopold's last edict, Mary commanded the Privy Council to seal Platinum City.

However, it was already too late.

Before long, Gilmore Butler returned to report to Mary: King Ethel Holovin of Gato and Duke Jose Mellerfield of the Green Plains, along with their families and entourages, had departed the city ahead of the lockdown.

"Who was it? Who leaked the news of His Majesty's death?"

Mary suppressed her fury, her gaze sweeping across the faces of the six privy councilors.

Shock and grief adorned each of their faces, though Mary couldn't discern how much of their sorrow was genuine. Finally, her eyes settled on Archbishop Kontao, the man who had just dealt Emperor Leopold a significant blow.

Archbishop Kontao could only offer a bitter smile and spread his hands. "Your Highness, I swear before the Divine Lord, it was absolutely not I who relayed the message to His Majesty Ethel."

Kontao genuinely felt wronged. He had gotten along quite well with Emperor Leopold over the years. His sudden betrayal moments earlier had been entirely under orders received not long ago from the church hierarchy. The church leadership had commanded Kontao to refuse a religious trial for Ethel and his son Gregory; the messenger had even carried a directive bearing the seal of the Holy City, Moyses.

What else could Kontao do? He was a bishop with a future career in the church to consider; naturally, he couldn't ignore a command from the Holy City Moyses.

Mary nodded, her expression unreadable, neither confirming belief nor disbelief. "Archbishop Kontao, please begin preparations for Henry's coronation ceremony immediately. Let Henry ascend the throne this afternoon. Count Marco, please assist the Archbishop."

"Yes, Your Highness," Kontao and Marco Lehmann responded.

"Ascend the throne this afternoon?" The eldest member of the Privy Council, the Lord Privy Seal Uros Lindar, voiced his doubt. "Isn't that rather hasty? Shouldn't we hold His Majesty's funeral first?"

"It is His Majesty's final command," Mary stated firmly.

Uros Lindar's brow remained furrowed, but he offered no further objection.

Mary paused, reflecting for a moment, then asked Count Gilmore Butler, the 'Wolfheart Count', with a hint of reluctance, "Count Gilmore, is there any chance you can still bring Ethel Holovin back?"

"I have already dispatched men in pursuit, but… I fear it will be difficult," Gilmore Butler replied.

"Please do your utmost, you and the 'Sharp Claws'. I wish for Ethel Holovin to be present at His Majesty the Emperor's funeral…" Empress Mary paused slightly before adding, "Even if he is dead."

"Yes, Your Highness." Gilmore Butler bowed slightly, responding respectfully.

"Count Rade," Mary turned to the Finance Minister, Rade Paster. "I hear you are on good terms with the Duke of Green Plains, Jose Mellerfield?"

"Ah, yes, we shared some camaraderie in the past."

Rade Paster had risen from being the captain of Leopold's personal guard, earning the Emperor's deep trust and appointment as Finance Minister. Jose Mellerfield had once fought alongside Leopold, forging a friendship between them, so naturally, Rade also considered Jose Mellerfield a friend.

"Then I must trouble you to invite the Duke of Green Plains back," Mary said. "I do not know why the Duke was in such a hurry to leave the city, but he and His Majesty were friends for many years. Surely he wouldn't object to returning to pay his respects?"

"Yes, Your Highness." Rade accepted the order and departed.

"Pierre," Mary called out.

No response.

"Count Pierre," Mary repeated.

"Ah, yes, yes…" The Royal Treasurer, Count Pierre Holovin of Oriole Fort, finally snapped back to attention, flustered.

Mary couldn't help but shake her head inwardly.

The Royal Treasurer was responsible for managing the assets shared by the Emperor and the imperial family. Pierre Holovin held this crucial post solely because tradition dictated it belonged to the current Count of Oriole Fort. He had just turned twenty this year, raised as a privileged young nobleman in Platinum City, utterly inexperienced with crises of this magnitude.

"There isn't time to prepare a new set of imperial robes and a crown for Henry's ascension. Find a set of His Majesty's robes and a crown for Henry to use," Mary instructed.

"Yes, Your Highness." Pierre left with unsteady steps, nearly tripping over his own feet.

As the ministers departed one by one to carry out their orders, only Lord Privy Seal Uros Lindar and Mary remained in the room. The Empress's expression gradually darkened.

"His Majesty had hoped the Privy Council could counterbalance the great nobles like the two Kings and two Dukes. Yet, it seems the Privy Council itself cannot be relied upon…" Mary murmured softly.

Uros remained silent for a long while before finally speaking: "Lord Dawid Boyan and the Royal Griffin Knights are dependable."

"Let us hope so."

Mary sighed deeply.

Meanwhile, Charlotte and the members of the Mellerfield family had returned to Count Philip's manor outside the city. They too had narrowly missed being locked inside, escaping the city gates just moments before they closed.

The frantic ride had left Charlotte nearly sick, but upon exiting the carriage, she disregarded her need for rest. Finding Jose Mellerfield discussing the situation in Platinum City with his brother, she urged, "Father, Grandfather is certainly already on his way back to the Gato Kingdom. Emperor Leopold is dead, and Henry isn't the crown prince—this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The first thing Grandfather will do upon returning is raise troops for rebellion. If you don't want him to annex our duchy, you must return to the Green Plains Duchy immediately and prepare for war."

"If His Majesty Ethel wishes to contest the throne with Henry, let him fight Henry. Why would he attack the Green Plains Duchy? We haven't provoked him," Count Philip interjected, somewhat puzzled. The Green Plains Duchy hadn't yet declared its stance; attacking a neutral noble was clearly unethical.

Charlotte took a deep breath, patiently explaining, "Whether Grandfather attacks the Green Plains Duchy depends entirely on whether the Green Plains Duchy is prepared."

"The Green Plains Duchy lies adjacent to the Gato Kingdom, its forces capable of threatening the Gato heartland while Grandfather campaigns against Henry. If the Green Plains Duchy is unprepared, Grandfather certainly wouldn't hesitate to swiftly eliminate this potential dagger pointed at Gato's throat beforehand."

"But if Father can return to the Duchy promptly, rally the knights, and establish a defensive line—even just adopting a posture of readiness—Grandfather will undoubtedly abandon any plans to attack the Green Plains Duchy. He might even send envoys to mend relations with you. Grandfather is no fool; regardless of the Gato Kingdom's military strength, he will always try to avoid fighting on multiple fronts."

Listening to this clear-headed analysis, Count Philip couldn't help but look at Charlotte with renewed attention.

After hearing her out, Jose Mellerfield pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Charlotte makes sense. I will ride a giant eagle back to the Green Plains Duchy immediately."

"But there are only seven or eight giant eagles at the manor," Count Philip said hesitantly.

Between Jose Mellerfield's and Count Philip's families, there were nearly a thousand relatives and retainers. Such a small number of eagles was utterly inadequate.

"I'll take a few guards and return first. You travel slowly by carriage, there's no rush," Jose Mellerfield told Count Philip. "I'll leave Rosie, Charlotte, and the others in your care."

"No problem," Count Philip assured him, patting his chest. "You can rest easy leaving my sister-in-law and niece and nephew with me."

Jose Mellerfield nodded and prepared to depart.

Duchess Rosie still hadn't grasped the situation. Why had they been abruptly whisked away from a wedding feast in a mad carriage dash? Now, seeing Jose Mellerfield planning to return to the duchy alone ahead of everyone else, she instinctively tried to argue.

"If you're going back first, why not take Sean with you? He's small; a giant eagle could surely carry him alongside you," Rosie said, pushing her biological son forward.

Sean's wide, curious eyes looked eagerly at the magnificent giant eagle.

Jose Mellerfield, however, frowned and chided, "Don't be ridiculous. Sean is barely taller than a sword; what could he possibly do? I won't have time to look after a child on this trip back."

With that, the giant eagle beat its wings, stirring up wind and snow as it soared into the sky.

"Why the rush to go back?" As another son, Andre, conversely, had no desire to return to the Green Plains Duchy with his father. Clearly not having had his fill of fun, he grumbled wistfully, "I even made plans with several friends to attend a poetry appreciation gathering today. Now I'll have to break my promise."

"With your level of poetry, you shouldn't be attending any appreciation gatherings," Charlotte retorted disdainfully, pursing her lips. "Shall I recite a couple of your own masterpieces for you, so you can appreciate them yourself?"

"What masterpieces? What masterpieces?" Lena leaned in curiously, smiling. "Recite them, let your Auntie Lena have a listen."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Andre exclaimed loudly, cutting off Charlotte who was already clearing her throat. "Don't recite them, don't recite them! We still need to pack our luggage; we can't waste time."

Having silenced her older brother's complaints, Charlotte turned to Lena. "Lena, what are your plans? You must know by now, Grandfather is going to war."

"Mm," Lena tilted her head back against the window, her smile fading as she nodded. "Of course, I know. But the kingdom's affairs aren't something a princess like me has any say in. I don't really have any plans; I just wanted to come out and have some fun."

"You shouldn't have run off on your own like that. Otherwise, Grandfather would surely have taken you back with him," Charlotte sighed, then added, "There are two options now. One, we arrange for someone else to escort you directly back to the Gato Kingdom. Two, you come with us back to the Green Plains Duchy and then take a detour back to Gato."

"Then I'll go with you to the Green Plains Duchy first. I can have a few more days of fun," Lena replied without hesitation.

"Alright," Charlotte nodded.

"Hey! Look quickly!" Andre suddenly pointed excitedly towards the sky. "Father and the others are coming back! Does this mean we don't have to leave?"

Charlotte looked up. Indeed, several giant eagles were flying through the sky outside the window. Perhaps due to the heavy snow, they were flying quite low.

Charlotte gave her brother a look usually reserved for idiots. "My dear brother, do you even know where the Green Plains Duchy is? The Green Plains Duchy is to the south. These giant eagles are coming from the west."

"Oh, west… that's the Bonan Duchy," Andre mumbled, rubbing his hair awkwardly with an embarrassed smile.

As expected, the giant eagles didn't land. They flew low over the manor grounds and continued towards Platinum City.

Splat. A large drop of bright red blood landed on the pristine white snow within the manor grounds.

Curiosity piqued, Charlotte walked over and carefully picked a blood-soaked downy feather from the splatter. "Were those giant eagles injured?"

"Ew, it's so dirty," Lena said with disgust.

"Could something have happened in the Bonan Duchy too? Is that why Anne couldn't marry Henry Holovin?" Andre blurted out.

"Please wake up, dear brother. They already finished the wedding."

Charlotte offered the sarcastic remark, then frowned as she examined the feather, a sense of unease growing within her, becoming stronger and stronger.