Chapter 76. Scheming, Discovery of the Forbidden Soul Magic Book
An attendant quietly approached the Queen, bent slightly, and whispered a few words in her ear.
The Queen’s fingers tightened slightly around the wine glass. She then nodded, rose from her seat, and left the noisy banquet hall.
She walked through a corridor covered with dark-patterned carpets. At the end stood a tall, slender figure—Duke Carden.
The Queen quickened her pace. When she approached, she noticed the soundproofing magic devices set up around them and finally relaxed.
“Duke Carden, the Fourth Prince has taken command of the Ninth Legion. Does His Majesty truly intend to pass the throne to him? All the effort we spent these past few years—was it all for nothing?”
Duke Carden slowly turned around. A cold gleam flickered within his silver-gray eyes.
“You still have the nerve to ask?” he said coldly. “Back when His Majesty was still the Thirteenth Prince, who was the one who mocked his appearance and gave him nothing but cold looks?”
“If the old master had not led the family’s elite and risked their lives to block the reinforcements of the Third Prince and the Eighth Prince, buying time for His Majesty to mobilize troops, do you think you would still be standing here today?”
He sneered. “And now you dare question me?”
The Queen’s cheeks flushed red, then paled again. The knuckles gripping her wine glass turned white.
“What happened in the past… is already past. What should we do now?”
Duke Carden remained silent for a moment, his fingers lightly tapping against the corridor pillar.
“The Goblin Secret Realm discovered by Duke Tuso has been showing frequent disturbances recently.”
“It is said that the Goblins inside are reproducing so rapidly that they are nearly becoming a disaster. An elite force is urgently needed to clear them out.”
He turned slightly, a shadow flashing through his eyes. “The Royal Ninth Legion has just replenished its troops. If things are arranged properly…”
The Queen immediately understood his implication, though she still had some concerns.
“But how do we make His Majesty issue the decree himself? And even if he does, what if other legions are deployed as well?”
“That is not something you need to worry about.” Duke Carden brushed the crease from his sleeve.
“The other two Dukes and I have already discussed it. We talked privately right after His Majesty announced that William would command the Ninth Legion.”
Duke Carden lowered his voice even further, his tone carrying unquestionable certainty.
“For now, all you need to do is have the First Prince put more effort into winning over members of the royal family—especially those stubborn old conservatives.”
“Do not assume the royal family is a solid monolith. Even Kroll II cannot necessarily cover the sky with one hand.”
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the flickering candlelight deeper in the corridor, his tone growing more cryptic.
“Otherwise, why do you think that senior Fenlilan·Kroll waited until all eight Royal Legends had fallen at the Northern Frontier Secret Realm entrance before appearing to stabilize the situation? Surely you understand what lies behind that.”
The Queen’s expression changed slightly. She clearly understood the deeper meaning behind Duke Carden’s words.
“So,” Duke Carden continued, lightly tapping the pillar with his finger.
“Tell the First Prince to remain patient and gather those royal elders who are dissatisfied with His Majesty’s centralization of power.”
“As long as they are willing to speak out, even if His Majesty favors William, he will still have to weigh the influence of the royal family.”
The Queen took a deep breath and drained the remaining wine in her cup in one gulp. The cold liquid slid down her throat, yet it could not suppress the schemes churning in her mind.
“I understand. I will have him visit the residences of the royal clans more often, bringing precious gifts with him.”
Duke Carden nodded in satisfaction. He turned to look toward the banquet hall, where the distant noise echoed faintly through the corridor like a grand yet fragile illusion.
“The time is approaching. Do not make any mistakes.”
The Queen nodded, then quickly left. The hem of her dress brushed against the patterned carpet of the corridor, producing a faint rustling sound.
Duke Carden watched her figure disappear around the corner. Only then did he slowly raise his hand and retrieve four small, exquisite magic devices.
These four devices could isolate sound and block detection.
He stored them inside his Spatial Ring, adjusted his robe, and leisurely walked back toward the banquet hall.
At the main seat of the banquet hall, Kroll II was chatting and laughing with several veteran ministers. The corner of his eye casually swept across Duke Carden’s returning figure. A faint, disdainful curve briefly appeared on his lips—so fleeting it seemed like an illusion.
He raised his wine glass and clinked it lightly with Duke Tuso beside him.
“The Northern Frontier defense line will still require Duke Tuso’s efforts,” he said casually.
Duke Tuso replied in a loud voice, “It is this minister’s duty to share Your Majesty’s burdens.”
After taking a sip of wine, his gaze landed on William, who was talking with Mary not far away. The smile in his eyes deepened slightly.
Since someone wanted to muddy the waters of this chessboard, he might as well let the storm grow even greater—only in the rushing current could one truly tell gold from worthless stone.
Kroll II took another sip of wine. His gaze swept across the crowd as he thought to himself:
Besides, with William’s special talent, those old fellows in the royal family would never allow anything to happen to him.
With that thought, he withdrew his gaze.
Meanwhile, William was chatting with Mary. The girl from the Northern Frontier spoke in a straightforward and lively manner, carrying a refreshing frankness that had not been polished away. Surprisingly, William found talking with her particularly relaxing.
Most of the time Mary spoke while he listened. Occasionally he would respond with a sentence or two, and the atmosphere remained quite pleasant.
At that moment, Tos carefully approached them.
Seeing him, William excused himself to Mary and led Tos to a secluded corner of the banquet hall.
Tos’s expression was grave as he lowered his voice.
“Your Highness, it is fortunate that you ordered us to search carefully. In the four Slave Manors, we discovered nine slaves secretly hiding forbidden magic books related to the soul.”
“According to the court mages’ examination, one of the slaves has already paid the price of twenty years of his lifespan to break the Soul Contract between you and him.”
“Forbidden soul magic books?”
William’s expression changed drastically, his fingers clenching tightly.
He instantly thought of the boy with Domain Aptitude. His heart skipped a beat—if the Soul Contract had been broken, could it be him?
“Where did those books come from?” William’s voice carried a trace of coldness.
“We cannot trace the source for now,” Tos replied in a low voice. “Both the covers and the pages of the books were specially treated. There are no marks at all.”
“But we can confirm that they were only recently smuggled into the manor. The slave who broke the contract has already been detained and is currently being interrogated.”
William took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
The Slave Contract was a magical contract specially created by mages. Unless the master voluntarily released it, or extreme forbidden techniques were used, it could never fail.
Since the other party dared to use such a method, it was clearly aimed at him.
“Continue the interrogation,” he said sharply, his gaze as cold as a blade. “No matter what methods you use, you must find out where those books came from.”
“Also, isolate every slave who secretly possessed forbidden books. Triple the guards watching them. Seal their Mana and Dou Qi, and force them into sleep.”
“Yes.” Tos bowed and turned to leave.
“Wait,” William called out, hesitating for a moment before speaking slowly.
“That boy in the eastern area—the one with extraordinary magical talent. Is he among them?”