Chapter 80. Corruption, Journey to the Royal Family Secret Realm
“Y-Your Highness… those people all belong to the First Prince.”
Baron Tela collapsed onto the ground, his plump body trembling like a sieve.
“Even if I listen to you, the First Prince will never let me go. Please show mercy. I am willing to offer all of my family’s wealth—just spare my life.”
William stopped walking and glanced sideways at him, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
“Oh? How many gold coins do you have that could buy your life?”
Baron Tela’s eyes darted around. Gritting his teeth, he said, “T-thirty thousand gold coins. That is my limit.”
William let out a mocking laugh. “You only embezzled that little? It seems you are truly useless. Keeping you alive would be pointless.”
With that, he turned as if to leave.
“Three hundred thousand! Three hundred thousand gold coins!”
Baron Tela shouted frantically, his voice cracking.
“That is my entire fortune! Even the jewelry money of my twenty-three wives is included. Please spare my life, Your Highness!”
William turned back, his gaze sharp as a blade.
“You have that many wives? Can you even handle it?”
“Since you already have twenty-three wives, you had better think carefully.”
“If I send someone to search your house and the gold coins exceed this amount—” he paused, his tone turning icy, “then your life will truly be beyond saving.”
Baron Tela swallowed hard. The veins on his forehead bulged as he struggled inwardly before finally crying out miserably.
“Y-Your Highness… I remembered wrong earlier… actually… it is around three million gold coins. Yes, and there is also a batch of fine armor and High-Tier Potions. I will give everything to you.”
William stared at him for several minutes.
Suddenly, he burst into laughter. The sound echoed across the camp, carrying an indescribable chill.
“Very well.”
The laughter faded, and his tone returned to calm indifference.
“This matter ends here. You no longer need to worry about your duties in the legion. Deliver everything to me within two days.”
He glanced at Baron Tela lying on the ground.
“Do not worry. I keep my word. You will return safely.”
Baron Tela felt as if he had been pardoned from death. He crawled forward, repeatedly banging his head against the ground.
“Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you for sparing my life!”
William turned and walked toward the Main Tent. The wind outside carried sand and dust across the camp, lifting the corner of his robe.
“A mere Baron managed to embezzle this many gold coins…”
He stepped into the tent, his brows slightly furrowed as he muttered quietly,
“Prince Kande turned a blind eye to all this. Was it because of the First Prince?”
The candlelight flickered inside the tent, illuminating the legion’s defense map hanging on the wall.
William called out for the adjutant, who quickly entered and stood respectfully.
“From today onward, you will take over the Quartermaster’s Office,” William said directly. “I will assign ten trusted men to assist you. Make sure the accounts and supplies are completely sorted out.”
The adjutant suddenly lifted his head. Shock flashed across his eyes before it quickly turned into determination.
“Yes, Your Highness. I will not fail your trust.”
“Remember this,” William said, his gaze heavy with authority.
“I require only one thing—eliminate all corruption and deductions.”
“Military supplies are the lifeline of the soldiers. No one is allowed to tamper with them. If you encounter a problem you cannot solve, report directly to me. Do not hesitate.”
“I will remember Your Highness’s instruction,” the adjutant said as he bowed again. When he left, his steps were steadier than before.
Silence returned to the tent.
William walked to the defense map and traced the symbol representing the Quartermaster’s Office with his finger.
After tapping his finger lightly against the desk for a moment, he ultimately set aside his speculation about Prince Kande.
Whether the previous arrangement had been made for balance or compromise did not matter. Now that the Royal Ninth Legion was in his hands, corruption could no longer be tolerated.
He picked up a feather pen and quickly wrote ten names on a sheet of parchment—men he had carefully selected from his former subordinates, people he trusted completely.
After finishing, he rolled up the paper and called the guard at the entrance.
“Deliver this to the camp. Have these ten men report immediately to the Quartermaster’s Office and serve under the adjutant. Their sole duty will be supervision.”
The guard accepted the scroll with both hands and saluted solemnly.
“Yes, Legion Commander.”
Then he turned and left at a brisk pace, his boots echoing against the stone floor as the sound gradually faded.
Since he had taken control of the Royal Ninth Legion, the rules would now be set by him.
Several days passed in the blink of an eye.
Baron Tela indeed gathered three million gold coins and delivered them to William, along with the promised potions and armor. As for the Baron himself, he fled the camp as if escaping death.
Whether others would settle accounts with him later was none of William’s concern.
On the second morning, Lord Xilan appeared punctually outside William’s palace.
Before William could say anything, Xilan bent down, lifted him in his arms, and suddenly transformed into a streak of light, instantly soaring above the Royal Capital.
He then sped toward the Royal Family Secret Realm, leaving behind only a faint afterimage cutting across the sky.
After quite some time, Zoe finally came back to her senses. Seeing that William had already disappeared, she stomped her foot angrily before returning to the Knight Palace.
Inside the royal garden, Kroll II and Vivian stood by the railing, watching the distant streak in the sky without speaking for a long time.
The morning mist had not yet fully dispersed, dampening the railings beneath the corridor. The air carried a faint fragrance of flowers.
After a while, Kroll II turned to look at Vivian beside him and noticed the lingering worry in her brows.
“Alright. Little William will return soon enough. There is no need to worry.”
Vivian raised her eyes toward him, a trace of complicated emotion flickering in them.
“Your Majesty… if my father had not chosen the wrong side back then…”
“The past does not need to be mentioned again.”
Kroll II raised a hand to stop her, his tone calm yet firm.
“We are together now, are we not?”
A faint glimmer appeared in Vivian’s eyes. She nodded gratefully.
“Thank you for Your Majesty’s… kindness.”
Meanwhile, William was tightly held in Xilan’s arms. The wind roared past his ears like thunder. The scenery around him blurred into streaks of light, and even the perception of a Bronze Mage could barely capture anything.
Such speed far exceeded his imagination.
After an unknown amount of time, the rushing wind suddenly stopped.
Xilan halted steadily in midair. A rhombus-shaped crystal appeared in his palm. Ancient runes flowed across its translucent surface.
He flicked his finger lightly against the crystal, injecting powerful Dou Qi into it. The crystal immediately began to vibrate violently with a buzzing sound.
A brilliant beam of light shot into the sky, tearing open the void ahead.
A Gate of Light suddenly appeared before William. Inside the gate was swirling white mist, and faint intersecting lights could be seen within it, as though it led to another world.
Xilan put away the crystal and looked down at William.
“We have arrived.”
With that, he carried William and flew straight into the Gate of Light.
The moment they passed through it, a gentle energy enveloped them. The roaring wind disappeared, replaced by the fragrance of vegetation and the faint sound of flowing water.
William steadied himself and finally saw the scene before him clearly.
Rolling green mountains stretched endlessly through a thin mist. Strange birds flew through the forests. The concentration of Mana in the air far exceeded that of the Royal Capital, almost condensing into tangible form.
This was the Royal Family Secret Realm.