Chapter 17 Within Gloria's Residence

Inside Gloria's mansion, the dark floor-to-ceiling curtains were drawn, creating a dim and tranquil atmosphere in the afternoon. The only constant sound was the ticking of the wall clock in the corner.

Lan Qi and Sigrid exchanged glances without saying a word, making Gloria even more nervous as she waited for them to speak.

"I have to leave for the Heroloom Broadcasting Company in about fifteen minutes. After that, I need to meet with Duchess Chloris Berenhalde; she can provide us with a lot of assistance."

Lan Qi finally glanced at the clock in the living room and spoke to Sigrid and Gloria again.

The interview program tonight was imminent, and it would help expand his influence in the Protos Empire, allowing more Protos people who had only heard of Loki McCarthy to learn more about him.

Before leaving the Protos Royal Magic Academy to head north, Lan Qi had formed an alliance with Duchess Chloris.

She would provide him with intelligence and assistance, and he would help her investigate intelligence from the dangerous north.

Although the information Lan Qi obtained from Banditry City in the Northern Border Province may not be what Chloris wanted, the true situation of the city and the figure of the mysterious black-robed man were already weighty enough.

This was originally an impossible mission. Even if Major General Van Leuk's investigation team could find some clues, they had no hope of escaping Banditry City, let alone passing through the northern checkpoints and running back to the imperial capital, Heroloom.

Therefore, the value of the mission materials in Lan Qi's hands was currently unknown.

Next, he should discuss with Chloris further plans to delay the war in the Protos Empire.

"…!"

Upon hearing this, Gloria's expression worsened.

"What's wrong?"

Lan Qi noticed the change in Gloria's expression.

"Chloris was recently suspected of treason and has been confined to the Berenhalde Ducal residence. She is forbidden from traveling and contacting anyone else until the investigation is clear."

Gloria said quickly.

Although she should have been happy to hear the Holy Son say that he could seek help from the Berenhalde family, it was actually better not to get involved with Chloris now.

"When did this happen?"

Lan Qi frowned slightly.

"About two weeks ago."

Gloria replied.

Lan Qi and Sigrid exchanged glances.

Two weeks ago was probably shortly after they encountered Askesan and the black-robed man in Banditry City in the Northern Border Province.

So, was it possible that their raid and escape in the Northern Border triggered a change in the plans and responses of the enemies behind the scenes, leading to Chloris being targeted at the same time?

"What about Duke Morodian?"

Lan Qi asked again.

In his cooperation with Chloris, one of the most critical pieces of information that served as Chloris's sincerity was the mystery of Duke Morodian's disappearance.

Lan Qi had also promised Chloris not to reveal this information to anyone else.

The real Duke Morodian had long disappeared in the northern part of the empire. The current Duke Morodian on the stage was a puppet controlled by Chloris. She now controlled all the forces related to the Berenhalde family alone, which could almost directly affect the leaning of the episcopal election in a week.

"Duke Morodian has not been affected. At this critical moment for the empire, he has stated for the sake of the family's reputation that if the treason is confirmed, he will never protect his daughter and asks the empire to execute her."

"?"

Lan Qi finally showed a look of confusion.

According to imperial law, Chloris, while in custody, must have her magic and actions restricted by the empire, so she should no longer be able to control the puppet Duke Morodian, and Duke Morodian should no longer be able to be active.

If Chloris was not controlling him, then who was the Duke Morodian on stage now?

"Is there something you haven't told me?"

Sigrid stared into Lan Qi's eyes, without blame. She knew that Lan Qi was a man of his word, and he must have promised Chloris not to tell others certain key information.

The fact that the Holy Son had dealings with Duchess Chloris was not something Lan Qi had hidden from her. Previously, the large number of rare purple-sealed magic cards he had were obtained with Chloris's help.

Sigrid had paid attention to every potential student when she infiltrated the Protos Royal Magic Academy, and she also knew something about Duchess Chloris.

Although this duchess had sufficient qualifications to become a Hégemone Saintess, her scheming was too deep, and it was impossible for her to be truly loyal to her. Sigrid did not want to raise a Saintess that she couldn’t tame.

"Actually, Duke Morodian disappeared not long ago. The Duke Morodian on the stage before was a puppet controlled by Duchess Chloris. A major part of my deal with Chloris was to help her investigate the mastermind behind the imperial war in the north, which was actually to save her."

Lan Qi no longer needed to worry about anything and answered honestly.

If he wanted this cooperation to continue, the Hégemone branch was an indispensable force.

He had planned to ally the Berenhalde family with the Hégemone branch after returning from the north, so this information must be shared.

Sigrid was slightly stunned as she processed the information, while Gloria was almost frozen for a moment.

"No way, this duchess is so ruthless? I admire her a bit."

Sigrid muttered to herself.

She already understood everything, but she was also glad that she had not considered letting Chloris be the Saintess. If the bishop were in trouble, this Saintess Chloris would probably stab her mother at the first opportunity.

"Originally, the votes controlled by their family would have been cast for us, but now it's a bit uncertain."

Lan Qi sighed.

The concurrent situation in the imperial capital was still somewhat contrary to his wishes.

Or rather, those partners behind Askesan, lurking in the real shadows, were the most difficult enemies to deal with and were manipulating the situation.

"You were even trying to win the Berenhalde family's votes for me?"

Sigrid was surprised, her lips slightly parted.

She thought that this kid had laid the foundation for her in the south and had won over an entire province in the north, but even the Berenhalde Ducal house in the imperial capital had already been settled.

He had promised to help her win and was really not being lazy at all, doing all the practical things.

The happiest thing in the world was that someone had already helped her complete her hegemony when she didn't even know anything.

"…"

Gloria looked left and right at Lan Qi and Sigrid. Amidst the chaos of receiving and processing information in her brain, she finally understood how powerful this Hégemone Holy Son was.

His work ability was a bit too explosive.

It was hard to imagine how far he could go in the empire if he was given another year.

Gloria was even a little worried that her own bishop might fall in love with the Holy Son. No matter how she looked at it, she felt that the Holy Son was the bishop's ideal type, except for his age and strength.

But Gloria quickly breathed a sigh of relief.

The strength aspect directly negated it.

Gloria was very sure that the arrogant Hégemone Bishop would not possibly look up to a man weaker than her. At most, she only regarded the Holy Son as her boy to raise.

Unless one day this man could become so powerful that even the bishop needed to rely on him, then the bishop might have a slight possibility of developing romantic feelings for him.

(End of this chapter)