Chapter 106: Inheritance

  "I underestimated you." The Duke's voice held no trace of life, merely spitting out words one by one. "You never involved yourself in political affairs, so I never guarded against you. I thought you were like those military officials—decent enough but lacking in wit. I never imagined you could discern clues, let alone negotiate an alliance with your former enemy and stage such a convincing drama for us."

  "Those who wield power must be clever. But those who do not wield power are not all fools." Commander Roland said flatly.

  The Duke nodded slowly. Excessive desire clouds reason. Too much focus on certain things prevents one from perceiving the bigger picture and subtle shifts. Drawn to a single leaf, one fails to see the entire forest.

  He knew these principles. But after years of riding the waves of power and conspiracy, he had become utterly immersed. His eyes could only discern things through the lens of schemes and manipulation.

  Commander Roland pointed at Ethan. "Though I don't know him well, and the deaths of my men at the hands of that Necromancer made me suspicious, I could see that the wounds on Bishop Ronis couldn't have been inflicted by someone who can't even wield a sword. Even though you tried to disguise them, to my eyes it only made them more conspicuous. While I couldn't be certain it was you, I was certain it wasn't him."

  The Duke gave a bitter smile. He felt as if even his facial expressions were collapsing. "I actually forgot the discerning eye of the Empire's greatest swordsman."

  "That's because your trap was too perfect. So you had no need to concern yourself with other details." Commander Roland remarked flatly, but there was no friendliness in his eyes. "The foreshadowing of the Necromancer killing Paladin Order members, the wanted order signed in the Bishop's own hand, over a hundred clerics as witnesses. Even though I sensed something amiss, I had no choice but to follow the path you laid out for me."

  "Actually, if not for Bishop Ronis's somewhat strange attitude during that previous Necromancer incident, even if I had suspicions, I would never have dared to negotiate a compromise with a Necromancer, nor would I have learned the truth about that wanted order. Since the wanted man wasn't the murderer, there aren't many people in the entire royal capital qualified to be the killer. Piecing together various clues and your behavior at the scene, I could be almost certain you were the culprit." Commander Roland's voice and gaze grew sharp. "Why did you kill Bishop Ronis?"

  "Why?" The Duke gave a tragic smile. "Because he stood in my way, and I stood in his. He struck first, so it was either him or me."

  "What really happened?"

  "I can't be bothered to explain. You have the situation under control now; you'll find out through your own investigations." The Duke sighed deeply. "But even with you and this Necromancer joining forces, with what you knew and your methods, you absolutely couldn't have reached this point." He slowly turned his head and looked at Rodhart. There was no anger at betrayal in his eyes, only death-like resignation. "Much of this was his arrangement, wasn't it? I just don't understand how you won him over."

  "We didn't win him over; he chose to believe in his friend and in justice." Commander Roland also looked at Rodhart, with approval in his eyes. "After I discussed matters with old Mr. Sandro, when I suspected you but didn't know how to proceed, he came to me. He told me he believed his friend couldn't possibly be a spy for the Necromancer Guild, and that there must be more to this story."

  Ethan looked at Rodhart, quite surprised.

  Although the topic had turned to him, Rodhart still stood as straight as ever, composed and calm, giving Ethan the same warm and gentle smile as before.

  "You see, someone who dares to speak up for a friend under those circumstances must be a person of insight, responsibility, and confidence in their own judgment. So I trusted him and told him all our suspicions. As for him infiltrating your service, that was his own suggestion. We could use your own plan to our advantage—that was all his doing."

  "His doing..." The Duke pondered for a moment, and a glimmer suddenly appeared in his eyes, which had been ashen with defeat and despair. It was as if a stagnant pool of decay had been stirred, bringing a hint of life from below. He looked at Rodhart. "I recall you participated in the campaign to eliminate the Necromancer."

  "Yes." Rodhart nodded, his reply still as polite and humble as ever.

  "According to Commander Roland, you sought him out immediately after the battle to express your trust in your friend and in justice." The Duke's voice even regained some vitality, and a slight angle appeared at the corner of his mouth, as if in a faint bitter smile.

  Rodhart nodded, sighing with a hint of regret. "I only learned of Bishop Ronis's assassination after receiving the order. I was too shocked at the time. And with the situation being so chaotic, I hesitated for a moment, so I failed to stop the commander and old Mr. Sandro from fighting. Fortunately, they were able to assess the situation themselves."

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

  The Duke thought for a moment, then slowly nodded. His expression was still dejected, lost, and sorrowful, but no longer lifeless. It was as if, through these thoughts about schemes and power that had long become part of his soul, he had rediscovered some interest in living. "I once said that I knew you were a person of insight, decisiveness, and depth. But now I realize I still underestimated you." He forced another bitter smile. "I thought I was raising a cat that hadn't yet become a tiger, but it turned out to be a tiger disguised as a cat, waiting to swallow me whole. Still, there's some comfort in knowing this, because I wasn't defeated so ignorantly—it's merely that the new generation surpasses the old."

  "I apologize. I wasn't acting against you, Your Grace the Duke." Rodhart's expression was sincere and earnest, like a child expressing his true feelings to an adult. "I was only doing what I believed was right."

  "What magnanimity. What insight." The Duke smiled and nodded. His smile was bitter, yet it seemed to hold a hint of mutual understanding. Like the loser in a brilliant and profound game of cards, though utterly defeated, he was neither angry nor hysterical. Beyond the frustration and loss of failure, there was admiration for his opponent, even a trace of kindred spirit.

  But the others clearly couldn't grasp the deeper meaning in his gaze. Commander Roland sighed, seeming somewhat regretful that the Duke, such a cunning and formidable adversary, had surrendered so quickly and thoroughly upon defeat. "I actually didn't expect you to admit defeat the moment you saw us appear. I thought you would struggle a bit, at least try to defend yourself."

  "Since you dared to appear before me together, it means you had no intention of leaving me any room to struggle. In this situation, no schemes or maneuvers can be effective. Don't you think I can see that?" The Duke's gaze swept lightly over Commander Roland and Sandro's faces. "For the two of you, killing me would be no different from killing a chicken. Why should I die like a chicken?"

  Commander Roland looked at the Duke in silence for a moment, then sighed: "Actually, with your intelligence and talent, if applied properly to any field, you could have left your mark in history. Even if you weren't in such a hurry, given ten more years, the entire empire might truly have fallen into your hands. Why did you have to walk further and further down the path of power, until it became so twisted that you destroyed yourself?"

  The Duke was slightly startled. Looking back now, it did seem true. If he hadn't gone so far down that path, would things have been better?

  But after thinking it over, the Duke smiled bitterly and shook his head. Impossible, because he had already started walking. Many things, once begun, cannot be stopped. After victory comes new goals, then continuous advancement, constantly wanting to go higher, to become stronger... and finally... The Duke suddenly recalled a story he had told his daughter long ago, a fairy tale about enchanted red shoes that, once worn, force the wearer to dance without stopping until death. He was the one who loved to dance; power and ambition were those magic shoes—once put on, they drive one to madness until death.

  Commander Roland's words interrupted the Duke's thoughts: "Your mistake was having too much ambition, too much desire."

  "I said, I didn't make a mistake—I was defeated." The Duke suddenly stood up, his voice fully restored to life. "I made no mistake. I am not the first, nor will I be the last, to walk the path of power and ambition. I merely failed, falling by the roadside. Naturally, others will follow in my footsteps, treading upon my corpse to climb higher." The Duke's eyes didn't look at anyone, but gazed upward at the ceiling. His face was solemn, like a solitary believer reciting his own personal scripture. "The reason for my failure was that I became too complacent, too obsessed with the power I held. Excessive desire clouds reason. Too much focus on certain things prevents one from perceiving the bigger picture and subtle shifts. Drawn to a single leaf, one fails to see the entire forest. Only by not being constrained by immediate matters, by broadening one's perspective, can one go further. To pursue power without becoming obsessed with it—that is how one attains true power. My successors will surely learn from my lessons and go further than I did."

  Ethan had remained silent, quietly listening to the dialogue between the Duke and Commander Roland. Rodhart also listened intently. Sandro's mind seemed elsewhere entirely, sometimes bowing his head in thought, sometimes looking around.

  The Duke lowered his head, his gaze sweeping over each person's face as he said slowly and calmly, "I say again, I made no mistake—I merely failed." He sat back down, picked up the rapier from the table, turned its point toward his own chest, and plunged it in.

  Ethan instinctively took a step forward, but seeing that neither Commander Roland nor Sandro moved, he stopped as well.

  The rapier pierced through the Duke's body, emerging from his back and through the chairback. Blood continuously soaked his chest. The blade had gone straight through his heart.

  With an expression of calm tinged with pain, the Duke sighed. Meeting Ethan's astonished gaze, he said in a slightly pained voice, "Sometimes I actually think... people like you, who ignore everything and pursue nothing, may be foolish... but you're also truly relaxed..." As the crimson stain on his chest and the chairback continued to spread, the Duke's voice faded, and his head slowly drooped down. Finally, he died.

  The study was very quiet. Everyone except Sandro watched the Duke's corpse, still seated there, with different expressions in their eyes. After a long while, Ethan suddenly asked, "Why let him commit suicide?"

  "He was going to die anyway. Suicide makes no difference." Commander Roland replied.

  "That's not what I mean. I'm saying, now that he's dead like this, we have no evidence. Will anyone believe he killed Bishop Ronis?"

  "Others naturally won't believe it. And there's no need for them to."

  Ethan was stunned: "Then... I..."

  "I apologize." Though he was apologizing, Commander Roland's gaze as he looked at Ethan was calm, as if he felt no regret at all. "You're still a wanted man. The charge of killing Bishop Ronis still stands against you."

  "Why?" Ethan was completely baffled. The real culprit had been eliminated, yet he couldn't shed this false accusation.

  "Duke Mrak's reputation is excellent, both in court and among the common people. His influence is also great. You know this."

  "I know." Ethan nodded. The Duke's reputation wasn't just good; combined with his now-soaring influence, he had almost become the recognized goal for all ambitious people in the empire.

  "If we suddenly announced that he was actually the real murderer of Bishop Ronis, there would be an uproar throughout the empire. An image so universally seen as upright, incorruptible, and capable suddenly shattered—what would happen?"

  "I don't know." Ethan shook his head.

  "Externally, this would be a great scandal for the empire. The empire's reputation among nations would suffer, and the relationship between the church and the empire would certainly be affected. Internally, the trust of common people and minor officials in the court would plummet. Amid such turmoil, it's hard to say what would become of the officials and merchants who originally依附 the Duke. In any case, it would certainly be detrimental to the empire. Therefore, the news that the Duke was the murderer cannot be spread. It's enough that only those of us here know."

  "So I have to take the fall for him." Ethan frowned.

  "I apologize." Commander Roland sighed, then looked at Ethan with what seemed like earnest advice. "Actually, I don't want you to be captured either. After all, such a large bounty places a significant burden on the imperial treasury."

  "Besides, you're used to being wanted. A little more won't hurt, right?" Sandro glanced at him and said weakly. "And this wanted poster is actually useful to you. If I recall correctly, those bastards from the Necromancer Guild are also hunting you, aren't they? This wanted notice helps you stay constantly vigilant."

  Ethan sighed helplessly and replied, "Fine. It's not like refusing would do any good. But since the Duke wasn't the one who killed Bishop Ronis, how will you explain his death?"

  "Obviously, you killed him." Commander Roland said flatly. "You're already bearing such serious charges; one more won't matter. Don't worry, this is just a temporary measure. When the time is right, we'll help clear your name."

  "I never imagined that after the real culprit died, I would inherit all his crimes." Ethan smiled wryly, then suddenly remembered. "But if I'm still the murderer, then... what about Sophia? She... she's also with me..."

  "Yes. According to what you said, she also has things to inherit. Just a bit different from yours." Commander Roland nodded, then said to Rodhart. "Go bring her here."