[Vol. 8] Chapter 305: The Imperial Palace, Final Stop
“Hmph...”
Hearing this, the commander of the palace guards gave a cold snort. He did not drop his suspicion of the two young girls just because of a witness’s words. Instead, he asked in a harsh voice.
“Then where did you two come from? Since you are staying here, did you hear or see anything unusual last night?”
“Tsk...”
With the Dragon God’s temper, of course she would not bother to answer such rude questioning from a mortal. In truth, she didn’t even know how to respond. Luckily, the priestess had already prepared herself. She quickly stepped forward to speak in place of her silent and cold-faced dragon, pretending to look puzzled.
“Officers, what happened? Are you perhaps investigating the attack on Her Highness the Princess last night?”
“Enough nonsense! Answer this general’s question immediately!”
Crack!
The officer’s scolding had just ended when a faint strange cracking sound came from behind. Without even looking, Violet already knew, it must be the Dragon God, who was so angry that she moved recklessly, and by accident, her small finger had sunk straight into the solid metal of the doorknob!
Violet broke into a cold sweat inside. She quickly coughed lightly to cover the sound, then raised her hand to take out the forged documents she had prepared, explaining their identities as travelers from another place.
Fortunately, even though these guards were harsh, they still followed procedure. After a long struggle, Violet finally managed to send the fierce palace guards away. Only then did the dragon girl release the poor doorknob, which had been twisted and deformed by her little hand. She stared at the back of the guard commander as if looking at a dead man, frowned slightly, and said,
“Master, that ant was far too arrogant! He said a bunch of useless nonsense only to look for an excuse to cause trouble and demand benefits. He even dared to try extortion from you, what great courage!”
“Well now, Xiao Guang actually noticed that hidden intention?”
The priestess tilted her head in mild surprise. It seemed that the guard commander’s troublemaking had not angered her at all. Instead, her beautiful eyes carried a smile.
“There’s really no need to be angry. In this world, problems that can be solved with money are usually the simplest. That man was annoying, yes, but his words and behavior also gave us a lot of useful information. That’s why I purposely didn’t bribe him, so I could guide the conversation and keep it going.”
“Uh... that gave information?”
The dragon girl was stunned for a moment. The anger on her face faded quite a bit, replaced by curiosity.
“So what did Master figure out?”
“Hmm... quite a lot. For example, since that man still had the free time to try and get some money out of us in such a situation, it shows that the higher-ups are not putting too much pressure on him. In other words, the investigation order probably came only from the council or that regent prince, not from the Emperor himself.”
“But the Emperor has an intelligence bureau with many spies. No matter what the others are busy with, his people would have told him at once about his princess being attacked and killed. Since he is not paying much attention to this matter, there are only two possible explanations.”
As she spoke, Violet raised two fingers.
“The first possibility is that he really is too busy, or he simply doesn’t care if one or two children die out of his dozens. So he ignores it completely. And the other possibility...”
In that moment, a flash of sharp light passed through the Dragon God’s eyes. She suddenly realized and said,
“Oh, I get it! The other possibility is that this was something he secretly ordered his men to do. Of course he wouldn’t want anyone to discover the truth, so he allowed the palace guards to play tricks and delay the investigation! Master, am I right?!”
“Smart. At least, the chance is very high.”
“Hehe... so Master, this is the thing you’ve been waiting for? Then what do we do next?”
The priestess only smiled and shook her head.
“Nothing. Let’s go. It’s about time. We’ll meet with the Sword Saint once preparations are ready, then we can leave here and start planning for the Sea alliance’s infiltration of the Imperial Palace.”
“If my feeling is right, the secret hidden there... will be far more shocking than anyone expects.”
…………………………………………
In the Angel City, there are famous landmarks like the Holy Academy and the Grand Church. These places have long histories, unique styles, and are well-known to people everywhere. They are important symbols of the Goddess Church’s culture.
But in the capital of the Austre Empire, Frederick City, the huge city has only one true center, standing above all other buildings, the Grand Imperial Palace.
The Grand Imperial Palace, often called simply the Imperial Palace or Royal Palace, as its name suggests, is the home of the highest rulers of the Austre Empire through the generations.
Although the Austre Empire is the youngest of the five great powers, only rising about a hundred years ago to unite the eastern world, already nine emperors have ruled, including the current Emperor Leonis Frederick. The speed of these changes is so fast that people can hardly believe it.
One reason is that the Austre Empire values strength above all. Just like in a lion pride, only the strongest lion can lead. It is common for sons to take the throne from fathers, or for brothers to fight each other for power. Not only is this not condemned, it has even become an unwritten rule in the royal family.
Another reason is the royal family’s special bloodline. This bloodline gives them great power and luck, making them fit to rule a vast empire. But, as the saying goes, nothing comes for free. For the Fredericks, the price is also heavy.
The [Lion’s Ring], which awakens their bloodline, also shortens their lifespan. This is especially true for those who become emperor. No matter how strong each emperor is, few can live past fifty, often dying earlier than ordinary people. This is the price of being Emperor.
Now, Emperor Leonis Frederick has ruled for more than twenty years. He is already past fifty, living longer than most emperors before him. Though his body is still strong, his fate of short life is impossible to avoid. By past patterns, he likely doesn’t have much time left.
The short lives of emperors are not only about age. It is as if their luck for the later half of life is spent too early. Once they reach a certain age, disasters follow one after another. Accidents, sickness, natural disasters, or assassinations. In the end, most die suddenly and violently.
Because of this, many emperors, even when they still seemed healthy, would begin choosing heirs early, just in case. The empire today is clearly at such a stage.
After Emperor Leonis personally started the full-scale war against the Holy Empire, he slowly stopped handling daily government affairs. Instead, he focused on the army and the war, while giving more power and chances to Prince Xiluo. To many people watching closely, this was a clear signal.
The Emperor has already started training the next ruler.
War is like a double-edged sword, it carries both risk and reward. Such a large, world-level war will bring massive results. If the Empire wins, all is well. But if it loses, the damage will be huge, and someone will need to take responsibility to reduce the negative effects.
So Emperor Leonis’s decision to step back could mean two things. Some say it is a scheme, letting others take the blame if the war fails. But more likely, he knows his time is short. He may be preparing to step down willingly and take responsibility if needed, while also training his heir to rule.
No one can know the true thoughts of an emperor, nor can anyone predict where the future will go. But one thing is certain.
Right now, the crown prince Xiluo Frederick is extremely important. Nothing must happen to him!
So after the assassination attempt on Prince Xiluo, the palace guards of the capital acted at once. They locked down the four city gates and began a house-to-house search, almost like a carpet sweep.
However... there was one exception.
“Clatter, clatter, clatter...”
With the steady sound of wheels turning, a convoy carrying all kinds of food slowly entered the palace through a side gate.
Deep inside one of the wagons, the dragon girl and the priestess lady were hiding in a cramped space, in a very strange position.
Surrounded tightly by piles of fruits and vegetables, the two girls had no choice but to press their bodies close together. Their arms and legs had almost no space to move, and their skin was pressed against each other in large areas. Although their relationship was unusually close and such contact was not rare, it still felt a little awkward.
Breathing in the familiar scent around her, the dragon girl secretly rubbed against the black-haired girl’s perky bottom. While happily taking this little advantage, she still pretended to complain softly in a dissatisfied tone:
“Master, if we’re sneaking in, then let’s sneak in. But why do we have to use such a troublesome way? The guards here are just ordinary people. Even if they all came together, they couldn’t stop us for even a moment. And even if we don’t want to be seen, don’t you still have that… what’s-it-called thing? This place is way too cramped...”
Feeling the big fluffy tail wrapped around her waist, swinging happily back and forth, the priestess knew very well her pet’s real thoughts behind her words. She could only answer patiently.
“Yes, we could enter the palace easily. But this place is connected to the World Sustainer Project. Nobody knows what might be hidden here, so being careful is better. And think about it, if you and I move separately from Nitila, and we suddenly get into conflict, what kind of danger will that bring to them in return?”
“After all, it was their group that gave us the information. The Sea Alliance has probably planned this operation for a long time. We can’t just demand that they throw everything away because of us. And if we really do find those prisoners locked up in the palace, dealing with what comes after will be a huge problem. If nobody takes care of it, what should we do if we meet that situation?”
“Ugh... fine.”
Shaking her head as if unwilling, the dragon girl stopped complaining. While quietly enjoying the warmth and fragrance so close to her, Violet sent out a small thread of spiritual power outside the cart, scanning the surroundings like eyes in every direction.
To be honest, there were clearly fewer palace guards than before. Normally, just the attack on Prince Xiluo wouldn’t be enough to cause this level of chaos. But the death of another imperial princess, Cheng, had acted like a spark, making the situation much worse.
Cheng, one of the younger princesses without much background, was not nearly as important as Prince Xiluo. But while he only suffered light wounds in the attack, she died on the spot, and her heart was even cruelly cut out. Such shocking news couldn’t stay hidden forever. By now, the whole capital knew about it.
Two attacks against members of the royal family in such a short time was no longer a personal matter, but an open challenge to imperial power. It was said that even while still recovering from his wounds, Prince Xiluo flew into a rage after hearing the news. He ordered the city guards and palace guards to fully mobilize and to catch the assassins within three days, no matter what.
In the hundred years since the empire was united, almost no such terrible events had ever happened. If this matter was not handled well, it wouldn’t just be high officials facing blame, even lower-ranking soldiers could be punished.
So, large numbers of palace guards were sent out into the outer city to search and arrest suspects. The whole Frederick City was in a state of fear. No assassins were found, but street gangs, bandits, and thieves were arrested in groups and thrown into the guard stations instead.
As for the risk that pulling too many guards out of the palace might weaken its defenses? Almost nobody worried about that. After all, this was the royal stronghold. Even without the guards, there were still the hidden mechanisms, and powerful magic formations to protect it. It was said to be as secure as a fortress.
Well… okay, maybe there was still a tiny little hole in that defense.
Through her all-directional sight, Violet watched the palace grounds around her. Even though she wasn’t doing a full-scale scan, she could still see much farther and clearer than ordinary people. Since it was her first time coming here, she couldn’t hide her curiosity and noticed many interesting things along the way.
The Imperial Palace was huge, so huge that in a way, it was basically the inner city of Frederick City itself.
After the empire’s first great emperor unified the land, he moved the capital here. The original city was fully included inside the palace grounds, rebuilt and expanded outward. After more than a hundred years of growth, it became the massive capital it was today.
As they passed along, Violet saw gardens for rare herbs, pastures for magical beasts, canals dug by hand to bring in water, workshops for crafting, and even large-scale military factories, almost everything could be found inside.
It was easy to imagine: if war or rebellion broke out here, the palace could close itself off completely. With tens of thousands of guards and so many resources, it could survive and defend itself for a very long time. In fact, not even the other great powers could match this level of preparation.
This country is seriously hardcore…