Chapter 407: Settling In
Because everything happened so suddenly, Armand, as one of the leaders, had just returned to the base when he immediately became busy again.
Evelia originally thought she could help somehow, but since she was in a “just rescued” state, both Armand and Carle suggested she rest first. They told her that if they needed her, they would come find her directly.
Arranging a place for Evelia was left to Anna, who rushed over as soon as she heard Evelia had returned, along with Rachel, who came with her. The two of them were in charge of taking care of Evelia’s temporary needs.
When Anna saw that Evelia had returned safely, she naturally felt happy for her.
Ever since the fire, Anna had been worried about both Evelia and Armand. As her friend, she sincerely wished to see Evelia’s safe return and happiness.
When she heard Evelia had gone missing, Anna knew that as a civilian, she couldn’t really help. So instead of bothering the busy knights, she chose to quietly help them in small ways, doing what she could while keeping her own worries bottled up, so others wouldn’t have to spend energy comforting her.
Half a month isn’t too long, but it’s not short either.
After blowing up her own dress shop, Anna had been constantly thinking about the wedding dresses destroyed in the blast. They had been nearly a year’s worth of her hard work, each one custom-made for Evelia. But for everyone’s safety, she had no choice but to let go of her creations.
Here at the base, there were only daily necessities and food, no materials for making clothes, so Anna could only work on designs in her sketchbook, planning to confirm them with Evelia once she returned.
Now, she had finally waited long enough. Evelia was back, safe and sound.
Or rather, mostly safe, because Evelia still had many wounds, big and small. The sight of her neck wrapped tightly in a bandage with blood still seeping through was shocking for a civilian like Anna.
She had wanted to give Evelia a big hug when they reunited, but after seeing her injuries and torn clothes, Anna only gently held her hand.
“…You finally came back.” Anna carefully squeezed Evelia’s palm. “I missed you.”
“Mm, me too.”
In Evelia’s illusion, Anna had died in the explosion at the dress shop.
Aside from Rachel and Armand, Anna was the person Evelia interacted with most and was closest to, so Evelia valued her greatly.
While Anna had been worried about Evelia’s disappearance, Evelia had also been worried about her friend, who in her view had also gone missing.
Now, seeing Anna safe and sound, Evelia felt much more at ease.
“Alright—huff, alright.”
It seemed Anna was saying this to herself. She took a deep breath, sniffled, and blinked her reddened eyes before showing a somewhat forced smile.
“Rachel, take Miss Evelia to get cleaned up first. I’ll go prepare some clothes for her to change into.”
Anna had countless things she wanted to say to Evelia, but she knew that in her current state, on the verge of tears, she might make Evelia feel uncomfortable. So, she held back her emotions, handed Evelia over to Rachel, waved to her, and turned to leave.
“……”
Rachel looked in the direction Anna had run off, wanting to say something but stopping herself. This kind of mutual care and friendship was a rare thing for Rachel. After all, as a once reclusive alchemist, she had basically never had any friends.
“—Ah! Sister Evelia! Rachel!”
But now, her life was different.
The little white-haired girl suddenly peeked out from the corner and ran over. When she saw Rachel, her eyes immediately lit up.
This was Rachel’s current friend, or more accurately, her “little friend.” In a way, the two of them could be considered friends despite their big age difference.
“Slow down, Salana.”
Following behind her was her mother, Lady Melian, Carle’s wife.
Although she was known in high society as an elegant lady, she wasn’t the type who liked to always carry around the weight of a heavy gown.
After coming to the base, she knew that fancy outfits were pointless, so she changed into light trousers and tied her hair up high. Her style was now completely different from her noblewoman image, looking neat, capable, and even carrying a certain mature kind of charm.
“Miss Evelia, it’s been a long time.”
“Yes, it has, Lady Melian.”
While Rachel was being tightly hugged by Salana, Melian greeted Evelia, her face full of relief at seeing Evelia mostly unharmed.
Although she wasn’t as close to Evelia as Anna was, when she had just passed Anna, who was crying, perhaps some of that emotion had affected her, causing ripples in her own heart.
Since Carle and Armand had been friends for many years, Melian was naturally willing to interact with Armand and had good feelings toward him. Seeing the relationship between Armand and Evelia so close to a happy ending, yet still going through so many twists, made her feel sympathy for them as a married woman herself. Fortunately, it seemed everything would soon be over.
Now, the only thing left was the final stage.
Armand’s agreement with the Crown Prince back then was that he would serve him until he successfully seized the throne.
Now was the time for Armand to fulfill that promise. Even though he was no longer the Royal Knights’ captain, and to the outside world, officially a dead man, since he had made that promise, Armand would not run away at the last moment.
“According to inside information, most of the people left in the palace now are under the Second Prince. Although it’s unlikely the Second Prince would do anything too obvious to the Crown Prince immediately after the King’s death, there’s no telling if he’ll use the current lack of information to do something in secret. For example, right now, the news of the King’s death probably hasn’t even spread yet.”
Inside the temporary office, Carle sat in a chair covered in rust spots. Across the desk from him was Armand, lost in thought.
“Hmm…” Armand gave a short hum. “But if we act recklessly now, we won’t be able to hold our position in public opinion later.”
To become king, you not only need strength but also a good reputation. A ruler needs the support of the people. Otherwise, becoming a hated tyrant is never a lasting plan.
“So you mean…”
“Protect the Crown Prince, and throw dirt on the Second Prince.”
Armand was all too familiar with this kind of tactic; after all, he himself had been slandered plenty of times by the Second Prince’s people. They even spread baseless rumors, like claims of X impotence, among noble ladies. The Second Prince’s dirt was truly filthy.
“That banquet fire still has no official explanation. So this time, let’s give it one, one that works against him. Have Clund write up some conspiracy theories, then find a few shady little workshops that value money over their lives, and make some fake newspapers to send out, especially to the victims who suffered losses or lost family members, both nobles and commoners. Get them to spread the story and put pressure on the Second Prince’s faction. Then hire a few troublemakers to stir things up and push the victims’ families’ emotions even higher.”
As long as one side makes a move for any reason, that’s the moment to claim “self-defense.”
Once there’s a reason to start fighting, no one will care what the real cause of this civil war was.
They wouldn’t even need a direct army-on-army clash. Just finding the Second Prince and cutting off his head would be enough.
And for that kind of job, the people who had been “trained” like them were more than skilled.