“No, that’s too risky.”
This was the first time Cliff had been so agitated in front of his younger brother.
“Doesn’t this mean giving back the hard-earned power to outsiders?”
After all, Klan was preparing to amend the laws, expanding the queen’s powers, which for Augustus and his kind was akin to an earthquake.
The power of the former prime minister had been released from its cage, and now there was an added queen. The centralization seen in the previous two generations of Augustus was all but drained, and they might even have to invest a little extra to recover.
“Big brother, she is not an outsider; she is my fiancée.”
Since taking the throne, Klan had grown closer to this middle-aged brother. Being former crown princes, they understood each other better among a crowd of siblings.
Not to mention this middle-aged brother had never shown much interest in the throne. If the kingdom were to elect a representative of honest men, he would probably be at the top of the list.
“But you are not married yet?”
“I will discuss it with the church. If it turns out that I cannot marry during the Saintess’s term, Lilith’s term as Saintess will be cut short, and the church will start selecting the next Saintess earlier.”
After speaking, Klan coughed twice, thankfully this time there was no blood.
“Your Majesty, are you really okay? Hasn’t the new holy water from the church been delivered yet?”
Cliff looked at his brother with great concern. To be honest, to ensure his own safety, Cliff had secretly kept some backup plans in place and had been closely monitoring the situation in the royal capital. He was possibly one of the few who understood the current situation as well as Klan did.
After Duke Lars fell, the kingdom did not see the expected burst of vitality; rather, the south and north sides of the kingdom became stagnant.
Especially with the Demon Clan continuing to grow stronger.
To outsiders, the two governors of the northern border seemed to be on good terms, and trade with the Demon Clan was running smoothly. As long as they could fend off the Anju Kingdom from the south, the king could regain his former power, and the Cape Kingdom would return to its peak era.
After all, the remaining dukes in the other three territories were considered loyal, and none had the chance to expand individually.
If he was given enough time to reform, Klan might just be able to catch up with the already established Anju Kingdom.
But only those in the thick of things knew that the northern border was a powder keg. The western regions seemed shrouded in the fog of war, where the real truth was unclear. People could only hear some wildly fantastical and unclear information from merchants.
Doug Lars was also building massive defenses in the harsh winter, and it could be said that once spring came to both sides, a battle was almost certain, depending only on the scale of the conflict.
Klan’s affliction was not an ordinary illness, but a curse planted by an assassin. The Magic Association was currently struggling to lift the curse, but fortunately, there had already been some progress.
The one who cast the curse had been found, which was why Klan was so eager. The influence of the Demon Clan was deeper than he had imagined, and they had already begun their schemes before even entering the royal capital.
The ascension of the new monarch of the Anju Kingdom had been much smoother compared to Klan’s, and the power in their hands could be described as vastly different. It was said that the new monarch there had completely taken control of the military and was using violent means to deter nobles from reducing their own powers in the name of reform, without inciting any internal strife.
Meanwhile, over here, Klan was still entangled with the nobles who held their own lands, and even the critical salt and iron industries were being reclaimed under Lilith’s proposals and negotiations.
Once both the northern border and the Anju Kingdom began to act simultaneously next year, the royal capital would certainly find itself at a loss, with the only prayer being that the two governors of the northern border along with the Demon Clan would escalate to a point of mutual destruction.
“The holy water from the church is running low, but the church’s lord is already thinking of ways to gather more holy water. If it can be combined with the Magic Association’s new potion, there might be a chance to lift the curse along with the illnesses appearing in the royal capital.”
Hearing this, Cliff sighed, “The Magic Association has finally become somewhat useful. But if that Saintess is indeed a true Saintess…”
Klan immediately interrupted Cliff.
“Big brother, she is my fiancée!”
“She is not just your fiancée.”
Cliff curled up a bit but continued to speak, “Your Majesty, do you know how many men she has been involved with before? Apart from the northern border, almost all three territories have some fondness for her, and there are even some men willing to be utterly devoted to her.”
“Do you realize how dangerous it is to hand power over to her?”
“That’s exactly what I’m thinking.”
Cliff was taken aback by Klan’s words.
Seeing that his big brother didn’t understand, Klan explained, “Big brother, don’t you know how Lilith reclaimed salt and iron back under our control? It was Lilith who reached out to the heirs of each territory for discussions.”
“Only Lilith can navigate these matters so adeptly, and only she has the charm to make these people submit to us. Cough cough!”
Seeing his brother begin to cough again, Cliff hurriedly took the handkerchief from the attendant and gently wiped the blood from his brother’s mouth.
The once-proud younger brother could only seek sympathy from his elder brother now. Moreover, his brother was already the king, which made Cliff feel both pity and relief that it wasn’t himself on the throne.
The king’s power was gradually being restored, and some people couldn’t wait any longer, beginning to take risks to make a move against the king. Luckily, this time it was just a chronic curse, which was not fatal for the royal family as long as it wasn’t an abrupt mortal blow like what happened to Augustus III. They could use vast resources to bring him back.
But this was also a warning; the reforms were approaching a stage of deep waters, and Klan faced a colossal force known as the old regime.
Cliff believed that if the situations were reversed, Klan might not be any worse off than that new monarch of the Anju Kingdom. But the traps laid by their father were simply too numerous, and now Klan had to bear the consequences of all of them.
Recalling the prophecy his father once told him, Cliff shook his head. Was it all really worth it? It seemed like he had just walked from one dead end into another.
“Alright, if everything goes smoothly, then that’s for the best. But if, and I mean if…”
“I know what you’re trying to say, big brother. My will is already written.”
Cliff was taken aback and said, “That’s not what I meant. Your Majesty, you’re still young, and this curse is not fatal for us. You won’t come to any harm.”
“Big brother, didn’t the death of Father King and my curse make you realize anything?”
Hearing this, Cliff immediately waved his hand, and all the attendants around them withdrew to maintain watch outside.
“The things I am doing now are even more difficult than what Father did. It wouldn’t be surprising if I were assassinated one day just like him, so I have already written my will and placed it in your care.”
“You’ve lost your mind!”
If this will hadn’t been entrusted to him by Klan, Cliff would have thought it was a poorly timed joke by some noble.
“You want that Lilith to become queen?”
“Only in name; later on, the power will be returned to us.”
“Do you think that’s possible?”
The will stated that if something unfortunate were to happen to Klan, there would be an heir possibly borne by Klan and Lilith who would take the throne, with Lilith exercising power on behalf of the child, known as regent.
If they did not have a child, then Lilith would directly ascend the throne and exercise the powers of the king until the reforms were completed.
As for the completion standards of the reforms, that would be determined by Cliff. In order to prevent anyone from using his older brother to create trouble, Klan even set a minimum time limit, during which Lilith would be a genuine queen.
“I trust her.”
“Foolish! You think you can do this just based on the power you just gained?”
Cliff could no longer hold back and slammed the will on the table.
“Then, big brother, tell me, who aside from Lilith could continue advancing the reforms? Can you?”
“I… I can’t, and no one else could either.”
Cliff considered it for a moment; he anticipated that he would not be able to bear the pressure upon assuming power, compromising with those nobles and rendering all of Klan’s current efforts in vain. If it were any other siblings, they might use the cancellation of reforms as a bargaining chip to please those nobles.
But the reforms must continue. If Anju saw the domestic policies fluctuate, they would likely act immediately. The current Cape Kingdom must put on a facade of strength to buy enough time for itself.
“That’s right; if Lilith truly became queen, then the reform would be her source of legitimacy. Whether she wishes to or not, she must continue with my reform policies.”
“You’re overestimating yourself, younger brother.”
Cliff’s address shifted from “Your Majesty” to “younger brother”: “The more complicated things are, the more likely they are to fall apart. Didn’t Father teach you this when you became the crown prince?”
“That’s why I need your support, big brother. This will may not even need to be used. Please, help me; now you are the only one I can trust.”
“And I’ve considered that whether in the other three territories or within the royal family, there are suitors for Lilith. Who knows, she might actually do better than I could.”
“Those are just men coveting your woman!”
Cliff felt like this situation had gone mad; it must be so. There was no reason for things to turn out this way, but Cliff had to admit that everyone seemed to like Lilith.
In truth, Lilith was merely fulfilling her role of achieving a perfect ending, winning the favor of everyone who could help. Yet this coincidentally allowed Klan to see the hope of supporting Lilith to ascend.
