Chapter 180: Meg’s Extreme Aggression
Charles Dross had not been awake for long after getting out of bed.
While he was having breakfast, he suddenly heard news of a visitor.
“Who is it? You don’t have an appointment?”
The Trade Minister frowned deeply. Since his servant said “someone,” it meant it wasn’t one of the ministers or major merchants who frequented his home—he knew them well enough. When they came to report, they would at least state the visitor’s name.
This gave Dross a vague sense of foreboding.
— And soon, this premonition proved true.
“It’s me, why?”
Even before arriving, a cheerful and loud voice carried from afar: “Do I need an appointment to enter your house?”
The person ignored the servant’s attempt to block them and walked straight in.
It was Grand Arbitrator Meg!
Dross broke out in a cold sweat.
He didn’t fear Queen Sophia, as she was indeed good-tempered and rational… Her Majesty the Queen was skilled at compromise, yet not a constant compromiser. She could stabilize chaotic situations and unite fragmented influences. In Avalon, a place rife with tyrants, she was a rare and wise ruler.
But Meg, that old woman, was unreasonable.
Furthermore, as the Grand Arbitrator, she truly had the authority to deal with him.
Let alone him, a mere minister; if she were dissatisfied with the Queen, she could even demand a new king be chosen from the royal family. Of course, this was a power she technically possessed. Not to mention her, but past Grand Arbitrators had hardly ever used it.
Precisely because Meg’s power was so immense, she was unwilling to use it to avoid suspicion.
She didn’t want people to think she could manipulate the Queen or control the top officials of the Round Table Hall… Dross knew that old lady cared a great deal about her reputation. This was perhaps her only flaw… she was too concerned with appearances.
The result was that Meg had not attended the Round Table Hall for a long time.
Because she disliked pointless bickering. And in the Round Table Hall, it was normal for a bill to be debated for months; after all, they were not in a hurry.
This slow-paced life would make her itchy—in Meg’s style, she wished she could force everyone to give their stance immediately after reading a bill, disallowing abstentions, and executing the decision right after the vote.
Naturally, others could not do that. Such matters involved too many implications, affecting each person, family, and faction differently. They couldn’t be handled so simply. Any proposal that changed the status quo would satisfy some and displease others. They needed to go through complex alliances, compromises, and concessions to pass.
And in this process, it was their time to reap benefits.
If proposals were passed too much on intuition, maintaining equitable fairness, in the end, they would offend everyone—because compared to bills that benefited them, people always remembered the bills that were detrimental to them more clearly.
Old Mrs. Meg, who came from a village commoner background and rose through the Inspection Bureau system to the Arbitration Hall, simply didn’t understand these intricate political maneuvers.
She was too just, to the point of not understanding politics.
“Your Excellency, Grand Arbitrator…”
Dross immediately put down his cutlery, wiped his hands, and respectfully stood up.
Meg, who was short and only reached his chest, unceremoniously patted his round belly and scoffed: “You’ve gotten as fat as a pig, Charles. When was the last time you exercised?
“Do you remember you were on the team back then? Can you still run now?”
Charles Dross and Meg were the same age; they were classmates at the Royal Law University. However, they belonged to different faculties. Meg was from the Supervisor’s faculty, while Dross graduated from the Law Master’s faculty.
Fighting for their respective faculties, they were fierce rivals on the field—for the overly short Meg, the tall and strong Charles was a formidable opponent back then. Among Law Masters, who were generally as thin as sticks, Charles was one of the few men who exercised regularly and possessed well-developed muscles.
And now…
The muscles in his limbs were loose, with dark patterns resembling lightning or wrinkles. Dross’s round head had little hair left, and even his temples and scalp were covered in fat.
His once deep-set and righteous face now looked old, fat, and ugly. Watching him awkwardly move his body, Meg almost burst into laughter. But the laughter caught in her throat and couldn’t come out.
“—How did you turn into this?”
Meg frowned deeply.
“I’ve gotten old, Your Excellency, Grand Arbitrator…”
Charles smiled helplessly: “The vitality of the Fourth Tier and Fifth Tier bodies is completely different. Besides, I failed a few times before ascending to the Fourth Tier… I’m also nearing my end.”
“Heh.”
Meg sneered: “So you let yourself turn into a pig? Along with your brain, covered in lard! You dared to associate with people from Noble Red, didn’t you?”
“Ah, you can’t say that…”
The Trade Minister quickly said: “Didn’t the report from the Inspection Department already prove my innocence?”
“Yes, they said you were innocent, but I don’t believe them.”
Meg crossed her arms and leaned against the cabinet, sneering: “Are the Inspection Department’s reports always accurate? I only trust my eyes and my heart. What if I don’t need a report?”
“You’re being unreasonable…”
Dross argued helplessly.
He called out: “Diomedes!”
His elven butler appeared silently at the entrance.
“What, Meg said unceremoniously, “Do you want to turn hostile?”
“I would not dare, Your Excellency, Grand Arbitrator.”
Diomedes bowed respectfully and said in a deep voice: “The Dross Family will not fight against you under any circumstances.”
“You can speak for the Dross Family now?”
Meg laughed: “Is that okay with you, Mr. Diomedes?”
Seeing that neither of them offered any defense, she clicked her tongue, feeling somewhat bored.
She had indeed come to pick a fight deliberately.
But they were like marshmallows, collapsing with a single punch—this made it uninteresting.
Moreover, if Dross was a scoundrel, Diomedes would follow him…
“Let’s hear it, Mr. Diomedes,” Meg commanded, “Did Charles Dross cooperate with Noble Red?”
A trace of struggle appeared on Diomedes’s face, but when Meg said “Hmm?”, a silver ring suddenly appeared in the old elf’s eyes, and he blurted out: “Yes, Mr. Dross contacted Noble Red through Secretary Laff…”
“From where?”
“The initial contact point was the Pelican Bar. Later, after Mr. Eivass Moriarty destroyed it, they switched to the abandoned Chemical Plant in the Lloyd District, which was then also destroyed by Edward Moriarty.”
“Oh.”
Meg narrowed her eyes: “Is that why he targeted Eivass?”
“I don’t know,” Diomedes replied.
“Then tell me yourself,”
Meg narrowed her eyes and looked back at Dross, commanding: “Spill it all.”
The silver ring, like a lunar eclipse, was reflected in her pupils. When it reflected in Dross’s eyes, it directly transformed into a brand that eroded his thoughts.
He could not resist Meg’s Word Spirit, and could only confess: “I was just doing business, buying some contraband from Noble Red and selling it to those who needed it in this country…”
“Specifically? Keep talking, and your accomplice—who is your superior?”
“We’re talking about Alchemical Bombs, firearms, and some alchemical raw materials…”
As he said this, his expression changed drastically.
But he couldn’t control his mouth and could only continue: “The person I’m currently in contact with is Vice President Boka of the Lloyd Society. We’ve been friends for a long time. He was caught by Diomedes during a dismemberment case, so I have leverage over him. He was able to become a judge because I sent Diomedes to eliminate his rival…”
“Oh, so he owes you? Speak your mind.”
“Yes, ever since then, I’ve had him under my control. He thinks we’re partners, but in reality, I just want to use him. Or rather, compared to Lloyd, I think Boka is more suitable to manage the Lloyd Society. Because Lloyd wants to usurp royal power, which I believe is impossible and cannot be done by that giant bastard; while Boka merely wants merchant privileges, which is a more feasible plan…”
“Alright, I understand,”
Meg nodded and said calmly: “The situation is clear now. Come with me. I think this is enough to put you away for a few years.
“—Or do you want me to arrest you myself?”
“…No need,”
The silver halo in his pupils faded, and Dross forced a bitter smile.
He never expected to be directly arrested by Meg.
But this shouldn’t be the case… When had she become so aggressive?
She didn’t even look at the Inspection Department’s report, nor did she convene a meeting of the Round Table Hall. She went to arrest someone based solely on her own judgment… Had she taken some sort of stimulant?
Or perhaps…
“What are you thinking about now?”
Suddenly, as he relaxed, Meg attacked again: “Tell me what you’re thinking now.”
“I’m thinking, are you close to death now?”
Dross blurted out: “Logically speaking, you’re usually dissatisfied with everyone, but since you don’t understand, you choose not to touch or manage it, only handling matters within your purview—which is the main affairs of the Arbitration Hall, namely, the sentencing of major figures involved in cases.
“I think this is because you don’t know the consequences of taking action yourself, so you choose to maintain the status quo as a safeguard. But now you’re suddenly taking such drastic action. Anyone who knows you well should know this is not your usual behavior…”
“Is it that obvious?”
Meg smiled dismissively: “I underestimated you then—your observation skills are still decent.
“But don’t mention that kind of thing. Go to the Inspection Bureau and stay there for a while. I’ll go talk to His Majesty about you. Or, would you like to go yourself?”
“As you command.”
A ring lit up in Dross’s pupils, and he said so.
Diomedes, standing beside him, remained silent, not uttering a single word.
