Chapter 399
Swagger, Keep Swaggering
The time from Eivass’s approval being put into the briefcase to it being delivered to the Privy Council Ministers meeting in the Round Table Hall was less than twenty minutes.
Upon opening and glancing at the reply letter, the Camelot Minister gasped, feeling something buzzing in his head.
“My blood pressure, my blood pressure is rising!”
Eivass had signed his own name directly instead of using Queen Isabel’s.
—But in essence, there was no fundamental difference.
After all, this was a document submitted through the proper channels to Her Majesty the Queen, and Queen Isabel was currently nowhere on Glass Island. According to Avalon’s rules, such matters should be delayed until Isabel’s return before a formal approval could be made.
Eivass was not the Minister of the Imperial Seal, so theoretically, he should not have the right to view these documents.
Yet, not only had he seen them, but he had also unreservedly signed his own name to issue the approval in place of the Queen—undoubtedly, Queen Isabel had granted the authority of the Minister of the Imperial Seal to Eivass.
In theory, the Minister of Affairs could indeed do such a thing.
With direct authorization from the Queen, he could be temporarily regarded as the minister of any department.
But it wasn’t until he saw this reply letter that the Camelot Minister finally clarified one thing—
—Queen Isabel had indeed been sidelined by Minister Moriarty!
Before this, the Camelot Minister had been somewhat uncertain… Isabel’s sudden and abnormal behavior, was it because her previous actions were all a pretense, or was someone influencing her.
In other words…
Was Minister Moriarty the favored pet of the young Queen, or the powerful minister manipulating Avalon from behind the scenes.
Now, it seemed to be the latter.
But, how to put it…
The Camelot Minister felt rather relieved.
He had watched Isabel grow up.
If her previous actions were all just an act, and her true nature was that of a cold and rational powerhouse, it would be too hurtful… It would be a clear message that she had been wary of him all along and was now dropping the pretense.
Now, he could finally confirm that this was merely remote command from Minister Moriarty, like a puppeteer.
However, in reverse… the one who had outmaneuvered them was not the deep-thinking Queen. They, the old guard, were still struggling to match wits with the young man from afar.
The Camelot Minister remembered Eivass’s habit of always narrowing his eyes and smiling gently, a look that brought to mind a cunning fox.
He felt a chill run down his spine.
Eivass was only eighteen years old this year…
In the eyes of the Camelot Minister, he was still just a child. His grandson was considerably older than Eivass.
…In that case.
His own position…
The Camelot Minister pondered silently, closed the letter he had just read, and placed it back into the briefcase. He straightened his posture and, listening to the chaos and noise in the Round Table Hall, narrowed his eyes and remained silent.
“Minister Moriarty still can’t get out of bed?”
The surrounding ministers voiced their dissatisfaction: “Her Majesty has already left, what excuse does he have to claim he’s not feeling well?”
Then, ambiguous laughter echoed from the Round Table Hall.
“Perhaps he’s shy.”
“Maybe he was scared yesterday; I heard the murder scene was quite brutal.”
Someone casually remarked, “Or perhaps the young man feels he has nothing in common with us.”
“Don’t think that way,” another chuckled, seemingly gently, “Little Eivass might know he’s just a minister without a department, so he simply won’t attend meetings. After all, the Minister of Affairs is just an honorary position.”
“In that case, he’s quite well-mannered. He doesn’t reach for what doesn’t belong to him.”
“He’s the adopted son of the Moriarty Family, so it’s normal for him to be more sensible than his peers.”
“Alas, he’s already considered the head of the family. Her Majesty even has to call him Lord Moriarty…”
Phrases that seemed friendly but carried underlying malice echoed from all directions.
In the Round Table Hall without Her Majesty’s presence, the atmosphere was generally like this.
Rather than solemn discussions of state affairs, it resembled idle chatter or arguments in the streets. If not for the suppression by the Chief Knight, they would have fought several times every week.
Even with the Chief Knight’s intervention, knights would still occasionally settle feuds formed in the Round Table Hall with duels each year.
“—Silence!”
The Grand Guardian, as the first to speak, rapped the bell before him with a displeased expression.
His voice resonated throughout the Round Table Hall, and the knights quieted down again.
They did not personally know Eivass, so they held no grudges. They simply felt that Eivass had become a minister too easily, and both Queen Sophia and Queen Isabel had shown him obvious favoritism, which caused some imbalance in their hearts.
To most knights, Queen Isabel choosing a new Minister of Affairs like Eivass Moriarty, who was younger than herself, as her sole “team” was akin to admitting she had no helpers or confidantes. This was a very humble attitude, implying, “Everything is negotiable; I need support.”
It was precisely for this reason that when Isabel attended that Round Table Conference and displayed such an unusually firm attitude, they were so perplexed.
…But soon, some intelligent individuals suddenly realized that those who were now openly mocking Eivass were almost all ministers and knights from the High Tower faction.
However, the ministers from the Chocolate faction, led by the Camelot Minister, remained unusually silent.
Thus, they gradually fell silent as well.
The only ones left loudly proclaiming like clowns were the honorary knights of the Arbitration Hall, who were close to the Lloyd Society. They had few ministers among them, mostly being honorary knights from the Arbitration Hall.
In Avalon, anyone who reached the Fourth Tier of the Path of Authority automatically became a knight, whether they joined the Arbitration Hall or remained in the Judiciary. Thus, this was the faction with the most commoners. They held little real power and could only enter the Round Table Hall. They were also the most easily swayed by the financial overtures of the Lloyd Society.
The faces of the Chocolate faction ministers, who were aloof and held high positions of real power, were now, without exception, visibly growing displeased… even, one might say, fearful.
—Others might not know, but they were all aware.
Just yesterday afternoon, Minister Griffith had openly and clearly displayed hostility towards Eivass during a small meeting of the Chocolate faction. Few people who could become ministers were not astute—at that time, others had also felt a sense of incongruity, so they cautiously did not respond, merely observing Griffith’s performance.
At the time, they had thought Eivass had sent him to lure them into a trap!
But less than a day had passed… yesterday evening, Griffith was assassinated.
—And Eivass himself, who was “unwell” in the Round Table Hall, suddenly appeared in the news as an “enthusiastic passerby.”
Damn it, what an enthusiast!
The knights thought.
You normally never leave the Silver and Tin Hall—either at No. 14 Ronin Street, Moriarty Manor, the Silver and Tin Hall, or the Royal Law University. Eivass rarely dined at places where other ministers gathered… and inexplicably invited a young reporter with whom he had no prior connection to dinner.
That reporter wasn’t even an Extraordinary!
There was definitely something fishy going on here—though they couldn’t pinpoint why, and there was no evidence, the strong sense of incongruity made them dare not say a word, and they could only remain silent.
After the morning’s routine meeting concluded, these elite ministers gathered again at the Camelot Minister’s residence.
The Camelot Minister silently presented two reply letters to the ministers.
“Take a look, everyone.”
The Camelot Minister sighed.
The first was the reply letter Eivass had written to him yesterday in Queen Isabel’s name, signed by Isabel. The second was the order from Eivass, written by Lily on his behalf, which had just reached him.
After the ministers circulated them, their expressions became complex.
This was partly due to the existence of “informants” within the Chocolate faction, and partly due to their admiration and even fear of Eivass.
“…I actually have a question.”
The Minister of Education looked at the reply letter in his hand, his expression solemn and grave. “This reply from Her Majesty… did she write it herself?”
It was evident that Isabel was now completely controlled by Eivass, so it was possible that this letter was also written by Eivass.
“It doesn’t matter.”
The Camelot Minister said calmly, “Even if Her Majesty wrote it, it would certainly have been reviewed by Minister Moriarty. In other words, Minister Moriarty would definitely have known what Lord Griffith had said. That means… when Minister Moriarty saw Lord Griffith’s corpse, he already knew of his hostility towards himself and his adopted sister.
“And now he requests to personally verify this matter—I strongly advise everyone to distance yourselves from this affair. Minister Moriarty is by no means an incompetent who only argues with us in the Round Table Hall; he is a more ruthless character than ‘that Prince’.”
He was referring to Prince Lloyd from two hundred years ago.
“Isn’t this your problem?”
Someone asked the Camelot Minister with a sarcastic tone.
After all, they were a small association, with only a dozen or so people, all elites, and less than a fifth of the number of the High Tower faction. They undoubtedly saw each other as partners. In such a small group, a leak would naturally make others feel betrayed.
If Old Camelot didn’t handle it well, it would undoubtedly affect his position within this small group.
But the Camelot Minister simply scoffed fearlessly, “So what? This undoubtedly proves our loyalty to Her Majesty and Avalon.
“If we hadn’t noticed something was wrong and reported it immediately, do you know what consequences we would face if this matter were discovered first?”
He was referring to the demonic magic circle in Minister Griffith’s basement.
The Camelot Minister’s words effectively bound those who were not present “informers” and himself together—and now, no one dared to admit they were that informant, nor did anyone dare to admit they were not.
The former implied betrayal of the alliance, while the latter implied betrayal of the Queen.
Realizing the Camelot Minister’s strategy of blocking both ends, the person’s expression changed, and they immediately understood why the Camelot Minister dared to admit his role in leaking information.
And Old Camelot was very forthright, saying directly, “I advise everyone—I mean, those who haven’t written a letter yet, should also apologize to Her Majesty. You are all old men, and I don’t need to say much more.”
“However,” the Minister of Law Enforcement sighed softly, “are we apologizing to Her Majesty, or to Minister Moriarty?”
“—Careful with your words, Lord Carter.”
The Minister of National Defense glanced at the youngest minister present, besides the deceased Griffith, and warned, “Mr. Griffith is the one who lost his life after saying just that.”
He subtly replaced “Lord” with “Mister.” “Lord” was a respectful term for knights in Avalon, equivalent to a knight in Star Antimony. Only knights admitted to the Round Table Hall could be called “Lord.”
The Minister of Law Enforcement immediately stopped speaking.
He did indeed feel dread towards Eivass, who so unreasonably overturned everything.
Even more terrifying was that Eivass had acted flawlessly—
Everyone knew he was behind it, yet he left no trace.
Could such methods truly be conceived and executed by an eighteen-year-old student, orphaned and with all his elders gone?
“It doesn’t matter who ultimately received the letter; what matters is the attitude we took. After all, Mr. Griffith was assassinated after conspiring with us; and Eivass Moriarty has a clear alibi—even if he unusually arrived at a restaurant he had never visited before, inviting a reporter he had never met, the Arbitration Hall can confirm his non-involvement in Mr. Griffith’s murder.”
The Minister of National Defense said calmly, his expression unchanged, as if he had also been involved in writing the report, “Thus, the situation becomes—why was Griffith, who was colluding with Star Antimony, so close to us? Therefore, even as a precaution… I join Lord Camelot in advising everyone to bow their heads and apologize first.
“The first time, not writing a letter could be excused as not reacting in time, but if you don’t write one now… that would be a matter of attitude.”
The Minister of Law Enforcement’s expression changed, and as he looked around, he saw that almost everyone had adopted such a posture.
Their faces relaxed, and a smile appeared in their eyes.
—As if they were all loyalists who had written to Queen Isabel immediately, and only he had not.
But the Minister of Law Enforcement was certain that some of these colleagues were merely pretending. Even if they realized something was amiss with Griffith, not all of them would have immediately chosen to report it.
Swagger, keep swaggering.
However, he had no choice, as he was the first to speak up.
“Indeed, you are right.”
Minister Carter lowered his head and sighed, unable to resist complaining, “Are all these people from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs traitors? How many have been caught now? I remember the Minister of Maritime Affairs also came from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They are truly… those who have been to Star Antimony have ties with Star Antimony people, and those who haven’t also have ties with Star Antimony people…”
As he spoke, he suddenly recalled that the Minister of Education also came from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs—before becoming the minister of the Ministry of Education, he was the secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and was transferred by the Queen to a field he had no experience in.
So, Carter nodded and apologized, “Oh, forgive me, I didn’t mean you. It was just an exaggeration.”
The Minister of Education showed no anger, only a wry smile. “It’s not too much of an exaggeration.”
“Are there really so many traitors in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who are biased towards Star Antimony?”
The Camelot Minister asked curiously.
“Oh, not entirely…”
The Minister of Education thought for a moment and then cautiously added, “I mean, not all of them. At least some are biased towards Iris.”
“It’s a minor matter to side with the Iris people; siding with Star Antimony is a major issue.”
The Minister of National Defense casually quipped, “After all, Iris and we can be considered allies now.”
“What?” The Camelot Minister caught the detail sharply. “Is there a reason for that?”
The Minister of National Defense hesitated for a moment, but then sighed, “Never mind, you’ll know soon enough.
“Remember, the Iris people ceded a lot of benefits to us before, right?”
“Yes,” everyone exchanged glances, and the Camelot Minister cautiously asked, “Is there a reason?”
“The Iris people have requested us to station a Gryphon unit in Provence.”
Replied the Minister of National Defense.
Provence—that was a border city adjacent to the Star Antimony Kingdom.
Upon hearing this, their expressions turned tense.
The Camelot Minister confirmed, “Stationed? Under what pretext?”
“Anything will do. Queen Sophia’s suggestion is a friendly visit—Provence is preparing to host the ‘New Year Knight Festival.’ Use that as an excuse.”
The Minister of National Defense paused and explained, “But once we go, we won’t return for the time being.”
“What do the Iris people intend to do?”
Carter frowned. “Do they want us to defend their city for them? The Gryphon Legion isn’t good at defense—isn’t this really a trap to harm our Gryphon Legion?”
“No,” the Camelot Minister mused for a moment, narrowing his eyes, “I don’t think so…”
He keenly sensed that the Iris Kingdom must be planning something.
Their show of goodwill towards Avalon, their active cession of benefits—there was only one situation that could explain it.
That was their intention to go to war with Star Antimony.
To avoid being attacked from both sides, they needed to secure Avalon’s favor in advance.
The Camelot Minister pressed further, “Does Her Majesty know about this?”
“…Queen Sophia knows,” replied the Minister of National Defense. “The Grand Guardian also knows.”
“Queen Isabel should also know.”
Old Camelot tapped the table and slowly replied, “You should write to the Silver and Tin Hall immediately to inform Her Majesty of this matter.”
“But now…”
Queen Isabel is not present, and only Minister Moriarty is in the royal palace—
The Minister of National Defense hadn’t finished speaking when he realized.
The intention was to let Minister Moriarty know.
…Could the incident of Prince Lloyd in the past be repeated in this era?
The Minister of National Defense glanced deeply at Old Camelot and nodded slightly, “I understand. I will write to the Silver and Tin Hall now.”
Meanwhile.
Eivass, accompanied by Lily, had openly arrived at Griffith’s manor, which had already been sealed off by the Arbitration Hall.
Although he was searching for evidence, he had no one from the Inspection Bureau or the Inspection Department with him—Grand Arbitrator Lixia was personally following behind him.
“Hey, kid,” Lixia asked curiously, “What are you looking for?”
Eivass’s lips curved slightly, and he answered honestly, “Good stuff, of course.”
“Let me remind you, the Arbitration Hall, the Inspection Department, and the Inspection Bureau have already scoured this place three times. Are you sure you can still find anything good?”
“I’m sure.”
Eivass said slowly, “Some things can only be discovered when the right person is nearby.”
If it truly exists here, Eivass added in his heart.
At this moment, the Eye Demon had also returned to Star Antimony.
“It has been confirmed, Master…”
It vibrated the air, confirming with absolute certainty, “The true identity of ‘Alistair’ is Lady Viness Emil Zola Beyad.”
Today’s chapter is a combined one~
I’m still feeling under the weather… writing slowly while feeling dizzy, only just finished. I apologize, meow.
