"Fine. Do what you want. Besides, it is still a long time for that. Who knows, I will be an old man and you will still be the king in the future." said Angus.
"I wonder about that. Forget about it. You are still too young to understand it anyway." replied King Leon.
"Hmm?? Anyway, you should give a good explanation about all this mess. You know I am not a forgiving person when someone disturbs my peace." said Angus.
"Then, what did you want me to say? I believe you also already know who is behind all this mess." said King Leon.
"And did you expect me to let go of your son easily?" asked Angus.
"I hope so. But I don't think you will stay idle either. Unlike Eric, Dietrich has more… rash nature. Sometimes, he does as he pleases without thinking about the worst outcome. His inferiority complex also impaired his decision-making." said King Leon.
"However, he is still my son. I can just let you kill or shame him in public." added King Leon.
"Then, what did you propose? You don't mean I will silently swallow it, right?" said Angus.
"As much as I want you to do that, Lia will have my balls if I force it on you. We decide to let this matter be mediated by a neutral third party." said King Leon.
"Neutral Third Party?" said Angus in confusion.
"Yes. Have you heard about the Frostfall?" asked King Leon.
"Frostfall... If I am not wrong, that should be the ever-winter fiefdom under Count Flamewaver." said Angus.
"The neutral third party I talk about is located in this area." said King Leon.
"You are joking, right?" asked Angus.
"Did I ever joke with you?" asked King Leon back.
"You know that you practically control Count Flamewaver. Did you think I would honestly believe this party is not under your control?" retorted Angus.
"Well, there are no other choices. Unless you want to forget about this matter, we will be in this stalemate state. I may not be able to do anything to you without good reason. But, it is easy for me to prevent you from doing anything to Dietrich either." stated King Leon.
"So, what will you do?" asked King Leon.
Angus grimaced and frowned like eating shit. In fact, he also didn't want revenge and just forgot about this matter. Since no harm is indeed done. But, he knows if he lets this matter be, the princes may think of this as a sign of weakness and will push his bottom line more in the future.
Unless Angus gives the princes a real threat or harsh lesson, they will always try to disturb his peace, especially with King Leon as their backing.
Furthermore, he also knows the King will not interrupt or prevent the princes from annoying him since the king wants this conflict to happen.
The reason is to give all of them experience in political games and how to handle people like Angus in the future. In this case, King Leon indirectly uses Angus as learning material.
Seeing Angus' expression, "You don't need to worry about the neutrality of this third party. In fact, I am the one at a disadvantage by letting you go to them." said King Leon.
"Now, you are really making me curious about this third party." said Angus.
"They are called the guardians. Their leader is called the Last Bastion of Everwhite and the previous Shield of the Heart." said King Leon.
"Shield of the Heart?!" exclaimed Angus.
Shield of the Heart is not just a title but the most prestigious title in the Heart Kingdom. It is the only title that is on par with Royal King. This shows the power and importance of this title. Currently, the one that holds this title is King Leon himself.
The main job of Shield of the Heart is to protect the well-being of the kingdom from any kind of threat. Therefore, It is not rare for such a prestigious title to be held by King Leon.
However, Angus knows that these two titles were separated in the past. The Heart Kingdom adopted a monarch and aristocratic system since its creation. Sometimes, the king is not talented in combat and can only stay behind the backline.
Therefore, the Shield of Heart title is created to keep the kingdom safe through direct force. However, the previous long civil war taught everyone not to separate this title anymore.
Fortunately, King Leon is more than capable of becoming Shield of the Heart and Royal King himself. In fact, he did an excellent job of bearing these two important titles.
"Are they the remnants of the last opposition?" asked Angus after thinking for a while.
"Yes." nodded King Leon.
"And you want me to meet them?" asked Angus again.
"Yeah." said King Leon.
"Why? What is your plan?" asked Angus in confusion.
"Although I am the King and could do anything in this kingdom, I can't choose a good successor without being biased. It is better if I leave this matter to him. In terms of experience and judgment, he is many times better than Jade and me." said King Leon.
"Well, if you feel it is too much of a problem, you could just forget about getting revenge or making trouble for Dietrich." added King Leon.
"One thing… Did you accept this third-party decision even though it may cost your son's life?" asked Angus.
King Leon didn't directly reply and closed his eyes.
"Angus, you should know from Jayna. I am not a good father. No, I am probably the worst kind. I sacrificed three of my talented and beautiful daughters. Two of them died and one of them died in humiliation." said King Leon solemnly.
"I hope I will never again experience a condition where I must choose between the kingdom and my family. But, if it is necessary to appease you and our kingdom's future, I.. I will gladly do it again." said King Leon with difficulty.
"*Sigh* You make things more difficult and complicated. It is not like I am going to kill Dietrich or something. I just want to teach him to not mess with me. So, when will I meet this third party of yours?" asked Angus.
"It is before the end of the year." said King Leon.
"Why that time?" asked Angus curiously.
"First, you must prepare and go to the Undermine Council. Second, an important event will be held inside Frosfall." explained King Leon.
"What event?" asked Angus.
"I can't say unless you enter that place at that time of the event by yourself." said King Leon.
Angus frowned a little bit before asking again.
"Did the princes know about this?" asked Angus.
"Nope. Only the old Duke and Duchess know about this event." replied King Leon.
"I guess it is also why you are not divulging any information about this guardian and the previous Shield of the Heart, right? So, will the princes come with me again this time." asked Angus.
"No. They are not qualified yet. Only you and Jayna are qualified to enter that place." said King Leon.
Hearing this makes Angus question King Leon's sanity before realizing the king's true intent.
'An event?! It means something will happen there. If something similar happens, like during the Nirvas trip… I see. His real plan is not only to mediate our conflict or protect Dietrich.'
'It is for those Guardians. Cunning bastard!! No wonder everyone recognizes this man as the true king.' thought Angus inwardly.
"I suppose you want me to bring Anna or possibly master Mira to come along." said Angus.
"It will be great if Master Mira also goes there. So, will you be able to do it?" asked King Leon directly.
King Leon wasn't surprised that Angus realized his intention and was confident he would accept his request.
"What else can I say? If I don't do this, you will probably encourage your sons to even annoy me or use other methods to make me leave." said Angus.
"Hahaha… Actually, I didn't play any hands in this current Dietrich's matters. All of this is his doing. I just use the present opportunity. Besides, I prefer to warn them rather than encourage them to annoy you."
"Angus, your power and development are off-chart. Even our Duke and Duchess will have a hard time fighting against you. The only people who could stop you are only pseudo-seventh grade and seventh grade. Even then, there is no guarantee you could be caught easily."
"Basically, no one in this kingdom could stop you if you want to do something. Not even me. If it is not because of strict noble rules and your age, I probably already make you one of our hidden Dukes." stated King Leon about Angus' situation.
'Tch... So, you do not deny using other methods. What a cunning old bastard. I hope twin Gem will blue-ball you for a long time.' cursed Angus inwardly.
"Fine. Just let me know when the time is. Did you also want me to do the same thing with the Dwarf?" asked Angus.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m