Chapter 420: Chapter 420 Your Two-faced Tactics Aren’t Surprising to Me_1
The narrow living room was divided by a small tea table, with single-seater sofas lined up against the walls on both sides. Heinz and Sera sat side by side, with a round tea table between them, while Aiden sat opposite them.
"To be honest, Earl Hofman, your duplicity didn’t surprise me. After all, to some extent, it was a result of my own guidance..." Aiden said, "But wasn’t this move a bit too ruthless? Coming out and immediately killing everyone."
"What else was I supposed to do, wait for them to use the telegraph to contact the King to strip me of my position and then wipe out my subordinates?" Heinz replied calmly, "Before returning to the country, I need to secure time to negotiate with the opposition."
"Those accusations against the King, you did deliver them quite convincingly." Aiden teased.
"I had to give my subordinates an explanation. To suddenly accept such a drastic change, a sufficiently exaggerated reason is needed." Heinz stared into Aiden’s eyes, "You despise my methods? Alright, I understand. But please don’t expect any kind of moral standards from the head of espionage. The notion ingrained in me since I could remember is that there’s only one ’right’ in this world, which is to use all means necessary for the advancement of this country—aside from this, all other moralities can be discarded. Framing and killing are trivial matters; I’m accustomed to the dirty work."
"So, to prevent the internal division of the nobility, you’re willing to strike down even your own lover," Aiden nodded, "But now your stance has completely reversed. Just minutes ago, you were serving such a ’tyrant’, and now you’ve turned against him without hesitation."
"Since Sera is intent on seizing real power, then quickly dethroning the current King, or making the King abandon the new policies, would also stop the splitting situation. He must either be finished or lose the justification to target Sera. To survive in political struggles, one must either be the smartest or the cruelest, it’s one or the other." Heinz said.
"I understand that, but you seem to have changed sides too quickly for my liking," Aiden said, "To be honest, it makes me wonder when you might change allegiances again."
"Rather than saying I change quickly, it’s more like I’ve found what I truly believe in. I do want to protect Sera, and after realizing that, there’s nothing for me to hesitate about." Heinz responded, "I know this might sound like an excuse, but when I was carrying out assassination missions, it was truly painful..."
"That I do believe, compared to how you cleaned out those ’commissioners’, you were far gentler with me," Aiden said with a smile, nodding his head, "It almost makes me want to thank you for showing mercy before. If you had been as ruthless with me from the start, I might have found it hard to handle."
"You flatter me. When it comes to manipulating politics, influencing people’s hearts through their autonomous choices is much more sophisticated than suppression and brainwashing. If it weren’t for your fanning the flames, Sera and I wouldn’t have come this far," Heinz replied before shifting the conversation, "I guess... you’ve also used similar methods to influence Sera, right? Otherwise, with her personality, she wouldn’t have made such a decision so quickly."
At those words, Sera looked at Aiden in surprise, her series of strange dreams, and the realities that coincided perfectly with the dreams—rethinking about it now, perhaps it wasn’t any sort of "premonition".
Aiden, however, didn’t even glance at her: "I like to think that I did a good deed."
"I must admit, at least for now, I am grateful to you," Heinz said, slightly bowing his head, "Allow me to express my thanks."
"No need for thanks, a tangible reward is what counts." Aiden said, looking at Heinz, "You know what I want."
"If Mr. Gistas is willing to make a trade..." Heinz said, "I would like to get the secret technique that allows one to change appearance."
"I could teach you that ’secret technique’, but you might not be able to use it," Aiden pointed out.
"That doesn’t mean I won’t have the opportunity to master it in the future. I just think such power has its value," Heinz responded.
"If we’re to make a fair trade on this matter, then you still owe me a favor," Aiden said earnestly.
"You can ask for something else," Heinz said, "As long as it’s within my power to grant it."
"Alright, I happen to be looking for two people in Gistas..." Aiden accepted the condition smoothly.
"What people?"
"That involves some secrets. I’ll tell you in detail the next time you visit the prison," Aiden said, glancing at Sera, "Don’t worry, there will be plenty of time in the future."
Heinz could not immediately get Sera out of prison, and it was safer for her to stay in Aiden’s prison until he had paved the way for her return to the country.
Now, as an adviser to the princess and Sera’s lover, Heinz would only be able to meet with Sera through "prison visits."
"That’s fine." Heinz nodded, "Then for now, Sera, I entrust you to his care."
"You don’t have anything to say to her?" Aiden reminded, "This is the real moment of your reunion."
Heinz was taken aback for a moment, as the man who had always been calm and collected showed a rare hint of embarrassment.
He looked at Sera, who also cautiously glanced back at him.
"I’m sorry," Heinz said softly.
"Don’t apologize," Sera replied suddenly and seriously.
Heinz instinctively wanted to apologize again, then realized it was inappropriate, and for a moment, he did not know how to continue.
After a pause, he spoke, "This path will be difficult, Sera."
"Aren’t you going to be with me?" Sera finally revealed a faint smile on her face.
"I will, but the things I do won’t be much different from before. For your sake, I might have to do some things that you might not be able to accept... In this country, the road to power is not clean. But rest assured, those things, I will do them for you..." Heinz spoke, hesitating a bit.
At that moment, Sera suddenly turned to face him squarely, interrupting him: "I will be with you too."
Heinz was stunned, and after a while, a composed smile appeared on his face, and he nodded to his lover: "Okay."
Then, he looked towards Aiden.
"Is that all you have to say?" Aiden asked.
"It’s enough." Heinz answered, "After I finish the cleanup work here, I will visit your prison tomorrow under a different identity."
"Hope you don’t get taken away for interrogation by the Heresy Inquisition or the Mounted Police," Aiden joked.
"One last thing, Mr. Gistas..." Heinz suddenly said, "Even though I can probably guess your answer, I still want to ask—do you have any interest in politics? If you’re willing to come to Gistas as an adviser to Princess Sera, we can arrange a much higher position for you there than here."
"Since you can already guess my answer, then allow me to decline," Aiden said with a smile.
