Chapter 198: Imperial Overhaul (2)
Upon returning to the empire, Ray immediately convened the members of the imperial family.
It didnt take long.
Perhaps after an hour or two, all the royals, except the Emperor, had gathered in the great hall.
Ray greeted them.
Good to see you again?
A solid smile played at the corners of his mouth.
The third prince asked with a puzzled expression.
What brings us here again? You mentioned you had something important to discuss
He looked around as he spoke.
Oddly enough, the usual sight of imperial knights and guards was missing.
Having grown up surrounded by them, he felt uneasy without his bodyguards.
Sensing the third princes apprehension, Ray nonchalantly said,
Ah, I asked His Majesty to send them all out. You never know who might die here.
!
!
His menacing words elicited various expressions from the royals - some of confusion, some of anger.
The first prince, Jared, frowned.
No matter that you are a saint, this is disrespectful. To speak so lightly of the lives of the royals, I will formally question this in the Holy Kingdom.
Although the Holy Kingdom is a major power, the Lesian Empire is still the strongest.
The political power of a saint is significant, but Jared thought he could inflict some political damage.
However, having lived a sheltered and peaceful life in the royal family, he failed to read the current atmosphere.
Ray chuckled at the first princes words.
Just old, but inexperienced.
He seems to not fully grasp the situation hes in.
He casually leaned on the table in the great hall, playing with a small dagger emanating aura, trimming his nails.
Ever heard the saying dead men tell no tales? If you try to question in the Holy Kingdom, you might just die right here. When facing someone stronger, you should be careful with every word, especially when theres no one to protect you.
The natural aura of a killer exuded from him, hardened from witnessing harsh realities on battlefields.
The royals, who had only ever been protected within the safety of the palace, couldnt exude such aura.
Only this prince possessed the ability to speak somewhat calmly in his own defense.
What do you want, saint? We will try to accommodate as much as possible.
Trying to grasp the crux of the conversation as accurately and quickly as possible, showing how shrewd he is inside.
Now were getting somewhere.
Finishing his nail grooming with a gust of wind, Ray started speaking nonchalantly.
Whos the crazy fool here who ordered an attack on the wyvern lair? Stupidly enough, they attacked the wyverns again today. Made my job a whole lot easier.
Their faces turned to shock at Rays words.
The Princess Celia, who had been quiet, stammered in disbelief.
That, that incident Are you saying one of us is the mastermind?
Exactly. A madman daring enough to gamble with the lives of the people for the throne.
That cant be
She looked around in dismay.
The palace was in a terrible state due to the wyverns.
With about half of it destroyed, the restoration costs would be enormous.
And now, to learn that not only was the cause within the royal family but the mastermind as well!
While Princess Celia was deeply shocked, the situation was slightly different for the prince and the first princess, but they too were visibly shaken by Rays revelation.
The attack on the wyvern lair has been exposed.
Have they realized already? If theyve been caught, they cant escape the death penalty. Their only option is to deny everything to the end.
The two exchanged a silent glance and steeled their resolve.
Even if they were the Emperors children, having conspired a rebellion and brought the empire to the brink of ruin, the death penalty was a foregone conclusion.
However, as long as no concrete evidence surfaced, there was still a chance.
By denying and buying time, they hoped to find a way out.
But it was unlikely that Ray hadnt anticipated their thoughts.
If he had already identified the culprits, he wouldnt have gathered everyone like this.
This was merely a performance.
A show to intimidate the real perpetrator by frightening them, then persuading them at the right moment.
To accomplish this, more pressure was necessary.
Ray addressed the royals.
Youll deny everything even if the truth comes out, right? Too bad. I already have sufficient evidence.
Of course, that was a lie.
He didnt even know how many masterminds there were, let alone have any evidence.
Not to mention, he was clueless about their exact plans.
Yet, he didnt hesitate to bare his teeth, making one wonder if this was really the image of a saint Gaia had envisioned.
Whether God sighed or not, the saints bluff was exceptionally effective.
Without the truth-seeing eyes of an elf, they couldnt clearly discern his deception.
Moreover, the preconception that a saint wouldnt lie deepened the situation.
Even with this, there was no guarantee they wouldnt keep denying to the end.
To prevent that, Ray elaborated on his lie.
The strike force that attacked the wyvern lair was made up of nobles private soldiers, right? Must have been tough gathering high-quality personnel one by one.
Logically, if the royal forces had been used, the Emperor would have heard about it.
So, the only conclusion was that they used the nobles private soldiers to attack the wyvern territory.
It must be a high-ranking familys elite personnel.
The First Princess was startled by his sharp words.
Others might not have noticed, but Ray wouldnt miss her fleeting expression.
That small change made it clear who the culprit was.
With the immense pressure of a possible execution, it was difficult for the mastermind to act normally.
Fear of death is first reflected in the eyes.
From modern operating rooms to contemporary battlefields, he had seen enough fearful eyes to know whether someone was terrified or not, just by looking into their eyes.
Ray, having roughly identified the mastermind, stood blatantly in front of the First Princess and looked at her.
Getting caught would be a big problem, right? No, it wont just end with a scolding. After all, its a major incident where more than half of the imperial palace was destroyed.
.
Your head might end up touring the villages, considering the peoples outrage. To calm them down, something sensational would be effective.
!
His words had the power to evoke vivid images.
The First Princess, involuntarily visualizing herself beheaded in the village, inhaled sharply.
Ray, pressuring her as if he had been targeting the First Princess from the start, appeared as if he already knew who the mastermind was.
The person involved must be panicking.
Success meant claiming the throne, but failure meant paying with their life.
It was such an endeavor that they wouldnt have allowed themselves to even consider failure.
To have such a plan fail due to someones interference would drive them insane.
Ray smirked at the First Princess, who had noticeably stiffened.
After the whip, its time to offer a carrot.
A cornered rat will even attack a cat.
For Ray, it would only be problematic if they took a you die or I die approach, so he was fully willing to offer them a way out.
So, I have a suggestion.
Their attention was piqued again by the sudden shift in topic.
Ive already uncovered the masterminds, but I dont want to hog all the credit. This isnt the Holy Kingdom where the saints power reaches, and its somewhat difficult to imprison them with my power alone. So
Confess your crimes willingly and let me catch you. Then, I can spare you from the death penalty.
His pragmatic words disappointed some and piqued the interest of others.
The second prince, who had been feigning disinterest, took the bait.
What do you mean?
Put simply, its a way to reduce someones sentence while increasing anothers merit, satisfying everyone. Isnt that a good thing? I am now the benefactor of the empire. Wouldnt I, of all people, be able to reduce the sentence of the masterminds?
He said this with a cunning smile.
His demeanor seemed less like a saint and more like a wicked pimp prowling the backstreets for women.
However, his words held credibility.
He was the benefactor of Lesia.
Officially, he was the one who cured the Emperor when no one else could, and unofficially, he was the only human who negotiated non-aggression with the wyverns.
If he asked the Emperor, it was not impossible for his request to be granted.
Besides, if they were going to be caught anyway, wouldnt prison be preferable to execution?
The story Ray spun in the face of imminent death was like a lifeline in a dark sky.
Celia cried out, her pretty brow furrowed.
How can you say that! Arent you ashamed to be a saint!
She couldnt contain her anger, her fists trembling.
But Ray just looked at her as if to say, What does it have to do with you?
He needed to act to deceive the masterminds present.
For that, he had to use Celia too, having no discreet way to tell her the truth alone.
Who wants to be a saint? Its the gods who are to blame for thrusting this role upon me, uninterested as I was.
Suddenly, God was turned into the ultimate villain.
I never thought that of you. Im so disappointed!
Tch, what does it matter if we wont see each other much after this? Besides, its the royal family who caused this mess in the first place. So, what right do you have to be loud about it? Arent you ashamed to be a member of the royal family?
Ugh.
Celia was silenced by the harsh reality.
This should keep her quiet for a while.
Additionally, by emphasizing his intention, he baited the masterminds again.
As expected, the First Princess, sweating coldly, slowly began to smile.
Alright. Lets do it.
The second prince thought the same.
Seeing how he stared at the First Princess, it must be true he knows who the masterminds are. Realistically, prison is better than execution. If I die, I can no longer help the third prince
His thoughts settled, he too nodded.
I accept the saints offer. The masterminds who ordered the attack on the wyvern lair are the First Princess and I.
!
What on earth!
The faces of the First Princess and the third princess turned white.
It was one thing for the First Princess, but even the second prince was involved!
As they confessed, Rays smile grew.
Good choice. Now, all thats left is for you two to die together.
His words reversed the shock.
Where previously Celia and Luciela were surprised, now it was the First Princess and the second prince with wide eyes.
What do you mean?
What, hehehe. It means to die quietly.
Their crimes of mocking the lives of the people, exploiting innocent soldiers, and betraying the wyverns, who trusted humans and agreed to non-aggression, deserve execution.
Now that he had their confession, there was no turning back.
Just like Celia and Luciela before, the faces of the two culprits turned ashen.
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