"Well, if young master’s main purpose is to catch him in the first place, then I thought you would return to the church’s territory and no longer involve yourself in this civil war. After all, I wouldn’t be so arrogant as to assu that you would continue to participate after you’ve seen our legacy artifact." Baron Rosalind said.
"And besides, we still don’t know if our legacy artifact will be of any help to the young master’s problem."
Aldrian nodded.
"Your Excellency, your opinion is reasonable, but my answer is this—I have my own problem with the devils, and I cannot stand their existence. Whenever I discover them within a territory, I make sure to uproot them," he said.
"Now, why did I bring this up? The church has already announced that the traitorous Cardinal Carsius was involved with the devils. From Your Excellency’s perspective, why did he choose to flee to the Atria Empire and seek the second prince’s assistance? Even amidst a civil war, the second prince still accepted him. Why Cardinal Carsius not choose another empire?"
Baron Rosalind pondered for a mont before looking at Aldrian.
"I don’t have enough information, but I guess the second prince still dares to harbor the traitor without fearing the church’s wrath because Cardinal Carsius has sothing he wants, sothing that forces him to keep Cardinal Carsius under his wing. Or perhaps their interests align, leading them to work together—or, in this case, use each other."
"Yes, that could also be the answer, but Your Excellency, what do you think even after the church announced Cardinal Carsius’s connection to the devils, the second prince still wants to keep him? The topic of devils is taboo, and even those with the slightest connection to them can end up on the execution platform. So why would the second prince still choose to harbor soone like that?" Aldrian asked again.
Baron Rosalind thought for a mont before sothing clicked in his mind. His eyes widened slightly.
"So, are you saying that the second prince is also connected to the devils? And because of that, Cardinal Carsius chose to escape to him, seeking asylum, and the second prince accepted him without hesitation due to their shared connection with the devils?"
"Exactly."
Hearing Aldrian’s imdiate response, Baron Rosalind and Elena were astonished, and the baron’s expression turned solemn.
"Do you have any proof of the second prince’s involvent with the devils, young master? If we can prove his connection, it could change the course of this civil war. Even other empires might get involved! There’s no way soone tied to the devils can be allowed to rule an empire! Vindas Empire and the Buddhist sect wouldn’t stand for it—they might even help us!"
However, he saw Aldrian shake his head.
"I don’t have any proof of the second prince’s involvent, but I do have evidence against Cardinal Carsius. I ca to this conclusion because it’s the strongest theory explaining why the second prince is harboring that traitor, and I believe it’s close to the truth."
Baron Rosalind frowned at this but then sighed.
"Yes, I think so too, young master. But this is still just our assumption. Without solid proof, the other territories won’t take action either."
"Correct. But why must we involve other empires in this matter?"
"Well, because—" Baron Rosalind stopped mid-sentence, his eyebrows slightly raising.
"Do you an...?"
Aldrian nodded. "Returning to Your Excellency’s question about what would happen if the second prince handed that traitor over to —would my job in this empire be done? No, absolutely not. How could I simply leave soone who dares to harbor a person connected to the devils roaming freely, let alone ruling an empire? I cannot allow that."
"The second prince’s fate was sealed the mont he involved himself with soone he was never ant to protect. Your Excellency knows how I act when it cos to the devils, based on my past. Once I find them or anyone connected to them, they will have to face ."
"That is my answer to your question."
Baron Rosalind and Elena couldn’t help but feel ecstatic. Aldrian truly sounded arrogant, implying that there was no need to involve other territories because he alone was enough! What an overbearing character.
However, Baron Rosalind did not see it as recklessness or think of Aldrian as a re arrogant fool. After witnessing his strength and hearing of his feats over the years, he knew that Aldrian could truly stand against the second prince’s army on his own. As long as nothing unexpected happened, Aldrian was an unstoppable force.
Baron Rosalind sighed again, but this ti, it was a sigh of relief.
"I see. We are truly grateful if you are willing to lend us your hand. It’s not just , but all the families who oppose the second prince—whether they are still standing or not. With your help, young master, we can finally breathe and launch a counterattack."
Aldrian nodded. "Since I have already killed so of the heads of noble families in his faction, I can imagine that the second prince’s forces will weaken significantly. Their families will have to handle succession matters, aning they won’t be able to focus on the civil war for quite so ti. However, I will not stop there, as the second prince can still mobilize a large portion of the noble families’ armies to other parts of the empire." He said before taking a sip of his tea.
Baron Rosalind did the sa.
After putting his cup down, he looked at Aldrian with a smile.
"Anyway, now that we’ve discussed the war, it’s ti to move on to the main topic. I know the young master is curious about our legacy artifact, and I am as well. Even though it is our own legacy artifact, there is very little information about it, and it is closely tied to our past. I believe Elena has already told you about our ancestor—we want to uncover his true origins and perhaps unlock the full potential of our technique that has been passed down for generations."
Baron Rosalind then stood up.
"Follow , young master. I will take you to the place where the legacy artifact is stored."
Aldrian nodded and started following Baron Rosalind, but suddenly, the baron stopped in his tracks and looked toward Old Man York, who remained seated, showing no intention of following.
"Why are you still sitting?"
Old Man York was montarily stunned but then shook his head and waved his hand.
"I’m not soone worthy of looking into a legacy artifact I know nothing about. I thought this should remain a secret between the interested parties."
However, Baron Rosalind tilted his head.
"You are with Young Master Aldrian, so it wouldn’t be right to leave you here alone. You should co with us—this is a rare chance for you to see our family’s legacy artifact."
Old Man York hesitated before glancing at Aldrian. Truthfully, he was also curious about this legacy artifact. Even in the past, when he served as head cook for the family, he had never seen it. He had only heard rumors that the family possessed a legacy artifact, but that was all.
Old Man York looked at Aldrian, who t his gaze with a smile and simply nodded. Seeing Aldrian’s approval, he sighed, stood up, and followed them.
With Old Man York now joining them, Baron Rosalind resud walking, leading them toward a secret vault hidden underground. To reach it, they had to enter a concealed passage inside a solitary building, separate from the main mansion. The passage was protected by a sealing formation and its complexity leaving Aldrian truly amazed.
The sealing formation could only be opened by the family’s leader using his energy signature. If any other energy was injected into the formation, it would trigger traps and a warning.
Aldrian was certain that this formation had been in place since the ti of the Rosalind family’s ancestors.
They then walked deep underground, taking several turns and carefully avoiding the trap formations before finally arriving at the double doors of the secret vault. The vault had more or less the sa formation as the entrance to the secret passage.
After Baron Rosalind opened the vault, a surge of powerful aura and energy swept over Aldrian. He raised his eyebrows—he knew this energy and aura well. What else could it be but divine energy?
Then he saw it—a beautiful, transparent scarf, just as Elena had described when she told him her story in Larson City. It was displayed inside a glass case, carefully arranged to showcase its full length of two ters.
Though the scarf transparent, it had a faint red hue.
"Young Master, this is the legacy artifact we wanted you to see," Baron Rosalind said, glancing at Aldrian. However, he noticed that Aldrian’s gaze remained fixed on the scarf.
Baron Rosalind nodded in satisfaction, pleased with Aldrian’s reaction. This was their legacy artifact, an artifact worthy of admiration, even if its full potential remained unknown.
Yet, unbeknownst to the baron and the others, Aldrian stared at the scarf with a strange sense of familiarity, as if he had seen it sowhere before!
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