1636 Who Did It?
Like a wise sage, Powin had his hands hidden underneath his large robe, while Muriel calmly stretched his pen towards the paper on the table.
Everyone turned their attention to the duo, some even forgetting to breathe. The duo were not called wise sages for nothing.
Many could count on hand how many words they say a day. As soon as they open their mouths, you can be certain that half of your problems will be solved.
"Nephew, we have several thoughts on the matter."
"Hmmmm... It's true that the enemy could be anyone, but let us ease your mind by narrowing down the culprit."
Powin raised a finger. "The first suspicion falls on people from the opposition party."
"Yes!" Oden's eyes lit up.
Yes!
Those bastards, though subtle on the surface, still want to pull William from the throne and crown someone from their camp.
The more Arcadina gets the better, the greedier they grow, coming up with several fallacies, like the one about William not being Oden's real son, or Mona not being an excellent example of what a true Queen-Mother should be like.
In short, they always looked to impeach their chosen ministers or cause chaos during weekly official meetings.
Some even wanted William to turn against Baymard, kill Landon and even steal its technologies.
They, who were used to living under Alec's reign of power, weren't pleased with William's way of handling things.
So what if Alec was murderous? At least, he closed his eyes and allowed them to fill their pockets and collect uncountable amounts of taxes on the people in their fields and lands. What's more, without slavery being an option, do you know how much they now spend a month hiring their former slaves?
Many slowly felt that having 10,000 or so slaves working as maids and butlers was no longer necessary.
They had to cut the cost down, but at least Arcadina now had many job opportunities for these people.
They have tried assassinating William more than a hundred times now. But somehow he always survived.
One time, the assassin's blade was already inches away from his neck, when suddenly a stone reflected it away.
But who can tell them who shot it when they made sure to keep all his hidden guards entertained?
Ugh~
It was so annoying, as though a strange force was guarding him.
[Landon]: (-_-)...
Anyway, the opposition also wanted to dethrone William. So it wouldn't be far-fetched for them to be behind this whole thing.
"It would also mean that one of our men betrayed us, leaking William's past out," Powin added, and everyone nodded in agreement.
It's indeed a possibility. After all, the human heart can also change. So perhaps something truly betrayed them. But what are the odds?
"I would say 10%" Murel suggested. Working with his nephew was far more profitable in the long run than working with any other Arcadinian powerhouse. Only short-sighted people would betray his nephew.
He knew that the men they had lived with, trained with, and toiled with over the years in secret during Alec Barn's reign, weren't such people.
Still, one can never be too sure.
Powin and Murel continued talking in sync like twins.
"It could be them or not..."
"Which brings us to our second group of targets -- the Bandits."
Bandits?
Everyone frowned. Why did it seem more unbelievable than the first group?
The Sage duo smiled.
"Just as we can assume someone betrayed and leaked out our nephew's other identity."
"We can also assume that nothing of that sort has taken place."
Mona rolled her eyes heavenwards "Oh for the love of my ancestors, can you two just hit the nail on its head? You know I don't like riddles."
"Patience, Sister... "
"You're the Queen Mother now."
"_" [Mona]
Why did she feel the urge to strangle these two synchronized idiots to death?
William on the other hand, instantly understood what the duo were trying to convey. And they were right.
Let's take a scenario where no one truly knows he was the ghostly prince, but they're using the name for their own profits.
You have to know that after he took the throne, the Ghostly Prince never appeared. Some think he is dead, while others think he fled into hiding.
However, there will always be a small number of people who will want to use the name to commit evil deeds.
Who knows... Perhaps someone came up with such a plot, trying to build a name for themselves before they begin robbing or looting others.
There is a saying that reputation comes hand in hand with power.
Every Bandit gang must first do something crazy to establish themselves before they can truly send fear to others.
So it wouldn't be surprising if it was the work of some bandit organization or rogue noble, who's playing with fire.
They might think the ghostly Prince is dead, wanting to use his name.
Indeed that was a plausible scenario that could happen, especially with the many cornered bandits that they worked tirelessly to eradicate.
Perhaps the escaped bandits got together in an attempt to form a hidden organization, away from his watchful eyes.
Hey... Who knows...
.
"Lastly... This act might be caused by an unknown enemy, one we haven't met before."
"Little nephew... Everyone... Think hard about all the possible enemies hidden in the dark so far."
"Who will want to dethrone you other than the people in the light?"
"Who will want everything you have now?"
Boom!
Fireworks exploded in William's brain. "Those bastards from Venitta?"
It was the bastard group who arrived back then and sent for William as if he were their servant.
To play along with them, William boarded one of their lavish ships. He was even told to step down, for some random unknown cousin to take the throne.
Of course, he killed the bloody messenger group, seeing as they were the first to raise their swords against him.
So could it be that the enemy was those Viets? Or was he wrong?
No matter what his thoughts were, they couldn't make any conclusions without obtaining their investigation reports.
Meanwhile, they had to calm the storm quickly.
