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With newfound calm, he continued, “I overheard talk of it in the study when we were in Valken. The room had two levels. I always stayed upstairs, reading for hours on end. Occasionally, I’d hear them talking downstairs. Though it was just one floor between us, the study was large, and much of what was said was unclear.
“But Lunvale came up several times. They also mentioned Stonebridge County, Grantham County, Fenrose County, and Larkspur County, along with other places I can’t recall. Once, I overheard them speaking of sending supplies to Lunvale.” Rafael frowned.
Something didn’t add up.
How could Yuvan support troops in multiple places? How vast was his power?
Raising an army wasn’t as simple as opening a shop in a town. Once troops were stationed, the entire system had to be in place. Connections in the local government had to be made, and a steady supply of food, weapons, and other resources had to be ensured. From what Rafael knew, Yuvan didn’t have the strength or finances to pull that off.
Putting aside Stonebridge County and Grantham County, Fenrose County and Larkspur County were closer to Nanyara, which was at least a thousand miles away from Ebonflow. If a rebellion happened, how much support could those soldiers give Yuvan? And how many obstacles would there be along the way when sending help?
“Did they mention sending supplies anywhere else besides Lunvale?” Rafael asked.
“I couldn’t really hear them,” Randall replied. “But it’s unlikely they’d bring up other places if they weren’t important.”
That made sense.
“What else did they mention?” Rafael asked.
Randall paused for a moment, thinking carefully before shaking his head. “I can’t remember. There might have been more, or there might not.”
“Think hard. Is there anything else? For example, anyone they were particularly close with?”
“Most of their dealings were through letters or arranged meetings outside. Horizon Estate only served as a place for discussions. My dad is cautious-he fears there are spies from the capital hidden within the estate.”
Randall stopped for a moment, then added, “Actually, in Valken, my dad’s vel reputation is good. Though my mom died miserably at Verdant Monastery, everyone in Valken knows he sent her to many renowned physicians and spent vast sums on her treatment. When he married Lady Molly, he claimed it was my mom’s wish whenever anybody asked.”
Rafael was already aware of this.
Yuvan had spent 20 years carefully crafting his reputation, no doubt investing considerable amounts of money and effort into it. He was obsessed with his public image and highly sensitive to criticism, unable to bear anyone speaking ill of him. No doubt he was shameless and deeply vain.
These details weren’t surprising. But there were some things that puzzled Rafael.
In the capital, all of Yuvan’s connections were made through Eleanor, and the daughters of Henry’s concubines all entered prestigious families. Their involvement seemed to be aime net creating chaos within noble O
at households, leaving the nobles too preoccupied to deal with matters elsewhere.
The methods Yuvan used weren’t exactly the cleanest, so how had he managed to expand his forces so far and wide?
Who, among all this, was helping him behind the scenes? That person might just be the one pulling the strings.
Rafael pulled out a list and handed it to Randall. “Have you seen any of these people at Horizon Estate? Or observed any dealings between your dad and them?”
Randall took the list and examined it carefully. After a moment, he pointed to one name.
“Before we returned to the capital, General Tiberius came once to borrow money from my dad.”
Rafael raised an eyebrow. “What about the other names on the list? Have you ever seen them?”
“I’ve met some of them during festivals and such. But they were just casual exchanges, nothing of note. My dad would sometimes complain that someone had sent too little as a gift and would overcompensate with a larger return gift. “Honestly, I never understood my dad’s schemes. It wasn’t until the past year or two, and especially after Aunt… I mean, Eleanor’s rebellion came to light, that I began to piece things together,” Randall replied.
Rafael regarded him silently. Years under the same roof, and it was something concerning his dad, yet still, Randall hadn’t known. And from his expression, it didn’t look like he was pretending either.
It was hard to decide whether to call him naive or just plain dense.
As Randall walked out of the hall, his head was held high, his gaze unwavering, and his step filled with renewed purpose. No longer was he the slumped, defeated figure he had been earlier.
It was all because of one last thing Rafael had said to him.
“Matthew mentioned to me that you’ve handled your warden duties well. After a year or so of experience, I’ll see about promoting you.”
At that moment, Randall’s eyes had burned with unshed tears.
Aside from Avis, no one had ever acknowledged his abilities. No one had ever truly praised him.
Avis would praise him, of course, but those praises had always been laced with consolation. He had never been good at studies or martial arts. She would assure him that, in time, he would amount to something. But that was just comfort, not real recognition.
Now, for the first time, Randall had been truly recognized. He didn’t even care whether that recognition was sincere or watered down. At that moment, the feeling was too overwhelming, too wonderful, for him to question it. He didn’t want to dwell on whether it was genuine or not.
If he could continue on this path, he would give everything he had to make it happen.
From a young age, he had never been Yuvan’s favorite. Born to a concubine, he was raised by Avis, but his father still looked down on him for his lowly, illegitimate bloodline.
He had overheard the servants gossiping about it. Yuvan had once ordered Randall’s biological mom to drink medicine to avoid getting pregnant, but she had still conceived. When she found out, the plan had been to have a physician induce a miscarriage.
But Avis had fought fiercely to protect him and sent the concubine away to a remote estate. She hid the concubine until after Randall’s birth, when Avis made a grand public display of bringing him back.
Avis had known how much her husband cared about appearances. By making such a spectacle of bringing Randall back to the estate, she forced Yuvan to acknowledge him. Once that happened, his pride wouldn’t allow him to let the boy die. That was when Avis began to fall out of favor with Yuvan.
The servants said she was foolish. Perhaps they were right-she had fought so hard for a worthless son.
As Randall recalled these memories, his steps grew lighter. He shouldn’t feel burdened by betraying such a dad, and he certainly shouldn’t feel guilty. The guilt, he realized, should have been for failing to care for his mom when she was sent to Verdant Monastery. He should hate the man who was called his dad-not just for how he treated him, but for what he did to Avis-sending her a divorce edict just before her death, complaining she hadn’t died quickly enough.
Randall’s heart remained heavy, but it was still lighter than before.
–
The lamps in the meeting hall of Hell Monarch Estate were not extinguished that night. They burned through until dawn.
From Randall, they had learned more than just the situation in Lunvale. However, the information he shared had been limited. Aside from Grantham County, Larkspur County, and Fenrose County there were still other places they didn’t know about yet.
The confusion that lingered in everyone’s mind was the same as Rafael’s confusion today.
Yuvan truly didn’t have the ability to expand across so many areas. Now that Rafael had a clearer sense of him, he didn’t seem like a man with particularly deep schemes. If not for Wayne, it was doubtful that Yuvan would have achieved even this much.
But was Wayne really his ally?
It seemed more like a case of Yuvan thinking he was the hunter, but there was another person waiting to catch him off guard and take advantage of the situation.
Jacob took a quill and traced the locations Randall had mentioned,
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