The Villainess Lives Twice
chapter-164-30041322

Chapter 164

Proofreader: somnium

The servants were so exhausted that they could not even open their mouths.

“Hah, that’s insane.”

There was too much content in the letter to anger the Emperor.

First of all, the Duke of Riagan himself was a problem. He is talking back and forth, apologizing and asking for forgiveness.

However, it is impossible for the sericulture farmer who was introduced to be really a woman from a small farmhouse. In the end, it means that the Duchess of Riagan and Queen Eimmel were trying to do business together.

Or were already doing it.

The business could not have been ordinary. It’s not Queen Iantz, whose entire country is subsidized by the textile industry, so what’s the story to be discussed about Queen Eimmel and her silk business.

Above all, the Emperor had never heard of such a plan. He had never granted such freedom to the Duke of Riagan.

Considering the situation in the South, where trade with other countries was concentrated, it was highly likely that he was even engaged in smuggling trade.

If the Emperor had just known about this fact, the Duke of Riagan would not have escaped responsibility in itself.

But now that wasn’t the problem.

No matter how wrong the Duke of Riagan was, he was the handpicked choice of the Emperor to entrust the jurisdiction of the South.

He was the one who was chosen to finish the big job of annihilating the Empress’ family, saying that he would get rid of his outliers.

Lawrence wasn’t the kind of man to dare touch.

It was something that the Emperor’s most trusted servant should have carefully informed the truth and recommendation.

“Please calm down, Your Majesty. Did the Duke of Riagan have any idea that something like this would happen?”

“I thought this would happen. I knew this. If I had just waited, would I have helped to manage his inheritance? It is my fault choosing such a small man and having him sit there to touch the lineage of the Duchy of Riagan.”

The Emperor exhaled nervously. His face was red, and his mouth seemed dry.

“Please calm down. It’s harmful for your body.”

The chief attendant took lukewarm honey water and placed it near the Emperor’s hand. As the Emperor snatched the cup, he gulped it down.

Treasury official Bellon wiped his cold sweat with a handkerchief and bowed his head.

“There was a situation within the Eimmel royal family. The Duke of Riagan must have been involved too.”

“Does this happen because Sir, who is right next to the Duke of Riagan, could know what is going on from this distant capital city?”

The Emperor raised his voice again.

And he looked at the military officials who were sitting in a row on the other side.

While most of the other officials at the meeting were the Emperor’s old loyalists, the military officials were all present, regardless of whose line they were holding.

The Emperor asked.

“What happened to the Southern Conquest Army?”

“I understood that they were still on their way to the Southern Road.”

“Has there been any news from Gayan?”

The generals just looked at each other. The Southern Conquest Army could not go down to the South like this. The Emperor’s orders had to be renewed.

However, there were few who had the courage to speak up to the Emperor’s wrath up to this point.

Cedric, who was sitting to the right of the Emperor, said.

“I sent a messenger to confirm whether they had received the news or not.”

“Really? What did Gayan say?”

“The messenger hasn’t returned yet, but maybe Lord Gayan already knows? Currently, all military information in the South is supposed to go into the South Conquest Army.”

“Yes.”

The Emperor sighed and buried himself in the backrest.

“What happened to the man previously named Lexen?”

“He was originally a low-ranking nobleman in the West. It was also confirmed that he had left his place of residence and came to the capital.”

“Are you saying he went into hiding?”

“It is not. According to the locals, they said that he would go to the capital, and that he would buy a manor in the East and move in with someone he knew in the capital.”

The Ministry of Finance official who answered, turned over the report and continued.

“We sent someone to the East for now. But I don’t think we will be able to find him anytime soon. He went to a place he had no connection with, and he was not very wealthy, so if he entered the countryside somewhere, there seems to be no other way than to make inquiries.”

“There is no way!”

“I am sorry, Your Majesty. But eastern manor transactions are difficult to track.”

The Emperor clenched his teeth.

This is because the large landowners who split the eastern land made a mess of the land ledger.

They wanted to prevent the central government from knowing exactly the size of their farm.

Land transactions were rarely reported. It was rather rare that the real owner of the land and the owner on the ledger coincided.

There were many times when the name on the ledger did not exist at all.

It was reported only when it was moved as a dowry for marriage between a nobleman or a large boss, or when there was a transaction too large to hide, or included a monastery or winery with very famous specialties.

So it would be very difficult to find the land that the lower nobles bought with a small amount of money.

That fact reminded the Emperor of the situation in the eastern provinces at once, giving him a headache.

Lin said.

“It doesn’t seem like it would mean much to find out. I checked, but it seems like it was only last year that Terry married Lexen.”

“What?”

“I think it was a means of buying titles. The marriage certificate is from last year. Divorce and marriage were concluded at the same time, and the local people did not know that he was divorced from his ex-wife.”

“It’s about buying his title and sending him to the countryside.”

“The Terry Ford herself is from the capital. A person who worked as a high-ranking maid in the indirect family line of Marquis Luden.”

From there, Terry’s life was dissected in detail.

Grand Duke Roygar had a crush on Terry’s older sister, and she went west to avoid it, but she died in an accident.

After that, it was revealed that one of her parents, who was engulfed in grief, died as a result of the grief, and the other suffered a mental illness and lived as if dead.

Finally, an official from the Ministry of Finance reported.

“The property formation process is being tracked now.”

“Is there any way that the girl could have made the fortune by herself?”

The Emperor snorted.

“And would she have done this alone? She has no grudge with the Duchy of Riagan.”

“When it comes to grudges, it seems more likely towards Grand Duke Roygar or Marquis Luden.”

“At least, it must have been that someone lured that girl and used her to get revenge. What a fool.”

The Emperor touched his temple.

If so, was this aimed at Grand Duke Roygar? How does setting up the Duke of Riagan connect with the attack on Duke of Roygar?

If Terry Ford had been used in the first place, it would be difficult to know who her mastermind was really targeting.

It wasn’t certain if she was simply being used as part of the plan, or if she had done it because she was convinced of the plan in her own way.

They wouldn’t know unless they caught and tortured the people around her.

The Emperor put the matter aside and asked.

“What did the Empress say?”

“The Duke and Duchess of Riagan have nothing to do with Her Majesty, so she told us not to ask again.”

The Emperor’s tongue clicked loudly at the chief’s reply.

“I have to go see the Empress……. no.”

Or, he thought that the Empress might have done it. However, it was unlikely that the Empress would have done it again, as she had finally forgotten her past and decided to live a positive life.

She brought the descendants of Viscount Pescher into the Empress’ palace. When this happens, there is a chance that those children will be at risk.

If it was the former Empress, she might have done this even though she knew the risk. But it still didn’t seem likely.

Or maybe the Emperor himself was thinking so.

The Emperor thought for a moment. The bureaucrats did not interfere with the Emperor’s thoughts as they conversed in a low-pitched voice and re-examined the report in silence.

That was then.

There was a knock on the conference room door.

“Your Majesty, there is a messenger sent by Sir Gayan of the Southern Conquest Army.”

“Send him in.”

said the Emperor, flicking his fingers. Because he thought there might be some new news.

The messenger was just taking off his cloak, just like he was covered in dust. He knelt before the Emperor, pulled out an envelope with a red seal from his chest, and lifted it up.

The Emperor opened the envelope without hesitation.

And he quickly skimmed through the text. In the middle, his hands began to tremble, and finally his whole body trembled.

The redness rose to the tip of his forehead. The chief attendant hurriedly supported the Emperor and said:

“Please calm down, Your Majesty!”

“My, my, this bastard just!”

The Emperor tore the letter in half on the spot. And he threw it to the floor.

One of the attendants quickly crawled on the floor and picked up the letter.

“The Southern Conquest Army will return. They arrest Lawrence.”

“Sir Lawrence?”

Lin, who knew nothing, asked curiously.

The faces of some officials, including Bellon, turned gray. The moment Lawrence’s name appeared, they realized the general situation.

The Emperor looked around his crowd with an angry face and spit it out.

“There is not one or two people involved here.”

“Your Majesty. Don’t tell me this happens…….”

“Keyshore.”

“Yes.”

“Go now, arrest the man named Viscount Hoden, and arrest his family and relatives, friends, and even the mansion’s laundry servant.”

“Yes.”

Keyshore jumped up, bowed and left the conference room.

The Emperor then looked at Cedric.

“You have nothing to do with this. Go down tonight and take over the Southern Conquest Army instead.”

“You mean tonight?”

“Yes. Right now. And tell Gayan to bring Lawrence back quickly.”

“Are you going to leave the Southern Conquest Army as it is?”

“Regardless, we must save the Duke of Riagan. If we catch the culprit with this justification, is there any way for Eimmel’s Cadriol to just say ‘yes, I understand,’ and walk away?”

“That is right, but……. I’ve never had a naval battle.”

Cedric said.

The Emperor spoke again.

“Don’t I know that? I’m not asking you to take over the conquest and fight Eimmel. All of a sudden, this happened and the soldiers were agitated. I can’t tell Gayan to stay, so it means that you should take over temporarily. Because of your reputation, the morale of the soldiers will not be that low.”

“Then, I’ll stop by the house to see my wife and set off tomorrow morning.”

Cedric said it because he thought that the Emperor might be suspicious of Artizea.

If so, he would try to prevent Cedric from meeting Artizea.

But the Emperor nodded.

“Suit yourself. As soon as something comes out from this side, I’ll let you know.”

“I am grateful. I will obey your orders.”

Cedric stood up, put a fist on one of his chest, raised his greetings and went outside.

The Emperor said one last thing.

“Harper.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Follow me. I’m sure there will be many stories to tell.”

Amalie nodded her head gently. The same tension rose in her chest as when she was surrounded by a horde of monsters densely back and front.

The meeting ended with it.