The Immortal Player

Noticing that Duke Ersi still looked a bit offended, Pedro could not help but to shake his head and said, "Please calm yourself, Duke Ersi! As I said… Though my visit was something personal, my goal was still to ensure the safety of the majority of the people in the Kingdom. I did not want to interfere with a stronghold's political affairs in the first place, but… Things have already come to this point!"

Pedro sighed and glanced towards Duke Albert, saying, "I am sure that you are familiar with what would happen if such news about the death of the King spreads out? I even heard that there are quite some problems in the Kingdom, especially in the slums area. Add up the monsters that became an annoying problem to all the strongholds, be it a mere village or an almighty Kingdom... I am sure that if things won't be handled properly, there is a huge possibility of chaos breaking out inside the Kingdom! And we can't rule out the possibility of obtaining huge casualties, especially when the vampires are lurking around in the corners of the Kingdom! If that happens… I am not confident that I would be able to provide you that much aid, since our fleet's main focus is fighting the monsters and not humans! With all of that said... I am afraid that the Kingdom might fall!" 

"Still…" Duke Ersi retained the frown on his face. Then, he glanced towards Duke Albert, and asked, "Albert! You are the King's friend! Why can you stay calm despite knowing this fact?"

Duke Albert could only shake his head in response. Then, he glared towards Duke Ersi and said, "What can irrationality bring to me at this moment? Look, Ersi! Yes, I am the King's friend, but… I am also a Merchant—the official, that was entrusted to handle the commerce of this Kingdom! Whatever is the case... Whether I like it or not... I am still the one trusted by the King, himself, to manage the Business and Trade Industry of the Kingdom! It is my duty to ensure the prosperity of the Market in the name of the King! So… It's not that I am unaffected by this information but... The King has trusted the Kingdom's Market to me! I can only do my best, in return, whatever is happening!" 

"Are you saying that I am just being emotional?!" Duke Ersi shouted as he glared daggers towards Duke Albert.

In turn, Duke Albert could not help but to his head and said, "No! Of course not! What I just wanted to say is that… the King entrusted us our tasks to ensure the prosperity of the Kingdom and the welfare of his people. Would we risk the chance of jeopardizing what we—together with the King, had painstakingly reformed and develop just because of such a scenario! All I wanted to say is that... Whether the King is dead or alive, in the end, it would be us who would take responsibility for managing the Kingdom in his stead. So... We must focus on that part instead!"

"Well…" Duke Ersi could not help but to calm down and sigh after realizing what Duke Albert said. Then, he glanced towards Pedro and said, "I'll check the validity of your information as soon as our meeting is finished! So… can I know what the two of you had in mind in case you are correct?"

"That matter… I am leaving that to Duke Albert!" Pedro said with a calm demeanor. Then, he said, "My concern is just all about the people's overall safety! If the both of you could ensure the safety of everyone in this Kingdom, then… I don't give that much thought and focus on the political affairs of this Kingdom! So… I'll leave it to your hands."

"I Understand…" Duke Ersi nodded in response. At this moment, Duke Ersi returned to his calm and composed demeanor. Then, he said, "If… Just in case that what you said was right… What can I do to help prevent chaos from occurring in the Kingdom?"

Pedro simply scratched the back of his head and said, "In the meantime... Please focus on defending the Kingdom from the monsters in our stead. I would like to focus on helping Duke Albert in handling matters from within the walls—like the vampires and such, first and foremost! So that we would be assured that there won't be enemies biting behind our back! As for the so-called Adventurer's Guild... I am sure that both of you are aware of the sudden increase in numbers of the Adventurers. And to control and organize them while transforming them into contributing entities for the Kingdom, I want to ask for your support and establish an independent organization called the Adventurer's Guild! Imagine unifying all the adventurers visiting the Kingdom and using them as an additional force in fighting the monster waves! Won't it be a big help to you and the Kingdom's Army?"

"That's true…" Duke Ersi could not help but to rub his chin as he nods in agreement with what Pedro had said. On the other hand, Duke Albert simply remain silent and retained his calm demeanor to avoid suspicion of Duke Ersi.

It was not because he was the one who orchestrated the death of the King and Duke Kleon, but because he did not want to give a wrong impression to Duke Ersi that he and Pedro were the ones behind everything and got blamed for conspiracy of some sort.

Besides… It would not be a good idea if there would be any further internal conflict between them. It would just hasten the chaos that they all wanted to avoid no matter what!

So, they could just act calmly and discuss things carefully because the fate of the whole Tarala Kingdom and its people lies in their hands. If they act rashly, there is a possibility that things might go suddenly out of hand.

At this moment, Pedro clapped his hand to gain the attention of the two Dukes. Then, he said, "Since I have already told you what I had in mind… I would like to suggest that we conclude our discussion here, for now, and allow Duke Ersi to check the validity of the information that I got. If the information was right, then we can immediately take measures based on what we arranged so far. But if the information was wrong, then I could only ask Duke Ersi to kindly mediate between me and the King, and schedule a meeting to discuss the matters regarding the Adventurer's Guild."

Duke Ersi simply nodded in agreement and said, "I also think the same thing! Well… In any case, I am glad to know that we are on the same page—protecting the interest of the people and the Kingdom!"

Pedro and Duke Albert simply nodded in response. They smiled as Duke Ersi stood and said, "As for the matter regarding Kleon… Albert, you can hold the information about his death for about a day or two, right? The involvement of the vampires is quite troublesome, and we would need to conduct a thorough investigation about this incident. I fear that the vampires would become careful of their actions, or they would hide back in the shadows—knowing that they were able to successfully eliminate Kleon! Anyway… I'll inform the two of you in case I got any leads!"

"We would trouble you then, Ersi!" Duke Albert said whilst forcing out a smile. Then, he scratched the back of his head and said, "As for the control of the information… I can delay its spread for a day at most! Duke Kleon's son was present in the auction earlier… I fear that he would cause a scene any time soon, especially that his father was involved in this matter!"

Duke Ersi could only flick his tongue and frown in response. Then, after a few seconds, he took a deep breath and shook his head, while saying, "That's quite troublesome… Well, we have no choice! Just try to delay it as much as possible! We don't want to alert Kleon's supporters—who would definitely cause trouble! As for his son… Just make do a temporary reason and avert his attention. Like… Tell him that it was just a doppelganger of his father and was just part of an act or so… That idiot would buy it for now, at the least."

Duke Albert stood in response and said, "Don't worry much about it! I'll take care of that kid! For now… let's focus on the verification of sir Aron's information, as well as the improvement of the current state of the Tarala Kingdom!"

Pedro simply stood and nodded in agreement. While Duke Ersi simply sighed in response and said, "Very well… Then I would be taking my leave first!"

"May you bring back good news about the King!" Duke Albert said as Duke Ersi left—waving his hand.

At this moment, Pedro and Duke Albert were the only ones left in the room. Duke Albert could not help but force out a smile whilst locking the doors, and saying, "Ersi… What a tough man to handle! If not for your presence, sir Aron, I am not confident that I would be able to convince him and gain his support on my own!"contemporary romance

Pedro simply chuckled in response and said, "You don't need to give me the credit, Duke Albert! I merely said what I truly had in mind. Besides… I doubt that you do not have a contingency plan in your hand! Am I right, Duke Albert?"

Duke Albert simply grinned mischievously and said, "What are you saying, Sir Aron? Everything that happened till now was just all coincidence! Just coincidence!"

Pedro simply shrugged his shoulder and smirked, saying, "If you say so…"

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