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[LFTAW] Chapter 269: Barony of Carfield and Sorren's Plan
🕑 Added 2024-09-17 01:21:05 +0000 UTCAt this moment, Serena realized she might have accidentally revealed Lizbeth's true identity just now.
Seeing Carrera and Sylvanie staring blankly at Lizbeth, Serena decided to continue speaking.
"Get an extra set of tableware for Her Highness."
Serena glanced at Carrera and gave her an order.
"Yes."
Carrera finally snapped out of it, clapped her hands, and signaled a server to bring another set of tableware.
"But..."
Lizbeth seemed hesitant, muttering while shrinking back timidly.
Seeing her act like this, Riezel ordered directly.
"Sit."
He gave her a commanding order.
Thanks to the stern tone of his voice, the vague connection between Riezel and Lizbeth, created by the attendant contract, took effect.
Before Lizbeth realized it, she had already sat down instinctively.
Clearly, the attendant contract caused Lizbeth to obey Riezel's orders subconsciously.
"Ahh..."
Lizbeth, who came to her senses, hunched her shoulders and clutched her sword with a deeply embarrassed look as she sat.
Seeing Lizbeth like this, Serena couldn't help but sigh.
'She's so cute...'
Even she couldn't resist being captivated by Lizbeth's stunning appearance and her shy, nervous, little-animal-like demeanor.
Even Sylvanie cast eager glances at Lizbeth, clearly wanting to cozy up to her and befriend her.
It was understandable.
Sylvanie was only fifteen years old, the same age as Lizbeth, and though she was a special student at Spriller Academy just like Riezel, Carrera, and the others, having been admitted early, she and Lizbeth should have had plenty in common.
Unfortunately, Sylvanie's choice of side was too obvious.
Like Carrera, Sylvanie supported the Cordelion family, while Lizbeth was royalty. If they got close, it might have caused friction between the Royal Faction and the Duke Faction.
Understanding this, Riezel didn't let Lizbeth interact with Sylvanie and quickly turned to Serena, getting straight to the point.
"I think it's time to talk, right? What did that Mad Dog Prince do?"
Riezel finally asked the question.
As for why he didn't ask Carrera, it was clear the information she had obtained was from Serena.
After all, the Elliott family was only a count family. If they could gather information on Sorren, then the Frenzel family, which was a marquis family, should be able to as well.
However, since Yuri didn't know anything, how could the Elliott family know more than the Frenzel family?
It was obvious that the source of the information wasn't from the Elliott family but from a duke family like the Cordelion family.
As the nemesis of the Royal Faction, the Cordelion family must constantly monitor the royal family's movements, so it would be normal for them to obtain information that others didn't know.
Riezel had figured it out during this meeting.
Serena was the real instigator, while Carrera was just helping set things up.
Needless to say, the one who really wanted to meet him, talk to him, and discuss Sorren's matters was not Carrera, but this beautiful daughter of the Cordelion family, Serena.
Because of this, Riezel directed the conversation directly toward Serena.
Serena didn't think there was anything strange about this, while Carrera stood quietly aside, looking satisfied as if her job was done, watching Riezel and Serena converse.
"My family has indeed discovered some of his movements."
Serena pressed her lips together and smiled faintly.
"Based on these movements, both my brother and I think that this time, he's coming for you, Sir Riezel."
"I know..." Riezel said, his expression unchanged. "Ever since I kicked away his offer at the award ceremony, I knew there was a good chance he'd try to get back at me."
"Well, that guy's got a screw loose..." Serena said bluntly, without any restraint. "Who goes after a Sword Saint over a simple verbal disagreement? Does he really think being a prince lets him do whatever he wants?"
Such blunt words shocked both Carrera and Sylvanie, who immediately averted their eyes and acted as if they hadn't heard a thing.
Meanwhile, Lizbeth listened silently, her expression complicated.
No choice.
Like Sorren, she was, after all, also part of the royal family, children of the current king.
Strictly speaking, as the third prince, Sorren was her older half-brother, but sadly, she didn't have much of an impression of him.
Because of her birth, she had always sensed subtle exclusion from the legitimate royal family members. She was practically semi-imprisoned by her own father, rarely interacting with her other siblings.
As for Sorren, his nasty personality meant he looked down on even his full-blooded relatives, let alone her, an illegitimate child. Consequently, she had never really spoken to him, and the two had only seen each other a few times at mandatory family gatherings.
As a result, even though Sorren was being insulted by Serena, Lizbeth didn't say anything and only felt conflicted.
In the first place, if her half-brother really wanted to target Riezel, who was her master, he was her enemy as far as she was concerned.
At least, this was how Lizbeth saw it.
"And? What did he do?"
Riezel looked directly into Serena's eyes and asked the crucial question, but his question brought an unexpected answer that he had never seen coming.
"He sent his men to the Barony of Carfield." Serena answered calmly.
Barony of Carfield.
From the name alone, one could tell it was a territory under a baron.
A baron was the lowest rank of nobility, unquestionably a minor noble.
No matter the country, the lands given to barons were always remote, poor, and rural, so naturally, the Barony of Carfield was clearly one of these rural places.
Nevertheless, the name triggered Riezel's memory.
It was for a simple reason.
"At first, we were confused about why that mad dog suddenly sent his men to such a backwater place, so we did some digging..."
Serena continued, observing Riezel's expression.
"After some digging, we found out that... it's your hometown, right? Sir Riezel?"
Yes, the Barony of Carfield was Riezel's hometown—or rather, the original Riezel's hometown where he had been born and raised.
After discovering his magical energy was extraordinary, the original Riezel ran away to avoid being sold off by his family to his grandfather's master, who was a slave owner. As he escaped, he eventually made his way to the royal capital, Yeluvia.
In other words, the original Riezel's family and all of his past acquaintances were in the Barony of Carfield.
"We suspect that he plans to go after your family..."
Serena moved on with her explanation.
"From what we found, his order to his men was to capture alive your parents, your grandfather, and even Baron Carfield himself, and bring them to the royal capital..."
"Well, that's the information my family finally uncovered after a lot of effort."
It was obvious what Sorren intended to do with them—anyone could figure that out without even thinking hard.
"If nothing unexpected happens, he's probably planning to use your family to threaten you, forcing you to submit to him?" Serena speculated, her tone filled with disgust. "Typical of him, his methods are just as despicable and low as always."
Upon hearing this, both Carrera and Sylvanie nodded in agreement.
As nobles, they had seen even more despicable and lowly tactics than this, but it still depended on who was doing it.
However, for a prince, who also happened to be the most outstanding prince among the current princes and was supposed to be a role model for his people, using such a cheap tactic, there was truly nothing praiseworthy about it.
"Master..."
Lizbeth muttered while casting a worried look at Riezel.
Surprisingly, Riezel's current expression and gaze were unusually calm.
It wasn't feigned calmness, nor was it a forced calm that suppressed any feelings—it was truly the calm of a heart that was utterly unmoved and unshaken, as if it wasn't his own family that was about to be captured and harmed.
In truth, this was indeed the case.
At this moment, Riezel was observing the whole situation from the perspective of a bystander, coldly watching it unfold.
"So? Has he succeeded already?" Riezel asked lightly.
Serena was a bit surprised by his calmness but still replied honestly.
"Judging by the timing, he should have by now. Although the Barony of Carfield is pretty remote, it's linked by the Grand Canal, so it would only take a day or so to get there by water."
At this point, Serena raised three of her fingers.
"In other words, a round trip would take about three days and, by the way, that mad dog sent his men over five days ago."
At this time, it was highly likely that Sorren's men had already completed their task and even brought the captives to the royal capital. It only took three days for the trip, so in the remaining two days, his men, no matter how incompetent, should have finished the task by now.
A baron's territory?
Forget a Sword Master, even having a proper swordsman there might be too much to ask.
In such a backwater place, Sorren could do anything he wanted without the slightest difficulty.
"Our people are keeping a close watch on him, trying to find where he's hiding the captives." Serena continued. "After all, there's no way he could bring them into the royal capital in broad daylight, so once his men show up with a group of captives, they're bound to slip up, and we'll find them."
"Alright..." Riezel immediately nodded. "If you find them, just let me know. I'll owe you a favor."
Perhaps this was the whole point of Serena inviting him here to discuss Sorren's matters.
Evidently, the Cordelion family wanted to do him a favor and form some sort of alliance with him.
In this case, Riezel had no issue accepting their favor.
"By the way, can I ask what you plan to do?" Serena asked with a curious smile. "If you're thinking of impeaching that mad dog in front of His Majesty, maybe we can help you out a bit."
Her words were met with nothing but a calm reply.
"No need."
Riezel's calm voice echoed slowly.
"I'll deal with him in my own way, and he'll soon find out what kind of end awaits him."
