Chapter 151- Ignition (2)

“That’s your excuse!”

Bang!

With tear-filled eyes, Waled made excuses and bowed over and over in an attempt to lessen Alfred’s anger.

“I-I apologize, Father…”

“I can’t believe you did all of this just for some cigarettes…!”

The Pink Swamp was the problem.

Alfred remembered enjoying the Pink Swamp with Waled, but unlike Syred and Waled, he didn’t suffer from withdrawal.

‘Why?’

If Waled’s account of Syred’s withdrawal symptoms were true, then Alfred would have suffered similarly. However, all he experienced was a slight craving for alcohol and a sense of dryness in his mouth, which was nowhere near as unbearable as Syred's condition.

The Pink Swamp was addictive because it was a type of poison, and only those with skills, such as Sword Masters, Mages, and advanced spiritualists, could withstand its effects better. Alfred, an advanced spiritualist, had minor withdrawal symptoms compared to others.

‘Waled must have visited because he knew that Syred had been tricked. Then what about Syred?’

He had been so angry that he had focused on reprimanding Waled. However, Alfred finally recalled that Syred was addicted to cigarettes.

‘Syred’s in danger!’

Syred, Alfred’s second son, was only capable of dealing with intermediate spirits. Alfred hurried to look for him and when he found Syred in his room, he couldn’t help but sigh at his son’s condition.

“...What the hell are you selling, Eisen?”

Syred’s room was filled with bottles of liquor, different types of cigarettes, and banned psychotropic drugs. Syred Etherwether leaned against the side of his bed. He had lost a significant amount of weight.

“H-Haa… Ha!”

Syred was the only person in the empire to try the Pink Swamp 2.

Even though he was on the verge of having the skills to handle a higher-level spirit, Syred was still considered an intermediate spiritualist. As a result, the Pink Swamp 2 was too overwhelming.

Alfred despaired at the sight of his drug-addicted son, and at the same time, he felt the most intense anger he had ever experienced in his entire life.

“Hey! I’m going to leave for the palace so prepare a carriage right away!” shouted Alfred to his servants.

Alfred’s counterattack was beginning.

* * *

Eisen gave Henry another week off despite Henry’s protests. He wanted Henry to recover from the incident with Waled completely.

‘Having too much love for your subordinates is not good.’

While it was good that Eisen cared for Henry, an excessive amount of concern was also problematic. Henry would have preferred to use the vacation time to provoke Alfred once more and instigate another confrontation between Alfred and Eisen.

When Henry returned to Ten's mansion, Von asked what happened. He’d just heard the news.

“I heard Waled made a scene.”

“Yes, and because of it, he lost an arm.”

“Did you cut his arm off?”

“Why would I? He acted up, and it exploded on its own.”

“...He acted up, and it exploded on its own?”

It wasn’t convincing at all, but there was no need to explain in detail because Von didn’t know that Hector existed.

Henry changed the subject and said, “Eisen also gave me another week off to recover.”

“Another whole week? I never thought this of him, but he sure adores you! You’re going to fall in love with him at this rate.”

“Don’t say such disgusting things even as a joke.”

“Love, huh… It’s funny just thinking about it. Anyway, you guys went all the way to see Alfred, did you get anything out of it?”

“Eisen humiliated Alfred, so Alfred will take the bait soon. Alfred is prideful, so I know he won’t stay still.”

“What if he doesn’t stay still? He can’t blame you for distributing the Pink Swamp, can he?”

“I've already secured a witness to testify that his son's arm exploded on its own. However, he'll undoubtedly need to vent his anger, and he has only a few options left.”

“A few options, huh… Don’t tell me you’re…?”

“That’s right. I’m hoping that Alfred and Eisen will ignite a Fief War.”

A Fief War was a match in which nobles with fiefs fought each other.

Nobles initiated a Fief War by notifying their superiors about their intention to engage in such a conflict. Then, they set rules before engaging in the battle. However, this was mainly done by lords who owned smaller territories.

Nobles who were grand marquises, like Eisen and Alfred, viewed Fief Wars as jokes. However, Alfred had no other way of revenge.

It has been Henry’s plan all along to provoke the sons of the Etherwether family and instigate a Fief War.

“A Fief War with Alfred, huh…”

Ever since the continent had been fully unified and entered a time of peace, it had grown rare to see events like the Fief War. If the two marquises were involved in such a conflict, it would definitely be an interesting sight.

“It’ll be an overwhelming fight.”

“It won’t just be overwhelming. I plan to take this opportunity to kill Alfred and disguise it as an accidental death.”

“Will it be okay to end him like that?”

“Alfred is like an appetizer compared to the emperor or Arthus anyway. There’s no need to fill my stomach with the appetizer when there’s a delicious meal just around the corner.”

“I guess so. Aubert was the initial target of this plan, and he was useful in many ways. Alfred isn’t the same at all.”

“Which is why I’m thinking of becoming independent from Eisen after the Fief War.”

“What? Already? How are we going to catch Arthus?”

“Indeed, we were supposed to use Eisen to capture Arthus, but our primary objective is to assassinate the emperor. Ultimately, a rebellion is inevitable, so we should gradually build our own independent force.”

Preparations for a real war would soon be underway.

“With this in mind, there’s something you need to do for me, brother,” said Henry.

“Me?”

“Yes. No matter how many of those people we gather, they won’t be of any use. It seems that I can’t trust the information Ten gives me anymore.”

“I agree. I thought he had a pretty good information network, but I didn’t expect it to be so disorganized…”

None of Ten’s suggested talents proved to be suitable. Consequently, Henry resolved to change his approach and search for people with proven skills rather than hidden talent. He decided to look for someone who lived in solitude, like Von had.

Henry handed over a list of people to Von and said, “It’s a list I made myself. The other people don’t matter as much, but I hope you can at least find the first person on the list.”

“The first person…?”

Von quickly checked the first person on the list and when he confirmed the name, his eyes widened noticeably.

“I look forward to it, and don’t forget to take plenty of healing potions just in case something happens again.”

“...Alright.”

Henry didn’t tell Von to stay safe because he wanted Von to complete his mission no matter what, even if he got a little hurt.

Von’s eyes were thrilled as he looked at the list Henry gave him.

* * *

Upon arriving at the imperial palace, Alfred immediately applied for an emergency private meeting with the emperor. It was a privilege reserved for those who held power directly below the emperor—the heads of each of the Three Great Families.

The emperor soon appeared, grumbling in disheveled clothes.

Alfred stood and bowed to the emperor.

“Hello, Your Majesty.”

“No need for a greeting. Why’d you suddenly call for an emergency private meeting, Marquis Alfred?”

The emperor looked annoyed as he had been enjoying time with four court ladies. However, he couldn’t refuse the meeting with one of the Three Great Families because of that.

The emperor was obliged to meet with the Three Great Family members despite any circumstances.

Still visibly agitated, Alfred began explaining the reason. “Your Majesty, have you ever heard of the cigarette called the Pink Swamp before?”

“Pink Swamp? There’s a cigarette with that name?”

“It appears you're not yet aware. Pink Swamp is the name of Shahatra's new cigarette. Marquis Eisen introduced it through a trade deal with Shahatra.”

“What? Shahatra is making new cigarettes?”

Silver Jackson Edward the Second enjoyed everything pleasurable and was a heavy smoker who enjoyed all kinds of cigarettes.

“Why is it my first time hearing about this? What do you mean by a trade deal with Shahatra? Since when did Shahatra start trading with the empire?”

“I heard that the subjugation was the starting point of their trade. Anyway, that’s not the important part.”

“Then what is?”

“Most of the nobles are seriously addicted to the Pink Swamp cigarettes brought in by Marquis Eisen.”

“Addiction? What nonsense are you talking about?”

“Your Majesty, the cigarettes are odd. Those who smoke cigarettes feel refreshed at first, but as time goes by, they begin to crave alcohol, and they also can’t live without cigarettes.”

“Isn’t that the case for most cigarettes?”

“No, I’ve smoked it before. The Pink Swamp seems to contain a strong psychotropic drug that is banned in the empire.”

“So are you trying to say that the product from Shahatra, the Pink Swamp… is a drug disguised as a cigarette?”

“That’s right, Your Majesty! There are already numerous victims. Even my son is addicted to Pink Swamp and is getting thinner by the day!”

All Alfred could do was snitch to the emperor because there was no reason for him to get angry at Eisen after hearing the whole story from Waled.

‘Even if it’s humiliating, I’ll pay you back for this, Eisen!’

𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

If there was no reason, all he had to do was make one, and if there was no weapon to use, he just had to find one.

Alfred had called for an emergency private meeting with the emperor as a way to take revenge in the same manner that Eisen had done to Aubert in the past.

However, the emperor stroked his chin and said, “Hmm, that’s strange.”

“What is, Your Majesty?”

“Aren't you implying that you were aware it was a drug, yet you allowed your son to become addicted?”

“...What?”

“Psychotropic substances are prohibited by law. Why didn't you tell me about this from the very beginning?”

It was a good point.

Alfred was bewildered since he had never seen this side of the emperor before. He quickly started making excuses.

“I-I didn’t know about it at first, but as time passed, my son became thinner and I started hearing rumors. Only then did I begin to suspect that this might be a drug.”

“Hmm, really? Bring me some.”

“T-the Pink Swamp?”

“Yes. I smoke those kinds of things all the time, so I'll know for sure whether it's a drug or not. Ah! Actually, I won't ask you for it. I'll ask Eisen to bring them personally.”

“Y-Your Majesty!”

“I understand where you’re coming from, so I’ll make sure to investigate fully before I decide whether to punish Eisen or not. What do you say, is this a good enough solution?”

The emperor hadn’t learned swordsmanship, magic, or spiritualism. So other than the fact that he was from a royal family, he was just like an ordinary person. However, it was already too late to dissuade the emperor, who was already keenly interested in Shahatra’s new cigarettes.