Chapter 165 - Walking on Eggshells (5)

“What an idiot.”

Henry watched Alfred desperately run away to try and survive somehow.

It was an amusing sight.

Alfred had fled after coming all the way here with burning ambition.

Henry didn’t chase after him on purpose, because the role Alfred played in his plan was too important for him to kill him right now.

‘He probably won’t come back now that he knows where he stands.’

Henry deliberately made sure Alfred felt hopeless before he made his escape so he wouldn’t come back in frustration.

In fact, Henry had prepared a few other things in addition to the Aqua Burst, but because Alfred gave up so soon, he felt it was a waste.

- Khaaa!

Elagon cried, disappointed that the game was already over.

However, as Elagon’s cry shook the snowy mountain, Alfred ran even faster.

Only when Alfred was out of sight from Salgaera did Henry come down to the bottom of the gorge and look for Torian.

“I'm here!”

Torian emerged from a tunnel on one side of the gorge. The tunnel had been dug in advance for Torian so that he wouldn’t get hurt.

Torian was covered in mud because of the Aqua burst, and Henry asked worryingly, “Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Other than the fact that I’m covered in mud, I’m fine.”

“I see. Anyway, I’m sure he won’t be back, since he’s learned his lesson.”

“Thanks to you, we were able to avoid trouble. Thank you.”

Despite the unexpected situation, they managed to deal with it without any issues.

Henry looked up and saw Elagon still in the sky.

- Khaaa!

‘He should be around that size when he’s fully grown, right?’

Elagon reminded Henry of a real dragon. Of course, he had never seen an actual dragon in real life, but he imagined that's what it would’ve looked like if dragons had existed.

Henry snapped his fingers.

- Khu?

Elagon returned to his normal size.

“Game time is over.”

- Khu…

Elagon was disappointed.

Henry patted him on the head and dismissed him.

“Now that I’m done, I’ll get going first. Oh, by the way…”

“Yes?”

“In around half a month, there’s going to be a big war that will turn around the fate of the empire. So before that, I’ll have Hagler bring you extra food.”

“W-war?”

At the news of war, Torian was bewildered.

Henry smiled and said, “There’s nothing to worry about. It’s just that the time for revenge has finally come.”

Henry’s smile seemed trustworthy.

After telling Torain the news, Henry Teleported to the Etherwether family’s mansion.

* * *

“The Marquis is currently not home.”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m only here to see his second son, Syred.”

Henry arrived at the mansion of the Etherwether family when Alfred was still absent.

Alfred had just left Salgaera, so it was going to take at least a few days for him to return to the mansion. Besides, his carriage was broken, which meant it would take him even longer to get back.

In the meantime, Henry decided to learn what strategy the Etherwether family had for the war.

“Hmm.”

The gatekeeper was troubled by Henry’s visit.

Everyone in the Etherwether family knew that there would be a Fief War soon.

In the current circumstances, the gatekeeper was worried about letting an enemy into the mansion in the owner’s absence.

Henry frowned and said, “Stop wasting my time and open the door. I’ve already discussed this with the Marquis!”

“A-alright!”

The gatekeeper quickly opened the door when he heard that the Marquis had already agreed to Henry’s visit.

Henry was technically right because he was supposed to periodically supply the Pink Swamp for Syred.

The servants got busy at Henry’s visit.

Soon, Syred entered the living room Henry was waiting in.

“Nice to see you again, Sir Syred,” said Henry politely.

However, Syred’s expression turned dark as soon as he saw him.

“I heard you came to see me?” replied Syred bluntly.

His tone was understandable because the two brothers had turned into addicts due to the Pink Swamp that Henry had distributed. In addition, because of this, his father had gotten so angry that he had started a Fief War with Eisen. Therefore, there was no way that Syred could be happy to see Henry.

“That’s right. I came here to see you, Sir Syred.”

“What’s the reason for your visit? Do we still have something left to discuss?”

“Of course. Since the Marquis is not here, should you take the goods on his behalf?”

“What goods?”

“This, of course.”

Henry took out a wooden box containing the Pink Swamp.

Syred frowned even more and said, “I was wondering how my father had gotten his hands on the Pink Swamp. So you’re the one who pulled this crap?”

“Haha, what do you mean ‘crap’? Why don’t you lower your tone, Sir Syred?”

Bang!

As Henry smiled, Syred’s face turned red and he slammed the desk.

“How dare you…! Do you think I’m on the same level as you just because I’m playing along with your damn games?”

Syred had a hard time controlling his emotions ever since he had become addicted to the Pink Swamp.

Oscar was the one who had given Syred the Pink Swamp, but Syred believed that if Henry hadn't introduced it in the first place, he wouldn’t have become an addict.

‘He’s completely ruined.’

Henry had heard the news that Syred had become disabled. It was possible for him to continue on with his daily activities as long as he smoked the cigarettes, but the sharp intellect he once had was now nowhere to be found. Therefore, Syred was currently like glass made of ice.

Henry looked around his surroundings, and there were a lot of people watching them.

Although this living room was meant for serving guests, it was an inappropriate place to discuss private matters.

After scanning the room, Henry said, “I don’t understand.”

“What?”

“You should be almost out of cigarettes by now, and after the battle, Marquis Eisen may ask me to stop distributing the cigarettes. How could you be so rude to me when I’m the one managing the merchant company in such circumstances… I guess you don’t need any more cigarettes, Sir Syred?”

“Y-you…! Are you threatening me right now?”

“Of course not. I’m not petty enough to cut off the supply of cigarettes over something like that. I’m a man of my word.”

Although Henry claimed that it wasn’t a threat, Syred clearly took it as one.

However, Henry didn’t want to shake things up just because of some cigarettes. There was a limit to how much one could get by inducing fear.

‘Successful negotiations occur when you grasp the other person's desire.’

Henry pushed the wooden box on the table toward Syred and said, “You’ve abstained for quite some time now… Why don’t you smoke one?”

“...Damn it!”

Just as much as Syred couldn't control his emotions, he also wasn’t as patient anymore.

As Syred’s mouth dried up because of the withdrawal, he cursed and picked up the wooden box.

He lit a match and smoked the cigarette that Henry had given him.

“...!”

His entire body was covered in goosebumps.

‘T-this is…!’

The thing inside Syred’s mouth was none other than the Pink Swamp 2.

His hands trembled with intense pleasure as he blew out the pink smoke.

Ever since he had ran out of the Pink Swamp 2, he had been suffering from withdrawal. Although Alfred had managed to bring him some more cigarettes, they couldn’t replace the Pink Swamp 2. However, if he didn’t even have the original Pink Swamp, he really felt like he was going to die, so he had no choice but to smoke it all the time.

‘I thought I was mistaken…!’

Syred had purchased the Pink Swamp from other nobles just in case he was mistaken about the taste of the Pink Swamp 2. However, he most certainly wasn’t mistaken.

The moment he smoked the cigarette Henry had offered, he could confirm that his craving wasn’t something that he had just made up in his head.

It had a strong taste.

His irritable personality soon subsided and his face was filled with a smile.

It was a sensation similar to an orgasm, brought on by finally savoring the right substance after smoking the incorrect one for a long time.

‘I’m sure you’ve missed it, since I only gave the Pink Swamp 2 to you.’

Henry waited patiently for a while for Syred to fully enjoy the reunion with his cigarette.

When he finished smoking, Henry took a small note and gave it to Syred.

“I think we should wrap it up here for today. I will leave the extra cigarettes here, so please enjoy.”

Due to the large number of people around them and the need for privacy, the note contained a different location for discussing private matters.

Henry left a few boxes of the Pink Swamp on the table and left the living room.

Of course, the ones he had placed just now contained the normal Pink Swamp. The Pink Swamp 2 was only in the first box he had given him.

However, Henry didn’t bother to retrieve the Pink Swamp 2 he had given him earlier because he was using that as bait.

Henry wanted Syred to slowly savor the pack and develop an even greater desire for the Pink Swamp 2.

Complicated thoughts flooded Syred’s head after checking the note.

* * *

Arthus arrived at the Magical Spire located in the imperial palace.

The Magical Spire was the first ivory spire Henry had built, and also the empire’s greatest knowledge repository.

The reason for Arthus’ visit to the Magical Spire was simple. He wanted to hear the opinion of Lore Gillian, the head of the spire, before the big upcoming event.

‘Wizards are a nuisance, and their refusal to join the rebellion complicates matters. We can't eliminate them solely because they won’t participate, yet we mustn't turn them into enemies either.’

It wasn’t difficult for Arthus to talk privately with Lore and he soon arrived at the room located on the top floor of the spire.

“Welcome.”

Lore Gillian politely greeted Arthus, the most powerful duke of the empire, and Arthus did the same.

Now that Henry was dead, the man in front of him was the best wizard in the empire.

“Duke, what’s the purpose of your sudden visit?” asked Lore.

Lore’s voice was very formal. He didn’t have an intimate relationship with Arthus, and he was also well aware that Arthus had played a big role in Henry’s death.

Lore was a fervent admirer of Henry, but he didn’t reveal this kind of personal feeling to Arthus. No matter Arthus’ disgusting past, he was currently talking to the Duke as the head of the spire.

Arthus stared at Lore for a while. He knew Lore was a follower of Henry and that he wasn’t pleased with him at the moment.

As soon as he heard Lore’s voice, Alfred knew right away that he wasn’t going to be cooperative about the rebellion.

‘There’s no point in asking.’

Lore essentially answered two of Arthus’ questions at once, but just to be sure, Arthus had to hear Lore’s answer even if he already knew what it was going to be.

“What do you think about the current emperor and the power he has?” asked Arthus.

Arthus went straight to the point, and Lore answered immediately without the slightest change in his expression.

“Are you preparing a rebellion?”

“...!”

Arthus was shocked.