It was not until the envoy alighted from the carriage that Ivan clearly beheld Count Robert, renowned for his toughness. The most conspicuous and also the most memorable feature was Count Robert's perpetually cold and rigid countenance. His pallid complexion with a faint bluish tinge brought to mind the granite floor beneath one's feet.
His narrow pupils lent his eyes a particularly fierce appearance. His angular facial features and the lofty, straight forehead all corresponded to his tough reputation.
Ivan decided to refrain from making an appearance for the time being and allowed Count Fernan to act as a genuine acting lord. For this reason, Ivan invariably stood behind Count Fernan, presenting a calm and submissive demeanor.
This made Count Fernan, who was well-acquainted with the character of the young lord, deeply concerned and also fortified his conviction in the plan that Ivan was devising to deal with the envoy.
Count Fernan felt a sense of helplessness regarding his precarious position.
Although he appeared glorious on the surface and had never before exuded such majesty, even Count Levy, who had always held him in disdain, was now following him obediently. Regrettably, he was cognizant that the individuals he was confronting and the one standing behind him were two powerful figures that he could ill afford to offend.
And he was compelled to navigate between these two significant figures. One can readily imagine the arduousness of such a situation.
However, Count Fernan had no alternative means of extricating himself from this predicament. He was aware that Count Levy would surely not come to his aid. Until the opportune moment arrived, the young lord would assuredly not take action.
Count Fernan felt as if he had swallowed a bitter pill, yet he still had to display a respectful and solicitous smile to the best of his ability in order to welcome the envoy.
Although Count Robert was perplexed by the substantial disparity between Thorsburg and what His Majesty the King had informed him, since he had always been accustomed to being flattered and had invariably been regarded as a paragon of toughness, how could Count Robert permit the imposing aura he had painstakingly cultivated to be entirely dissipated due to this minor mishap?
This envoy of His Majesty the King, the supreme imperial envoy, strutted at the vanguard of the procession with his head held high and an air of complete self-assurance.
Count Fernan meticulously escorted this lord into the sheriff's mansion.
The sheriff's mansion had already made comprehensive preparations for welcoming the envoy. Countless ribbons extended from the hall all the way to the entrance. They were all crafted from the most precious silk imported from South Port. The floor of the sheriff's mansion was entirely covered with a red carpet. The renowned paintings that were customarily stored away were now adorning the surrounding walls.
The impeccably attired military band accompanied them throughout, ceaselessly playing a clamorous welcome tune.
Count Fernan spared no expense in ensuring that everything was executed to perfection.
However, this count, renowned for his toughness, was evidently not satisfied with the scale of the welcome ceremony. In fact, even if he were rather content in his heart, he would still display a hint of dissatisfaction. Because, according to his experience, a fastidious superior would instill fear in his subordinates, and fear would make those subordinates respect their superior even more.
This was Count Robert's long-held belief. Nevertheless, precisely because of this, he was not well-liked.
In the royal court, he had few allies. After all, no one would willingly get too close to this prickly character who liked to cause discomfort.
Although with the passage of time, Count Robert felt that his tough demeanor was truly impeding his ascent to a higher position. No matter how hard he tried, he could not wield the same influence as his cousin in the capital.
And he believed that, in terms of both talent and diligence, he was far superior to his cousin.
This time presented a prime opportunity for him to prove himself.
Count Robert was well aware that his cousin, Count Rovinell, also coveted the position of lord of Thorsburg. He had been lobbying everywhere in an attempt to secure this lucrative post for himself. However, His Majesty the King evidently favored him and bestowed this plum assignment upon him.
According to the king's decree, he was, in effect, a lord, and that young man was merely a nominal heir to the lordship.
But what means could be employed to oust this heir to the lordship from his position?
Count Robert was already regretting not having gleaned more information from Martill before his arrival.
As far as he knew, Martill's thoughts were almost identical to his own. The only difference was that he was acting openly and boldly, relying on the imperial decree in his possession and feeling secure. While Martill was plotting everything in secret.
But whether it was through above-board means or underhanded tactics, neither should have lost to the seemingly stupid and cowardly acting lord before them. Moreover, this acting lord always glanced at the heir to the lordship a couple of times before speaking. Evidently, he was extremely apprehensive of that young man.
This was truly inexplicable!
With a multitude of doubts in his mind, Count Robert began to read out the king's decree.
"People of Thorsburg..." Count Robert elongated his tone. He even omitted the customary polite greetings: "I have traveled a long distance, bearing the decree of the supreme His Majesty the King. I have come here to convey His Majesty's concern for Thorsburg. You all should feel extremely honored. Let us praise our king. May the gods always be by his side..."
Count Robert, in order to make everyone remember that he had come this time bearing the king's authority, lavishly extolled the king's majesty. Then he said: "His Majesty the King has recognized the identity verification of Mr. Ivan Baindite by the people of Thorsburg. Ivan Baindite has been graciously permitted by the benevolent king to append his mother's surname to his name. I have come on this journey to convey His Majesty's grace and announce that Mr. Ivan Medin Baindite inherits the earlship of the Medin family and the fief of five hundred and twenty-nine acres of land in Ledding Town and along the southern coast."
The envoy paused at this point and glanced at the reactions of the people, especially that of the young heir to the lordship.
To his displeasure, although most people showed a look of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted from their hearts, the young heir to the lordship maintained an indifferent expression, as if this news was not particularly unexpected or delightful to him.
Count Robert was eager to see what the young heir to the lordship would look like when he heard the following bad news. Would he still maintain this nonchalant expression, or would he become panicked or enraged?
The imperial envoy then continued: "However, considering that Earl Ivan Medin Baindite is still young and lacks the sufficient ability to control and utilize his property and fiefdom. And as the heir to the lordship of Thorsburg, he also lacks the wisdom and experience to serve as the sheriff of Thorsburg. Therefore, His Majesty the King has specially ordered me to act as the guardian of Earl Ivan Medin Baindite."
The envoy's words clearly took most of the people present by surprise.
Because Ivan did have a guardian. Lord Hyde was his legal guardian, and this was clearly mentioned in the identity verification document submitted to His Majesty the King. It was impossible for the king not to know this.
Depriving a legal guardian of his rights was scarcely less serious than depriving a noble of his hereditary fiefdom.
In fact, it was precisely because the identity of the legal guardian was sacrosanct that the noble fiefdoms could be protected from being wantonly encroached upon.
"Envoy, I already have a guardian. He is Lord Kaiwieele Egrete Hyde, a loyal servant of His Majesty the King," Ivan said unhurriedly.
He was not worried that the king's order would cause him confusion because they had anticipated that something like this might happen.
Count Robert clearly did not regard that insignificant hereditary lord with any regard. The reason why His Majesty the King had dared to make such a hasty decision was that the legal guardian was only an inconspicuous minor noble.
Although the identity of the legal guardian was inviolable, presumably no one would oppose His Majesty the King for the sake of a hereditary lord.
Count Robert said coldly: "His Majesty the King does not believe that Lord Hyde can provide you with sufficient education. To have a hereditary lord educate the future lord is simply a joke, no matter who hears it. In view of this, His Majesty the King has specially sent me to be your guardian. I will give you a proper education and make you a qualified lord. However, you had better be prepared. I am a very strict guardian and will not tolerate any of your wild behavior."
"Excuse me, I think His Majesty the King is mistaken. As far as I know, unless the guardian commits a major crime such as treason, no one can deprive a guardian of his duties. Even His Majesty the King does not have such power," Ivan said.
"I am well aware of the law. However, this precisely demonstrates His Majesty the King's concern for you. I do not wish to waste time explaining something that is obvious to anyone," Count Robert said with a stern face.
"The law is the law. Although the law may have loopholes, it must be obeyed. These seem to be the words of His Majesty the Fifth. Does His Majesty the King think that the most important sentence spoken by his ancestor, who is venerated by the people of France from generation to generation, is completely wrong?"
"Furthermore, His Majesty the King clearly did not carefully verify Lord Hyde's identity. Lord Hyde is fully qualified to be my guardian. He is not only a hereditary lord of the Kingdom of France but also a Knight of the Temple personally appointed by His Holiness the Pope. The proof of my guardianship was personally signed by His Holiness the Pope. I wonder if His Majesty the King believes that he is more sacred and greater than His Holiness the Pope, or if Count Robert believes that he is nobler than a Knight of the Temple," Ivan said with a smile.
Ivan's words astonished Count Robert. He had never expected to encounter such a major obstacle as soon as he arrived in Thorsburg. What surprised him even more was that Martill had obviously concealed everything about Lord Hyde.
According to what he said, Lord Hyde was merely a common merchant who started from trading and was quite wealthy but had no background.
It was precisely because he assured His Majesty the King that in Thorsburg, only Count Fernan was the only enemy and that all of this was planned by Count Fernan alone. Therefore, His Majesty the King made such arrangements without further investigation and verification.
Count Robert suddenly realized that Count Martill had finally sought the protection of Prince Phillips instead of choosing to shelter under the wings of His Majesty the King. This was clearly quite abnormal.
It was only at that time that everyone thought that Count Martill had lost his value and that His Majesty the King was rather glad to get rid of a useless waste. Since Prince Phillips liked this precious commodity, it was just right to kick this guy to the prince.
Now that he thought about it, it was very likely that everything Count Martill said was instigated by Prince Phillips.
No one was more aware of the irreconcilable conflict between Prince Phillips and His Majesty the King than Count Robert.
In the capital of France, everyone knew that His Majesty the King wished that Prince Phillips would die sooner. And Prince Phillips evidently had the same thought as His Majesty the King. Precisely because of this, His Majesty the King never received the envoys sent by Prince Phillips.
If it was said that Prince Phillips had secretly arranged all of this, Count Robert would firmly believe it. Because he now discovered that His Majesty the King and he himself had clearly underestimated Lord Hyde. And the plan formulated by His Majesty the King had evidently forced him to confront Lord Hyde head-on.
This was surely what Prince Phillips most wanted to see.
However, Count Robert was also well aware that he was now in a difficult position. If he missed this opportunity, His Majesty the King would definitely not appoint him again to handle the affairs of Thorsburg in full.
For the king, replacing a person and using a different method to control Thorsburg was clearly the best option. But for himself, who had lost this opportunity, it was unknown when he would get such an excellent opportunity again.
In fact, for Robert, he had waited his entire life for this one opportunity. Because for a person as tough as him, His Majesty the King really did not have many opportunities to reuse him.
The envoy made up his mind to stake everything on this gamble. Anyway, behind him was His Majesty the King, the big banker. If he won, he could obtain a large share of the benefits. If he lost, it would be no different from simply going back.
And even if he lost, no one else should be able to profit from it. His Majesty the King should at least know that Thorsburg was not something he could easily control.
Count Robert was well aware that for His Majesty the King, Thorsburg was not the matter that concerned him most urgently. Compared with determining the heir to the lordship of Thorsburg, how to curtail the military power in the hands of Prince Phillips was of vastly different importance. To this end, His Majesty the King had even secretly negotiated with the Kingdom of Driz, the long-standing enemy of the Kingdom of France.
His Majesty the King was evidently eager to obtain a peace treaty, or even an alliance pact.
In the king's view, although Driz was ambitious and tried to swallow up France, with six magicians and the undefeated Holy Knight Order in its possession, and plus Italy would never stand idly by, Driz would hardly be able to withstand attacks from two fronts.
Precisely because of this, compared with Prince Phillips, who directly threatened the king's position, Driz was clearly a less dangerous enemy.
After realizing all this, the envoy said: "Perhaps what you said is not wrong. However, the decree of His Majesty the King cannot be questioned. Since he has ordered me to act as your guardian, this is the duty I must fulfill. Unless His Majesty the King revokes the order. Of course, I also know that it is illegal to arbitrarily deprive a guardian of his duties. Then, let His Majesty the King correct his own mistake himself."
"Please ask the acting lord to draw up a document to prove that Lord Hyde is fully qualified to act as the guardian of the heir to the lordship. I think His Majesty the King will definitely not dispute with His Holiness the Pope. However, before that, before His Majesty the King sends the next envoy to recall me to the capital, I must fulfill my mission. During this period, I must fulfill my obligations as a guardian."
Count Robert did not intend to compete with Lord Hyde for the power of guardianship. All he wanted was an acknowledgment - an acknowledgment that he could temporarily exercise the power of guardianship during the period before the king's decree arrived. This was enough for him to completely take control of Thorsburg.
Moreover, he still had a decisive solution that could make him the true lord of Thorsburg.
Unlike Count Martill, Count Robert was full of confidence in his own martial prowess. He himself was a good swordsman, and the knights he brought were also the elite of the Royal Knights, at least he thought so.
If someone told him that with the knights in his hands, he could not eliminate a young man under their control, he would never believe it. Unfortunately, he did not learn from Count Martill that this heir to the lordship was a magician.
Count Martill, who was instigated by Prince Phillips, concealed this most important matter from His Majesty the King. He did not even tell the king that there was a killer with the strength of a Paladin beside Lord Hyde, and there was also an extremely powerful magician backing them all.
Count Martill never knew who the magician Lavash was. His Highness the Prince forbade him to inquire about anything related to this.
Count Robert did not know that all the plans he was hatching were exactly what Prince Phillips hoped he would do.