The whole estate is in an atmosphere of sadness.
Vito sat in a rocking chair with a somber expression on his face, his fingers curling and stretching, gently tapping on the desktop, in front of him, there were two letters with very different contents. One was a letter from Kylie, to the effect that she hoped her father could pay attention to safety, and vaguely mentioned that some dangers were approaching. The other was from the Academy Council, informing him solemnly and sorrowfully that Kelly had been assassinated, and making a vague reference to the possibility that the incident might be connected to someone in the Federation, which was exactly what Vito had hoped to see.
"Knock ... knock ..."
He tapped rhythmically on the table until Ms. Williams stepped out of the shadows, which stopped the motion and asked.
"How did the College Convocation go?"
"As usual, the Lord of the Cthulhu has not shown any special behavior, so I have not been able to inquire too much information."
"That dead fox ... hum!"
Vito grunted.
"But it's for the best... the more these guys hide it, the more likely it is to be true. Kelly is apparently dead ..."
"Do you regret it? Lord Vito?"
Ms. Williams raised her head, trying to see the slightest fluctuation of emotion in the face of this frosty man, but she found nothing. Could it be that this man, who had masterminded his daughter's death, was unwilling to feel for her until this very last moment? You know, that is his own daughter ah!
But Ms. Williams, who had not noticed anything, quickly lowered her head again, feeling an uncontrollable fear from the bottom of her heart - if this man could show the slightest fluctuation in his expression, it would at least reassure her. After all, that means the man in front of her is still a human being. But right now, Ms. William no longer knew what kind of existence the man sitting in the chair, the Imperial Minister of Magical Affairs, really was.
"Look at this letter."
A mocking smile swept across Vito's lips as he flung the letter in his hand at Ms. Williams.
"Kelly, my wonderful daughter even wrote to me to remind me that she wants me to be safe ... What a great kid, don't you think?"
"..."
Ms. Williams didn't speak, she didn't dare. Even as the most central part of the plan, she not only felt sorry for Kylie, although she was a bit arrogant, but from Ms. William's standpoint, she was a very promising magician, and at the same time, she was also a good daughter who loved and admired her father very much. As a teacher in the academy, she had known for a long time that Kylie, apart from studying magic knowledge, had been reading and reviewing the political records and history of the previous generations, all in order to succeed her father's position in the future and hopefully to do a better job than her father had done.
What she didn't realize was that her father was a complete monster.
"You know what? Ms. Williams."
Vito murmured in a low, indifferent tone mingled with derision.
"Ever since she was fourteen, I've been thinking about violating this bitch, making her realize that she has the same dirty blood as her mother. But in the end, I refrained. This is not my revenge, and simply letting it out will not satisfy my anger. I had to destroy the country, and the Academy. Until it all burns in flames! Only then will I be able to quell my anger and resentment ... You are also the same, as a clan member who survived the massacre of the empire at the beginning, you should have the same burning anger as I do deep inside."
"Of course, my lord."
Without daring to raise her head, but continuing to gaze at the dark shadows at her feet, Ms. Williams replied in the affirmative.
"My hope, like yours, is to see this country burn and crash."
Vito nodded in satisfaction, obviously pleased with Ms. William's answer, then he stood up, tore Kelly's letter to shreds, and threw it into the nearby fireplace without looking at it.
"Then, I will go to the Academy now."
Although Vito's voice was still heavy, there was a hint of excitement that wasn't obvious.
"I will question the Lord of Heaven as a grieving father! What the hell are they doing!!!"
Vito strides out of the study, while Lady William glances at the debris, already engulfed in the fire and reduced to charred black ash, sighs slightly, and then melts into the shadows.
The aroma of the warm, flavorful black tea smelled delightful, but the person in front of her was clearly not in the mood to savor it. Kelly sat there with a scowl on her face, and if it hadn't been for Jared's injury, she would have started complaining.
"I can't believe you didn't ask for my opinion?"
She inquired, holding back her anger, while Jared shook his head with absolutely no remorse.
"What can I do if I tell you? Missy, if you say no, I won't do it?"
"You ..."
Kylie blushed slightly, just now Jared's words obviously had a double meaning, or rather she involuntarily thought of aspects that she should not think of. This made Kylie a little flustered, but also angry and did not know what to say." Then at least I can write a letter to Father! So that he won't be worried! In this situation, if father-sama thinks I'm really dead, then he ..."
"Before deceiving your enemy, first deceive your own..."
Jared held out a finger and shook it, stopping Kelly's retort.
"And don't forget, since the enemy was able to bribe even your father's men, this letter will only bring us more trouble. Do you really think that no one saw that letter when it reached your father?"
"... So, what do you really want?"
"It's very simple, those who want you to die, will surely gain some benefits from your death, since they want you to die so much, then you'll die for them, at that time, these guys who have been hiding behind the curtain will take the initiative to jump out, at that time, everything will become much easier. And now, we can also let that unlucky prince to be the scapegoat, anyway, he has enough crimes, do not care about one more."
Jared spread his hands with an easy smile.
"Besides, this has been approved by the Academy President, so don't worry, you just have to pretend you're dead, then we'll do the rest."
（"So we hope that as of today, Miss Kelly will not leave this room for the time being. We'll leave the affairs of the castle to Miss Serenity, and now that the prince and his party have been eliminated, the patrols are of no particular significance. Miss Serenity will have time to take care of these matters, so please rest in peace.)
"But that would make the whole town run ..."
"I know what you're trying to say."
Jared interrupted Kelly with a shake of his head.
"But this is good, if after the loss of the backbone, the operation of the castle as normal as ever, then it is very easy to be certain people who have the heart to see the problem . Don't worry, there are me and Caroline in, Wendy ... should also be able to help a little bit, even if it is chaotic again, it won't be that bad."
"If only that were true."
Though her color softened considerably, Kelly's tone was still very unhappy, and she reached out and pushed the candle on the table. The dim light flickered slightly in the darkened room.
"But do I have to stay in the basement all the time?"
"Of course, if anyone sees the already 'dead' Ms. Kelly show up, then things could get messy."
(Please bear with me for a few days, Ms. Kelly.)
Caroline also softly comforted, and in response, Kelly could only helplessly nod in resignation. But the next moment, her face reddened in the candlelight.
"So, will Jared be there for me?"
"Let Caroline keep you company."
Jared had blurted out the solution without even thinking, and he hadn't seen Kelly's momentary look of disappointment.
"Aren't two girls better together? And I'm still hurt ..."
"So I said ... why don't I take care of you, anyway, I can't do anything right now ... and in elf magic, there are quite a lot of magic that can alleviate pain and enhance healing!" Kylie whispered, then glanced at the bandages on Jared's right hand. At that moment, Caroline suddenly raised her head, she listened intently for a moment, and then nodded slightly to the two.
(I'll be right back.)
Then, Caroline left the basement and walked down the hall with an easy, graceful stride, catching a glimpse of the old dwarf standing in the doorway. When she saw Caroline, the old Dwarf grunted and walked over to her.
"Hey, human girl! I've already made what you want!!!"
The old dwarf bellowed angrily, then casually pushed the wooden chest over to him. He watched as Caroline pulled the strange object out of it, muttering something under her breath.
"This kind of thing, can it be used for fighting? I'll make you a hammer head, it's better than this crap!"
Caroline gently stroked the strange "weapon", then smiled and shook her head.
Old Dwarf's handiwork, it's really good.