Elden: Ring of Calamity

Chapter 424 Before the Rain
"We don't know what methods Calerius has mastered, but there is a more obvious fact before us." Radagun took a deep look at his son. "The Giant King is a monster that can use his heart to resist the death of his fate, and Lucia Sanx - he is an even bigger monster that can severely damage such a monster."

Lacard suddenly raised his eyes, and a sharp light flashed from his brows that were younger than his father's.

Radagang smiled bitterly, shook his head and said, "It seems that the Battle of Starshatter has had a deeper impact on you than I thought."

"When the guards informed me that you were here to see me, I thought you were standing up for your friend and wanted to argue with me about how to end the chaos in the capital. But if you can't even accept this definition, then you really regard him as a strategic ally who will share life and death with you."

This time, Lakkad did not choose to hide all his emotions, but nodded calmly and said frankly: "Not bad."

"Where were you when he led the 120,000-strong Ancient Dragon Dynasty army to charge at the star beast tide? Where were you when he and his brother fought against the evil god and were covered in wounds? When Esti was about to drag all of us down with her and most of Gaileed was about to be crushed to dust, he drew his sword and slashed at the sky, facing the star of destruction with a fatal blow. Where were you?"

"Don't tell me you don't know what Taylor Jones did in the Blazing Legion, and don't tell me you don't know what an emissary is!"

Radagan closed his eyes and remained silent for a while.

When he opened his eyes again, he took a deep breath and said, "If that's hard to accept, you can take that as a compliment."

"I'm letting you read this battle report because my original intention is to remind you that the huge threat posed by Lucia has already turned from a potential state into a reality. But since you haven't made up your mind yet, you can just treat this as a message from a friend and take a look at it."

Lacard frowned slightly. He felt that his father had become very different from before. He had this feeling when he just entered the door, and now the feeling was even stronger.

In the past, he had always played the role of an excellent son who understood and supported his father in front of his father. Although he hated his father's betrayal in his heart, he buried the hatred deep in his heart on the surface, and he always thought he played the role well.

But today it seems that his father has at least seen through some of his obsession and hatred, and accepted it with relief.

But if my father had seen all this a long time ago, why didn’t he say it until today?
Because the timing was right?
No, since they knew that he came because of the fire plague, the situation had become extremely urgent and a larger-scale riot could break out in the capital at any time. Now was not the time for father and son to open their hearts to each other.

So, it is true that my father has changed.

He has become more like a "human" than the last time we met.

Was this change due to the woman's deep sleep? But how could a political marriage that was only in name only have such an impact on him?
He temporarily suppressed these chaotic thoughts, looked at Radagan and said, "Then let's move on from this topic. I came here to ask you, why did you allow the chaos among the people to get worse and worse, and even held a public trial for the leaders of the Xiabolili and Ahara caravans? The matter of the insanity fire had nothing to do with them. If Xiabolili hadn't intervened, the last plague might still be raging today."

"How can you be so sure that these things really have nothing to do with them?"

A ray of light suddenly flashed in Radagan's golden eyes, and that light actually made Lakkad a little frightened.

"I certainly didn't make these decisions because of public opinion. In fact, all the clues we have now point to the Ahara caravan and the Ancient Dragon Temple. As the coordinator, Chapolili is a key figure that cannot be avoided. Choosing to investigate him instead of Fulsanks is the result of considering the political impact." "As the next Minister of Justice, I don't want you to always be swayed by personal feelings. As a father, I can always tolerate you and wait for you to continue to grow, but I can't do that to the courtiers and nobles - being cruel and fair cannot guarantee that you will please all of them, but at least you won't offend everyone at the same time."

"My judgment is not based on personal feelings," Lacard said sharply, "I have already obtained sufficient evidence. The person who spread the Mad Fire Plague is behind the spread of Rodel City Supervisor Rowens Ovniel. If necessary, I will immediately arrange for witnesses to rush to the Eternal Palace. You can personally interrogate him!"

"Rowens Ovniel?" Radagan smiled noncommittally. "If your chain of evidence can be closed, maybe he is indeed related to this matter, but now, he is not important."

He raised his hand to interrupt Lakkad's rebuttal. "I know you still have too many doubts in your heart. It's okay. I will tell you everything slowly in the future. But now you might as well be patient. You just need to rest in the Eternal Palace for a few hours. Wait until the public trial tomorrow morning, and the truth will come out."

Lacard was stunned for a moment, frowned and said: "I will attend the meeting as the Deputy Minister of Justice to ensure that the public trial is absolutely fair."

"Of course," Radagan smiled and rang the bell on the table, summoning the waiter to receive his son to stay overnight in the Eternal Palace. "I assure you that it will be an absolutely fair judgment."

It was already late at night. After returning to his room, Lacard carefully reviewed every detail of his experience that day.

From the moment he realized that the situation was out of control in the afternoon, to the moment he received the news that the suspect confessed that Rowans Ovniel was the real murderer on the way to the Emperor, to the final conversation with Radagon.
Apart from a sudden impulse and a hidden move in Huiyao Auditorium, he has not been able to seize the real initiative in this series of events.

This is not due to lack of ability, but the resources, planning time, and power the other party has are far beyond what he has now.

Originally, he thought that this was just an action to take advantage of the fire plague to weaken the influence of the Ancient Dragon Temple and strike at Lucia's layout in the capital. But after seeing Radagang's reaction tonight, he suddenly realized that the other party's plan might be far greater than he imagined.

The resulting speculation almost made him shudder.

The war in the North was in full swing. How crazy would the New Party be to launch a full-scale attack at such a critical moment? If any link in the process went wrong, who could bear the consequences?

That night, Lacard paced back and forth in the bedroom. He simulated countless scenarios from the other party's perspective and made countless deductions based on these scenarios, but he still couldn't find a way to implement them safely.

Starting a war is not scary, but who would arbitrarily start a war that has no end in sight?

Before I knew it, the faint light of dawn had already filled the windowsill, and a waiter called out from outside the door: "Your Highness, His Majesty has ordered me to tell you that the public trial will begin in two hours."

Lakkad stopped and closed his eyes to think for the last ten seconds. When he opened his eyes, there was no more hesitation in his pupils.

"Got it," he said.

(End of this chapter)