Imperial Crown.

Chapter 275: The Aftermath of the Collapse

Many thanks to Qidian Dad [Even the donkey in the production team doesn’t dare to rest like this] for the 100 iOS reward!

……

The rain was pouring down.

Eagle City, reception room.

Gul'dan, who was soaking wet, sat in a chair with a dull expression, covered with a blanket and holding a cup of hot tea in his hand.

He had been sitting here for almost an hour, but he didn't speak or move, and his whole body was as stiff as a piece of wood.

Raven was standing not far away, his arms folded across his chest, staring at him intently.

Gul'dan's sudden arrival and this abnormal state made Raven alert.

"When can Nancy come over?" Raven asked in a low voice.

Old Gordon responded in a low voice: "Madam went to the church in Xuefeng Town to give alms this morning. We have sent someone to chase her. She should be back soon."

"Sir, how about letting me lead my personal soldiers to bring the lady back?" Eric asked.

"No need." Raven shook his head and rejected his suggestion.

Gul'dan came here in such a distraught state, something big must have happened. As the only third-level person besides himself and his wife, Eric must be in charge here.

And it's not just him. All four knights under Raven, except Link who went to Koga Town, are gathered here at this moment.

There was some uneasiness on everyone's face. The power of the Fox family was obvious to all. What on earth had happened to Gul'dan that made him run to Eagle Territory?
Just then, the door opened.

Everyone thought it was Nancy who had returned, and they all looked over and were stunned.

It was indeed a woman, but it was not Nancy.

She was wearing a brown robe that seemed to be made of linen, but there were faint magical halos flowing around her head, wrists, and waist, which made her entire body hidden in shadows except for a pair of hands as tender as white jade.

She walked up to Raven and took off her hood, revealing her long hair flowing down like a waterfall, dotted with white petals that seemed to be swaying in the wind. She also wore a heart-shaped crystal head chain on her forehead.

Raven felt slightly relieved: "Thank you for your help."

"Since the Baron has invited me, of course I must come." Anor turned his head and looked at Gul'dan deeply: "The wheel of fate has finally begun to turn."

This sentence made Raven a little concerned. Just as he was about to ask a question, Annuo had already walked to the wall and found a chair to sit down.

The room fell silent again, with only the sound of rain outside the window getting louder and louder.

There was a sound of hurried footsteps, and the door was pushed open with a bang. Nancy hurriedly walked into the room holding up her wet skirt. Seeing that Raven was safe and sound, she was immediately relieved: "...What happened? Why did you call me back so urgently?"

The faces of the people around her were not very good. Nancy turned her head and saw Gul'dan sitting in a chair:
"elder brother?"

This was the first time she saw Gul'dan in such a miserable state. He looked as if he had been soaked in water for three days. His face was pale and even his lips were bloodless.

Gul'dan's dull eyes turned around and finally adjusted the focus, locking onto Nancy. The teacup in his hand fell to the ground with a bang, and his whole body began to tremble.

After a night of terror, Gul'dan finally met someone who could make him feel at ease. The emotions that had been suppressed in his heart suddenly burst out, tears welled up in his eyes, and he opened his mouth, but could not utter a complete sentence:

"Ah...ah!!!"

This action startled Nancy.

Although my relationship with this brother is not good, we are blood relatives after all. Seeing him like this, my heart suddenly softened.

She walked to Gul'dan, gently held his head in her arms, and slowly patted his back: "It's okay, brother, it's okay, this is Eagle City, you are safe!"

When Raven saw this scene, he sighed softly and called Patty to whisper something.

Patty nodded and went out. About 7 or 8 minutes later, she came back with a pot of hot tea and brought it to Nancy.

Nancy didn't care about the heat, she picked up a cup of hot tea and held it in front of Guldan: "Brother, take a sip first, and then you can talk slowly if you have anything to say."

Gul'dan nodded slightly, gradually coming back to his senses and holding up the teacup, but he tightly grasped Nancy's hand as if he was grasping a life-saving straw.

He used too much force this time, causing Nancy to frown and cry out in pain: "Ah..."

Gul'dan realized his own gaffe, and stretched out his twitching palms, holding the cup with both hands and taking a sip.

"Don't worry." Nancy held the back of his hand and said, "Brother, don't worry, we will contact Fox Castle right away. No matter who you meet, the Fox family will not let him have an easy time!"

Hearing this, Gul'dan's tears, which had stopped flowing, burst out again. He crushed the teacup with both hands, and the porcelain shards pierced his palms. Blood mixed with tea flowed out: "...No more, no more..."

Nancy didn't understand: "What?"

"The Fox family..." Gul'dan took a deep breath, "No more!"

boom--

Lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating a room full of astonished faces.

"This joke is not funny!" Nancy stared into Gul'dan's eyes and asked seriously, "What happened?!"

"The Fox family is gone," Gul'dan repeated, muttering neurotically, "My father is dead, Sanchi is dead, my wife and children are dead, all of them are dead... Fox Castle is destroyed... Gone, all gone!"

Nancy's expression froze on her face. She slowly stood up and suddenly fell backwards.

Raven quickly stepped forward and took him in his arms, gently holding her hand in comfort.

Nancy almost lost the strength to stand up, tears silently flowed down her face. Pictures emerged in her mind, about her father, about Sangqi, and about her nephews and nieces who were not close but lively and lovely.

"Why, is it possible?" Nancy forced a smile and looked at Gul'dan: "You are lying to me, aren't you?"

Gul'dan lowered his head.

Nancy looked at Raven again and grabbed his collar, her knuckles turning white. "This is a prank. He's lying to me. He's not my brother. He's just a fake, right?"

"Raven, tell me this is all a joke, a joke!"

Raven showed reluctance, grabbed her hand, and then hugged her tightly in his arms.

The shrill cries echoed in the house.

Although Nancy tried hard to play the role of the Baroness, after all, she was just a girl in her 20s.

Eric and the others looked away, and Patty gently wiped away her tears.

After a long time, Nancy gradually stopped crying, struggled to get up from Raven's arms, and looked at her brother: "What's going on? What happened? I haven't heard that the Slater family has declared war on us!"

"Not the Slater family." Gul'dan swallowed his saliva: "There are only two people in total."

"The fifth-level Lightning Knight calls himself J. The sixth-level Ice Mage calls himself Q."

When the word "two people" was mentioned, everyone present was a little surprised, but when the word "sixth-level magician" came out, no one had any doubts anymore.

Level six was already the strongest tier besides the top level seven fighters on the continent, and level six magicians were rare in the entire continent.

"There aren't many sixth-level magicians, and even fewer people who can command sixth-level magicians." Nancy took a deep breath and tried her best to calm herself down. "Where are they from?"

She couldn't guess it at the moment, but she believed that her father Montreal was knowledgeable and would be able to lock on to the target.

"I don't know..." Gul'dan's cheeks twitched and he buried his head in his hands: "...I don't know."

As his sanity gradually returned, Gul'dan had vaguely guessed who was behind the scenes, but he couldn't say it, and didn't dare to say it.

Raven gently patted the back of Nancy's hand and said, "Gul'dan is already tired. Let him rest for a while. You also need to rest for a while."

"But..." Nancy wanted to argue a few more words, but when she saw the haggard Gul'dan and thought of her family, she felt an endless sadness in her heart. She said with a sour nose, "... Okay, I understand."

After sending Nancy back to her room and comforting her for a while, Raven went to the study.

Old Gordon, Eric and Simon are waiting here.

Raven pulled Sikoret up from his seat and held him in his arms. He sat on the chair and gave orders in an orderly manner: "This is an urgent matter. I won't say any more nonsense."

"Eric, starting today, the Eagle Army will officially enter a wartime alert state, taking turns patrolling and resting. I need the Eagle Army to be able to respond to any emergency at any time."

"Simon, you lead the flight squadron to patrol the airspace. Don't worry about any disputes. I need to monitor all of Xuefeng County. If necessary, you can explore outside and set up a cordon outside the five northwestern counties!"

"Old Gordon, wait until Gul'dan calms down, and immediately ask him to describe the appearance and physical characteristics of the murderer, and then distribute it to each industry. Kuman, Fili, and the Hawkeye guards should also give it to them. If they find anything, do not act rashly and report it to me immediately."

The three men received the order and retreated one after another.

Simon hurried out of the room and left first. Old Gordon and Eric both saw worry in each other's eyes.

"It's all my fault." Eric frowned. "If I had known earlier, I should have stopped Gul'dan and killed him in secret. Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought such a big disaster to the Eagle Territory."

"Don't ever say that again." Old Gordon pushed his monocle and said, "Don't forget, the Fox family is our Griffith's in-laws. Even if Gul'dan dies outside, if they want to wipe out the whole clan, they won't let Eagle Territory go."

"Gul'dan's arrival is actually an early warning, which allows us to be alert in advance."

Eric smiled bitterly. "But if he's not lying, how are we going to deal with one level five and one level six? They won't attack the castle openly."

"That's why the master asked Ms. Anno to come over, just to be on the safe side." Old Gordon sighed: "But, in the end, this matter came too suddenly. I still don't dare to believe it."

Eric nodded and also sighed: "Yeah, who would have thought that Fox would just destroy it like that!"

In fact, it was not just them, even Raven found it difficult to accept for a moment.

In the Middles continent, very few noble families were destroyed due to assassinations. This was not only due to factors of strength, but also to factors of interests.

Just like the two major empires today, the Keynes Empire and the Insa Empire, both have several seventh-level strongmen in charge, and they are fully capable of attacking and killing important figures in the other country.

Why is it that almost no one ever does this?

Because there is no benefit and the loss outweighs the gain.

Attacking important figures in the other country can only create a little chaos, but once this precedent is set, the other party can naturally send out strong men to retaliate indiscriminately.

The existence of a strong man is more like a nuclear deterrent. Although Raven knew that since the sixth-level strong man had not chased him now, he would not attack Griffith in the future, but he still planned to let Anno live in Eagle City for a long time.

After all, even the Fox family was destroyed so easily, Raven must be prepared for any eventuality.

"Baron, urgent news!" Eric pushed open the door and rushed into the room, placing a document covered with oil paper in front of Raven: "The Governor has issued an order to spread it throughout the province!"

Raven took the document, glanced at it, and put it on the table: "You can take a look at it too."

Eric looked closer and showed surprise.

Order of Anthony Vanya Edwards, Marquis, and new Governor of Nord Province, March 1197, 3:

The Insa Empire invaded our border without reason. On March 1197, 3, following the order of His Majesty King Cairns XVI, we officially declared war on the Insa Empire.

In order to fully support this just anti-aggression war, all extravagant activities in the Nord Province must be stopped.

From the date of the issuance of this order, all military supplies, including food, leather, steel, and salt, are not allowed to be exported outside the country. Violators will be charged with treason.

Eric swallowed his saliva and said, "My Lord Baron, this... this is not in line with common sense. When the Governor takes office, there should be an inauguration ceremony for all the nobles in the province to watch, but we haven't received any news!"

"Didn't it say that in order to support the war, all extravagant activities should be cancelled?" Raven tapped the paper with his fingers. "So canceling the inauguration ceremony can also earn him a reputation of 'frugal for the country'."

"Without the Fox family's restraint, Anthony will be able to show his prowess in the Nord Province."

Hearing this, a trace of confusion flashed across Eric's brows.

He had long felt that something was wrong. As soon as Gul'dan arrived, the Baron actually sent someone to contact Anno, as if he already knew what had happened; and now the Baron's attitude was so... relaxed?
After taking a look at Raven's face, Eric asked cautiously, "Baron, you don't seem particularly surprised by the demise of the Fox family."

Raven waved his hand and said, "As expected."

"As long as the Fox family is in charge of Montreal, this outcome is inevitable."

"As expected?" Eric's eyes narrowed to the same size in confusion.

"He is just a qualified noble, but not a qualified politician." Raven nodded: "From this point of view, he is not even as good as Brocka."

Eric was even more confused: "Broca? What does this have to do with Broca?"

"If you don't understand, just think about it slowly." Raven sorted out the documents on the table: "When you figure it out, it will be like entering the door of politics."

Eric knew that he would not be able to figure it out in a short time, so he simply gave up thinking about it: "Then I will continue my patrol, Baron."

Raven waved and allowed Eric to leave.

"Fox..." Raven leaned back in his chair, stroking Sikoret's satin-like fur, staring at the deep rain and sighing, "Thunder and rain are all blessings from heaven."

The rain was getting heavier, as if all the rain for the whole year would fall tonight.

Along with this rainstorm, the news of the demise of the Fox family and Anthony's inauguration as governor spread throughout the Nord province.

These two pieces of news hit the hearts of all the nobles like a rainstorm.

Regardless of size or region, people are feeling unprecedented panic.

Viscount John paced back and forth under the eaves with the news in his hand, feeling extremely confused.

He had thought that he could live the rest of his life in peace in his later years, but he did not expect that such an earth-shattering event would occur.

"Who did it?" Viscount John fell into deep thought.

First, let's rule out the Mages Guild. Although they can do it, they have always pursued an isolationist policy and rarely interfere in worldly affairs.

The Death Hand Cult undoubtedly has this ability, but their actions are not usually intended to stir up large-scale wars, and destroying the Fox family at this time will not bring too much turmoil.

The Church of Light... won't either.

They have already obtained a garrison through the Fox family, and will certainly have to tie themselves up with the Fox family to continue development. If Montreal is out of control, they should use more gentle and safer means.

"Could it be Anthony!?"

Did Marquis Anthony secretly destroy the Fox family?
Viscount John nodded slowly. Although he was reluctant to accept it, this was the most logical inference.

Because with the fall of the Fox family, Anthony will no longer be constrained after taking office as governor, and the exposed power vacuum will be completely taken into his pocket.

John was not the only one who came to this conclusion, but no one dared to make it public. Even on the Sky Eagle platform, there was no news of it, as if the demise of the Fox family had never happened.

Fox is a family of earls, owning an entire county and having been rooted in the Nord province for a hundred years!

Such a family was destroyed before even the first rain of the New Year. Who would not be afraid?

The dark clouds were boundless, almost covering the entire Nord province.

Rain fell on the top of the Church in Mon'en City. The onion-like top of the tower diverted the rain and gathered it into beams, hitting the roof of the church.

when……

The bell on the church tower rings once, marking the official arrival of 1 a.m.

Savannah broke through the rain and knocked on Archbishop Thomas' door: "Your Excellency, there is a letter from Hovi City!"

After a while, a voice came from the door: "Come in."

Pushing the door open, Savannah saw Archbishop Thomas in his bathrobe.

Even though he got up in a hurry, he still put on a bowler hat to cover his slightly smooth head.

Through the gauze curtain on the bed, Savanna could see two smooth and delicate bodies like swimming fish, and even a little foot swinging playfully outside the gauze curtain.

Savannah lowered her head, her expression unchanged, as if she hadn't seen anything. She handed over the documents with both hands: "It has been confirmed that the Fox family has been destroyed, Gul'dan has fled and his whereabouts are unknown."

Thomas' brows suddenly tightened, he took the document, opened it, and read it carefully.

After a long time, he put the letter down and said to himself:
"Anthony?"

No, it can't be him, he doesn't have that ability.

Then, there is only one answer...

“It shouldn’t be like this.”

Having climbed up from the bottom, Thomas is not an ascetic in an ivory tower. He is well aware of the cruelty of political struggle, but precisely because of this, he becomes more and more confused.

It was not because the sudden demise of the Fox Family disrupted his subsequent plans, but because that person clearly had many ways to deal with the Fox Family and make sure that no one could find any reason to do so, but he chose the most extreme, despicable and ultimately troublesome one.

That is the Fox family, a family that has been passed down for 400 years and has been an earl for more than 100 years!

Does he think that everyone is blind and that no one can see the problem?
If he could treat the Fox family like this, he could do the same to other families.

"Why are you so impatient, Your Majesty!"

Another person who couldn't guess the intention behind the scene was Earl Tyrone of the Slater family.

He stood by the window sill on the top floor of Snake Castle, watching the heavy rain that seemed to be pouring down from the sky, listening to the sound of the rain changing from beating to stirring, and he could not fall asleep for a long time.

"Master, take a rest first." His wife Selina gently put a blanket on him and said, "Be careful, it's cold."

Earl Tyrone smiled and nodded gently: "I see, you go to sleep first, I will come in a while."

Selena knew that her husband would not be easily persuaded, so she nodded, left a cup of hot coffee, and turned to leave.

Picking up the coffee, Tailong drank half of it.

With the destruction of the Fox family, there is only one earl family, Slater, in the Nord province. He should be happy about this, but at this moment his expression is as bitter as coffee.

Birds grieve over the death of one of their own kind, and Tyrone felt the same way now.

He knew that Montreal's previous actions would certainly arouse the dissatisfaction of His Majesty the King. The more ostentatious Montreal was, the more severe the suppression of His Majesty the King would be on him.

Maybe one day, the Fox family will really be destroyed.

But Tailong didn't expect that His Majesty the King would actually adopt this method, this...

Tyrone took a deep breath, as if he heard Montreal's unwilling scream before his death, and his expression became even more sad.

The Earl's family are all descendants of nobles who have made huge contributions to the empire. Even if they are destroyed, they should be punished fairly instead of being cruelly slaughtered like livestock!

The fall of the Fox family was a warning, a warning from His Majesty the King to him and to all the nobles.

Looking up above his head, there was only cold stone there, but Tyrone seemed to see a sharp sword hanging there, and he didn't know when it would fall and cut off his head.

The Fox family was destroyed so easily, so where will the Slater family, which is also a family of earls, go?

Tyrone didn't know. He couldn't see or understand the King's plan, but he knew that he had to be more cautious and fearful in the future.

The demise of the Fox Family was definitely not to make room for Slater. If he dared to reach out, he might face the same fate as the Fox Family.

I stood from darkness to dawn, the rain gradually stopped and the sky became as clear as crystal.

"Master, are you awake?" The butler's voice sounded outside the door: "Marquis Anthony invites you to have breakfast."

"Got it. I'll be there in a minute." Tai Long responded in a clear voice.

Moving his somewhat stiff legs, Tyrone picked up a half cup of coffee and spilled it on the ground as a final tribute to Montreal:

"Farewell, old friend."

With the help of his maid, Earl Tyrone put on his clothes and walked towards the dining room.

This is his castle, but at this moment he felt a little uneasy because he didn't know who he was going to face.

Is it Anthony, or is it an extension of the will of His Majesty the King?

……

(End of this chapter)