Hyperdimensional Player

Chapter 155 The final madness
Ravenna.

Information traveled slowly in this era, and the great roads built by the empire were largely abandoned. Coupled with Burgundy's persistent restlessness, the Western Empire's power was completely unable to penetrate the Frankish region. Merovingian, the de facto ruler of the Franks, even obeyed Aetius' orders without a word. The Empire had long since lost control of that territory.

At the gate outside the palace.

Quintus came hurriedly. He had just learned about the outbreak of war and the British Kingdom's declaration of war on the Frankish tribes. Not long after, he heard the news of Merovingian's defeat and death.

This made him feel that he had made the right bet.

The British Governor-General Duncan was unstoppable. It was rumored that the British army had recaptured the Rhine River defenses, effectively reclaiming the territory of three Gallic provinces. Such good news naturally needed to be shared with Emperor Valentinian III. Duncan's capture of Frankish territory meant a direct confrontation with the Visigothic Kingdom.

That's the empire's great enemy!

Duncan has never been defeated in his campaigns so far. With him guarding against the Visigothic Kingdom, the expansion of the Visigoths can definitely be stopped.

As for other things, Quintus didn't dare to think about it, and the emperor of the empire didn't dare to think too much about it.

British Governor Duncan must have been a loyal minister.

When Quintus reached the door, he suddenly stopped and gestured to the servant behind him. As he entered, the servant took out a purse and handed it to the guard. The situation on the Italian peninsula was changing, and the relationship between the Protector Aetius and the Senate and the emperor was deteriorating.

He had already smelled something keenly.

Now is undoubtedly the best time to take action. With Duncan guarding against the Visigothic Kingdom, both Gaul Transalpine and Gaul Indigofera can rest assured. The Hunnic Empire in the east is completely divided, and the Italian peninsula forms a perfect closed loop. It is even possible to recover the province of Pannonia.

If they missed this opportunity, it would be difficult to replace Aetius. This period of time was most suitable for the transition of power.

really.

After entering the palace, Quintus immediately saw Maximus and his entourage, and next to him was a middle-aged man, who was also a close minister of Valentinian III. Heraclius was the emperor's aide-de-camp, equivalent to the commander of the guards, and also an ambitious guy.

Inside a luxurious palace.

Valentinian III's eyes were bloodshot. When Quintus came in, he happened to pass by Maximus. This powerful man in the Senate glanced at him indifferently with a very cold expression.

The high-ranking officials of the Roman Empire all had some lead poisoning. Valentinian III was sometimes very excited, which was probably due to some poisoning.

"Quintus is here?"

Valentinian III turned his head and looked at Quintus beside him. Unlike others, Quintus was his jester. His honor and disgrace depended entirely on the emperor's attention. Without the emperor's attention, Quintus was not even a nobleman.

Quintus carefully poured a glass of water for Valentinian III and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, did you not get enough rest last night?"

The emperor of the empire has been addicted to alcohol and sex for many years. He has countless secret lovers, plus he has many favored maids and women. He doesn't like to exercise on weekdays, and his body has long been hollowed out.

He never had any children, which may have something to do with lead poisoning.

Valentinian III nodded lazily, took the water cup and took a sip, then quickly waved to the maid to replace it with fine wine.

Tasteless.

The emperor of the empire did not like drinking water, so he replaced it with wine in his daily life.

Quintus has recently given up drinking.

Back then, it was to please Valentinian III, but now he had other ideas. He no longer needed to cater to the emperor's wishes, at least not by accompanying him in drinking and reveling at court banquets. In his early years, Valentinian III had tasted all the noble ladies of Rome and had also developed an interest in women from the common people, especially those wanton prostitutes, whom Quintus had secretly dressed up and sent to him.

As a descendant of a slave owner who has climbed to his current position, Quintus is definitely not a person who indulges in pleasure.

Take a sip of the wine.

Valentinian III seemed to have regained some of his spirits, his cheeks flushed. He waved his hand to signal the servants to leave, then lowered his voice and said, "Maximus asked me to bring Aetius to the palace on the pretext of breaking off the engagement."

At this point, the emperor's eyes turned slightly cold, excited and fearful, and he made a gesture with his palm as if it were a knife.

Quintus's scalp tingled when he heard this.

Is it so simple and crude?

The dignified Duke Protector of the Empire, a hero of the empire, was killed in the court and ended in such a tragic way?

He even thought of the assassination of Caesar in the Senate.

Valentinian III stared at Quintus and said in a deep voice, "What do you think?"

He was still a little undecided.

Valentinian III was not a decisive person, and because of this incident, he hardly slept well for several days.

Quintus opened his mouth but hesitated to speak. Reason told him that doing so would inevitably lead to backlash. The person who came up with the idea probably didn't want to make things easy for the emperor. It must have been Maximus, because when Valentinian III was backlashed, he was the biggest beneficiary.

If it were him a year ago, Quintus would probably express his opinion cautiously, but he now has his own ideas, especially what Anya promised, which made him hesitate.

Finally, Quintus said slowly, "If we want to take action against Aetius, now is indeed the best time."

He eventually betrayed the emperor of the empire in front of him.

But among the others around Valentinian III, whether it was him, Maximus, or the aide-de-camp Heraclius whom he had just met, who dared to say that they had not betrayed His Majesty the Emperor?
Heraclius was one of Valentinian III's most trusted men, holding a higher position than Quintus, as Quintus was a jester while Heraclius was responsible for protecting the emperor's safety.

Maximus had so many plans, but in the end, they were probably no match for the emperor's trust.

Aetius died.

No matter from which perspective, Valentinian III would choose to support the person he trusted the most and who was completely loyal to him to take power.

The emperor is still thinking of stabbing the Senate in the back!
Even if the plan succeeds, the Senate will still not be able to get involved in military power, and he will support his own aides to take power.

These are just Quintus's guesses.

But such a small person often sees the most clearly, because he needs to please everyone and is actually the most sober bystander.

Even if the Emperor Valentinian III won in the end, he would still be a favored jester and could not become a nobleman in the Senate.

Quintus didn't want to be a jester. He felt that he had talent and could climb to a higher position.

Several days passed quickly.

In the dim light of dawn.

The sound of horse hooves rang out on the streets of Ravenna, and then a group of elite guards escorted an old man straight towards the imperial palace.

In less than a year, Aetius had aged considerably. He was, after all, a man in his sixties, and his age had begun to show after the Battle of Chalons. Later, while defending against the Hunnic attack, he contracted the plague and was bedridden for over a month, having survived only by virtue of his robust constitution.

Aetius was actively supporting his son Gaudentius to take the throne, but his son did not have many military achievements, so he came up with a good idea.

That is to arrange a marriage with the emperor and let his son marry the well-known Princess Pracidia.

In this way, it would be legitimate for his son to inherit his political legacy, and it would also ease the relationship with the emperor and make his son the emperor's son-in-law.

This is a lack of political acumen.

Aetius was indeed a famous general, but he did not think about one thing, that is, his son married Princess Pracidia. I am afraid the emperor would not be able to sleep in the middle of the night.

break off an engagement?
It is impossible to cancel the engagement!

One was the emperor of the Western Roman Empire, and the other was the protector of the empire. If the engagement was cancelled, where would he put his face?
The general's personal guards rushed all the way to the front of the palace, and no one dared to stop them.

"His Majesty only allows the Protector of the Country to enter the palace."

The aide-de-camp Heraclius stopped the general's guards and gave a wink to the people around him. Aetius's general's guards were all veterans of hundreds of battles. If a dozen of them followed him in, they might be able to protect Aetius and help him escape from the palace.

Ordinary palace guards could not stop these elite warriors who had crawled out of the mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

Aetius had been a bit arrogant in recent years because of his great achievements. He had a clear conscience and felt loyal to the empire, so he didn't think much about it. He waved his hand to signal the general's guards to stay outside and entered the palace alone, even taking off his armor.

Hercules led the way, his slightly narrowed eyes already filled with murderous intent.

It didn't take long.

Aetius saw the emperor of the empire in front of him. He had watched Valentinian III grow up. In his eyes, the emperor was just an ignorant child. He often spoke to him without giving him any face, as if he was scolding his junior.

Quintus stood in a corner outside the hall with a nervous expression. At this moment, he felt his palms trembling.

really!

Within a few minutes of entering, he heard Aetius and Valentinian III arguing loudly. The two had a fierce dispute. The emperor's long-standing dissatisfaction with Aetius completely erupted. His expression was excited and crazy, with veins bulging in his temples, and his red eyes staring at the old man in front of him.

But Aetius still refused to give in and angrily shouted, "It's impossible to break off the engagement!"

An engagement is no joke.

Sonorous.

Before he could finish his words, the mad Valentinian III had already drawn his sword angrily and stabbed Aetius through the heart in front of his incredulous gaze.

Aetius was old after all.

He never expected that the emperor of the Western Roman Empire would suddenly draw his sword and stab him.

puff.

Blood spurts.

The sword hit his heart, and Aetius's breath suddenly weakened.

At this time, Valentinian III came to his senses and showed a trace of fear, but after all, he had been emperor for so many years, so he immediately turned his head to look at the other people behind him.

That fierce look was actually a little creepy for a moment.

Maximus was the first to draw his sword and stab Aetius, then Heraclius, followed by the senatorial nobles in the hall, then the guards around him, and finally the emperor's eyes fell on Quintus.

Quintus' body trembled slightly, and he pulled out his dagger and stabbed Aetius in the wounded chest.

Poor Roman Protector, he died even more miserably than Caesar. He was stabbed nearly a hundred times, his blood flowed out of the palace, and his internal organs were pierced.

When Caesar was assassinated by the Senate, his body was not so horrific.

"His Majesty."

Heraclius, his expression excited, spoke in a serious tone, "The most important thing now is to deal with Aetius's close associates and his son Gaudentius."

"He must die!"

At this time, Valentinian III had no idea what to do. The nobles of the Senate and the palace guards immediately took action. They tricked the general's guards outside into coming in, then closed the door. Then dozens of guards with bows and crossbows came in and killed all these veterans.

Not long after, the trembling servants cleaned up the bloodstains in the hall, and soon the guards rushed to the military camp, lured all of Aetius's close friends in the Royal Guards and the army into the palace and killed them all.

When Quintus walked out of the palace with trembling legs, he saw Hercules with an excited expression, holding a young man's head in his hand.

Gaudentius!
The Imperial Senate had been planning and preparing for a long time, and almost all of Aetius's military confidants were killed.

In just one or two days.

Emperor Valentinian III completely took over the command of the imperial guards, and then he slept better than ever before. When he woke up the next day, he announced the name of the next imperial commander.

Heraclius.

By killing Gaudentius, this guy jumped from a palace attendant to the highest military commander of the empire.

But within a few days, the situation in the Western Roman Empire changed.

After appointing his confidant as the commander-in-chief of the empire, Valentinian III immediately summoned Quintus and asked him to secretly travel to Gaul to meet with Duncan, the governor of Britain, and promised to marry Princess Placidia to him. At the same time, he appointed him as the provincial governor of Britain and Gaul.

This position was no less important than that of the commander-in-chief of the troops in Gaul and Britain. He was in charge of both military and political affairs, and his status was second only to the emperor and the marshal of the empire.

For a while.

The eyes of the entire Western Roman Empire were on Duncan in Gaul. As the Governor of Britain, he had killed the Scourge of God and gradually regained his astonishing prestige in British Gaul. If he was willing to stand up and support Valentinian III and stand up for the emperor of the empire, he might be able to suppress the backlash of the murder of Aetius. After all, the highest voice in the army is glorious military exploits!

But if he does this, Duncan will have to bear a lot of criticism.

Everyone was waiting for Duncan's attitude. Even Maximus, who was indignant because his plan failed, temporarily endured it, because if Duncan fully supported Valentinian III, the Senate would not dare to take any big action.

But all the news seemed to be buried in the sea.

………………

(End of this chapter)