They don't want me to try anymore.

What? That sir forgave me after I whipped him?

He's such a good person!

Redbeard was so moved he almost cried, and quickly asked, "Please enlighten me, sir!"

"It's actually quite simple."

Richard stroked Redbeard's bald head and said:

"In the days to come, act as usual on the surface, but secretly treat Mr. Megan as you would your own father. You're an old guard, you should know what to do, right?"

"I see……"

"You understand. Just do as I say, outwardly cooperate with Mr. Megan's act, but secretly take good care of him. That's how you survive. We won't skimp on your money; this is the budget for buying all sorts of things."

Richard pulled out two gold coins, then said, "If we later find out that Mr. Megan wasn't taken care of, or that you embezzled the money..."

"Don't worry, sir!"

"Also, this operation is classified. If you tell anyone..."

Richard made a throat-cutting motion.

"No, adults, I absolutely wouldn't dare!"

After he finished speaking, the red-bearded man nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, and said nothing more.

Richard then straightened his clothes, acted as if nothing had happened, and returned to the prison entrance, leaving with the guide.

As soon as he stepped out the door, his expression instantly turned serious again.

How can we rescue them?

If it really was Dulles who was behind this, it's going to be very troublesome.

But thinking about it carefully, it was bound to happen sooner or later...

the next day.

Luvia's side.

Just as she was worrying about Richard, she suddenly received a message and arrived at the upscale hotel next to Central Avenue, where she saw that familiar figure.

"Edward, what brings you here?"

"It's all to help my dear sister solve her problem."

Edward Cromwell turned to Luvia, who was nearly twenty years younger than him, and said, "I heard you're helping that prince of Connaught get someone out of jail?"

"Yes," Luvia admitted without hesitation. "Is there a problem?"

Edward pursed his lips. As the de facto head of the Cromwell family, if any other family member spoke to him like that, he would at least slam his fist on the table...

But well, Luvia is the only exception.

The family will still need her in ten years.

Hold back, switch to reasoning mode!

Edward patiently said, "I've asked around, and it was all Old Dulles's doing. If you get involved, it will put our family and the Dulles family at odds. Remember Luvia? We've always maintained neutrality, at least on the surface."

Luvia pouted, unsure of her answer, but unwilling to compromise.

Edward quickly added, "I know you and Richard fought side by side in Nyon, and I understand that you value your comrades. So it's not that I can't help, it's just that we need to find a different way."

"How to change?"

“We’ll make an introduction and have him meet Lauren Tolle… Old Dulles has had a lot of disagreements with him lately over the shipping company shares, and he’s definitely looking for revenge.”

Luvia frowned.

She knew that Edward was right to Cromwell, but wouldn't that just drag Richard into the Empire's internal strife again?

Edward concluded, "My sister, you're still within the border military system. Are you sure you can control Idaril's prisons and courts?"

Luvia fell silent.

Half an hour later, the meeting ended without reaching a consensus.

The next day, Richard came to visit him on his own initiative.

"Hi, could you introduce me to a few people?"

Chapter 86 An Unexpected Encounter with the Northern Woman

Richard certainly wasn't making things harder for himself for no reason.

However, after careful consideration, he realized that in order to break the deadlock, he really needed to make contact with the conservatives of the empire in advance.

The previous one-on-one fight with Linda was a student conflict within Saint Goethe, and killing Daniel can be interpreted as a strategic move to fight against the Empty Human Order, an enemy of order. In short, it all comes down to the personal level—under these circumstances, it's understandable that Richard would act arrogantly.

But rescuing Megan means he has to fight a part of the imperial administrative machine.

That changes the nature of the matter.

And regardless of success or failure, it will only make Richard more conspicuous and exposed...

Therefore, he needs a protective umbrella, a force he can rely on.

Of course, Luvia is a good person and trustworthy.

But Luvia was too much of a loner; an individual's strength is ultimately limited. Richard needed an entire faction.

Moreover, he had a vague feeling that Luvia's status was rather special, and the Cromwell family behind her was relatively neutral. If they were to show extreme support for him too early, the consequences would be hard to predict.

Instead of doing that, it would be better to use a simple exchange of benefits to involve the conservatives. Let the professionals handle the infighting.

Anyway, we were going to take this step sooner or later according to the plan.

As for the risks, based on simulation experience, as long as Richard doesn't take the initiative to stand out and operates within the boundaries drawn by conservative officials, he won't die suddenly.

This will certainly leave some risks, but as the saying goes, how can you not take risks if you want to accomplish something?

Going back to reality.

Luvia became even more conflicted after hearing Richard's request.

"Richard, it would be very dangerous to step into this vortex..."

"To be honest, it's quite dangerous now, and I had to take this step sooner or later, after all..."

Richard smiled slightly, took Luvia's hand, and said softly, "Rather than hiding behind you, I'd rather fight alongside you."

Luvia was stunned for a moment, then her face flushed red.

Two little voices popped into her head. The first one was shouting that she should keep the man there tonight, while the second one was enthusiastically recommending places like the study or the basement...

Oh no, no, hold back, remember to put yourself in someone else's shoes, put yourself in someone else's shoes...

After taking a few deep breaths, Luvia nodded calmly. Richard was pleased, completely unaware that his initiative had almost landed him in the basement.

The rest is easy to handle.

With the Cromwell family's help, Richard was invited to a dinner party three days later.

On the surface, it was just a grand adjudicator celebrating his cousin's promotion at the State Department, but Richard learned that Lauren Tolly, the leader of the Conservative Party, would also be in attendance and would meet with his friends at the appointed time.

However, when Richard entered the hall, he didn't see anyone and could only wait for the other person to come and call him.

It's alright, these things require patience anyway, so he should just enjoy the banquet first...

"Look, that guy over there is really handsome..."

"It seems to be that Targaryen from Connaught~"

"Huh? Is that him? I heard he's already at the Silver rank 1? That's surprising."

"It's definitely worth trying!"

Well, it seems Richard still has a lot of people to deal with before he can officially begin talks with his target.

However, what he didn't know was that at that very moment, three people on the second floor of the dance hall were observing his every move.

"Is he the young man Luvia introduced?"

The speaker was nearly sixty years old, with a bald patch on his head and a short, stout build. He wore an old suit with buttons that were loosely ripped off, and was squeezed into a rather historic antique chair. Only his eyes were bright and piercing, like those of an old walrus surveying its territory.

Although he may seem unremarkable, he is Lauren Tolly, a representative of one side in the current factional struggle within the Empire.

At that moment, he looked at Richard and said, "He is indeed more handsome than I thought, no wonder he is popular with ladies... Unfortunately, if you want me to help you deal with the Dulles brat, good looks alone are not enough."

He smiled and asked the two young women beside him, "Catherine, Sophia, what kind of compensation do you think I should charge?"

The woman called Catherine casually replied, "Since he's a prince of Connaught, all he can offer are Connaught's resources, port taxes, land revenue, and the like..."

Lauren chuckled but didn't answer. She turned to the dark-haired woman with a high nose bridge and fair skin: "Sophia, what do you think?"

Sophia gave a slight bow and smiled, saying, "Grandpa, I happened to hear about him from Saint Goethe's junior schoolmate. I felt that he had a strong sense of self-respect and was very talented. If we force him to agree to our demands, he would feel ashamed afterward."

Catherine scoffed, "People from such a tiny country have so many ideas."

Sophia shook her head and smiled, "You're right, but I think everyone has value that can be maximized. As for Richard, instead of squeezing out some dispensable gold coins and becoming an enemy, we might as well let go and let him be a genius summoner."

"what do you mean……"

“Sister Catherine, aren’t we worried about not having a teammate for the Resurrection Festival competition? This Richard defeated Linda when he was in the high Bronze rank, and now he’s risen to Silver and even won Luvia’s favor. His strength is definitely not bad.”