My villain wants to save himself, but the yandere heroine disagrees

Among the people Orson knew, only Litt and Virgil asked for leave to go back. In the entire Imperial Academy, there were less than ten people who applied to leave.

"Good morning, big brother." Lena said this and greeted Orson with a smile.

After Lit left these days, the person who went to and from get out of class with Lena changed.

"Well, good morning." Orson said this and looked at Lianka who was standing next to Lena.

"Lianka, you too, good morning."

"Um... good... morning." When Lianka heard Orson greet her, she turned her head away and replied uncomfortably.

After Lit left, Lianka took the initiative to take over the task of taking care of Lena.

In fact, Lena has been in school for a while, and she has no problem going to and from school alone.

"It's just because Lena is a new classmate and we happen to be in the same class. I did this to help Li Te, not to please you, Orson."

Orson felt amused when he thought of Lianka's awkward look and her fear of being rejected.

Chapter 72: François is assassinated

Although the Imperial College appears to be peaceful and tranquil, in reality, the topic of conversation among students every day has shifted from their daily lives to the war in the south.

"I heard that Giovanni, Duke of Napoli, seems to be a member of a society that intends to resurrect the devil. Wasn't there a rumor that traces of the devil appeared outside the city of Saint Laurent before? I heard that Giovanni did it." In the college square, several students were sitting together at this moment, discussing these things.

Members of the news agency are the busiest these days. They need to obtain first-hand intelligence from newspapers in Saint Laurent City and publish it as soon as possible.

"Eh? Is that so? I feel like the soldiers on the front lines will be in danger. What if a demon appears..."

"Don't worry about that. If a creature like a demon really appears on the front line, Giovanni's men will be the first to resist him."

"He should have warned his subordinates that these were just rumors. However, as more and more people know about this, he will probably be deserted by everyone."

"I hope so..."

A snow-white figure walked through the square. After hearing the students' description, she paused slightly and then continued walking forward.

"Orson." As soon as Olivia walked into the Student Union office, she told Orson what several classmates had just discussed in the square.

"Giovanni's true strength may not be what he shows. Are you really not worried about the front line?" As she said this, a hint of worry appeared in her eyes.

Although Litt is a genius, he has too little experience. It is too risky to let Litt go to the front line to command an army alone.

If Giovanni is really prepared to fight to the death and perish together, will Lit really be in danger?

Putting aside my abnormal feelings for Orson, I still like this brother-in-law very much.

It’s not the kind of liking for the opposite sex, but the kind of care and appreciation between seniors and juniors.

"It doesn't matter. I've already laid such a good foundation for Li Te. The rest is just to deal with it as it comes."

"If you can't even fight a battle when the wind is in your favor, then what's the point of talking?" Orson said with a smile.

"Besides, Giovanni is not the only one who has a trump card."

Lit is the real child of destiny. Orson arranged her to do this this time to test whether she can really turn danger into safety by relying on her destiny as in the original plot.

Of course he knew that Giovanni was very dangerous and could turn people into demons. Although he was only a hybrid demon with extremely thin bloodline, he should not be underestimated.

At that time, Mudrick made the lions of the same level seven suffer a lot.

This is a test for Lit, to test whether she has really grown to the point where she no longer needs Orson's protection.

And the reason why Orson stayed in Saint Laurent City was not just as he said, he also had things he needed to do.

"Then let's talk about something else first." Olivia said, looking at Orson. "Because Duke Lucius and Lit are both at the front, the meeting held at noon today may be planned for you to represent the Stranik family. My father asked me to inform you in advance. What do you say?"

"I'm fine." Orson nodded.

After all, they are no longer here, and Orson is the only one who can represent the Antica region.

Moreover, with Orson's ability and qualifications, he is indeed qualified to attend this meeting.

The orc problem that had plagued the empire for a thousand years was solved, and large tracts of land were expanded eastward. In the past, this would have required the granting of titles through division of land.

Then, at noon, Orson attended the meeting inside the palace as a representative of the Stranik family and the Duchy of Antica.

There were three factions attending the meeting.

The royal family, dukes, and military and commercial representatives.

Among the military and business representatives, Orson saw familiar faces.

Celinina and Scaloni.

Whenever the empire encountered a major event, it would choose to hold a conference to bring together the major interest groups of the empire for joint consultation.

This is not democracy, it is just a negotiation among a group of people representing different interests.

In this incident, each force has its own demands. For example, the royal family's biggest goal is naturally to annex the entire Duchy of Naples, but the dukes will obviously not allow the royal family to do so. The two sides will repeatedly argue over this issue and finally compromise on a plan that is acceptable to all.

The same goes for military and business representatives. The army hopes to establish a military district in the Naples area, carve out a piece of territory for the army, and improve the army's status.

Business representatives were prepared to take over the post-war reconstruction of the Naples region.

Naples had not yet been lost, and even 70% of the land was still in its hands, but it had already reached the point where it was placed on the negotiating table for division.

After all, at the moment, no one thinks that the Dukedom of Naples still has the strength to fight back.

And the mistakes he made were indeed irreparable.

The meeting lasted a whole day, but in the end no suitable result was reached.

Several dukes jointly proposed that if the royal family wanted to annex the Duchy of Naples, then an electoral system would need to be implemented, otherwise an overly powerful central government would only suppress the local areas.

The system of electing an emperor has always been the bottom line of the royal family and is unacceptable, so the problem is stuck here.

If the conference continues like this, there will be no results.

So, on the second night, an astonishing news spread throughout the city of Saint Laurent.

Francis, Duke of Orleans, was assassinated.

Yes, after the meeting, when returning to the residence, a dozen assassins suddenly appeared on both sides of the road and surrounded the Duke of Orleans's convoy. In the end, François' guards were almost wiped out.

Orson arrived at the place where François was killed almost the moment he learned the news.

At this moment, the surrounding area has been completely blocked by the imperial army.

The person in charge of the guard duty was Prince Arthas.

Such a major event has happened. As a representative of the army and also a prince of the empire, of course he has to show up.

The Duke's assassination in the imperial city can be said to be a very serious political crisis.

"Your Highness Arthas, can I take a look?" Orson came to Arthas and asked softly.

"Yeah." Arthas nodded, then brought Orson to the carriage.

At this moment, the two horses pulling the carriage had been frightened and broke free from the reins and fled, leaving only the frame of the carriage.

Before he got close, Orson smelled a strong smell of blood.

When I lifted the car curtain, the scene before me was even more horrifying.

The noble and exquisite wooden carriage was now covered with blood. Francois was staring at the door of the carriage. A huge wound of more than 20 centimeters from the chest to the abdomen revealed the cause of his death.

Looking at his face, Orson could still vaguely recall the man who ignored Mary's call for help at the party that night and even turned the tables and kicked her away.

"Alas." The complex emotions finally turned into a sigh.

But I don’t know who he was sighing for.

Chapter 4: Poor Child (K)

François' death has huge political implications.

Although he was not without an heir, after his death, his son Henry would legally inherit the title.

But his son is only fourteen years old now. Although he is not a child who knows nothing, he is completely incapable of governing. His wife died of an illness a few years ago. According to the law, his only direct relative Mary should now be the regent.

But Mary was dead, too.

This means that power will be acquired by collateral families.

It also drew a clear line between the assassination side and the Antika side.

If Marie was still alive, she would have the motive to organize the assassination, but now even if François was dead, the ruling power of the Dukedom of Orleans had nothing to do with his family.

Orson lowered the curtain and turned to look at Arthas.

"Your Highness, are Duke François' guards so weak?"

"Not really." Arthas shook his head. "Most of Duke Francois's guards are level 6 elites, and the guard captain is even level 7. If an assassin wants to attack him, even if it is an eight-level assassin, it is impossible to break through the guards' defenses and assassinate Duke Francois in such a short time..."

"Unless the assassin himself is more powerful, or there is more than one person who assassinated the Duke, right?" Orson asked.

"..."

At this moment, Odysseus also arrived at the scene accompanied by Elsa, and he walked up to the two of them.

"Arthas, the security of the imperial city should be your responsibility, right?" Odysseus said this, questioning Arthas.

"Yeah." Arthas nodded.

"One of the most distinguished men in the empire was assassinated here in broad daylight," Odysseus said, touching his neck.

"This makes me very worried about whether I can keep my head tomorrow."

"...I'm sorry, father. It was my fault for being negligent." Of course, Arthas heard the dissatisfaction in Odysseus' words, and he quickly knelt on one knee to apologize.

"It's not me you should apologize to, but the Tullus family." As he said this, Odysseus pointed at the carriage and then looked at Elsa beside him.

"Elsa, I'll leave this matter to you. How to solve it specifically?"

"Yes, sir." Elsa nodded after hearing that.

"As for Arthas, what do you want to do?"

"Father, what do you mean?"

"You have two choices now. You can choose to lead your troops south and temporarily get through this period of public opinion storm. Because, after this incident, someone will definitely blame you. You can make amends for your crime by fighting in the war, which can also be regarded as a diversion of attention."

"Or, resign from your position, return to the palace and stay indoors until the discussion is over. What do you choose?"

“……”Arthas was silent for a long time, and then loosened his clenched fists.

"Father, I am responsible for allowing the assassin to sneak into the city and commit the crime. Please dismiss me from my post."

"Is this your choice?" Odysseus nodded.

"It seems that you are not only interested in the army, Arthas." After saying that, Odysseus walked past him and came to the carriage.

Just like Orson just now, he lifted the curtain of the car and saw the tragic scene inside.

"Alas, Francois, I will find the ultimate murderer."

After saying this, he shook his head and followed the guards back to the palace alone.

From beginning to end, he never spoke to anyone else.

Including Orson who was standing aside.

As for Arthas, he kept his head down and sweated profusely after Odysseus said the last words to him. He did not stand up straight until Odysseus left.

Only then did he realize that his back was already soaked with sweat.

Not just because of nervousness, but because of what Odysseus had just said to him.

"Brother, you are not to blame for this." Elsa also came up and comforted Arthas. "Saint Laurent City is so big. If someone has the ability, they can sneak in from some unknown dark corners. No matter how good the security is, this kind of thing is bound to happen."

"If you ask me, with your ability, the safest option is to lead the troops to the front line and win a great victory. By then, don't even mention the issue of dereliction of duty. Your reputation of victory will spread throughout the empire, and everyone will cheer for you."

"Your Majesty, you are too kind. I don't have the ability." Arthas shook his head. He no longer paid attention to the conversation and found an excuse to leave.

At this time, Elsa turned her gaze to Orson.

The cold gaze seemed to pierce through Orson's heart.

"You did it?"

"Do I look like someone who has such great power that can decide the life and death of the Duke?"

Elsa smiled and didn't say much. Then she ordered her men to start investigating the city of Saint Laurent.