C-Demnovel Chapter 158 : Greenwhistle (2)
Chapter 158 : Greenwhistle (2)
Chapter 158: Greenwhistle (2)
“So… you’re saying a letter arrived under the name of someone who’s already dead?”
“That’s about right.”
I stared at Michel’s expression for a moment after her answer.
Even if the person was dead, she wasn’t someone who would react this strongly over the mere name of a servant.
‘There’s definitely something there between her and that servant.’
After glancing toward the wide-eyed Rubiana, I asked,
“What about the possibility that the servant never actually died?”
“I clearly saw him die with my own eyes… but I still think it’s possible.”
“Then I suppose there’s no choice but to verify it ourselves.”
“Yes.”
Of course, we also had to consider the possibility that someone from Greenwhistle was merely impersonating that name to lure Michel in.
But even taking that into account—
We couldn’t simply ignore this proposal.
‘The Platinum Dawn Society is one of the major variables too.’
It was true they no longer wished for the Imperial Family’s collapse outright.
But that only applied when the Empire itself remained stable.
If we crush the Bernhardts during this period of chaos, they too will gradually begin revealing themselves one by one.
And among them, there may be those harboring ambitions to shatter the very foundation of the Empire itself.
In this situation, it wouldn’t be strange at all for today’s allies to become enemies a month later.
Watching the two women who seemed to have already reached a decision, I nodded.
“Keep Sunday open. Let’s go together.”
---
At that same time, Imperial Ribenia Noble Council.
While Edgar Bernhardt waited for the council session to begin, a familiar voice approached him.
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
It was Kali Arta—
His longtime political rival and the leader of the anti-Bernhardt faction.
Glancing briefly at Kali, who sat two seats away, Edgar turned his head forward again.
“It has indeed been a while, Arta.”
“You don’t look very well… seems something unpleasant happened, hahaha.”
The tone was openly provocative.
That bastard had always been like this.
Despite being the head of one of the Eight Great Families symbolizing the Empire of Ribenia, his behavior resembled little more than a street thug.
Especially when dealing with Edgar.
There was no point responding to that fool.
It would only feed him more ammunition.
Edgar naturally understood that much.
But today—
Ignoring him wasn’t proving easy.
Perhaps because his nerves had already been stretched too thin from recent events.
He glared sharply at the Arta Family Patriarch.
“There’s always unpleasant business. It’ll soon be resolved.”
“I certainly hope that turns out to be true.”
The constant mockery was beginning to push Edgar toward the limits of his patience.
“…What exactly are you trying to say?”
“Ah, since you sounded so confident that things would be resolved soon. I was merely wondering if you weren’t being a bit too optimistic. Do things ever unfold exactly as planned?”
“It seems you still have no idea how the current situation is turning.”
“Well, we’ll see soon enough. As for which one of us truly knows nothing.”
The two men openly radiated hostility now, as though ready to erupt into open warfare at any moment.
Creeeeeeak—
The sparks flying between them abruptly ceased with the Chairman’s arrival.
“Now then, everyone, please take your seats.”
Georg Olubis, the Imperial Household’s Chief Chamberlain and Chairman of the Noble Council, ascended the podium with heavy steps.
“Then… let us begin immediately.”
The history of selecting the Noble Council Chairman from the Imperial Family stretched back a long time.
The council itself had originally been created to reduce the burden placed upon the Imperial Family.
But its original purpose had gradually been forgotten.
Over the following two centuries, the council faithfully fulfilled the role of restraining the Imperial Family.
And as noble influence grew stronger and stronger, the Imperial Family sought several measures to suppress it.
One representative policy was the Imperial Summit Conference.
Another was the “Imperial Chairman Appointment System.”
Before beginning his speech, Georg quickly examined the council members gathered within the chamber.
A total of sixty-three.
Thirty pro-Bernhardt.
Twenty-one anti-Bernhardt.
And twelve moderates.
‘More than half of the pro-Bernhardt faction is absent.’
The implication was obvious.
Edgar Bernhardt would never acknowledge it, but the Bernhardts’ influence had undeniably weakened compared to the past.
Not every pro-Bernhardt noble shared unshakable loyalty.
Many remained allied out of necessity for now, while secretly considering changing sides at any moment.
This was their way of sending a message.
A warning.
That the supposedly invincible fortress they believed could never collapse—
Might crumble from within.
As Georg organized the documents on the podium into neat stacks, he brought his mouth close to the Orb.
“First, I will report the committee review results.”
The review results were as follows:
“Supervisors shall be assigned to both the Imperial Special Task Force and Karbenna Academy. Supervisors shall be selected directly by the council and organized into no fewer than four teams consisting of at least three members each. Their role shall be to inspect whether the two organizations are violating their founding purposes or harming national interests, among other matters, and submit reports every half-year.”
Please refer to pages 3 through 26 of the distributed documents for the question-and-answer exchanges between the committee and the bill proposer.
Additionally, please refer to pages 27 through 68 for the debate contents between supporters and opponents of the proposal.
“Finally, please refer to pages 69, 70, and 71 for the detailed voting results.”
The sound of turning pages echoed softly throughout the chamber.
“Following these procedures, I shall announce the committee vote results on behalf of the committee chairman.”
Twenty-nine in favor.
Eighteen opposed.
Forty abstentions.
Thus, deliberation of this proposal in the plenary session is hereby declared.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
“The proposer may now ascend the podium and answer questions. Four rounds of questioning will be held, each lasting two hours, for a total of eight hours.”
At those words, Edgar Bernhardt walked toward the lower podium.
“…….”
Though questioning had technically begun already, the chamber remained strangely silent.
It made sense for the pro-Bernhardt faction not to ask anything.
But it was rather unexpected for everyone else to remain quiet as well.
Just as Georg considered ending the first session early—
“Is there really any need to appoint supervisors at all? Those are still manpower and funds, after all.”
Kali Arta, leader of the anti-Bernhardt faction, suddenly rose from his seat.
“Everyone here knows the national budget’s stretched thin lately. If the Imperial Family refuses additional funding, where exactly will the operating costs come from? What, are you planning to squeeze it out of the nobles again?”
What kind of provocation was this now?
Maintaining his poker face, Edgar answered calmly.
“That’s something to be discussed later. At most, the organization will only consist of around twenty people. The Empire isn’t so unstable that it can’t secure funding for an operation of that scale.”
“Oh? Really? Even refugee support only received a measly five hundred thousand Riben.”
“That’s because over three million was already allocated previously. Surely someone of your standing understands that? Rather than throwing pointless provocations, perhaps ask meaningful questions instead.”
Who exactly is provoking whom here?
Kali grumbled lightly while spreading his arms.
“What I’m saying is, we should think long term. Instead of selecting people through the council, why not recruit internally from Karbenna or the Special Task Force? That would drastically reduce the council’s burden too, wouldn’t it?”
“Then the supervisors would lose all meaning. Internal personnel would obviously submit reports protecting their own organizations.”
“But there’s no guarantee council-appointed supervisors would be fair either. If the Bernhardt faction selects all the personnel, how’s that any different from internal recruitment?”
“Instead of blindly opposing things, perhaps offer an alternative. What do you suggest?”
Stepping back slightly, Edgar asked.
In response, Kali Arta raised three fingers.
“First of all, it’s obvious that council supervision is the worst possible option.”
“…….”
“The middle-ground option would be internal recruitment with report verification jointly handled by the council and the Imperial Family.”
Then, folding down his final finger, Kali revealed a combative smile.
“And the best option would be scrapping the proposal entirely.”
“…I cannot agree with that.”
Looking at his stubborn rival, Kali snorted.
“Well, honestly, I know I probably can’t stop it.”
But the more I thought about it, the more absurd this all became.
“The Special Task Force and Karbenna are both organizations directly under the Imperial Family, aren’t they?”
“And what exactly is your point?”
“Why are you only now trying to appoint supervisors? If this was necessary, shouldn’t they have existed since the organizations were first founded?”
“I’d appreciate it if you’d simply consider this a case of us appointing them now, albeit belatedly.”
“Well, that’s not how it looks to me.”
Kali Arta spoke in a cold, firm tone—
Like a declaration of war.
“Isn’t this just an excuse to quietly strangle those who oppose Bernhardt interests under the guise of supervision?”
---
‘That insane bastard….’
That was my honest thought.
“Please refrain from making baseless assumptions.”
After responding with a suitably evasive statement, Edgar calmly suppressed the fury boiling inside him.
Yet his confusion didn’t fade in the slightest.
Through the agreement between Mikhail and Rachel, the nobles aligned with Rachel were supposed to remain neutral regarding this matter.
Arta was the most influential family among those nobles.
There was no way their Patriarch didn’t know about the agreement.
Which meant—
He was deliberately provoking them despite knowing.
And if that was the case….
From Kali’s behavior, Edgar couldn’t help but become certain.
‘Rachel… you cunning bitch.’
You promised not to interfere directly, only to stab us in the back like this?
Do you really think this will disrupt our plans?
The proposal only requires a simple majority in council.
The pro-Bernhardt faction controls sixty-five percent of the seats.
Even if every other fool united together, the result wouldn’t change.
Ignoring Edgar’s attempted response entirely, Kali continued addressing the chamber.
“Let’s think back on earlier times. The Bernhardts being influential is nothing new, sure. But compared to the previous generation, their competence has clearly declined, hasn’t it?”
“What exactly are you trying to imply…?”
“When Johann Bernhardt was Patriarch, nobody complained. He proved himself through capability and results. But now? They’re stuffing incompetent children into every major business position and using money to cover up every problem that appears. Isn’t that right?”
Those words clearly existed solely to provoke.
The moment his rival mentioned his father’s name, the rage Edgar had barely restrained doubled violently within him.
“Do not stain our family’s name with that disgusting mouth of yours, Arta!”
“Oh? Judging by your reaction, I must’ve struck a nerve. Well, aside from your eldest son Robert, not a single one of your children fulfills their role properly. And the only hope of the current generation—that collateral-line girl—you people buried her completely.”
“Shut your mouth, Kali Arta!”
Unable to endure any longer, Edgar pulled out his Wand and prepared to unleash attack magic—
Only for Georg to hurriedly stop him.
Kali, who had also been about to retaliate, reluctantly withdrew his Wand after being restrained by the nobles beside him.
“Enough! The first questioning session ends here! Everyone, leave the chamber!”
At Georg’s thunderous roar, the lesser nobles began filing out one after another.
Watching Edgar still trembling with rage he hadn’t fully vented—
Kali displayed a refreshingly bright smile.