Chapter 561: Friendship
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The curtain had been lifted, and Robert walked in slowly. Due to the nature of their work, he and Ye could see Anfey without going through the notification of the guards. Suzanna was shocked and her face turned red. She quickly stood up from Anfey's lap and nodded at Robert. She was familiar with what Robert was doing. Her father, Darius, had had men like him before. Their tasks were shady.
"Yes?" Anfey asked softly.
"Sir, Wester and Granden have entered the Moro Province. They are traveling at great speed. Given their speed, they should be able to reach the Naho Province in five to seven days.
Anfey was in deep thought, and after a long while, he asked, "Is the information reliable?"
"Yes," Robert nodded and said. "Sir, shall we let Young John and his men take them by surprise…"
"No. That will be too obvious." Anfey rejected Robert's suggestion and said, "Do not think that we can take things into our hands just because Marshal Baery is unhappy with Wester. Being unhappy and having admiration are the attitudes of an individual. If we take Wester by surprise, it will not be a matter of attitude. It is…" At this point, Anfey smiled wryly.
"Sir, what shall we do then?"
"Is Alice with Master Douminge?"
"I have no idea. I have just returned."
"Go to Alice. If you see Master Douminge with her, let me know immediately. If he is not there, tell Alice that I would like her to find an excuse to get Master Douminge there."
"Yes, Sir." Robert quickly walked out.
"On your way out, ask Ye to come in. I need to talk to him," Anfey added.
"All right."
After Robert had left, Suzanna frowned and said softly, "Is Robert crazy? He had wanted to attack Wester!" Suzanna had used the word "crazy" to appropriately describe Robert. Regardless of his conduct, Wester was Yolanthe's son. Only Yolanthe could decide his destiny. To lay hands on Wester would be going against Yolanthe! When Wester had sent the assassins, he only targeted Anfey and Suzanna. He dared not hurt Christian, although Christian was his biggest threat.
"The Rangers are used to disassociating themselves from the world. Other than their own people, they would not show concern for the others, even if he is the king. If they are being pushed into a corner, they will do anything." Anfey paused and said, "Actually…this is one of the reasons that I trusted them. Should things turn out badly for us in the future, they will be the only ones whom we can trust."
"Why is this so?" Suzanna was shocked and asked.
"I don't know why I say this," Anfey sighed and said. "Maybe, this is unnecessary. Maybe…"
"Do you mean we cannot trust Christian and Alice?"
"They can be trusted. What I mean is, if the situation gets really bad…" Anfey smiled and said. "Of course, I will not let such things happen."
"What you have said…makes me feel uneasy."
"Hahaha…let's not talk about the future. Let's talk about the present." Anfey changed the topic. "Christian is…too meek. If we capture Diamond City only when Wester and Granden have reached this place, they will try to take credit for it. Christian will not refute this. He is happy as long as the Empire gets stronger and he can be of service. I have been trying to urge him to fight for power, but his performance has not been satisfactory."
"Christian is too kind," Suzanna said softly.
"This is not a bad thing. If he gets power, he will be a good king whom the people will love. But the problem is, before he gets power, the responsibility is on us."
"What do you intend to do?"
"We must not give them any opportunity, but at the same time, we cannot attack them. What we can do… is to start the war soon."
"But Marshal Baery wanted to launch the attack on…"
"In fact, we have the upper-hand. Marshal Baery was just waiting for an opportunity. We can decide on the timing," Anfey said softly. "It depends on whether Young John can hold the forte at the city gate, and upon the number of magicians Master Douminge can persuade. If Douminge and I share the same view, Marshal Baery doesn't need to follow according to plans. You can say that, even if Marshal Baery knows what I am thinking, he will not make things difficult for me."
At this moment, Ye lifted up the curtain and walked in. "Sir, are you looking for me?"
"Yes," Anfey nodded his head and said. "Wester and Granden will be here soon. Have you found out anything yet?"
Ye looked awkward. He shook his head and said, "No…but Volte should be Wester's maternal relative."
"Should be? How sure are you?"
"At least 70-80 percent."
Anfey pondered this for a while and said, "Have them killed tonight. If not, we will not know what will happen when Wester is here. Hmnn…hang the bodies of Volte and Julie outside the campsite. Write down clearly their names, as well as the crimes they have committed. Get it?"
"Yes," Ye said with a smile,. "I am looking forward to seeing the expression on Wester's face when he sees the two corpses."
"No matter how Wester tries to put on a false front, since he has sent his men to deal with Suzanna and me, that proves that he could not take the threat from Christian any longer," Anfey slowly said. "This is expected. He is still young and rash, and this is normal. Since he can no longer take it, why don't we agitate him?"
"Sir, are you not young, too?" Ye said with a smile.
"But I am old here." Anfey pointed at his chest and burst out into laughter. "By the way, Ye, do the soldiers think well of me?"
"Of course! Who are you? You have the Sacred Inheritance, and you have fought for the Empire, killed…" Ye seemed to be in a good mood. He seldom spoke, but now he just rattled on.
"Stop your nonsense." Anfey interrupted him and said, "Send some men to patrol the area. Spread the news that Suzanna has been attacked and have a target placed on Wester. It must be logical and persuasive."
"Sir, do you want to ruin Wester's reputation?"
"Yes," Anfey nodded and said. "The fact that Wester is here to take credit is a big mistake. For Granden, it cannot be helped. When he was 14 years old, he was already an inspector in the army. He has qualifications and a reputation. Even if I slander him, it will not have much impact. As for Wester, who does he think he is?"
"He has to come. If he doesn't get the support of the army, it will be his greatest drawback," Ye said with a smile.
"It is late," Anfey sneered.
"Sir." Robert's voice was heard outside the tent. "I have informed Sir Alice. She would like you to go over now."
"That is all for now." Anfey stood up slowly and said, "Oh yes. Try to think of a way to make the corpses decompose faster, so that Wester can get more emotional."
"Understood," Ye replied.
Anfey took a few steps and suddenly stopped. "I nearly forget about this. Don't kill Douglas. Golman needs him for experiments. It is a rare opportunity to use a top level power for experiments."
"What about Volte?"
"Volte's body is meant to be exposed." Anfey smiled. "By the way, you have misunderstood me. When Golman left Minosie, Douglas was the first to betray him, and he had pulled along with him quite a number of men. Golman misses him a lot."
"I cannot imagine…Volte's and Douglas's destinies. Whose will be better?"
"It is up to you to decide." Anfey laughed and said, "If you are interested, you can let Volte die a more horrible death."
Alice's tent and Anfey's tent were not far from each other. They were located at the center of the campsite of The League of Mercenaries. After walking for a while, Anfey reached Alice's tent. He could clearly hear that Alice and Douminge were happily chatting away.
"Alice," Anfey called out. This was redundant. Having seen Anfey, the female swordsman, who was guarding Alice's tent, had gone in to report to her.
"Come in," Alice called out.
Anfey lifted up the curtain and walked in. Alice was sitting opposite Douglas, and Shinbela was standing guard at the side. Anfey said with a smile, "Master Douminge is here. What a coincidence. Am I disturbing you?"
"When have you become so polite?" Alice asked inquisitively. "Are you blaming me for not receiving you?"
"Hahaha…you are the Duke. I don't think anyone, including Marshal Baery, holds a higher position than you. Who dares to trouble you?"
"Duke? Anything given can be taken back. As compared to this, I put
more trust in things that will not change easily, for example, …friendship!" Alice signaled to the chair beside her and said, "Anfey, you don't seem to be in a good mood. What has happened?"
When Alice brought up the topic of friendship, she seemed to be overdoing it. However, she had not meant it to be for Anfey's ears. It was meant for Douminge's. Anfey had been smiling, but she could tell that Anfey was not in a good mood. This was amazing. She was actually using this to segue to her topic.
Anfey sighed and sat on the chair. He openly said, "The First Prince, Wester, and the Second Prince, Granden, have reached the Moro Province."
"So fast?" Alice was shocked. Her future was tightly knit together with Anfey's and Christian's. She was very sharp, and knew immediately what Anfey was driving at.
Seeing that Alice was looking a bit odd, Douminge put down his cup and started to listen attentively.