Chapter 230: The appearance of the ringleader
Reiger’s impression of Kaliya wasn’t particularly good, but it also wasn’t particularly bad.
In the original group, Kaliya was always present, yet she maintained a somewhat distant relationship with everyone, only ever closely associating with her underling Shafni and keeping her distance from everyone else, appearing neither particularly close nor particularly estranged from anyone.
The original owner’s fondness for Kaliya was unmistakable, at least it seemed very obvious to Reiger, and it was impossible for Kaliya not to notice it.
However, Kaliya did not treat the original owner any differently because of this; she didn’t distance herself on purpose, was rather cold towards him, and didn’t take the opportunity to become more familiar with the original owner, maintaining that distant demeanor, treating him as though he was no different from anyone else.
Therefore, Reiger’s impression of Kaliya wasn’t particularly bad, he only felt that her presence could sometimes be strong and at other times weak.
Now, it seemed that the young Miss from the Liya Family was indeed not as simple as Yuri had described.
Under these circumstances, Yuri had told Reiger another matter.
"The attack you encountered previously may not have been related to the Heretic Assassins but might involve Kaliya Liat."
Yuri suddenly said this, causing Reiger to narrow his eyes.
"What do you mean?"
Reiger looked at Yuri, his expression much more serious than before.
Seeing this, Yuri hesitated for a moment, finally deciding to reveal another matter she had previously hidden from Reiger.
"The time you went out with Ai En and Ian, weren’t you attacked?" Yuri said to Reiger: "The people who attacked you, through our investigation, have been confirmed to be directly under the royal Shadow Knights."
The so-called Shadow Knights are people from a secret assassination group directly under the royal family of the Jinas Kingdom.
The people in that assassination group are called Shadow Knights, who specialize in dirty tasks for the royal family, dealing with matters that cannot see the light.
The person who attacked Reiger but was killed by him in retaliation was a Shadow Knight.
"Are you saying that someone from the royal family is targeting me?" Reiger asked, puzzled, "Why?"
At that time, in others’ eyes, Reiger was just a magician apprentice from the countryside, talented indeed, but not yet accomplished, and moreover, he spent his days messing around with Aquil and others; logically, he shouldn’t have provoked the royal family to send someone specifically to deal with him, should he?
"Are you suggesting that my being attacked has something to do with Kaliya Liat meaning that the royal family doesn’t want to see me getting too close to the Duke’s faction?"
Reiger deduced this logic.
"Exactly." Yuri nodded, saying, "I specifically sent someone to investigate, and it seems we might have found the reason."
According to Yuri, a significant conflict had occurred between the royal faction and the Duke’s faction some time ago.
The origin of that conflict was indeed the notorious Prince Solok Jinas.
"Prince Solok has always believed that among the royal descendants of this generation, no one could compete with him, convinced that the next King would be none other than himself."
Yuri relate this slowly to Reiger.
"Yet a significant portion of the nobility within the kingdom chose to side with the Codelion faction, believing that the next King should be Saint Nidor Codelion."
The fame of the Codelion siblings in the Jinas Kingdom was even greater than their father’s, and many who supported the Duke’s faction actually supported not Duke Codelion but Saint Nidor Codelion, the eldest son of the Duke.
Especially since Saint Nidor Codelion had also garnered the support of a Sword Saint for their family, this issue directly ignited a spark, leading many to see him as a suitable future King.
As a result, during that period, Saint Nidor Codelion became a truly prominent figure, highly esteemed and favored by both commoners and nobles alike.
Thanks to this, the Duke’s faction spared no effort in promoting Saint Nidor Codelion, resulting in many within the palace also feeling that he was the best choice for the next King.
This how could the Prince, who saw the throne as his entitlement, turn a blind eye?
"Since then, Prince Solok has always seen Saint Nidor Codelion as a thorn in his side, and his violent and jealous temperament didn’t help; during that time, he targeted Saint Nidor Codelion continuously, even going so far as to insult him publicly in front of the nobles, trying to embarrass him."
Yuri said this but smirked, her smile tinged with sarcasm.
"Unfortunately, he greatly underestimated Saint Nidor Codelion; not only did he fail to insult him, but he was also taught a lesson in front of all the nobles, reportedly even losing his front teeth."
This was a typical case of a villain getting his comeuppance, attempting to steal a chicken but instead losing a handful of rice.
Regarding this, Reiger could only say that the so-called prince deserved it.
However, because of this incident, Prince Solok grew to utterly hate Saint Nidor.
"Afterward, like a mad dog, Prince Solok relentlessly targeted Saint Nidor, even targeting the Codelion family, not sparing even the vassals of the Codelion family and those from the Duke’s faction."
Yuri turned to Reiger, saying this.
"The reason you were attacked by the ’Shadow’ might be because of this."
In other words, the Prince, like a mad dog, to target Saint Nidor and the Codelion family, wouldn’t hesitate to disrupt any matter favorable to the Codelion family.
And unfortunately, Reiger, being a rare talent potentially capable of becoming a Tactical Level Magician and being so close to the daughter of the Liya Family, a vassal of the Codelion’s, unfortunately caught their attention.
"During that period, not only you but many directly related to the Codelion family were targeted, and those indirectly related couldn’t escape either, causing the entire royal capital to covertly become enveloped in darkness and chaos.".
Yuri glanced at Reiger and said this.
"Just, the first time you were attacked and nearly died, the one I saved you from, I don’t know if it was the ’Shadow’ people sent by the Prince."
This matter, too, only began to escalate later, so initially, Yuri didn’t suspect the ’Shadow’ or even Prince Solok; she thought it was the Heretic Assassins who had targeted Reiger.
There was no choice, the Fransel family was one of the few nobles who hadn’t clearly taken sides, and their information was relatively outdated; they didn’t know about the conflict between the two major factions at first, so it wasn’t her fault.
Moreover, Yuri was indifferent to the royal family and the nobility, so even if she noticed something wrong, she might have simply ignored it.
Since the fighting would never reach her door, Yuri adopted a nonchalant attitude and remained a detached observer.
It was only after Reiger was attacked a second time that Ai En and Ian realized that the "Shadow" was involved, and Yuri began to suspect that the assailant could likely be the third prince, not the Heretic Assassins.
He was simply caught in the crossfire, anger from that tyrannical and mad prince falling upon him.
The adversary might not even know who Reiger was, targeting anyone associated with the Codelion Family.
Once she understood this, Yuri went directly to the royal palace and exposed the matter in front of the King.
The King then exploded in fury, not only grounding all the princes and princesses but also stripping the third prince of his command over the "Shadow".
Thus, the situation was somewhat pacified.
"......"
Having understood the entire backstory, Reiger closed his eyes for a moment.
"Prince Solok, huh?"
This person, was he the mastermind behind both attacks he had suffered in the capital?
Reiger finally knew whom to hold accountable.
That was Yuri’s summarized conclusion.
"After you return to the capital, people from both factions might try to contact you."
"Some will want to recruit you, others might wish to establish good relations, but some might intend to harm you."
"It’s best to keep your distance from people from these two factions; otherwise, you might get dragged into their conflicts again."
Yuri’s advice was clear and vivid.
Reiger offered no response.
He knew in his heart.
......
Recalling the conversation with Yuri, Reiger looked again at the letter in his hand, then after a moment, moved it over to the magic lamp on the side, and burnt it.
"No matter what game you’re playing, this time..."
Reiger smirked slightly, his eyes exceptionally indifferent.
Afterward, Reiger treated the matter as if it had never happened, handing all the correspondence over to his butler.
Although many were just letters of greeting from those who genuinely wished to forge a good bond with Reiger, he chose not to respond.
If those people knew he had no intention of becoming a noble, they probably wouldn’t seek any further communication with him.
Of course, that was yet to be determined.
After all, just because Reiger chose not to be a noble didn’t mean he would fade into obscurity.
"Sword Saint..."
A soft mutter echoed in the room, vanishing almost as quickly as it appeared.
......
Soon, two days passed by.
Everything in the Fransel household was arranged within these two days, from the stationing of the knight corps to the tampering of the magic defense system, all completed with the efforts of Yuri and Marilyn and others.
The number of visitors to the Fransel home also started to diminish; it wasn’t as busy as before.
On that day, both Reiger and Yuri finally received a summon from the royal palace.
"Let’s go."
Yuri came to find Reiger in the office on the top floor of their manor, showing him an invitation letter.
"A royal summon, for you and me," Yuri said concisely, "Are you ready?"
Yuri stared straight at Reiger.
In response, Reiger just gave a calm smile.
"Then let’s go."
With those words, Reiger led the way out of the office.
Yuri followed silently with Marilyn in tow.
Before long, a carriage left the Fransel residence, heading towards the royal palace.