[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-reborn-king":3,"chapter-the-reborn-king-the-reborn-king-chapter-322":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Reborn King",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1100979,1437,"Chapter 322: Duke August Laska","the-reborn-king-chapter-322",322,"\u003Cp>Frida walked into Edward’s room with the twins in her hands and gently placed them down. They quickly moved over to their brother and watched him with interest as Edward sat motionless, looking down at the small doll in front of him. She couldn’t help but sigh and walk over to Abu, who sat in the corner watching with a gentle face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How has he been?\" Abu looked at her and could see the worry on her face. Frowning, he said nothing but shook his head, \"Will their parent return? He needs them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know you mean well, but address the Emperor and Empress respectfully. Even in private. The walls have ears.\" Abu gave a small warning, and Frida quickly nodded. Leaning back into his chair, he looked down at Edward as his sibling tried to play with him. The added noise of the two children seemed to make him more alive as he finally showed small movements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Emperor can’t afford to come back right now, the war is too important. The EMpress, however, may.\" Abu said sadly, and Frida lowered her head, frowning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"More important than his son.\" Under her breath, she muttered, and Abu snapped his head and stared at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To him it may not be, but for the Empire it is,\" Abu said coldly. \"He is Emperor, the one who leads thousands. Even if he is the Crown Prince, his son is just another citizen. He has immense power, but his title is also a curse. He can’t let matters like this distract him when he has bigger things to focus on.\" Abu could see Frida didn’t like what he had to say, and clicked his tongue. \"It’s not nice, but it is true. All his power, and he can’t focus on his son.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I feel bad for him,\" Frida said with pity, and Abu scoffed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can feel how you want, but he chose the path. He consolidated power in his hands, and the sacrifice is that he can’t be there for his son when he would need it.\" Abu looked at Edward, who picked up the doll. \"Let’s just hope his mother returns.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She won’t like that we let the children play with each other so much.\" She couldn’t help but think about Isra. Every time they met, the coldness she looked at her with sent chills down her spine. Abu would be safe from any repercussions, she was sure of it. Despite having no official title, the power he wielded in the Empire was immense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What do you do for the Empire?\" Frida frowned and grabbed her mouth. \"No. How did you get so much power? From what I know, you aren’t a noble, and unlike my home, you can’t seize power easily.\" It was the first time she had ever been interested, and Abu looked at her strangely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why?\" He asked a question in return. Looking up at his face, he had a different look from others. It wasn’t like Issac’s fake benevolence or Esmond’s cold, empty look. Every person who wielded power in the Empire had a similar look. They either hid a deep cunning behind a facade or openly wore a cold face. Abu was different. He didn’t have any of it; instead, he wore his emotions openly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m...\" Frida paused and looked at the children. \"I’m scared. He’s a child, yet his name alone means people took him. What does that make me? How can I protect the twins if someone ever tries to target them? The Crown Prince is protected, but as soon as his father leaves, look what happens.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Abu lightly chuckled, \"Luck.\" The answer wasn’t what Frida wanted to hear, and Abu knew, \"How I got to this position was because I was lucky. The Emperor bought me at a slave auction and freed me. I earned his trust, and in return, he gave me responsibility. You already are lucky. You sit in the Palace, and are the nanny of imperial children. The way you use your position is up to you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frida frowned. \"But what about someone like the Prime Minister?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Issac,\" Abu thought of his friend and shook his head, \"Numerous things. Luck to have been born in the second most powerful family in the Empire. If it were just that, however, it would be meaningless. He could have easily become a slob who lived off an inheritance.\" Abu paused. \"Mainly, he got his position from three things, however. Skill in his job, loyalty and the ability to complete his job without any moral hindrance. If you want power, you need two of those things. Loyalty and skill are the main ones. Having a good moral compass is nice, but those at the pinnacle don’t have one. They can order the destruction of an entire populace if it means retaining power.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It sounds... terrible,\" Frida said with disgust, and Abu couldn’t help but nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s the cost of power. If you want to claw your way up, you have to be worse than whoever you tear down. Issac, Esmond, William, Catherine and the late Raven. Do you know how they stand or did stand at the apex in the current regime?\" Looking at her, he could see the confusion in Frida’s eyes. \"They helped massacre everyone who could oppose it. A few of them may have objected to it, but they stayed silent, knowing what would come after.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frida felt horrified. She read some history of the Empire, and although she didn’t know a lot, she knew enough to know Alfred’s rule was built on blood. It wasn’t that strange to her. Her father had started many wars just to prove he was a strong ruler in her homeland. But from the way Abu spoke, what happened was anything but a war; it was a slaughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A face appeared in her mind. The woman who had eerily similar qualities to Alfred. The woman who butchered town after town just for disagreeing with her claim to Godhood. \"I can’t do that. It sickening. Why would anyone do such a thing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Power,\" Abu answered instantly. \"Power to stand at the top and live in luxury. Power to make any change they want in the Empire unopposed. All it costs them is to keep undying loyalty to the Emperor and their morality. Why do you think I can never have an official title? Because the Emperor knows my loyalty isn’t undying. He has it, but it’s simply because he is keeping his promise to me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He lets you look after his son, though,\" Frida said the obvious, and Abu looked at Edward with caring eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He also knows I would never hurt an innocent child. It’s quite cruel. If I came to hate him and used his son against him, it shows I never changed. It is a constant test. But that being said, he trusts me to protect his son with my life, as I would.\" Frida looked at the children.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She never wanted power before. She was happy to care for the children and die once she saw them grow into adults. But she felt like she didn’t have a choice anymore. The threat against them was too real. She needed something to protect them and herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She never wanted to become like her father or Helga, but part of her knew that achieving what she wanted wasn’t possible without a sacrifice. The two sat in silence, watching the children. The twins played separately after getting bored watching Edward do nothing. Seeing the young boy, she couldn’t help but frown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He held a doll and watched it, unblinking. His breathing was slightly heavier the usual. Putting it on the ground, he raised his small hand and slammed it into the head of the doll, over and over. A confused look washed over his face as if he were trying to understand something. Abu sighed and got up, walking over to the boy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taking the doll away, he looked at it and smiled softly, going over to a bookshelf and grabbing a book. Sitting the young boy on his leg, he softly read, the confusion on Edwards’ face slowly vanishing, being replaced by his emotionless face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"ON ALERT!\" Bells rung in Michael’s camp as hundreds of men moved towards the back of the camp. From a distance, a large army slowly edged closer to his camp. Squinting, he watched and saw the flags the army flew. One was the flag of the Commonwealth, the other was the banner of House Laska.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"AT EASE!\" Michael called out and walked out with a few of his templars. Despite knowing they were allies sent to reinforce, he kept a hand close to his sword, ready to draw at a moment’s notice. There was a slight disgust in his eyes as he watched them get closer. While he didn’t actually care about the survival of the royal and noble families, he heard about how the Laskas had acted during the civil war and the current war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Staying as an observer, watching and waiting to see who would win. He may not have cared about the noble households, but the Laskas had sworn an oath to the royal family. For a year, they put off their duty. Even heathens had the respect to follow their oaths.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For him, a man who had sworn an oath of sacrifice, not following one was the most vile thing a person could do. This is why, even though William and the Ammary forces refuse to give up, Alfred doesn’t hate them and wishes for their salvation. He knew they were simply honouring the promises they made. It was respectful, even if they were following a man into damnation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Michael broke out his throat as a couple of horses sped up and rode over. The armour the man at the head wore was extravagant, looking out of place on a battlefield.’An easy target for anyone.’He wore different armour from the other templars, but it wasn’t lavish, only a simple colour and design change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Atop his horse, the man looked down with arrogant eyes. He was an older man in his late fifties. Despite that, it was obvious he kept himself in shape. \"Who am I addressing?\" His voice was cold, looking down at Michael and even spotting that he was a Grand Templar, the arrogance never vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Grand Templar Michael. Sword of the Holy Seat.\" Micehal spoke with an equally cold voice, understanding how people like the Duke were.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is an honour to meet the Righteous Sword.\" Despite his words, his tone never changed. The duke lowered his head slightly, placing his hand on his chest, \"Duke August Laska. A pleasure.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1788,"2026-06-03T11:17:48.775Z","2026-06-03T11:17:51.400Z",1,"novelbin.me","1fe63a41b1b11eab0a4502845e0108a936e5fb5f689ce368f7c49cfb7f314306","the-reborn-king-chapter-323","the-reborn-king-chapter-321",487,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-reborn-king-cover.jpg"]