Chapter 501

“Your Highness, Prince Second!”

“Carteri? You’ve come. Don’t be formal—there are no outsiders here. Please, sit!”

The Second Prince appeared extremely warm.

Of course, this was not only because the Second Prince’s mother came from the Shatterstone Clan, but also because of Carteri’s current status.

Carteri felt no restraint and sat down directly in the parlor.

Soon, the two began casual conversation, discussing Carteri’s plans for developing his earldom in the future.

After listening, the Second Prince praised Carteri’s vision for his future domain, then casually summoned a servant to bring a list of gifts.

It was precisely the gift list mentioned by the Shatterstone Duke.

The Second Prince’s gifts were generous: weapons and armor, grain and horses, seeds and cloth, and more.

The total value was at least seven or eight hundred gold coins.

Though these gold coins meant little to an earldom.

But as a gift, they were far from insignificant—they would help Carteri develop his domain faster.

“Thank you, Your Highness, for your gifts! Carteri will never disappoint Your Highness’s expectations!”

“Carteri, develop well. In my eyes, you, my mother’s nephews, are no different from my brothers—indeed, you feel even closer than some of my own blood brothers!” the Second Prince continued, encouraging him.

Carteri was deeply moved.

Though he himself was a scion of a duke’s family, the other was still a prince.

Moreover, his grandfather had already said that his appointment as earl was largely due to this man before him.

So he could not help but value and be grateful to the Second Prince.

Seeing Carteri’s emotional expression, the Second Prince was satisfied, then shifted tone: “By the way, Carteri, you’ve met Gervas, haven’t you?”

“Yes, Your Highness. He’s the one who offended you and indirectly caused the death of a collateral branch member of our Shatterstone Clan?” Regarding Gervas, Carteri had already received all the details from his grandfather.

“Yes, this fellow has no sense of propriety. You know the monocular telescope and the magic fan—they’re produced in his domain!”

“I originally wanted to give him a chance to pledge loyalty to me, but he refused!”

“Though later Duke Hernand said the monocular telescope includes half ownership by his granddaughter, that doesn’t change the fact that this brat is ungrateful!”

“More importantly, this fellow has grown close to the First Prince!”

“So since you’re heading to the Southern Frontier, if you get the chance, make sure to properly ‘greet’ him!”

The Second Prince emphasized the word “greet.”

Clearly, this visit was not only to court Carteri, but also about Gervas.

Originally, Gervas was just a lowly worm; though he had offended him, the Second Prince had no time to bother with such a worm hiding on the frontier.

But now this worm had shown unusual ability and become an earl.

That was something the Second Prince could not tolerate.

“Yes, Your Highness. Rest assured—I’ll make sure he learns the consequences of offending Your Highness and the Shatterstone Duke’s family!”

…

Gervas naturally did not know he had been remembered again by the Second Prince.

But even if he knew, he wouldn’t care.

He couldn’t give up the earldom just because he feared the Second Prince’s hostility.

So, when the troops come, send the generals; when the water rises, build the earthworks!

Right now, the most urgent thing was to leave the capital.

Of course, before leaving, Gervas still needed to bid farewell to Mithos and Adri.

But what Gervas hadn’t expected was that it wasn’t just him who would leave the capital—Mithos and Adri were also about to depart.

“You two are going to the Western Frontier? Why?” Gervas was stunned. Both were high-ranking ministers of the kingdom, having earned many merits.

To be sent to the Western Frontier was practically exile.

Of course, as soon as he asked, Gervas realized something.

Perhaps it had something to do with the First Prince.

Indeed, the next moment, Mithos and Adri exchanged a glance and sighed: “Alas, Gervas, if we were anywhere else, we’d never dare speak the truth!”

“But with you, we needn’t hide it—just don’t spread it after hearing!”

“Actually, we’ve been assigned to the Western Frontier because we’re men of the First Prince…”

Then, they subtly revealed that His Majesty had personally promoted many new commanders and deputy commanders.

And they had been forced to step down and were assigned to posts in the Western Frontier.

Of course, they weren’t alone—many other commanders and deputy commanders had suffered the same fate.

These commanders had all been loyal to the First Prince, or even directly promoted by him.

But the royal decree was absolute; no one dared defy it.

Not even the First Prince dared speak up—not even to comfort Mithos and Adri or the others.

Gervas listened, unsure how to console them.

After all, royal power struggles were always like this.

This situation was already quite mild!

They were father and son, and no real competition had begun, so only some people’s futures were affected.

If true conflict erupted, rivers would run red with blood!

“Your Excellencies, I don’t know how to comfort you, but if you ever have time in the future, come to Stormhold—I’ll treat you well!” Gervas said sincerely to them.

“Hah! Gervas, we’re not as downcast as you think—we’ve actually come to terms with it. This is fine!”

“Power and titles? Happiness matters most. After all, we worked hard for years, yet still couldn’t withstand sudden changes!”

“So instead of chasing uncertain futures, better to enjoy the present!”

“Exactly! I’ve missed so much fine wine and beautiful women—I’ll make up for it once we reach the Western Frontier!”

Mithos and Adri, hearing Gervas’s regret and concern, responded with unexpected ease.

Gervas could only think: Damn!

After all, these two had somehow grasped a sliver of the survival wisdom from his past life.

Then, Gervas drank deeply with Mithos and Adri.

After the meal, Gervas visited Duke Hernand again to bid him farewell.

Then, without delay, he immediately began his return journey.

Accompanying Gervas in departure were Mil, Ian, and others!

Mil, Ian, and the rest had originally planned to linger in the capital for a few more days.

After all, it was rare to come, and they’d just been promoted from barons to viscounts—they could afford to enjoy themselves.

But upon learning Gervas wanted to leave quickly, they abandoned their plans without hesitation and chose to return with him immediately.

“Set out!”

Outside the capital, fifty li away, at a military camp.

Gervas’s army was stationed here.

After all, the capital was a vital center; foreign troops could not approach freely.

Fifty li was the limit.

And even that was granted because they were meritorious subjects.

At Gervas’s command, the troops unfurled their black-and-white dragon banners alongside the golden griffin banner of his earldom.

“Wow, this earl’s banner is so impressive—even just marching beside it makes us feel proud.”

“True. Before, when we saw an earl’s procession, we could only stare from afar in envy. Now, thanks to Gervas, we’re walking right beside this earl’s banner—it’s an honor!”

“Haha, Gervas, we have a request—hope you’ll agree: when we return to the Southern Frontier, let’s make a detour to Wolf City first, and really explore it for a while. Is that okay?”