I, the Villain, Want to Save Myself, But the Yandere Heroines Disagree
Chapter 68 - Don’t Be Too Clever

In the archives, Orson went past Arthas’s subordinates.

The two subordinates were searching for recent case information in the archives, so they only stopped not far from the entrance and did not go deeper into the archives.

After all, cases further inside had nothing to do with Elsa at all.

On the other side, in the office, Arthas finally got the answer he wanted.

It was just that this answer did not make him happy.

There was a new development in the previous case of Mudrick’s demonization, and Elsa had gone to the Cathedral because of this matter.

Subsequently, Arthas went straight to the interrogation room.

But the interrogation room was empty now. Lodi was no longer here.

Arthas looked at the interrogator on duty beside him, and then spoke, asking, “Did you interrogate a rather important person today?”

“Your Highness the Prince?!” The interrogator was startled upon seeing Arthas, then nodded. “Yes, his name is Lodi.”

“What did he confess?”

“...” The interrogator heard this, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke, telling Arthas the contents of the interrogation.

When he heard the name Giovanni, Arthas was startled.

Before he could react, Orson’s voice sounded from behind him.

“Your Highness the Prince, did you get the result you wanted?”

Orson’s voice was as calm as still water, but to Arthas, it somehow sounded mocking.

“Orson... do you know what happened?”

“I don’t know, but, I am here this time to show you a document, Your Highness the Prince.”

Saying this, Orson handed the document he had just borrowed from the archives to Arthas.

This was a case from eighteen years ago.

At that time, a large group of people were judged. Among them, Lodi was sentenced to five years in prison for participating in leaking information about the deployed army to others.

And the case involving the person he helped leak information to was precisely the case of the inside men that was settled after the war with the beastmen ended at that time.

The group that had directly colluded with the beastmen at that time was sentenced to death. As for the intermediaries responsible for transmitting information, depending on the circumstances, they were all dismissed from their positions and sentenced to imprisonment for failing to maintain secrecy.

Ultimately, for various reasons, Lodi did not actually serve five years in prison. He was released on bail after only one year for various reasons.

After being released on bail, Lodi immediately began serving Duke Giovanni of Napoli. It was clear who had been behind what happened back then.

Arthas was stunned in place after reading all of this.

“Why... why didn’t I know about this...”

“To be honest, I didn’t know before either. It was just by chance that I heard someone mention the name Lodi and it sounded familiar, and then I happened to find this in the archives.”

“Orson, you knew about Lodi’s matter long ago?” Arthas frowned and looked at Orson, his eyes filled with a hint of confusion and bewilderment.

“Perhaps,” Orson said noncommittally, bowed to Arthas, and then looked up at him.

“I don’t know why Her Highness the Princess didn’t want you, Your Highness Arthas, to know about this matter, but in my opinion, if it were you, Your Highness, upon seeing this result, you would surely make the same decision, wouldn’t you?”

Saying this, Orson moved closer to Arthas.

“Sometimes, cutting off a limb to save the body, and retreating to advance, can have unexpected effects, can’t it, Your Highness Arthas?”

“...” Arthas stared intently at Orson. After a long while, he burst into laughter.

“You, Young Master Orson, truly understand me best!”

“Well said. What you said, Young Master Orson, is simply excellent. Indeed, if it were me, I would also do the same thing. Those who endanger the stability of the Empire must all be eliminated without exception.”

Saying this, he nodded.

“Since that is the case, I will return now. As for Elsa’s side, please also inform her for me.” After speaking, he left with his men without looking back.

However, this time, they were not heading outside the city, but to the Imperial Palace.

After all of Arthas’s men had left, Aphro sought out Orson again.

“Orson, what is going on? Don’t you know that Giovanni is a supporter of His Highness Arthas?”

“Of course I know,” Orson nodded. “So why shouldn’t His Highness the Prince know about this matter?”

“Do you think His Highness Arthas will go to great lengths to protect Giovanni?”

“Otherwise?”

“You really need to practice your astrology,” Orson heard this and cast a look of regret at Aphro, which displeased her.

“If his goal is the throne, then he definitely cannot do anything that would displease the Emperor,” Orson said this.

Let him choose. Is it to sacrifice an arm to gain Odysseus’s trust, or is it to insist on protecting Giovanni, which would cause him to lose favor and Elsa to gain favor.

“After all, although the two of them are fiercely vying for power, the greatest power in the Empire is still held by His Majesty,” Orson smiled, and then also left.

Saint Roland City tonight was destined to be restless.

...

On the other side, Orson returned to the dorm.

After finishing the day’s matters, it was already late into the night. The lights downstairs were still on, but Litte was no longer there.

Perhaps she had left the door unlocked, thinking he would be back at night.

Going upstairs, he gently pushed open Litte’s door. As expected, the little girl was already asleep.

He quietly came to Litte’s side.

Looking at Litte’s peaceful sleeping face, a smile appeared on Orson’s lips.

“Litte, everything I have done is for you. Next, it’s up to you,” Orson said softly.

He didn’t care if Litte, in her sleep, had heard him. Perhaps, it was precisely because she was asleep that Orson spoke like this.

In the upcoming conflict over the territories, on the main battlefield, if unnecessary, Orson would not easily make a move. It would depend on whether Litte’s growth had reached Orson’s expectations.

“I have set the stage for your inevitable victory. After you take over the game, what will you do?”

...

On the other side, in the Imperial Palace.

The Imperial Palace was not quiet tonight.

Odysseus, Arthas, Elsa, Levi, and a host of military and political officials were all gathered together.

According to Lodi, he had always served Giovanni. The potion that Mudrick had before was also provided by Giovanni, who had him deliver it to Mudrick.

At first, everyone was not entirely convinced, but when Lodi accurately recounted the details of everything Giovanni had instructed him to do, everyone could no longer sit still.

“Is Giovanni planning a rebellion?!” General Scaloni, the representative of the military, said with a frown.

**”A Duke, of all people, resorting to such despicable tactics!”** Pope Levi was also very angry.

The war eighteen years ago had brought immense losses to the human border regions at that time, especially the eastern border. Levi was still a grand bishop at that time. He personally went to the front lines and witnessed the tragic state of the front lines with his own eyes.

And now, they learned that the source of this tragedy was actually a Duke from the human side. How could this not make people angry?

“Is this information reliable?” Arthas suddenly asked at this moment.

“If Lodi was truly that important, then why did Giovanni do nothing after he was captured or disappeared?”

As soon as Arthas finished speaking, the room immediately fell silent.

“Of course, if Giovanni truly made a mistake, then we can also take this opportunity to weaken the local forces led by Giovanni.” Seeing everyone looking at him with strange gazes, Arthas quickly stated his position.

“I don’t think there’s any room for doubt,” Elsa said at this moment.

“It was already evident from Giovanni’s attitude before. When fighting against the beastmen, he contributed the least. Furthermore, his son had many conflicts with other noble offspring before.”

“This kind of anomaly will only become a menace if he remains in the Empire.”

“However, resorting to military force will definitely disrupt the stability of the Empire that has lasted for thousands of years. Other dukes might take this opportunity to cause trouble then...” a civil official said with concern.

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Elsa said, looking at that person:

“Just confine the war to within Napoli’s territory. Furthermore, when Pope Levi excommunicates Giovanni, we will have a just cause.”

At this moment, Odysseus, who was sitting in the center, finally spoke.

“Contact Lucius.”

These words, when spoken, essentially meant Odysseus’s stance.

Indeed, Giovanni had done too many things that crossed the line.

“By the way, Arthas,” Odysseus turned his gaze to his son at this moment.

“I heard that you and that Giovanni had a very good relationship?”

“That’s not true, Father. That’s a false rumor,” Arthas quickly shook his head. “Furthermore, even if I had a good relationship with him before, that was before I knew he had done so many bad things.”

“Now he is a scourge to the Empire. Let alone a good relationship, even if he were my closest friend, I would not show mercy.”

“That’s good,” Odysseus nodded with satisfaction, then stood up from his chair.

After instructing everyone on what needed to be done, Odysseus looked at everyone again.

“It’s late. You can go back and prepare. As for Elsa, stay. Your father has something to tell you.”

“Yes,” Elsa heard this and nodded.

And Arthas glanced at the two of them, opened his mouth, preparing to explain something, but in the end, he did not say it. He just silently left with the others.

It wasn’t until everyone had left that Odysseus turned his back. He looked at the bright moon in the sky and slowly spoke, “Elsa, I know you have the help of a capable person.”

Elsa’s pupils widened.

“But, Elsa.”

“Sometimes, don’t be too clever for your own good. You may regard others as pawns, but are others not also using you?”

“Alright, that’s all I have to say. You may go back.”

After speaking, Odysseus left.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.