Super Righteous Player
Chapter 721 - 262 Grand Duke Annan_1

Chapter 721: Chapter 262 Grand Duke Annan_1

It’s ironic.

After the death of the previous King Noah, the people of Noah had been holding a succession ceremony for two months, and yet the ceremony had not ended, nor had a successor been determined.

Kafney and her uncle and aunt were still fiercely struggling behind the scenes—meanwhile, this hadn’t even affected the normal operation of the Kingdom of Noah.

On the night of Duke Ivan’s draconic transformation, Annan had completed his succession ceremony without any hindrance.

When Annan succeeded to the throne, his brothers and sisters hadn’t even had time to return home.

Even so, there were no incidents during the transfer of power... after all, those who actually controlled the country were not so much the ministers or the dukes but rather the Hands of Winter.

The main job of a duke was only to make decisions on the general direction.

The "Vowed" Hands of Winter, in a certain sense, were the actual highest echelon of the country—they not only had the power to discuss policy directions with the duke but were also responsible for the specific oversight and implementation.

The Hands of Winter, spread throughout the country, were tasked not only with monitoring the nobles and officials in various places but also with overseeing those policies.

These Hand of Winter forming the "Vowed Ten Fingers" were essentially the Cabinet of the Winter Principality.

When Duke Ivan couldn’t move freely, it was the "Ten Fingers" who ruled over Winter.

And now, only six of the ten remained. Due to the rebellion stirred by the Winter Reverser Vladimir, the power of the Hands of Winter had noticeably contracted—the four outward-looking powers of "military government," "espionage," "diplomacy," and "foreign trade" had been reclaimed by the hands of the duke.

To this day, the "Ten Fingers" of the Hands of Winter had yet to be replenished.

This was not because Ivan Rime lacked the ability to find four trustworthy individuals from the Hands of Winter... it was actually in consideration of Annan.

The other six "Fingers" had all witnessed the remarkable methods of young Annan.

They knew more or less about Annan’s origins, understood his close relationship with the True Gods, and had seen his wisdom that could be described as magical.

Therefore, after Ivan’s death, they wouldn’t have any ill thoughts against Annan... and Annan would be able to "use" them normally.

But if Ivan were to replenish the Ten Fingers at this time, he would be faced with a new dilemma—

"Those who are loyal to Duke Ivan may not necessarily be loyal to you; they are convinced by Duke Ivan because they understand him, but they have not witnessed your talents..."

At the breakfast table in the morning, a mature woman with deep blue curly hair and a gentle demeanor sat at the table and spoke in a low voice.

On her left Ring Finger was a transparent ring radiating a chilling aura.

At this table, there were only her and Annan—the "Zoya" of the Ten Fingers, whose responsibilities included all the internal affairs of the Duke of Winter, such as his diet, bedroom affairs, travel, and dressing.

Now that Annan had officially taken the throne, Zoya would naturally continue to serve him. Annan invited her to dine with him, and Zoya naturally would not refuse.

In fact, the reason she didn’t dine with Duke Ivan was not because Ivan didn’t allow her to eat at his table, but rather because Ivan was too weak... she needed to keep a close eye on him at all times to make sure he didn’t choke or sudden illness didn’t strike.

Not just eating... even for bathing, dressing, and using the toilet, Ivan was always under Zoya’s watchful eye, worried he might suddenly fall, choke, or die suddenly—it was indeed likely to happen.

Now that the duke had become the healthy Annan, she didn’t need to worry so much.

However, the other "Fingers" each had their own political affairs to handle. The Fingers who could stay in the Duke’s mansion for a long time and who could always be with Annan was still only Zoya, the "Left Hand’s Ring Finger."

Ivan’s dragon transformation was too abrupt.

The task of teaching Annan how to be a qualified duke fell on Zoya’s shoulders.

"I understand, Aunt Zoya."

After swallowing his food, Annan spoke in an even tone, "Father hoped that I would fill these four positions myself."

"But my suggestion is... not to appoint the ’Ten Fingers’ for the time being."

Zoya said in a deep voice.

"I understand as well."

Annan nodded, "After all, I am still young, and even with your help and support, I have hardly met the other nobles and officials of Winter... it’s hard to gain their recognition.

"Appointing high-level positions at this time, or making personnel changes, would lead to instability within the Hands of Winter. My thought is that we could first throw out some new policies or some other major event to divert their attention."

...Annan was truly easy to take care of.

Zoya exhaled a soundless, satisfied sigh.

She was much stronger than her idiotic brother.

His Excellency Dmitry, despite having the face of a schemer, so delicate and sly, had a character that was too simple.

He disliked suspecting others and rarely took extra precautions against people—if it had been Dmitry who succeeded as the Grand Duke, after hearing Zoya’s proposal, he would certainly have dismissed it without a second thought, saying, "It’s fine, I think there’s no need to overcomplicate things."

Maria, on the other hand, wouldn’t care about those people at all.

She was undoubtedly a born Tyrant—Zoya would rather have Dmitry succeed than Maria.

Because Maria cared more about family than friends, more about friends than strangers, more about strangers than enemies. Her actions were based on a very clear "priority" that depended solely on her favor... If she became the Grand Duchess, it would be unabashed nepotism, making decisions based solely on her preferences.

The old guard like them would be fine, as Maria had good relations with them and wouldn’t drag them down. But she would definitely bring in a bunch of incompetent but likeable fools to sit in high positions.

It was, without a doubt, fortunate for the astute Annan to be the one inheriting the Winter Duchy.

Although Annan was not as gentle as Ivan in his actions... nor was he like Ivan, able to make friends with everyone. His tactics were certainly much tougher than Ivan’s.

But now Noah was also changing its king, and it was said that the monarch of the United Kingdom was not far from passing... The world was about to enter a "new generation."

Being a bit tougher during this period might not be such a bad thing after all.

"So, do you have any ideas for the decrees to draw their attention?"

Zoya asked in a low voice.

"First, show me the list of spies."

Annan replied, "Those we’ve sent to other nations. And those other nations have sent to us."

He had wanted to see this list before.

But even as the first in line for succession, Annan had not been given the authority to access it. Because this was a power originally belonging to the "Ring Finger," now entirely under the Grand Duke’s control, and not even the Grand Duke’s wife, children, or parents could touch it.

Soon, a Hand of Winter handed over a thick stack of documents.

... Surprisingly many.

Although the "Right Hand" of the Hand of Winter, representing offense, was almost defunct, with the dedicated efforts of the "Right Thumb," it hadn’t yet completely collapsed.

Annan glanced through them briefly—the least amount of informants were in Noah, followed by The Holy Nation. Yet in the United Kingdom, with which Winter shared no borders, there were at least thirty "nails" buried... This wasn’t unrelated to the chaos within the United Kingdom.

But the most were from the Underworld.

Just the formal Hands of Winter numbered over ten—counting the peripheral members and those who hadn’t even entered the Hands of Winter, the temporary members infiltrated into the Underworld, there were a total of one hundred and eighty-six spies. Most of them operated as illegal arms dealers and mercenaries, but three had become "Diggers."

Annan carefully checked and did not find the "Winter Reverser’s" name.

... What was going on?

This slight frown creased Annan’s brow.

It was somewhat different from what he had initially thought.

But when Annan reviewed the information of the three highest-ranking spies...

He stumbled upon an unexpected gain.

"This is..."

Annan was taken aback.

One of them... Annan actually knew him.

He immediately felt relieved... Thankfully, when investigating the Fallen, he had not activated this particular "nail."

Because the deepest "nail" that the Winter Duchy had driven into the Underworld... was the overseer of the Sporogenesis Mill.

—Niusel.