The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 561: real politics is always played behind the screen

Chapter 561: real politics is always played behind the screen

There was a rule regarding a ’key’ battle or toppling another realm’s Lord; everything was allowed.

There was no such thing as a dirty trick. You could use poison, seduction, conduct an assassination, stage a whole rebellion...anything was a fair game.

This was why, as long as they could kill the Lord or snatch the Lord’s key, there could not be any retaliation from the previous Lord. Of course, if someone else snatched the Lord’s key in the next hour or even seconds, that would be fair game too. Thus, those who wanted to topple a Lord would make sure to plot carefully and prevent any faction from betraying them.

But if you were to succeed? Whatever method you used, there wouldn’t be any trial questioning the fairness of the method or the legitimation of the key holder. The residents of that realm just had to accept the change of the New Lord.

That was, as long as you didn’t fail and get caught.

When you did get caught...well, it was a fair game for the Lord too. Whether you were a noble, from a prominent family, or a Lord from another realm, the targeted Lord could do anything he deemed fit as punishment.

Including death.

"We had stationed agents around the perpetrators’ house," Opti explained cheerfully in the carriage when we returned to the Castle. "While we were playing the recording, we seized their estate and imprisoned everyone except for the names mentioned"

"Oh, what did you do to them?" I asked drowsily. As much as the excitement I experienced earlier, my mind and body needed their beauty rest.

Still, I wanted to follow the sequel of the movie, so I tried to try to open my eyes wide while leaning against Natha’s chest.

"Why do you need to ask, Young Master? Of course, we impale them!" Opti clasped his hands, face bright and smile wide.

"That’s an unsettling thing to hear coming out of someone in a boy form," I pursed my lips. "You making me imagine what kind of stuff Jade will say in the future!"

Opti raised his brows and laughed, prompting me to promise myself to never let this one babysit my children in the future.

"Anyway, we will showcase their head and those who resist arrest in front of their estate’s gate, along with a huge notification about what they had done," Opti stretched his arms while giggling until Arta smacked his hand down.

I looked up to see Natha’s calm eyes--not the cold one he used earlier. "Would there be any backlash?"

"The notification will have the seal of several Lords and Elder Councils’ seals," Natha said. "We had shown them the recording as proof that it is a perfectly justifiable cause."

I explained earlier that it was a fair game for anyone who got caught. But since this clause could be used as a loophole to frame someone, there was a rule added that the Lord needed to provide ample proof to show that someone plotted to topple them. On the other hand, this rule also meant that even though the mastermind wasn’t there in person, they could still be persecuted.

Wouldn’t it

This proof had to be reviewed by at least another three Lord and the Council of Elders--which was easy thanks to the recording device. Naturally, we asked Sada, Aleena, and the angry Lord of Wrath who became collateral damage--who also had the right to punish the perpetrator, in a way.

Oh, it was also a good way to promote the technology to another realm. Gotta earned the production cost back, you know.

"Alright then," I let out a breath of relief and pondered for a bit. "Umm...what would happen with the rest of their people?"

"Execution for those resisting arrest," Opti replied swiftly as if he had been eagerly waiting. "The rest are imprisoned and awaiting trial. Oh, we also confiscated all of their possessions!"

Oh, that was good. More money was always good.

"We will split it with Wrath to fill their depleted coffers again," Natha added. Ah, right--they must have lost money from the war, which had to be prolonged because of the poisoning and information leak.

Well, not like we lack money.

"Hmm..." I leaned my head against Natha’s shoulder. "Does this mean...it’s over now? Are we safe?"

For the first time that night, Natha finally showed a genuine smile. "Yes, sweetheart," he whispered on my temple. "No one but the deities could harm us now."

Well...I could say that the deities were on our side, right?

Shifting my body on his lap into a more comfortable position, I let my relieved mind succumb to a long awaiting sleep.

* * *

For the next few days, the newspaper headlines were filled with nothing but the case of Natha’s retaliation. Reporters never lacked articles to be written; from the ’party’ to the ’execution’ that Opti told me, discussion about the perpetrators’ property, or the whole story behind the secret attack on the Castle.

Arta told me the soiree, saloons, and bars were filled with discussion about this ’scandal’. Opti and his shapeshifter troops were going around pretending to be regular citizens and deliberately dropped some tea, telling people ’We heard this from one of the maids, don’t tell anyone’ type of thing about what happened that night so it wouldn’t feel like the Castle made up some stories.

Naturally, they always told someone.

Like that, the story became even more dramatic, stirred to be in our favor. Rather than a cruel and heartless avenger, Natha was seen as a protective husband who was willing to do anything to preserve his family. After all, we also leaked the fact that I was ’pregnant’.

Oh, gosh--the way I was blushed when Natha told me about the plan.

But, well...we had to tell the public sooner or later, since it would be weird if Shwa suddenly appeared a few years later just like that.

Amidst all of this bruhaha, the only perpetrators who did not get any spotlight were Zir’Kal and his incubi babysitters. His removal from the clan and banishment were not made public--only to the clan’s higher-ups. In the first place, he was already not appearing in public after being put on house arrest.

Well, I approved of this. I didn’t want his gross incompetence to shadow my girl’s matriarch coronation.

And oh, she was so, so beautiful during the succession. She wore a dress that Arta especially speed-run for her, sparkling with tiny gems against a dark purple velvel like stars in the night sky. I knew she tried hard to appear dignified, and I had to say that she must have learned a lot from Aunt Nezja--because her demeanor during the succession was just like her.

But the most important thing was that her eyes seemed to brighten up--if I compared it to the last time we saw each other. They were especially brighter when she looked at the camera--either because she knew I would be seeing it, or because Izzi would see it first.

Anyway, she was so pretty and dazzling and we all--me, Jade, D’Ara, Arta, the servants--watched it together in that gold-framed screen used in that hall. We had popcorn, snacks, and drinks, made an indoor picnic, and got rid of the tension caused by the execution. We cheered when she appeared on the screen as if we were there--although it happened like a week before--and had fun listening to Arta talking about the dress.

Oh, of course, somewhere between the scandal that shook the realm, the scholars and merchants were more interested in the recording device. There was even a proposal for seminars, which meant Neel and Izzi would have to speak there. But, well...since the Lord of Envy was no longer there, Neel would probably be alright now.

Ah, speaking about that...

While we were having all the fun, Natha was in the middle of a meeting with the other Lords to decide who would be the next Lord of Pride and Envy. Technically, it was his right; but a Lord could not preside over more than one realm, so they had to decide it among the Council. And since the Lord of Sloth just didn’t want to move around, they did the meeting over there.

Mm, since it was for something important, I allowed him to be away for a few days. He came back after four days--longer than I expected--and I pulled him to our bedroom immediately after. Only after a few hours of sharing each others’ temperatures did I ask him about the result of the meeting.

Turned out, that it took so long because they were deciding on the ’person’ instead of the ’method’ this time. Although, in the case of Envy, it was just appointing someone as a temporary Lord until they finished the preparation for an election--yeah, they were strangely democratic like that. Natha said they had to put someone in second place in the previous election by law, but the election would most likely go to the candidate he chose.

Because elections were basically just a big money play. Asked your local politicians.

"So, who will be taking over the Lord’s Tower?" I asked while laying my cheek on his bare chest.

"Someone you know," he said mysteriously.

"Huh? I don’t know any scholar or--"

I paused at the word ’scholar’, which in this world also means ’magician’. Raising my head, I looked at him with widened eyes. "You mean...Uncle Sol?"

He gave me a smile as an answer and all I could say was just...wow.

"He didn’t want to do it at first, but I reminded him of his ’debt’," the corner of his lip raised slightly. "I reminded him that if we put the wrong person, you might be in danger again."

Oh, how sly! But, wait...

If the Realm of Pride and the Realm of Envy were held by our allies, wouldn’t that mean...

I blinked and asked carefully in a whisper. "Doesn’t this mean the Demon Realm is in your hand?"

He shrugged cooly. "I can ask any of them for the realm’s key if I have the right reason."

Wow...

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