Four Split Personalities

William had just managed to calm himself down, groaning a strained chuckle, "So, Mr. Li Fo believes that the consecutive deaths of Konda and Wittem..."

"No, on the contrary, I believe their deaths are directly related to the perpetrator."

Since dialogs among the clever are always brief, Li Fo had already shaken his head to disagree before William could finish, quickly adding, "And this rebellion suppression could serve as an excellent opportunity to probe."

After pondering for a long while, William finally sighed lightly, "If possible, I would not want to use my brother and nephew’s deaths as a test."

"But they are already dead, Your Majesty."

Li Fo knew William already had a resolution in mind, but he still offered some reassuring words, "So, what we can do is ensure their deaths are not in vain."

"Sin Knight?"

William nodded, then blurted out these two words seemingly out of nowhere.

Meanwhile, Li Fo understood perfectly, nodding in agreement, "Exactly. Among our suspects, only the Sin Knight is most suitable to start this probe."

Just then, the door to the study opened. Duke Jude Fossai, a confidant of William who had negotiated with Konda before, entered and bowed to William, "Your Majesty."

"I’ve been waiting for you."

William nodded slightly and introduced the visibly puzzled grand duke, "Sitting opposite me is Mr. Li Fo Astor, an Acting Agent from Sky Pillar Mountain, who has a significant connection with the God of Law. This gentleman has been discreetly aiding us in investigating those peculiar mysteries recently. You might want to briefly discuss the details of the previous negotiations with him..."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Li Fo."

"It is my honor, Duke."

After a brief exchange of greetings, Duke Fossai took his designated seat without any small talk and dove straight into discussing the blood-soaked negotiation. From both parties arriving at the specified location, through the sudden ambush, to the mysterious withdrawal of enemies, he detailed every aspect.

Throughout this recount, Emperor William, who had already heard this tale once, did not interrupt but silently leaned back in his chair, organizing his thoughts.

Once Fossai finished, William explained Li Fo’s background in more detail, clarifying concepts like Sky Pillar Mountain, Acting Agents, the prophecy’s dark undertones, and Fara’s other identity, before steering the conversation back on track.

"So, Your Majesty and Mr. Li Fo mean to say..."

Duke Fossai furrowed his brows, fell silent for a good while, and then hesitantly spoke, "This rebellion suppression should proceed without involving Marshal Galahad and Duke Galos?"

Li Fo nodded slightly, "Exactly. Since both of them are on our suspect list, we absolutely cannot let them partake in this rebellion-suppression operation. The reason is simple: both the marshal and the duke hold too much power and prestige. If we were to assign them to the suppression forces, we would, by necessity, have to grant them significant authority—essentially the position of supreme commander—otherwise, they will not be accepted by others."

"Not only that..."

William nodded in agreement, taking the lead to add, "If this situation has indeed been engineered by any of them, allowing them to lead the army in suppressing the rebellion would be playing right into their hands."

After hearing this, Fossai sighed softly, then spoke with a sense of helplessness, "But if we don’t deploy those two, it means that neither the Czar’s Sword Knights nor the Hurricane Mage Group can be mobilized either. Moreover, if it’s as Mr. Li Fo says, and the instigator might be hiding among common soldiers, we can’t use these two major forces. In that case..."

He didn’t finish his sentence, but the implication was clear—’After excluding these two primary imperial forces, how do we suppress the rebellion? Who leads the troops to suppress it?’

Given the statuses of Duke Galos and Marshal Galahad, it would be inappropriate for anyone else to assume the highest command. Although the emperor could lead the campaign himself, who could guarantee that William could go there and come back unscathed under such circumstances? It was an absolute risk that couldn’t be taken.

Yet, if they weren’t deployed, Fossai couldn’t, at the moment, think of any other reliable general talent within the Shaven Royal Family. The people at Thorn Castle were no soft persimmons. Although Konda was dubbed a ’good-for-nothing prince,’ his confidants and the forces from his territory were anything but incompetent. With the deaths of Konda and Wittem, their rage and desperation had peaked. Without deploying the Knight Order and the Mage Group—the Empire’s irreplaceable main forces—who could guarantee a complete resolution?

Marshal Galahad’s personal strength and his command ability are indeed capable. Even if he were to lead Common warriors, the odds of victory would absolutely not be small, but he is also one of the suspects.

Duke Fossai felt a headache coming on, feeling as though he had fallen into a vicious cycle.

"So the person we need to test this time is Sin Knight."

Li Fo, somewhat helpless, rubbed his temples and said in a deep voice, "His qualifications are not enough, he definitely cannot be the Commander. We don’t need to give him much authority. As for who to send to quell the rebellion and who will be the Commander... I don’t understand the inner system of your country well enough to make any pertinent suggestions."

This is the disadvantage of being an outsider. Although Li Fo could analyze from a relatively detached and objective perspective, his understanding of this country was ultimately limited. If Fara Ossis were responsible for coordinating the planning, such issues would not have arisen.

However, from the beginning, William never intended to involve Li Fo in this matter. The Emperor, who could absolutely be described as wise and valiant, had already made plans before calling the two over.

So...

"Jude."

William shifted his gaze toward Duke Fossai, who was still lost in deep thought, and said lightly, "You will be the Commander in charge of quelling the rebellion."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Duke Fossai immediately responded subconsciously, and then, realizing what had been said, his eyes widened in shock as he stared at William and uttered, "Your Majesty...?"

His gaze held the unspoken question, ’Are you kidding me?’

William completely ignored the other’s exasperating look and continued, "You are the Duke I trust the most. With Duke Galos and Marshal unavailable, only your status can prevent others from gossiping. As for not being able to use the Hurricane and Czar’s Sword Knights, that’s also manageable. I’ll give you 20,000 elite Czar’s Shield warriors. The rebels of Konda Territory, no matter how strong, will absolutely not stand a chance in a direct battle. Thus, there should be no problem in terms of combat strength. As for Sin Knight, I will order him to join the rebel-suppression army. In name... Since Galos thinks so highly of his talents, let him be a Counselor. To others, it seems like giving him a chance. Although this might make Sin Knight even more popular, if he truly is innocent, it would be a good thing. The Empire doesn’t have many talents like Mo, with excellent etiquette, social skills, and personal abilities. Sooner or later, such individuals will occupy high positions."

"Your... Your Majesty..."

Duke Fossai was sweating profusely, speaking tremulously, "Do you think I can command those 20,000 elites well, watch every move of Sin Knight, and quell the rebellion with utmost speed?"

"Of course not."

William gave a swift response with a smile, "Don’t I know your capabilities? Not to mention, at least in terms of warfare, you are simply not cut out for it. If I really let you command, it would be good if 2,000 of my 20,000 Czar’s Shields made it back alive."

Duke Fossai choked, and after a long moment, managed to say, crestfallen, "Then why still... appoint me to take charge of quelling the rebellion?"

"I appointed you as the Commander of the rebel-suppression force, not to personally take charge of command. Your only task is to work with Mr. Li Fo and keep a close watch on Sin Knight."

William waved his hand and sighed deeply...

"As for the actual Commander, let Arthur do it."

"What... What...!?"

"That’s right. I plan to let Arthur join the rebel-suppression force to assist you."

"Your Majesty, no, the Prince—he..."

"No more words. He has matured enough... and is sufficiently excellent."

Chapter 544: End