Chapter 190: Preparations to Become a Noble
Some time later, inside a private room at the Gray Wolf Tavern.
"...This is everything we've gathered so far through various channels regarding the situation in the other counties. Overall, there hasn't been any major upheaval immediately following the Count's death. What we were worried about didn't happen—or at least, it hasn't happened yet. No one has attacked our distribution points, and none of our shipments have been seized."
Father Auden organized the latest reports before summarizing them for Leon.
To carry out the plan against the Count, Leon had mobilized virtually every resource at his disposal, including Father Auden.
The "Church Navy" that had been used to intimidate those cadres had actually been a deception. Through his own connections, Father Auden had borrowed armed merchant ships from a trading consortium, while Leon had assigned one of his cadres to supervise the operation.
Only after relocating Hugh and her daughter did Leon approach Father Auden and inform him that he had completely fallen out with the Count.
At the time, Father Auden had not appeared particularly agitated, as though he had expected this all along. He merely said a few polite words like, "Good luck," before calmly preparing to pack his belongings.
Only afterward did Leon learn that Father Auden had long since been preparing for a transfer elsewhere. His original plan had been to terminate his contract with Leon and flee immediately afterward.
In the end, however, Leon managed to persuade Father Auden to stay.
First, he appealed to emotion.
"Our friendship isn't so shallow that you'd refuse to help. Besides, it'd be bad for both our relationship and your own safety."
Then he appealed to reason.
"I've kept some correspondence connected to you. If I die and the Count investigates, he'll assume you were the one who advised me to make a move."
His passionate persuasion proved remarkably effective. It deeply moved Father Auden. It was the first time Leon had ever seen the normally composed priest react so emotionally. He had even expressed heartfelt concern for Leon's deceased family.
From beginning to end, Father Auden had remained pessimistic about Leon's chances of success. Even after learning that Leon had ultimately won, he showed neither surprise nor joy, maintaining a solemn expression as he insisted that the real problems were only beginning.
Leon, however, was glad to have someone who could calmly assess the situation with him. Father Auden also never proposed terminating their agreement. After all, as a participant in Leon's plan, ending the contract would not necessarily clear him of suspicion. On the contrary, severing ties with Leon would only cost him much of the protection he still had.
In the end, the two signed a new contract.
Besides allowing Father Auden to manage an even greater amount of money, Leon also agreed to pay an additional sum so the priest could hire more bodyguards and station them inside his church under the guise of menial workers.
"That's hardly surprising. Nearly everyone wants me dead, but they don't necessarily dare provoke me right away. After all, I'm the man who killed the Count. Without the Count shielding them anymore, everyone has to be much more cautious," Leon replied.
During the month following the Count's death, the eastern potion trafficking network he had built with his own hands had not collapsed overnight.
Instead, it had fractured into a state of competing warlords, with each regional cadre continuing to maintain their own business.
Some of the cadres who had accompanied the Count that day had fortunately escaped alive. News that Leon had betrayed and killed the Count spread quickly.
Leon—or rather, Fenrir, the former Count's cadre—had become infamous throughout the underworld.
Under such circumstances, if someone suddenly attacked his territory, stole his goods, murdered his men, or burned down his strongholds, it would have been entirely expected.
Yet over the past month, everything on Leon's side had remained astonishingly peaceful.
No one had invaded his territory.
He had not even received a declaration of war.
This, however, was equally understandable.
By killing the Count in front of countless witnesses, Leon had gained notoriety, but he had also established his prestige.
Even the Count had failed to kill him and had instead been slain.
What confidence could those cadres possibly have that they could challenge him directly?
At the same time, however, this also meant that the cadres would view him as their greatest threat.
It was highly likely that they would eventually unite into an alliance against him.
Even so, they probably still would not dare declare war recklessly.
Strength was only one consideration.
External pressure mattered just as much.
As cadres, they had all lost the umbrella protecting them.
If the Church uncovered their identities now, without the Count's connections inside the Church, they would genuinely be uprooted completely.
At a time like this, whoever started a war or made any major move would be the one most likely to attract an investigation.
"Just because everyone's leaving each other alone now doesn't mean it'll stay that way forever. According to what you've told me before, those cadres don't have independent sources of supply. They've always relied on the Count importing raw materials from Moyland. Right now, three counties are still receiving supplies from you. Now that the Count is dead and your deliveries have stopped, they'll soon run out of stock," Father Auden said.
"They'll try to seize our raw materials... perhaps even our production base?" Leon asked.
"That's possible, but not guaranteed. In fact, this isn't necessarily bad news for us. You possess an independent source of supply, and that's your greatest advantage. No matter how united those cadres appear, they're ultimately not of one mind. Not every one of them is determined to fight you to the death," Father Auden replied.
"So some of them will eventually want to reestablish a supplier relationship with me. That's what I've been thinking as well. The question is... who should I extend the olive branch to first?" Leon nodded lightly.
Although the cadres wanted him dead, eliminating him would not be easy.
Once the supply shortage truly hit, someone would inevitably bow before profit and seek cooperation with him.
"My advice remains the same regardless of what you decide," Father Auden said as he fixed his gaze on Leon. "You need to absorb the Count's remaining power as quickly as possible. You must replace the Count in both business and political influence with everything you've got. Otherwise, you'll die an ugly death. I'm not joking."
Leon offered no rebuttal.
He had killed the Count, but he had not actually inherited any of the Count's resources.
Instead, he had lost the Count as his greatest protector.
All he had really accomplished was plunging the eastern underworld into chaos.
Father Auden's advice was to seize this chaos and rise to power faster than anyone else.
"You understand this, don't you?" Father Auden continued. "Your greatest threat isn't those cadres. It's the Church. Count Folley has been missing for so long that, although his wife is temporarily managing the territory, the effects have already spread throughout the East.
"He was the central pillar among the eastern lords. The eastern noble faction is in complete panic. Without Count Folley, it'll be extremely difficult for them to compete against the old noble families of the West.
"The influential eastern nobles are doing everything they can to find the Count, including those within the Church connected to eastern interests.
"And considering how massive the Count's business became, he certainly had his own network of vested interests inside the Church.
"You killed him.
"They'll definitely investigate until they uncover the whole truth!" Father Auden said grimly.
"So far, though, there hasn't been any movement on that front," Leon replied.
"The Count came this time to clean house. Naturally, he wouldn't have informed the Church of anything beforehand. Aside from the people he personally brought, no one knew where he had gone.
"And those people all belonged to the organization. They won't casually report you to the Church.
"Without the Count, if you're caught, they'll all suffer alongside you.
"For once, nobody's foolish enough to misunderstand the situation.
"You could say you've been quite lucky."
Without the Count serving as their shield, the other cadres and Leon now shared the same fate in the face of the Church.
Since they had all once belonged to the same organization, one arrest could easily expose everyone else.
Leon had long since anticipated this scenario.
If he were ever captured, he would expose every last one of the Count's subordinates and drag them all down with him.
"Speaking of which," Father Auden continued, "I also have some good news. I heard it from a few old friends within the Church. The reason they haven't immediately investigated you may be because there's another suspect attracting far more attention."
"Who?"
"Duke Grant," Father Auden answered.
Leon frowned slightly.
The name sounded unfamiliar at first, yet strangely familiar at the same time.
He immediately activated his blessing to replay his memories.
Very quickly, he remembered where he had heard the name before.
It had been before the Church's main examination, when he had been chatting with fellow candidates Enrique and Bena.
It was Bena who had mentioned him.
Duke Grant was one of the three most influential dukes among the Imperial Capital's nobility.
He was also the strongest supporter of Princess Freyde, as well as her maternal grandfather.
In other words, he was the father of Her Imperial Consort Highness and an in-law of the imperial family.
"There's a rumor that the eastern nobles led by the Count have been secretly supporting His Majesty's illegitimate son in an attempt to contend against the western nobles backing Her Highness the Princess.
"If that rumor is true, then it wouldn't be strange for those old western aristocrats to have been searching for an opportunity to eliminate Count Folley all along," Father Auden said.
"The rumor... is very likely true," Leon replied.
"Mmm. If discussions like that have genuinely reached the Sacred Hall Discipline Council, then it's probably true," Father Auden agreed.
"I mean there's more than just the rumor," Leon continued. "The Emperor's illegitimate son whom the Count was supporting... I may actually have met him."
"What are you talking about?" Father Auden frowned before suddenly widening his eyes.
"Aaron Dias?"
When Father Auden had first learned about Aaron Dias, he had already suspected the surname was fabricated and that Aaron was likely the illegitimate child of some powerful noble.
Considering that Aaron's arrival in Hamel Town had been arranged by the Count, combined with these rumors, Aaron Dias seemed to fit the identity of the Emperor's illegitimate son remarkably well.
Still...
It remained nothing more than speculation.
"Mmm... It's certainly possible. Very possible.
"But for us, it doesn't actually change much.
"Even if the eastern faction within the Church suspects the western nobles because of this possible imperial succession struggle, the matter is simply too significant.
"They can't casually launch an investigation.
"And even if they do, they won't find anything.
"Because you're the real culprit.
"Eventually, they'll still notice what happened on Arund Island.
"Sooner or later, the Church will set its sights on you.
"All you've gained is a little extra time."
Father Auden steered the discussion back to the main issue.
"I've already been making extensive preparations for any future investigation," Leon said.
"Surface-level cover-ups won't accomplish much. Once your suspicion is confirmed, your labyrinth isn't going anywhere.
"Even if you abandon everything on Arund Island and destroy every piece of evidence, without those resources, you'll still have no foundation to stand on," Father Auden replied.
"Then what do you suggest?" Leon asked.
"As I said before, the Count possessed networks of shared interests among both the eastern nobility and the Church.
"Those connections were the true foundation of his power.
"Your ultimate objective is to win those people over."
"You know who they are?" Leon frowned.
"If I knew that much," Father Auden shrugged, "then either I wouldn't still be in my current position... or I'd already be dead."
"Then how exactly are we supposed to gain the support of people whose identities we don't even know?" Leon asked in return.
The Count undoubtedly had an extensive network among the Church's upper ranks.
However, with Leon's current status, he wasn't qualified to know the details.
Even Bishop Beckett knew very little.
The only name connected to the network that he had ever managed to learn was Cardinal Stuart, the current Grand Inquisitor.
It had been to him that the Supreme Investigation Order against Rena had originally been submitted.
He was someone Leon absolutely dared not approach.
"It's very simple.
"If you have the chance to follow the Count's path and climb upward until you replace him, then you'll naturally have the opportunity.
"Didn't you also say that the Count started with nothing?
"To do that, you must advance on two fronts.
"First—business.
"As I said, your time is limited.
"You must use that time to absorb the Count's remaining territory as quickly as possible.
"Second—power.
"You need to climb higher within the Church by every means available.
"Beyond that, you must also obtain a noble title, just as the Count once did.
"You have to enter noble society.
"And that matter is just as urgent."
As Father Auden explained, he successively raised two fingers.
"Become a noble... You mean..." Leon had already guessed what Father Auden was about to suggest.
"Exactly, Fenrir.
"It's time for you to seriously consider purchasing the debts of Viscount Arund's family... and marrying Miss Adele."