HPxLOTM: A Wizard's Path to Divinity

"Papa!"

Audrey rushed over, her face pale. "Edward, my father, he…"

"He's not in any immediate danger," one of the Beyonders responded.

She let out a breath of relief, and the tension in Hibbert's clenched fingers finally eased slightly.

"Fors, Xio, help move them to another room first."

"Got it."

Edward stepped into the room, opened all the windows, and used a blast of wind to drive out the carbon monoxide. He scanned the surroundings quickly, and soon noticed the lit fireplace.

But every fireplace had a chimney that vented smoke to the roof. How could there be carbon monoxide poisoning?

Unless…

He hurried to the hearth. "It's really blocked."

That was clearly illogical. In a wealthy household like the Halls', the chimneys would be cleaned regularly—especially if they were planning a gathering in this room.

Everything should've been prepared properly.

Just then, a guard shouted in alarm, "Earl Windsor is dead!"

"Councilman Chris too!"

"And Viscount Mountbatten…he just stopped breathing!"

Everyone immediately realised the gravity of the situation.

This room had been filled with core members of the Loen's New Party. If they all died here, the entire political landscape of Loen would be thrown into chaos!

"Mr. Griff, Mr. Kulo, do you have a way to detoxify them?"

Hibbert turned to the two Beyonder bodyguards.

The two exchanged looks and shook their heads with pained expressions. They were both elites among Sequence 5, excellent in combat, but detoxifying and healing people? That was far from their expertise.

"I'll go find someone who can help," Edward said.

In the modern world, there was a known treatment protocol for carbon monoxide poisoning. But in this age of mysticism, Edward instead felt helpless—his only option was to seek out Emlyn.

———

[Harvest Church]

Edward stormed into the dim church, shouting, "Emlyn! Emlyn!"

A tall figure stood up from the shadows—Father Utravsky, who spoke gently, "Sir, may I ask who you are…?"

"I'm Edward, Father."

"Oh, no wonder you felt familiar." He nodded slightly. "What happened?"

"I need Emlyn's help—he's here, right?"

"I am," came Emlyn's voice, walking out looking quite annoyed.

"What's the rush? I was dressing Alicia in her new outfit!"

"Do you know how to treat carbon monoxide poisoning?"

"???"

Emlyn looked blank. "What…kind of poisoning?"

"It's…oh never mind. Just come with me and see for yourself."

Edward stepped forward, grabbed his arm, and apparated them back to the Hall estate.

"Hey! Show some respect!" Emlyn snapped.

Edward didn't even look at him. "The payment is a new doll."

"For real?!"

His eyes lit up. "Alright, what's the problem?"

"Carbon monoxide—do you know what happens if you burn things in an unventilated room?"

Emlyn's face cleared with understanding. "Oh, right, after the Grain Act was repealed, there were cases of people killing themselves that way."

"Can you treat it?"

This time, Emlyn didn't boast blindly. "Hmm…That was always my dad's job. Take me to them first."

Audrey came over just then. "Father and the others who were poisoned have been moved, but four people have already died…I told the guards not to say anything, but the guests downstairs have started to guess something's wrong. Hibbert is trying to calm them, and Fors and Xio are helping."

"Don't worry," Edward said. "Once Earl Hall wakes up, he'll know how to handle this. Right now, we just need to save the rest."

The three entered the room where the poisoned guests were placed. Emlyn checked each one, then gave them all some potion.

"Relax, they'll live. But to fully recover, my dad needs to step in—he actually developed an antidote for this."

"When can he come?"

Emlyn crossed his arms. "If you want, I can call him now. But…"

"No buts," Audrey interrupted. "Let him rest properly."

"Fine. I'll go get him. Since their last move, they haven't come to see me once! Selfish old folks."

You're not one to talk…Edward thought, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

He dropped Emlyn back at the Harvest Church, then rushed back to the estate.

Lilith was softly comforting Audrey, "Don't worry, Audrey. Everything will be fine."

"Yes, I know. Thank you, Lilith."

"You're welcome~"

Edward stepped forward and flipped a coin. "Is Earl Hall in life-threatening danger?"

The result showed heads up—no.

Soon after, Hibbert returned hastily, with the two Beyonders following behind.

"How are they?"

"They'll be fine—just unconscious for a while."

Hibbert exhaled deeply. That meant the rest of the mess would fall entirely to him.

"Was this an accident?"

"No idea."

Edward shared everything he had gathered so far.

"From what I can tell, Mr. Hall and the others were all poisoned. The cause appears to be the burning of coal in a sealed space, which produces a toxic gas. Normally, that gas would be vented out through the chimney."

"But when I checked the chimney just now—it was blocked."

"That's impossible! I had it cleaned just yesterday," Hibbert said, face darkening. "So…someone blocked it deliberately?"

Edward looked down at the coin in his hand—the number side was facing up.

"Apparently not."

At that moment, one of the Beyonders—Kulo—spoke up, "Griff and I were stationed on the second floor and the rooftop. Neither of us saw anyone approach. Of course, we can't rule out the possibility that the perpetrator's strength vastly exceeds ours."

Vastly exceeds them—that would mean a demigod. That was well beyond their ability to handle.

"Could it have been blocked before the banquet began?" someone suggested.

"There was only one uninvited guest during that time," the other Beyonder offered.

Edward looked surprised. "Who?"

Both of them looked straight at him and replied in unison: "You."

"But…every time you came, you only stayed in Miss Hall's room."

Edward: "..."

Audrey suddenly remembered something and asked, "Wait—where did that maid go?"

Everyone froze. Then the realisation struck.

Right. If that maid hadn't screamed, Earl Hall and the others might've just silently died of poisoning.

But where was she now?

———

In a lavishly decorated room, a quill scratched rapidly across parchment, the strokes forming word after word, filling the air with a faint rustling sound.

---

"...The arrival of Prince Edessak took Earl Hall by surprise. He quickly grasped the intentions of the third prince, who enjoyed the king's favour. Given that the king had long maintained a delicate balance between the Conservatives and the New Party, the Duke Negan's sudden death upset that balance. If the New Party used this opportunity to expand unchecked, it would likely invite royal suspicion. Having a prince join their side might alleviate those concerns: in the short term, the New Party sought only influence, not a challenge to royal authority."

"Besides, there was nothing unsavoury about this gathering."

"...Although Hibbert Hall had arranged for the chimney to be cleared in advance, he didn't realise that, due to the room's long disuse, two birds had built a nest inside. After the nest was removed, the birds returned from foraging to find their nest and chicks gone—and in a frenzy, they flailed in the chimney…and got stuck, completely blocking it."

"As advocates of air pollution control, Earl Hall and his guests had already switched to smokeless coal. Combined with the cigars and cigarettes being smoked in the room, no one noticed that the chimney was blocked."

"This gathering was intended to discuss Loen's political situation following Duke Negan's death—and how to seize the moment to eliminate Conservative influence. Hence, strict orders had been given to avoid the second floor and to keep doors and windows shut."

"And so…disaster quietly descended."

"A room full of champions of clean air, all nearly killed by the very smokeless coal they promoted. Ironic, isn't it?" (crossed out)

"Fortunately, a maid—actually a witch in disguise—noticed something was off. But just as she..."

Before the quill could finish its sentence, a hand gently caught it and set it aside. A soft voice said:

"...That's enough for now."

———

That night was undeniably a harrowing one for the Hall family.

The room had been filled with some of the most elite nobles in all of Loen. They'd arrived in high spirits…but not all of them would leave.

The nobles who survived were mostly calm—they were, after all, in the same boat as the Halls. Now that even the host had been brought down, their immediate priority was to close ranks and find whoever was behind this.

But the families of the four deceased? They were far less forgiving.

They immediately called in MI9 and the three major churches, demanding an explanation from the Hall family. The incident even drew the attention of King George III himself.

By around 8 a.m. the next morning, those who had taken the special antidote from Emlyn's father, Mr. White, had regained some colour and began to wake one after another.

But no sooner had they opened their eyes than they were bombarded by wave after wave of reports—so much so that even these seasoned, emotionless foxes were left in a whirlwind of fear, confusion, and disbelief.

Their last memories were of laughing, smoking cigars, drinking red wine, and confidently analysing the kingdom's future. And then…they were nearly dead?

Still, those feelings passed quickly.

With a few subtle glances exchanged, they composed themselves. Earl Hall was the first to speak.

"What are MI9 and the churches saying?"

Hibbert, under the scrutiny of so many powerful gazes, couldn't help feeling nervous. "They've confirmed through various methods…this wasn't deliberate sabotage. The chimney was blocked by two birds that got stuck inside. That's what prevented ventilation."

"So you're saying…last night was just an accident?"

The gathered nobles were clearly unsatisfied. We stared death in the face…Windsor, Chris, and Mountbatten are cold and stiff in the next room…and you're telling us it was just bad luck?

Earl Hall's expression darkened immediately. If this really was just an accident, the blame would fall squarely on him.

Who hosted the banquet? You.

Who failed to ensure the chimney was clear? You.

Who didn't take proper safety precautions? Again, you.

Even if no one said anything outright, doubts would fester. The Conservatives would seize this as ammunition—not to truly destroy him, but to sow discord within the New Party.

If he were a Conservative, the headlines this morning would read something like:

"Four Noble Deaths Just a Coincidence? New Party In-Fighting May Be the Real Cause of Tragedy."

And for the families who lost someone, how could they not overthink it?

Why did your people survive while ours died?

Everyone's eyes flickered. Clearly, they had reached similar conclusions—but none of them spoke. They all turned to Earl Hall, waiting for his response.

No one noticed the cat and dog curled up in the shadowy corner, silently observing everything.

———

[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.