Imperial Throne

Chapter 120: Setting the Trap

“So you’re going back so soon?”

Inside the carriage, Eric asked Monica with a hint of surprise.

“Something unexpected happened,” Monica said with a stern expression. “So I must return to Red River Territory immediately to handle it.”

“That’s a pity.” Eric sighed. “I originally wanted to look around Westerburg. I’m quite interested in that physician under Yam Soderbell.”

“Is his skill impressive?” Monica’s stern expression eased slightly. “Capable of becoming a healer?”

Though physicians were not as highly regarded as healers by bloodline users, that was only true for high-tier bloodline users above the Fourth Tier. For First and Second Tier bloodline users, as long as the injury wasn’t fatal, a skilled and knowledgeable physician was practically a second life. And for Third Tier bloodline users, who sat between Second and Fourth Tier, in the absence of a healer’s service, they too had to rely on physicians.

In the past, the Kasein Family had no healer, as no healer would be willing to serve a marquis family that couldn’t even fully control its own marquisate.

This was precisely why Marquis Visen was so desperate to gain complete control over Red Eagle Territory.

Because this wasn’t merely a matter of demonstrating the strength of the Kasein Family—it was also a symbol of expanding influence and gaining recognition.

Eric was one such healer who joined after the Kasein Family had fully taken control of the Red Eagle Marquisate—just six months ago. Once they succeeded in securing the entirety of Red Eagle Territory, the Kasein Family immediately announced their search for a healer.

So Monica knew well that Eric was a relatively fallen healer, and advancing further would be difficult for him.

Just as Yam had understood, all healers were inevitably tied to the Luminous Mayfly bloodline, as it was considered the foundational bloodline for all healers. But beginning from the Third Tier, healers branched into different tendencies and areas of expertise, which naturally led to the emergence of various healer lineages.

For instance, the Third Tier bloodline Bone-Eroding Worm, known for specializing in bone adjustment and recovery.

Or the Third Tier bloodline Bloodstream Worm, which specialized in treating internal hidden injuries.

Then there was the Third Tier bloodline Luminous Slug, known as the Ancestor Lineage, which excelled in rapid wound healing.

As well as the Third Tier bloodline Blood Pouch Midge, which leaned more towards battlefield first aid.

These were just a few examples.

In theory, among these specialized healer bloodlines, the Ancestor Lineage with Luminous Slug—being the earliest known healer bloodline—should have had the easiest path to advancement. But the reality was quite the opposite. Among all known healer bloodlines in the world today, there had been Fifth Tier healers in all specialties—except the Ancestor Lineage, which had only ever reached the Fourth Tier. Even more, its advancement to the Fourth Tier required the now increasingly rare Blood-Patterned Snail as the main material.

Monica knew that her grandfather actually preferred to recruit a healer from the Bloodstream Worm lineage.

But in the end, healers were a rare and proud group. So for the Kasein Family, they had no real choice. Even when Eric demanded that he would only truly swear fealty to the Kasein Family after they helped him acquire a Blood-Patterned Snail, Marquis Visen agreed without hesitation.

So at this moment, upon hearing Eric’s words, Monica’s thoughts began to turn.

Though the Tier Two Luminous Mayfly was expensive, it was still within the Kasein Family’s means. Even the Bone-Eroding Worm required for Tier Three advancement could be purchased. Judging from Eric’s words, the physician under Yam seemed to exhibit skills inclined toward bone-setting techniques, so cultivating him as a healer specializing in bone treatment would likely be a safe bet.

But what really needed attention was whether the person could awaken a healer’s bloodline.

After all, the difficulty of awakening a healer’s bloodline was well known across the world. It was said that a healer must meet certain special restrictive conditions to successfully awaken—so not just anyone could become a healer. However, the Hall of Spirits had speculated that the reason for this difficulty might be tied to the fact that, to date, no healer had ever reached the Sixth Tier.

“I haven’t even seen the person—how would I know?” Eric, knowing what Monica was thinking, only smiled gently. “I merely meant that the physician under Lord Yam displayed excellent healing techniques. Besides, I believe Miss Monica may have misunderstood something... Just because I am a healer doesn’t mean I can tell who’s suited to become one.”

“That was rude of me.” Monica was straightforward and, realizing she may have unintentionally offended Eric, immediately adopted a more humble tone.

After that, Monica didn’t continue the discussion on the topic.

Under the protection of the guards, the carriage sped toward Red River Territory.

Monica didn’t even stop by White Mountain City to ask Lily for her answer. Out of courtesy, however, she did send someone to convey her apologies to Lily. But Monica also knew clearly that Lily would probably feel more at ease not being asked for an answer face-to-face.

A few days later, Monica returned to Red River Territory.

After getting off the carriage, she first expressed her apologies to Eric, then quickly departed.

But just like before—

When she stood before the door of the study again, feeling the thick cold air continuously emanating from it, Annie began to doubt whether her grandfather could really hold on for another twenty-five years. She vividly remembered that about a week ago, when her grandfather had asked her to visit Yam in White Mountain Territory, she had seen a hand growing from his back right in this study—and it didn’t seem to retract.

This is a very typical sign of losing control.

And the loss of control over one's own bloodline ability, along with the emergence of mutation, was an extremely dangerous phenomenon for high-tier bloodline users.

“Monica? Why are you standing outside instead of coming in?”

Perhaps Monica had stood outside the study door for too long, for Marquis Visen spoke up.

“It’s me, Grandfather.” Monica took a deep breath and finally mustered the courage to push open the door and enter.

However, this time, she didn’t see another hand growing out from Marquis Visen’s back, which brought her a slight sense of relief.

“How did it go?”

“It wasn’t the Lord of Fertile Plains targeting Yam.” Monica knew what her grandfather was asking, so she answered directly. “It was indeed an accident caused by unforeseen circumstances. Both Yam and Lily have acknowledged this explanation, and they’ve also officially launched a war of revenge against Eastern Mountain Territory.”

Although Monica only caught a glimpse of things after arriving at Westerburg, combined with what she easily understood at a glance in White Mountain City, she quickly reached a conclusion: “White Mountain Territory doesn’t seem eager or determined toward war. They clearly intend to use the ceasefire period you negotiated with Count Shuvaric to accelerate their own development and growth in pursuit of sufficient self-defense capabilities.”

“A very rational course of action,” Marquis Visen remarked. “What a pity. A White Mountain Territory blinded by hatred would have suited our interests more. But these are all minor matters… Based on your observation, how is Yam doing?”

“With Mr. Eric around, Yam’s injuries have healed.” Monica knew exactly what her grandfather truly cared about, so she responded bluntly. “According to Mr. Eric, Yam may still need a few more days of rest before he can resume training. And from my observation, Yam’s strength hasn’t shown any significant growth over the past year. I fear it may take him more than two years to reach the Third Tier.”

Upon hearing Monica’s words, Marquis Visen fell silent.

Only after a long pause did his voice sound again. “That pace is a bit too slow… Has White Mountain Territory been dealing with many matters recently?”

“They’re busy constructing Westerburg, which requires significant funding, so they’re highly motivated to crack down on smugglers,” Monica answered without hesitation. “Annie from Gem Territory established contact with White Mountain Territory through Akar, and the two sides are engaged in fairly deep smuggling cooperation. This has caused dissatisfaction among some of the family elders. They’ve used Joshua to pressure Annie, hoping to gain a share of the profits.”

Now that she had separated from Eaglehead Territory, Monica didn’t have deep insights into their recent developments.

But within Red River Territory, there was nothing that could escape her knowledge. So she was clearly aware of how the family elders had been warning and pressuring Joshua, and intimidating and suppressing the ship captains involved.

However, in this matter, she chose not to intervene and let things unfold freely.

What Monica didn’t anticipate was that her attitude, in the eyes of those elders, was taken as silent approval. Thus, they escalated their actions and directly threatened both Joshua and Annie. After all, to those elders, Annie and Lily were people they could handle at will—after all, this was their own family’s turf!

“Give a suitable warning to those old fossils in the family,” Marquis Visen snorted coldly. “They want to meddle in every profitable business and always demand a large enough cut—those old bastards are ruining the family’s reputation… As for the smuggling matter, you can hint to Yam not to worry about it. What he really needs to do now is break through to the Third Tier as soon as possible.”

Hearing the urgency in her grandfather’s tone, Monica couldn’t help but feel uneasy. “Grandfather, you…”

“My clash with that beast in front of the Secret Vault slightly worsened my injuries. I probably have only a dozen years left,” Marquis Visen said gravely. “So my only hope lies in the Flame Orb that might still be preserved in that vault. After all, when the Bourbon Family was destroyed, no one ever found that treasure.”

Hearing Marquis Visen admit that his injuries had worsened and that his life had effectively entered a countdown, Monica felt a wave of sorrow she couldn’t express.

But Marquis Visen appeared quite composed, even comforting Monica, urging her to take things more lightly. He advised her to seize the time while he could still move freely to consult him more often, which would greatly help her in managing the territory in the future.

“Then, is there anything else?”

As usual, Marquis Visen ended the conversation with this routine question.

Normally, when Marquis Visen asked this, Monica would take her leave.

But this time was completely different.

“Traces of Forest Witches were found in Red River Territory.”

“Forest Witches?!” A trace of surprise showed on Marquis Visen’s face. “How could they appear here? …No, if they really did show up, then some questions may finally have answers.”

“What do you mean, Grandfather?”

Marquis Visen glanced at Monica, then began to explain. “It’s said that a hundred years ago, it was the Forest Witches who launched the first assault on the Bourbon Family, drawing the attention of the royal family and the Southern Duke, which eventually led to the ‘Feast of Wolves’ incident… You could say that after being heavily struck by the Forest Witches, the Bourbon Family then faced betrayal from within, ultimately leading to their downfall.”

“After a hundred years, the Forest Witches have reappeared on this land. That can only mean…”

“They’re targeting the Soderbell Family?” Monica exclaimed.

And quickly, she recalled that when she had previously mentioned the Forest Witches’ ability to track and hunt, Yam’s heartbeat had momentarily sped up. Back then, Monica had simply thought Yam was surprised by the idea. But now that she looked back, Yam’s emotional response and demeanor had clearly been different.

“Yam has already encountered the Forest Witches!”

“You learned about the Forest Witches from Yam?”

“Yes!” Monica nodded, and quickly relayed in detail what she had learned from Yam about the Forest Witches.

“Heh.” After listening, Marquis Visen let out a scornful laugh. “Someone’s trying to stir the pot, and in the process, test whether the Soderbell Family knows the truth behind the Bourbon Family’s downfall.”

“You mean…” Monica suddenly understood.

“Yes.” Marquis Visen nodded. “That stab from the back… The opponent’s setup surely goes beyond this. He must have other traps in place, such as a clever ploy to divert disaster. If I’m not mistaken, the Soderbell Family will soon discover that much of the evidence is pointing at our Kasein Family.”