NOVEL WEB Chapter 19: Richie's Will
Just when Gray was in the space rift, striving to improve himself, Manggis and Richie were still walking on the path of pain.
"Tomorrow, we dispatch troops directly to seize Gustav's capital, Black Dragon City."
"Tomorrow?" Immediately, the lords present were stunned for a moment, including Yilin and Benedict II.
Benedict II hurriedly said, "Lord of Lich King, we are not completely ready yet."
"If there is no deadline, we will never be ready. In fact, I believe attacking Gustav may not require so many troops. From the intelligence we have, Gustav's internal structure is already on the verge of collapse. Many nobles are ready to defect."
"But our agreement with them isn't fully signed yet, especially regarding the terms of surrender."
"No more discussions are needed," Richie replied firmly, "Those who have turned to the Black Dragon and betrayed justice, don't deserve to negotiate any terms with us. Rest assured, when our troops reach their walls, they will abandon all conditions and choose to surrender."
"But our original plan wasn't like this."
"Then what was our original plan?"
Being asked this way, Benedict II's expression froze for a moment, staring blankly at Richie, or rather, "Gray."
After a while, Benedict II came to his senses, glanced at the lords standing beside him, awkwardly pursed his lips, and said, "We discussed this topic before. Lord of Lich King, you wanted to minimize casualties as much as possible, avoiding the losses caused by chaos. You also said... you said that the majority are just blinded and cannot be considered our true enemies."
Everyone was quietly watching Richie.
Facing those stares, Richie seemed to waver for just a moment. Quickly, he said firmly, "I have changed my mind. We have spent too much time in these meaningless negotiations; it's not worth it. We should take a firmer approach, such as using direct military threats. When their lives are threatened, I have every reason to believe those cowardly nobles will quickly change their minds under the military threat."
The lords stared at Richie in shock, unable to believe their ears.
Yilin's eyes widened slightly.
The hall remained quiet, only the fire in the brazier crackled. The firelight reflected on the lords' faces and Richie's body, clad in dark grey armor identical to that of his father.
"Can't I change my mind?" Richie asked.
"No, of course you can," Benedict II smiled reluctantly, answering, "As long as you, Lord of Lich King, think it is right, we will certainly support you. You have always been right, haven't you?"
"Yes, we surely support."
"Why not?"
"We definitely support your decision, Lord of Lich King."
Though they said this, the lords looked at each other with shifting eyes.
Yilin's gaze at Richie grew increasingly suspicious. Richie could clearly feel the doubt.
"Very well." Avoiding Yilin's gaze, Richie stood up, supporting himself with the stone chair's armrest, and said seriously, "Since you all agree, go back now and start preparing immediately. You have one night to prepare; be ready before dawn tomorrow. Can you do it?"
"The time is tight, but... we can do it." Allen King Barnett III hesitated and nodded.
"We can do it."
"We can."
"Of course."
The other lords also nodded.
"Since that's the case, go back now and start preparing immediately."
"Alright, as you command, sir."
They saluted Gray and backed away, then turned and left.
Only Yilin remained standing still, staring blankly at Richie.
"What's wrong? Yilin Ah…" About to say "Aunt," Richie hurriedly swallowed back. Perhaps to cover up, he coughed twice.
But everyone knew, Liches don't have tracheae, not even esophagus, thus couldn't possibly cough.
Immediately, the lords who had just walked away several steps were attracted by this.
"What's wrong? Why are you not leaving immediately? Time is very tight!" Richie urged.
The tone was clearly heavier, unlike before. The lords, stunned, nodded hurriedly and left quickly. Only Yilin remained, staring blankly at Richie.
Soon, all the lords left the hall.
In the dark and cold hall, only Richie and Yilin remained. The atmosphere was somewhat eerie.
"What's wrong?" Richie asked, "Are you already ready?"
"You are not Gray." Yilin said directly.
Richie froze.
Next moment, he hurriedly said, "Of course I'm Gray, I don't know what you are talking about."
"No, you are not Gray." Yilin stepped back, smiling softly, "You are definitely not Gray. I know Gray too well. Whether it's the tone or the content, you surely are not him. You are just wearing armor identical to his."
The soul fire in Richie's eyes flickered wildly, his hand trembled slightly, but he resolutely repeated, "I am Gray."
"You are not. Let the real Gray tell me what happened. I know you must have encountered some problem; I want to know what happened. Or you can tell me yourself." Holding the sword hilt, Yilin stepped back to the door and turned away.
Richie stared blankly at the half-open door, standing dumbfounded.
…
Holding the sword hilt, Yilin walked quickly down the circular stairway, her eyes vigilantly scanning around.
In no time, she reached the castle gate.
The lords standing outside the door hadn't mounted their horses yet; they all looked at Yilin.
"Let's go." Saying this, Yilin mounted her horse and shook the reins, leaving.
…
"Do we need to find a way to silence her?" Sarina's figure quietly appeared behind Richie.
"She has an oath with my father," Richie replied softly.
"But she doesn't have one with you."
"Are you using your demonic tricks to tempt me?" Richie roared suddenly.
Sarina, frightened, quickly lowered her head and shrank to the side, "Sorry!"
*It was hard to tell whether it was anger, fear, or helplessness,* Richie's body trembled slightly, looking at Sarina. The soul fire in his eyes burned fiercely.
Delia quietly appeared on the other side, standing silently.
After a moment, Richie relaxed slightly and said softly, "Let's go see Uncle Bruto."
"What for?" Delia asked quietly.
"You'll know when you see." Saying this, Richie hurried out the door.