Gospel of Blood

Charlotte was quite surprised.

Before receiving her vassals, she had imagined various scenarios, but she hadn't expected the current situation.

One by one, the nobles presented themselves, all pledging loyalty while also accusing their colleagues. If the accusations were taken at face value, nearly all the nobles in the Castell territory, from top to bottom, were implicated. The three viscount families, in particular, had been reported countless times.

In a word, it was chaos.

Yet, none of the accusers were making baseless claims—they came with documents and evidence.

Although Charlotte couldn't immediately determine the truth, the evidence was coherent and well-organized. At least on paper, verifying the claims seemed easy.

After seeing more than a dozen major and mid-tier nobles, Charlotte's headache grew worse. The pile of accusation documents beside her had become a small mountain, with almost every noble implicated in some crime. The three leading viscount families were depicted as treacherous conspirators, rebellious by nature, and deserving of the harshest punishments.

The information on Castell Manor had been almost completely overturned. Every family seemed problematic, even the loyalist Baron Angus, who personally welcomed Charlotte back to the territory, was reported for colluding with nobles from the Roman Duchy and collaborating with suspected bloodbornes.

Sebastian and Nice were equally astonished. The usually eloquent flame elf managed to stammer out a comment.

"Master, at least... they've all pledged loyalty. In a way, it shows they still have some reverence for Castell."

Charlotte: ...

Yes, they've pledged loyalty, but they've also all been reported. It felt like a game of Werewolf, and she had no idea how many wolves were among them!

Moreover, apart from Laura, the head of the Griss family who openly revealed her identity, none of the other nobles were bloodbornes.

Not only that, Charlotte even used the power of the Gospel to secretly check, finding no signs of mind control among the nobles. Everyone came of their own volition, actively pledging loyalty and making accusations.

After this round of audience, instead of uncovering nobles connected to the Nez clan, the situation in Castell had become even more confusing.

Charlotte sighed softly, her deep gaze penetrating the curtains to observe the nobles at the banquet.

The audience had ended, but the banquet continued.

As the music changed, the atmosphere grew livelier, with more nobles joining the dance floor, full of laughter and elegance.

If it weren't for the mountain of accusation documents beside her, it would be hard to believe these dancing nobles had just been indignantly making accusations.

Charlotte even noticed nobles who had reported each other dancing together, smiling and graceful.

Despite the seemingly joyous and peaceful atmosphere, Charlotte's keen senses detected the undercurrent of tension behind their masks.

Although the nobles were enjoying the banquet, she could feel many covert glances directed towards the curtains, waiting for her next move.

The dance floor, seemingly the center of the banquet under the crystal chandeliers, was not the true focal point. The true focal point lay with the beautiful figure behind the curtains.

"What do you think of the recent audience with the nobles?"

Charlotte asked, drawing her gaze back.

Hearing her serious tone, Sebastian quickly composed himself.

After pondering for a moment, he said.

"Master, I've traveled across the continent and witnessed the rise and fall of many human families. Unlike our elven race, humans have very short lifespans and much stronger desires."

"Your family hasn't effectively ruled Castell for ten years. Such a long time is enough for ambitions to grow..."

Charlotte's heart stirred.

"Are you saying...?"

Sebastian considered his words carefully and continued.

"I believe that given the substantial evidence and confident accusations, it's likely that their reports aren't baseless. Perhaps... they're all true, or at least partially true, even if exaggerated or embellished."

"You mentioned that the nobles of Castell have been deeply infiltrated. For various reasons, many of them might indeed have contacted the Nez clan's bloodbornes..."

"Of course, this doesn't mean they've all betrayed you. They might be fence-sitters, keeping options open. After all, before you successfully inherited Castell, its future was uncertain, and nobles hate uncertainty."

"However, despite the surprising number of accusations, we can piece together part of the truth from them."

"For example, there are indeed bloodbornes from the Starfall Kingdom infiltrating Castell, and many nobles are secretly gathering troops and preparing for war."

"This is not baseless. I believe it's part of the Nez clan's plan. If they've infiltrated so many families, they might be using Castell's nobles to prepare an army, planning a war!"

"If that's the case, this is no ordinary conflict. To overthrow Castell, they wouldn't need such a large operation. The fact that nobles are willing to accuse each other suggests that the bloodbornes behind the scenes have made significant moves."

Charlotte pondered Sebastian's analysis.

Some of his thoughts aligned with hers. She also felt that given the nobles' confident accusations, there must be some truth to them.

However, she hadn't considered Sebastian's theory that the Nez clan might be using Castell's nobles to prepare for war.

"Using the nobles' power to prepare for war? If they can achieve that, they must have thoroughly controlled the nobles, right?"

Charlotte asked.

"Hey, that's not necessarily the case!"

Nice suddenly spoke up.

"Oh?"

Charlotte looked at him inquiringly.

Meeting her gaze, Nice straightened his chest proudly, like a student ready for an exam, and said confidently.

"Lady Charlotte, don't you find it odd that all these nobles chose the same way to meet you?"

"They all came with accusation materials, all pledged their loyalty to you, and all reported rival families..."

"If it were just one or two families, it would be understandable, but for every noble family to do this, it clearly indicates a more powerful force behind the scenes!"

"Sebastian is right about one thing: the force behind this, or to be more straightforward, the bloodbornes from the Starfall Kingdom, might indeed have stirred things up too much."

"They've certainly infiltrated many noble families, but they may not have complete control or perhaps acted too hastily, leaving traces."

"And now, you've arrived, clearly investigating the truth behind the scenes, even representing the Holy Court on paper..."

"At this time, everyone reporting simultaneously can muddy the waters, making it hard for you or the Church behind you to take any action!"

"In this way... on one hand, the Nez clan can buy more time to fully control Castell. On the other hand..."

"On the other hand, they can confuse you, undermine your trust with the nobles, divert your attention, and create opportunities to strike!"

Sebastian continued Nice's line of thought.

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Nice glared at Sebastian, clearly displeased with his interruption, but quickly refocused on Charlotte, looking serious.

"Lady Charlotte, the Nez clan... they might be planning to make a move against you."

Charlotte's eyes flickered.

She understood what Nice was implying.

The Nez clan didn't need to completely control Castell's nobles.

They only needed to infiltrate enough to influence the nobles' decisions.

In other words, the Nez clan just needed to infiltrate the management of each noble family, not necessarily control their leaders completely.

By turning Castell's nobles into a disorganized group, and then... if they could control her as the lord, they could naturally command the leaders of each family.

At the same time, by combining this with a bottom-up infiltration of each family, they could eventually fully control each family.

By that time, the Nez clan would have complete control over Castell!

Thinking about this, Charlotte had some guesses about the Nez clan's plans.

But at the same time, she felt like she was overlooking something, which made her uneasy.

Just then, Charlotte noticed a noble leaving the dance floor and heading straight towards the curtains.

It was a middle-aged noble, dressed in a traditional but somewhat old and worn noble's outfit.

He looked anxious, walking faster and faster, soon reaching the curtains.

The Castell guards on either side of the hall quickly approached, raising their weapons to block him.

"Who are you? What do you want? If a noble below the rank of baron wishes to see the Countess, please apply at the desk over there."

Northport Mayor Madoc looked at the newcomer and frowned.

The middle-aged noble didn't answer Madoc's question.

He raised his head, facing the curtain, and shouted.

"Countess! I am Arle, a knight of the Leon-Castell fief! I want to report that the Leon-Castell family is plotting rebellion!"

His voice was loud, drawing everyone's attention in the hall.

The half-elf musicians instinctively stopped playing, and after a murmur of discussions, all eyes fell on Viscount Leon-Castell in the hall.

Viscount Leon-Castell's expression changed.

"Nonsense! Guards! Stop him!"

He angrily ordered the Castell guards.

The guards didn't move, still blocking the curtain, seemingly waiting for the lord's command.

Charlotte exchanged glances with Sebastian and Nice, her heart skipping a beat.

She subtly signaled Nice, then looked at the nobles outside the curtain and ordered the guards.

"Draw back the curtain."

The guards respectfully pulled back the curtain, and the middle-aged noble looked up at Charlotte.

He was a weathered-looking noble, his expression resolute.

"Countess! I have solid evidence of Leon-Castell's betrayal!"

He knelt on one knee, pulling out a parchment scroll from his chest and holding it high.

"Bring it here."

Charlotte said calmly.

Following her order, a guard took the scroll from the middle-aged noble and turned to present it.

Just then, another loud shout echoed through the hall.

"Countess, watch out! They are assassins!"

Charlotte looked over in surprise, seeing Vincent, son of Viscount Roman-Four, rushing over with several black-clad swordsmen, looking urgent.

Meanwhile, the guard holding the scroll suddenly leaped towards Charlotte.

Sebastian snorted coldly, stepping in front of Charlotte, but the guard's move wasn't altered, he charged straight at Sebastian instead.

Seeing the empty eyes of the guard and the glowing scroll in his hand, Charlotte's heart skipped a beat.

"Sebastian, retreat!"

She commanded.

But it was too late.

Brilliant light suddenly erupted between the guard and Sebastian, enveloping them instantly. A circular magic array formed beneath them, and in an instant, both figures vanished.

At the same time, the middle-aged noble shouted, replacing the guard as he charged towards Charlotte.

His eyes were bloodshot, and he drew a gleaming dagger from his chest as he leaped.

Mayor Madoc's expression changed dramatically. He quickly stood in front of Charlotte, grabbing a chair as a weapon and shouted.

"Everyone, protect the Countess!"

But it was too late.

Another guard leaped up, cutting down Madoc along with the chair, while the middle-aged noble continued his charge towards Charlotte.

Charlotte could see his grotesque face, the large pores, and sweat clearly now.

However, just as the noble was about to strike, the sound of an arrow piercing through the air suddenly cut through the hall. A crossbow bolt gleamed as it flew, piercing the middle-aged noble's head.

The noble collapsed to the ground, his dagger sliding across the floor, sizzling and smoking where it touched.

Vincent, son of Viscount Roman-Four, landed in front of Charlotte. He discarded the emptied crossbow and drew his sword, swiftly cutting down the guard who tried to continue attacking Charlotte, like a knight descending from the heavens.

"Protect the Countess!"

He ordered the black-clad swordsmen accompanying him.

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