CHAPTER 478: CHAPTER 388 QUEEN KAROL_1

"I’m... I’m sorry..." the old noble stammered in panic, not daring to gamble his family’s fate on whether Yan Xing had concrete evidence of Duke Kaiya’s assassination attempt on King Griffin. He could only apologize, "Our family absolutely did not conspire with Duke Kaiya to assassinate King Griffin. Please forgive our earlier rude behavior, Elder Yan Xing..."

Yan Xing looked at the group of old nobles, who had lost all their momentum, and chuckled, "Do you think you can resolve this mess with a mere apology after making such an unwarranted scene here?

"Moreover, how are Queen Karol’s and my reputations to be restored?

"The rumors started with you... What should I do with you?"

The old nobles quickly said, "We apologize again... Everything we did was because of Duke Kaiya’s deception.

"He said... he said..."

Seeing the old noble fumble, Yan Xing cut in, "He said... if Yan Xing brought Karol to the Eternal Domain, he could sit on the throne. With the merit of supporting a new king, you would definitely reap endless benefits for your families."

"Yes, yes, that’s right..." the old nobles hastily admitted.

Yan Xing waved his hand for an attendant to bring paper and pens, then continued to the old nobles, "Write down everything Kaiya told you and all the promises he made to you.

"I will compare it with the evidence that the spies and I have sent to Queen Karol.

"We do not wrongly accuse the innocent. As long as it is confirmed that you had nothing to do with the assassination attempt on King Griffin, I will no longer pursue your affronts against me."

The attendant distributed paper and pens to the old nobles one by one.

They looked at each other in dismay, uncertain of what to do.

If they wrote everything down, it would undoubtedly hand Yan Xing and Queen Karol a dagger to slay Kaiya.

If they did not write, Yan Xing would certainly not let the matter rest.

"Elder Yan Xing... this is putting us in a difficult position."

Yan Xing sneered, "How is this difficult? I’m only asking you to write what you know, not to fabricate charges against Kaiya.

"Or could it be... you really were part of the plot to assassinate King Griffin?"

The old nobles denied quickly, "No, no, no, we really had no idea."

"If you had no idea, what are you afraid of? Go ahead and write, write carefully, think it through before you do. I, Yan Xing, am a man of my word. If I say I won’t implicate you, I won’t."

Knowing that not writing would surely bring great trouble to their families, the old nobles reluctantly found spots to write, their pens scratching furiously on the paper.

After they finished, Yan Xing had them sign their names and press their handprints.

Only after reviewing each statement did he say to them, "Among the many children of King Griffin, only Kaiya possessed the capability to rule a nation.

"Unfortunately, he committed regicide and patricide, and must face the ultimate penalty to comfort the departed king.

"As for the other princes and princesses, none seem to possess the potential to be a wise ruler. The Kingdom of Silver Mane now needs a smart, strong king to lead the country on the right path during these turbulent times.

"Queen Karol does not wish for this incident to cause great harm to the kingdom; therefore, she intends not to exacerbate the situation.

"All of you are elders of the kingdom and should understand the queen’s painstaking efforts. Upon your return, you must advise those who are still foolishly loyal to Duke Kaiya.

"Their allegiance should be to the country, not to a dead prisoner guilty of heinous crimes.

"Do not accompany Kaiya to the grave."

At that moment, the old nobles could only nod their heads in acquiescence, like chicks.

The testimony they had just written was tantamount to their pledge of allegiance to Yan Xing and Queen Karol.

If they sincerely supported Karol as the new queen, there would be no trouble.

If they did not support her, they could be implicated as Kaiya’s accomplices at any moment.

One by one, the old nobles left with sullen faces, as if mourning the loss of their parents.

Yan Xing then picked up the stack of confessions to review them again.

Just a moment ago, he had been wondering how to find more evidence to convict Kaiya; he never expected this group of old nobles to come knocking, ready to hand him the knife.

Together with the testimony extracted from the servants serving Kaiya, and some items that had been found, he would edit them according to the "BBC" style...

Whether Kaiya actually did it or not was beside the point. Even if he wasn’t involved, he could still be framed as the mastermind. By now, these old nobles must have sensed which way the wind was blowing; when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Kaiya’s entire faction, from top to bottom, was utterly dismantled, clearing a major obstacle for Karol’s ascension to the throne.

The development of events indeed unfolded just as Yan Xing had predicted.

All voices of dissent in support of Kaiya were almost overnight silenced, and subsequently, various versions of Kaiya’s plot to assassinate King Griffin began to circulate throughout Dawnspirit City.

No matter how different these versions were, Kaiya was depicted in each as a debauched and arrogant rich second-generation scion.

He, dissatisfied with King Griffin’s refusal to appoint him as the crown prince, incited his own mother to murder his father.

Ordinary people often form opinions on matters based on their own perceptions. They jump to conclusions and then continually use their imagination to justify those conclusions.

Therefore, ordinary people are very easy to manipulate. Just break things down and give them a provocative signal, and you can stir up immense public outrage in a short time.

And when the whole of Dawnspirit City was calling for Kaiya’s execution, no one dared to defend him any longer.

King Griffin’s coffin was paraded around the city before it was laid to rest in the Royal Cemetery.

「In the afternoon, at the execution ground.」

Kaiya was hanged from the gallows amidst the curses and fury of thousands.

There were no surprises.

In fact, throughout the entire process, no one demanded to see the evidence of Kaiya’s involvement in the assassination of King Griffin.

In reality, the evidence had become irrelevant.

As a loser in the struggle for power, this was his only outcome.

Political struggle is just that brutal.

Bury the deceased, hang the murderer.

The turbulent Dawnspirit City seemed to have regained its peace on the surface.

But beneath it all, the undercurrents were raging.

Who should sit on the now-empty throne?

King Griffin’s death was sudden, and no crown prince had been named.

By tradition, Kaiya was the first in line of succession, but Kaiya was dead.

Next in line were the young princes and princesses.

And then there were the members of the Silver Mane Family with royal blood.

Only when there were absolutely no direct Silver Mane descendants would the queen be able to succeed to the throne.

But Kaiya’s body was still on display on the gallows.

Who would dare claim their right to the throne at such a time?

After a long silence, the Royal Court meeting finally had a minister who supported Karol propose the queen’s succession to the throne.

The courtiers, having foreseen how things would play out, raised no objections.

So, five days after King Griffin’s death, in the same grand hall, with the same High Priest, Karol was crowned.

Karol took the scepter and sat on the throne, becoming the queen of the Kingdom of Silver Mane.

The days ahead marked the beginning of a new Chapter in her life.

She had completed her revenge; now it was time to fight forward in the whirlpool of power.

And Yan Xing took his seat on the plane heading back to the Eternal Domain.