Chapter 41 The Witch's Grace

Chapter 41

41.1

It was a sunny day when Euridice met Eustace Carragalan.

There is a long and narrow stream outside Ravenmount Castle. Although the water volume is not large, the stream rushes over the rocks, and the "gurgling" sound of the water is noisy and turbulent.

"The stream is so noisy." Olidisi touched his nose. "It's a great place to talk."

This location is very close to Ravenmount Castle, but it is a bit remote because the stream often changes its course, and few people come here normally.

"It's rare that you find such a suitable place to talk." Olidisi said with a smile.

There was the sound of footsteps, and a cold voice said, "If you have anything to say, please speak quickly. I only have half an hour."

—It was Eustace Carragaran.

Eustace looked somewhat like Alex, but he had a cold expression, a reserved and controlled demeanor, black curly hair hanging down by his ears, and his eyes revealed a calmness and alertness beyond his age, like an alert wild deer.

He was wearing an ordinary robe, not as ostentatious as Osborne's, with only the "Rose Scepter" family emblem of the Karagaran family embroidered on the collar; but his clothes were neat and fit, and the fabric of the robe was of good quality, and he was not as poor as Hesong and Simon.

Olidisi couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of the Duke's favorite illegitimate son, his clothes and food are indeed much better than those of Hesong and Simon."

It was not a very friendly remark, but Eustace Carragaran showed no anger or emotion. He simply said calmly, "Is that what you wanted to say to me?"

Olidisi suddenly laughed.

"Are all of you in the Karagaran family like this?" She shrugged. "Duke, Duchess, Cecilia, you—you all wear flawless masks, like puppets, devoid of any human emotion. It's as if the entire ethereal continent were to crumble before you, and you wouldn't even frown."

Eustace said nothing. Euridice smiled and said, "All right, all right. Don't be nervous."

She said, waving her hand casually, "I have no other purpose in coming here - I just want to help you become the next Duke of Karagaran and obtain the title."

Eustace was stunned. "...What did you say?"

Oledsi laughed and said, "Don't tell me you don't know what I did to Alex and Osborn."

Eustace's eyebrows twitched slightly, and Euridice smiled brightly. "The Duke and Duchess of Caragaran know very well in their hearts that I was the one who killed their two children. Don't tell me that you live in Ravenmount Castle and you don't know what I, Euridice Arquitas, did to the Caragaran family."

She said, puffing air towards Eustace. "You and your mother have survived and are doing well in the castle controlled by Lady Agnes. You don't have to pretend to be ignorant in front of me."

Euridice said this, and Eustace fell into a subtle silence.

Of course he knew that Alex Caragaran had ended his life in the dungeon, and Osborne Caragaran had been exiled to the desolate mountains of Woodlandi. Both of these events were closely related to Euridsi Aquitas - and Euridsi had no intention of concealing this fact.

"You don't like the Caragaran family." Eustace finally said in a low voice, "I thought you wanted to destroy the Caragaran family."

Oulidisi just smiled without saying anything, neither saying yes nor no. She suddenly changed the subject.

"Do you know?" she said, "Cesilla came to see me not long ago. She hopes that I can become her counselor and help her become the new Duke of Karagaran."

Eustace was startled, his brows unconsciously furrowed. He looked at Euridice strangely.

"You said you would help me become the new Duke of Caragaran and obtain the title." Eustace's tone was filled with undisguised wariness and suspicion. "You refuse to help Cecillia, but want to help me instead?"

Olidisi laughed.

"Didn't you say it yourself? I hate the Karagalang family. I want to destroy the Karagalang family."

She shrugged casually as she spoke, "In the fight for the title, she has the advantage, and you have the disadvantage. I'm helping you so that the Karagalan family will be plunged into a fierce internal struggle."

Eustace was startled, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

"You... are quite honest," he said. "If you had said something like 'I sincerely want to help you' or something like that, I wouldn't have listened to it any more."

Olidesi smiled and said, "You know I have a grudge against the Karagalan family. I don't want Duke Karagalan, Lady Agnes, and their children to have a good ending. As for who will inherit the Karagalan family's wealth and title, to be honest, I don't care at all—it can be you, Hesong, or another illegitimate child. Anyone will do."

Eustace was silent for a moment, then said, "What you hope for is for the competitors to use their own abilities to wrest power from the Duke and Duchess of Caragaran. Ideally, it would plunge the Caragaran family into a fierce internal struggle."

Oledsi raised his eyebrows and whistled "Oh".

"You don't sound like you have much respect for your father." She looked at him curiously. "I heard he doted on you."

Eustace only smiled faintly and did not answer.

He said, "Eurydesse Arquitas."

“…”

"Why me?"

Euridice paused, and Eustace looked at her clearly.

"Father has eight children," he said. "Why did you choose me?"

"Ah, that's a good question." Ollidosi laughed happily. "Actually, if you count them, even though he has eight children, there aren't many who are truly useful anymore."

Eustace was startled. Euridice had already raised four fingers of his right hand and started counting with a smile:

"Among his four legitimate heirs, the eldest, Bertha Carragher, has married Prince Constance and is tied to him. She is vying for the position of crown prince, not the title of duke.

“Alex Caragaran, dead;

“Osborne Karagarang, who had a tattoo of ‘arsonist’ on his face, was banished to the desolate mountains of Woodlandi and was considered useless;

"Cesilla Karagaran, well, she might be the only one among Lady Agnes' children who has the hope of inheriting the title."

Euridice said, retracting his right hand and extending his left. "Among the four illegitimate children, you are the most promising, Eustace Carragaran. You are the Duke's favorite illegitimate child, and the only one who can live in Ravenmount Castle."

Eustace was silent for a moment, then said, "Where's Hersong?"

"Oh," Oulidisi curled his lips, "Do you really think that a coward like Hesong can inherit the title of Duke?"

"...Indeed," Eustace said, curling his lips. "He really can't do it."

Olidesi smiled and said, "There is also Simon Karagaran. I have seen him in the blacksmith shop. He is also a timid little mouse and cannot pose a threat to you. As for the last one, Bella Karagaran——"

"She's long gone," Eustace said flatly. "She left Ravenmount long ago to make a living elsewhere. She's dropped the name 'Carla Garlan' and taken her mother's."

Oledsi said, "Oh!" "No wonder I couldn't find any information about her. So, there are only three illegitimate children left in the game—that's even better."

She said with a bright smile: "Among the three illegitimate children, it's obvious which one has the best chance of getting the title, isn't it?"

She pointed at Eustace and said, "Now, in this game of competing for the title, only you and Cecilia are left. Of course I have to help you."

Eustace made no reply.

Euridice didn't urge him, but her silent smile seemed to possess the allure of a witch. Eustace was silent for a long time, and finally whispered, "What should I do?"

Olidesi smiled slightly and said softly, "Wise men often say, 'It's not the scarcity of wealth that worries us, but the inequality of it.' A foolish and cowardly illegitimate child like Hesong could be rewarded by the king and become a baron. Shouldn't someone as outstanding as you be able to become a baron, too?"

41.2

The west wing of Ravenmount Castle housed the Caragaran family's meeting room and the lord's study. It was always a solemn place, but on this moonless Sunday, a strange sense of restlessness permeated the air of the meeting room.

Duke Hugh Karagaran held in his hand a thick parchment scroll that had just been delivered by a flying messenger from Kaderinburg.

It was an exquisite parchment scroll from the royal family. Red wax had been burned into a pattern of "sun, moon and nine rays". A few large characters were written on the beginning of the parchment scroll:

"Witch's Grace".

Duke Karagaran held the parchment scroll in his hand and remained silent for a long time before repeating in a low voice: "'The Witch's Grace'..."

Lady Agnes strode into the Duke's study.

Normally, Lady Agnes was very calm, possessing the elegant demeanor of a lady, and she didn't show much emotion. But now, there was an icy, unconcealable edge in the Duchess's eyes.

"'Witch's Grace,'" she said, "that's just some old myth."

Duke Karagaran rubbed his brow tiredly.

How could he not know?

The bards of the Ethereal Continent always tell strange and bizarre legends, one of which is "The Witch's Grace":

Bards say that in the days when the Ethereal Continent had its first Lord, there lived a Witch in Flemington Wood; some said she was the Raven, others the North Wind, and still others the Fountain of Water.

A girl walked for seven days and seven nights and found a witch in the forest. She pleaded with the witch: "My mother died, and my two brothers inherited her wealth and drove me out of the house. I am about to starve to death in the cold season of the empty land. Please help me."

The witch said, "That's easy."

The witch dripped the girl's blood into three stones. The shop inherited by one of her brothers suddenly collapsed, and the land inherited by another brother suddenly caved in. The girl obtained precious medicinal herbs outside the forest, and the wealth of the three became equal, and they received fair inheritance.

People call it - "Witch's Grace".

From then on, when inheritances were unevenly distributed, people often said, "Think of 'Witch's Grace'."

Duke Karagaran stared at the beginning of the scroll and at "The Witch's Grace" without saying a word. He just silently handed the scroll in his hand to Lady Agnes.

The Duchess unfolded the parchment scroll, which came from the royal family and clearly read:

"Messenger of the Wanzeta Empire, conveying the grace of Supreme King Lucinda, announcing the Ethereal Continent—"

"Noble titles are no longer exclusively inherited by one heir; all descendants of the nobility have the right to obtain lesser titles and territories, thus ensuring that the noble bloodline continues far and wide. This is the grace of Queen Lucinda."

Lady Agnes looked at the handwriting on the parchment and said coldly, "'All descendants will receive a lower-class title'?"

Duke Karagaran sighed deeply.

"There are only four children in total," he said. "Hesong... had already been awarded the title of Baron on his own. In this grace, Cecilia received the title of Viscount, and Eustace and Simon received the title of Baron."

Lady Agnes gazed at the Duke of Carragaran and laughed sarcastically. "Come, don't look so upset. You must be very happy that Eustace got a territory. The only thing that bothered you was that that fool Simon got a reward as well, and you had to give him a territory too -"

After a pause, she sneered, "Or perhaps you're also happy that Simon has been rewarded. After all, they are all your children, with your blood flowing through their veins. The only ones whose interests have been harmed by this grace are Cecillia and I."

Duke Karagaran closed his eyes slightly.

"I admit that I do prefer that Eustace boy," he said slowly. "But that won't change Cecilia's position, Agnes."

Lady Agnes paused and said nothing more; she knew that Duke Carragher was not lying.

Lady Agnes was from the Felix family, so the attention that Cecilia received was a bond of alliance between the Caragaran family and the Felix family; no matter how much Duke Caragaran favored Eustace, he would not let Eustace's status surpass Cecilia.

"It's just that," Duke Karagaran rubbed his forehead tiredly, "Hesong has already been awarded the title of baron. If Cecilia also gets a title in grace, while Eustace and Simon get nothing, it will not only cause discussion among the citizens, but also cause conflicts between them and Cecilia, which is not good for Cecilia."

As the Duke said this, the sharp edge in Lady Agnes's eyes gradually dissipated, and slowly a sense of fatigue, the same as the Duke's, rose in her.

"I know," she said. "It's 'not the lack of wealth that's worrying, but the inequality of distribution.'"

Duke Karagaran's eyes darkened. "If Hesong didn't have a title, that would be easy. After all, Cecillia is our child, and we can use the excuse of 'mixing bloodlines' to deny any illegitimate child a title. However, with Hesong, the 'Baron of South Hills', caught in the middle, it's difficult for me to do so... I have no reason to refuse this grace. It's hard for me to refuse Eustace and Simon from becoming barons, Agnes."

Lady Agnes waved her hand wearily, as if not wanting to dwell on the subject any further.

"Things have come to this," she said, "so that Eustace and Simon may come and thank the Witch for her grace, and then be given a small, remote and barren territory. However..."

Madam Agnes said this with a cold flash in her eyes, "I will not let the instigator of this matter go."

The Duke paused for a moment, "You mean..."

"Eurydice Arquitas," Lady Agnes said coldly, "she secured the baronial title for Hersong, and granted Eustace and Simon the same title, all to oppose me and Cecillia."

Duke Caragaran frowned, and Lady Agnes said coldly, "Eulidesi Aquitus, I will not let her go. Eighteen months from now, I will invite all the new barons—and their wives—to a banquet at Castle Ravenmont to celebrate the birth of the new noble of the Caragaran family."

The Duchess said this with a cold murderous look in her eyes: "As for whether they can walk out of this banquet alive... that depends on their ability."

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The author has something to say: Another party, hey