Chapter 335 Quarrel
After the king announced the start of the third meeting, Batman was the first to stand up again.
"Your Majesties, members of the House of Representatives, and colleagues," he said, leaning slightly toward the assembled group. "Before we discuss the affairs of state, the Bateman family has stumbled upon this horrific crime. I would like to invite your Majesties and members of the House of Representatives to make a fair judgment."
The professor was not at all surprised to see the face of Outles Brody appear in the main hall of Kite Heart Palace.
"...In the name of blood relatives, I will accuse Nova of treason in front of the two majesties..." The frail middle-aged man had a ferocious expression mixed with fear, and coupled with the sudden black screen and a few abrupt screams, it looked quite realistic.
Everyone was in an uproar. Those who knew about this pretended to be hearing it for the first time, while those who didn't were staring at the young man sitting expressionlessly at the front of the third council seat with horror and disgust.
The people in the Third Council couldn't help but clench their fists, their angry eyes almost piercing countless holes in Marquis Batman's face - but fortunately, Mr. Ghost had already given them a heads-up in advance, so they were not panicking at this time.
Marquis Bateman, however, signaled for everyone to remain calm. He then instructed two attendants to unfold a vast map of the empire's territory. As the sorcerer chanted, the map suddenly began to vibrate. The thorn-shaped crest of the Brody family, symbolizing the Ironthorn Territory, suddenly shone brightly. A name slowly rose, floating in mid-air. After circling once, it silently shattered into pale gray powder, re-forming a place name and a time—meaning that the family member had passed away at that place and time.
This was the primary carrier of the ninth-level bloodline spell, "Soul Protection Song." The voice of a woman, panting rapidly and in extreme pain, resounded throughout the hall once again.
"…Outlet Brody, he's lying."
Under the gaze of everyone, the deceased struggled to repeat her last words in the world: "My son... Nova Brody, he did not... collaborate with the enemy... commit treason..."
These are two completely opposite statements.
Countless suspicious glances were cast at Marquis Bateman, wondering what he was up to. Duke Kamu tapped the table slowly, his fingers piercing Bateman's indignant accusations echoing in his ears.
"Not long ago, Lord Oletus Brody approached the Bateman family for help, claiming he could no longer sit idly by and watch his nephew's evil deeds. His own son, bewitched by the Phantom, had him imprisoned at home." Bateman's voice was heavy with sorrow. "Unfortunately, just as the Bateman family's guards tried to rescue him, they were discovered by the Phantom's subordinates and imprisoned again. Mrs. Aidoni Brody, who witnessed this, was tragically silenced by the Phantom's subordinates in the chaos."
"Poor Mrs. Aidoni Brody," Bateman shook his head regretfully. "Because of the powerful love a mother has for her child, she was deceived by her only son's lies until her death. She even covered up for him when he was about to kill her!"
"Your Majesties! Colleagues!" His voice suddenly sharpened. "A man who betrayed his country, who imprisoned and murdered his own family, who was so worried about being exposed that he would murder his own mother, what qualifications does he have to stand here and talk nonsense about state affairs and mislead the people?!"
Fina suddenly realized what the other party was going to do. She glared at the despicable and cunning noble with anger and even hatred, and her breathing suddenly became rapid.
Confusing right and wrong, and turning black into white, the other party clearly wants to pin the most vicious and despicable charges on the soul of the Third Council, and turn his ideas, his struggles, his efforts and appeals into a farce directed by a "madman", "traitor" and "beast"!
Even a bystander like Fina couldn't help but feel a surge of rage. Orel, who had hidden himself beside the tyrant, also had a cold expression, staring at the old acquaintance who had died at the hands of the three of them with a deadly gaze. However, the central figure in the conversation remained expressionless. The black-haired young man stared blankly ahead, only his fingers twitching ever so slightly.
Batman frowned slightly. He admitted that he was deliberately provoking the ghost. Anger would give rise to flaws, make people lose their rationality, and no longer be indestructible. But the young man, who was so young and should have been in a hot temper, showed no emotion at all under the insulting accusation, which made him feel uneasy.
"Sir Bateman, you need evidence when you speak." The ghost sat motionless and spoke slowly, "I didn't want to discuss my private affairs in Kite Heart Palace and waste the time of Your Majesties and Excellencies. However, since Sir Bateman insists on discussing this matter—my mother's unfortunate death, I understand there is another version of the story."
He slowly raised his eyes. He was clearly just an ordinary man, not even half the age of many of the congressmen, but his smoky-gray eyes made everyone present dare not look directly at him.
The ghost's voice was cold and calm. "For example, someone who intended to slander me tried to collude with outsiders, but my mother unfortunately saw them... May the gods bless her soul."
"I know that you are going to say that Outles Brody and your envoy have been imprisoned by me in Ironthorn Territory. Naturally, I will say whatever I want." The black-haired young man Piaopiao took the lead, but Batman, who was about to open his mouth to refute, was choked in place, unable to speak.
"But everyone here probably knows that I left the Brody family early in life. It was my uncle, Ottless Brody's son, Percy Brody, who inherited the title my father left me." Talking about his early years, he remained calm. "Although I had no ambitions, my uncle still resorted to pressure on my mother along with the Bateman family."
At the mention of gossip, the ears of the many nobles perked up. Many present had a familiar impression of it. A collateral line seizing power wasn't uncommon, and a legitimate heir removing their name from the family was somewhat rarer, but at most, it was only the subject of a few casual after-dinner tuts. But what if the one whose power was seized was actually that "ghost"? That would be truly worthy of discussion. Everyone loved to hear the gossip of legendary figures, especially such private matters. But if the other party claimed they were "not interested in this," who could tell if that was just a veneer of resentment?
But the ghost's voice remained calm, as if he were telling someone else's story. "So, given this, Mr. Baartman, how credible is the testimony of this... 'blood relative' of mine?"
Just as Batman was about to speak, he was immediately interrupted - he couldn't help but glare at the man, but the guy pretended not to see him, taking tit-for-tat to the extreme.
"A man who expelled an orphan and a widowed mother to seize his brother's title, a man who colluded with outsiders to frame his nephew, leading to the death of his widowed sister-in-law." The ghost's voice gradually grew low and cold. "His accusations, compared to the dying testimony of a mother who sacrificed her own life to protect her son's reputation, who would you rather believe?"
Many people hesitated after hearing this - with this said, the ghost's logic seemed to be more coherent and reasonable, while Batman's evidence seemed more like deliberate slander.
"Your Excellency Nova is truly a sharp-tongued man." Amidst the buzz of discussion, Bartman sneered, unwilling to admit he'd been subtly outmatched in a few words. He simply straightened his collar elegantly and leaned slightly towards Cassius II, who was watching the spectacle with a rare, perky interest. "But without concrete evidence, we wouldn't dare make such outrageous statements in front of your Majesties."
He secretly insulted Ghost. The boy spoke nonsense in the first meeting. Afterwards, Batman gradually realized that the other party might not have any actual evidence. It was just that he was confused and panicked, and seemed particularly guilty.
There was no point in regretting it. Marquis Bateman cunningly took a step back and gracefully made a gesture of invitation: "However, since we have a dedicated person for a dedicated job, I would like to ask my former colleague, Marquis Henderson Shrike, to take care of the rest."
——Next, I might offend a god, so it’s better to recycle the waste.
Henderson Shrike was completely clueless about his old colleague's inner thoughts. He glanced at him grimly because of the jarring "past," then stepped forward and said, "Your Excellencies have probably heard that Saint Salvatore of the Far North nation of Ferros can control dragons. His tamed frost dragon, 'White Nightmare,' has been slaughtering our soldiers and civilians. The northern borders of the empire are struggling to survive under its claws, and wherever the dragon passes, there is devastation; it's a horrific sight!"
Henderson Shrike demanded sharply, "Then, may I ask, Your Excellency Ghost, how can Port Morris explain why it suddenly tamed two enormous dragons and even mastered the method of taming dragons, yet never shared this method with the Imperial Army? Isn't this irrefutable evidence that it is secretly colluding with the enemy to enrich itself while allowing the soldiers and civilians of the Northern Empire to suffer?!"
—Pooh! Shame on you! For a moment, Fina's rage nearly overwhelmed her mind at this shameless remark. She fought back the urge to spit in the face of that seemingly righteous man, her nails practically digging into her flesh.
"Are you shameless?" As a result, the ghost beside her blurted out the curse in her heart. He even looked surprised, as if he was simply asking whether the Marquis Shrike had any shame - well, it didn't sound very nice.
Henderson Shrike stared at him in shock, the carefully maintained mask of elegance cracking a little. He had only met him a few times, and yet he was stunned by this man's sudden, unruly demeanor, completely lacking in aristocratic manner: "Mud-legged peasant! Country bumpkin! An uneducated, barbaric, and bastard!"
Some people around him couldn't help but laugh softly, and Ole chuckled even more. As long as he wasn't the one being pissed off, watching a tyrant pissing people off was truly entertaining. He suppressed the urge to laugh out loud and couldn't help but pat Azuka's shoulder—but someone glanced at him, grabbed his sleeve with two fingers, and pulled his hand off his shoulder.
"Unceremonious curses can't conceal the suspicious nature of Port Morris," Shrike said, somewhat awkwardly, trying to get back to the point. "How do you explain why a group of slaves suddenly took control of Port Morris and even mastered the art of dragon taming?"
"Are you trying to say that you've suddenly made friends with a dragon knight?" He sneered, "That's truly a blessing from the gods. In just a few hundred years, two dragon knights have appeared on the continent of Ambrose..."
According to the spies from the royal court, the people who tamed dragons were a group of refugee aliens, and the extremely mysterious and unidentified dragon rider was the leader of the aliens - just an alien, Shrike thought disdainfully, if the great nobles far away in the center of the royal city decided to throw a basin of dirty water on someone, what could a group of ignorant beasts do?
"You're absolutely right. It's because I'm popular and happen to know a dragon rider." The professor leaned back in his chair, ignoring the Shrike's glare, and replied lazily, "But since you mentioned two dragons, I happen to have some evidence I'd like to share with everyone here."
"—about the Ruskin family who suddenly disappeared."
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