Chapter 006: Only Advantages

By the time he returned to the cathedral, it was already midnight. Unlike before, Du Fan had carefully planned everything today. Though he was using the pretext of an heresy trial, the nobles of Modo City were not fools. Although they hadn’t attended the trial, they could still guess the outcome.
Oldas forced his way into the execution ground to rescue someone but was instead killed on the spot by Du Fan. After he fell, not a single member of the Belinger family showed up. There were only two possibilities: either the Belinger family had given up on Oldas, or everyone from the Belinger family had been wiped out by the Green family!
Given Oldas’ status, it was impossible for the Belinger family to abandon him. Thus, the only possibility was that those sent to rescue Oldas had already been dealt with by the Green family.
In other words, in this conflict between the two families, the Belinger family had been utterly defeated. Moreover, with Du Fan using the guise of an heresy trial and Oldas defying the trial, it could be considered blasphemy. Under the influence of the Holy Church, the future of the Belinger family might be…
The nobles who had fawned over Oldas at the hunting ground fell silent. Before Du Fan even returned to the cathedral, they had all come to wait.
When Du Fan returned from the square, he saw a group of nobles gathered at the cathedral entrance, all dressed in light clothing, shivering slightly in the spring breeze. Though he felt somewhat displeased, the scene was somewhat amusing.
He called over the guards and gave brief instructions to disperse those nobles, then headed straight into the cathedral without hesitation.
As soon as he reached the hall, he saw someone suddenly stand up, speaking obsequiously, “Young Master Du Fan…”
Du Fan glanced over—it was Governor Brandon. But how could he be inside?
Du Fan frowned and glanced at the guards at the door. Seeing his gaze, one of the guards quickly knelt down and explained, “Young Master Du Fan, this Lord Brandon was brought here by Young Master Allen. I dare not stop him.”
Du Fan nodded slightly and said, “I see. I understand… You all may leave now.”
The guards quickly obeyed and retreated.

Du Fan casually sat down on a chair, glanced at Brandon briefly, then smiled and said, “Governor Brandon, since my second brother allowed you in, there must be a reason. But since you’re waiting for me here, you probably have something to say to me… Go ahead and speak without hesitation.”

Brandon nodded slightly and said, “Young Master Du Fan, I’ve already found out that there are three nobles in Mordo who have deep connections with the Belinger family. I’ve sent people to guard their homes to ensure none of them can leave… Young Master Du Fan, what do you think we should do?”

As he spoke, Brandon made a gesture as if strangling someone.

Du Fan snorted and said, “Brandon, thank goodness you didn’t order them arrested. Otherwise, I would have broken your neck today… Not only can’t you arrest those people, you can’t stop them from doing anything either. Understand?”

Brandon was stunned for a moment and said, “But… what if they do something about today’s incident…”

“What about today’s incident?” Du Fan sneered. “Oldas desecrated the gods. Even if the people of the Belinger family are extremely upset, they have to bear this loss this time. Of course, they won’t just give up, but they don’t dare openly cause trouble for me, Du Fan…”

Brandon nodded slightly and said, “But… what if they lay in wait on your way back…”

Du Fan smiled faintly and said, “If Oldas weren’t dead, they definitely would. But now that Oldas is dead… they can’t even touch me, and what they fear most is something happening to me. You know, when I presided over the heresy trial, Oldas died at my hands… If something happened to me right after Oldas died, everyone could blame it on the Belinger family. They’ve already suffered heavy losses; how would they dare try to harm me again and suffer even more? If it were me, I would declare that Oldas desecrated the gods and received his due punishment, then donate millions of gold coins to the Holy Church to atone for my actions. As for me, if they dared do anything, they’d have to send someone to thank me… Governor Brandon, see? This is interesting politics. Though they wish me dead, to avoid giving me another chance to take action against them, they have to force themselves to thank me with a smile… Isn’t that interesting?”

Brandon forced a smile and said, “Young Master Du Fan is incredibly clever. It was I who overthought things. I’ll send my subordinates away now…”

Du Fan said indifferently, “Since you’re here, there’s no need to rush things… Brandon, let me ask you—by sending your city guards to die on East Gate Street, do you resent me?”
Brandon shuddered and replied, “How dare I?”
Du Fan touched his nose and said, “Whether you dare or not makes no difference. But since you’ve sent people to their deaths, in the eyes of others, you, Brandon, have already joined my Green family’s cause. Whether you like it or not, that’s how they’ll see it. So I think you, Lord Brandon, understand better than I do what to do next. After all, you’ve been involved in politics for decades!”
Brandon broke into a cold sweat and couldn’t help but kneel on the ground, saying, “Young Master Du Fan… I just… I really just…”
Du Fan laughed and said, “Alright, I won’t say more to you… Think carefully about what I said today. If you still can’t figure it out, there’s no need to come see me again… But there’s one more thing you need to understand: if you really want to see me, it’s best to get rid of all those connections behind you. My Green family doesn’t accept everything!”
Brandon nodded repeatedly, not daring to say anything against it.
Seeing his reaction, Du Fan said no more and simply waved his hand, signaling him to leave.
After sitting alone in the hall for a while, Du Fan had everything clear in his mind.
With Aldas dead, staying in the North Country was pointless. The only thing to do now was to return to the capital quickly. He needed to be careful dealing with both the empire and the Holy Church… Having done so much, it was no longer possible for him to return to his previous peaceful life.
Regardless of anything else, just by dealing with Aldas and Bruce and causing Roland Academy some loss, the Holy Church would surely protect him. Plus, he would bring back an angel statue of unknown use. Even if Lord Anthony was dissatisfied, he couldn’t do much to him… As for the royal family, with the power of various families growing over the years, they were only happy to see them fight among themselves. They could control everything from above and stay at ease… So, all things considered, returning to the capital would only bring him benefits! Only benefits!

The only thing to worry about is my father’s reaction. After all, my decision this time was too sudden; surely the family didn’t expect me to use such a method to kill Aldas. But even if it causes trouble, it’s still minor trouble. The Beringer family wanted to use Aldas to gain influence in the military, and those military leaders must be very dissatisfied. By killing him, I’ve solved a problem for the military. Even if my father gets angry, with the military backing him, he won’t really do anything to me! Besides, my worthless son killed their genius heir—how could he not be happy about such an interesting development? With these thoughts, Du Fan realized it was better for him to return to the capital as soon as possible. Staying in the north all the time wasn’t fun either. With that in mind, he gently pulled the bell beside him, and moments later, a servant entered. Du Fan sighed and said, “Order that we return to the capital tomorrow. Have everything prepared… Also, send a message to those noble lords at the entrance, telling them I’m not angry and they don’t need to worry…” The servant left after taking the order. After thinking for a while, Du Fan shouted, “Call Ferre here!” Before long, Ferre appeared before Du Fan, his face unusually pale. Du Fan glanced at him and asked, “How’s your health?” Ferre replied in a low voice, “Aldas’s move was powerful, but it wouldn’t take my life.” Du Fan nodded slightly and said, “That’s good… I have a few tasks for you. I shouldn’t have sent you, but I don’t have anyone trustworthy under me, so I have no choice but to send you… Take Selina and those Temple Knights who decided to follow me… Go to Rui City. Remember, when you meet the city lord, tell him Young Master Du Fan thanks him for his hospitality… Of course, that’s secondary. The main task is to find out where Viscount Evan is, locate him, and whatever it takes, bring me what he promised me… In my name, he won’t dare refuse…” Ferre nodded and said, “I’ll carry out your orders.” Du Fan smiled faintly and said, “After finishing this task, go straight back to the capital to see me. I have other plans for you then… Alright, you may go now.” Ferre left after taking his orders.

Du Fan let out a soft sigh. After a moment, he said gently, “All matters in the northern lands have been taken care of. The imperial capital… hmph… the imperial capital—I, Du Fan, have returned…”