Chapter 016: Two Sides

Du Fan was slightly startled and didn’t know how to respond for a moment.
But Duke Green seemed to have anticipated this reaction. With a light sigh, he continued, “Whether in royal families or noble households, the right of succession has always been something both tempting and bloody—brothers turning against each other, spouses becoming enemies, often all for the sake of power… The fortune of my Green family lies in the fact that although your two elder brothers are intelligent, the second one is entirely focused on advancing his martial skills. As for you, after entering the Holy Church, you’ve shown no interest in this minor power within my Green family… Otherwise… humph… every time the royal family fights over succession, it causes chaos throughout the city. Isn’t it the same in noble families? ‘Entering a noble household is like entering deep waters’—there’s some truth to that.”
As he spoke, Duke Green glanced at Du Fan again and said with a wry smile, “Of course, this is just my guess. I don’t want it to be true. But at least for me, I’m quite satisfied with the current situation… very satisfied. Politics and schemes are only means to deal with outsiders. But if it happens among one’s own family… it becomes rather boring… Du Fan, do you understand what I mean?”
Du Fan slowly bowed his head. After a moment, he said solemnly, “Father, I understand.”
A faint smile appeared on Duke Green’s face. “It’s good that you understand… I’m telling you these today not for any other reason but because I think you’re smart and capable. Yet even so, I don’t want this internal situation within the family to be disrupted by external forces… After all, no matter how powerful a family is, it’s not easy to regain its strength after conflict. Throughout history, countless noble families have exhausted their strength in internal strife and been defeated beyond recovery by their opponents. Our Green family has prospered for hundreds of years. Personally, I hope it will continue to prosper… forever unchanged.”
Suddenly, Du Fan felt a bit annoyed. His father had said so much, all implying that he shouldn’t fight for power within the family. But he had never thought of that before… Moreover, deep down, he always cherished his two elder brothers. He could never bring himself to turn against them just for the title of heir. Though he wasn’t a good person, he would never do such a thing.

But this is one’s own father… He said he had sent people to protect him for years, but didn’t that imply some form of surveillance?
This is one’s own father!
Yet Du Fan also understood his father’s thoughts. As the head of the clan, he naturally couldn’t allow such a situation that would undermine the clan’s power to occur.
Du Fan sighed slightly, then raised his head to look deeply at his father. After a moment, he said solemnly, “Father, in the past, I didn’t care much about the title of duke. Now, of course, I still don’t care… I’ve already told my elder brother that rather than being a duke, I prefer to be a forever follower of the God of Light!”
Duke Green nodded slightly. For the first time, a gentle smile appeared on his usually cold face as he said softly, “Very good. I knew you would understand my feelings… Du Fan, don’t blame me. As the head of the Green family, I must be responsible for it… But as a father, I’ve never treated you differently, whether it was in the past or now… At least in my heart, you are still you—Du Fan, my son… As a father, I will always love you.”
A strange feeling surged in Du Fan’s heart, leaving him unsure of what to say. Though he had lived two lives and had a strong will, he couldn’t suppress this emotion of gratitude.
“Well, after telling you all this, I think you must understand my meaning,” Duke Green said with a nod. “But at the same time, my son… there’s one more thing I need you to answer.”
“What is it?”
“What I want to ask you is…” Duke Green’s expression darkened slightly. “Du Fan, my son… why did you kill Aldas?”
Du Fan sighed inwardly. After so much “nonsense” between father and son, it was finally time for the real matter. With that thought, a look of anxiety appeared on Du Fan’s face as he said, “Because… because Aldas defied judgment. As a white-robed priest of the Holy Church, I couldn’t turn a blind eye!”

Duke Green was stunned for a moment before suddenly laughing heartily. “Du Fan, this is indeed a very good excuse. No matter when you use this excuse, I think no one would dare to refute it. After all, on the surface, Aldas did provoke the trial. But… an excuse is just an excuse. What I want to hear isn’t just an excuse… Du Fan, my son, I’m afraid you still don’t understand. Political struggles are a game of mutual compromise. Our Green family and the Belinger family have been at odds for generations. Do you know why? It’s not because there’s some ancient feud between our families… No, it’s simply because His Majesty the Emperor wants it that way… As an emperor, he can’t handle everything personally, and he’s afraid of too much power below, which might leave him powerless. So, the most common tactic for an emperor is to maintain balance… My son, do you know? It’s His Majesty the Emperor who needs his ministers to fight among themselves to create such a balanced situation. That’s why our Green family and the Belinger family have been enemies for generations. But deep down, we both know there’s no real hatred between us. Any disputes or confrontations are merely out of necessity, for show… But…”

“But what?”

“But my son,” Duke Green suddenly sneered, “you personally killed the heir of the Belinger family, their most brilliant genius. He died at your hands. And because of you, Roland Academy also suffered heavy losses… And the relationship between Roland Academy and the Belinger family is by no means simple… My son, to you, it might seem like you just killed a few people, but for our Green family, you’ve put us in a very precarious position… Do you know why I came back this time? It’s because although the Belinger family seems grateful now, it’s just superficial. They’ve controlled the empire’s finances for years and surely have many hidden plans. Their inaction now is simply because they’re not ready yet. But when they are ready, my son… You may have the protection of the Holy Church, so maybe nothing will happen to you, but our Green family must be prepared for heavy losses.”

“Is that not enough reason for you to tell me?”

“The reason for killing Aldas?”

Du Fan gave a bitter smile and looked at his father. After a moment, he sighed softly and said, “Father, all I can tell you is that the situation between me and Aldas has long reached a life-or-death stage—either he dies or I die. There’s no room for compromise… Since I’m in the Holy See, I must act in the interests of the Holy See. If I can’t even do that, I fear I won’t be able to stay here.”

“In your eyes, every move you make represents the Holy See,” Duke Green sneered. “But in others’ eyes, all your actions represent only the Green family… Du Fan, I’m not blaming you for killing people. Even if you secretly killed everyone from the Belinger family, I still wouldn’t blame you. As long as they can’t find any evidence… But to act so openly… Hmph… It’s fine if the Holy See steps in, but if they don’t…”

Hearing this, Du Fan’s eyes flashed, and he said, “If the Holy See refuses to intervene, I’ll handle this myself.”

“How? Just you alone? Du Fan, I know you seem to have some backing, but in conflicts between families, individual strength means nothing… But then again… Killing Aldas might not be such a bad thing after all.”

Du Fan was slightly stunned and asked, “Father, do you mean…?”

Duke Green snorted and said, “Over the years, the Belinger family has gone too far, trying to use Aldas to extend their influence into the military. Those military leaders may not say anything outright and appear friendly, but those old men must have sent many people to assassinate Aldas. It’s just that Aldas is extremely skilled and they haven’t succeeded yet. Since you’ve managed to kill Aldas, you’ve also taken away their biggest worry. The Belinger family is fully aware of this, so I’m sure they’ll have to consider the military leaders’ stance before taking any action…”