Chapter 010: The Damn Woman

Oscar glanced at Evan, then raised the long tube-like object in his hand. Narrowing his eyes, he looked in the direction of the Imperial Capital. After a moment, he said, “Lord Evan, I can answer all your questions… But after hearing my answers, you won’t be able to leave my side at all… Unless it’s dawn, whether we succeed or fail, only then can you leave… Will you agree to this condition?”
“I agree!” Evan, with his barrel-like body, remained motionless. “I’ve long heard of Prince Oscar’s great talents. Since I’m here today, wouldn’t it be a shame not to see them in action?”
Oscar nodded and said, “Very good… Then Brandon, Gabriel… Since you’re here too, you should listen as well.”
With that, Oscar pointed in a certain direction and said, “The forces over there are, in fact, the ones I’m most concerned about—and yet also the ones I trust the most—among those in the entire Imperial Capital!”
The direction Oscar pointed to was the citadel where the Northern Legion was stationed.
“If the Northern Legion had a commander leading them now, we wouldn’t need to stand here. We could just retreat to the North… But though the Northern Legion is brave, they have one major flaw: they’re too loyal.” Oscar smiled. “Loyalty and bravery are the keys to victory on the battlefield, but in times like these, these qualities become the biggest weaknesses… Because of their loyalty, they won’t move unless given orders, no matter what happens… And right now, the only one with the authority to command them—Duke Green—is trapped deep in the imperial palace. It’s uncertain whether he’ll even survive… So, though the Northern Legion is brave, they’re leaderless at the moment. They’re nothing but toothless tigers—far from a threat!”
“As for capturing this castle?” A sarcastic smile appeared on Oscar’s face. “Lord Evan, haven’t you heard the saying… All strong castles are taken from within!”
Evan’s expression changed slightly. “Could it be that Your Highness has already made preparations inside the city?”

Oscar shook his head and said, “No… Considering the defenses of the imperial capital, even if all my troops infiltrated inside, breaking through from within would by no means be easy… But many things in this world don’t need to be resolved by force. I’ve always believed that force is only a last resort when intelligence fails to help you get what you want… For example… I want the most impregnable capital in Roland Continent to lower its drawbridge and let me in. Do you think that’s possible, Lord Evan?”
Evan frowned and said, “Buy over the officers guarding the city? Even then… it seems unlikely!”
“Indeed, it’s impossible. Even if an officer were to let us in, it’s absolutely impossible… The only ones who could do such a thing are… the royal family!”
Evan’s eyes widened slightly. “The royal family? The Austin family? Even the stupidest second prince wouldn’t go that far… Right?”
“Of course not,” Oscar said with a smile. “There’s only one kind of people in this world who would do such an irrational thing… Do you want to know who? It’s… women… self-righteous women who think they’ve outwitted everyone!”
“Women?” Evan, who resembled a fat pig, suddenly jumped to his feet. He seemed to understand instantly and couldn’t help but laugh. “So that’s it! It’s all because of women!? Damn women!!!”
…
“Women! Damn women!!!”
Not far from the top of this mountain, in the guardhouse above the northern gate of the Gavin Empire’s capital, another pig-like man also jumped to his feet. He was sitting on a table nearly ten meters long, with long tables at the edges filled with various delicacies and bottles of amber-colored wine. On the other side, a set of armor hung on a wooden rack, with a war club leaning against it!
And this pig-like man was currently gripping the neck of a pretty young girl with one hand. The two girls struggled desperately, their tongues sticking out, their beautiful faces turning purple, as their limbs twitched uncontrollably…

Finally, with two crisp sounds of “click—click—”, the heads of the two girls tilted backward at an eerie angle. Purpleish blood spilled from their mouths and dripped onto the exquisite velvet covering the table, looking extremely vivid…
Seeing the two girls in his hands dead, the pig-like human finally snorted. With a casual flick of his hand, the two corpses fell outside the table. Only then did the fat pig catch his breath and shout loudly, “Bastards! Bastards! You damned fools, using such trash to fool me? Do you know who I am? I’m the second prince of the Gavin Empire! Tomorrow morning, my elder brother will become the emperor of the Gavin Empire, and I! will be a prince! I’m a prince! Yet you try to fool me with this kind of trash! Do you all think life is boring?”
The one shouting loudly was, of course, the current second prince of the Gavin Empire.
The servants standing in the corner of the room trembled nonstop. After a while, one of them collapsed to the ground, shaking, and said in a low voice, “Your… Your Highness… Your Highness ordered that your task tonight is to guard the city defenses of the capital and prevent anyone from entering or leaving… Your Highness said not to indulge in women today… Once he ascends the throne, he’ll give you whatever woman you want… We brought these two girls against Your Highness’s wishes. It’s really… really…”
Before the servant could finish speaking, a plate filled with beef flew at him. Before he could even scream, there was a “swish” sound, and half of his head was cut off. White bone, brain matter, and bright red blood sprayed everywhere, filling the room with a bloody smell!
The remaining servants exchanged glances and all collapsed to the ground, kowtowing repeatedly, “Your Highness, spare our lives! Your Highness, spare our lives!”
The second prince sat down, panting heavily. He picked up the wine in front of him and drank it in large gulps before shouting, “Bastards! I’m giving you one last chance. If you can’t find women who satisfy me, come to see me with your heads in your hands!”
The servants hurriedly kowtowed repeatedly, unable to speak, before scrambling out.
The second prince snorted at their retreating figures, slammed the table hard, and shouted, “Someone! Clean this up! It’s ruining my mood for drinking!”

Soon, a few more Imperial City Guards rushed in, dragged the three corpses out, and washed the blood stains on the ground clean with water. These men had served the Second Prince for a long time and naturally knew he was in a bad mood at such times, so none of them dared make the slightest sound.

It wasn’t until the three corpses were dragged out of the room that the guards exchanged glances. One of them looked at the bodies of the two girls, shook his head, and said, “What a shame… The Second Prince really is too stubborn. With such exquisite beauties, if he doesn’t want them himself, he could at least give them to his brothers… To just strangle them like this is such a waste!”

Another one snorted, “Why are you making such noise? If the Second Prince hears you, will you still want to keep your life?”

The first speaker quickly glanced around to ensure no one was paying attention before spitting and saying, “Damn it, my stupid mouth! Damn!”

The other man shook his head and said, “Enough, enough! Do you really think anyone else doesn’t know? Speaking of which, those servants are really unlucky… With their brains, how could they possibly find someone the Second Prince would be satisfied with… But then again, the Second Prince’s tastes are really strange… He actually likes that kind of woman!”

The first speaker quickly coughed and said, “Shh! Don’t talk nonsense! The Second Prince has already… dealt with all the servants who knew about this… Do you want the same fate?”

As he spoke, he made a gesture of cutting one’s throat.

Instantly, the other guards looked terrified, and none of them dared say another word. They dragged the three corpses to a corner outside the city guard headquarters and threw them there carelessly. Just as they were about to leave, the servants who had been driven away by the Second Prince seemed to have been waiting for them all along. They rushed over, handed each guard a bag, and bowed repeatedly, saying, “Elder brothers… You… you’ve served the Second Prince for so long, so you must know his preferences… Could we… could we…”

The guards exchanged glances and shook the bags in their hands. Hearing the clinking of gold coins inside, they coughed and said, “Listen well…”

The servants all looked relieved and immediately ran in another direction.

“Hmph, what a shame. Even at the brink of death, they still don’t understand…”

Someone snorted, and the guards promptly fell silent.