After leaving Tierus Mansion, Moselle wiped the cold sweat off his forehead and quickly walked toward the carriage with the help of his subordinates.
What a bunch of lunatics!
Even now, he was still immersed in the atmosphere of the earlier encounter, unable to extricate himself for a long time.
First, he barely escaped death at the hands of that madwoman, then he witnessed members of the Mosgla family, who had good relations with the Heavenly Principle Church, being threatened with death and killed on the spot by that lunatic.
Lastly, it had escalated to Duke Tierus personally taking action, yet he couldn't subdue the opponent at all!
Was the Third Imperial Princess really that powerful as the rumors suggested?
For a moment, Moselle's face shifted between different expressions.
After returning to the carriage, he felt slightly relieved.
Feeling the wheels slowly turning, Moselle was filled with mixed emotions.
"Bishop, do we need to..."
"He has already rejected our overture, wanting to take the whole cake for himself, but that's impossible," Moselle clenched his teeth, "From now on, our only path is conflict, a fight to the death."
Moselle slammed his fist into the carriage.
Seeing this, his subordinate fell silent, not daring to say a word.
It was a long time before Moselle's emotions stabilized somewhat.
"Tell everyone at the church to be vigilant," his gaze firmly fixed on the street lights beginning to illuminate outside, "They will probably be watching us closely, waiting for a chance to bite a chunk out of us."
"Don't give them that opportunity."
Led by a maid, Lynn walked toward the direction Duke Tierus had left.
Moments later, with the familiar scent of roses, he sensed another figure by his side.
"Why were you so impulsive just now?" She didn't look at Lynn but calmly gazed ahead, "I told you before, I would avenge your grievances."
Lynn shook his head, "It wasn't impulsion, on the contrary, I was completely rational."
Such an extremely stupid provocation, and you expect me to be hot-headed?
Hearing this, Ivyst slightly furrowed her brows, "And the reason?"
"Of course, it's for you," Lynn glanced at her and noticed she was even taller than him in her high heels, feeling somewhat dejected, "You must understand what it means for the Mosgla family to send someone over."
"If he managed to reach Duke Tierus before us, you would stand no chance."
"After all, you can guess how generous their offer would be to win him over."
"So, the only way out was to kill Dalion on the spot and then, before the Second Prince could send someone else, win Duke Tierus's friendship and respect."
"By then, a strong alliance between the Duke and Your Highness would mean even the Mosgla family wouldn't fuss over a mere heir."
As for Lynn, the killer, he believed Ivyst would not abandon him.
But under pressure, it was entirely possible to stage a fake death scenario of switching a raccoon for the crown prince.
Then, Lynn could completely retire behind the scenes.
This also offered more convenience to his escape plan, killing two birds with one stone.
Unfortunately, Ivyst was unaware of his thoughts at the moment.
Seeing this, Lynn thought she still had concerns, so he comforted her, "Your Highness, don't worry, I had considered all the consequences before doing this."
"That's not what I meant..." Ivyst seemed to have more to say but stopped, her expression hidden by the mask, "...never mind, we'll talk later."
Although Lynn was puzzled, it was not good to keep asking.
"The two of you, we've arrived."
After leading them to the door of Duke Tierus's study, the servant left.
Ivyst pushed the door and entered.
At that moment, Duke Tierus, who had been impeccably dressed earlier, now had his suit jacket off and was puffing on a pipe, enveloped in smoke.
Seeing the two enter the study, a complex expression flickered in his eyes.
But he remained composed on the surface.
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
After a while, he spoke lightly, "Do you think this tactic will draw me onto your side?"
"Of course not," Lynn shook his head, "Actually, if the Duke really wants to dissociate from us, it's quite simple since so many eyes witnessed everything tonight."
Duke Tierus was puzzled, "Then why take such a risky action?"
"I wanted to seize an opportunity for Her Highness."
"An opportunity?" Duke Tierus pondered on the words, then chuckled, "But I feel like Her Highness doesn't really want this opportunity."
Looking at the cold gaze from Ivyst, Duke Tierus shook his head.
"If tonight's events are considered a test, does your Highness know what score she would get?"
Ivyst responded without hesitation.
"Zero marks!" Duke Tierus suddenly slammed the table, "I've never seen any king candidate act as ridiculously as you!"
"In my eyes, you don't really want to be the Emperor, nor do you have the capacity for it!"
"Did you really want to kill everyone who looked down on you just now, huh?"
"Let me tell you, if you dare to kill someone at the banquet today, tomorrow you'll dare to push the Empire's people into an abyss of irreparable doom!"