Chapter 19: Truth and Departure
The news brought by Number 3 did not change much in the short term. The daily life of the Lord's Mansion continued as usual, with no significant alterations.
Ying and Hei worked together to reorganize certain affairs within the mansion. Occasionally, they would take Brandon and Verdani's two daughters for walks and play around the main city. The vast majority of residents in the Moldavia Territory had long since become familiar with this young head maid of the Lord's Mansion, so no one disturbed their outings on ordinary days.
Lin, on the other hand, shuttled between Winterfell Academy and the Lord's Mansion, handling the vast majority of administrative affairs for Joshua. This young man, who had a slight tendency toward workaholism, habitually worked overtime late into the night. His diligent performance even drew praise from Number 3, and it made Joshua wonder if he was overworking the youth's labor.
Artemis also visited the Lord's Mansion several times. After learning of the warrior's experiences at the Holy Mountain, the old archbishop repeatedly expressed his gratitude to Joshua. It was then that the warrior learned that several of Artemis's former students and acquaintances were currently stationed on the western defense line of the Holy Mountain. Upon hearing that his friends were safe, the old man's brow cleared of its worried furrow.
Joshua himself, as always, spent every moment communicating and resonating with the world. By synchronizing with the free-floating energy in the atmosphere, he gradually strengthened his power.
Recently, as late autumn set in, the northern winter was approaching. Farmers, hunters, explorers, and adventurers alike had all entered their busiest season. They were occupied with harvesting crops, hunting fattened beasts, and making one last expedition into the mysterious Great Aias Mountains before winter and blizzards arrived, all to claim rewards from the Lord's Mansion. The entire Moldavia Territory was unusually bustling, with everyone having their own work.
At this moment, the warrior stood at the center of a desolate plain, at least several dozen kilometers from the main city. His eyes were tightly shut, air surged from his mouth and nose, and his chest and abdomen rose and fell in a rhythmic breath. With his body as the epicenter, heat radiating outward like a furnace, reaching hundreds of degrees, gradually turning the barren land within a radius of several hundred meters into scorched sand and cracked earth.
'Infernal Prison Breath'
Ever since his battle with the Red Dragon Evian and his realization of the essence of 'Flame's Ultimate Essence'—also known as Blazing Sun Flash—from the self-destruction of the Fusion Core Star, the warrior had been attempting to master this power.
Currently, Joshua's foundational physical attributes, willpower, spirit, and battle qi were all solidly established. He was a genuine powerhouse even among Ultimate-rank experts. However, his specialized skills and talents had not kept pace, and he had not trained in permanent enhancement states like the Steel Armor Breathing Art.
After all, it had only been two years since his transmigration. In that time, he had been constantly adventuring and traveling to other worlds. While this had rapidly increased his level, it had caused him to fall behind in other areas. The battles in the Bloodmoon Abyss against Man Da Jia Er and at the Holy Mountain against Evian had exposed this weakness—aside from throwing Ying and Lin into the fray, he lacked reliable long-range attack methods.
The Blazing Sun Flash, a special ability of terrifying power, was undoubtedly a perfect fit for Joshua. To this end, the warrior had deliberately spent time creating a brand-new energy control technique to harness the power of flame and the sun, which he named Infernal Prison Breath.
Infernal Prison Breath was a special internal energy circulation system. Its effect was to enhance the practitioner's resistance to a specific type of magic damage and grant mastery over corresponding supernatural abilities. Based on current practical results, the resistance displayed by this unique breathing method was itself a byproduct of the supernatural abilities acquired upon completing the training. For someone like Joshua, whose battle qi already incorporated elements such as high heat and flame, this technique was like adding wings to a tiger, significantly reducing the time required for training.
Now, the refinement of Infernal Prison Breath was nearly complete. By fully activating his battle qi, the warrior could generate temperatures exceeding the surface of the sun, easily vaporizing steel and breaking through most defenses in the world. With this power as a foundation, mastering Blazing Sun Flash would undoubtedly be much easier.
The heat wave in the atmosphere gradually dissipated, and the distorted air returned to calm. Joshua ceased his battle qi training. The sun was setting; today's routine exercise was over. He needed to return to the Lord's Mansion to handle some administrative affairs.
The flight speed of an Ultimate-rank expert far surpassed that of Gold-rank. Soon, without using his full power, Joshua had returned from the barren plain to the skies above the main city of Moldavia. He hovered high in the air, looking down at his territory, observing the bustling crowds in the city and the people gradually returning from outside.
The Harvest Festival was approaching. Joshua thought to himself. This was a grand celebration held every autumn, and as the lord, he needed to preside over the entire event. It wasn't just the northern lands; across the entire empire, even His Majesty the Emperor would host similar ceremonies.
"In that case," the warrior murmured to himself, "it's about time..."
Just then, Joshua sensed something and turned his head to look into the distance. He saw a white horse galloping along the main road at the horizon, racing toward the main city of Moldavia.
The horse had excellent bloodlines, clearly crossbred with dragon beasts. After an obviously prolonged run, its stamina still allowed it to let out long whinnies, causing slower pedestrians and carriages ahead to hastily clear the way. On its back was an exhausted red-haired youth, who seemed on the verge of collapse after the long journey.
Watching the white horse gradually approach the main city from afar, Joshua's eyes flickered.
He slowly descended at the city gate, waiting for the other's arrival.
A person descending from the sky caused a stir of commotion and noisy chatter, but within seconds, the scene fell silent.
The vast majority of the territory's residents had seen their young lord during festivals and ceremonies, and a small portion even had children studying at Winterfell Academy. Seeing Joshua descend, the main city gate of Moldavia fell into absolute silence. Carriages and horses dared not advance, and pedestrians nervously halted. Only when Joshua tilted his head and gestured for those blocking the gate to hurry into the city did the world break free from its stillness.
As they walked, the crowd gazed at their lord with awe, not leaving the gate's vicinity until they had passed.
Time passed. At the city gate, the flow of people gradually dwindled. The sun completely disappeared, and night fell. Joshua stood at the gate, waiting for the galloping white horse.
At the end of the main road, the red-haired youth on horseback naturally saw Joshua. He hastily pulled on the reins to stop his mount, then immediately dismounted and rushed toward the warrior.
The red-haired youth's skin had a sickly pallor, clearly the result of spending many years indoors without sunlight. His hands were covered in blisters from gripping the reins, indicating he rarely went out or used a mount.
As soon as he reached the warrior, tears welled up in his eyes. The red-haired youth seemed to want to speak but couldn't utter a word. At that moment, he didn't have time to wonder why Joshua happened to be at the city gate. He knelt directly, prostrating himself fully, expressing boundless respect and awe.
"Adman Carlos."
After waiting for a long time and seeing the other say nothing, just kneeling there, Joshua spoke: "The eldest son of Alfonso, why have you returned to Moldavia?"
Hearing the warrior's question, the red-haired youth, Adman Carlos, trembled violently. He raised his head slightly, not daring to meet Joshua's eyes, and spoke in a trembling voice: "Lord Count... my... my father..."
Joshua looked down at the youth who dared not meet his gaze, squinting his eyes. He recalled the first time he had seen this young man two years ago—when he was still a boy. Alfonso had introduced his eldest son to the warrior and hinted that he was willing to leave him as a hostage under the Lord's Mansion's care. But Joshua had seen the man's loyalty and felt such trouble was unnecessary, so he had bluntly refused.
Now, too much had changed. The warrior said: "Alfonso Carlos, your father, is dead. I know this."
Perhaps due to Joshua's somewhat indifferent tone, Adman's expression stiffened. But after hesitating for a moment, he replied in pain: "Lord Count, my father is dead. Uncle Darrick and the others are dead too!"
His words caused a stir among the passing pedestrians. Many exchanged glances, unsure of what was happening, but no one dared to stop and listen further.
Joshua paid no attention to such looks. He said: "Be specific. What happened?"
"Two weeks ago, one night, my father was originally calculating accounts." By now, Adman had calmed down. He swallowed dryly and spoke quickly: "But when I brought hot drinks to the study, I found that my father had already died—without any warning. He just stopped breathing. I had greeted him just minutes before!"
As he spoke, Adman's face twisted in extreme pain, tears streaming from his eyes: "Every few days, someone in the house would die like that. First, Uncle Sindar, then Uncle Darrick. I don't know if anyone else has died while I was traveling..."
"Enough."
Joshua shook his head in disappointment, his voice cold: "Is there nothing else you want to confess?"
Pressed by the warrior's aura, Adman was momentarily speechless. But from his demeanor, the warrior could tell that the youth indeed had no intention of revealing anything else.
Joshua looked up at the black night sky. The twin moons were slowly rising. He was silent for a moment, then said: "I learned of Alfonso's death several days ago. Originally, I planned to go to the Imperial Capital then to find the murderer and avenge him. But Number 3 reminded me of something."
Looking down at the trembling red-haired youth, Joshua said softly: "I don't know why, but the person who forged the financial reports was you, Adman. Your imitation of your father's handwriting was skillful, but to Number 3 and me, it was far too crude."
"Your concealment delayed the report of your father's death by two weeks." The warrior's tone was calm: "Explain it."
Hearing Joshua's words, the red-haired youth immediately looked up in terror. He seemed to want to explain, but under the warrior's cold gaze, he stammered wordlessly. Finally, Adman slowly lowered his head and spoke the truth.
The financial reports that Number 3 had initially received were indeed forged by Adman and several of Alfonso's deputies to conceal the news.
They had thought Alfonso had simply died suddenly from overwork and old injuries sustained during his early trading days. No one had considered it a planned murder. Fearing that the Lord's Mansion would send someone to take over the Carlos family's Imperial Capital assets, Adman, Sindar, and Darrick had decided to temporarily forge the financial flow reports, intending to secure the power they had gained from Alfonso's death before reporting it.
For power and wealth, even ordinary people could muster great courage—until the second and third sudden deaths occurred.
The successive deaths of Sindar, Darrick, and even other servants in the house had terrified Adman out of his wits. He immediately realized that this was a probe aimed at the Radcliffe Family, at Joshua. His concealment and failure to report had been interpreted by these unknown parties as Joshua's weakness, emboldening them further.
Frightened to the point of nervous collapse, Adman had taken his rarely used mount and fled to a small town outside the Imperial Capital. He had immediately teleported back to the northern border and then galloped all the way to the main city of Moldavia. The red-haired youth had originally intended to conceal his power struggle, but he had been seen through at a glance.
"How ugly."
Shaking his head, Joshua closed his eyes, unwilling to look at the other's disgraceful and pathetic appearance. He said calmly: "You've spent more time in the Imperial Capital than I have, so you must know the situation better... Adman, who do you think assassinated your father and his deputies?"
He did not pursue the matter of the concealment, as it was unnecessary. Joshua now only wanted to know one thing: who the enemy was.
"...The Fertao family, who operate the 'Imperial Iron Fist' chain of weapon shops. The Suwold family, who own the largest ore-producing region in the northwest."
After realizing that Joshua disdained to punish him for his concealment, Adman thought for a long while before naming these two families. After a moment's further consideration, he added a third: "Perhaps the Torredo family is also possible... Their business is magic scrolls, which has no connection to ours. But rumor has it that the old count once injured their current patriarch when he was young... These are all just guesses."
Having said this, the red-haired youth hastily appended a qualifier in fear. He wasn't sure if these families were responsible, but they were the ones competing most fiercely with the Radcliffe Family recently. Their suspicion was equally strong.
"Very good."
Nodding slightly, Joshua paid no further attention to the kneeling, trembling young man. He flew back into the sky, leaving only a cold voice behind: "Your crimes are unforgivable, but that is not for now."
"Repent. Until the revenge is complete."