Assassination
Commodus did not need to introduce him; everyone knew that the person beneath that Pursuit Gladiator helmet was Autrus.
Though the helmet concealed Autrus's face, there was no doubt that this was the closest anyone had ever come to the most mysterious advisor at Commodus's side.
Of everyone present, Zhang Heng was probably the only one who knew this was not Autrus himself.
It was not that no one could imagine Autrus using a double. Rather, at this time and on this occasion, no one believed Autrus would use one.
This was the day he stepped out of the shadows and onto the stage, about to reap unparalleled power.
Like a crown prince ascending the throne, or a groom on his wedding night... there were always moments in life that one could neither entrust to another nor wish to. Klind understood this well. If he were in Autrus's position, he would have had to appear in person today no matter what.
Besides, Autrus was, plainly speaking, only a name. Whoever appeared now and stood beside Commodus would naturally become Autrus—the Autrus acknowledged by everyone. Even if he were a fake, from this day onward he would become real, becoming the second most powerful figure at the pinnacle of power, beneath only Commodus.
Klind clenched his fists, his gaze toward that figure complicated. He knew that once Autrus showed himself and stepped into the sunlight, it meant that he had essentially lost this struggle for power.
Although most of the people around him still stood by his side, Klind knew why they did so. Since Autrus never showed himself, standing closer to Klind meant standing closer to the center of power. In a sense, Klind represented Commodus's will.
But from today onward, things would no longer be that way, because