Seeing Karl remain silent, Leon assumed his words were having an effect. He pressed on, lowering his voice further, lacing it with a bewitching force:
"Besides, having fought alongside Lord Karl for years, we know you fairly well. We know that you and Earl Rochefort, the Northern Territory Governor defending Fran City, share an exceptionally close bond. Otherwise, why would he spare no effort in providing you with support in hard coin, even dispatching his most elite troops to rescue you when you were in danger?"
"We even have reason to suspect that your relationship with the Earl's dashing daughter, Charlotte Knight, is perhaps... more than that of ordinary friends?"
Karl smiled at that, but his gaze was cold as a blade. "If you intend to use that to inform on me to Your Majesty in the Royal Capital, save yourself the trouble. I've already divorced the princess."
"You misunderstand, Lord Karl!" Leon hurriedly waved his hands, piling a false smile onto his face. "We have no interest whatsoever in your private life, nor do we intend to use it as leverage. We merely wish to remind you, my lord, that the current situation is no longer what it used to be."
His tone turned solemn and incendiary. "The Goldflower Kingdom is beset by troubles within and without. Anyone with eyes can see that the grand edifice is on the verge of collapse! That widow and orphan in the Royal Capital—Empress Dowager Katerina rules from behind the curtain, while the young King Sigmund is cowardly and incompetent. The nobles are divided in heart and loyalty, and rebellions blaze across the south! We believe that, with your great talent and strategy, Lord Karl, you are certainly not the sort of foolish loyalist willing to be buried alongside that mother and son!"