Chapter 165

"Oh?" Ryan asked, puzzled. "Who is it?"

He said his name was Jonathan.

Ryan was stunned. "Holy crap, Old Joe!"

Jonathan stood on the open ground outside the camp, took out a cigarette, lit it, took a couple of puffs, and turned to look at the Iron Blood Army's temporary encampment.

He was wearing a gray trench coat, his hair was a bit messy, and he had a stubble beard, making him look like a disheveled forty-year-old man.

When Ryan emerged from the camp, a glimmer of light finally appeared in his listless eyes.

"Old Captain!"

Ryan strode out of the camp. "You're not dead!"

"Cough cough cough!" Jonathan choked violently. "What nonsense are you talking about? Do I look like a dead man?"

"Uh, I heard from Lin Qi that you were injured and disappeared for so many days. I thought something had happened to you."

"Go away! I'm perfectly fine!" Jonathan waved his hand, exhaled a puff of smoke to catch his breath, and looked Ryan up and down with a cigarette in his mouth. "You're the one who's been hiding it well, kid. You fooled me."

"Uh, Captain, I had no choice." Ryan shrugged. "Believe it or not, I really consider you a friend, Old Joe. It's just that some things are beyond my control."

Since Old Joe came to him, Ryan knew that the other party at least didn't intend to kill him. Since there was room for conversation, he didn't hide anything. There was no excuse; he had simply chosen sides. There was no other way.

Jonathan took it in stride, mainly because the Old Emperor was dead, and he no longer had someone to serve.

"I came to you not to hear these things," Jonathan interrupted Ryan. "There's no right or wrong in terms of stance. I can see that you genuinely care about the people of the Empire. I'm here to ask you for a favor."

"Oh? What kind of help?"

"The Burning Covenant: Recently, there has been a widespread search for Fire Chaser throughout Baron City. If this continues, Fire Chaser will be extinguished. You are, after all, a member of the Burning Covenant, so please think of a solution for me."

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "Old Joe, what level are you exactly?"

"Let me put it this way," Jonathan said, throwing his cigarette on the ground and stomping it out. "I founded Chasing Fire, but later, due to some events, I left the Imperial Capital, and then His Your Majesty took direct control of Chasing Fire."

Really!

Ryan knew that Old Joe definitely had a big...

"So, although the Burning Covenant has become a mess, I still don't want to see it perish like this. In my heart, Fire Chaser should be a sharp sword to protect the empire. His Your Majesty ultimately went down the wrong path, otherwise it wouldn't have turned out like this."

"Then why don't you go to Vainay? The Fire Chaser is spread throughout the empire, she should be happy to take over this power."

"Her?" Jonathan scoffed. "To be honest, I don't trust her. I even went to Silver Peak City to ask her about your situation, and she actually said she didn't know anything. That woman's acting skills are truly amazing. I didn't see through it at all. It was all her plan!"

"Of course, if she hadn't gotten involved with that Saintess, I wouldn't be so worried. But now that Saintess Janus has joined the High Lord Council, what does that even mean? If I hand over the Burning Covenant to her, I'm afraid she'll sell it off for a fortune the next second."

Jonathan had no hostility toward the Gate of Janus, but they were simply not on the same wavelength. The mighty Augustus Empire was not so destitute that it needed the Gate of Janus to intervene.

Anyway, he was unhappy.

"In any case, to avoid repeating the same mistake, the Fire Chaser faction cannot be handed over to the emperor for personal control again, but I can't think of any other way, so I can only ask you for help. You are now a favorite of the Grand Duke and High Lord in the empire, so you can't forget your brother."

Although Jonathan spoke in a joking tone, Ryan knew he was genuinely concerned about the Burning Covenant.

The empire needs a sharp sword; this fire must not be extinguished.

Ryan understood, and he asked, "So what do you mean?"

"I was considering whether to hand over the Burning Covenant to Princess Caslathdi, but I don't want to see the empire in chaos again. Ambitious people will inevitably start wars once they have power. Augustus's strength should be used for external conflicts, not wasted on things like civil war."

"In that case, why don't you just go to the Tribunal and merge the Burning Covenant with the Tribunal?" Ryan said. "At the previous meeting, Princess Vainay seemed to have this idea. If the Chief Inquisitor were to also be a High Lord, then the Burning Covenant would have something to rely on."

"The Tribunal? Those guys who only wag their tails to the nobles? I don't trust them."

"That's why they need change, which I think is a good thing."

Jonathan stroked his chin. "If it's confirmed that this will work, that would be great... but this would strengthen the Empire's power, which might not be very friendly to Magana."

Ryan chuckled, "The Grand Duke's personality is actually not that suitable for the Emperor. Becoming the Emperor would have been her downfall."

Jonathan asked in surprise, "Aren't you afraid she'll kill you?"

"What are you afraid of? No one else can hear us. Why don't you go and see if she believes me or you?"

"Tch~ I'm not going... How about this, if possible, could you help me set up a connection? I'd like to have a chat with Her Vainay Vienne."

Jonathan's eyes lit up, and he suddenly had a good idea. Since he didn't trust the Emperor and didn't trust the Tribunal, and since there was no other way, he might as well pack up the Fire Chaser and hand it over to Ryan.

Although he was wrong in terms of his stance, he believed that his judgment of character was correct.

Ryan is genuinely concerned for the people of the Empire, and isn't that the core principle of the Burning Covenant?

I just don't know if the new emperor will agree.

First update! Just to clarify, considering the protagonist needs to control the country and wield power, some Alts will exist specifically for this purpose. I won't spend too much time describing these secondary Alts. Basically, only characters with clearly defined important career paths will be given significant attention; otherwise, their character development will be insufficient.

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