Chapter 118

The exchange meeting did not immediately end after all the research results presented by the alchemists and physicians had been displayed.

This would normally be an opportunity for the nobles to engage in conversation with them.

However, the Lord of Desinia did not follow the usual path.

He was the last alchemist to go on stage to present his research findings, but he was also the first nobleman to leave the conference immediately after stepping down from the stage.

--He vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye, leaving no chance to say another word.

Orville and Archibald exchanged a puzzled look, and shortly after, they also got up and left the auction house.

On the first night, Ferdinand and Walker went out together and did not return.

Meanwhile, two brilliant alchemists from the Sheri Hall came to visit Lord Desinia, and they did not return.

The next morning.

Some people saw Yinke Ken and Feilifu Kiel walk out of the Sheri Hall again, looking somewhat gloomy. After returning to their temporary lodgings, they began to stay indoors.

In the morning, Prince Warner suddenly arrived for a visit.

Cyrus seemed to be planning to leave as soon as the exchange meeting was over, and she declined any further invitations.

But he didn't go; when someone came to visit him in person, he had to consider whether or not to meet them.

After all, there are some people you can choose not to see, but there are others you cannot.

Especially someone of Warner Gales's stature, one has to give him some face.

Warner Gales ' purpose in visiting was to discuss a collaboration between the Imperial Royal Family and the Thorn Merchant Guild with Cyrus.

He hoped that the Thorn Merchant Guild could also establish branches in the Saint Airo Empire.

The royal family has given its permission, but once the merchant guild's branch is established, it will be required to pay taxes to the empire.

Cyrus had no objection.

This is the proper thing to do, but the amount of tax to be paid needs to be discussed in detail.

Moreover, he wondered why Warner Gales wanted to work with him.

--Should the Thorn Merchant Guild be established within the Empire?

Isn't the Ed Merchant Guild the absolute dominant force within the Empire? Even the Nagabi Merchant Guild can't outdo it in the Saint Airo Empire...

Thomas, the Grand Elder of the Ed Merchant Guild, is narrow-minded; this is evidenced by the fact that he colluded with some nobles to exclude foreign merchant guilds.

It's not just the Thorn Merchant Guild.

Some small chambers of commerce could no longer survive due to the exclusion and suppression by the Ed Merchant Guild, and were inevitably acquired afterward.

Moreover, if the Nagabi Merchant Guild hadn't been powerful enough, it would have long since ceased operations in the Saint Airo Empire.

Warner Gales told Cyrus that old Thomas was short-sighted and his decisions were sometimes so foolish that the Empire needed to control the economy and could not allow the Ed Merchant Guild to hinder the development of the Empire's finances.

Moreover, the president's only son is also a useless individual.

The eldest prince would naturally not speak so directly.

But in essence, that's the gist of it—at least that's how Cyrus understood it: the Ed Merchant Guild needs to further strengthen its constraints.

However, the influence of the Nagabi Merchant Guild in the Saint Airo Empire alone is not enough. After all, although the Nagabi Merchant Guild is powerful enough, it cannot suppress the local bullies.

Cyrus replied, "The Thorn Merchant Guild has a cooperative relationship with the Nagabi Merchant Guild, and the Desinia Territory is allied with the Anas Kingdom..."

"Isn't Your Highness afraid that the Ed Merchant Guild will eventually be completely suppressed, and that the Saint Airo Empire's economy and wealth will suffer...?"

The unspoken words are clear to everyone.

Warner Gales said, "In any case, the Ed Merchant Guild still has the royal family as its backer."

But the president of the Ed Merchant Guild couldn't overstep his bounds, like hunting in the Boer Mountain Hunting Grounds... Warner was very unhappy with his clandestine actions.

The events of that day must be thoroughly investigated.

The viscount's desire to harm the beast was entirely due to the instigation of the Grand Master. Of course, the Marquis Galli's influence was also undeniable.

Warner was unhappy that the two men were completely disregarding the bigger picture because of their personal grudges. If the situation really escalated to an extremely serious point, they would be the culprits who instigated the conflict between Desinia and the Empire.

Neither Warner nor Cyrus explicitly stated this matter, but they probably both understood it implicitly.

Cyrus understood.

--This was merely an attempt to use them to give the Ed Merchant Guild a warning, to make its president more obedient and prioritize the Empire above all else.

Although the Empire allows the Thorn Merchant Guild and the Nagabi Merchant Guild to join forces to suppress them, it will not allow the two guilds to bypass the Ed Merchant Guild.

This is a win-win strategy for both the royal family and Cyrus —the royal family needs the Ed Merchant Guild to become an obedient dog, while the Thorn Merchant Guild can establish itself in the Saint Airo Empire.

Cyrus ultimately agreed to Prince Warner's request for cooperation.

As the two continued their discussion, a servant suddenly knocked softly on the door. Judas went to open it—

When Judas returned, he glanced at Warner and, without lowering his voice, said to Cyrus, "My lord, Princess Rennal wishes to visit you..."

Cyrus was surprised and also glanced at Warner.

And clearly, Warner Gales was unaware that his sister was coming to visit a lord... who should have no connection to her.

In fact, Judas hadn't finished speaking—besides Princess Rennal, the other person visiting Cyrus was Shamir Phoebe, the daughter of the Marquis Galli.

Cyrus means she doesn't want to see him.

A girl who hadn't said a word to him came to see him. What's going on?

But regardless of the circumstances, his refusal to meet with them is a clear stance.

After understanding Cyrus's meaning, Warner got up to say goodbye, saying before leaving, "Looking forward to seeing you again."

He held this Desinia lord in high esteem.

Cyrus smiled politely at him and personally saw him out.

He stopped in his tracks when he arrived at the entrance of the Sheri Hall.

Then, after watching Warner Gales walk out, he stopped in front of two cloaked girls—one with beautiful blonde hair and the other a petite girl with long, silver-white hair.

Cyrus stood in the magnificent hall of the clubhouse, looking out.

He was too far away to see clearly, but he suddenly met a pair of distinctive eyes.

--Those eyes held obvious shyness and barely perceptible disappointment, then suddenly filled with surprise and joy when they met his gaze...

Cyrus was taken aback.

Is this female lead... really watching him?!

Shouldn't that kind of gaze be directed at the male lead Warner Gales?!

Before Cyrus could think further, Warner quickly left the Sheri Hall with his slightly disappointed sister, Lennar, and Shamir Phoebe.

Cyrus stopped worrying about it.

In the afternoon, he pulled Orville and Archibald aside to talk about some things.

That evening, Ferdinand and Walker returned separately.

One of them went ahead to scout out the route before leaving, the daily duty schedule of the royal city guards, how to avoid being watched by various parties, and how to leave the imperial city smoothly, etc.

One of them led his men to reason with and appeal to the emotions of those listed in the lord's pamphlet.

First try courtesy, then resort to force; if they don't submit, tie them up.

After the Alchemists and Physicians Exchange concludes, it will be necessary to wait for the research findings presented at the meeting to be verified.

Only after this did the nobles recognize and recruit alchemists or physicians.

Before this, no one usually leaves.

The day before the research results were to be verified, Ferdinand and Walker each led a squad of soldiers out again.

Meanwhile, at the invitation of Orville and Archibald, Cyrus, along with her beasts, butler, and others, left the Sheri Hall. They were heading to a small forest outside the Imperial City to enjoy the lake view and hunt...

By evening, Grand Duke Orville and Prince Archibald returned, but Desinia was nowhere to be seen.

This puzzled the distinguished guests at the Sheri Hall.

Orville said, "He went back."

"Go back? Go back where?!"

Orville looked at the person who had asked the question with a puzzled expression, "Naturally, it's to leave the Empire and return to the Desinia Territory."

Otherwise, where can they go back to?

Gena Kozmo's eyes flickered, he raised an eyebrow, his expression enigmatic.

The man was even more puzzled. "But tomorrow is the day the research results are verified, and everyone should be going to the auction house again..."

Archibald sneered coldly, "You don't need to worry about that."

"The Lord of Desinia left early, of course, because he didn't need anyone to verify his research results, and besides..."

Moreover, Archibald didn't continue.

No one else dared to ask a question about a prince.

The early departure of the Lord of Desinia from the Saint Airo Empire is indeed nothing to worry about.

But his early departure was conditional on him not secretly plotting anything!

The next day, many nobles found that things were getting out of hand.

Inside the auction hall, the small meeting to verify the alchemical results did not convene as scheduled.

Because the son of the president of the Ed Merchant Guild went missing and did not return all night.

Of course, it wasn't surprising that he didn't come home all night, because the president's son Jared, had a mistress and had recently started a secret affair with a widow.

--It's common for him to stay out all night and not go home.

However, in the morning, the servant who was with Jared suddenly returned, saying that he had been knocked unconscious by the roadside and that when he woke up, his young master was gone.

Thomas, the general manager of the Ed Merchant Guild, then became anxious.

Afterwards, Elder Thomas asked the eldest prince for help.

After a search by the Royal Knights, they finally found Jared lying naked on a bed in an old, abandoned, dilapidated house.

But he wasn't the only one in bed.

When the eldest prince Warner, who had been asked for help, some nobles, and the royal knights who broke down the door saw the scene inside the house, their expressions were hard to describe.

Thomas, the president of the Ed Merchant Guild, looked as if he had been punched, his face turning blue and red, extremely unsightly.

Because the person who was also stripped naked and tied face-to-face with Jared was none other than the Marquis Galli.

The two had their mouths gagged with cloth, their bodies pressed tightly together... Although their clothes had been removed, they were covered with a blanket of moderate thickness, so they wouldn't get cold, but they weren't warm either.

Amidst the frowns, grimaces, and bewildered, strange expressions of the crowd, old Thomas finally recovered from his shock.

He angrily stepped forward and untied the rope, while ordering his servants to take off their coats and drape them over his son to prevent him from catching a cold.

As for Marquis Galli, he could only wrap himself in a blanket for the time being, his face flushed red, and he wished he could just throw himself into the devil's arms...

He cried out in shame and indignation, "It was Desinia who kidnapped us and brought us here!"

The Marquis Galli's servants were tied up and thrown elsewhere.

Cyrus didn't actually intend to do that.

But they were just unlucky, and things just happened to be that way.

-- Jared got involved with a widow.

The Marquis Galli's long-time lover, the widow Lady Ailei, happened to know this widow, and they lived not far from each other. They even chose the same day to have their trysts with the widow...

When Ferdinand reported the results of his investigation to Cyrus, he immediately had this brilliant idea.

The upright knight commander had no objection and obeyed the order.

Amid the frenzied search for his son by the president of the Ed Merchant Guild, many witnessed his son's "sleeping friendship" with the bald Marquis Galli.

This is considered a "scandal".

Warner ordered his men not to tell anyone.

They outwardly agreed, but secretly used it as gossip. Before long, almost all the upper-class nobles knew about it and secretly mocked it.

The Marquis Galli eventually fell ill from anger and stayed home, while the Grand Master's son, Jared, also didn't want to go out during this time.

Furthermore, the relationship between Thomas, the Grand Elder of the Ed Merchant Guild, and the Marquis Galli once reached a freezing point.

That's a story for another time.

After Warner led the Royal Knights to find the missing persons, a verification meeting was still required to confirm the alchemical results. They went to the auction house, but soon discovered that some alchemists were missing.

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Especially those two young, genius alchemists.

The two alchemists had been staying at home since leaving the Sheri Hall, but no one answered the door when they knocked. When they kicked the door open, the house was already empty.

After searching around, Warner and the others couldn't help but wonder if all the alchemists had been taken away by Desinia!

At this moment, the head steward of the Ed Merchant Guild came to visit.

He just went to invite Master Chipman Norton.

But the alchemist master's residence was now deserted. Even his apprentice, Beijin, was nowhere to be found. The servants, along with some important alchemical items and daily necessities from the room, had all vanished.

"Did Master Norton also get taken away by Desinia?!" someone exclaimed.

With a "bang".

Elder Thomas was so enraged that he fainted and collapsed to the ground.