Work Prophet
Chapter 547 - 165: New rulers bring their own followers

Chapter 547: Chapter 165: New rulers bring their own followers

Sir Duren hurried to the outskirts of Earl Clyde’s mansion after leaving Pork Fat Street.

From a distance, he could see a crowd gathered there, comprised mostly of minor nobles from the city and their attendants, filling up half the street.

With the unexpected death of Edward II, his eldest son, Prince Gars, was set to succeed him as the Emperor of the Empire. At this time, all the nobles in the Royal Capital were thinking about how to get closer to the New Emperor.

For those great families, it was simple enough to show goodwill directly to Prince Gars himself, but for the more numerous minor nobles, like the barons and knights, who had no right to meet Prince Gars, they turned their attention to those around the New Emperor.

Clyde, Prince Gars’s swordsmanship tutor, obviously became a prime target.

Once the New Emperor was crowned, Clyde was almost certain to be entrusted with significant responsibilities.

Lady Shade was currently hosting those visitors in the front hall, taking a list of gifts from the butler’s hands. As she looked at the listed items, her smile grew increasingly bright.

The Wendell family was no obscure minor clan; they boasted a history of nearly two thousand years, even predating the Vespasian Family.

But even the most prominent of families can fall into decline, and by Clyde’s generation, the situation had become very severe.

Although the family still appeared splendid on the surface, in reality, they were falling behind the true powerhouses and were being overtaken by rising newcomers.

Fortunately, Clyde excelled in swordsmanship and had been invited to become the swordsmanship tutor for Prince Gars, though this position was more honorary than powerful, probably less significant than a small platoon leader in the defense force.

But now everything had changed. Once Prince Gars was crowned, the Wendell family would soar to new heights, thanks to the relationship between Clyde and Gars.

A cold smile played on Shade’s lips as she remembered all those ladies and misses who had once given her the cold shoulder; she had kept them in her mind, and she would settle the scores slowly, one by one.

Just as Shade was thinking this, a guard hurriedly entered from outside and reported something to the butler.

A look of surprise appeared on the butler’s face.

"What is it, Franz?" Shade asked.

"Another new guest has arrived outside, my lady. He says he wants to see Lord Clyde."

"Clyde is not someone who can be seen by anyone who wishes to," Shade proudly stated. "How many gifts has he brought?"

"He hasn’t brought anything."

"Then what’s there to talk about? Just send away such an impolite fellow," Shade huffed dismissively.

However, before she could finish speaking, that person had already walked in from the outside.

"My apologies, I came in a bit of a rush this time and indeed didn’t manage to bring any gifts. I’ll have someone make it up later, but I am here on very important official business to see your husband."

Upon seeing the newcomer’s appearance, Shade couldn’t help but feel surprised.

"Sir Duren!"

"Lady Shade."

"Shouldn’t you be investigating the assassination of His Majesty? Why do you have time to come here?"

"As I mentioned before, I would like to have a talk with Sir Clyde."

"Why? My husband wasn’t even at the Duel Arena the day His Majesty was assassinated."

"I am aware. He was drowning his sorrows in the Deer Tavern at that time. Lady, I mean no harm. I just want to ask your husband a few questions, which might greatly help me catch the assassin."

"But Earl Clyde is not at home right now," the Countess began, her gaze wary.

"Where is he?"

"I don’t know, your... Prince Gars trusts Clyde very much, and there’s a lot for him to do at Gars’s side, so he asked Clyde to help him with those matters."

"Junlin Tower, is Sir Clyde at Junlin Tower now, and with Prince Gars?" Sir Duren frowned.

"My husband indeed went to Junlin Tower, but I can’t guarantee whether he is still there now, I can’t interfere in men’s affairs."

"All right, thank you."

Upon hearing this, Sir Duren didn’t waste any more time there, but as he was leaving, he paused slightly and pointed at a marble statue in the courtyard,

"I didn’t know that Sir Clyde was a follower of the Wind God Papagani."

"Clyde isn’t. He’s just genuinely interested in these stones. He has collected many such sculptures, different gods, heroes, but what’s the same is that they are all masterpieces, perfect works of art, which also means they are incredibly expensive."

The Imperial Forest Guard Captain didn’t say anything more, nodded his head, and continued to walk out.

People quickly stepped aside to give him space as he passed by, as if avoiding plague.

Although only less than half a day had passed, with Edward II’s assassination, many people’s destinies had changed that day.

If one were to say who was currently most popular in the Royal Capital, it would be Prince Gars and those close to him; the least popular would probably be Duren.

Although on the Bratis Continent there’s no such saying as "new king, new courtiers," during a transfer of power, those who were trusted by the former emperor rarely get to keep their positions.

Moreover, Duren bears an inescapable responsibility for Edward’s death, and he himself had sworn to renounce his noble status and leave the Royal Capital.

In other words, this once high and mighty Imperial Forest Guard Captain was not far from a complete downfall.

And it wasn’t just that, the key issue was that he was still investigating the death of Edward II, and nobody wanted to get involved with that at this time; they wished they could stay as far away from him as possible.

Sir Duren could feel the disdain and distance from those around him; he left Earl Clyde’s mansion without a word and mounted his warhorse.

Imperial Forest Guard Captain headed on without a word, having ridden about two streets when he encountered a teenager dressed as a commoner, who picked up a fist-sized stone from the ground and suddenly hurled it at him.

Sir Duren’s reaction was swift. Before the stone hit his armor, he had already drawn his sword and sliced the stone in two.

But when he looked up again, he saw the teenager darting away into a narrow alley.

Because the alley was so narrow, Imperial Forest Guard Captain decided to dismount and pursue on foot.

Undoubtedly he was superior in both speed and strength to the slender teenager, but the latter was more familiar with the area.

So for a while, Sir Duren couldn’t catch him, and the two continued to chase and flee, until Lord Duren voluntarily stopped.

Seeing that he was no longer in pursuit, the teenager also stopped running and began making faces at him from ahead.

Sir Duren wasn’t angry but simply said, "All right, there’s hardly anyone here now, call out the person behind you."

The teenager looked as if he didn’t understand what was said, his face full of confusion.

Turning back to Sir Duren, he already had his sword in hand, standing still and waiting.