Release That Witch

0"..." Gerald knew that he was now backed into a corner, and all he could do was to drag his younger brother together to hell. At this moment, he was actually calm, "Do you just want to get rid of me?"     0

"Get rid of you? No, that's of no help to me, my dear brother. I had no choice but to resort to this." Timothy's tone was still calm as if he was stating a fact. "If I had patiently waited for five years, I would probably end up having to face Garcia's pirate army. Do you know what she has been up to recently?"     

Gerald shook his head and estimated the distance between himself and the 2nd Prince. He remembered his younger brother was very smart since childhood, but he was not good at riding and battle. As long as he could find the opportunity to rush forward to cut off...     

"She is forming her own army, Brother. Really, I admire her. She did this even before the Royal Decree on the Selection of Crown Prince. Even I, did not expect this from her. When we were children, we all got along so harmoniously. How did we end up here, planning to kill each other?" He said, and then retreated two steps." For example, I'm afraid now you just want to split me into two halves with your sword, right?"     

"..."     

"I know it, Brother. You are still the same as before. When you want to kill, your eyes have a horrific stare," Timothy sighed. "Let me tell you honestly. I want to terminate the Royal Decree on the Selection of Crown Prince. If not, the fleet of Garcia would be waiting for me five years later. She had already controlled the Port of Clearwater a few years ago. And Valencia was suitable for creating businessmen, but not for raising fighters."     

"I need an army that can resist Garcia's fleet, and this can't be achieved by a trade city." Gerald Wimbledon, tomorrow you'll be judged because you left your domain and assassinated the king. I have to return to Valencia tonight to make preparations before the bad news spreads to the Eastern Region. I'll be deeply sad, and step up rightfully as the second successor. And you'll be sent to the guillotine on the charges of killing the king."     

"You..!" Gerald screamed and rushed toward his younger brother, but the distance was too great. His sword was intercepted by two armored guards. Then his calf numbed, as a dagger pierced his calf. Gerald suddenly lost his balance and fell crooked to the ground. The crowd swarmed forward, and he was tightly pressed to the ground, bound and unable to move.     

"Judge? Do you think you're qualified to judge me? I'll divulge all of this, and let the people who support you know what kind of monster you are!"     

"Of course you won't, my brother," said Timothy patiently. "The Alchemic Workshop has a medicine called 'Forgotten Language', which is made up of mixed lizard venom and horse's milk from the sandy land of the Southern Territory. After drinking it, you won't be able to make any sound. Rest assured you won't feel any pain. Instead, the taste is sweet, smooth and quite intoxicating. If you want to blame someone, then blame our talented sister. If not for her, I would not have to do this."     

He waved to the leader of the guards, and the latter also nodded in reply and saluted. The royal prince was pulled out of the palace. The other armored guards also filed out. Finally, only the 2nd Prince and Astrologer Ansger were left.     

"Your Highness, your throne is now secured, so I should call you Your Majesty," Astrologer Ansger said bowing.     

"You did really well, and when I get on the throne of the Kingdom of Graycastle, I will fulfill our arrangement. But...seeing my brother's tragic appearance today, I feel certain promises should be accompanied by a guarantee clause."     

The astrologer's expression immediately changed. "Your Highness, you mean..."     

"Don't worry. I just don't want to be betrayed." Timothy pulled out a wax pill from his arms. "You must have seen this quite often. The wax pill's shell takes seven days to completely dissolve, about the same time it takes for me to return from the king's city to Valencia. I've used the position of Chief Astrologer as the price for your collaboration, and I don't wish for others to pull you away at a higher price."     

"Your Highness... you must be joking." The astrologer's face turned white blank. Yet he still bit the bullet and swallowed the wax pill in the end.     

"Smart choice," said Timothy nodding with satisfaction. "Now you can go."     

...     

When the palace was empty, the 2nd Prince's face was gloomy.     

He grabbed the porcelain on the bedside table and thrashed it on the ground. The porcelain was smashed into pieces. A guard came in immediately. "Your Highness?"     

"Get out!" He roared.     

"Yes." The latter quickly headed out of the room and shut the door.     

[Damn it! Things shouldn't be this way!]     

His plan did not include killing his father. By virtue of the king's preference, he just needed to highlight Garcia's actions to the king and stop her. Plus he had Prince Gerald Wimbledon as bait.     

Timothy thought that his plan was infallible. He used the position of Chief Astrologer to lure Gerald's enlightenment mentor—the low ranking Astrologer Ansger in the Astrologers Association, into writing a letter to Gerald. And Gerald got hooked quite quickly. This was also in line with Timothy's judgement. His elder brother was stronger at fighting than thinking, whilst not willing to hand over the throne.     

The next few letters stirred up the ambition of the first Prince Gerald, and Timothy also finished preparing the next step. When the last letter with the astrological prophecy was issued, he secretly returned to the king's city, to reveal the news that the first Prince Gerald might be planning a takeover. There was no doubt that once the matter was confirmed, his father would fly into a rage and send the first Prince Gerald into prison. He would face either imprisonment to death or exile.     

Then, his father would look upon the other children, and Garcia who was expanding her army rapidly, would certainly be a natural choice.     

But... why did it turn out like that? Father heard his news, smiled strangely instead, pulled out a dagger, and pierced his own chest!     

Everything happened so fast that Timothy could not react in time, and could only watch his father die in front of him.     

He sat down feebly along the bedside. For the first time, he felt he was also a pawn in a game of chest. Father's last smile was like a nightmare, making him feel creepy. He went over the whole thing repeatedly, and even examined the body, but still, could not find a clue—why would father do that?     

He also suspected that this person was a fake. But he could find no evidence, and even the hidden wound at the back was a match.     

Knowing Gerald was about to arrive at the king's city, he had to pretend to be calm, and replace the whole program. He would blame the death of King Wimbledon III onto Gerald, and then use his position as second heir to succeed the throne ahead of time. As long as the coronation was smooth, he would no longer be subject to territorial restrictions. This meant he could directly mobilize the power of the Duke of the Southern Territory to threaten Garcia and force her to give up the Port of Clearwater.     

So it seemed that the outcome was not bad either, but Timothy could not help but feel uneasy... as if there were an invisible hand, that had unsuspectingly joined the struggles at the Kingdom of Graycastle. However, he was completely ignorant about it.     

At the moment, other than firmly grasping the throne, he had no choice. Timothy Wimbledon swore to himself. If he found out who was behind this, he would be sure to let the culprit know the consequences of annoying a king!