Chapter 431: Each Having Their Own Calculations

The expected scene of His Majesty commanding the immediate arrest of Jesus upon the accusation failed to materialize.

To this, Sophia was quite resigned.

After all, she was merely a stranger claiming to hail from some unknown continent, whereas her target of accusation was a member of the Alduin royal family, a high noble of this realm.

Imagine a stranger proclaiming your own brother a demon; would you choose to believe this outsider, or the flesh and blood you had raised beside since childhood?

This was especially true given that Jesus betrayed not a single tremor of panic.

"Everyone knows that Wushan Castle has long attributed the Bolante Bandit Gang to my clandestine backing, harboring a fierce enmity toward Moonlight Valley. Before, when Rulance was ill, Wushan Castle chose forbearance. What, now that your strength is not only restored but has reached greater heights, you deem it time to exact your vengeance upon me?"

"Lest you forget, I am a count of the realm, His Majesty’s own blood brother. Do you truly expect to sentence me to death simply by dragging in a random stranger to crown me with a demonic title?"

Jesus sneered, "Rulance, you are, after all, the 'Marquis of Thunder,' solemnly invested by my late father, Alduin IV. How is it that as you grow older, your mind grows simpler?"

He intended to warp this accusation into a mere feud between Moonlight Valley and the Wushan Domain, thereby extricating himself.

Rulance cast a cool glance at him. "All these years have passed, yet your knack for shifting blame remains entirely unchanged. I am sorry to disappoint you, but Sophia’s accusation is strictly her own affair, bearing no relation to me, Ronin, or Wushan Castle."

"You wish to exploit our grievance to brand Sophia as a mere pawn under my direction, framing you out of malice. You think far too simplistically."

Saying this, he glanced at Sophia. "Since she dares to publicly denounce you as one of the Witch-Soul race, she naturally possesses ample reason and proof!"

"Oh?"

Bruno’s gaze flickered between Rulance and Jesus a couple of times before settling upon Sophia. "Then, what is your evidence?"

"A grand magus using spiritual intent can perceive a surging, sinister dark energy upon Jesus. That is the very brand of the Witch-Soul race."

Even as Sophia spoke, her fingers rapidly traced an arcane, profound spell sigil.

Seven or eight seconds later, the water elements of heaven and earth converged violently into the great hall. A torrent of water, no thicker than a thumb yet exceedingly sharp and fierce, shot forth from before her, piercing through a hundred meters to burst out of the palace gates and into the sky.

"This is the eighth-tier magic, 'Water Severance'!"

Randall, the most knowledgeable present, rose in shock, staring incredulously at Sophia. Could this young woman, who looked no older than thirty, truly be a powerful grand magus?

The magic had dissipated, yet the chill brought by the Water Severance still lingered in the grand hall.

That thin streak of water, which had flashed by as swiftly as light, left an indelible impression in everyone's mind; they had no doubt that even the finest enchanted steel shield in the kingdom could not withstand such a blow.

Sophia did this merely to prove her status as a grand magus. Pointing at Jesus, she looked toward Bruno. "At this very moment, I can feel that Jesus is suffused with dark energy. He is indeed of the Witch-Soul race!"

"Heh, there are no other grand magi here. Who can verify that your words are true? Furthermore, I inherently possess the dark attribute. Surely you cannot claim that anyone with dark energy belongs to the Witch-Soul race?"

Jesus was panicking internally, yet he sat back down with forced composure. "If you must insist on such logic, then fine. My niece Blanche, Ronin’s future wife, is a necromancer. Is she to be deemed a Witch-Soul as well?"

Bruno’s face darkened. The matter of the necromancer was a secret known to very few; he had not expected Jesus to bring it up in public.

At this, the expression of Duke Valgis twitched unnaturally.

A necromancer... could the curse upon Blanche truly be real?

His poor eldest grandson and second grandson...

Sophia looked toward Ronin. Initially, she intended to reveal that Ronin was also a grand magus who could corroborate her words.

But recalling that Ronin had not exposed his prowess as a mage, and furthermore, that Jesus had already bound her fate to Rulance, even if she spoke of Ronin’s strength, the opponent would simply deny it.

Thus, the words died on the tip of her tongue.

Therefore, the crux of the matter now lay entirely on how Bruno would handle the situation.

"Respected His Majesty the King, surely you already know the wickedness and terror of the Witch-Soul race. Their existence poses a monumental threat to your kingdom! Even if my solitary accusation cannot fully earn your trust, I implore you to take necessary measures to restrain him first, and then summon other grand magi to verify it."

Yet at this moment, His Majesty the King was not pondering this matter; instead, he was calculating the pinnacle combat forces of the Wushan Domain.

Aside from Rulance and Ronin, who were both of the Silver Moon rank, it was known that the Wushan Domain also possessed Meronica, a Meteor Knight, and the Grand Mage Miroslav, who sided with them. Moreover, the Northern Wu Domain seemed to harbor another light-attributed Grand Mage?

Such a lineup was already exceptionally luxurious and elite, yet Bruno had never anticipated that the Northern Wu Domain would also possess a powerhouse of the grand magus level!

With so many top-tier combat forces, even if the royal family wished to move against the Wushan Domain, it would cost them dearly.

Furthermore...

Frowning as he looked toward Jesus, he even began to suspect whether the entire affair was truly as his brother claimed—that everything was a conspiracy of Rulance to eradicate Moonlight Valley using the guise of the Witch-Soul race.

Bruno wished to support the Wushan Domain to balance the three great forces east of the capital, yet he did not desire to see the Wushan Domain dominate unopposed either.

Moonlight Valley could clash with the Wushan Domain, but the royal family would absolutely never involve itself.

If Rulance falsely accused Jesus of being a Witch-Soul, the royal family would be forced to deploy troops to suppress Moonlight Valley.

Moreover, if the news that the King's own brother was a demon were to spread, the dignity of the royal family would inevitably suffer.

Garret, who had remained silent all along, perhaps divined what his father was thinking. However, some words were inconvenient for the sovereign to utter, so he, as the crown prince, took the initiative to break the impasse.

"To categorize my uncle as a minion of demons based on unverifiable evidence renders such an accusation far from credible."

Garret cast a cool look at Sophia, then shook his head. "Furthermore, your origin relies entirely on your own word. Whether another continent truly exists remains equally impossible for us to determine!"

"I agree with Garret's words."

Duke Ference spoke up in support, "I, too, have heard of Orson from the Wushan Domain, and I know of the uncanniness and threat of the Witch-Soul race. Yet to attempt to accuse Jesus with a reason that cannot withstand scrutiny strikes me as somewhat unreasonable."

Jesus smiled faintly. "My thanks to Second Brother for speaking on my behalf!"

Ference offered a subtle smile; he was not speaking specifically for Jesus, for he harbored his own designs.

Now that the Kingdom of Tricia was plagued by internal strife, the Kingdom of Alduin faced no external pressure of war.

If the Kingdom of Alduin were also to fall into internal chaos, might he avoid deploying troops to Tricia, thereby carving out achievements within the realm?

Previously, there was no root cause for internal strife, but now there was.

At this moment, Andrea spoke up as well.

"I also concur with His Highness the Crown Prince. Accusations require evidence that everyone can see. If it is known to you alone, then today you claim Jesus is a Witch-Soul, tomorrow Myron is a Witch-Soul, and the day after, it will fall upon my head."

He smiled faintly. "Rulance could just seize the opportunity, using the royal army to eliminate the three major sources of conflict around the Wushan Domain in one fell swoop."

Randall hesitated a moment. "Perhaps I could invite my grandfather to Golden Feather City to let him perceive it?"

Myron chuckled and said, "Is there truly a need to trouble Lord Belora for such a matter? Moreover, even if he truly senses dark energy upon Jesus, how are you to distinguish whether it is merely Jesus's dark-attributed battle aura?"

He spread his hands. "It remains entirely unprovable."

Broll also voiced his perspective.

"That day on the battlefield, I witnessed with my own eyes Orson transformed into a Witch-Soul; his demeanor and manner of speaking were completely different from his normal state, an aftereffect of becoming a Witch-Soul."

He frowned. "Yet Count Jesus today appears entirely normal, with nothing seemingly amiss."

Jesus looked toward Sophia. "Publicly slandering a royal noble, are you prepared to bear the consequences of your crime?"