Chapter 107

Critic’s Report: “Lane Blood Night, Over a Hundred Key Members of Nine Departments Dead or Injured!”

New Industrial Gazette: “Massacre of Many Mid-level Members of the Lane Family, Arms Company Suspected to Halt Operations!”

Royal Post: “Mournfully Remembering the Deceased Members of the Lane Family”

Horn Alley Report: “The Fall of Lionheart? The Kingdom’s Two Pillars May Exit History’s Stage”

Sun Newspaper: “Shocking! The Lane Family Slaughtered Last Night, the Murderer is Actually…”

“…”

An investigation mission that almost wiped out an entire clan? Is this how you make me feel at ease, kid?

After reading through the front-page headlines of over ten newspapers, the Red-haired Bureau Director felt a surge of热血 rush to his brain, making him feel a bit lightheaded.

It’s the end of the year! The annual review is coming up soon!

At a time like this, a large-scale casualty event occurs in the Capital City, and the victims are from the great nobility. The Virgo Bureau’s performance, which had just started improving this year, will definitely plummet straight to dead last!

And compared to the catastrophic drop in performance, there seems to be even more unfortunate news…

Looking at the front page of the Sun Newspaper, where there was a photo of Leon still reaching out towards Bobby Lane’s corpse, even as he lay on the ground covered in blood, along with the bolded label marking him as the murderer, the Red-haired Bureau Director couldn’t help but sigh deeply to the heavens, feeling as if one headache has turned into two.

Although it was only published in the Sun Newspaper and not in the Capital Times or the Royal Post, how did you manage to get yourself locked up in the death cell after going out on a simple field investigation…?

“What? The Lane family is gone? And it was… that disgraceful rebel who did it?”

“Sit down, sit down!”

Seeing the female police officer suddenly jump up from her chair upon hearing the news, the scarred muscular man couldn’t help but frown, gesturing downward with his hand.

“The Lane family still exists; it’s just that nearly two hundred core members and some high-ranking clan members died in one fell swoop. The old duke was severely struck by illness and is estimated to be close to collapse.

As for the culprit… well, it may not necessarily be that rebel. This matter involving the Lane family is quite suspicious.”

After forcefully inhaling from the cigarette dangling from his mouth, the scarred muscular man thoughtfully said, “Although that rebel indeed appeared at the scene and killed the first heir, Bobby Lane, there were no signs of other intruders in the entire estate. It’s unlikely that he could have wiped out all of the Lane family’s mid-level members alone in one night.

Furthermore, according to the old duke’s testimony, he was awakened in the middle of the night by a maid who held scissors to his neck, forcing him to step down early and hand over his position to his younger brother, Bobby Lane. So, if I were to say, what happened yesterday at the Lane family estate resembles more of an internal conflict.”

“I see…”

Upon hearing this, the female police officer immediately let out a small sigh of relief, then asked with a flickering gaze, “If it was an internal conflict, why not investigate who the real murderer is instead of locking that disgraceful rebel in the death cell?”

“Isa, when encountering matters, learn to think more!”

Pointing at his forehead with his index finger, the scarred muscular man calmly replied while smoking, “Whether or not that rebel named Leon is the murderer doesn’t depend on whether he actually did it, but rather on which scenario is more beneficial: ‘a rebel attacking a noble family’ or ‘an internal conflict within a noble family.'”

“I don’t understand…”

“To put it simply, the truth isn’t important; benefits and stance are what matter.”

After extinguishing the cigarette butt on the glass plate on the desk, the scarred muscular man pointed at the stack of newspapers on the table with his smoke-stained fingers and patiently explained,

These newspapers aren’t avoiding this news story because they don’t want to report it, nor are they waiting for our investigation results. They’ve been reminded by their respective backers not to hastily pick sides until the direction is clear.”

“Direction?”

“It refers to the thoughts of the old nobility represented by the Lane family, the reformists represented by the princess, and the loose coalition composed of new nobles, major merchants, legislators, and the prime minister.

These three forces are the true rulers of the kingdom. The consensus reached after their struggles and competitions is the only correct direction.”

After explaining the meaning of the direction, the scarred muscular man lit another cigarette and leisurely said:

“The reformists represented by the princess would prefer this incident to be classified as an internal conflict among the nobility. This way, it would give them an excuse to cut down on the old nobility, helping the Minister of Defense reduce pressure from the military department.

On the other hand, the loose coalition would rather classify this incident as a rebel attack because the rebels’ disruption of stability affects merchants the most, which in turn affects the legislators supported by the merchants and the prime minister who needs the legislators’ votes.

Therefore, if this incident is classified as a rebel attack, they can urge the other two parties to cooperate and prioritize dealing with the rebels causing destruction, maintaining a stable business environment.”

I kind of get it, but I also kind of don’t…

After pondering with furrowed brows for a moment, the female police officer followed up with a question:

Not a single error in the content found at 69 Book Bar!

“What about the old nobility? What do those old nobles think?”

“They don’t care.”

Upon hearing the female police officer’s question, the scarred muscular man couldn’t help but crack a crooked smile.

“Whether it’s an internal conflict resulting in deaths or being attacked by rebels, it’s equally embarrassing for them. Moreover, ‘internal conflict’ gives the princess an excuse to carve away their power, while ‘attack’ means they’ll lose more seats due to their inability to handle the rebels, leading to more seats being seized by the legislators.

In short, no matter what classification ‘Lane Blood Night’ ends up with, they are already the biggest losers.”

“…”

Who cares about winners and losers!

After listening for so long without knowing what will happen to Leon, but not wanting to ask directly, the anxious female police officer clenched her fists again and cautiously probed,

“So Director, what do you think will happen with this matter? What fate awaits that disgraceful rebel?”

“That’s not something I can decide.”

Glancing at the crumpled corners of the female police officer’s uniform caused by her own nervousness, the scarred muscular man turned to lean against the window, casually smoking and saying, “It mainly depends on the princess’s side. Although the words of the legislators and merchants carry weight, their alliance is very loose due to their mixed intentions. If the reformist faction led by the princess insists, they will eventually back down.

So how this matter develops depends on whether there is someone in the princess’s camp with enough influence to stand up and express determination in cutting down the old nobility.”

A person with enough influence… I got it! After a brief pause, when the scarred muscular man finished his cigarette and extinguished it, turning around, the female police officer was already gone.

But the capable subordinate’s brisk departure didn’t seem to bother the scarred muscular man much. He leisurely walked back to his desk and opened a map of the capital city.

Let me think… Next month’s plan is to blow up the theater in the southeast of the capital city, so I’ll start planning the defense by drawing westward~ (End of Chapter)