CH 36.1

(Reynaldo’s POV) The Villainous Duke’s Revenge Unfolds

In the audience chamber, in addition to the King and the chancellor, who typically engaged in meetings that lacked substantive policy discussions, several nobles affiliated with their faction were bound by ropes, exuding an air of dejection.

Reynaldo spoke calmly and steadily, stringing his words together with an air of serenity, as if he were going about his business.

“Viscount Dozle, Duke Gastia, Chancellor Arkbert.”

Baron Mizel, Viscount Franz, Viscount Ghosn.

He uttered their names with a calm and steady voice.

Following that, Count Oxford, who followed him from behind, conveyed the charges against those called by Reynaldo and proceeded to deliver the verdicts that would usually be decided through a trial, on the spot.

Viscount Dozle is sentenced to imprisonment and his title is revoked. The title will be passed on to his relative, Viscount Riffia.

Duke Gastia is stripped of his title and exiled from the country.

Despite the screams and cries coming from those who have been handed their penalties and fates, no one pays heed to their voices.

Then, the secretary checks for any discrepancies between the written letters they are holding and the names being called. Once confirmed, the individuals mentioned are escorted away by the knights and private soldiers of the conspirators, being dragged away against their will.

Regardless of their protests and struggles, those who resisted were forcefully subdued and imprisoned in the dungeons of the royal palace, with a promise to execute their sentences in due course, as agreed upon with the nobles who had supported the plan.

Although most of the private property of those to be punished would be confiscated and their titles stripped, all the punishments had already been decided upon in anticipation of what would happen next, fearing a major upheaval in the country.

To prevent any further chaos and to swiftly conclude all matters, the charges and punishments were made explicit along with the arrests, ensuring that opposing opinions would not be entertained and decisions could proceed.

In consideration of future policies, everything was documented and acknowledged on paper. If there were any objections or criticisms raised against the swift trials, the dates on the documents could be altered to create a convincing appearance, ensuring that matters were handled accordingly.

Reynaldo is aware that the relatives of those who were captured will raise their voices in protest in the future. Therefore, he already has a plan in place to deter such actions.

In anticipation of the worst-case scenario, he had also investigated the relatives who might suffer from the consequences of their nobility being revoked through discussions with the other nobles.

While it was bothersome for Reynaldo to consider the fate of the families who had embezzled funds, as the leader of the rebellion, he couldn’t simply let them be. He was almost inclined to praise himself for having made such a decision in such a short period of time.

However, that was merely one aspect of the plan designed for the purpose of the rebellion, and it had no direct connection to Reynaldo’s true intentions.

Call him a devil if you will, but Reynaldo’s first priority is to take revenge, no matter how badly the country is shaken.

“Viscount Zaire.”

After calling out the names one by one, Reynaldo continued to curse inwardly in his heart.

‘I know that you manipulated Rosemary’s lady-in-waiting to frame her for assassination. You will pay for that crime. I will make sure you suffer a great deal of misery that even if I kill you, it won’t be enough.’

Reynaldo has memorized the names of all the people he has a personal grudge against.

Through this plan, he was able to administer punishment to all the individuals he sought revenge against. When planning the punishment, he provided suitable reasons to further increase the severity of the punishments.

Merely stripping them of their titles was not satisfying enough.

Should they be whipped?

Maybe even dragged around by horses?

Ah, but if he were to make a spectacle of them, it could provoke unrest among the public.

That would not be feasible in the current operation.

In that case, he will save it for another occasion.

Reynaldo smiles faintly.

Don’t think that your sins will cease as long as you cling to life.

He even goes as far as wishing to inflict such unbearable suffering that death would seem like a mercy.

However, it was also true that the peaceful days spent with Marie had somewhat calmed the intensity of his resentment.

You can thank Marie for that.

Reynaldo thinks as he continues to hear the names being called.

After conveying the charges and punishments to most of the nobles and seeing them being taken away, only the King was left behind.

Reynaldo didn’t want to relinquish this task to anyone else, and he persuaded his allies to let him handle it personally.

“Is there any way that I can be entrusted with the King myself?”

“I will be responsible for whatever happens after that.”

The nobles, who were aware of the intentions of Reynaldo, the mastermind who had arranged all the schemes based on his immeasurable vengeance against the King, exchanged glances and reluctantly agreed.

Alberto was not the only one Reynaldo had worked with for the past twenty years.

They knew of Duke Rose’s long-held desire for revenge since he was a young boy, even his willingness to stain his hands red in the process.

Even among the participating nobles this time, there were those who acted out of personal vendettas. Therefore, they could not disregard the wishes of the mastermind, Reynaldo, and stop his revenge for the sake of rectifying the situation.

The anger within Reynaldo was so intense that he even contemplated directly taking action, willing to risk his own life, to assassinate the King and Queen if anyone dared to oppose.

The nobles, who had remained silent in the diminishing audience chamber, quietly turned on their heels and left, without saying a word.

King Gray, with a pitiful voice, pleaded, “Wait, please,” but not a single person halted at his plea.

The doors of the audience chamber closed with a heavy thud.