paranoianovel Chapter 178 : Cooperation (3)
Chapter 178 : Cooperation (3)
Chapter 178: Cooperation (3)
Saturday, April 16th. Dawn.
The first person to greet Edgar upon his return to Bernhardt territory was his eldest son, Robert.
Having already given a brief report beforehand, Robert explained everything that occurred during the night in precise detail, without exaggeration or omission.
He briefly considered mixing lies into the story like before—
But gave up on the idea.
Because he judged that if there was fault, then receiving appropriate punishment and preparing for the future was what truly benefited his father.
“…So in the end, you failed to capture them?”
“……Yes.”
Expecting at least a couple of slaps across the face like last time, Robert squeezed his eyes shut.
But Edgar merely let out a breath without reacting at all, causing Robert to cautiously reopen his eyes.
“…You’re not angry?”
“There’s no time to waste energy on something like that right now.”
Saying that, Edgar leaned back into the chair and asked:
“What do you think their objective was?”
“…A disruption operation, most likely. Since the target was Bernhardt itself, perhaps they wanted to eliminate even the slightest possibility of our recovery. The reason the battle near the vault dragged on for so long was probably related to that as well.”
“No. If that were the case, they would’ve focused entirely on destruction while escaping. They wouldn’t have prolonged the confrontation.”
“…….”
“Especially if Rubia Magnus truly intended to bombard the vault. Even for you, enduring that would’ve been difficult. The wide-area magic of Magic Tower mages is unmatched.”
There had to be another reason.
“A reason why powerful individuals like Rubia Magnus, Eugene Carter, and Frederick Lake needed to buy time.”
Well, we can think about that later.
Edgar pulled out a contract written in blood from his coat.
“The negotiations with Greenwhistle… succeeded. They agreed to withdraw the lawsuit.”
“Is that really true?!”
Seeing Robert’s face brighten, Edgar stroked his lips.
“However… I don’t think we’ll be able to protect everyone.”
“…Meaning?”
“I secured the safety of you and your mother. The others won’t avoid punishment.”
Which meant—
His eldest daughter Greta, second daughter Hella, second son Gilbert, fourth daughter Chloe—
And even Mikhail, the branch family head and vice head, would all face punishment.
“Just as you predicted, I’ll likely need to step down as family head for a while as well. Bernhardt will temporarily fall under Imperial and Assembly control.”
Even so, their chances of survival had increased dramatically compared to before, which was why his expression remained relatively calm.
Robert nodded for quite some time before cautiously asking:
“But… are you going to tell Uncle about this, Father?”
“…….”
At that, a fleeting shadow crossed Edgar’s face.
“…What do you think, Robert?”
“I….”
Just as Robert was about to speak after deep contemplation—
KWAAAAAANG!
“Michel seems to possess the real will, Edgar.”
Mikhail burst through the door and said that while gasping heavily.
“…….”
“Didn’t you hear me? Michel has the will!”
Despite Mikhail’s urgent shouting, both father and son looked surprisingly indifferent.
“If Michel demands a verification of the will at this rate, everything we built until now will—!”
“Do you truly think that child would want to inherit the current Bernhardt?”
“…What?”
With a cold expression unlike anything he had ever shown before, Edgar slowly glanced around and spoke.
“We’re completely ruined, aren’t we? The public support that barely existed has completely collapsed, the employees and servants look ready to revolt at any moment, and resentment from the branch families is overflowing.”
“…….”
“If she tries to inherit Bernhardt recklessly right now, even her own image would be destroyed. And there’s no way that child still feels attachment toward the family that mistreated her so horribly. Even if she intends to act, she’ll likely wait until the situation stabilizes somewhat before moving seriously. Isn’t that right?”
“No… what I mean is, we still need to prepare for—”
“More importantly, let’s first deal with the immediate problem, my friend.”
Cutting Mikhail off before he could finish, Edgar continued:
“I just finished negotiations with Greenwhistle.”
“……What? With Greenwhistle?”
“I proposed withdrawing the lawsuit as a condition… fortunately, the talks went smoothly, and we reached an agreement.”
Mikhail immediately narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
“That bastard agreed to withdraw the lawsuit? Under what condition?”
“They asked us to choose who would pay for our sins. So I decided to boldly carve away the rotten wound.”
“…Don’t tell me you intend to abandon all your children?”
“As long as the eldest son remains, we can somehow recover.”
After saying that, Edgar paused once more.
From both his words and his expression, Mikhail immediately grasped the situation.
“…That’s not all, is it?”
Under Mikhail’s sharp gaze, Edgar scratched his forehead awkwardly.
“……Yes. I’m sorry, Mikhail.”
“…….”
“If someone among the family heads must take responsibility, wouldn’t it cause less damage for you, a branch family member, to bear it rather than me, a direct descendant?”
“…You’re really doing this? To me of all people?”
“Everyone doing their best in their respective positions directly leads to the family’s prosperity. Those were always your own words.”
“…….”
“Fulfill your responsibility as vice head, Mikhail.”
“How… How can you say that to me?!”
“Enough!”
As Mikhail tried charging forward while pointing his broken wand, Robert easily restrained him.
“Just give up already, Uncle. We thought ourselves sick before arriving at this conclusion. This is the best possible option for Bernhardt’s survival.”
“I…! Do you know how much I’ve done for this family?! How much I sacrificed?! How can you do this to me?! Edgar! Robert!”
The two men reacted differently to the eyes filled with disappointment directed toward them.
Edgar looked ashamed—
But Robert merely tilted his head.
“But honestly speaking… wasn’t all that just self-satisfaction?”
“…What?”
“Who exactly told you to do any of that?”
Those words struck directly at Mikhail’s greatest sore spot.
“You dare…!”
As Robert used magic to restrain the enraged Mikhail charging toward him, he curled his lips.
“I agree Michel was a disaster. But acting as though we all shared responsibility for your sacrifices is a little unreasonable.”
“…….”
“You were the one who proposed eliminating Grandfather, eliminating political enemies, and isolating Michel. All of it was for your own sake, so you could firmly establish yourself as the leader of the branch family. Wasn’t it?”
At that moment—
“Enough! That’s enough!”
Edgar roared while rising from his seat.
“But Father—”
“Even if we’ve parted ways, he’s still my irreplaceable closest friend. I won’t tolerate any more insults.”
“…My apologies.”
“Leave now, Robert. I need to speak with Mikhail.”
.
.
.
After sending Robert away—
The two leaders of Bernhardt remained silently seated for quite some time.
“…What exactly did I do so wrong?”
The vice head was the first to break the silence.
“Even if others don’t understand, you do. You know what I had to sacrifice in order to create the Bernhardt of today.”
“…I do.”
“And yet this is the best solution? Preserving only your own family so you can plan for the future?”
“I had to cut away four members of my own family too! Don’t take this sacrifice lightly!”
“But Bernhardt was my everything.”
“…….”
Hearing Mikhail’s firm words, Edgar suddenly felt a small doubt arise.
“…Why did you go that far, Mikhail? What exactly did Bernhardt ever do for you that made you sacrifice everything?”
The answer that emerged from Mikhail’s lowered head was entirely different from what Edgar expected.
“Nothing.”
“……What?”
“This isn’t gratitude, Edgar. Ensuring the prosperity of Bernhardt—the core of the Ribenia Empire. That was simply my role. My mission.”
Though his shoulders sagged heavily, the madness burning within his eyes blazed even more fiercely.
Looking into those eyes, Edgar suddenly recalled a memory from childhood.
Back when Johann Bernhardt still ruled the family—
At some academy whose name he could no longer remember, fifteen-year-old Mikhail once spoke these words to him.
We have a mission to guide the future, Edgar.
It’s such a great and noble mission that trials are inevitable.
If there exists someone truly capable of bearing that mission, then I’ll dedicate my life to serving them.
But if no such person exists, then I’ll bear that mission myself.
Why?
Because I want to become the greatest existence in Bernhardt.
“…So that vow from back then became who you are now, my brother.”
Edgar himself was someone who benefited from Mikhail’s efforts.
At one point, he even respected Mikhail’s path.
But ultimately—
Everything came down to results.
If only failure and despair remained at the end of that road—
Then the life that chose that road was no different from a loser’s life.
Stubbornness and conviction certainly played roles in success.
But in a life stained only with failure, stubbornness eventually transformed into obsession.
And—
There existed no method capable of breaking convictions and obsessions accumulated over decades.
Because Edgar understood that better than anyone, he offered no rebuttal whatsoever to Mikhail’s life.
Instead, he simply said this:
“…I’m sorry, Mikhail.”
With genuine sincerity.
“Edgar… You truly intend to abandon me….”
“We decided to survive. Even if it means sacrificing my beloved children and my closest friend.”
“…….”
“I want you to make the final decision necessary to protect the Bernhardt you created.”
“…….”
“Only then won’t the great and noble mission you spoke of that day finally be completed?”
---
That same morning, inside the Imperial Palace.
After finishing a simple breakfast and entering her residence, Edel found Lea rushing toward her with a panicked expression.
“Master! Master!”
“Hm?”
“This is bad! Greenwhistle and Bernhardt are currently—!”
“…What?”
There were too many eyes on the first floor, so they headed toward the second-floor guest room instead.
The moment the door was locked, Lea hurriedly pulled out a letter from her clothes and handed it over.
“Dale Wedmeyer sent this to you. I assumed it was probably useless information, so I planned to verify and destroy it afterward. But….”
“Don’t jump to conclusions, Lea. And that decision belongs to me. Next time, don’t decide on your own and just hand it over immediately, alright?”
“Ah… My apologies! I acted presumptuously again….”
“…Well, setting that aside.”
Edel removed the contents from the neatly opened envelope and quickly scanned through them.
Though the message was fairly long, the core points were only two.
First—
Bernhardt joined hands with Greenwhistle, a subordinate organization of the Platinum Dawn Society, in order to survive.
Second—
Before Bernhardt’s supplies and military strength could fall into the Dawn Society’s hands, they needed to be seized immediately.
Placing the letter upon the table, Edel smiled fiercely.
“…So that’s how they decided to play it?”