When the plot-skips players into the game world

Hesitation means desire, and to desire is to obtain!

Aiwass had no intention of letting Minister Drost live much longer, so he immediately set the plan in motion.

Although Minister Drost had offended Meg... he had merely turned himself in, and had not yet been directly executed.

The Arbitration Hall also had contingency plans, specifically meant to deal with the crimes of Knights and Ministers—from stripping of official posts to titles, and then to the rejection of honors, public trials, there was a complete process. You couldn't say someone was guilty in the morning, and without interrogation or trial, drag them out and behead them by noon.

The foundation of authority is the rule of law.

Compared to the fluctuating power of individuals, the law that looks at "rules" is a more stable foundation.

Otherwise, every time there's a change of the power holders, the strength of the Transcendents across the nation could fluctuate.

But conversely, having a complete process also means that the process could be lengthy. This time would be used by the Supervisory Court to investigate other Ministers and secretaries within the Ministry of Commerce, to root out those associated with Minister Drost, and then trace their connections to the mastermind behind it all.

In this process, it would be best if Drost were alive, as he could denounce the others and provide valuable eyewitness testimony.

However, this also gave the Ministers who were in good terms with him time to destroy evidence. Inspectors were not all clean either, there were certainly spies among them.

Aiwass was worried that as the information traded by Minister Drost increased, so did his value. It was possible that a few of the "big shots" might keep him alive for the "greater good." He might even sincerely offer to help Avalon—in fact, it was not impossible.

Because he was not truly loyal to Star Antimony, nor did he selflessly want to surrender. Drost was merely purely selfish. In other words, if Avalon could offer him more benefits, he would switch sides back to Avalon.

Though he wasn't a merchant, this Minister of Commerce was more merchant-like than actual merchants.

—But if so, what about Lily's vendetta? Persuade Lily to prioritize the greater good over her grievance?

Aiwass snorted.

Don't make me laugh.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

It's disgusting even to listen to.

After discussing it with Lily, Aiwass realized they really only had two options.

One was to send out "Miss Aleister" to repeat her exploit and kill the objective. As a detainee, most of Drost's Transcendent powers were sealed, and a quick battle would make it possible to kill him.

But the biggest issue was that Aiwass didn't know if the Supervisory Bureau would strengthen its guard. After all, Drost and Lohar were different—they could "lock up" Lohar for a lifetime, there was no need for him to die; his disappearance made it even more convenient to use him.

But that wouldn't work for old Drost, he had a family.

Lohar's brothers and sisters had been killed by his own hand, and he left no descendants. Thus, Lohar could vanish without anyone inquiring, which was his own doing.

But Drost belonged to a Founding Family. Not only was his status lofty, but also the family was extensive. Moreover, Drost had done well in keeping up appearances, he had many friends, and his family members respected and loved him.

—You either draw him out for a trial and hang him to let the family distance themselves from him; or you exile him or put him under house arrest. But if you just hide him away, always without trial, not letting people know if he is alive... What does that mean? Are we changing the head of the household or not?

It's not just the Drost Family that would be unhappy, the other Knight Families might also feel uneasy.

However, if someone infiltrated and killed Drost, that wouldn't be acceptable either.

That would first undermine the strength of authority and diminish the credibility of the Supervisory Bureau. It would also raise doubts that the suddenly missing Lohar might be dead too. That would decrease the credibility of the information obtained from "Lohar."

So, assassinating Drost on the sly is simple. But the repercussions would be troublesome.

Fortunately, they had a second method.

That was to force Minister Drost into making a mistake.

If he provided enough justification, or said the wrong things, then skipping the process to immediately judge him would become reasonable.

Actually, this wasn't too difficult, or rather simpler.

All Aiwass had to do was play the role of a member of the Noble Red Society and directly attack the Supervisory Bureau to rescue him.

Drost wasn't sure if he would survive, and as a spy for Star Antimony, there were people to receive him. So, if Aiwass broke in, Drost would follow him out.

Then, it would be straightforward to kill him—killing a high-ranking traitor to prevent a large amount of intelligence from being taken is a very legitimate excuse.

As it happens.

Today, His Royal Highness the Prince has passed away, and the powerful have gathered at the Hall of Silver and Tin. There couldn't be a better time to cause trouble.

Aiwass and Lily would enter a secret chamber first, and then Shadow Demon would take Lily out through the ventilation ducts. They would fight their way back in through the main entrance, attempting to rescue him—while Aiwass would use the power of the Defiant Flame Butterfly to blast him to death.

Everyone knew that Aiwass and Lily were inside the secret chamber. Hence, anyone storming in from outside couldn't be them. With this alibi, it would be easier to proceed afterward.

This was the preliminary plan Aiwass and Lily had discussed.

Enjoy new stories from empire

After bidding farewell to Isabel, they went to see the freshly convened Guardian.

Aiwass brazenly inquired about Drost's exact location, using as a pretext—