The Evolution of the Weakest Ghoul

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Center of the storm

”Knock! Knock!”

The room fell silent as Ronan and Yen exchanged glances, their hearts racing.

Could it be that they had been exposed?

And now, did the Duke Mansion want to get rid of them?

”I’ll go open it.”

Ronan stood up as he spoke.

Yen nodded from the side.

Just as Ronan reached the door, his hand lingered on the doorknob.

He took a deep breath.

”Remember to stay behind me.”

Ronan suddenly spoke.

Yen hurriedly stood up and moved behind him.

”Sorry. I forgot, Master.”

Yen stood behind Ronan.

Badump!

Ronan opened the door.

Click!

The door swung open, and Ronan’s expression immediately changed.

”Maiden... your food.”

”Sorry it took so long. It’s just...”

The maid hesitated.

Meanwhile, Ronan sighed in relief.

It was only the maid.

Their secrets were safe...

At least for the time being.

But judging from the maid’s words, there seemed to be a reason for the delayed meal.

Ronan frowned.

Had something happened to the Duke Family?

”Tell me... What happened?”

Ronan couldn’t help but ask curiously.

Hearing this, the maid gulped before speaking.

”Actually... um...”

”The Royal Family suddenly sent people here along with several members of the Church.”

”It seems they came to discuss the war. They needed soldiers, and since the Duke was responsible for starting the conflict, they wanted to know how many soldiers the Duke Family would send to the front lines.”

”Also... they emptied the Duke Family’s storage.”

”So food has become... scarce.”

”And since we can’t leave because of the lockdown...”

”So... this food...”

The maid raised the tray slightly.

Ronan’s expression darkened.

What?

It seemed the Duke Family was truly being squeezed from all sides.

The Royal Family had emptied their storage and was now demanding soldiers from the Duke’s army to fight on the front lines.

Well...

This was interesting.

No wonder their meals had been delayed.

One had to understand that the storage of a massive noble family like the Duke Family was no small matter.

At the very least, their reserves of grain and other food must have been enormous.

And it didn’t take a genius to realize that most of the produce from the Duke’s farms would probably now be redirected toward the war front.

This was serious.

”Thank you.”

Ronan spoke as he accepted the tray.

Seeing this, the maid smiled slightly.

She was glad that the Maiden wasn’t angry.

She’s so kind.

Meanwhile, Ronan closed the door and signaled to Yen before placing the tray on the table.

”How is it?”

Ronan asked, looking at Yen’s crimson eyes.

”Manageable.”

”I should even be fine in a crowd of people, but not for too long.”

”At least... not without my eyes turning crimson.”

As she spoke, Yen’s eyes slowly returned to their original brown color.

Hearing this, Ronan nodded.

That was good.

Perhaps her half-human bloodline helped her maintain control over her vampire instincts.

”So, you heard what the maid said?”

Now that that was out of the way, Ronan asked.

The atmosphere immediately became serious.

Yen sat down, her expression solemn.

”Yes, Master.”

”It seems the Duke Family is in a terrible crisis.”

”They have almost no leverage left.”

”But what I don’t understand is why the Royal Family is being so aggressive.”

”Hmm?”

”What do you mean?”

Ronan asked.

”I mean, Master... this is still the Duke Family.”

”The Duke is almost equal to the Royal Family’s ancestor in strength. Both of them were Supreme Realm experts, and the Duke demonstrated terrifying combat ability.”

”The two should have been relatively close.”

”If anything, the punishment for his actions shouldn’t have been this severe.”

Yen paused.

Ronan couldn’t help but rub his chin.

Although he had briefly been involved in the business world back on Earth, that experience couldn’t compare to navigating a political situation like this.

And Yen, having lived in the capital for years, was far more knowledgeable about the kingdom’s political situation than he was.

”So what you’re saying is...”

”Although the Duke started the war because of his son’s death, this punishment is still too extreme?”

”But Yen, he caused the destruction of five cities and the deaths of two million people.”

”Do you realize how huge that number is?”

Ronan asked, puzzled.

”Yes, Master.”

”And that’s exactly why all of this doesn’t make sense.”

”The Duke has saved the entire kingdom before. His actions have protected tens of millions of lives.”

”How do two million compare to that?”

”Besides, he was grieving.”

”Although the Javo Race has become aggressive now, they’re like an injured dog desperately biting at everything around it.”

Yen paused before continuing.

”After the war, the Javo Race..at least their small branch hive on this continent has been severely weakened.”

”For years to come, the Destal Kingdom should be relatively secure.”

”So why...”

”Why go this far?”

”The Duke is a Supreme Realm expert.”

”And as for the Church...”

”They seem suspicious.”

”Do they need something?”

”Or is all of this simply because they want to build their temple within the Duke’s territory?”

Yen laid out all her thoughts as Ronan was left shocked.

After all, although Ronan had been reborn as a human for a brief period after his first death before dying again, the amount of knowledge he possessed was still limited.

Compared to a citizen of a city, his understanding of the world was like that of a farmer who had barely ever left his farmland.

What Yen had just said had opened Ronan’s eyes to just how vast this world truly was.

And the Destal Kingdom...

It was merely one of the leading kingdoms on a small continent.

There were thousands of other continents like this one.

And the Javo Race was even more massive.

Based on what Yen had said...

So, this was merely a small hive?

But more importantly, what she said made sense.

The Duke was a Supreme Realm expert, and the fact that he had injured seven other Supreme Realm Javos demonstrated just how terrifying his combat ability was.

If it were up to Ronan, he would be thrilled to have someone like that on his side.

Yet the Royal Family didn’t seem to care.

Instead, they were actively pushing the Duke Family into a corner.

Why had they imprisoned the Duke?

And now they had come to the Duke Family to demand resources and soldiers.

What was next?

Did they intend to completely control the Duke Family?

”Master, whatever is happening here isn’t merely because of the deaths of two million people.”

”Something else is going on.”

”And if I’m not mistaken, it involves the Church, the Duke Family, and the Royal Family.”

Yen analyzed.

Ronan nodded from the side.

He had to agree.

At least, based on everything Yen had said, something was definitely wrong.

That meant the Duke Family was at the center of a growing storm.

A storm that wouldn’t merely sweep through the capital.

It could eventually engulf the entire continent.

After all, whatever happened here would inevitably affect the vassal kingdoms and the countless cities under the Destal Kingdom’s influence.