Fire Mage (Web Novel)

Duke's Castle, Aetas Kingdom, Faith Realm.

Charles woke up around 7.30 P.M and got ready to attend the dinner meeting. First, he went to take a good shower and then wore formal attire.

Then, Charles moved towards the nearby table and stored it in his space ring.

After that, he also stored three wooden chairs, candles, an ink bottle, three types of wooden quills, and even a large lamp into his space ring.

'Hmm, this should be more than enough for my night work.' He thought to himself.

He then left the guest room, went towards the dining hall, and soon arrived near the entrance. After that, he halted his footsteps, adjusted his surcoat, and looked inside.

At that moment, he noticed the important people like two knight captains, church squad members like the grey-robed priest, the Head Deacon, a scout-type knight named James, Holy Swordsman named Simon, Melody, and Irzoch, in Duke's appearance, were already seated and appeared to be waiting for the main guest.

He also saw two young women standing near the dining table and was holding towels.

After a swift glance, he tapped the wooden door to announce his presence and walked inside.

Upon noticing his arrival, everyone stopped their action, stood up from their seats, and greeted him with a bow. Meanwhile, Charles moved towards the guest seat, pulled the wooden chair a little, and sat on it. Then, he raised his hand and gestured them to sit down.

At that moment, he also shifted his attention towards Irzoch and communicated with her using telepathy.

'I want you to co-operate with me over Grime Plains issue to create a friction between Julius and the Light Church. Can you do it?'

Meanwhile, Irzoch averted her gaze towards the food that was carried by a blonde-haired maid and answered.

'You want to put the blame on Light Church? I can, My Lord. But Demon Sorcerer Nash and a few other knights also knew about the foreign knights. The same goes for Bishop Blake and the other Light Knights.'

At that moment, the blonde-haired young maid arrived near Charles, greeted him by bowing, and started serving different kinds of dishes.

Charles sat in silence and observed his surroundings while communicating.

'Don't worry about the Demon Sorcerer Nash and other knights. We can silence them later on.'

'Okay, My Lord.' Irzoch responded.

After noticing that everyone was looking at him, Charles first picked up the wine glass, took a sip, and started the dinner.

He then put the wine glass back on the table, picked up the fork and knife, and added.

"Let's finish our dinner first."

The church members and knight captains also nodded their heads and started eating the food.

Charles also ate Julius's favorite dish, roast chicken and various vegetables, and drank plenty of water. Then, he took another sip of his wine and drank it wholeheartedly.

During dinner, he also talked about the politics from time to time with Irzoch and soon shifted the topic towards their future goal.

"The reason I invited knight captains and our honorable church members to this dinner was mainly to talk about the current civil war and the future of the kingdom. Although many nobles are supporting me in the shadows, none of them swore their allegiance to me." He paused for a moment, glanced at Irzoch, and then added.

"This includes my greatest benefactor Duke Michael."

Upon hearing his words, Irzoch showed a forced smile on her face and spoke in a Duke's rough voice.

"Sorry to say this, Your Highness. But swearing allegiance to you means breaking away from the royal family and the kingdom itself. Although your father died without announcing the next successor's name, your elder brother has every right to inherit the throne. If we chose to swear our allegiance to you, there is a high chance he would hold some grudge against our family and execute us or expel us from the kingdom. Moreover, there is a high chance that the nearby kingdoms might invade our land using excuses."

"I know that. But what I'm asking is not a formal allegiance but a normal one. At least, I want to know whoever would stay by my side if I choose to confront my elder brother openly." Charles added while picking a slice of orange and putting it in his mouth.

Meanwhile, Irzoch showed a thoughtful look on her face and nodded with a respectful look.

"If that's what you wish, I have no problem, Your Highness. I'm honored to serve a Royal like you and will accompany you to the end of the death itself."

"I'm flattered by your words, Duke Michael," Charles commented with a smile and then added.

"Let's come to the main topic. Currently, our kingdom is in a disordered state. Let's take the Grime Plains as a prime example. Two months ago, a knight squad from Ammar Dynasty invaded that territory and even killed all the local knights. Not only that, but some foreign knights also invaded the town before the Baron could return and forcefully occupied that territory."

"Grime Plains? Isn't it Baron Daniel's territory? Why haven't I heard of such news? Moreover, why did he attack us if he has that much problem in his territory?" Irzoch showed a confused look on her face and turned her gaze towards the two knight captains.

Meanwhile, those two knight captains also understood the situation and decided to play along. Although they knew that Baron Daniel was the one who killed the thousands of their comrades, they didn't dare to disobey Duke's order.

"We also know nothing about such news, My Lord. Should I send a squad of knights for investigation?" One of the knight captains responded swiftly.

On the other hand, Melody showed a dumbfounded look on her face and soon realized it was all an act.

The only ones who sat with a clueless look on their faces were the grey-robed priest and his squad members.

Unlike Melody and the two other knight captains, the church members were always kept in the dark about outside. Their job mainly was to pass information to the Holy See and do some secret assignments for the higher-ups. So, they still hadn't realized Charles's scheme.

Upon seeing them eating without any worry on their face, he stabbed a sliced roasted chicken piece using a fork, put it in his mouth, and continued while munching.

"Hmm, it's better to send some scouts and see the real situation over there. I heard from my scout knight that these foreign knights are using Duke's name to commit such a heinous act-"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Irzoch widened her eyes in disbelief, straightened her back, and shouted in shock.

"Someone dared to use my name? Wait. That's why he attacked our territory, huh. No wonder I felt something was odd about that incident!"

This time, not only the knight captains but even Charles got stunned by her acting.