Ti advanced unceasingly like a severed kite string, while Karl silently observed the changes around him.
"Decades ago, I couldn't have imagined that Cyart, this country, would ultimately beco my possession..."
"The Fischer family, you've done very well."
In the five years following the civil war, Cyart embarked on a lengthy period of reform.
Many had maliciously anticipated a conflict between the Romann and Fischer families; however, Romann, under Aldrich's control, chose to retreat gracefully, gradually withdrawing most of their edge and beginning to wholeheartedly assist the Fischer family.
In fact, Aldrich himself was a person of extrely stable emotions who disliked conflict.
One could tell this from his earlier decision not to beco the family head; for Aldrich, securing stability seed to be more important than anything.
If Byrne had not t Bast, in his old age, he might very well have developed a character more similar to that of Aldrich.
Over the five years, Darren and Christine, manipulating Queen Peggy, who was but a puppet, silently purged all kinds of opposing and dangerous voices from within the country.
Darren astutely avoided a direct massacre of the Extraordinary nobility but instead eliminated them one by one, constantly finding just and lawful reasons to deal with those who harbored dissent.
Furthermore, as he eliminated so, he would imdiately reward and show favor to others, creating the illusion for the rest that they were "safe" and that "Duke Darren and I are on good terms."
Plus, with the powerful influence of the Fischer and Romann families, the difficulty for the remaining Extraordinary nobility to revolt anew was imnse, hence no new civil war erupted.
During those five years, Darren killed many people.
He made full use of the power of the Dawn Church to infiltrate and investigate, as well as to survey the internal situation of the country.
At tis, a noble who rely voiced dissatisfaction at a family banquet would the next day be taken away by agents of the Dawn Church on suspicion of treason.
Whether they could return or not depended on the subsequent investigation.
Because the great families often held banquets, their mbers gradually beca familiar with each other, so now and then mbers of the Fischer family would co to Darren to plead for rcy.
In such cases, he would reply with a mocking laugh:
"I have always been very clear that in the Fischer family, no one is more suited to be the 'villain' than I am. To step onto the Path of Shadow, I am the 'evil presence' ordained by the great Lord of the Lost!"
"So, what I'm doing now is exactly what the Lord wishes! Do you really have the right to stop ?"
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"Listen well, unless the great Lord of the Lost issues a Divine Oracle, or soone overpowers through a family council, the person I want to kill will die no matter what!"
Thus, in the simring five years, although opposition erupted continuously, ultimately the major nobles did not manage to band together successfully and were instead successively suppressed and restrained by the Fischer family.
Even August Frosac, known as "Claws of Wasteland" from the Frosac family, fell victim; he was caught in secret contact with the Seven Stars and was publicly executed by Darren. Even the plea of Frosac, the "White Beast" Family Head, and Bishop Zane could not reverse the outco.
Luckily, Zane and his uncle were never on great terms, and thus he did not hate the Fischer family for it, although he was quite displeased with Darren.
The eldest and most despondent Monarch Transcendent, the "White Beast," filled with regret and unwillingness at the core because of the death of his most valued family mber, did not live much longer.
Fueling negative emotions enabled a better grasp on the Path of Shadow... So Darren's mastery over the Path of Shadow soared during those five years of silent dominance.
The na "Iron Mask Man" had beco more fearso than demons inside the Cyart Kingdom, a concept that could stop children's cry!
Even at a noble banquet, a young noblewoman who stole a glance at Darren could be frightened enough to spill her wine just by one of his looks.
Darren walked up with a smile, nobly nodded to the trembling young noblewoman, handed her a handkerchief, and signaled that she need not fear.
"I apologize if my presence scared you, but I am also aware of so of the rumors about myself; most of them are nothing more than slander from outsiders."
"Moreover, as everyone present surely knows, the asures I have taken were directed at traitors; they were necessary actions to protect Syart under the blessings of the Gods, and to safeguard Her Majesty Queen Peggy! They were unavoidable and absolutely the right thing to do,"
Darren added more solemnly, then concluded earnestly, "For a pure and beautiful young girl like yourself, I would have no groundless malice. Please be assured of that!"
After the banquet ended, he secretly ordered the people of the "Black Tide" to investigate the girl's family.
Sure enough, the "Black Tide" discovered that the girl's parents had contacts with the Carnians. They hoped to leverage their power to overthrow the Fischer family and Queen Peggy, plotting to kidnap Her Majesty in the near future.
A few days later, the people of the Dawn Church took her entire family away for severe torture.
After Darren learned of this, he took a deep breath.
"Her fear that day was so apparent, it was clearly not normal. So, how much was she aware of or involved in... Oh, that's unfortunate."
During the five years of rampant purging, besides being known as the "Iron Mask Man," Darren gradually earned new nicknas among the people, such as "Butcher of Syart," "Demon of the East Coast," and "Leviathan's Dark Tentacle."
Thus, the various stories circulating among the people of Syart beca increasingly outrageous. They said that Marquis Vlad had a fiery temper and would have a killing urge when angry! While the "Iron Mask Man" of the East Coast was simply not human—at the re absence of killing for a few days, he would beco greatly agitated!
On the contrary, Christine's reputation was soaring.
Under the manipulation of the Fischer family, all the good deeds attributed to Christine, whether rumors or facts, were propagated far and wide within and outside Syart by the hands of the Dawn Church.
This included, but was not limited to, treating civilians, aiding in disaster relief, eliminating monstrosities, and repelling pirates, and so on...
In reality, most of these deeds were not carried out by Christine herself. She was too busy on a daily basis to manage all of it; most of the actions were taken by mbers of the Dawn Church.
However, the Dawn Church credited Christine with many of these good deeds, claiming that even if she didn't personally carry them out, she had sent others to do them. The goal was to create a favorable reputation for her.
Even Queen Peggy repeatedly comnded Christine, awarding one dal and honor after another, causing the Syart people to deeply admire her from the bottom of their hearts.
In so ways, this was also paving the way for Christine's future promotion.
In the new era of the Peggy Dynasty, the people feared and were terrified of Duke Darren as much as they revered and admired the honorable Christine.
So said that Queen Peggy was a puppet of the Fischer family, convinced that any missteps she took were the result of manipulation and deception by the crazed Duke Darren. But they believed as long as the honorable Christine was there, Queen Peggy would still be safe, and Syart would still hold hope.
In the popular stories that people enjoyed sharing, Christine and Darren were at odds like fire and water, constantly clashing over various matters regarding Syart. Every ti Queen Peggy trembled, nearly coerced by Duke Darren, she would be righteously thwarted by the honorable Christine. In these stories, Duke Darren was repeatedly outwitted by Christine's intelligence and would leave, grunting coldly in speechless defeat.
While those truly familiar with the Fischer family found these tales to be outlandish, the common folk of Syart indeed enjoyed such stories.
Consequently, Christine quickly acquired nicknas like the "Guardian of the Queen" and "Syat's Shielding Moon." Even Andre beca increasingly famous because of her, turning into the most perfect spouse prototype in the minds of many naive young girls.
Stories full of the struggle between good and evil have made both her and Darren even more renowned through each other's existence.
And these actions hastened Christine and Darren's progress on the Path of Authority and the Path of Shadow, further than ordinary people.
Over the five years, several significant events also occurred in Syart, such as the birth of Felix and Sunny Frosac's first son at the end of the first year.
Christine nad him Carter.
Furthermore, during these five years, many people within the Dawn Church ascended to new Ranks, and new 5th Rank Extraordinary Exponents erged.
So people, however, failed in their ascension rituals.
Falling short at the last mont.
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