"That is false, my lord. Contrary to what Lady Bella might have researched, Onye is a eunuch. He has been branded with a special {fate} that prevents his sperm from siring any children. the brand denies any way to heal him both by modern dicine and soul."
I turned to Zanele, "That true?"
"I am sorry, Successor, I have not spent a lot of ti in the royal harem. I only knew that Onye wished to have his way with . I ran away imdiately after."
"Fine, let’s say this brand you speak of is true. What about other n? Does Hannibal even care about his family? I trust my girls more than you. And they claid that these princes and princesses are not Hannibal’s children. Why should I believe you?"
"I have no answer to that, my lord. But what if they’re wrong?" Pierre said resolutely.
"..."
"As amazing as the ladies are, they are human. They make mistakes. My lord intends to clean the Revenant of his malice; once you do, he will be back to full strength. If he decides to take revenge for the murder of his children, what happens next?"
As much as I wanted to say that I would protect them, I couldn’t. I was not stupid. If Hannibal really went after my girls, I was not sure I could protect them all. But Pierre continued his explanations.
"My lord, it is uncertain whether he will demand blood for blood after learning of his children’s deaths. Regardless of whether you cleanse him of malice. This is too big a risk. It deals with a Revenant. And its implications could result in the death of one of the ladies.
"Even if you fight the Immortal, and sohow win, you destroy the very thing that protected Africa. Replacing the Revenant with soone from your faction would weaken your forces. If you truly wish to close Hellsgate, you will not take such a risk."
Pierre was correct. While I could raise new Reapers to take over the continent, it would take ti for them to adjust. If I sohow killed Hannibal, I’d break my promise to Zanele. I’d also weaken humanity.
The Revenants were arrogant fucks. But each protected their domains from the forces of Hellsgate. Losing one of them was not an option. That was the primary reason I even decided to cleanse Hannibal in the first place.
"Now let’s consider the alternative, my lord. Your only requirent is for the princes not to reinforce the capital. If we can get that without bloodshed, you’d get a Revenant at full power. And the royalty who can command the continent."
If Hannibal is cleansed and the princes are still around, they could imdiately work to restore order. Amari’s new faction could then lead efforts to strengthen their presence in Hellsgate, unopposed.
It was the best outco. But it was impossible. Among the two factions, we were using their pride to force them to co to blows. The killing of the innocent families was all just to remove their reason. In truth, this approach was too unreliable.
If the princes could ignore the deaths of the murdered families, the civil war wouldn’t happen. The girls were stacking up different ways to begin the civil war, to ensure it will pass as our lives depended on it.
"You say of such matters, but can you bring about that outco?" I challenged. "You are correct. The civil war is not ant to reduce the number of princes. Its main purpose is to protect my family from a more dangerous situation than the one we already have."
Zanele made an audible gasp as she covered her mouth. Seeing her response, she might not have believed I would choose to spare anyone from Onye’s side.
"I can," he replied.
"How?"
"Use the hidden families of each prince as hostages. I know of whom you must take for each of the royals. Wives, sons, daughters, concubines, friends. I know them all."
"..."
’Exa, if such an obvious option is available, why didn’t we take it?’
[It is simply because we had no knowledge of them. Upon our research, the princes all lead lives of debauchery. None of them had important people. If they did, they hid them extrely well. If what he says is true, it would be a better alternative to a civil war.]
I looked towards Pierre and began to wonder. Was this why Blanche kept him alive? All to stop from razing Africa to the ground? My girls probably accounted for the possibility of Hannibal and I coming to blows.
It was probably why they wanted the princes to die by each other’s hands. All to hide the fact that we were responsible. That would work, but if the Africans had soone like Van, Delroy, Connie, or Jas, we would be found out.
"That is the case; many co back for their loved ones. And the sa loved ones beco their weakness. It is an unspoken rule among reapers. Mingle only with the humans you are prepared to lose."
I rembered Lilly’s words. They gave credence to Pierre’s argunt. To protect the prince’s people, concealing their very existence was the best way. The royals put in the effort to hide them, a fact that already ensured the value of these people.
Kidnapping them would be a far better guarantee to stop the Specters from acting. I could even use the brainwashed families to infect their Reapers with {Sins of Limitless}.
"Okay, I will admit, you have convinced . But how do you know all of this?"
"It is because of my {Fate} {Enlightennt}, my lord. I can foresee the best and worst outcos of a specific problem. When I used my {fate} on how to kill Onye, my {Fate} told the civil war approach is the worst option.
"As for how I know of the existence of the hidden families, it is because of my job. I am a Reaper tax auditor for Administration. I forge the tax records used to siphon money and souls from official sources. These funds are used for the needs of the hidden families."
I found it hilarious that a tax auditor ca up with a better plan than my girls. Yet here we were. If at first I suspected it, now I was certain. Blanche saved this man all for this mont. He was the only reason Hell’s Eden avoided going to war with the Immortal.
It hadn’t happened yet, but sohow, I was sure.
"As for the last reason..."
"Stop. I’m convinced," I replied as I raised my hand.
"Huh?"
I turned to Zanele and saw the corners of her lips curl up into a big smile.
"You seem happy."
"How could I not? This man single-handedly saved the lives of millions of Africans. How could I not be over the moon? Thank you so much for changing your mind, Successor. Truly, your disposition is that of a hero."
"Didn’t you hear his explanation? I am doing this for selfish reasons."
"Haha. If you say so, Successor. Do you have a command for ? If I may be so bold, you wish for to verify and locate each of the families Pierre will specify, correct? So that we can abduct them quickly?"
Wordlessly, I nodded. I then turned to Pierre, who narrowed his eyes and fidgeted in place.
"What? Why do you look so surprised?"
"I wasn’t expecting you to accept my argunt so easily. I had more explanations prepared; I hadn’t even used half of them."
"That so? Well, you made a very convincing argunt. Anyway, you work for now. You will join Zanele and Amari’s faction as their adviser."
"Huh? Already? But I haven’t even done anything yet?" he comnted in confusion.
Zanele then placed her hand on Pierre’s shoulder as she spoke energetically.
"This is how he is, young one; so long as you protect the Sirens, he will be pleased with you. Your actions now spared them from a grim future, which is why the Successor feels grateful. To him, this achievent rits his trust."
Annoyed that Zanele understood , I stood up abruptly.
"I will leave you two to discuss the details. Coordinate with Exa for the specifics. I want all the abductions completed before we move on to the capital."
"Yes, my lord!" they both replied.
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