Chapter 369 - 259: Of Course It’s Me, Henry, the Most Arrogant

Chapter 369: Chapter 259: Of Course It’s Me, Henry, the Most Arrogant

The Emperor sat upon the high Dragon Throne, his hands gripping the armrests so tightly that the veins on his forehead bulged. His eyes were filled with fury and disbelief.

An oppressive atmosphere filled the entire court, as if time itself had stopped.

"This Henry... what in the world is he thinking?" Each of the Emperor’s words seemed forced through gritted teeth.

"I gave him ample rewards. I raised his noble rank, granted him fiefs, money, people, grain, and armaments. I gave him everything he could possibly want! And what does he do? He brazenly recruits soldiers and expands his territory at a time like this!"

The Emperor shot to his feet and violently smashed the crystal goblet in his hand onto the floor. It instantly shattered into a thousand pieces, sending glittering shards flying everywhere.

The surrounding guards and ministers all lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at the Emperor’s wrath.

"The Half-Beastmen are invading, leaving the grasslands in utter chaos and countless lower nobles dead and wounded! The Lizardmen are running rampant, grinding all desert trade to a halt—caravans no longer dare to pass through! There’s a rebellion on the western coast, overseas trade is at a standstill, and the ports are nearly empty of ships! The Northern Lands are being invaded by Inferior Horned Beasts, and we’ve exhausted vast amounts of manpower and resources just to hold them back!"

The Emperor’s voice rose to a near roar. "Now is a time when the Empire must recuperate and rebuild, a time for stable development! Yet he is out there stirring up trouble, throwing the realm into utter chaos!"

The Emperor’s gaze swept across the ministers present. The court nobles, usually so full of grand pronouncements and empty boasts, now all kept their heads bowed, daring not meet his eyes.

Henry’s rise had already spiraled beyond anyone’s control, and the Emperor’s fury was a clear indictment of their incompetence.

"And what about you? All of you nobles and ministers! You constantly profess your loyalty and service to the Empire, but what happens when the time comes? Huh?

When the Half-Beastmen invaded, which of you went to fight them?

When the Lizardmen ran wild, which of you went to quell them?

When the western coast rebelled, which of you went to crush the uprising?

When the Inferior Horned Beasts invaded the Northern Lands, which of you solved the problem?

All you do is stand here and offer empty words! All you do is squabble amongst yourselves for power and influence!"

The Emperor’s voice dripped with sarcasm. "Now that this little whelp Henry is raising hell in the eastern grasslands, what can you possibly do? Are you all completely useless?!"

The ministers bowed their heads even lower, daring not to answer the Emperor’s accusations. In all this turmoil, they had been unable to solve a single problem, utterly useless.

"Your Imperial Majesty, while Henry’s actions may be reckless, he is, after all, acting with the Empire’s future in mind." A voice suddenly spoke up. It was the court’s chief advisor, the elderly Duke Calvin.

He rose unsteadily to his feet, attempting to put in a good word for Henry. "He is young, promising, and ambitious. Perhaps his methods are a bit radical, but his goal is to integrate the eastern grasslands and claim new territory for the Empire..."

"Silence!" The Emperor cut Duke Calvin off, a flash of disgust in his eyes.

’My own uncle, playing his social games in my academy... and even now, he’s still trying to play politics and curry favor!’

’I am the Emperor! I am the Headmaster of the Knight Academy!’

"’Integrate’ the eastern grasslands? Hmph, I call it conquest! He’s paving the way for his own ambition! The nobles there have been utterly crushed by him.

Those families, once loyal to the Empire, have now either been annihilated, driven into exile, or forced to obey his commands! He’s building his own personal domain, not serving the Empire!"

The Emperor took a deep breath. He knew he couldn’t make a decision while consumed by anger, but the problem of Henry had to be dealt with, and soon.

"Send forth my decree. Order the nobles everywhere to immediately cease their war preparations. They are to focus all their efforts on repelling the Half-Beastmen, Lizardmen, and Inferior Horned Beasts."

The Emperor’s voice turned to ice. "As for Henry... I command him to immediately halt all recruitment and cease his expansion!"

’The sheer audacity! Henry’s arrogance knows no bounds!’

"Your Majesty, I’m afraid that won’t be easy," Duke Calvin spoke up again.

"Henry now commands a powerful army, and his influence runs deep throughout the eastern grasslands. If Your Majesty forcibly orders him to stop, it will likely earn his resentment and could even provoke greater instability."

The Emperor’s gaze fell upon Duke Calvin once more, a cold glint in his eyes. "Resentment? Instability? Hmph. If he were truly loyal to the Empire, he would understand that the Empire’s interests are paramount! If he dares to defy me, I will teach him that an emperor’s authority is absolute!"

The Emperor dismissed Duke Calvin with a wave of his hand. He had to take decisive action, or the situation in the Empire would spiral even further out of control.

"Your Majesty, are you certain you want to take such a hard line with Henry? Perhaps we could wait a little longer, see what his next move is..."

"Wait?" The Emperor sneered.

"Wait until he is at full strength? Wait until he has complete control of the eastern grasslands, and then turns to threaten the imperial throne itself? No, I will not sit idly by and watch that happen!"

The Emperor’s gaze swept over the ministers once more, his voice ringing with unquestionable authority. "From this day forward, I will tighten our watch over the eastern grasslands. Any act of disobedience against my decrees will be regarded as treason against the Empire!"

The ministers all lowered their heads. They knew the Emperor had made his decision, and they could only obey.

"Your Imperial Majesty, how do you intend to monitor the eastern grasslands?" a young minister asked carefully.

"Hmph, I have many methods. I can mobilize nearby armies to apply military pressure on the eastern grasslands.