Chapter 770:The Problem Is Thrown Back At Us Again

Chapter 770: 770:The Problem Is Thrown Back At Us Again

"Now this is a pain in the ass!" Rathlos said as he looked at the envelopes spread across the table. He picked up one of them, glanced at the seal, and then placed it back down with a tired sigh. His face looked much more serious than usual, and the usual relaxed expression was nowhere to be seen.

Duke Lancelot’s expression was also quite grave. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms while looking at the reports.

"The situation with these aristocrats is worse than we thought. They didn’t just take control of the Imperial Capital. They had already prepared for this long before the Royal Family fell."

He tapped his finger against the table as he continued.

"They have people scattered across the Empire, and their influence has reached many different areas. Merchants, nobles, officials and even some military forces have dealings with them. If holding the entire Imperial Capital isn’t enough, now they are even negotiating with the Emperors."

"That’s not the issue." Duke Osantra spoke and then looked directly at Ethan.

His expression carried a hint of helplessness.

"The problem is that now they are looking at us for a suggestion."

Ethan’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

Osantra continued while pointing toward the envelopes.

"They want our opinion about how the aristocratic families should be handled. The Emperors are waiting for an answer, and they clearly don’t want to make the decision without considering what we think."

He paused for a moment before looking at Ethan again.

"Now everything rests upon Ethan. And whatever happens after, whether good or bad, will fall on Ethan’s head."

Ethan stared at him for a few seconds.

Then he slowly rubbed his forehead.

A headache was already beginning to form.

He had thought that after the battle ended, he would finally be free. He wanted to return home, spend some time with his family, eat properly and enjoy a peaceful life for a while.

Instead, a huge pot had somehow been dropped directly onto his head.

"This is driving me crazy," Ethan muttered as he leaned back in his chair.

He looked at the reports again with a tired expression.

If he asked the Emperors to accept the demands of the aristocrats and something bad happened later, it would become his fault.

If he asked the Emperors to kill the aristocrats and they suffered a huge loss because of it, that would also become his problem.

No matter which side he chose, there was a chance that things could go wrong.

Ethan let out a long sigh and rubbed his temples.

"Why can’t these people just deal with their own problems?"

Rathlos gave him a helpless look.

"Because you are the one person they trust enough to ask."

Ethan’s expression became even more bitter.

"That’s exactly the problem."

Lancelot remained silent for a moment before speaking.

"There is another reason they are being careful."

Ethan looked toward him.

"The Emperors are wary of the aristocratic families."

His voice became more serious.

"They know that these families have existed for centuries and that their influence is spread throughout the Empire. Even if they take control of their territory, they can’t be sure how many people will resist them from within."

Duke Osantra nodded slowly.

"They are afraid that removing the aristocrats by force could create another problem after the war."

Ethan lowered his gaze toward the reports.

He already understood.

The Emperors were wary of the aristocratic families. These families were like termites. The more they lived, the more they hollowed out the wood, destroying it from the inside.

They might remain quiet at first, but sooner or later, their influence would spread into every section of the Empire.

But the problem was something else.

Wasn’t Ethan essentially the same?

He also did business like these guys. He had companies and people working under him, and his influence was spread across different areas. The only difference was that he didn’t suck the blood of the commoners and didn’t exploit ordinary people just to increase his own wealth and influence.

Ethan slowly leaned forward and picked up one of the reports. His eyes moved over the words as he thought carefully.

Killing them outright when they had extended a helping hand would also set a bad precedent.

If the Emperors destroyed them after they had peacefully asked for negotiations, then what would stop other forces from thinking that surrendering was useless?

It could create fear among the nobles and make future conflicts even harder to handle.

Ethan placed the report back on the table.

He had to think about this carefully.

After a long moment, Ethan finally raised his head and looked at the three men.

"Give me some time. I need to think about this though we can’t be hasty."

His voice was calm, but his expression showed that he was taking the matter seriously.

Duke Lancelot nodded, but his brows remained slightly furrowed.

"But the more it delays, the more chaotic it might be later." Duke Lancelot advised.

"Hmm."

Ethan nodded slowly.

He understood what Lancelot meant.

Waiting could prevent a wrong decision, but waiting for too long could allow the situation to become even harder to control.

For a moment, nobody spoke.

The reports remained scattered across the table, and Ethan stared at them with a troubled expression.

Another problem had fallen into his hands.

And this time, there was no simple answer.

...

Ethan stood at one of the peaks behind the cliff and observed the Blank Estate.

What had once been a small village town filled with farmland had now expanded far beyond its original size. The estate had grown so much that it could even be compared to an Imperial City. Roads connected different areas, large buildings stood among the fields, and countless people moved around the growing territory.

Years after years of development had allowed them to reach this point. The businesses had spread all around the Empire, and now Ethan even had a chance to expand further.

But seeing the way the aristocrats were behaving gave him a sense of crisis.

If he kept developing like this, he wondered how many envious gazes he would attract.

Would one day Blanks also become a sore point in everyone’s eyes that needed to be uprooted?

It might be fine for now as long as he was ruling alongside the other Emperors, but once new Emperors arrived, things would soon start to change. The eyes of suspicion would be hard to cast aside.

Ethan slowly looked over the estate again.

"I need to ponder about the future development of Blanks carefully," Ethan spoke with a sigh and a resolute expression.

He had never thought much about this before. As long as his people were growing and his businesses were expanding, he had simply continued moving forward.

But now he had seen what could happen when a powerful force became too large.

The bigger they became, the more attention they would attract.

As he was wondering about all this, a figure slowly stepped forward from behind him.

Ethan turned his head and saw Rina approaching.

He extended his hand toward her.

"Rina, is it something important?"

Rina stepped forward and hugged Ethan, gently kissing his cheek.

Ethan looked at her face and noticed the worry in her eyes.

"What happened? You look so tensed?"

"You would be tense too after hearing this." Rina spoke with a bitter smile.

Ethan’s expression changed.

The warmth in his eyes disappeared as he sensed that something serious had happened.

"It’s from Royal Capital. The spies hidden inside gave us a message."

Rina paused for a moment before continuing.

"The Crown Princess contacted us."