Chapter 800: Everyone’s Agenda

Jansen has never harbored ulterior motives toward Henwell's children.

He adores all three. When Henwell's youngest daughter was born, Henwell himself wasn't even there, yet Jansen hurried over and stayed for several days.

As Henwell's eldest son, Pabos has been invited to stay at Phoenix Castle even more often.

Jansen is deeply pleased by Pabos's intelligence, diligence, humility, and steady temperament.

Seeing Pabos sob, Jansen smiles and comforts him. "Enough. Don't be sad. What's done is done."

"As the heir to Peace Haven, you should be thinking about how to solve the problem."

"I am already over sixty. Even among nobles, that cannot be considered a short life."

"I've lived an eventful life, one far richer than most people could ever experience."

"Of course I don't want to die. No one can truly face life and death without fear."

"But saying I'll die consumed by regret and resentment would be an exaggeration."

"In my lifetime, I witnessed the transformation of the kingdom and helped the Phoenix family rise to its current heights."

"I have not failed our ancestors, nor have I failed the charge my father entrusted to me."

"As the Duke of the Silver Wolf Claw, I may not have achieved much in my life."

"But I raised a king and helped a future hegemon rise!"

"There are truly very few people in this world who can compare with me."

"I do have one regret."

"My one true regret is that I won't live to see the even grander epic Henwell is about to create."

"I have concerns as well. Because of what happened to me, Arius and Henwell will face some trouble with each other."

"While I'm alive, the two of them won't clash. Once I die, many people will start entertaining dangerous ideas."

Pabos wipes his tears. "Grandpa, I'll find my father. He'll have a way to save you!"

Jansen's face hardens. "Foolish! The survival of Peace Haven, Phoenix, and even the Vorry Kingdom rests on your father's shoulders."

"He is currently attempting his breakthrough to Glory Rank. Nothing is more important."

"You are an intelligent child. You must understand that."

"Once Henwell reaches Glory Rank, few beings on the continent will still be able to restrain him."

"He intends to become a great emperor!"

"To reach that unprecedented future, he must give up many things, and he must be willing to let them go."

"Me, the Phoenix family, you, even the entire kingdom!"

"If necessary, he must even be willing to sacrifice himself!"

"Henwell has that resolve. So do I."

"Young Pabos!"

"You must develop the same resolve in the future."

Pabos nods weakly, and Jansen smiles again. "All right. Let me test you."

"What do you think of the present situation? Who is driving events in this direction?"

"Who ultimately benefits, and what role does each party play in this game?"

Pabos answers, "Someone is forcing Peace Haven to move against the Phoenix family. The Church, Ika, Vorry, the Descartes family, and even Peace Haven itself are all pushing events in that direction."

Jansen nods gently. "Go on. Explain what each party wants and what each one stands to gain afterward."

Pabos gathers his thoughts. "The Church's goal is simple. Its main target is my father."

"It wants to make his advancement fail, or at least leave some hidden flaw in his future progress."

"Whether the plan succeeds or fails, the Church loses nothing."

"If it succeeds, my father's advancement will go awry, and he will need a long time to repair the damage."

"Afterward, he will have only two choices. If he wants to continue pursuing extraordinary advancement, he will have to devote enormous amounts of time and energy to it."

"He will then have no attention left for governing and developing Peace Haven."

"If he chooses Peace Haven instead, his personal advancement will come to a halt."

"The Church can accept either outcome."

"The church and the empire can accept a powerful professional rising quickly, and they can tolerate a political power expanding just as fast."

"But they'll never allow a powerful professional and the power under his control to grow stronger together. That would put both beyond their control."

Duke Jansen nods in satisfaction. "Very good. The fact that you can see this much proves that you have been thinking seriously about many things."

"There is one more point you have overlooked, however: human nature."

"The Church's interference is bound to anger Henwell, and it'll deepen Peace Haven's resentment toward the church and the empire."

"Such emotions need an outlet. The members of a faction cannot remain under constant pressure forever."

"Henwell therefore needs to give Peace Haven a way to vent some of its anger toward the church and the empire."

"That outlet is your teacher, Harry, the Church hostage."

"I believe you know something about what happened between him and his younger brother, Senar."

Pabos frowns. "Someone wants my teacher dead? Another member of the Church?"

Duke Jansen answers, "Everyone has enemies. Given his present circumstances, his enemies will naturally do everything they can to kill him."

"The reason he has worked so hard to teach you is that he wants to use you as a shield and guarantee his safety in Peace Haven."

Pabos falls silent. Only now does he understand why Harry warned him about the clues behind this affair.

Duke Jansen continues, "Enough. You don't need to concern yourself with his affairs. With your father watching him, he won't dare do anything."

"Now tell me why Ika has involved itself here when the Golden Sacred Tent crisis is about to erupt."

"At a moment like this, Ika has chosen to provoke your father and put Peace Haven on edge."

"The surface explanation makes sense, but its real objective can't be that simple."

Pabos looks puzzled. "Does Ika not merely want to provoke conflict between the family and Peace Haven and destabilize Peace Haven's rear?"

"By driving the Phoenix family away from Peace Haven, it can slow Peace Haven's development. Is that not what Ika wants?"

Duke Jansen shakes his head. "As I said, that's only the surface explanation."

"Ika has a deeper goal. It wants to use this provocation to draw out Henwell's biological parents."

"Every major power, including Ika, has now learned that Henwell was born in the Ika Kingdom."

"The place of his birth lay along the route taken by the coalition forces during the War of the Six Kings."

"What we know for certain is that Henwell first appeared in Wilderness City!"

"The coalition forces occupied Wilderness City at the time. Henwell appeared among the captives and was selected as a camp attendant."

"Every trace of Henwell from before that moment was deliberately erased."

"That means Henwell's homeland lies somewhere south of Wilderness City, inside the Ika Kingdom."

"The major powers searched the region carefully, but found only vague and contradictory rumors. No one uncovered Henwell's exact origins."

"What Ika fears most is the nature of Henwell's background inside its own kingdom."

"A man as formidable as Henwell couldn't have appeared from nowhere, and an ordinary family couldn't have raised and educated him."

Pabos finally understands. "Ika wants to use this affair to determine which family my father came from?"

"They fear that Vorry's old predicament will eventually repeat itself inside the Ika Kingdom!"