Volume 8 Chapter 46: I Want You

"Hello there, Keith." Oscar gestured to the seat across from him, "Please take a seat."

"..." Keith sat down, but his vigilance remained. That only caused Oscar to chuckle, "Relax, there's no need to be so wary of me. I'm not planning to do anything."

Those words didn't soothe Keith at all.

"Why are you here anyway? Shouldn't you have returned to the Solis Kingdom?" That was odd; they should have gone home.

"I had some things I wanted to do. And I noticed this cafe a few days ago. Even though it's such a dingy place, it sold some of the best drinks ever."

"I see," Keith sighed, "What does the second prince of the Solis Kingdom want to talk to a person like me?" He was not doing this without an idea in his mind.

"Straight to the point."

"I'm a busy person."

Oscar laughed, "I wanted to have a conversation with you. After all, you're my sister's childhood friend."

"...You called me here to talk about Carolyn?" Keith took a sip.

"Sure. My sister is quite beautiful, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is." Keith nodded. That was something someone without a brain cell could say. Even among beauties like Alfia and Scarlet, Carolyn still shined around them. There were even some people who tried to ask her out as well.

"Do you want to marry her?"

"Huh?!" Keith almost spat out his drink, "What are you talking about?"

"I mean it; what if you have the chance to marry my sister?"

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"Huh? She's dating Alger."

"Ah, that marriage is nothing more than a hoax. It's a political battle in our family."

"..." Keith didn't say anything. However, he did have some inkling of what was occurring. The time he had beaten Felix to a bloody pulp, he talked about Eric joining his side.

He was not so out of the loop with all of this. If he remembered correctly, Felix, Oscar, and James were in contention to become the next king. And it was a pretty close race from what he could remember. However, that was five years ago.

What was it now?

"Felix has been down in the running the last few years. Well, Felix has always been down in the running." The first prince was in a losing battle from the get-go; this was due to his lineage. They all had the same father but different mothers; Felix's mother came from a count family. Because of this, the amount of support he received was low compared to the other two.

"So to solve this, Felix made an agreement with the Philosopher Kingdom using Carolyn as a chip."

"..." Keith's expression changed.

"Felix thinks he could get the crown if he obtained the assistance of the Philosopher Kingdom."

"And you don't think so?"

"Oh, no. I'm not stupid," Oscar sipped his coffee before explaining, "Of course, having the Philosopher Kingdom backing him could change the tides." They were the strongest human kingdom. That was not to be undermined; if he could gain their support, it would definitely increase his chances. However,

"But I doubt the other families would sit still seeing the Philosopher Kingdom stepping in. This is especially so with the Rustchil and your family."

"..."

"The three factions have a vital relationship with one another. That way, it would keep the other in check." If one side tried something, then the other two would stop them. It had always been like this.

"But the power will definitely shift if they get involved." The royal family would have the most power of the two; that balance would be gone. The two families will not sit still and let the royal family run around.

"Does that idiot not know?"

"Of course not; he clearly doesn't understand that this would incite a war between all of us. All he cares about is obtaining power and becoming king. His inferiority complex had always made him easy prey." Inciting a war between the three powers was what the Philosopher Kingdom wanted.

That kingdom probably saw them as a threat: Solis Kingdom was ranked second. Even if they were ranked first, it was not by much.

"If they could get the three powers to fight with one another, they could absorb our kingdom and reign as the most dominant human kingdom," Keith muttered.

Oscar nodded, "Mmhmm, that's why it's such a big deal; we'll become lap dogs for them."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Simple, I want to have your support for me becoming crown prince,"

"Huh? You want my support? Why do you need the assistance of this 4th son?"

"Do you really think of yourself like that? Do you know how much influence you have on the people?"

"I don't have the influence my father has." Of course, he had some influence on the merchant and food game. But nobility-wise, that was more of William's expertise than his.

"That's where you are wrong. You have more value than your father." Oscar made one conclusion; Keith was a kingmaker. That was the entire reason why Felix wanted to have Eric under his thumb; it was because of this fellow before him.

All of Marquis's William's children were prodigies. However, the one who surpassed them all was the fourth son.

This child created a renowned merchant group that blew away other competitors in the northern region. Every territory there had one White Owl Merchant group. Not only this, he was also the grandson of Grand Duke Bradley. Plus, he had earned the favor of Cadmus.

Each one by itself was already incredible. However, it was added to the fact that this child had done all of this before he was 10. His value alone was something higher than any other noble.