In such a short time during and using only a few small details, Kairos could discover such a tremendous scheme underneath. Everyone in the room felt his frightening intellect. They were in the same meeting and heard the same things, but did not notice the traitor in their midst until Kairos risked himself to reveal the enemy.
Now that the secret identity of the Right Minister had been found out, there is no longer a need to be polite anymore.
Lord Yue immediately gave Minister You a bone-chilling smile and said in an unnaturally quiet voice, "Tell us everything, and you can die."
The way he spoke about death was how people discuss insignificant things, and it caused Minister You to shudder with an unnatural chill. The duke was born with a permanent glare in his eyes, giving him a fearsome visage since young. Even when he makes a soft expression, it would only turn into something like an unseemly look of joy at another's suffering.
One can imagine the terror that the Right Prime Minister is in right now despite dealing with the smartest and the most vicious state ministers for years.
With such a face, no matter what the duke's thoughts are, others easily misunderstood him as a villain, and it affected his behaviour becoming a vicious cycle. When he treated others nicely, he would be met with suspicions, but when he was nasty, others feared and respected him.
After centuries of being misunderstood, Lord Yue had largely given up.
With only a glare, the Right Minister started trembling, but Kairos held out a hand and stopped Lord Yue, "Hold on. I have a proposition."
The Duke nodded at the boy as the Right Minister looked at him as if he was a saviour. The Left Minister remained quiet. By now everyone on this table already recognised Kairos' abilities despite his youth. They know that prodigies cannot be scaled in the same way as others and were willing to listen.
Kairos said with an emotionless voice, as though conversing with a stranger, "You have two futures, the first is death, but for what you had done, the Duke will not let it be an easy one. Rest assured, it will be extremely... interesting."
The two ministers paled at his words while Lord Yue's grin turned wider. Hearing a thirteen year old boy saying these words are unnerving.
Kairos did not pause for long, and continued, "Your second choice, which for the sake of entertainment that I hope you wouldn't pick, is to use this and become our men. Think of it as servitude, if you will."
He slammed a Jade Slip before the man, but it was his words – not his action – that caused shivers down everyone's spines.
It was as though the Prime Minster held no importance to their plans, and any schemes and quick talks that was forming in his mind, crumbled instantly.
Taking one look at the Duke's almost enthusiastic expression, the Right Minister dared not to even breathe heavily.
Lord Yue immediately gave a sigh of relief. He had not wanted to see the bloody mess of torture, especially since he is slightly mysophobic. Unfortunately, everyone thought it was a look of great disappointment.
The Right Minister immediately trembled, in his heart he was giving thanks to the myriad gods that Kairos gave him a second option.
He was quickly made to recite a set of conditions made with extreme meticulousness and sealed his fate as a double-agent with the Jade Slip.
"What is your role in all this?" Kairos asked immediately after the Soul Jade returned to his hands.
"Master Kairos, I am to secure control over the courts."
The Right Minister's way of addressing the three around him had changed. His arrogance towards the commoners – people he thinks lesser than himself – is far less than his desire to survive. As a person who enjoyed fame, riches, and power, it is hard for him to choose a worthy cause over his own life. Moreover, his haughtiness stemmed from his self-infatuation. It wasn't something that he couldn't put down.
On the other hand, the swiftness of his change caused the three other men to look at him with amazement. In the state courts, even if one is the Prime Minister, 1st class official, and only a rank below the emperor but above all others, one's head can still roll as quickly as one can flap their gums.
When facing a dead-end, not many of those sly old ministers will dare persist. Such courageous but brainless acts are better left to those uncouth men on the battlefield.
But when the next question came sweat started to roll down his sides.
Kairos asked, "Why do you support the Devilheart family, knowing that they are working with the Silent Lambs Empire?"
The Right Minister paled at these words. Under the influence of the truth jade, he couldn't tell any lies, but if he say what he believes, it will definitely anger the other party.
Seeing his indecision, Kairos was forced to promise that whatever he says will have no repercussions. Right now, finding out what makes the enemies tick is far more important than dealing punishments and getting a kick out of things.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
The Right Minister eyed the giant jade at the back, and seeing no glow that indicates Kairos was lying, he said, "They are just using the enemy. The Devilheart family is far stronger than what the Phrixus believes.
The old Emperor had grown tired of strife and allowed the Silent Lambs to climb all over our head!
While they think that they could incite a civil war within our borders and weaken us, they are actually helping us remove the stagnant Vestimore family from power and making us stronger! We had been far too..."
He had answered honestly, and at the same time wanting to convince the three of them of his innocence. Just as he claimed, he truly was loyal to Saint Empire and was convinced he had thought out the best plan for his homeland. However, Lord Yue slammed the table with a fist, and his outburst ceased as he shrunk back into his seat.
Afterwards, under Kairos' instructions, Minister You gave up all his information without a fight, including the confirming of several deductions they made previously.
He also told them of a few plans that the Devilheart family had, in order to overtake the throne, and within their schemes, the largest vital piece happened to be Calculus' Five-Clawed Golden Dragon that symbolises sovereignty.
In this regard, the Left Minister and Lord Yue's faces turned dark. With an ancestor dragon the Devilheart family gained a ticket to claim the throne.
By using the old legends and spreading rumours, they could easily convince the people that the current emperor, Galahad, and the Vestimore family had fallen from heaven's grace. Although it might not have any facts to back it up, few can be utterly immune to superstitions no matter if it is those who tread the path of Dao or the non-practitioners.
And, once a spark was created, the Devilheart family can easily bring out their hidden strength into the public and fan the plans, convincing everyone that they should rule. At that time, the Third Prince will become useless and be thrown away, the Crown Princess will become an obstacle and a target.
Kairos, Minister Zuo, and Lord Yue, concluded all these instantly. Another person might not be able to do so, but those at this table are amongst the most brilliant in the empire.
However, Kairos after hearing this from the Right Prime Minister's mouth only smiled at him as though unperturbed.
The Five-Clawed Golden Dragon is indeed rare amongst its kind and a proud beast. To land in the hands of Calculus definitely made the situation dire. If the emperor is still around, it wouldn't be much of an issue since the Devilheart family dare not openly rebel.
However, there is a secret that only two people know.
Emperor Galahad had originally intended to make Calculus disappear quietly, but Kairos predicted it and approached the monarch beforehand. The boy somehow convinced the emperor to spare Calculus saying that he has a way to seize the dragonling at any time.
After all, Kairos is dearer to it than Calculus, for he is its creator while the latter is only its tamer. Of course, he did not reveal this fact to the emperor and just need to prove he could do so by showing his duel with Calculus and the golden dragon. After he analysed the details, Galahad nodded his head saying, "Letting the Devilheart raise that dragonling is a great idea. The look on their faces must be spectacular when they realise all the funds they pump into feeding ended up in your hands. Hahaha!"
The emperor show signs of returning to his palace, and Kairos couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty when the dragonling falls into my hand, wouldn't it cause any concerns?"
"Should it?"
"I certainly hope not."
"Don't fret about that. I still understand the concept to work with only those I trust."
In a way, the emperor trusted Kairos with his daughter's safety, and in return, Kairos trusted Galahad with some secrets. It was their way of friendship that transcended age and status.
The group on this table did not know about it, and Kairos did not explain anything either. He asked a few more questions that came to mind, and the first was his biggest interest, "What do you know about the Moon Clan's reason to follow after Calculus?"
As a person with high status, the Right Minister was privy to more information than the normal file-and-ranks.
The two others voiced their curiosity as well, and he told them what he knew, "Master Kairos, Master Yue, Master Zuo, despite my position, the things I know are quite limited. I believe, only the head of the Devilheart family know of all the plots and proceedings. But, I sent some of my men to gather information secretly."
A flash of annoyance flew across Lord Yue's face. The Right Minister is on full-power to fawn on them now. Terrified at being unable to give enough information, Minister You wanted to garner compassion and understanding before he delivered the news.
But a twitch on the Duke's brow sent him scurrying and squealing, "Hieeeee!! I'll tell you everything I know, don't kill me!"
All composure and years of putting up a fake mask in court vanished like the morning mists.
Without daring to wait a moment longer, he blurted out everything. There was no solid proof and the details were rough, but by the end the three others had a basic idea of what happened. The Sun and Moon Clan had some sort of legend that were passed down in their family, they split with half of them believing that Calculus was the destined one in their stories and followed after the boy while the other half disagreed.
"In that case, we need to find out exactly what that lore of theirs was and prevent the Sun Clan from joining the Devilheart family. As it is, we are already losing at all fronts, if the Sun and Moon Clan reunites under the enemy, with the support of a Great Noble, their rebellion will hasten by a few years."
More than the strength of the Sun and Moon, it is the fame and influence of the Great Nobles within the empire that the enemy wanted. If an ancient and longstanding family publically espouse on the Devilheart's coup, the latter's claim will become far more potent.
After they squeezed out all the information they could from the Right Minister, Kairos gave him a command to stay hidden and wait for their instructions and dismissed the turn-coat.
Now secretly working for them, they had the advantage of knowing the enemy's plans first hand, as well as feeding them with whatever they want.
After Minister You left, the Left Prime Minister also excused himself. Without any trust left for the Right Minister, the work on his hand has doubled. Who knew if another loophole could be found and they were all played for fools?
There might be things that the Right Minister had left out and could stab them in the back if they were careless. Kairos also did not trust Minister You and sent a pair of Greater Elementals after him. He was far too self-righteous and presume himself to be infallible. Even until the end, he tried to convince them that he was not a traitor. Such a person needs to be monitored at all times.
Now with only Lord Yue and Kairos left, the latter offered to help the injured Duke back to his room.
As the boy helped him up, the old man suddenly said, "The... the Snowdrifts will be in danger now that the Devilheart has seized control. They will inevitably seek to resolve the previous grudges between you, there... there is a way... umm... I can help...
Why not... become my godson?"
Despite the stuttering andthe words that were used, there was a murderous glint in the Duke's eyes, as ifthe moment Kairos says no, his life will end.