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"It seems that this war has come to an end! Where is Grand Duke Kliman? Didn't he come back with us? Could he still be strangling those hidden miners in the Earldom?"

At this point, Harold turned around triumphantly and looked at his brother Hattar. He wanted to see the helpless and angry expression on the other's face, but unexpectedly found that Hattar also had a smile on his face, as if congratulating him on becoming the next king.

The servant lowered his head and did not respond to Harold's question.

"Please let the person in." Basel said in a deep voice. He had keenly realized from the servant's reaction that things might not be that simple.

The palace door opened quickly, and Archbishop Nord walked into the hall quickly, with a look of fear on his face. Along with him came more than 20 knights with patchy armor and covered in dust and blood...

This time, even Harold, who was slow to realize it, realized that something was wrong.

"Your Excellency the Bishop, what exactly happened? Is the situation on the front line unfavorable?" Harold asked anxiously.

The worst scenario he could imagine was that Archduke Rickman was ambushed by the miners and suffered heavy losses, and then the archbishop ran back to the palace to seek support...

"There is no front line now, Your Highness Harold! Grand Duke Climan is dead, and several marquises and earls were unable to escape. I'm afraid there are only a few of us left to fight against more than 10,000 miners!" Nord shook his head bitterly.

He was right beside Kliman when he fell off his horse. After hesitating for a second between rescuing him and protecting himself and bringing the intelligence back to the capital, Nord decisively chose the latter!

After all, this news is so important!

Kliman was dead? All 15,000 elite soldiers were wiped out?

After hearing these two pieces of news, Harold's mind went blank and he almost fainted.

The nobles present were also shocked and in disbelief, and almost suspected that the bishop was joking with them.

For this battle for the crown prince, the eldest prince's followers brought out all their might. In addition to more than 10,000 private soldiers and 2,000 cavalry, they also had the help of church priests and bishops.

When these people gathered outside the royal capital before, everyone was a little worried that the other side might suddenly turn their guns on them and stage a palace coup.

Who else can destroy such a powerful army?

Even King Bazel, who was sitting on the throne, couldn't help but stand up, his eyes wide open, looking at the Nord and the knights below like a lion.

"You must be lying, this is impossible!" Harold's eyes were red, and he stretched out his hand to grab Nord's collar tightly, roaring hoarsely. "Those lowly slaves holding hoes and mining drafts will never be able to defeat my personal army even if they use the most despicable and despicable means!"

"I'm sorry, but that's the fact, Your Highness Harold..." Nord struggled to break free from Harold's restraints, and then, under the gaze of everyone, he recounted word for word what happened on the battlefield a few days ago.

The knights nearby also made stuttering additions. They had personally experienced the tragic scenes of being attacked by muskets, artillery and white phosphorus bombs.

Although they managed to escape from the battlefield, the hellish scene was engraved in their hearts, so when they described it, they inevitably exaggerated it a bit.

For example, when they were charging, a large group of well-equipped regular troops suddenly jumped out from the ragged miners, holding extremely powerful magical weapons in their hands, which seemed to be able to control the power of thunder and fire.

They only heard thunderous noises, and their companions fell down in rows like wheat being cut...

The rain of fire that filled the sky was even more terrifying, just like the fire of hell in the endless abyss in the Bible. Once you are infected, it will be like a maggot in your tarsal bones, burning you to ashes...

The stories told by Nord and more than 20 knights made everyone present shudder, but doubts also followed!

"Archbishop Nord, you just said that the group of rebels that suddenly appeared numbered thousands, and each of them possessed a magical weapon? I'm afraid that even if all the evil god believers hiding underground are added together, there may not be that many!" A noble of the kingdom questioned.

Although there are rumors that those wizards have been bewitched by the devil and evil gods and possess powers that are unimaginable to ordinary people, and it is not surprising that they do terrible things, they are not a group of fools who are easily fooled.

Even some nobles had some private contacts with wizards who mastered magical powers, and could clearly distinguish between alchemical items and magic.

Moreover, no matter how powerful a wizard is, he has his limits. How is it possible for him to cast spells continuously for more than ten minutes without stopping?

The voices of doubt continued, even intensifying, but there was a hint of panic in each of these voices, because they were unwilling to believe that this was true, so it could only be a lie!

"I swear to the Lord that everything I said is true and there is absolutely no lie!" Nord's roar was deafening, suppressing all the questioning voices in the hall.

If a clergyman is willing to swear in the name of God, it means that he cannot be lying!

Nord's angry words shattered the last bit of fantasy of the people... This meant that their enemies had almost completely defeated nearly half of the kingdom's elite troops led by Duke Kliman!

The entire hall fell into deathly silence. The feeling of fear spread like a plague in the hall. Kliman and so many elite troops were all wiped out. If the enemy came to the capital, wouldn't they have no choice but to be killed?

Harold was even more devastated, standing stiffly in the hall. All his soldiers and supporters were killed or wounded in the war, and he knew that he was doomed...

King Bazel's face was also pale. He staggered and fell on the throne behind him, making people suspect that he would faint in the next moment.

"Your Majesty the King!"

The servants on both sides wanted to step forward to help but were stopped by Basel's wave of his hand. He forced himself to look at Nord with a trembling body and said in a trembling voice.

"What about Cardinal Anruk? Has he heard the news?"

Chapter 272 Do you dare to swear to the great Lord?

"I have already sent someone to inform the Cardinal..."

In response to King Bazel's question, Nord said in a deep voice that two priests had escaped with him.

Because the situation was too urgent, they directly split into two teams in order to report the news as soon as possible so that the church and the kingdom could discuss solutions together.

"In addition, I suspect that a great wizard is involved and even planned the miners' riot behind the scenes in an attempt to subvert the entire kingdom!" Nord added.

Because the terrifying rain of fire that covered the entire field at the end might be the fifth-ring magic [Meteor Shower], but he had never seen this thing before, so he was not completely sure.

The nobles present were completely in panic and fear, and some even suggested asking the empire for help. Their strength alone was far from enough to deal with this rebellion.

Amidst the calls, King Bazel was hesitant.

Although the Kingdom of Hadratha is a vassal of the Empire, due to historical reasons, it still maintains a relatively high degree of autonomy. Once he decides to ask the Empire for help, the other side will definitely take this opportunity to station and march into the Kingdom. In this way, all his efforts to consolidate the royal power for most of his life will be in vain.

Hattar was also unwilling to be interfered with by the Empire. After all, the survival of these miners was directly related to the position of crown prince. Even though Harold, his competitor, had lost most of his power, this righteousness was still very important!

Thinking of this, Hattar hurriedly stood up and spoke loudly.

"Father, I don't think it's necessary to ask the empire for help. Things are not that bad yet!"

"Grand Duke Climan was simply caught off guard this time, and his mediocre abilities led to the loss of the kingdom's elite forces. I am willing to lead the army myself and go with Cardinal Anluk to resolve this rebellion of the miners!" Hattar vowed.

Hattar's words surprised everyone in the hall.

What Nord and the knights said just now has made it very clear that Grand Duke Kliman did not fall into a trap, but was defeated head-on by the rebels in a nearly complete victory.

A total of 15,000 people were wiped out, and even the Duke was unable to escape.

This meant that the enemy's terror was far beyond their imagination. This was simply a fire pit, and now Hattar actually wanted to jump into it...

Some smart people quickly came to their senses. You know, half a month ago when they were discussing the attack on these miners, Hattar had been dragging his feet and not taking any action. But now he was very active, which was obviously abnormal.

"Wait, Your Highness Hattar, when Bishop Nord reported just now, you didn't seem very surprised?" A court minister suddenly asked in a cold voice.

Harold reacted immediately, and instantly thought of the mocking look in Nord's eyes when he came in. A chill surged from the soles of his feet to his heart, but he felt more angry.

"Hattar...it's you. You must have colluded with those followers of the evil god and planned this miners' riot in order to put yourself on the throne!" Harold roared angrily, then turned and looked at the Kingdom of Bazel on the throne.

"Father, the spies I sent to monitor Hattar reported that a group of people with unknown identities and wearing strange clothes often enter and leave his mansion. Most of them are believers of those evil gods!"

Hattar's expression remained unchanged as he spoke sarcastically, "Stop your groundless fantasies and suspicions, Harold! Why don't you just say that the entire kingdom has been occupied by the followers of the evil god?"

"You didn't seem to be in any hurry before about the conquest of the miners and the position of crown prince." Harold sneered and counterattacked bluntly.

"I'm not as impatient as you, Harold. A few days ago, I had some conflicts with the Marquis of Vichy on the issue of conquering those miners, so it was delayed for some time. I had to send Count Gad to inquire about the situation first." Hattar spoke slowly, paused, and then continued with a sigh.

"As of now, Earl Gard has probably been killed by those mobs!"

"Do you dare to swear before the great Lord that the miners' riot and the wizards who appeared in the earldom have nothing to do with you?" Harold said viciously. He knew that Hattar must be lying.

Everyone in the hall looked at Hattar with questioning eyes. After all, the nobles who had conquered the miners this time were all Harold's loyal supporters. If they died, Hattar would be the one who benefited the most!

Under the questioning gazes of the crowd, Hattar's forehead was covered with cold sweat. He swears in the name of the true God, this is not a joke.

But he was even more aware that once the truth was exposed, what would await him would be the most severe judgment from King Basil and the Vatican.

"Of course... I swear to the great Lord!" Hattar said with forced calmness.

"Like all of you, I only heard about the miners mentioned by Earl Joyce half a month ago. I knew nothing about it before that. Otherwise, let me die in the endless flames of hell under the punishment of the Lord!"

Hattar's voice was firm, without the slightest wavering. After all, he was not lying. Half a month ago, he knew nothing about this matter. It was all planned by Master Anthony.

Then, without waiting for Harold to continue questioning, Hattar said triumphantly, "Father, please allow me to lead the troops in person and destroy all these rebels and evil god believers who are wreaking havoc on the kingdom!"

"I will discuss this matter with Lord Anluk before making a decision." King Bazel's words became much colder, and then he announced that the meeting was over. He took a few guards and Bishop Nord, hurriedly left the palace and rushed to the church.

Hattar stayed there in confusion. He couldn't understand why his father rejected his proposal. Was there anyone more suitable than him?

What made Hattar even more anxious was that King Bazel's attitude became particularly strange, which made him puzzled.

When Rickman was gathering his troops outside the capital to show off his might, he heard from a bribed servant that Bazel had smashed his favorite vase in a rage.

Hattar also understood his father's reaction very well. Not only did his brother gain the support of nearly half of the nobles in the kingdom, he also had the help of the church. His brother was even more powerful than the kingdom itself!

Although the kingdom suffered considerable losses in this battle, it was not necessarily a completely bad thing. At least some of the kingdom's instability factors were removed...

But now Basel's reaction made Hattar extremely confused.

There is someone who may be able to answer my question...

Chapter 273: We might as well break into the palace and seize his throne!

After the routine meeting in the palace ended, Hattar rushed back to the manor without stopping, ordered people to invite Anthony over, and immediately told him the whole story of the meeting, and then asked in confusion.

"Master Anthony...what is going on? Why did father change his attitude so suddenly?"

After listening to Hattar's story, Anthony thought about it and quickly came up with a guess in his mind.

If they had simply defeated Grand Duke Rickman's army, the Kingdom of Bazel would certainly not have reacted so greatly.

But it was different now. The tens of thousands of legions and dozens of nobles heading to the earldom were all slaughtered. Not only did it seriously affect the balance of power within the kingdom, the power they displayed naturally made His Majesty the King feel fear!

But this is exactly what Lin En wants. If they don't show their muscles, how can those fence-sitter nobles believe that they can fight against the powerful church?

"It seems that my previous predictions were wrong. Your good father is probably not planning to put you on the throne. He just uses you and me as bargaining chips to balance the power of the Holy See." Anthony shook his head and sighed.

He had previously underestimated King Bazel, who had ruled the kingdom for decades.

Anthony originally thought that the other party was dissatisfied with the church's excessive interference in secular affairs, so he was determined to put Hattar, who had a tendency to rebel against the church, on the throne.

But judging from the reaction of His Majesty the King now, things are not as simple as he thought. Basel just wants to use their power to weaken the power of the church and thus strengthen the royal power. He has no intention of really breaking up with the church.

After hearing Anthony's explanation and analysis, Hattar's pupils shrank slightly and his heart turned cold. He didn't want to believe it, but when he thought about his father's reaction in the hall, he had to believe it.

This time, Harold's faction was defeated in the expedition against the miners, and nearly half of the kingdom's elite forces were lost. Although the enemy's strength was far beyond expectations, his good father did not pursue any punishment. As for Harold, he did not even reprimand him. His bias was obvious.

"Master Anthony? What should we do now?" Hattar was suddenly panicked. In the past, he only needed to think about how to please his father and hope that the other party would help him ascend to the throne. However, now this idea has failed.