Unedited chapter. It will be edited soon.

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Alaric doesn't tend to be someone who gets to know people very easily. Being so closed off and impractical in conversations, it's difficult for anyone to really get him to open up enough to form deep relationships.

He has few friends and there are few people with whom he engages in conversation, but Mr. Milo was someone special to him.

Perhaps because he reminded him of his grandfather, he enjoyed spending time with him, and they got along so well that he taught him many things. Seeing him dead was truly shocking for him.

Even so, he had to fulfill what he had taught him.

He stood up and looked at Ryan.

"Can we make a detour to visit Mr. Maxwell and bury Mr. Milo?" he asked. Or rather, he made a request.

Ryan smiled and nodded. "You're the leader of this mission, so we'll do whatever you say," he assured him.

"Thank you." Alaric thanked him and looked at his subordinates and the few they had managed to save. "Bring the bodies."

He carried Lord Milo's body himself, wrapped it in a blanket, and lifted it into the carriage, then the carriage set off, taking a detour through the mountains.

There were roads built here, although they were difficult to access and impossible to travel on with normal horses due to the incline; they did not have the endurance or strength to do so.

It must be a special breed of horses or these tireless undead horses.

Thanks to the horses, they were able to move forward relatively quickly. Although they had to protect a certain group of people, they reached the village after about four hours.

"Sir, it's the Vampire Duke's flag." One of the guards looked into the distance with a long-range viewing device. "They appear to be Young Lord Alaric's men."

"Did the Young Master come so quickly?" Maxwell frowned and took the object from his subordinate to look at it himself.

He immediately noticed a pile of corpses being brought in by his companions and became alarmed.

"Quick, find the potions, there are wounded and I think dead! Call everyone!" Maxwell shouted and without thinking twice, he jumped from the tower toward the carriage.

Alaric frowned when he saw him. 'Is Lord Maxwell injured too?' He frowned and climbed down.

Maxwell tensed when he saw that Alaric was carrying a man covered in a sheet.

"Young Lord..."

Alaric stepped forward and handed him the man. "They were attacked on the road," he said softly.

Maxwell frowned. 'How is that possible? They got through our barricades and got so close to the village?' He removed the blanket for a brief moment and quickly put it back on.

His expression visibly darkened. A cloak of darkness covered him. He signaled to everyone who did not have to bury someone to go and rest.

He looked up and stared at the two behind Alaric.

"Ninth Prince and Miss Larsen?" he asked, surprised.

"We were on our way to my family's territories, as they will help me find the traitor in the family," Alaric said.

"I see." Maxwell nodded and turned away. "Come on, the dead deserve a good place to rest," he said softly before starting to walk.

His body moved like a dry straw leaf swaying in strong winds.

If someone told Ryan or Cecily that the figure behind them belonged to the dreaded Winged Pirate, they wouldn't believe it. Rumors about him ranged from a bloodthirsty killer who killed everything in his path to a thief who stole from everyone.

Someone tyrannical who spent most of his day planning how he would slaughter his next prey.

What they were seeing today did not match those rumors. He was a vulnerable man. His power was certainly great, but the loss of one of his subordinates seemed to have affected him greatly.

They followed behind Maxwell and Alaric, who were looking for a place to bury everyone. Two hours later, they finished burying them and proceeded to pay their respects.

Throughout, Ryan and Cecily watched from the sidelines, both silent, with Garner and Cecily's butler behind them, looking on in shock.

Maxwell approached them when he was finished, but Alaric was still there and would surely remain for some time. It was the first time that this quiet, introverted young man had shown so much emotion.

"They were an interesting master-disciple duo. They learned from each other, while Alaric opened up more and more," he said suddenly, looking at Alaric in the distance.

Ryan looked at him. "Was it your family?" he asked.

Maxwell forced a smile. "My family is the most vile thing in the world. How could Milo belong to those bastards?"

Ryan nodded. "They say that your true family is the one you meet along the way, the one that doesn't betray you and is always there for you. Family doesn't always carry your blood."

"It doesn't always carry your blood, huh." Maxwell sighed. "I guess you're right."

"Are you here to arrest me or something?" Maxwell asked later.

"Do I look like I have the ability to arrest you?" Ryan scoffed at such a silly question. "I'm not suicidal."

"But I'm curious, what happened?" Ryan looked at him, curious.

"The Royal Dukes have recently gained the support of the royal family. They're not attacking, that's all," he replied.

"I knew it." Ryan smiled to himself. "I didn't expect to have to face you so soon, Brandon, but since your mission is to enslave these guys, mine will be to prevent that. I hope this battle will be interesting," he thought.

"Wow, so it's my family."

"Yes."

"Does my presence here bother you?"

"If you're here to help the Young Lord, I have no reason to doubt you."

"What if I tricked him so I could get to you?"

"The Young Lord's judgment is never wrong." Maxwell looked over his shoulder to see Cecily. "I hear Miss Larsen is the best investigator with Inanimate Destiny of the new generation."

Cecily shrugged. "Do you want me to see the shadow of those who did it?" she asked.

"If it's not too much trouble, I'd like you to do that," he replied.

"And what do I get out of it?" she asked back.

"Need to earn something? I thought you could do some charity work."

Cecily scoffed. "I'm not weak-hearted, Winged Pirate. We all have our own goals, and with goals, people don't go around doing things for free. You know that, right?"

Maxwell sighed. "Let's talk about that later," he said.

Alaric returned shortly after. "Mr. Maxwell, can you tell me everything that's going on?"

"Let's go inside."

Soon after, they were sitting at a table inside the main house.

The situation was simple. The Royal Dukes and royalty wanted to enslave these pirates behind the scenes so they could open a normal passage through this area and charge tolls to make money.

Obviously, having these mountains under the control of the royalty was money in itself, as it has been proven that there are metal mines underneath that can be exploited and generate great wealth for the nation.

But the situation was complicated. The pirates were still strong and had the Winged Pirate, who, although confirmed not to be a demigod, was still a powerful Level 6, someone whose power alone commanded respect and fear.

So they couldn't do it so easily, which is why they were under constant attack. The problem was that the royal troops comprised several duchies and had someone of royal blood with an astonishing status. According to Maxwell, it could be a prince or a highly respected duke, one of those who had their territories elsewhere.

Ryan knows that this is not a duke, but Brandon. He is behind it and receives support from his father, at least that's how it was in the novel.

That's why he had decided to move in this direction, because he knows that Brandon will have to start his moves here, as his idea is to get the support of all those nearby dukes. One of the best ways he had recently come up with to counter Brandon was to create his own plots within Brandon's plot.

He controls the plot of the novel, which is destined to happen without delay. So Ryan simply has to counter that plot, in every way he can.

If Brandon wants to take over this place, then Ryan must prevent it, even though this would not earn him any points at first, because it would be impossible to control this place from within with Maxwell present, someone who, despite how vulnerable he appeared today, is not stupid. It will give him control of the plot, and that is more important in a situation where the plots are changing.

It's practically the best way to avoid Brandon's power, since whenever he goes against him, he can stay out of each plot and control it.

The attacks on the mountains were occurring irregularly, a combat tactic used by Brandon, so that could mean he was with the Royal Dukes on the other side of the mountains.

The question was, how did he get there so quickly? But the answer was obvious: the king was helping him.

So Ryan had to be careful.

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