In the Ryan Imperial Capital, James Watson remained busy inside his Tribunal.
His workload had grown considerably heavier lately, though not because Ryan had run into more problems.
On the contrary, after the emperor used the Dragon Tyrant Armament to restore the youth of those Ryan citizens attending the ceremony, the populace had practically united as one. The turmoil previously triggered by the Silvermoon Knight's passing had dissolved into nothingness.
In the hearts of Ryan's people, the Dragon Tyrant Armament was the true artifact guarding the nation, and its power would never diminish just because someone grew old.
The reason James Watson had become so busy was that many people in the Tribunal had resigned—individuals whom James Watson had groomed as the backbone of the organization for years.
When Alan was falsely accused of treason, they believed the rumors, felt outraged at him, the Supreme Arbiter, and chose to resign.
Among the new recruits, truly capable individuals were scarce, so he could only make do with what he had.
As a result, James Watson's workload piled up.
If it were only that, James Watson could still hold out. The greater trouble came from Ryan's young emperor.
Ever since he donned the Dragon Tyrant Armament and took a flight around the city, his prestige had skyrocketed to unprecedented heights.
Originally, everyone had thought this newly enthroned young emperor would be just like his predecessors, busy only with fathering children. Now, seeing that he could "shoulder grave responsibilities," they naturally gave the emperor immense support.
With that support, the emperor was able to apply pressure to James Watson.
The young emperor had long found the old man irritating. From the very beginning of his reign, the Supreme Arbiter had incessantly nitpicked and criticized him, showing not an ounce of respect.
The young emperor originally possessed the authority to replace the Supreme Arbiter, but according to Ryan tradition, the position required a legendary cleric of light. There was certainly more than one legendary cleric of light in the empire, but the problem was that most of them were James Watson's students.
Those who were not still held great respect for the Supreme Arbiter.
In other words, even if the young emperor had wanted to replace him before, no one would have been willing to take the post.
The Supreme Arbiter had committed no errors, had labored conscientiously for so many years, and his contributions were plain for all to see. If the emperor sought to replace him, wouldn't that be an utter farce? If anyone dared accept the position of Supreme Arbiter, wouldn't they be cursed to their faces and condemned by every person in Ryan?
That was how things had stood before, but now the situation had changed.
First came Alan's "treason," which led many commoners in Ryan to heap verbal abuse and condemnation onto James Watson. Especially because James Watson insisted on adhering strictly to Ryan law, refusing to offer a public apology, and firmly maintaining that Alan had done nothing wrong by resigning.
Because of this, James Watson's reputation took a severe hit.
Now that the emperor had gained prestige, if he were to bring up replacing him, many would likely be willing to accept the role of Supreme Arbiter.
Against this complicated backdrop, the staff within the Tribunal grew all the more unsettled, losing their will to work diligently.
James Watson worked alone in the Tribunal until late into the night before finally concluding the last official document.
Rubbing his numb, aching shoulders, he cast a divine spell on himself. James Watson discovered that when healing divine spells were used repeatedly over a short period, their efficacy diminished sharply—a phenomenon he had only heard of before and had never experienced firsthand.
After finally loosening his stiff muscles and joints, James Watson at last found the time to pick up his private letters and examine them.
The first was an official greeting from an Archdruid of the Emerald Dream Forest. The druids were also deeply concerned about the emergence of the Dragon Tyrant Armament and had sent an inquiry in a personal capacity.
James Watson composed his wording, replied with a few polite platitudes, and refrained from disclosing much information.
The second letter was from James Watson's eldest son, who was currently garrisoned at the border. He had served in the military for over twenty years, but possessing only ordinary talent, he had yet to advance to legend.
This son had once been James Watson's pride, but this letter was entirely filled with reproach toward his younger brother, Alan. Because of Alan, he faced immense discrimination in the army, which even forced him to publicly declare that he was severing ties with Alan. Knowing that James Watson had not blamed Alan, he wrote home to explain the situation to his father, claiming he had no other choice, while also subtly insinuating that his father's excessive indulgence of Alan had brought about this outcome.
James Watson closed his eyes in agony. This was the scenario he least wanted to see.
It was not that he could not bear to see his eldest son implicated; rather, he could not bear to see his eldest son's moral decay. His education of him had been an utter failure.
James Watson knew that if he were ever to raise the banner of rebellion, his eldest son would undoubtedly stand against him.
Yet Ryan truly had fallen into decadence.
James Watson did not intend to reply. The worldview instilled in both him and his son from childhood had seeped into their very bones; no amount of talking would do any good. He would simply let him choose his own future path.
At the third letter, the moment James Watson saw the signature, a surge of nameless fury flared up inside him.
Trazyn the Infinite? What on earth was that? Even though he did not recognize the name, one look at the handwriting told him exactly who it was: that money-grubbing lich. What did that abominable lich want now?!
Anger dispelled his earlier melancholy. James Watson tore open the envelope and found two sheets of parchment inside. The first was astonishingly a magical contract bearing Alan's handprint.
"Two hundred thousand gold coins?! That lich!"
James Watson ground his teeth in fury. This time, whether he wanted to pay or not, he had no choice.
When Alan had been kidnapped before, he could refuse to pay the ransom. But this time it was a debt, and he had no proof whatsoever that Alan had been coerced. A magic-breaking longsword was indeed worth that price; there was no fault to be found with it.
As for a father paying a son's debts, every kingdom across the continent operated this way—it was an unwritten convention that went without saying. The reason was simple: today, every noble across the kingdoms acted in the name of their family.
When Alan met with misfortune, James Watson was affected, and the other son far at the border was affected as well. This was how nobility functioned—rising and falling together. Alan owed money, so asking James Watson for payment was only natural and right; no one could pick a flaw in it.
Even though James Watson knew this was bound to be the lich's scheme, he had no choice but to accept it.
He had abided by the law all his life. Even if the counterpart was a lich, James Watson would not allow himself to violate his principles.
It was merely two hundred thousand; he could still afford to pay it!
After reading the first promissory note, James Watson turned his gaze to the second sheet of parchment, upon which was written a shocking piece of news.
Lolth the Spider Queen had been harmed by that lich? And stripped of four divine portfolios?!
James Watson desperately wanted to say Anbaixiu was boasting, yet he also understood Anbaixiu's habits well.
He would lie, but he would never fabricate something in a matter that could be punctured so easily.
Regardless of the process, her divine portfolios had likely truly been seized by him.
A mere lich—how had he managed that?
James Watson was thoroughly baffled. The contrast between the two was simply too stark; Lolth the Spider Queen was hardly some lesser deity that could be slain by mortals on a whim.
James Watson quickly abandoned trying to puzzle it out, having no time to waste. Anbaixiu mentioned in the letter that the Elven Gods might very well go to war with Lolth the Spider Queen's pantheon as a result. A war among deities would inevitably serve as the fuse for widespread turmoil across the world, and James Watson had to make preparations in advance.
Only after raising all these points did Anbaixiu finally inquire about the Dragon Tyrant Armament. James Watson pondered for a moment, sighed at last, and picked up his pen to write a reply.
This was a transaction of interests. Anbaixiu had provided him with such vital intelligence that James Watson could only reciprocate in kind by telling him what he wanted to know. Otherwise, there would be no future exchange of information.
As for whose hands those four divine portfolios had ultimately fallen into, the lich had cautiously omitted any mention of it. This clearly signaled to James Watson that he still held a great deal of explosive information in reserve.
James Watson badly wanted to know, so he could only start by sharing the intelligence regarding the Dragon Tyrant Armament.
Yet James Watson actually did not know all that much. He only knew that the royal family had abruptly agreed to bring out the Dragon Tyrant Armament for display, whereupon the young emperor put it on, flew around the city, and bestowed grace upon the people of the imperial capital.
However, James Watson noted in the letter that before the young emperor donned the Dragon Tyrant Armament, an elderly member of the royal family had appeared in the palace, and the two had stayed in a secret chamber for a very long time.
The use of the Dragon Tyrant Armament was certainly related to that old man, but James Watson had no way of uncovering the truth behind it. After all, everything concerning the royal family was kept secret from outsiders, known only to themselves. Even the succession of the emperor was decided strictly by the royal family; ministers like them had no say whatsoever.
Having written all this, James Watson added another sentence: "Due to the Dragon Tyrant Armament, the empire's morale has soared, and troops will be dispatched against the tieflings in the short term."
James Watson himself did not know why he had written that sentence. Did this count as revealing state secrets?
Strictly speaking, it did not, as it was merely James Watson's own deduction. The empire was on guard against him at every turn, especially the newly appointed Minister of Military Affairs, who harbored barefaced hostility toward him.
Rumor had it that when the Silvermoon Knight passed away, he had allowed only Alan to accompany him at his side. As the Silvermoon Knight's biological grandson, that Minister of Military Affairs had not even been permitted to see him one last time.
Later, when Alan departed, the Minister of Military Affairs flew into an even greater rage, repeatedly unleashing torrents of abuse at James Watson in court. The rift between the two sides ran exceptionally deep.
Even with so many reasons, providing such a piece of information to Anbaixiu still bordered on treason.
James Watson's pen froze on the paper until ink stained a large patch of the page black, only then snapping him back to his senses.
In the end, he lifted his pen, thoroughly blacked out that final sentence, and only then sealed the parchment inside the envelope.
No matter the excuse, he could not violate his own principles.
Even though James Watson was already convinced that Ryan had fallen into decadence, he was still Ryan's Supreme Arbiter. He could not knowingly break the law; otherwise, it would only drive the empire into an even deeper abyss.
Chapter 298