It was nearly dawn.
The Captain of the Guard for the Governor’s Mansion, a member of the Republican Guard, was being received personally by the Governor.
The Governor stood by without saying a word.
Domenico held up a dim, flickering night lamp and handed several letters to the Captain of the Guard.
He spoke very quickly, for fear of wasting any time.
“Take a team with you, not too many, around 150 men. Use the cover of night to stage a direct raid on Bauer’s courtyard. There are not many guards inside; kill them all and leave no survivors. You must surround the courtyard so tightly that not even a drop of water can leak out. Bauer must not escape. Catch her, and if any of her family members resist, kill them without hesitation. First, read the letter in the purple envelope. Then, show them the letter in the green envelope. It does not matter what they say in their defense; do you understand?”
The Captain of the Guard understood perfectly.
He knew exactly what he had to do; otherwise, he never would have become the Captain of the Guard for the Governor’s Mansion.
He immediately selected a squad of guards.
They wore light chainmail, and every man carried two pistols.
The first row carried shields, while the second row held long spears.
Without lighting any torches, they quickly vanished into the darkness outside the mansion.
Indeed, Domenico had no intention of waiting until the morning or afternoon to arrest Bauer.
The legality of the arrest was something to show the public after the fact.
Right now, speed was of the essence.
As soon as those two letters from the Queen arrived that evening, Domenico decided to seize her that very night.
….
Inside the consulate, Livyat was also pacing restlessly.
After discussing it with Tess, she had decided to send the letters in the evening so that Domenico would definitely make the arrest at night.
Just that afternoon, a letter from Tess’s mother had arrived.
It stated that the Elven Kingdom’s spies within the kingdom had discovered that the Frostwave Kingdom had indeed sent agents into the Republic to spread rumors that the Governor was accepting bribes from the elves.
Since that was the case, they did not even need evidence anymore to prove that the Northern Faction was conspiring with them.
This made Livyat and Tess extremely worried that the Northern Faction might have already prepared enough evidence to topple the Governor, waiting only to announce it at the council meeting to legally depose or even arrest him.
‘If the other side senses any unrest, will they release it tomorrow?’
If there was even a one percent chance, they had to move their actions up to today.
The consulate was not very far from the Hilltop Villa Complex.
She looked toward it, her heart filled with anxiety.
The night sky was beautiful.
The woods on the hilltop were a green so deep it looked black, swaying slightly in the night breeze.
The stars in the sky looked like droplets of oil solidified in fish soup.
Everything was so quiet.
Until the first gunshot rang out.
Countless flashes of fire quickly flickered near the hilltop.
In the moonlight, thick smoke became visible, drifting into the distance.
But it all ended very quickly.
After no more than 10 minutes, the sound of gunfire on the hilltop ceased entirely.
Livyat let out a long sigh and looked at Tess.
Sharing a silent understanding, the two of them closed the windows and drew the curtains.
There was no need to watch anymore; they could go to sleep.
Tess stretched, rubbed her hair, and left the side hall.
Livyat followed behind her, yawning.
…
At the Dandolo family courtyard.
Mrs. Bauer sat slumped on the ground, cradling her dead son, Raniero Dandolo.
She looked at the Captain of the Guard with eyes full of despair.
Her husband, who had married into her family, was also injured, lying on the ground and groaning.
The area was littered with corpses — some were relatives, others were servants.
Mrs. Bauer could not even find the strength to shed a single tear.
She looked directly at the Captain and said, “Go on then. Show me the letters. Let me see how you legally shot my son, wounded my husband, and how you will finally execute me.”
Following Domenico’s instructions, the Captain of the Guard tore open the purple envelope, displayed the contents, and began to read.
“The Guard has intercepted a letter from the Elven Kingdom. This letter proves beyond a doubt that Bauer Dandolo has colluded with the Elven Queen. Evidence has been secured that Bauer plotted to use the Republican fleet as a hostage to force the Governor to step down. An immediate arrest is hereby ordered to deliver her to the High Court. Those who resist will be killed on sight.”
The letter bore the Golden Seal of the Republic, the Great Seal of the Governor’s Mansion, and the Governor’s private seal.
It also contained the signatures of every member of the Ten-Man Committee.
In reality, the signatures had all been forged by Domenico.
Bauer did not even have the desire to look.
She simply lowered her head and stared at her dead son, her fingers gently tapping his cheek a few times.
“And then? Can you show me that secret letter the Elven Queen sent me? Let me see the Queen’s royal favor.”
The Captain of the Guard ignored her words.
He opened the green envelope and took out the stationery.
In that moment, the Captain suddenly felt something was wrong with his nose.
Amidst the heavy scent of blood, he smelled the incredibly deep fragrance of ancient trees.
Was this elven paper?
It felt a bit rough to the touch, like tree bark.
“Lord Bauer, have you been well lately? Please immediately move the Dalmatia flagship and its fleet to the mouth of the Da River.”
It was that short.
Livyat and Tess had discussed it for a long time and decided there was no need to make it lengthy; they simply stamped it with the Queen’s royal seal.
Mrs. Bauer gave a tragic laugh and gently closed her son’s half-open eyes.
Her arms trembled slightly, as if she were rocking her son to sleep, or perhaps she simply found it all too ridiculous.
She said no more and closed her eyes.
Just as the Captain of the Guard was about to order Bauer’s arrest, she suddenly opened her eyes and roared.
“Fools! Carlos is a complete fool! Letting the ambitious Domenico run wild like this! This new Elven Queen — we don’t even know her name, yet he trusts the Elven Kingdom so much? If this continues, the Republic will be sold off to the Queen entirely!”
“Even he knows that working for the Queen is dangerous. Just what kind of price did he get for selling himself and his daughter?!”
The Captain of the Guard waved his hand, signaling the two guards beside him to take her away, along with anyone else who was still alive.
Outside the hall, the courtyard was a mess, piled with unarmored corpses.
Some had clearly been killed by a single pistol shot, while others had several holes poked through them by spears.
Looking around, there was not a single armored corpse to be found.
A significant number of guards were stationed here as well, watching the prisoners warily.
As they reached the outer perimeter of the courtyard, they found guards stationed every few paces.
They were hidden in the darkness, watching the prisoners without moving a muscle.
Following the Captain’s command, a portion of the guards remained behind to guard the site and wait for the people coming tomorrow to audit the documents and accounts.
The rest accompanied him to transport the prisoners.
…
Inside the Governor’s Mansion, Domenico, having received the report from the messenger, finally let out a complete sigh of relief.
His eyes, which had been wide and bulging, finally drooped.
The Governor had already gone to bed, leaving this matter entirely in Domenico’s hands.
He wanted to execute Bauer right now, but his political intuition told him it would be inappropriate.
He forced himself to keep thinking.
If he announced the Elven Queen’s letter tomorrow at the docks, in front of the Navy…
Then how would he announce the second letter?
The one claiming the Queen and the Regent wanted to inspect the fleet and hold a celebration at the river mouth based on their alliance?
And how should he sentence her?
No, Domenico knew he could not sleep yet.
He had to send the staff from the Ten-Man Committee to audit Bauer’s manor, documents, and assets overnight.
Any irregularity at all would do.
Even if the crime did not warrant death in the end, a sentence of exile would suffice.
Domenico forced himself to stand up and woke Julia, who was napping in a chair nearby, telling her to handle it immediately.