At the palace in Yggdra… The Black Party was demolished. The country expanded by one-third of its territory, and everyone celebrated.The people in the palace sang and danced. It was a very lively scene.Mavice held a banquet in the main hall of the palace. Duke was the only guest.“Mr. North, may I know what your plan is after this?” Mavice asked with a friendly smile.Duke said calmly, “I’ll go back to where I belong.”Mavice looked at him. “And where do you belong?” she asked cautiously.“Your Majesty, aren’t you supposed to be asking me regarding the Hestia Border?” Duke steadily changed the topic. He would never expose where he came from, his family, his wife and his children. After all, his current identity was still very sensitive. “Hestia Border has been in chaos for thirty to forty years. We won’t be able to terminate all the ragtag in a short time, so I temporarily plan to separate Hestia Border as a continent and rule it with separate laws and policies…,” Mavice e
Duke felt his mind going blank after he drank the champagne. Before he could contemplate what had happened to him, his vision blacked out and he slumped forward on the dining table.The clock struck eleven when Adina finished reading bedtime stories to her children. The children gradually fell asleep, but she could not even sleep a wink. ‘Duke should have been here by now. Even if he was held up by something important, he would have called...’She wanted to call him, but she was afraid that she might disturb him if he was caught up in something important. She suppressed her urge to call him.“Perhaps there is some misunderstanding.” Flint tried to comfort her. “Black Party has been demolished. Many people are fleeing, and it’s not easy to catch them all. Isabella is on the run. She will definitely try to make a comeback. Maybe he is just trying to settle things first…”“I know.” Adina smiled. “I’ll get some rest. You should sleep too.”She yawned and went upstairs to her room.
Adina took out her phone and dialed the familiar number. It took a long time for the call to get through. When it did, a female operator’s voice said, “The number you have dialed is unavailable…”Adina’s uneasiness grew. She forced a smile. “Let me try again.”Duke’s phone vibrated on the floor.His eyes twitched. After struggling for a while, he was finally able to open his eyes fully.The back of his head hurt. He wanted to massage his temples, but he realized his hands and feet were tied up. He sat up warily. It was pitch dark and his phone was glowing faintly on the floor. He looked at it. The call was from a number she knew by heart. “Who’s that?” A woman’s voice suddenly echoed in the dark room.Duke turned towards the voice. When his pupils adjusted to the dark, he could see the faint outline of a woman sitting two meters away from him. ‘That voice is familiar…’He gritted his teeth, “Queen Mavice, what are you doing?”She leaned down and picked up the phone on
If she sought someone who resembled her husband, she would not feel as though she had betrayed him...“I’ve said this before. I have more important things to do, so I can’t stay in Yggdra.” Duke’s voice was icy and carried a dangerous edge to it. “Your Majesty, please understand that I can have either Black Party surrender or rebel. You’d best let me go, or there will be unbearable consequences.”“I will endure any consequence,” Mavice said with a smile. “I will give you another twenty-four hours to think about it. If you still refuse, don’t blame me for using a different method.”She turned around and left the dark room. She locked the door from outside.There was silence all around.Duke held his breath and listened closely for any movement outside. When he was certain that the coast was clear, his two hands, which were tied behind his back, wrapped several loops around the rope and his bonds came free.He crouched down to untie the ropes around his legs. Then, he walked toward
‘I can’t compete with Duke in terms of shrewdness when it comes to politics. He’s a veteran, and I’m just seventeen…’She whispered with her quivering lips, “I heard my mother call someone. She hired two bioengineers to make biochips. She was planning to implant it into your brain. Once it’s done, the chip will turn you into a different person. Your thoughts, the words you use, and your behavior will be manipulated by the biochip. You will do things against your control…”Duke frowned. ‘So, that is what Mavice is up to. No wonder she drugged me and locked me in here.‘I’ve heard of this biochip before. Earl’s underground company was involved in this business… ‘This emerging intelligent technology violates moral ethics. It has been publicly banned, but many companies are nevertheless researching and developing these chips in secret, and are making huge profits out of them.’“Terry, run.”Madelyn was practically begging him. ‘I cannot let Mother do such a crazy and cruel thing
Duke twiddled his fingers and said casually, “So, Your Majesty, will you still continue to imprison me?”“Oh, do you think a single factory can threaten me?” Mavice said coldly, “Two hours out of twenty-four hours have passed. When the time runs out, you will know what is waiting for you.”“I still have twenty-two hours.” Duke smiled, “Every half an hour, one factory will blow up. There are only eight factories with a value of over $100,000,000 in Hestia Border. That is to say, after another four hours, it’s Yggdra’s turn to suffer. Although Yggdra is a developed country, I don’t think it can stop a bombing, can’t it?”Mavice’s eyes widened angrily, “Are you threatening me?”“Of course, not.” Duke chuckled. “I just want you to get a clearer picture of the situation that you’re currently in.”“Your Majesty, bad news!” A guard outside the secret room hurried over. “The second-largest factory at Hestia Border exploded. All the rare resources were burned up.”Mavice lowered her head
Upon seeing Duke’s safe return, Adina heaved a sigh of relief.She had prepared dinner earlier. She said with a smile, “Don’t pester your daddy. Go wash your hands and get ready for dinner.”There were twelve different dishes on the big dining table.The children, Pete, and Karl were enjoying their dinner to the fullest. Flint, on the other hand, seemed to have a complicated expression and was eating absent-mindedly. After they were done eating, Pete and Karl played games. Flint forced out a smile and said, “Come, let me take you out to play. Who knows, we might not have the chance to do it anymore.” Everyone else left, while Adina and Duke were the only ones left in the dining hall. “What happened?”Adina asked with a sense of trepidation. Half an hour ago, Duke had sent her a message, saying that if he did not come back by tonight, she would need to take her children back to Sea City.She knew that something had happened, but she was not sure what it was. With the co
“Whatever. I’m leaving now. Let’s not meet again. We can talk through the Internet if we need to.”Karl took his bag, waved his hand dashingly, and left.Pete decided to follow Duke to Sea City, since he still could not recall his memories. Even so, he could only go there a day later.Flint stood at the door of the mansion with his hands in his pockets. He acted aloof as he said, “I have things to take care of here, so I can’t send you back. Be safe.”“Uncle Flint, I’ll miss you.”Melody hugged his neck and gave him a peck on the cheek. It comforted the loneliness in Flint’s heart. He said gently, “Didn’t you say that you want me to be your godfather?”Melody looked at Adina and blinked. Adina chuckled. “Duke, I want Flint to officially be our children’s godfather. What do you think?”“I’m fine with it as long as the children are okay with it.” Duke strode over, and said in a low and serious voice, “Mr. Morton, thank you for looking after my wife and my children for this per