Chapter 197: The Grand Tutor's Meeting
(Procyon Star System)
(Planet Lumclite- Private Manor)
Tap! Tap! Tap!
The quiet sounds of knocking could be heard as a handsome middle-aged man rapped his knuckles against the wooden desk.
Clearly, he was a man of high nobility as his clothes were made of an expensive metalloid thread only imported to the Federation in small quantities.
His countenance was elegant and yet there was a primal savagery hidden deep within his bones that lurked just beneath the surface.
He wore a cold smile as he mulled over the contents of the letter in front of him.
The temperature in the room continued to drop with every passing minute.
The two maids shivering slightly in the corner of the study room did not even dare to move as they feared drawing the attention of their clearly irate master.
Their lips were starting to turn blue as frostbite slowly crept up the exposed skin on their bodies.
"Sir please control yourself before you frighten the new workers," an elderly voice came from the open doorway as the head butler entered inside.
He waved his hand at the two maids to dismiss them and the girls hurriedly fled the room without looking back.
"Give them a small bonus. What just happened was my fault," Rokan admitted freely as he leaned back in his chair.
"Yes, right away sir," Butler Gerald nodded and stared at his master with deep affection.
He had worked with the Peterlor family for decades now and the man in front of him was still the only person Gerald was willing to serve.
It was rare to see a noble in his position be able to freely admit fault much less compensate those affected by his mistakes.
Even when Rokan had disappeared for years and his household had fallen into complete chaos, Gerald still had faith that his master would return.
"I just don't know what kind of sick game that old bastard is doing," Rokan frowned and passed the letter to his servant.
Butler Gerald read over the contents of the letter carefully and soon his expression was equally unpleasant.
"I firmly believe that the young miss should not be allowed to go," Butler Gerald stated his opinion firmly.
"Do you think I would let her if there was a choice?" Rokan replied.
"The grand tutor has somehow managed to convince the emperor to convene a personal meeting so he can interact with the direct heirs of all noble houses with dukedom status."
"And of course, the emperor agreed. God knows you just need to give that madman whores and wines and he would be putty in your hands."
It was an extremely disrespectful attitude to take against the emperor, but butler Gerald did not look surprised.
The reign of Emperor Sisrelis had seemed so promising in the early years.
He had successfully defeated the numerous challengers during the succession battles and his cultivation talent was extraordinary.
There was real hope that humanity could usher in a golden age and become leading race of the Earth Federation.
But it power corrupts....
Or power simply reveals one's true character.
It started with the addition of a concubine.
Some eyebrows were raised as although certain nobles having a few lovers here and there was an open secret, this was not ancient times and most still had monogamous relationships.
Then it became a problem.
Suddenly the queen and side concubine were deemed not attractive enough, so the emperor found another....
And another....
And another....
Suddenly the desire to rule an empire seemed to be secondary to the emperor's main goal of planting his seed in as many fields as possible.
Some noble houses had even sent their daughters to brush up their presence in front of the emperor to become a concubine.
Hopefully, their daughters would soon fly into the sky and soar as royal phoenixes.
How naive.
A man with thousands of gorgeous women to tend to his every need cannot even remember ten faces much less a single name from countless beauties vying for his attention.
In the absence of a steady guiding hand from the emperor, the grand tutor had to step forward to act as a proxy.
This was the source of Rokan's headache.
There was an enormous rift between the two men as the grand tutor was part of the Human Purity Faction.
He had personally pushed for bills to expel hybrids from human controlled territories and wanted to ban the recognition of hybrid offsprings
Luckily, Duke Peterlor's faction had enough support to push back on these unjust bills, but this meant that the rivalry continued.
Rokan sighed heavily and massaged his temples as he tried to figure out the goal of the grand tutor.
It was impossible for a noble house to ignore the direct orders of the emperor so Sophie would need to go.
And yet sometime just wasn't right about the matter.
Why the hell would the grand tutor hold an education meeting with the younger generation for the first time.
Rokan could smell in a scheme in the matter and was prepared to wait until Sophie came back during the midterm break to get her opinion.
Perhaps another man in Rokan's shoes would have simply scoffed and said that the heir of his family could not be a coward.
But that man would be an idiot.
Having the knowledge and still walking into a trap was not bravery but rather the height of stupidity.
And Sophie's safety would always be above all.
The safety of his daughter was even more important than the duke's loyalty to an unworthy emperor.
Rokan had no qualms with simply fleeing with his baby girl to the Unova Syndicate or some far away outer region should the worse case scenarios occur.
"Send a message to our spies and see if anyone has any information on the reason for this meeting," Rokan ordered and butler Gerald nodded obediently.
"I plan on sending Jack on a secret mission with some highly sensitive data on the security system of the new colony."
"Pardon me sire, but why would you entrust such a mission to Jack?" Butler Gerald responded with a puzzled tone.
Rokan bared his teeth with a bloodthirsty grin and in that split second, his expression looked almost identical to Sophie's in her hunting state.
"I have been raising a viper carefully for a long period of many months and years."
"Maybe its time for my little pet to spread some poison."