The First Magic World War

Charles showed great enthusiasm toward his elder brother and his brother's wife. He recalled that whenever Charles needed money, he would demonstrate this enthusiasm when asking his brother for it.

In front of his younger brother, Mycroft Meklen was actually quite strict, but before he departed, he had heard that his brother had become a second-class clerk chief of rank thirty-two, as personally announced by Baron Fabolais. He was considered a "big shot," which inevitably made him somewhat reserved.

Although the couple was brought to Mostar Fortress, they had no chance to meet any nobles. In fact, Charles was the highest-ranking Imperial official Mycroft Meklen had ever met in his life.

When conducting business, he inevitably dealt with local officials—officials before whom he had to humbly and cautiously lower his voice. In his own brother's eyes, these officials were probably nothing more than minor annoyances.

It was Winnie who spoke first, saying, "Charles, your brother was taken to Mostar Fortress, and I heard you were leading troops in battle. We have been very worried about you. I'm also worried about you. Have you suffered any hardships? Have you been injured?"

Winnie, his sister-in-law, had always been good to Charles. She even introduced her own sister as his fiancée and took great care of him, even during Charles's schooling years by giving him some pocket money.

This made Charles feel obliged to show respect to his sister-in-law. He smiled gently and said, "I am quite well."

He had fought many battles and yet had almost never been injured; it was quite miraculous considering the various duels, assassinations, and street fights he was involved in.

Charles pondered for a moment before asking, "Is there something you need?"

"There may still be wars outside the city, which could be very dangerous."

Mycroft Meklen hesitated before saying, "It's those nobles. They hope I can invite you into the city. They want to hold several balls to celebrate."

Charles chuckled, "Just after two ducal couples died and Mostar Fortress was captured by Lady Southseraph, only to have Cyrus retreat. These nobles, rather than focusing on strengthening their military, are in a hurry to organize balls?

That's so like the nobility.

Losing themselves in revelry is what they excel at. Find adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

Charles also knew why so many nobles invited him; they were all afraid of another war, and Charles Meklen, after all, had to be considered a strong guarantee of safety.

Especially since he had truly fought Lady Southseraph.

Just that day, at the foot of Mostar Fortress, in front of everyone, he killed the infamous Zolman and routed the rebellious South Ceraph Reclamation Army.

But Charles had no interest in mingling with them; these nobles could not provide him with any career advancement.

Although Charles was born in Behemoth Duchy, he bore an obvious stamp of the Fars Empire. He attended one of the Empire's top four universities, Sheffield University, worked at the Central Government Office after graduation, served as Clerk Chief at Kilmainham Prison, and then transferred to the Lucavaro District Patrolling Army as Grand Patrol...

Although he was politically naive, he knew he needed to distance himself from the nobles of Behemoth Duchy to avoid suspicion from the Central Government.

As for returning to serve in Behemoth Duchy, Charles had never even considered it. What future could Behemoth have? His family was merely a lineage of merchants unable to provide a political background. In Behemoth, where local nobility wielded strong power, he could only be a dog, never a respectable person.

Charles certainly wouldn't tell his brother and sister-in-law these things, he simply answered, "I belong to the Knights' Division of the Central Government Office, and without an order from Strasbourg, I can't enter Mostar Castle."

"You see, I miss father and you so much, I dared not enter Mostar Castle, let alone to attend a ball."

Mycroft Meklen was at a loss for words, he naturally knew Charles wasn't telling the truth. How could people in Strasbourg, far away in Mostar Castle, know if he had entered the city?

Winnie intervened to ease the atmosphere, and asked, "How is Silvie? Since she went to Strasbourg, she hasn't been writing much."

Charles smiled slightly, and said, "Silvie is doing well. She chose to become a female detective and joined one of the seven largest detective agencies in Strasbourg, the Cat Detective Agency. I also know their chief, Vini Yarseno, who is an extremely impressive High-Level Transcendent, flourishing the detective business; under her guidance, Silvie will have a great future."

Winnie sighed and said, "I always thought that you two would end up together, so the engagement was broken off, wasn't it?"

Charles nodded. Silvie must have written home about this matter, and he was even less inclined to hide it. Although Silvie was a nice girl, Anne was clearly better.

Thinking of this matter, Charles couldn't help but feel a slight melancholy. Damn Cyrus, spouting nonsense about his past, he wondered if Mama Karen would find out?

He had never thought that the Duke would investigate him, especially since he and Anne "hadn't even started," and even on Earth, companies that seriously do background checks were rare, let alone on the Old Continent?

Charles still harbored some hope…

Especially since the Duke had sent Mama Karen to protect him, which led Charles to wrongly evaluate a father's love for his daughter and the luck bestowed upon him by the god of fortune.

One underestimated, one overestimated.

Charles shared a simple meal with his brother and sister-in-law in a military carriage, and then sent them off. Before they left, he gave them a gift: a military carriage.

This carriage, supplied to the Patrolling Army of the Lucavaro District by the logistics department of the Central Government Office's military division, had a clear origin and would not cause any trouble. All he had to do was report it as a combat loss to settle the accounts.

Charles's family actually had an old carriage, which was outdated and quite small, mainly used for carrying goods, making it uncomfortable to sit in. He had heard Winnie complaining to his brother, wanting to replace it with a brand-new one, but his brother always thought it was too expensive. Even though they could afford it, the old carriage wasn't unusable, so he said several times to sister-in-law Winnie, to wait a few more years to change the carriage.

The carriage Charles picked was of very good quality, and it also used military draught horses, quite young at only eight years old.

Mycroft Meklen and his wife were quite happy; although they prided themselves on having a clear conscience towards their younger brother, they were unsure if Charles harbored any resentment and had even worried that if Charles rose high, he might seek revenge on them.

Charles's attitude, though not very intimate, displayed respect towards his brother and sister-in-law. This carriage was even a gesture of goodwill, and on their way back to Mostar Castle, Winnie said, "I still feel that Silvie and Charles were a good match."

"Before, you thought Charles was too frivolous to properly run a household, but look how well Charles is doing now?"

"I want to write to Silvie, urging her that the things Charles did when he was young are not unforgivable."

Mycroft Meklen suddenly felt the urge to say, "Would you let me do those things?"