Subscriber of the Gods-Chapter 296: The Birth of a New Twelve Families

“In the end, that bloodline… that bloodline is causing trouble… I should have killed them all. I should have killed every last one of those who inherited that bastard’s blood.”

Wilas Dren bled out.

Only two remained standing.

Yerica von Hyde and Wilas Dren.

Wilas’s long-time trusted aides lay motionless on the ground, and now Wilas too was dying.

Yerica stumbled towards Wilas.

Wilas’s aides were incredibly strong. Even with the seal released thanks to Ethan and having received Regia’s training to fully bloom the talent inherited from Hecate, it wasn’t easy for her to defeat them all.

Nevertheless, she prevailed.

It was something she had longed for.

“You, your aides, your son, everyone conspired to kill Grandfather. In the past, I would have asked why. But I’ve realized there’s no need for that.”

Yerica spoke.

“Because scum like you will never tell the truth, no matter the reason.”

Then she slowly smiled.

“You lowly… lowly bitch…!”

“Don’t worry. Your son who went ahead will be waiting for you. I sent him off with my own hands too. Lord Ethan merely assisted.”

Who said revenge was futile?

“You’re watching, right? I believe meeting Lord Ethan was all thanks to you, Grandfather. I’ll send off the two who slandered you first, Grandfather.”

***

“It’s, it’s a disaster-!”

“What? What happened?”

“The, the former family head…”

“What about Grandfather!”

Paris Dren asked in an anxious voice.

“He was attacked and passed away along with most of his aides.”

“He, he passed away? What in the world. Who, who did this to Grandfather…!”

“We’re currently investigating…”

“I know, it must be that damn Ethan Whiskers, it has to be him!”

“No, sir. The first one we investigated was Count Ethan Whiskers, but at that time, Count Ethan Whiskers was in the capital. He had an audience with His Majesty the Emperor…”

“…Damn it!”

Cracks began to form once again in Marquis Dren’s house, which had been trying to regain stability following Wilas Dren’s death.

And at the same time.

Lydia Dren and Hera Dren, who received the same report, had shocked expressions.

The death of their grandfather.

However, there was no sadness. What was important now was not grieving, but seizing the opportunity that had come.

“How…”

In Lydia’s memory, her grandfather was an extremely cold person.

He let live those who were beneficial and killed those who were harmful.

There were numerous troubles in the process, but in the end, it was always the grandfather who stood last. The reason was simple.

He was strong.

Overwhelmingly strong.

To think that such a grandfather had finally fallen. Lydia felt a sudden surge of fear towards Ethan Whiskers, whom Hera had grabbed hold of.

Hera then spoke to Lydia.

“This isn’t the time to dwell on the details. This is an opportunity. We need to contact the lords again and set things straight. Now is our chance.”

Hera said.

“Just like Father did. In the end, the only way for us to survive is to climb to the highest place.”

Lydia nodded with a stiffened expression.

“Let’s go.”

***

“The long-term investment has paid off.”

Upon hearing the news of Wilas’s death, Ethan had just received numerous letters from aristocratic families.

Despite being sent from different families, all those letters contained the same content.

-Request for assistance from Marquis Wilas Dren. Rejected.

“They had no choice but to reject. I was so careful.”

He had enough power to strike Marquis Dren’s house, one of the Twelve Families. What was important was to do so without shedding too much blood and leaving no aftermath.

That’s what he had built up for.

This vast network.

Look, that Marquis Dren’s house, which was one of the pillars of the Twelve Families, was swallowed up by Ethan’s network, unable to move an inch while seeking help here and there.

‘I like it.’

“The other high-ranking nobles all rejected it too. There’s certainly a justification for rejection. Rejecting isn’t that difficult.”

Ethan then read the letter from Etting. The high-ranking nobles seemed to have sent letters to Etting immediately after receiving Wilas’s request for help.

“It’s thanks to Etting doing a good job. I chose a good partner.”

Etting was pushing the Merchant Guild like a fish in water.

The supply of special golems still couldn’t keep up with the demand.

“Taking advantage of the period when they couldn’t be sold, she accelerated the premium strategy. The nobles must be going crazy over this limited supply.”

As a natural-born merchant, there seemed to be no need for Ethan to teach her more in that area.

Just like Yerica, Etting had also fully bloomed her talent.

“With Wilas dead, it’s the end for Marquis Dren’s house.”

Hera Dren and Lydia Dren would quickly settle the internal affairs of the marquis’s house.

After that, they were scheduled to form an alliance with the Whiskers family. With this, the first revenge could be considered complete.

“The two remaining Twelve Families. They’ll probably try to cooperate with each other after grasping the situation.”

The two Twelve Families would join forces to strike at Ethan. But likewise, they could only resort to backdoor dealings here as well.

No, the chances were high that they wouldn’t even be able to do those backdoor dealings properly.

“Because they clearly saw Marquis Dren’s house fall right before their eyes.”

Now there was only one way.

“We don’t need to worry about it on our side.”

They just had to respond according to the method they chose.

“For now, let’s start preparing for the second semester.”

By the time the preparations for the second semester were finished and classes resumed, most of the external affairs would be settled.

Ethan from Count Whiskers’s house, whose whereabouts were unknown to most, would return to Ivecar as one of the Twelve Families.

Of course, Ethan didn’t have the slightest thought that Hera or Lydia, with whom he had formed an alliance, would betray him.

“They’re smart people. If they betray me even after going through this situation.”

Then he would just have to show them the consequences. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

***

“H-How did you…”

“It’s the tradition of our Dren family. And if I hadn’t done it, you would have, right? You’ve already tried and failed several times.”

“If you do this… it’s all over! We can no longer be like before…”

“It’s too late. When Father passed away, we crossed a river of no return.”

Hera spoke.

“And I prefer how things are now to how they were before. The glory of the Dren family holds no value to me.”

“There must be troops outside…”

“I didn’t do this alone.”

Paris let out a hollow laugh at the sight of Lydia entering late.

“Why don’t you understand that now is not the time for us to fight among ourselves…”

“You thought we wouldn’t know about all the schemes you were doing behind the scenes? You tried to kill your siblings, saying it was something Father approved of. That even though we’re of the same blood, we’re competitors first, so eliminating us is the right thing to do.”

After the death of Marquis Dren, the Marquis Dren’s house was in constant turmoil due to the sibling rivalry.

But the turmoil didn’t last long. All the successor candidates knew that the longer it dragged on, the more the marquis’s house would be divided.

As expected, Lydia and Hera, who knew this fact, raced day and night, and as a result, the situation in the marquis’s house began to be quickly resolved.

The victors were Lydia and Hera Dren.

However, there was only one person who could become the family head following Marquis Dren and receive the title.

“I know my place. Just keep your promise.”

Lydia willingly gave up that position to Hera. She knew very well that it wasn’t her place.

“Even if we step down from the position of the Twelve Families. In my generation, the Dren family will not engage in vile acts. The sibling rivalry… it’s best to end it in our generation.”

From a young age, she had lived close to death.

The fear of being targeted by one’s own flesh and blood.

She intended to completely sever that evil practice.

Lydia and Hera settled the succession issue and quickly took control of the territory. Of course, it wasn’t easy.

Because there were lords who had a change of heart after Wilas passed away.

“We will form an alliance with Count Whiskers’s territory. We will forget the past and move forward with a new relationship.”

“I can’t do that. How can we…”

Thud-.

Hera Dren took out a heavy money pouch.

“Count Ethan has made a promise.”

Along with the money pouch, she presented a business plan.

Ethan planned to conduct a large-scale business in Marquis Dren’s territory.

“It’s a way for all of us to go higher together. If you’re going to refuse, well, I’ll give you this money as consolation.”

***

The central noble families of the Holy Empire each had their own information groups that they operated.

Those information groups had been spending very busy days recently.

“Marquis Dren’s house is completely finished.”

“The new family head is Hera Dren. Lydia Dren has decided to join under her.”

“Any defectors among the lords?”

“Almost none. But something feels off about the atmosphere.”

“Summarize it quickly!”

All the central information groups were busy with talks about the Dren family.

At the same time, there was one rising topic.

“So Marquis Dren’s house is essentially going under Count Ethan Whiskers?”

“If this happens…”

“No way. No one will acknowledge it.”

“Has something like this ever happened before? Not in the last 100 years.”

“A new Twelve Families…”

The information received by the information groups soon reached the ears of each noble. This story quickly leaked out and rapidly spread throughout the continent.

However, this was ultimately just a possibility of becoming one of the Twelve Families.

The atmosphere wasn’t quite there yet to properly accept it, but it didn’t matter.

“As long as there’s a decisive blow.”

Ethan wrote a letter to Princess Evangeline.

-To Her Highness the Princess.

The princess would also be able to read this atmosphere well. Ethan deliberately didn’t write directly about it in the letter.

And the next day.

The princess’s reply arrived immediately.

“Count Ethan Whiskers, receive this new plaque bestowed upon you by Her Highness Princess Evangeline Sacred!”

It was a huge golden plaque.

A plaque that could be stuck into the ground, with the words [Great Count Whiskers’ House] written in Princess Evangeline’s handwriting.

“Oh.”

And what was written below was the real deal.

[Congratulations on becoming a new pillar of the Holy Empire]

Princess Evangeline had officially acknowledged it.

It also meant that the Whiskers family would directly replace the vacant position of Marquis Dren’s house.

With the princess personally acknowledging it, there could be no further objections.

“The princess has bestowed a precious gift. I will gratefully accept it.”

“I have clearly delivered it to the count. Then I shall take my leave.”

This news spread rapidly throughout the continent as soon as the vassal sent by Princess Evangeline departed.

It was truly the birth of a new Twelve Families.

Author's Thoughts

Hi everyone, I've completely translated this novel! For those who love this novel and wanted to binge read until the last chapter, you can go to my Patreon "Shop" page. There, I have a product in which you can read them with discounted price!