Translator: Cinder Translations
...
When Stanford received the report that a senior scholar from the Scholar's Tower of Gabella wished to meet him, he was filled with disbelief.
Not to mention that Gabella's capital was half a continent away from the Northern Territories, why would a respected scholar come to such a remote and uncivilized place?
Out of curiosity, he decided to meet the visitor. If this person was playing a prank on him, he would make sure they regretted it deeply—the development of the Northern Territories was in dire need of labor!
In the reception room, Stanford met the two guests.
One was around fifty years old, slightly hunched, likely due to the long journey, making his already slender frame appear even more gaunt. His loose robe swayed gently, accentuating his bony wrists and ankles. The deep wrinkles on his face exuded an indomitable wisdom, and his grayish-white beard hung disheveled on his chest, clearly showing the fatigue from his travels.
This man introduced himself as Alvey.
The other had a sharply defined face, high cheekbones, and deep-set eyes that still gleamed with a sharp, alert light, like an unblunted blade, constantly wary of his surroundings.
This man introduced himself as Marek, Alvey's guard.
"Alvey? You are Scholar Alvey?" When the man introduced himself, Stanford stood up from his seat in surprise.
Alvey, in turn, showed equal astonishment. Although he was well-known within Gabella, they were now separated by a vast grassland.
Alvey was unaware that the senior administrators within the Alden system were among the most well-informed individuals in the world in terms of the breadth of information they possessed.
The Administrative Council regularly compiled intelligence gathered from various parts of the world and distributed it to various departments in the form of internal newspapers for officials at all levels to read. The sources of this intelligence were diverse, including intelligence agents, merchants, and foreign envoys. Especially regarding the other continent, where the inhabitants looked vastly different, thanks to the increasing number of transoceanic fleets, information about their social structures and customs had begun to be known and increasingly understood by Alden. These were things even a learned scholar like Alvey was unaware of.
Not to mention Gabella, which was on the same continent and had extensive exchanges with Alden. The names of the upper echelons of this empire were not unfamiliar to senior officials like Stanford, and Alvey was naturally one of them.
"You know of me?" the old scholar asked, puzzled.
"Of course, Mr. Alvey. You are the senior scholar second only to Master Aldridge in the Scholar's Tower," Stanford said, performing a Gabellan gesture of respect.
Alvey gave a bitter smile. "Second only to Aldridge? That's in the past. Now, I am just a fugitive from the empire."
Stanford was shocked. "What happened, Master Alvey?"
The Gabella Empire had not widely publicized Alvey's departure, and Alden did not actively probe into non-critical matters, relying more on collecting publicly available information. Thus, despite some time having passed, Stanford was unaware of the internal upheavals within the empire's upper echelons.
Alvey slightly furrowed his brows and said gravely, "I would like to ask, Mr. Stanford, or rather, the Earl Grayman behind you, would you be willing to provide safe refuge for me and my attendant? I do not wish to deceive you; assassins sent by Emperor Antonio Griffin himself may still be pursuing me. Providing me refuge would risk incurring the emperor's displeasure."
On his way to the Blackworm Nest, Alvey had learned from the Aldor people about the general situation in the Northern Territories and the Northwest Bay, knowing that Paul Grayman was the ruler here.
His words did not overly surprise Stanford. It was not uncommon for former high-ranking officials of a country to flee to another nation seeking political asylum, both in the past and present.
Stanford calmly asked, "Could you first tell me about your experiences?"
Alvey nodded. "Of course, this is something you should know before making a decision. Please forgive my earlier abruptness. The journey of escape has left me like a bird nearly shot by an arrow, constantly in a state of fear, my mind no longer sound."
"First, I must explain that Emperor Antonio Griffin of Gabella once orchestrated a terrible conspiracy against your country, Aldor, and he succeeded. This conspiracy plunged Aldor into war, leading to the loss of territory and its people becoming slaves to foreign races."
Stanford easily deduced that he was referring to the invasion of the orcs.
"I, because I vehemently opposed this conspiracy, ultimately broke with the emperor and was no longer tolerated in Gabella. I was forced to leave the Imperial Academy and embark on a journey of escape."
"My goal was to reach Aldor to warn you that the emperor's conspiracy is still ongoing. I originally planned to take the Neron Corridor, and to see the land that had already fallen under the hooves of the orcs, but unfortunately, I was pursued by assassins and had to abandon my planned route, detouring through the grasslands."
"Misfortune struck again when I was sold as a slave to an orc tribe by untrustworthy, black-hearted merchants. Fortunately, the ruler there saw some scholarly value in me and did not treat me as a laborer..."
Alvey detailed his experiences over the past year.
Stanford listened quietly and, after some thought, replied, "I can only say that our Department of Public Safety provides personal security protection to all individuals within our territory who abide by Alden's laws, whether they are locals or foreigners. However, this protection is more about deterrence. If serious crimes such as murder or kidnapping occur, the Department of Public Safety will investigate them as criminal cases, apprehending, trying, and punishing the criminals within our capabilities. For more substantial protection, especially involving high-ranking individuals from other countries like yourself, I am not authorized to decide. However, I can write to Alden Town or arrange for you to go there directly to seek Earl Grayman's personal opinion."
If it were a chieftain or leader from a local tribe in the Northern Territories seeking refuge, it would fall within Stanford's authority, and he would handle it himself. But involving Gabella was different—it was a powerful nation dominating the central part of the continent. To Stanford, Alvey was a hot potato even for his own lord, who might similarly pass this hot potato to King Rodney XVIII in Crystal Glare to deal with.
"I appreciate your honesty, Mr. Stanford," Alvey thanked him. "I would like to meet Earl Grayman in person. There are some things I need to clarify with him face to face."
TL/N: Although MC's title was upgraded to Marquis, for some reason author decided to use Earl in this chapter.
(End of the Chapter)
---
📖Read (FF) on Pa.treon@CinderTL - c867. [+1]
🔑Early Access at $5.
✍Translated (5) Series, (2.8K+) Chapters, (3.9M+) Words.