When the moon began to sink in the west, Goron Wimbledon saw the faint outline of the Royal Capital's walls in the night.

After several months, he was finally back, he thought. The fatigue of the long journey diminished a lot, but he remained vigilant, reining in his mount and signaling his deputy to scout ahead.

If the plan hadn't changed, Scholar Ang should have replaced the guards with his own confidants, and lowered the side gate drawbridge after the deputy signaled.

He widened his eyes, staring ahead, afraid of missing the faint light.

The wait wasn't long, but Goron felt like time had frozen. Just as his eyelids were aching and he could barely hold on, he finally saw the flickering light from afar - two flashes below the wall, three above, just as agreed in the plan. He breathed a sigh of relief and waved his men forward.

This way, he was only one step away from the throne.

Goron rode his horse through the side gate, his deputy riding alongside him.

He was followed by more than twenty cavalrymen, all silent, pulling on the reins, controlling their mounts to move forward slowly.

The walls of the Greycastle Royal Capital were made of materials taken from Dragonfall Ridge. The gray-brown stone glowed with a dark red luster under the torchlight, as if soaked in blood. The entire wall was twenty feet wide, and more than a thousand laborers, slaves, and stonemasons died on the construction site to build this unparalleled wall.

An impregnable wall that even a ten-thousand-strong army couldn't conquer was now being easily crossed by him. Goron thought, any loophole starts from within. For some reason, he thought of New Holy City, whose seemingly grander and more indestructible walls, would they also be breached from the inside?

"Your Highness, I have been waiting here for a long time." After passing through the city gate, Scholar Ang and a small team were waiting by the gate. Seeing Goron appear, the scholar quickly dismounted and bowed.

Goron cast aside his distracting thoughts. He was probably too excited and couldn't help but let his mind wander. "You've done well. Have the palace guards been replaced as well?"

"Your Highness, there was a slight accident in the plan. The Silver Hand Knight, who had agreed to serve you, was transferred to the Southern Border three days ago. We only had time to replace the guards in the sleeping palace."

Goron frowned. This meant that he couldn't bring all twenty-odd men into the palace. The guards wouldn't stop him, but they wouldn't allow so many fully armed people into the royal domain.

"Never mind, as long as two men from the sleeping palace guard team follow me, the rest guard the entrance and don't let outsiders disturb me." He hesitated for a moment and made up his mind. Although the plan had changed, the situation was still under control. His father's personal guards would usually stay in the outer chamber overnight. As long as someone could hold them back for a moment, he was confident that he could kill them with his sword.

Entering the inner city, it was as if everything had returned to the way it was when he left. Even at night, he could recognize every street. This was his territory, without a doubt. Everyone jumped off their horses and quickly headed towards the palace. When they arrived at the entrance, the twenty-odd men dispersed according to the new plan and lurked outside the palace. Just as Scholar Ang had said, although the guards were surprised that the prince had returned to the Royal Capital at night, when Goron bluffed that he had important matters to attend to, they directly opened the gate and let him in.

After all, he was the eldest son of the King of Greycastle, the first heir under the law.

The prince and Scholar Ang passed through the courtyard and the main hall. The castle ahead was the residence of Wimbledon III. The scholar raised the torch in his hand and shook it left and right. Immediately, a guard walked out from the shadows and knelt on one knee to the two of them. "Your Highness, please follow me."

Goron sniffed. He smelled blood.

Wasn't it said that all the guards in the sleeping palace had been replaced? He looked at the guard by the light of the torch. It was indeed someone he knew - a knight under a count who supported his ascension to the throne. This made him feel a little relieved.

"What, someone entered the castle?"

"Your Highness, His Majesty summoned a maid in the evening. When she came out, she saw our replacement," the other party replied. "Please rest assured, we have taken care of it."

A maid? His father hadn't touched a woman in a long time - since his mother passed away. Goron felt a little surprised, but now was not the time to dwell on such trivial matters. He nodded and didn't say anything more, following the guard into the castle, with the others following behind.

For Goron, he could walk through this castle from beginning to end with his eyes closed. He had lived here for more than twenty years and knew exactly where the secret passages and hidden doors were. However, the purpose of his trip was to persuade his father to pass the throne to him. Sneaking into the sleeping palace was meaningless. He had to take care of the personal guards stationed outside, let his father fully understand his situation, and then he could sit down and seriously discuss the ownership of the inheritance.

If he couldn't persuade him...

Goron Wimbledon took a deep breath, signaling everyone to stop, and drew the greatsword from his back.

The bronze door at the end of the corridor was the only entrance to the sleeping palace. Behind the door was the outer chamber, the last line of defense in front of the sleeping palace, where two to three personal guards were usually stationed. In case of an accident, they could rush into the sleeping palace to protect His Majesty at any time.

Goron first pushed the door open a crack, then slammed his shoulder against it, quickly rushing into the room, raising his sword in a defensive posture - but the outer chamber was quiet, there was no one there. At the same time, a strong smell of blood rushed towards him.

A bad feeling flashed through his mind, and he ran directly towards the sleeping palace.

Then Goron saw an unbelievable scene.

Wimbledon III was sitting on the head of the bed in his sleeping robe, leaning against the pillows. The robe was open, and a sword hilt was sticking out of his chest. Blood flowed down his bulging belly, soaking the quilt.

Standing beside his father was his younger brother, Tiefeike Wimbledon.

"How... how could this be?" Goron was stunned.

"Like you, brother," Tiefeike sighed. "I didn't want to do this."

He clapped his hands, and a group of iron-clad warriors quickly poured in from behind the door, surrounding the Great Prince. "This is a chess game, and I originally wanted to play it according to the rules. Brother, do you know? Third Sister never intended to play this game from the beginning, and of course... neither did you. Otherwise, why would you rush to the Royal Capital from thousands of miles away after hearing Scholar Ang's astrological predictions? Honestly, if you hadn't come, I really would have been at a loss."

"Scholar!"

He gritted his teeth and looked back. Scholar Ang took a step back and spread his hands. "I didn't lie to you. 'The Enlightenment Star is moving away from the Fiery Sun,' meaning the seeker has deviated from the correct path, but it also means falling."

Now Goron understood completely. From the beginning, he had fallen into a carefully designed trap. The smell of blood at the castle gate was probably not left by some maid, and the claim that the Silver Hand Knight was transferred was also a lie. But what made him most desperate was that Scholar Ang, who had taken care of him for more than ten years and taught him to read and write since he was a child, had ultimately chosen the Second Prince - like his father.

"Tiefeike Wimbledon! You are both sons, but he only poured so much effort into you, dividing the best territory for you. I didn't expect you to be the first to turn around and bite him! You are simply a devil from hell!"

A flash of anger appeared in Tiefeike's eyes, but it quickly disappeared. "Do you really think so? Dear brother, if this trip failed to persuade him to pass the throne to you, would you really intend to give up? Don't lie to yourself."