Lord of Caldera - Chapter 357

Chapter 357: Chapter 357 Elves Do Not Lie!
Sylas elaborated patiently. “Imagine there’s an elf walking by, and killing them would grant you a precious artifact. Would you do it?”

“Never! I’m the proud daughter of the principality. I would never murder an innocent out of greed!”

“But what if that elf had a hobby of torturing and killing humans, then blaming it on others?”

“Well, in that case, it wouldn’t matter whether there’s an artifact involved. Such a person deserves death,” Eldira replied firmly.

“Exactly. But now, you’d also gain the artifact as a side benefit. You’d feel justified in doing what you already wanted to do. That’s how it works.”

Sylas’s methods were simple yet effective. He didn’t manipulate people outright—he gave them a reason to justify their actions. It was a technique he used to great effect during the rebellion in the north.

“And for my enemies, I do the opposite.”

“The opposite?”

“Instead of justifying their actions, I label them as deserving of anything that happens to them.”

“Are you saying you frame people?” Eldira asked, alarmed.

“Not exactly,” Sylas replied, his tone ambiguous.

He gave her an example. “Suppose a serial killer appears in the Empire, targeting only fathers with young children. He leaves no evidence behind. The guards, desperate to stop him, frame him for another murder and execute him.”

“Wouldn’t that be… wrong?”

“Now, here’s the question: Was the guard wrong for framing the killer?” Sylas asked, smiling faintly.

Eldira was silent. Framing someone was wrong, of course, but was it truly unjustified if it served a greater good? If they hadn’t acted, the killer would still be on the loose. As she grappled with the moral complexity, Sylas’s grin widened.

“Do you get it now?”

“So, you give allies the justification they need to act and brand enemies with guilt to neutralize them?”

“Exactly. Allies are drawn to me for justification, and enemies bow to avoid being marked,” Sylas explained.

The strategy wasn’t easy. Branding an enemy required either solid evidence or the perception that they were capable of such actions. This was where Sylas’s knowledge from his previous life came into play.

“One more tip,” Sylas added mischievously as their conversation drew to a close. “You don’t need your argument to be flawless. It just needs to be more convincing than your opponent’s.”

Recalling Sylas’s lesson, Eldira cried out, “Look at this blood! The Emperor’s torture has left this unmistakable mark. My father and fiancé will make him their sworn enemy!”

“What is this lunatic talking about!?” the Emperor roared, stunned by her audacity. Everyone in the room had seen her injure herself, yet she stood there brazenly accusing him of torture.

“You cut yourself and then claim I tortured you! Do you think everyone here is blind?” the Emperor demanded.

“Your attendants! Your guards! Your palace! Who will believe their testimony?” Eldira retorted.

“…!”

“But the elves are different!” she declared, standing tall and proud.

“Elves do not lie!”

“What… what nonsense is this?” the Emperor stammered.

“You all know it! Elves are noble and pure! They would choose death over dishonoring themselves with deceit. Do you truly think an elf would lie about this?”

The claim wasn’t entirely true—elves could lie, but their pride made it rare for them to stoop to such behavior. Among humans, the myth that elves never lied had persisted for centuries. The Emperor paled as he grasped Eldira’s strategy.

“She’s exploiting her race’s centuries-old image just to win this!” he realized.

It was a masterstroke. Even if the hundreds of people in the palace claimed otherwise, the broader Empire wouldn’t believe them. To others, the Emperor was a villainous oppressor, and Eldira was an innocent victim.

Veles whispered in stunned disbelief, “Lady Eldira… where did you learn to do this?”

“From Sylas, of course!” she replied proudly.

Veles groaned internally. “What on earth has that man done to the once-innocent Grand Duke’s daughter?”

“You dare threaten me with such nonsense!”

The Emperor bellowed at Eldira, glaring furiously. However, it was clear to everyone present that his rage was a facade.

While he shouted, his hand subtly motioned for the Royal Guard to step back. Inside, the Emperor muttered to himself:

“It’s a bluff. Just a bluff. No one with any sense would do something so reckless!”

If Eldira truly spread such rumors, the relationship between the principality and the empire would collapse entirely. Both sides would suffer immense consequences. The principality’s trade would be crippled, and the empire’s western territories would face dire repercussions.

Yet, a nagging thought in the back of the Emperor’s mind refused to be silenced.

“It’s a bluff… but what if… what if it’s not?”

Forcing the delegation here was bad enough, but to compound it by torturing the Grand Duke’s daughter? The fallout would be catastrophic. Beyond the irreparable rift with the principality, the Emperor’s standing within the empire would plummet. Even his staunchest supporters among the nobles would hesitate to align themselves with a ruler who engaged in such despicable acts.

“The empire might survive the rebellion, but my reign, my life as Emperor Siegheart, would be over.”

The rebellion wasn’t the only threat. Should Sylas, the Dragonslayer, fail to act in response, he would lose credibility, and his only recourse would be to topple the Emperor to preserve his honor. The nobles and the Crown Prince Maximilian would seize the opportunity to remove Siegheart and install Maximilian on the throne. The mere thought of this grim future sent chills down the Emperor’s spine.

“Fine! I’ll let you go!”

The Emperor ground his teeth as he shouted the words. The hall fell into stunned silence as all eyes turned to him.

“Y-Your Majesty?” one of his advisors stammered.

“Did you not hear me? I said I’ll let them go! Now, put down that accursed blade, you pointy-eared wretch!”

The Emperor’s face was crimson with shame and fury as he pointed an accusing finger at Eldira. It was clear to all that he had capitulated to her threats. Humiliating himself before his subjects was a bitter pill to swallow, but he knew the alternative was far worse.