An Understated Dominance - Chapter 2447

After Nathaniel spoke, Tristan’s face grew serious. He frowned and fell silent, deep in thought.

It seemed he had misjudged the situation. He thought it was just a simple rivalry between brothers, not realizing Seamus would take advantage of it for his own plans.

Seamus already had a lot of power. Pretending to support Matthias’s rise to the throne, he had been making alliances and gathering supporters. His influence was now nearly equal to that of the royal family.

If Seamus truly helped Matthias rise to power, he would overshadow the king, and no one could stop him. The worst-case scenario would be Seamus using Matthias as a puppet to take down the House of Linsor.

“Nathaniel, is everything you said true?” Tristan asked, his frown deepening.

“Absolutely. Every word,” Nathaniel said seriously. “If you don’t believe me, you can have someone check it out.”

“I believe you. But… getting rid of Seamus won’t be easy. Do you have a plan?” Tristan replied.

“I’ve already warned Matthias, but it hasn’t helped much. He thinks I have my own agenda and doesn’t trust me. Right now, our only option is to work together to stop him from taking the throne. That’s the only way to put an end to Seamus’s plans,” Nathaniel explained.

His words held a mix of honesty and self-interest. While he seemed to have good intentions, he also had his own motives. He knew he couldn’t match Matthias’s influence alone.

But if Tristan joined him, their chances of success would improve greatly. Once Matthias was out of the picture, the throne could be his. He was aware that Tristan wouldn’t be a challenge for him; this was the core of his plan.

“I guess that’s our only choice,” Tristan said thoughtfully. To protect the House of Linsor and his own interests, he couldn’t let Matthias become king.

“Does this mean you agree?” Nathaniel asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I can’t let Seamus’ plan succeed, both personally and politically. But with just the two of us, we don’t have the strength to take him on. We need more powerful allies,” Tristan explained.

“Of the eight great families, four have already sided with the Moseys. We can still try to win over the other four, but we’ll need your connections for that,” Nathaniel said.

“I know a few people in the great families. It shouldn’t be too hard to persuade them,” Tristan replied. “But instead of focusing on the great families, we should prioritize the four ancient houses. Besides the Moseys, we have the Spanners, the Fallons, and the Ballards.”

“The Fallons are closely linked to the Moseys, so they’re likely already with Matthias. Winning them over will be tough. For now, we should concentrate on the Spanners and Ballards,” Nathaniel said calmly.

“I have good relations with the Spanners, so I’ll talk to them. You can handle the Ballards,” Nathaniel added.

“Okay. I’ll visit the Ballards tomorrow morning to see where the Duke of Lachshire stands,” Tristan nodded, accepting the plan.

Securing the Ballards’ support would give them a significant advantage.

“I have one more favor to ask,” Nathaniel said after a moment.

“Just tell me. We’re in this together, and we should help each other,” Tristan replied confidently.

“To stay ahead, we need a strong advantage in intelligence, and that’s Grace’s specialty. Her Serenity Hall is one of the top three intelligence networks in Dragonmarsh. If we can get her help, it will make things much easier.”

“Smoother,” Nathaniel explained.

Among the royal siblings, Grace stood out the most. While the others were focused on military or political issues, she had created a vast intelligence network that covered the entire nation. She was definitely not someone to underestimate.

“You want me to recruit her to our cause?” Tristan asked, squinting.

“You’ve always had a good relationship with her. If you ask, I doubt she’ll say no,” Nathaniel replied with a smile.

“That’s not so certain,” Tristan shook his head. “I know her well. She never takes sides in royal disputes. Asking her to go against Matthias is something she would never agree to.”

Grace’s intelligence network was unmatched, but she was a woman of principle. She had always stayed neutral in the sibling rivalries.

“All we need is for Grace to give us intelligence. We’re not asking her to take any direct action. I don’t think that would go against her principles. If it comes to it, we can offer her a higher payment for the information,” Nathaniel suggested.

“But…” Tristan frowned and paused.

“Think about the bigger picture,” Nathaniel urged.

After a moment, Tristan nodded. “Okay. I’ll give it a shot, but I can’t make any promises.”

Though he was hesitant to involve Grace, the current political instability and rising tensions in the government left him with little choice. As a royal heir, he couldn’t just stand by. He had to confront some difficult issues, even if it meant doing things he didn’t want to do.