The First Vampire

Chapter 543: 541 Doubt_1
 

The icy gaze of Marquis Garcia slowly swept over the faces of the Northern lords, but no one dared to meet his gaze.

Nor did anyone dare to respond to his previous question outloud.

The lords who had originally thought of persuading Marquis Garcia not to declare a war on the church at this time were now all silenced and bowed their heads.

They couldn’t help it; Colin’s fierce demeanor had scared them.

Four families had already been cleanly stripped of their nobility and territories, would there be more to come next?

They had already understood the firm will of the protector of the North Territory, and naturally did not dare to step forward at this time to provoke him and become the target to set an example for others.

Of course, although they did not dare to oppose, no one took the initiative to express approval either.

This cannot be blamed on the Northern lords for their lack of loyalty, it is really due to the inopportune timing and the fact that the object of declaration of war made everyone’s heart uneasy.

However, their silence had caused Marquis Garcia to lose face somewhat.

Seeing the atmosphere growing more and more awkward, and the disappointment and anger in Marquis Garcia’s eyes growing stronger, Colin finally sighed quietly to himself, stepped forward and said,

“Why is everyone silent? You can raise any objections.”

Seeing that still no one dared to respond, Colin quickly began to call names:

“Count Uman, what is your opinion?”

When Count Uman heard Colin calling his name, he had to step forward. He intended to gently persuade, but an overwhelming oppressive force immediately enveloped him. This bloodline-based suppression made Count Uman deeply fearful.

So, the blood relative and brother-in-law of Colin quickly swallowed the words at the tip of his tongue and changed his response to,

“The Uman Clan will always follow in the footsteps of the St. Hilde Family!”

Only then did Colin show a satisfied smile, immediately called another name from the crowd, and asked,

“Count Schultz, what is your opinion?”

Count Schultz also immediately received the treatment of Count Uman. As a blood relative, she could clearly feel her master’s unshakable will at the moment. So, the beautiful Countess cast a subtly alluring glance at Colin, and respectfully said,

“The Schultz Family is also willing to follow in the footsteps of the St. Hilde Family!”

The atmosphere in the Knight Hall was considerably eased by the endorsement of the two counts.

Colin, who seemed unsatisfied, called again:

“Earl Dawson, what are your thoughts?”

The current Earl Dawson was shrinking in the crowd. He was of small stature and thought he could escape the cold gaze from the stage, but unexpectedly, he was still called by Colin.

So, the dwarf Earl had no choice but to reluctantly step out of the crowd.

In the previous Northern Uprising, the Dawson Family was harshly dealt with by Colin because they participated in the dwarf rebellion. The former Earl Dawson was killed on the battlefield, the family’s army was almost obliterated, and their noble title had been demoted from Marquis back to Earl—a mercy act of Vera in order to stabilize public sentiment.

Now, Earl Dawson felt uneasy when he saw Colin. In addition to the two earls who had already expressed their support, he had no choice but to mutter,

“The Dawson Family is also willing to follow in the footsteps of the St. Hilde Family.”

Colin nodded in satisfaction and then turned his attention to a new earl who had just joined the North Territory—Earl Howell.

Count Howell understood immediately and didn’t wait for Colin to ask a question, he promptly stepped forward and declared loud and clear:

“The Howell family will always follow in the footsteps of the St. Hilde family!”

As the newly surrendered, Count Howell knew how to assert his position. Moreover, having personally witnessed the might of Colin’s power in the East, Count Howell believed that this young protector of the North Territory might not necessarily lose to the Pope.

With that, the atmosphere in the hall completely changed.

All four Counts in the North expressed their support, which made the rest of the minor nobles dare not voice any opposition.

Marquis Garcia looked deeply at Colin beside him, seeming to truly realize for the first time the terrifying influence this young protector of the North possessed.

Any ruler with a suspicious nature would probably have started to feel wary at this point.

However, Marquis Garcia was not a politician, and Colin was his most approved successor, and also his son-in-law.

In Marquis Garcia’s view, if Vera was to fall into an eternal sleep, then the power of the North should be wielded by Colin.

He stood up initiative this time, partly because he wanted to seek revenge for his daughter, and partly because he was worried that Colin was too young to control the situation.

But now Marquis Garcia felt that he might have been overly worried.

The situation that even Marquis Garcia himself considered tricky was effortlessly resolved by Colin.

“Does anyone else have any objections?” Colin surveyed the room, seeing that everyone remained silent, he reminded them, “If you have any objections, you can voice them now. If anyone dares to question or retreat after the war starts, don’t say that I didn’t give you a chance!”

Colin’s icy tone sent a shudder through the North’s lords in the room. And as they were perplexed, one figure stood up—

Lady Grace!

“Marquis Garcia, Count Angler, I have a question.”

“Please ask.” Colin managed to pinch out a smile and said.

Lady Grace actually represents the Morrison Family, but the current Morrison Family had been stripped of their countship and pledged allegiance to Colin, so Colin did not ask for Saken Morrison’s stance just now.

The opinion of the Morrison family, to be honest, is not important now.

But Lady Grace is somewhat special.

After all, she carries the surname St. Hilde, and she is also Marquis Garcia’s maternal aunt, she carries great prestige in the North. Now that she stood up to voice her opinion, Colin had to deal with her cautiously.

The North Territory lords who were reluctant to launch a war against the Church heaved a sigh of relief at that moment, their hopeful gazes all turned towards Lady Grace’s not so tall figure, as if she was their only hope now.

Lady Grace did not hide her fears, she asked a key question with a solemn voice: “I wonder, what kind of evidence do you have to prove that the one who masterminded the plot to harm Duke St. Hilde and left her in a coma, is Pope Gregory?”

Marquis Garcia immediately answered: “This was confessed by Cardinal Turennes before he died; at that time, both Count Angler and I were present.”

Lady Grace nodded, but she did not stop there, she continued:

“Of course, I would never question the honesty of both of you, but would it be possible that Turennes only accused the Pope of the heinous act against Duke St. Hilde to beg for your mercy?

After all, the words of such a despicable person who dared to harm the Duke couldn’t be trusted.”

Marquis Garcia frowned, not knowing how to respond to Lady Grace’s doubts for a moment.