The Villainous Son Loves His Mother - Chapter 61

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Digitalis Ira Salman gracefully settled into the chair in her office.
Before her lay the head of an ogre warrior, hastily brought in by guards with panicked expressions.
As Prime Minister, Digitalis routinely processed countless documents and resolved complex matters with astonishing efficiency. Yet even she couldn’t help but be taken aback by this bizarre gift.

“A ‘gift’…huh?”

Digitalis’s lips twisted slightly.
The head had reportedly been dumped at the castle gates, accompanied by a short letter:

[To the esteemed Prime Minister,]

While Prime Minister Digitalis had no shortage of enemies, none had ever dared such a direct provocation.
Despite her thoughts, Digitalis cast a mixed gaze of disgust and curiosity upon the head.

“They say it belonged to an ogre warrior.”

Beside her, Vice Chief Court Mage Eugen spoke cautiously.
The Chief Court Mage was Habakiri, renowned as the omnipotent “Wizardry,” and Eugen was his disciple.
Eugen possessed genuine skill but was utterly worldly. He craved wealth and pleasure, an insatiable glutton—in short, exactly the kind of person Digitalis favored.
Habakiri held his position as Chief Court Mage solely due to his exceptional abilities, yet he remained unaffiliated with any faction within the court. Digitalis had long desired to recruit Habakiri into her faction, but she knew it would be difficult, given that he was none other than Helga of the House of Aster’s mentor.

“Indeed. And as you can see, this magnificent horn. The ogre distribute their magic power throughout their bodies via their horns, making their shape and thickness symbols of strength. This specimen is clearly Hero-Class—a formidable warrior, no doubt.”

Digitalis swept back her hair with slender fingers, her gaze briefly flickering to the horn. Faint patterns shimmered across its surface.

“I see…”

The cross-section of the neck looked melted, making it impossible to imagine how it had been “processed.” The flesh was torn irregularly, as if it had burst under immense pressure.

“Turning a Hero-Class individual into this… that couldn’t have been easy, could it?”

Digitalis turned her gaze to Eugen, who shook his head slightly.

“Well, for most, it would be suicidal.”

Digitalis lightly tapped the armrest of her chair, lowering her eyes as if deep in thought.

“Exactly. That’s why they sent it so conspicuously—to make a point.”

Digitalis sighed softly, her mind drifting to the current state of imperial politics.

[The proposed revisions to the Racial Hierarchy Act.]

Just as they were pushing for further legal measures to completely exclude Demi-Humans from the central government, this unidentified warning—a severed head—arrived.

“An intimidation tactic.”

As she muttered those words, Eugen frowned and asked,

“Prime Minister, do you suspect anyone involved in this matter?”

“Yes, though I have no concrete evidence… I suspect the House of Aster.”

Digitalis’s voice carried unmistakable hatred.

“The House of Aster is are staunch supporter of Demi-Humans. Just the other day, they openly hosted a tea party for Demi-Human nobles.”

“Oh… Are they attempting to consolidate the power of the Demi-Human faction?”

“Helga Ira Aster is a particularly cunning woman. As a member of the House of Eldenbloom, she naturally opposes the Racial Hierarchy Act I’m promoting. This would inevitably draw more Demi-Human nobles to support her.”

“I see. So, this head is essentially a threat from the House of Aster.”

Before Eugen could finish speaking, Digitalis’s expression twisted into an ugly scowl.

“Yes, I can’t shake this feeling. We can’t afford to be careless. They’re known as a Great Mage and have been a leading member of the Twelve Ducal Houses since the Empire’s founding. There were rumors of their decline, but… they’ve been strangely resurfacing lately.”

Digitalis crossed her legs and pressed her fingertips to her temples.

“This headache is unbearable. If I could, I’d crush the House of Aster immediately, but that’s not feasible right now. After all, they’re a pillar of the Empire with deep-rooted support. Even with our Demi-Human purge, directly confronting a Ducal House with such pride would be too costly.”

Eugen hummed softly, exhaling through his nose, and straightened his collar.
Most of the Prime Minister’s Faction was pushing forward with the Demi-Human purge, following Digitalis’s lead.
But if their opponent possessed “pawns capable of easily assassinating members of the Demon Clan,” openly confronting them would come at too great a price.
Digitalis rose from her chair and approached the severed head, inspecting it closely.
The seemingly impenetrable skin of the ogre had been torn apart with a sickening squelch, and its horns were cracked as if shattered at the base.
Of course, receiving this head wouldn’t cause her to wither away instantly.

“What shall we do, Prime Minister?” Eugen asked.

Digitalis, her face twisted with bitterness, forced out an answer.

“For now, we have no choice but to proceed with the legal revisions gradually. Not until we’ve thoroughly weakened the Demi-Human Faction.”

Even Prime Minister Digitalis, who wielded considerable authority, had to navigate a complex web of conflicting interests in reality.
In particular, many noble families in the Imperial Capital relied on Demi-Humans for commerce and technology. Eliminating them all at once would undoubtedly cripple the nation’s strength.

“So, for the time being, we’ll refrain from coercive measures and observe their next move. However, now that they’ve issued this threat, a confrontation seems inevitable.”

Eugen nodded in agreement.

“Indeed. We must prepare accordingly.”

“What specifically?”

“We’ll have their actions closely monitored to determine if they’ve dispatched assassins or how far their influence has spread within the Demi-Human Faction in the Imperial Capital and the academy. If necessary, we’ll consider pressuring certain nobles to abandon their alliances with the House of Aster.”

Digitalis’s voice was cold and calculating, yet a hint of urgency lingered beneath the surface. Though she maintained a confident facade, a faint unease continued to grow within her.

(To think a single head could unravel so much of our plan…)

Prime Minister Digitalis’s schedule for revising the Racial Hierarchy Act had suddenly become highly likely to stall in the past few days.
Moreover, she needed to lobby influential nobles who might turn against her, including Duke Sarion’s House, one of the Twelve Ducal Houses.

“Understood, Prime Minister. I will continue to deploy personnel to gather information surrounding the House of Aster.”

Digitalis watched Eugen bow and depart, immediately turning her thoughts to her next move.

(I must find Helga Ira Aster’s weaknesses.)

As she pondered this, a sudden realization struck her.

(That woman does have a son, doesn’t she…?)

It was already widely known that Helga was fiercely devoted to her child. Perhaps exploiting this weakness could give Digitalis control over the House of Aster.