A moment later.
Large numbers of Lawrence clanspeople were escorted out by members of the Knights of Favonius.
Every face was filled with anxiety and uncertainty about the future.
They thought Eula had come under orders from the top of the Knights to purge the Lawrence Clan.
Especially after seeing the conference hall turned to glittering ice shards by a single move from Eula—
They were even more certain she had come to exterminate them.
For a while, deathly resignation clouded every face; no one dared look up at Eula.
Seeing this, Eula's expression soured.
It wasn't their attitude toward her that bothered her; it was the clan's current state—truly dire.
Not only had their numbers dwindled year after year, but many looked sallow and underfed.
Though the Lawrence Clan had been forced by Mondstadters' hostility into a kind of self-sufficiency,
resources were limited. Who would willingly share them with the common clansfolk below?
The Lawrences called themselves nobles—above others.
But in the eyes of the clan's upper echelon, only they were truly "above."
Those below? They didn't even qualify to stand at the same height.
So ordinary Lawrences lived no better than outsiders.
You could tell just by the clothes these people wore.
Compared to Schubert and those well-fed, richly dressed elders,
how were these folks any different from ordinary Mondstadters on the street?
Schubert really had harmed them deeply.
When Eula left the clan years ago, they weren't at their peak,
but they were doing all right—if not ten thousand strong, then at least eight thousand.
Yet after only a few years, looking across the square—where were eight thousand?
Not even half the numbers of her own reconnaissance company, by the look of it.
This was Schubert's so-called "glorious revival" of the Lawrence Clan?
Fine words on parchment—no action behind them.
All talk, nothing else.
The more Eula thought about it, the more she felt killing Schubert and his lot had been too lenient.
They should have been seized and paraded through the streets, so every Lawrence could see their "patriarch":
the man who fancied himself above all others, with everything "in the palm of his hand"—
in truth, a useless windbag who knew only how to bluster.
When everyone had been gathered in the square, her adjutant came to report.
"Captain, all members of the Lawrence Clan are assembled."
"Awaiting your orders."
Eula nodded, motioning the adjutant to step aside.
She walked alone to the front, swept her gaze across the crowd, and barked:
"Everyone, lift your heads!"
"I didn't come here to see you hanging them in defeat."
"I came to save you."
But her words had no effect.
Not a single Lawrence looked up. Eula's feeling that letting that bastard Schubert die had been a kindness only grew stronger.
She exhaled and continued.
"Whether you heard me or not, I'm going to announce this."
"If you want the Lawrence Clan to be destroyed, then by all means treat my words as hot air!"
The crowd remained sunk in lifeless silence. No one raised their head.
Eula didn't pause, and she didn't keep scolding them.
"From this moment, the patriarch of the Lawrence Clan will be me—Eula Lawrence."
"Here is my first order as patriarch."
"Effective immediately, the Lawrence Clan's self-imposed isolation is lifted."
"Under the decrees of the new King—the Knight-King—our past crimes are pardoned."
"From today forward, we are no longer the descendants of sinners. We will live in Mondstadt alongside all other citizens, as equals."
"If anyone dares to harass you by dredging up the sins of the old aristocracy, you can come to the Knights of Favonius and find me."
"I will stand for you—…"
Before Eula could finish, an old man shakily raised his head, eyes brimming with tears.
"Is… is that true?"
"We're no longer the descendants of sinners?"
"We can live under the sun like other Mondstadters—trade fairly, work alongside them?"
That had been the greatest wish of this branch after the Lawrence main house fell.
But in practice, even though they were not the faction that had oppressed Mondstadt,
they were still treated as sinners by those who'd suffered under the old aristocracy: refused trade at first,
then cursed at on sight, even pelted with food and vegetables.
That was why the Lawrence Clan had withdrawn into themselves.
There was simply no goodwill for them outside.
The malice Eula endured when she joined the Knights had proven that.
If even Eula was slandered like that, what treatment could the rest expect?
Withdrawing had been a helpless act to protect their own.
It was also tied to the Knights of Favonius' failure to act back then.
Now Eula said the new King had pardoned their crimes—he found it impossible to believe.
"It's true."
"All of Mondstadt has already begun enforcing the new laws. Anyone who refuses to obey will be opposing the whole of Mondstadt."
"As the new patriarch of the Lawrence Clan, I would never deceive you."
"If you don't believe me, then after this assembly, leave the compound and see for yourselves."
Facing the old man's doubt, Eula didn't flinch; she patiently explained.
Then she turned her gaze to the younger Lawrences.
"My second order: starting tomorrow, anyone between fifteen and fifty may go to the Knights of Favonius' recruitment office to register."
"If you pass the assessments and become full Knights of Favonius, your monthly stipend will not be less than ten thousand mora."
"If you're willing, come with the Reconnaissance Company back to headquarters after this meeting—I'll take you to sign up."
If the first order sounded like a fantasy to them,
the second was even more explosive.
Everyone knew: Eula had been targeted back then because many in Mondstadt feared the Lawrence Clan returning to power—
the old aristocracy rising again. They were done with oppression.
And now they were being told they could enlist?
"Don't doubt your ears. I will not lie to you."
"If you still don't believe it, you can come with me right now. We'll leave the Lawrence estate and take a look outside."
Eula couldn't be bothered to argue further. In their condition, she could talk her lips raw and they still wouldn't dare believe.
So she stopped trying. After all, her specialty had always been speaking with her fists.
" ... "
(End of Chapter)
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