Saintess's Worthless Husband Turned Dragon Commander novel Chapter 267

CHAPTER 183 PART 2

The attack was coordinated. They had been waiting for exactly this moment, waiting for Brayden to make a mistake that would discredit him in front of the patriarch and the entire family.

Brayden looked toward Isidore, searching for support. He found only cold calculation in his grandfather’s eyes. The old man was watching him like a specimen under glass, measuring his worth based on results rather than intentions.

“Your judgment is compromised,” the patriarch said, his voice quiet but absolute. “You allowed emotion to override strategy. You made decisions based on assumptions rather than facts. These are the weaknesses of a child playing at power, not a man ready to lead a family.”

“Grandfather, I can explain,” Brayden began.

“You are removed from all strategic operations,” Isidore cut him off. “Effective immediately. You will take no further part in decisions regarding the Dragon King, the Pavilion, or any matters of consequence. You will sit in the shadows and remember why you failed.”

The words landed like physical blows. Brayden felt his carefully constructed future collapse in on itself. The other family members watched with barely concealed satisfaction. Their competition had just eliminated itself.

Cedric couldn’t resist pressing the advantage. “Perhaps we should also review his performance in Grayson City. Multiple failures there as well. Multiple operations that collapsed. Perhaps the problem isn’t isolated to this incident.”

Isidore raised his hand, silencing further attacks. “Enough. We have more pressing concerns than Brayden’s inadequacies. The fact remains that we are under siege. The Willson Pavilion is moving against us. Our resources are being cut off. Our business partners are abandoning us.”

He stood slowly, and the physical act commanded absolute attention. The patriarch was old, but he carried himself with the weight of decades spent ruling through strength and intelligence.

“This family has grown complacent,” he said. His voice filled the hall with the kind of authority that couldn’t be questioned. “We have enjoyed stability for so long that we forgot what it takes to survive. We forgot that power is not inherited. It is earned. It is defended. It is maintained through ruthlessness and clarity.”

He paused, letting his gaze move across each family member in turn.

“The succession competition will continue,” he announced. “Whoever proves themselves strongest will lead this family forward. But there is a secondary objective now. Fernando Lancaster, our elder statesman, was captured during the Five – River assembly. The Pavilion is holding him as a hostage, a way to pressure us into compliance.”

The family members exchanged glances. Fernando Lancaster was respected across the province. He had connections that ran deep into government and business. Losing him was a blow, but more than that, his capture was a symbol. It was proof that the Pavilion had the reach and power to take their leaders directly.

“I am announcing a new prize,” Isidore continued. “Whoever, successfully rescues Fernando Lancaster from the Pavilion’s custody will become the strongest candidate for succession. This is an opportunity for any of you to prove your worth. This is your chance to show me that you have what it takes to lead this family through the storm coming toward us.”

The words ignited something primal in the family. Ambition flared like fire fed with accelerant. Eyes that had been contemplative moments before turned calculating. Minds that had been considering Brayden’s downfall now began planning their own paths to power.

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Cedric leaned forward. “Grandfather, rescuing Fernando would require penetrating Pavilion territory. That’s suicide for anyone without substantial resources.”

“Then gather substantial resources,” Isidore replied flatly. “That’s the point of this competition. Show me you can mobilize power. Show me you can think strategically. Show me you can achieve the impossible.”

Helena was already mentally cataloging her allies, her connections, the pieces she could move on the board. Brayden sat in his chair, watching his future dissolve while others claimed it as their own.

The patriarch returned to his seat. “The competition is now fully engaged. Fernando is being held at a Pavilion facility three hundred kilometers north. The rescue must happen within thirty days. Whoever brings him back alive becomes heir apparent. Whoever fails will be remembered as weak.”

The meeting dissolved into controlled chaos as family members began making calls, activating networks, preparing for the competition that would decide their futures.

In the shadows, Brayden watched and understood. He had been eliminated from the immediate struggle for power, relegated to the sidelines by his own mistakes. Around him, his family moved like insects scurrying toward food, each one believing themselves clever enough to succeed where others would fail.

None of them understood what they were actually stepping into.

None of them understood that the Pavilion had captured Fernando deliberately, that this rescue was a trap designed to eliminate family leadership one operation at a time.

And the patriarch, sitting in his chair with the weight of decades on his shoulders, understood exactly what was happening. He was letting his family eliminate itself while pretending to offer them ambition.

By the time Fernando was recovered or confirmed dead, half the family leadership would be gone.

The surviving half would be so weakened that the Pavilion could absorb the Lancaster Family’s resources without

serious resistance.

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