The nobles frowned and turned their heads: the king was relaxed and relaxed, raising his hands as if in leisure, and applauding gently.
It's like enjoying a theatrical performance.
Thales felt uncomfortable in his heart: he remembered that bloody dawn six years ago.
At that time, Lumba was like this, clapped his hands gently, stepped out of the murderous army, and walked towards him and Little Slippery with a sure victory.
"Indeed, thank you for reminding me, Ian Ronnie," King Charman applauded and said calmly: "My vassals, there has been a little commotion recently."
"Many people have nowhere to vent their energy," the king took in a breath and exhaled it slowly, his eyes shining coldly:
"So this is the perfect opportunity, isn't it?"
"I will provide them with an unquenchable passion for an opportunity to serve the country. It's just the right time."
Behind the king, Cambida crossed his arms and chuckled.
Ian slowly came to his senses and looked at the king blankly.
He seemed to have expected it, but still refused to believe the facts he had deduced: "What, what do you mean?"
King Charman did not speak, he just curved the corners of his mouth and showed a cruel smile like a vulture.
"As your Majesty said," Viscount Cambida, the second assistant advisor to the Royal Council of the Kingdom of Exeter, stepped forward gently: "It was confirmed from the star prince's opening... No, it should be after the star army appeared.
, this is no longer a local conflict.”
"It's not even about who the broken Free Alliance is loyal to. It's not just a dispute between the Kingdom of Exeter and its small vassal state."
He grinned, showing a bright and relaxed smile, but his words contained information that made the nobles frown: "What you Qiyuan City is facing is the honor and disgrace of the entire Exeter, and it is the honor and disgrace of us facing the stars.
The national dignity of an old enemy.”
"As I said to Her Majesty the Grand Duchess in this hall a few weeks ago," Cambida said slowly, "in the face of Exeter's honor and disgrace, our internal disputes become insignificant."
Thelma's face turned pale as she recalled the meeting a few weeks ago.
Cambida hummed softly: "Whether it is a small misunderstanding between the princes or a small dissatisfaction among the vassals with the king, you should step aside, right?"
He gently opened his hands: "This is the name of the supreme, it is the country's war, and it is the righteousness that cannot be evaded in the oath of co-governance."
"Some of the vassals of the Black Sand Territory, in the face of such righteousness, if they dare to refuse His Majesty's conscription order, are unwilling to recruit troops, are unwilling to mobilize, and are unwilling to obey orders, if they are not willing to come..."
Viscount Cambida seemed to be happy to see the people in Qiyuan City embarrassed. He shrugged and deliberately laughed in a low voice: "Hey, hey, hey."
boom!
Behind Cambida, Kroesi, who had noticed his displeasure for a long time, mercilessly knocked the assistant counselor on the head: "Speak nicely."
Viscount Cambida rubbed his head angrily and said nothing more.
But no one pays attention to them anymore.
King Charman’s voice sounded again, this time it was particularly chilling:
"Northlanders don't need cowards."
"Especially those people."
"Those cowards who, in the face of national justice, are unwilling to put aside their internal disputes, their dissatisfaction with the king, and are unwilling to go to war with enthusiasm and die willingly," the king looked around at the people in the hall.
Leng Mang:
"What other reason do they have to survive in the world while occupying the name of nobility and the benefits of title?"
"And as their lord, what reason do I have to be soft on them?"
Sighs and exhalations of reluctance resounded in the hall.
Thales watched all this with cold eyes, his heart heavy.
Use the name of resisting foreign enemies to eradicate dissidents...
For a ruler, you are very straightforward, Lumba.
At least the rulers in other places will spend effort to whitewash it.
Thelma thought about her current situation, and then thought about the king's current situation, and she couldn't help but be surprised when she understood something.
Ian looked blank for a while.
The next moment, he felt as if he was hit head-on by a carriage weighing a thousand pounds, and he was shaken violently.
Death Crow frowned and supported him.
"No, no..." Ian was breathing rapidly and dripping with cold sweat: "You, you want to use this war against the Freedom Alliance to cleanse your vassals?"
"The recruitment order was issued because of Xingchen's intervention. Is this the purpose?"
No.
Ian thought desperately:
Will not.
How did that happen?
At the other end of the hall, the delegation from Qiyuan City was immersed in sorrow.
The six Earls of Longxiao City stared at King Charman with unprecedented caution and fear in their eyes.
But the next second, Ian suddenly raised his head, his eyes angry.
"Did you think you'd make it, Rumba?"
"Your vassals, they are all time-honored nobles and elites among the people. Only with their support and loyalty can the Lombard family secure the position of Grand Duke." He almost broke his teeth and did not even care about the honorific title of the king.
: "And now, you are going to attack them, do you think they will just sit back and wait for the troops of the Lombard family to rush into their castle, steal their wealth, and deprive them of their titles? Do you think the warriors loyal to you can really handle it?
The entire Black Sand Territory..."
However, what interrupted him was the king's faint sneer.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
At this second, King Charmaine gently twisted his neck and looked at the Grand Duchess on the steps.
The Fallen Starman frowned and stopped in front of Thelma without showing any signs of weakness. The hatred in his eyes never diminished even a bit.
Seeing the opponent's appearance as if facing a formidable enemy, King Charman narrowed his eyes, shook his head, and said in a joking tone:
"Didn't I tell you?"
"The Grand Duke of Zai Zaita has stated that once Xingchen really interferes in the affairs of the Freedom Alliance...then he will never stand idly by."
His words made many nobles nervous again.
"Perseus Trudida understands justice well and is happy to send troops to assist Qiyuan City."
"He and his army will come to the Black Sand Territory to join me and the warriors of the Lomba family."
King Charman spoke very slowly, whispering almost word by word: "Then let's see who are the traitors in the Black Sand Territory who are unwilling to contribute to the country."
Ian was stunned again.
What?
Rebuild the tower, and the black sand collar?
That is to say, if Lomba wants to clean up the nobles in his territory, whether it is name, strength, or timing, he has already...
"Rebuild the tower, Trudida?" Ian remembered something and sighed.
He finally closed his eyes in pain: "That bastard."
"The Reconstruction Tower is closest to us," Cambida added with a smile: "Of course he understands our thoughts best."
Thales frowned deeply, remembering the image of the pot-headed cunning nobleman with twinkling eyes and provocative words.
Rebuild the Grand Duke of the Tower.
Perseus Trudida.
Even at the most critical moment in the Palace of Heroes, when the battle between Ronnie, Oresio and Lumba was about to break out, the Archduke was just holding a short sword and hiding safely in the distance.
Him.
Have you fallen to Rumba?
"You planned it from the beginning, right," Ian said with a frustrated face: "When you promulgated the new decree and the Black Sands led the families to oppose it for the first time..."
King Charman and his two subordinates looked at him coldly.
"You don't care how your vassals will oppose your decree, and you don't care whether they will contact foreign aid like Qi Yuancheng, because you don't want to spend time with them and finish this game with them.
Political games.”
Ian spoke sadly: "Even this move by the Freedom Alliance is not at all to hold back Qiyuan City, nor is it to weaken the opponents' confidence in foreign aid..."
King Charmaine looked at the people in the hall intently, as if he was watching an interesting drama.
"You don't even care whether Longxiao City sends troops, you don't care about the outcome of the war, and you don't care whether Qiyuan City can win the battle quickly."
"You have made up your mind from the beginning," Ian murmured to himself: "You will use the most direct, crudest, and simplest method to eradicate those disobedient old vassals under you."
"What you lack is just a name, a reason, a grand excuse written in the oath of co-governance that will not arouse public anger and have minimal consequences..." He bit out the next sentence sadly:
"For example... Kingdom of Stars."
Ian looked at Thales desperately, but the prince just shook his head.
His Excellency the Viscount slumped down on his seat and stopped looking at anyone.
Like a defeated fighter in the Colosseum.
We, we pray for the distant city...
We foolishly gathered the princes and prepared to jointly condemn the king.
We naively made promises to the lower-level nobles of the Black Sand Territory, hoping that they would undermine Lombard's prestige and undermine the king's authority.
Turn him into an empty king.
Now it seems that this chess game... we lost from the beginning?
The Death Crow next to Ian sighed softly and glanced at Thales with his dead eyes.
Lisban sighed heavily: "So, if your vassals accept the conscription, it means huge expenses and countless manpower, and an expedition to the west means more population, combat power, heirs, supplies, rear areas, and
The lifeblood of these nobles is in your hands."
"Maybe after they come back, the territory has been transformed. Maybe they will never come back..."
"Don't put it so harshly," Viscount Cambida said as if he had a headache: "In the final analysis, His Majesty is just recruiting troops from his territory to go to the Freedom Alliance to regain his position."
Lisban shook his head: "However, if His Majesty's vassals refuse to be drafted, you have the right and reason to use the combined power and military strength of the Lombard family and the Reconstruction Tower to deprive them of them in a name that no one else can object to.
titles, and even purge their families."
"Make the Black Sand Territory truly yours."
His Excellency the Regent sighed in a low tone: "Yes, Your Majesty."
Thales looked at Ian's absent-minded look, and at Lisban's face that seemed to have aged several years in an instant, feeling sad in his heart.
Yes, he knows this feeling. He has experienced it before and will never forget it.
The previous verbal sparring was just an appetizer for Charmaine Lombard.
But what is truly terrifying about the parricide is his methods.
The bloody siege in front of Broken Dragon Fortress, the terrifying blow in the night of disaster...
As always, quick as thunder, direct, rough, cruel, decisive and effective.
All that is left to the enemy is shock and regret.
King Charman snorted softly.
"It's not like they don't have a choice."
King Charmaine turned his eyes and faced the old Lisban face to face.
"They can choose to be loyal to the king, follow the decree, choose to continue to love Exeter, and then everyone will be happy."
The king said coldly, his sharp eyes seemed to hide an irresistible edge. Wherever he looked, the nobles looked away: "Instead of secretly communicating with forces other than their lord, hoping to escape.
Their fate must come."
"Of course, this also sends a warning to those people who put their hands into my territory and meddle in their own business, and stay safe, or I will come to find you." With these words, King Charman once again glanced at everyone in the hall with cold eyes.
Like a ferocious beast patrolling its territory.
The iron fist emblem representing the Lombard family on his outer robe was so dazzling at this moment.
Except for the vague presence and absence of the nobles breathing at different rates, the hall was silent.
Thales looked at the depressed Ian silently, feeling chilled in his heart.
Regent Lisban first sighed slightly, and then said seriously:
"You have absolutely no intention of holding back, and you don't have the integrity and bottom line of a nobleman, right?"
Risban, the former prime minister of the kingdom, faced the king's eyes that were more powerful than before, and he called him by his name without fear: "Charmaine Lombard?"
"Faced with those traditional families who oppose your expansion of power, you don't just rise to the occasion and fight against them."
"Mende, Devinson, Peruno, Ika, and Black Sand Territory are all familiar northern families to us. These families have been loyal to the bloodline of the rebel king and the Lomba family since the days of Nekaru. They have hundreds of years of history.
"A prominent surname that has lasted for thousands of years," Lisban lamented: "They thought they could force the lord to take back his life by joining forces to force the palace as usual..."
"But times have changed."
"In the face of your cruel methods and your relentless recruitment order, they must either recognize your decree, bow their heads and compromise, and obey your orders..."
"Either it will flow into a river of blood and disappear into ashes."
With a hint of melancholy and regret, Lisban's words also aroused concern among the nobles.
Thales exhaled slowly and fell into deep thought.
In Longxiao City, Thelma was cautious because of her status as the Grand Duchess, struggling to maintain her little prestige in exchange for the cooperation and obedience of her vassals.
In the Black Sand Territory, Lumba bore the reputation of a parricide and a reformer. He was merciless and used blood to cleanse his way, leaving his vassals bowed and obedient.
Which side is better?
King Charmaine pressed his old sword with his left hand and smiled coldly.
"There are so many people who want to serve the country, and a large part of them do not have fiefs or titles." Even in midsummer, the king's voice seemed to be filled with the chill of the cold wind: "My right-hand man, Lord Tuleha
tell me……"
Facing the nobles in the entire hall, he said something that made them shudder: "In this world, there are still too many people who occupy high positions but live in the same position."
"It's not unreasonable."
Lisban closed his eyes and did not answer.
The hall was quiet for a long time.
The earls of Longxiao City showed no signs of solemnity even when faced with the willful behavior of the Grand Duchess.
"My God, what kind of king is standing there," Earl Hester said with a pale face.
"The worst kind of king," Count Linna clenched his fingers tightly: "The terrible kind."
"Humph," Cotson shook his head disdainfully, but his eyes were full of fear: "What a scum."
Count Nazaire watched the king silently, but occasionally he would cast his gaze at Prince Thales in the corner, thoughtfully.
"Longxiao City, now you understand."
King Charman didn't care that everyone in Longxiao City was discussing his words: "If Qiyuan City really prepares an open letter and asks you to sign it, it will encourage some unwise fools in my territory to continue to oppose me.
…”
The king raised his head and looked at the highest seat.
The girl who had been staring at him quietly without saying a word for a long time.
"What a pity," King Charmaine raised the corners of his mouth happily, "because that has no meaning anymore."
Ian lowered his head and looked at his knees, as if he had not seen the eyes around him.
"I even want to advise you: there is no need to get involved in this war," King Charman shook his head: "The Black Sand Territory has taken over, and there is no need for you to send troops."
At that moment, the three people brought by Heisha stood proudly in the hall, as if this was their home court.
The vassals of Longxiao City clenched their fists again, resentment and unwillingness burning in their hearts.
"Because no matter how long this war of the Free Alliance lasts."
The king's expression looked a little ferocious: "The results on the chessboard are already determined."
Thales shook his head.
So, as expected, you took your chance, Rumba.
You got what you wanted.
So……
From this moment on, Thales stared at King Charman steadily.
What about your return?
The next second, King Charmaine seemed to sense Thales's gaze. He turned his head and looked at the prince who had turned from expressionless to gradually cautious, frowning slightly.
Thales still stared at him coldly.
The king's lips pursed upward.
King Charman exhaled a long breath: "As for this prince, don't bother sending him to Qiyuan City. Send him to Black Sand Territory. As a person who truly mediates with the stars, I will entertain Prince Thales. This is logical.
."
Thales closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.
At that moment, he was clearly in Walton's Palace of Heroes and Nekaru's Hall of Heroes, but like a true master, King Charman arrogantly said to the vassals present:
"Is there anything else?"
No one answered.
"Really going to the Black Sand Territory?" Huaiya looked at Rolf with a changed expression: "This..."
Thales chuckled in the corner and whispered to comfort the two people behind him: "Calm down, it's not over yet."
I called him over and the prince said silently: I am not planning to go to Heishaling as a guest.
But he also noticed that Nicolai's eyes were getting colder and colder.
From the beginning, the Fallen Star's eyes never left the prince.
It’s as if he knows Thales’ role in it.
The hall was quiet, no one spoke.
In the chill brought by the king, everyone was thinking about the consequences of the sudden accident.
The game between Qiyuan City and Black Sand Territory seems to have come to an end.
Where should Longxiao City go?
Until a clear and pleasant voice suddenly sounded:
"Yes."
King Charman's expression changed slightly, and he turned towards the direction where he originally thought there would be no surprise.
The nominal supreme ruler of Longxiao City, Thelma Walton, lowered her head and weakly said:
"As you said, Your Majesty."
"I will not send Prince Thales to the west, to Qiyuan City."
The officials in Longxiao City all frowned.
King Charman showed an expression of approval: "You are a smart girl."
But the next moment, the Grand Duchess suddenly stood up:
"But listen carefully, Your Majesty Charmaine."
"He will not go to Qiyuan City," in the eyes of everyone's doubts and surprises, the Grand Duke's expression was stern and her tone suddenly changed: "But he will not go to the Black Sand Territory."
Thales smiled.
yes.
She is a smart girl.
King Charman was slightly startled.
"Tiles is a guest of Longxiao City. This was a joint agreement made by the six Grand Dukes in this hall six years ago," Thelma said coldly:
"He will stay in Longxiao City and will not go anywhere."
“Anywhere!”
King Charman's expression turned cold again.
Just like six years ago.
But to the king's surprise, the girl who had been trembling under his gaze six years ago now had a steady expression and strong eyes.
In the silent confrontation, Viscount Cambida frowned, but Croache smiled.
"The joint agreement of the six Grand Dukes?"
King Charman snorted: "You are very naughty, girl."
"There are so many ideas."
"Not only that," Thelma shook her head without showing any signs of weakness: "There is one more thing you need to know."
"No matter what Qiyuan City's attitude is, no matter what your attitude is, Longxiao City will send troops to conquer the Freedom Alliance, just like my father and grandfather personally pacified the Freedom Alliance twenty years ago. This is the responsibility of the Walton family and Longxiao City.
The dignity of the city.”
With a sullen face, she said forcefully: "It won't change just because a person is a king or a beggar."
The atmosphere in the hall became completely cold.
The counts watched the confrontation between the king and the archduchess with mixed emotions.
King Charmaine held down his sword again and pursed his lips.
Thelma stared at him without flinching.
Finally, after taking a few breaths, the king laughed coldly.
"An unmarried little girl will have to shoulder the honor of the Dragon Spear?" King Charman looked around: "Do you, experienced and powerful vassals like you, also agree?"
Selma took a step forward, her expression unchanged: "My vassals, each of them..."
"Everyone supports my decision."
Under the king's gaze, the princes of Longxiao City all frowned and looked at each other.
At this moment, Regent Lisban took a step forward without hesitation.
"The will of the Grand Duchess is our mission," Earl Lisban said coldly: "She said that Prince Thales would not go to the Black Sand Territory."
"Then he won't go," his old colleague, Nazer, sighed softly: "Problem solved."
Earl Curterson also snorted coldly.
"The lady also said that we are going to help the parricide in Qiyuan City," Cotson said with a sinister smile: "Then let's sharpen our axes and bring our swords."
King Charmaine frowned. He raised his head and looked up at the Grand Duchess of Selma, who was still looking at him with a determined face and her eyes motionless.
Earl Hester looked at the Grand Duchess and nodded heavily: "Madam's attitude is the attitude of Longxiao City."
"No matter what bullshit king gave us any bullshit orders."
"If that king is wise, he can bring his army and dog legs to Longxiao City to deprive us of our title," Count Linna said sarcastically: "Who knows, maybe I will obediently offer it to you."
Kierkegaard's eyes turned cold, and his words were very brief and clear: "Welcome to Longxiao City, Your Majesty."
Following the words of the Grand Duchess and the earls, the vassals of Longxiao City completed the unity of opinions while looking at each other.
They all looked at His Majesty the King with the same cold and unkind eyes.
"You heard what they said," Thelma still looked at King Charman coldly: "Do you have any questions, Your Majesty?"
For the first time, King Charmaine looked at this girl seriously.
It's like looking at a weapon.
"That's great, girl." He said softly.
King Charmaine spoke softly with a deep chill: "But you are still wrong about the agreement made by the six Grand Dukes six years ago, girl."
The next second, King Charman turned to Thales and showed a strange expression.
Thales tensed up unconsciously.
Thelma was stunned for a moment: "What?"
King Charman waved his arm, turned around suddenly, and faced the doubtful eyes in the entire hall.
"How do I remember," the king's chilling voice echoed between the pillars: "Six years ago, in this hall, the truly legal, reasonable, and orthodox grand dukes..."
"What about just five?"
Thelma's expression froze.
At that moment, Thales' cheeks stiffened and his pupils slowly narrowed.
In the hall, also slightly changed color were Nicolai and Lisban.