"When she disappeared on the battlefield and her life and death were unknown."
Part of the doubts in the Imperial Council disappeared, but more questions followed.
"help?"
Viscount Coney, the Minister of Commerce and Trade, laughed and said rather teasingly:
"Could it be a giant dragon?"
Thales's mind moved, and he remembered the scene of the unkempt, silly little slider sitting in the ruins, silently looking at the huge and graceful dragon head.
But Viscount Conney soon discovered that no one supported his joke.
On the contrary, Duke Cullen, who was always smiling, had a stern expression, and Financial Controller Juke Mann looked ugly.
Clapham, the Minister of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, woke up from his drowsiness again, his eyes suspicious, while Stylianides, who had been silent all this time, lowered his head in thought.
Thales sat next to Gilbert, suppressing the curiosity and eagerness in his heart, and concentrated on watching the foreign minister hurriedly flipping through the information in his hand.
At the end of the long table, the king's figure remained motionless, like a stone sculpture.
The entire imperial meeting seemed extremely silent.
Viscount Connie's smile gradually faded.
"No."
In silence, Advisor Thordo made the final decision, ending Viscount Connie's embarrassment:
"They are poor people."
The military adviser put his hands on the table and looked at everyone.
Thales could feel that after Soduo said "no", most of the important ministers present breathed a sigh of relief.
"The local poor people of Xitao."
Soduo frowned, and his palms passed over the roads and towns on the map, tapping lightly on the blank spaces where there were no chess pieces.
"They helped the Grand Duchess survive the battlefield."
"And finally gathered them together to retrieve some of the elites belonging to Longxiao City."
The military advisor grabbed a few white chess pieces outside the map and placed them back next to the white queen.
Thales felt relieved.
Therefore, Thelma received help from the local people and survived the dangerous battlefield safely.
But then he felt strange.
"Wait a minute, didn't Count Castle say that?" Viscount Connie asked in confusion:
"Suriel Walton once massacred Freedom Castle and had a deep hatred for the people of the Freedom Alliance? If the poor people knew the identity of the Grand Duchess, why would they still..."
Many people looked at Gilbert.
The Foreign Minister held up his glasses, his face looked a little ugly, and he flipped through the documents faster and faster:
"About this - sorry, give me a few seconds - I remember these pages..."
Soduo coughed and looked at the visitor from the secret department.
The scar-faced man stepped forward calmly and relieved Gilbert of his embarrassment:
"The Secret Department thought so at the beginning - the poor people of the Freedom Alliance and the Northlanders were fighting to the death."
"It was only afterwards that we discovered that the information we had was incomplete."
"So we quickly contacted the local intelligence station and then corroborated it with the historical data from the Foreign Affairs Department."
The Foreign Secretary finally turned to the page he needed. He exhaled and continued:
"Ahem, gentlemen, the national conditions of the Freedom Alliance are rather special."
Gilbert raised his head and transformed back into the star cunning fox that Thales was familiar with:
"In fact, unlike the poor people in Qiyuan City, most of the poor people in the Freedom Alliance - especially the part that Sodo mentioned - mainly live in the suburbs and countryside, with low status, extreme poverty, and suffering discrimination
, even if you go to Freehold to earn a living, you will still be doing the lowest-grade jobs."
"The people who really have a deep hatred against them are not the Northland invaders who are specifically targeting the noble families, but the upper class living in Free Castle."
Thales frowned. He remembered that Ronny had hinted to him that the suffering people were one of the problems faced by Qiyuan City under his rule, but he never knew that the suffering people's problems were not limited to Qiyuan City.
"A bit...complicated?" Viscount Connie asked what he felt.
"No."
Everyone stood upright and looked at the person who spoke.
"It's not complicated at all."
King Kessel stared at the ring on his hand, his eyes turning on the brass luster:
"Just like what happened last night."
last night.
The imperial meeting suddenly fell silent.
Thales subconsciously turned his head to avoid everyone's intentional or unintentional glances.
Gilbert's words sounded at the right time, attracting everyone's attention and relaxing the atmosphere:
"A hundred years ago, the Conmas Alliance implemented the 'Hundred Nations Business Road' strategy, expanding its power eastward, and the entire Golden Corridor was turbulent."
"The person who ruled Exeter at that time was 'Broken Steel' Nun VI who had just succeeded to the throne. He had a back-and-forth game with the Conmas people and finally reached a compromise: to support local forces at the eastern end of the Golden Corridor and establish an open trade
Road, but still a country where Exeter is the suzerain."
Advisor Thordo frowned:
"Freedom League."
Gilbert nodded:
"As an intermediate product of the compromise between the two major powers, the structure of the Free Alliance was inherently deformed: its source of power and foundation of rule were not internal but external, and it did not respect inferiors but only superiors. It developed in the cracks of the major powers with the help of huge profits from trade routes.
."
Gilbert turned the page and looked extremely serious:
"After nearly a hundred years of rule, the high-ranking elders and their powerful families in Freehold, although they share the same blood as the poor people, have become accustomed to being aloof, exploiting, holding positions, and enjoying privileges. They have long stopped treating themselves
Consider yourself a member of the poor people."
Thales was relieved.
I see.
The real reality is far more complicated and specific than the dry sentence in the book: "The Free Alliance lives in the west of Qiyuan and in the east of Qiyuan, enjoying business interests."
As for Thelma, what she has to face is much more difficult than what I have to face.
"So, the lower-class poor people in the alliance are actually local forces that can be recruited to fight against the higher-ups in Freedom Castle."
Prime Minister Cullen scratched his chin, looking silly:
"It's just that in the past few decades, the eyes of the people of the North have stayed on the nobles in the castle, and on the regime they supported through compromise with the Conmas people?"
Gilbert sighed:
"Don't talk about subdividing the poor and the nobles... To be precise, in the past few decades, the entire Freedom Alliance has not been taken seriously by the people of the North."
The Foreign Minister frowned and said nothing: Even we were shocked when the battle report came out, so we hurriedly updated the information?
Thales calmed down his mood, but he couldn't help but have another doubt.
But what happened to Selma...
"So, that girl got a few waves of support from the poor people of the lower class, but..."
"Money Bag" Qiu Keman narrowed his eyes and asked:
"What we are talking about is a war with real swords and real guns, which costs money and money, not logging to open up wasteland or plowing the land."
"Can a group of ragged poor people really help her win?"
This question brought up the most confusing point for everyone. Even though all the gentlemen present here are well-educated, they still couldn't help but lean forward in anticipation of the answer.
"cannot."
Thordo's answer was as vigorous and resolute as ever:
"But at least it can give her a way to sneak into Freedom Castle secretly, which only low-class people who do dirty work know."
Thales' eyelids twitched.
"According to our intelligence, one night after the Freedom Alliance returned from the victory, the Grand Duke of Longxiao City led the elite Grand Duke's personal guards around her - many of them were white-blade guards from the era of King Nun - and quietly invaded
The inner city of Freehold."
Thales unconsciously leaned forward, joined the ranks of the ministers present, and stared at the white chess piece.
Thordor Red leaned down, and on the battlefield where the white chess retreated and the black chess re-established, he pushed that special white queen against the momentum, but also pushed it unstoppably towards the Free Castle.
Just like the sunlight that finally penetrates the clouds and pierces the sky.
"With the help of the poor people's guides, she used a mere few hundred men to capture all the top leaders of the Freedom Alliance without any bloodshed."
"This brings an end to the entire war."
Soduo's voice fell.
The imperial council let out a small exclamation.
Only Thales bit his lower lip.
He imagined what that night would be like.
A small number of elites sneaked in secretly and captured high-ranking officials without a single blow...
Sounds like...
Very familiar.
Thales was a little lost.
It seems that he was not the only one who learned something from Charmaine Lombard's madness six years ago.
"From the governors and senators to the bureaucrats and generals."
Thordo methodically knocked down the few black pieces left in Free Castle one by one:
"Including the most critical Josh Kenya, and Ivan Pollado, who became famous at a young age."
"No one left behind."
"Catch them all in one go."
"Become a prisoner overnight."
Sodor retracted his finger, looked at the white queen who was the only one standing on the battlefield, and sighed:
"Just when they were immersed in the victory and completely lost their vigilance."
The Imperial Council experienced a long silence.
"What?"
After a long while, Viscount Connie spoke in disbelief. He stared at the map with messy chess pieces:
"I bet this war is just about setting off each other to see who is stupider than who?"
He was both laughing and crying, whether it was a sarcasm or a sigh.
The rest of the people more or less feel the same way.
"If you look up the war cases, Your Excellency Viscount, you may find that many wars in history were like this."
Soduo replied coldly, obviously in a bad mood:
"Many times, the outcome of a war is not due to how powerful the victor is..."
"But thanks to how stupid losers are."
Sodol lowered his head.
What's more, the factors involved in war are complex, too chaotic, too accidental, and too unknown.
No matter how well we sit here and make good plans on paper.
If I had to end it myself and face reality...
It's probably not much better.
"At least the Northlanders took over Fort Liberty," Gilbert sighed, intentionally or unintentionally trying to smooth things over:
"It doesn't disgrace the name of 'frontally invincible'."
Thales let out an unknown breath.
Duke Cullen raised his voice and asked:
"So she captured the top brass and took control of the inner city, but the rest of the soldiers and civilians in Freedom Castle..."
Thordo nodded and turned to the scarred man.
The visitor from the secret department respectfully stepped forward:
"With the rescue of Kierkegaard, the remnants of Longxiao City soon regrouped and the chain of command was restored."
"Coupled with the help of the poor people, they entered the city in batches within a few days and joined the command of the Grand Duke."
"Finally, we captured Liberty Castle without any danger."
Soduo took over the conversation:
"Just like that, when Qiyuan was defeated and guarded in panic, and Exeter was defeated, a sudden force from Longxiao City suddenly emerged and turned the tide of the battle."
"Shocked everyone."
"The soldier" closed his mouth, and there was silence around the table.
Everyone is feeling the afterglow of the battle on the table, immersed in different emotions, and it is difficult to recover for a while.
"snort."
The gray-bearded financial controller, Juke Man, snorted disdainfully:
"We were completely defeated on the battlefield, and we had to rely on a woman's sneaky ways to save the situation."
"Even if he wins the war, Exeter will lose his face and may become a laughing stock."
Everyone present had mixed emotions, and no one answered for a while.
Until a young voice sounded:
"Lord Man, this room is called the 'Ballard Room', right?"
All the princes in front of the emperor turned around and were surprised to find that the person who replied was the Duke of Xinghu, who was participating in the meeting for the first time and had always been cautious and never took the initiative to speak out.
Qiu Keman did not dare to neglect and sat upright:
"Of course, Your Highness, this is the great Ballard Room, so?"
Thales looked at him for a while, then narrowed his eyes and smiled:
"nothing."
"Let's go back to that country that is a laughing stock and relies on women to save the situation."
Juke Man was confused.
The expressions of those present were different.
Only Gilbert coughed lightly and signaled to Thales with his eyes, and the latter leaned back and stopped making any sound.
"That's not all that girl does."
Soduo's words brought everyone back to the battle.
The military advisor raised his head and signaled to the scarred man beside him: "The secret department has more detailed information."
The secret agent bowed and changed a document:
"Freedom Castle fell, high-level officials were captured, and the army was disarmed..."
"The Grand Duke of Longxiao City, who is confident of victory, then ordered: Starting from the governor of the Alliance, all these prisoners, these renegades of the Freedom Alliance, senior officials, generals and soldiers, will be captured..."
The scar-faced man raised his eyes from the paper with a stern expression:
"Send them all to the guillotine."
Thales took a breath.
What?
Everyone in the meeting whispered among themselves.
"Again?"
Prime Minister Cullen frowned and said:
"As expected of the bloodline of Nun and Suril, he has a ruthless heart and vicious methods, not inferior to those of his father and ancestors."
"Women, you know," Juke Man breathed out:
"I have always been small-minded and narrow-minded. I have to compare money and money, and I will retaliate against you."
"The loss is so huge, I would have done the same thing," Viscount Connie sighed:
"At least she was very straightforward and didn't torture them."
Thales didn't speak, he just frowned in thought.
"How many?"
Gilbert turned his head and interrupted the discussion on the long table:
"How many people did she kill?"
The scar-faced weirdo from the secret department glanced at all the adults.
His face was expressionless, he just changed a piece of paper and read out a surprising number:
"zero."
The entire Ballard Room fell silent for a moment.
The adults stared and opened their mouths in disbelief, taking several seconds to digest this information.
From an angle that no one else could see, Thales slightly curved the corners of his mouth.
"Wha, what?"
The scarred man nodded in confirmation.
"On the guillotine, when the blade is about to fall."
"The Grand Duchess took off her helmet and took off her armor."
The scarred man's words were smooth and natural, but there was a different kind of power, telling a legend thousands of miles away:
"The little girl left the military crowd, walked to the stage, and announced to the trembling people in the audience."
The person from the secret department changed a piece of paper, and the adults present were fully attentive with emotions such as surprise, doubt, disdain, and vigilance.
"She said that enough people have died in this war."
"Enough blood has been shed by both sides."
All the ministers looked at each other in confusion, unable to understand.
"She said that the lives and livelihoods of thousands of people and the children of countless families should not have to pay for the selfishness and mistakes of a few high-ranking people."
The scar-faced man raised his head:
"She said someone had told her."
"War cannot bring peace, just as death cannot repay life."
Thales' expression changed.
"And she, the ruler of Longxiao City, will not repeat the mistakes of her grandfather and father."
At the end of the long table, the king moved suddenly. He raised his head and revealed his eyes in the shadow of the backlight.
"Amidst the heated debate and in front of everyone, the Grand Duchess forgave and forgave the prisoners of war on the guillotine, untied their bonds one by one, and finally raised the heartbroken Ivan Pollado with her own hands
,tell him……"
The scar-faced man changed to the next document and said in a solemn tone:
"'On the battlefield you harmed my people, but in answer, 'Ivan the Surprise,' I will spare your life in exchange for an end to war and hatred.'"
The voice of the secret agent fell.
The conference room was silent again.
A few seconds later, Thales, who was deeply moved, sighed and said intentionally or unintentionally:
"Small-minded and narrow-minded?"
Juke Man's expression became very unnatural.
"absurd!"
Viscount Conney could not help but speak:
"The kindness of a woman! She is in a foreign land and dares to let the tiger return to the mountain. All that awaits her is destruction..."
But before he finished speaking, the secret agent opened the next document:
"The Grand Duchess also issued a 'peace order' in public."
"The entire army of Longxiao City, whether generals or soldiers, shall not kill, injure or abuse prisoners of war, invade or plunder civilian residences, obstruct public order, or affect the order of people's livelihood while stationed at Fort Liberty."
The scar-faced man raised his head:
"If anyone violates the rules, she will punish them severely in the name of killing souls with the dragon spear."
As soon as this statement came out, not only Viscount Connie but also Duke Cullen was startled.
"No way?"
The Prime Minister frowned and said:
"Then can her vassals and her army endure it? How can she satisfy their greed? Why do they spend money and food to travel across mountains and rivers? Travel to see the scenery? They have suffered countless casualties, how can they even out the situation?"
"Does she really think that if she doesn't kill dozens of leaders to make an example, the people of the Freedom Alliance will be obedient? Doesn't she have any smart people who stand up to oppose her?"
The imperial ministers whispered one after another, and many of them were also unable to understand.
Soduo's words sounded steadily:
"After experiencing the previous disastrous defeat and facing the prestige of the Grand Duke in this campaign, I guess her people no longer have much courage to oppose."
The scar-faced man from the secret department nodded:
"As deputy commander-in-chief, Kierkegaard, who has the highest status, was the first to kneel down and obey orders."
"The rest followed suit."
"Don't dare to have any doubts."
Thales was in a daze, as if he had returned to the day of the hearing in the Hall of Heroes, where Selma was shouting feebly, but all her vassals looked cold and unmoved.
"As for Fort Liberty..."
Scarface read his information:
"The Grand Duchess strongly suggested to the Governor of the Alliance that the elders of the Alliance should use their savings and donate land to help the poor people in order to relieve their difficulties."
"We even adjusted laws, reduced or reduced service taxes, re-established courts, and re-examined cases."
"By the way, let's solve the 'food and accommodation problem' of the troops in Longxiao City."
As soon as he said this, Gilbert beside Thales took a deep breath and looked at him with complicated eyes.
"She? 'Advised' the alliance governor, 'advised' the group of senators?"
Juke Man heyed twice:
"Ha, either the Grand Duchess's attitude is sincere and touching, or the elders of the alliance are of high moral character and listen to others' advice..."
"That's not clear," Gilbert said quietly:
"But I guess, both the sword in her hand and the cutting blade on the guillotine must be very sharp."
"At first, some people were not very enthusiastic about this 'suggestion'," the scar-faced man said with a frown:
"So later, the Grand Duchess sent the Fallen Star to have a sincere talk with the senators..."
Talk to the Fallen Star...
Thales only felt a phantom pain in his left wrist.
"It is said that some people were so eloquent that they 'died of shame because of their conscience', and the rest..."
The secret agent raised his head to conclude, then stepped back respectfully:
"I'm much more enthusiastic."
The princes in front of the emperor exchanged "oh" looks of understanding with each other.
"It's a matter of changing laws and setting up courts," Secretary of Commerce Kenney frowned and said:
"Why didn't she just put the red dragon flag with a black background on the top of the city, seal it to a trustworthy Northlander, and declare that Freehold would be part of Exeter from now on?"
Thales smiled.
"Because she, or the people under her, are smart enough."
Gilbert looked solemn:
“Know how to balance advancement and retreat to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages.”
"This way, when she takes over, she doesn't have to bear the burden and pressure of ruling."
"When you leave, you will only gain endless nostalgia and fame."
Boom.
The king's finger tapped on the long table, startling everyone.
But he didn't say anything, and just continued to look at the military adviser.
Sodor got the signal and cleared his throat:
"In short, after this death, the poor people all cheered for joy."
"The elders of the alliance are generally in a stable mood."
"The armies of Longxiao City have also been appeased."
"In this way, Grand Duchess Walton used both soft and hard tactics to show kindness and power. Coupled with the losses in the previous war, Liberty Castle, which was already at the end of its fight, lost the last bit of strength and will to resist."
With complicated sighs, Soduo looked at the white chess piece that stood out from the crowd:
"The 'Blazing Lady' effortlessly captured the city peacefully."
Unknowingly, Thales pursed his lips.
But he knew it would be far from "effortless."
"The Blazing Lady?"
Viscount Connie frowned and said:
"real?"
Soduo snorted softly:
"That's what everyone calls her, or do you want me to call her 'The Dragon Lady'?"
Connie smiled and said no more.
Sodol continued:
"With the capital captured and the poor people surging, other towns in the Freedom Alliance have no fighting spirit and are surrendering."
"The Exeter people turned defeat into victory in such a dramatic way."
The military advisor sat down slowly and stopped moving the chess pieces that had determined the overall situation.
The "money bag" minister coughed:
"My question is, she was lost on the battlefield and far away from her home country. She was at her most destitute, with neither soldiers nor money. How did she win the support of those poor people in a foreign land?"
"You can't offer yourself a pillow and let them all sleep on it, right?"
Thales glanced at Juke Man expressionlessly.
This gentleman is really old...
In fact, you might as well retire early.
He thought so.
The secret agent stepped forward again.
"I don't know, but we found that the title 'Blazing True Dragon' came from the mouths of these poor people, and then spread to the people of the North."
Connie said doubtfully:
"Why is this nickname?"
"She set herself on fire and then rode into town in a carriage?"
The scar-faced man shook his head.
"There are various versions of the story. Some people say they witnessed a flying dragon descending from the sky to seize the city for her..."
Connie frowned:
"Really a dragon?"
But he noticed that many of the ministers present were shaking their heads at him.
"impossible."
Thordo Red spoke again, seeming a little annoyed:
"You may have just entered the Royal Council not long ago, Viscount Conney, so you don't know yet."
"But according to the secret agreement between John the Black Eye and the entire Kingdom of Exeter hundreds of years ago," the military advisor snorted coldly:
"As an extraordinary being, the Queen of the Sky will only interfere in mortal affairs when disaster reappears."
"Otherwise, we would have been reduced to ashes five hundred years ago."
Gilbert coughed, reminding his old friend to pay attention to his words.
"Just care about the disaster? I mean, it clearly appeared in Longxiao six years ago -"
Viscount Connie thought about something, and his face turned a little livid.
"Oh, oh, that's it..."
Thales thought about the scene of dancing with the dragon six years ago, and recalled that the Sky Queen told him "you have a nice dragon name", and couldn't help but glance at King Kessel in the distance.
But unfortunately, the king is still as stable as a stone sculpture, motionless.
"Of course, Master Connie," the scar-faced man from the secret department said knowingly:
"For hundreds of years, we have always been alert to the possibility of the dragon breaking its oath."
"But, so far so good."
Connie nodded awkwardly.
The scar-faced man continued:
"As for the nickname of the Grand Duchess, some people say that she can drop blood and turn it into flames to burn her enemies to death. Others say that she can spread her dragon wings and fan the wind after taking off her clothes. Some even say that she howls into the sky on a full moon night.
Just by making a sound, you can turn into a dragon..."
"The one on the night of the full moon, that's the legendary werewolf." Listening to these claims becoming more and more outrageous, Sodo couldn't help but interrupt:
"They were killed long ago by the 'Wolf Enemy' and his Immortal Hunters."
The secret agent understood the meaning of the military advisor, stopped reciting the information, and concluded:
"So none of this is credible."
"The origin of this nickname is still a mystery."
The ministers were whispering to each other for a while, and Thales noticed that Gilbert gave Archbishop Stylianides a questioning look, and the latter shook his head.
At this moment.
"What kind of girl is that?"
A voice as thick as thunder sounded, and all the ministers stopped talking and looked towards the end of the long table.
The scarred man bowed to the king's shadow:
"According to our information, her parents when she was one year old..."
But he was immediately interrupted:
"Tiles."
The king's voice came slowly, and Thales was shocked:
"I'm asking you."
Juke Man’s eyes lit up:
"That's right, His Highness the Duke has lived in Longxiao City for six years. He must be very familiar with her, maybe even a friend..."
But the financial controller then thought of the scene where the prince interrupted him just now.
After figuring out the cause and effect, Qiu Ke's face suddenly turned pale, and he quickly lowered his head, not daring to speak any more.
What kind of girl is that?
Is it the little girl in the library holding her glasses with bright eyes, or the little girl in ragged clothes and shivering in the Palace of Heroes?
Is it the little girl gritting her teeth and trying to drag herself in the ruins? Or is it the grand duchess in the Hall of Heroes who is glaring and angry and cheering?
In an instant, Thales had mixed feelings.
Duke Xinghu took a deep breath, then looked towards the end of the long table, and looked into those meaningful eyes.
"That girl looks calm, gentle, safe and harmless," the prince said quietly:
"Even sometimes, it looks a bit... dull."
"But little...Thelma?"
Thinking of the scene when the girl refused to follow him, Thales lowered his head and curled the corners of his mouth unconsciously.
Gilbert frowned.
"She's a real fighter."
After recalling the past, Thales raised his head and spoke with determination:
"No matter what you face."
"Disaster, dragon, or... king."
There were whispers from the ministers all around.
Until the other side of the long table, the king said coldly:
"Is it."
Thales paused slightly: Gilbert's elbow touched him lightly.
The second prince reacted and coughed:
"Ahem...I mean, she may be a very difficult enemy, but of course, she may also be a potential ally."
Facing the scrutiny of the entire table, Thales said seriously:
"Fortunately, my relationship with her is not bad...I mean, I can talk to her."
All the gentlemen looked at each other.
The king was silent for a while, and then he spoke:
"Is there anything we can use against her?"
Thales' eyebrows jumped.
"There should be," he said without changing his expression.
"I'll go back and think about it."
Thales couldn't see King Kessel's face clearly, but the other party's voice still came steadily:
"Can she be our ally?"
Thales's eyes lit up:
"certainly."
"She holds real power in Longxiao City, and is not a puppet of her vassals?"
"certainly."
"Did you sleep with her?"
"certainly--"
Um?
Before Thales finished speaking, his expression changed. After he reacted, he quickly added the second sentence:
"--No."
The long table was quiet for a moment.
For some reason, Thales felt a fever on his face inexplicably when facing many unexplained glances in the conference room.
After a few seconds, the king finally removed his eyes from his body.