The cold wind blew into the room, and Thales couldn't help but tighten his clothes.
"So, since last year, you have instigated the Freedom Alliance to resist Exeter, stirred up a political storm in Longxiao City, sent the Star Cavalry across the desert, and asked me to return home via the Western Wilderness... All of these are the 'Sand King'
a part of?"
The fire was dim, and the king across the long table was silent for a while.
"some are."
King Kessel raised his gaze and looked directly at Thales:
"Some are not."
Thales exhaled and connected all the things that happened from the previous year to the present.
"Then why not choose the northern border," the prince's voice sounded slightly tired:
"Wouldn't you choose a place that also has Broken Dragon Fortress as a fulcrum, and where the Duke's family has been completely ignored by you and is almost under direct jurisdiction?"
The king did not answer, but stared coldly.
Thales sighed and looked back at the king:
"Please, if you don't tell me, I can't help you."
King Kessel did not reply, but his eyes were deep and he didn't know what to think.
And Thales stared hard at the other person's eyes, trying to find something out of the pile of blue.
Finally, King Kessel snorted and looked away.
"It is precisely because Val Alendeshang is in my prison, and because the first heir of Cold Castle is an orphan girl who is difficult to convince..."
"All eyes will be fixed on the North and what Fuxing Palace does."
The king's voice deepened:
"But the officials stationed by the kingdom in the north...are still young and do not have enough prestige."
"In comparison, the 'Emergency Control Order' in Xihuang is still in effect, so it is more convenient for us to do things."
Emergency control order.
more convenient.
Thales couldn't help but think of Enci Town and what he saw and heard in the Western Wasteland on the way.
"That makes sense," Thales said calmly:
"But not enough to stop you reaching north."
The Iron-Fisted King suddenly raised his eyes.
After a few seconds, he slowly spoke:
"The North is adjacent to Exeter after all."
Thales suddenly raised his eyebrows.
This is the reason.
King Kessel said in a deep voice:
"It is adjacent to an enemy king who has not been crowned for a long time and is in full vigor - Charmaine Lombard, which can bring too many surprises and is unpredictable."
Having said this, he glanced at Thales and changed his tone:
"Of course, compared to you, he is far behind in this aspect."
Thales ignored his sarcasm.
"why me?"
The prince said calmly:
"How was the 'Sand King' plan arranged? Why did you come to me?"
The Iron Fist King said nothing, just looked at him coldly.
Thales sighed:
"Do you always talk like this? Can't you hold back a word for a long time?"
The king stared at him, but his eyes were unfamiliar, as if he were staring at another person.
After a long time, King Kessel spoke:
"Because we need a reason."
"reason?"
King Kessel moved his eyes away and looked out the window at the dark night:
"Because we want to deceive the cunning and treacherous people of the Western Wilderness, so that they will not be suspicious of the royal standing army marching into the Western Wilderness in large scale, as a bargaining chip for all actions."
Thales understood.
"Oh, this is indeed enough of an excuse to protect the heir to the throne from returning home safely," Thales hummed:
"They probably thought that there are very few kings in the world who would not take the safety of their heirs seriously."
The iron-fisted king's eyes were like sharp knives.
"It's just a joke," Thales shrugged:
"That's it? I'm just a reason to cover the standing army's massive westward march?"
King Kaiser said coldly:
"We also need a guarantee."
Thales frowned.
King Kessel continued: "So that the people of the Western Wilderness can believe during the bargaining process that the royal standing army had no choice but to abandon the Blade Tooth Camp and withdraw from the western front line in exchange for the Western Wilderness princes mobilizing military support to protect you back to the royal capital.
"
"And I am the guarantee," Thales suddenly realized and said quietly:
"I guarantee that there is nothing fishy about the western front line they have at their fingertips. I guarantee that this bait is non-toxic and harmless and can be eaten with confidence."
The Iron Fist King nodded, seeming to be disdainful:
"Because there are very few kings in the world who would take their heirs seriously."
Thales was stunned for a moment, then snorted in displeasure.
Cheapskate.
Isn't that just a sarcastic remark to you?
Really vindictive.
Thales sat upright and no longer thought about it:
"So, in order to carve up the vast territory on the western front that you gave, the lords of the Western Wilderness who took the bait will pull up their teams and willingly walk out of the castles they have occupied for many years. They will unsuspectingly walk into the position of the royal standing army and gather together.
Is it convenient for you to catch them all in one fell swoop and save you the trouble of destroying them one by one?"
King Kessel was silent for a while.
"more than."
The king said solemnly:
"For this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and to seize the huge profits from the desert trade routes, the princes of the Western Wilderness, who have been jealous for more than ten years, will prepare their own resources, prepare all their luggage, and even find business opportunities to make war fortunes. It can be said that all their wealth is exhausted.
"
King Kessel looked at the gate:
"Those will become the expansion budget of the royal standing army."
Thales snorted lightly, not surprised.
"Sure enough, taking supplements locally saves time and effort."
The prince lowered his head, his eyes fixed:
"What happened to Anke Bailar and his father is not an exception, nor is it an accident."
"Because in the plan of the 'Sand King', the princes of the Western Wilderness are destined to encounter strange attacks from the desert forces, and even suffer 'friendly fire' from the Legend Wings and the Standing Army, and lose everything."
Queen Kessel leaned back in her chair and nodded:
"When Xihuang suffered a disastrous defeat, the war situation became urgent..."
He looked sharply:
"For the sake of the overall situation, in order to recapture the extraordinary Blade Tooth Camp, the royal standing army, who arrived late, 'had to' break the tradition, act expeditiously, punish and expropriate the incompetent noble generals, and break up and reorganize the remaining defeated generals of the conscripted army..."
"It's natural and natural, and they have no reason and no ability to resist."
Thales exhaled and took over the conversation:
"But there are always surprises in war. If things are not harmonious during the adaptation and the progress is not good..."
King Kessel's eyes moved and he looked at him.
Thales paused, remembering his first meeting with Mallos, and gained some clarity.
"I guess, since the heir to the kingdom is in the Western Wilderness, it is natural for the Fuxing Palace to send more troops there to support and deal with emergencies - such as the troops you sent to 'greet' me."
Thales thought of the clear black and white confrontation between the Western Wasteland Army and the Standing Army on the Gift Avenue.
King Kessel said nothing.
Thales said in shock:
"As for what happened afterwards, it was a done deal, whether it was the conscripted army that was dispersed and reorganized, the nobles who were punished and deprived of their command rights, the families who were directly deposed of their conscription rights, or the Western Wilderness whose scope of military control was redefined
collar……"
"Everything you want will be 'temporary' in the Western Wilderness under the guise of the Emergency Control Order and in the name of 'wartime exceptions,' just like Blade Tooth Camp and Gift Town."
Thales thought of what Earl of Wing Castle, Del Croma, said to him during the escort, and couldn't help but be lost in thought:
"One year, two years, five years, ten years, until - forever."
King Kessel sneered disdainfully, seemingly dissatisfied.
The lights flickered, and the light and shadow in the room swayed back and forth, illuminating the surrounding area in a turbulent way.
Thales took a deep breath.
He returned to the present moment and adjusted his state.
"So, from the time you negotiated with the princes of the Western Wilderness and exchanged the Western Front for their troops, to the standing army's large-scale march westward to rescue the prince, to the foreign enemy taking the opportunity to invade the Western Wilderness and their defeat, to the standing army's 'last resort' and resorting to extraordinary means to 'face the opportunity'
'Dispose of it' until the war subsides and the dust settles..."
Thales' tone became more serious:
"With this combination of punches, you can truly 'twist' the scattered and chaotic military weapons of the Western Wasteland vassals into a rope."
“Changing the Time-honored Military Draft System.”
Thales calmed down his expression, slowly raised his head, and took in his eyes the figure of the king across the long table.
"The name, principles, general trend, and actual benefits are all in your hands. The rest of the Western Wasteland vassals and even the other nobles of the kingdom have nothing to say, let alone raise troops to resist, even if they have doubts."
There was no response from the end of the long table.
"Furthermore, the West Wasteland incident has occurred. In the final analysis, this is only an emergency in a local area. It is not a mandatory law that affects the entire territory. It will not arouse public sentiment and pay the price of chaos in the kingdom."
Thales' words were filled with emotion:
"Of course, the wool comes from the sheep. Whether it is expansion or restructuring, the budget funds and sources of conscription are all the money, land and people of the Western Wilderness princes. We don't even need to use much of the treasury budget. We can't lose."
The prince crossed his arms and took a deep breath. While recalling the warmth and dryness of the Western Wilderness, he felt the darkness and coldness of the Fuxing Palace:
"Once it's done, from now on, from Blade Fang Camp to Grace Town, from Li Kenan to Heroic Soul Castle, and even Wing Castle and Ruins..."
His tone unconsciously brought a hint of awe:
"On the land of the Western Wasteland, unless there is permission from the Fuxing Palace, local lords can no longer independently recruit troops and command operations. The royal standing army will become the only reliable place for legal arms and military service."
The king made no reply, and silence fell in the Ballard Room.
The dim and erratic eternal lamp gradually became stable, casting its own unique shadow on every piece of equipment in Ballard's room.
Thales gently rubbed the back of his hand:
"More importantly, this is just the beginning."
He looked deeply at the High King:
"With the precedent of the Western Wilderness, the lords conscripting troops and the princes supporting troops is no longer an irresistible natural tradition."
"As people slowly get used to the idea that only kings can have an army, the reform of the military system in the entire Star Territory will follow the rules and become a matter of course."
Thales suddenly remembered the battle he saw in the desert:
"Just like a cavalry charge, no matter how perfect the defensive formation is, once it is rushed out of the gap, the flanks are exposed..."
He said in a daze:
"What's left is that the wave sweeps over..."
"The momentum is overwhelming."
King Kessel still didn't speak, but this time, he turned his eyes and no longer looked at Thales.
"What a 'Sand King'."
Thales couldn't help but sigh:
"So, Xihuang is really a good horse."
It can pull the kingdom's chariot completely.
only……
"Until you show up."
The king's voice suddenly sounded, interrupting Thales' thoughts.
The prince couldn't help but frown.
"The secret department's report afterward said that in the desert, you originally encountered a patrol unit of the Standing Army, but instead of meeting them as planned, you went anonymous and disappeared without any news."
The king's words seemed to have power, accompanied by the howling cold wind outside the window, causing the eternal lights in the room to flash continuously.
Thinking of the past, Thales hesitated:
"I……"
But King Kessel did not allow the prince to interrupt, and his eyes became sharp and cold:
"On the night when the operation started, you appeared inexplicably in the center of the storm, and you brought many friends with you: Shadow Shield, Northlanders, Darkroom, and even many sword dealers followed your ass and got involved - Bones
A day trip to prison?”
Thales' heart tightened:
"about this……"
The king snorted coldly and stopped looking at him: "The people on the western front did not have the courage to revive the palace. They were cowardly and hesitant and did not dare to take the risk of losing their heirs. Therefore, they stood still and dispersed their troops, resulting in a serious outage in their actions."
"And our spies were supposed to encourage the militants among the orcs and desolate bones to attack the armies of the princes while the standing army was far away, but they seemed to have smelled something in advance. Not only did the main force not come, but even the siege was just a feint.
Retreat immediately."
When Thales heard this, he couldn't help but said:
"Um, yes, I heard that there is an orc named Kandar in the desert..."
But the next second, King Kessel’s gaze struck like a sword blade again!
"Uh," Thales put away his smile and decided not to say more:
"fine."
The king ignored him, but looked at a weak and flickering eternal lamp. The coldness and dissatisfaction in his eyes were clearly visible:
"Williams was lying in ambush on the side of the Sabertooth camp. That fool was always quick and decisive, but instead he was procrastinating and taking his time that day. He waited until the war was almost over before leading his troops back to the camp, thus delaying the opportunity to fight."
Hearing the familiar name, Thales was immediately shuddered.
"This allowed the Western Wasteland princes in the Saber Tooth Camp to retreat calmly - the main forces of the three major families of Ruin Ruins, Wing Castle, Heroic Soul Castle, and Western Wasteland were even more vigilant. After noticing something fishy, they stayed away from each other without taking any chances.
"
Thales frowned more and more as he recalled what the Duke of West Wasteland said to him, "Power comes from violence."
"Afterwards, that old man Falkenhaus made a surprise visit to the Blade Tooth camp in front of everyone. Not only did he chat and laugh with you, but he also gave you a family heirloom sword. The news quickly spread throughout the kingdom."
Thales took a deep breath, remembered the "Warning" sword that Falkenholz gave him, and clenched his fists unconsciously.
"As for the crow and the black lion, they are even more like welcoming the king, escorting you all the way out of the Western Wasteland in a flamboyant and respectful manner, and blocking the reinforcements sent by the Fuxing Palace."
King Kessel sneered:
"Finally, the Kingdom's Secret Department launched an emergency plan to try to recover the losses."
His eyes were pointed directly at Thales, and at that moment, it seemed as if he wanted to dig out his heart.
"As you said, in the Western Wilderness, the horse stumbled."
"The 'Sand King' failed."
Thales closed his eyes, leaned back in his chair, and sighed heavily.
It turned out that that night, when he was running away in the Blade Ya camp...
In places he couldn't see, many thrilling and significant things were happening.
"But a mere stumble of a horse, a mere failure in the Western Wilderness, will not stop the kingdom."
The king's voice was sharp, causing Thales to open his eyes.
I saw that King Kessel's expression was extremely calm, but his eyes contained endless storms:
"That's why I got this letter."
Thales lowered his head and looked at the letter in his hand. The flames of the iris were dim under the eternal lamp.
"If Xihuang doesn't do it, then find another place."
The iron-fisted king's tone was cold and could not be refuted:
"No matter what the cost."
"How much does it cost?"
At that moment, Thales gritted his teeth.
Falkenhausz's voice sounded faintly in his ears:
[And will a person like your father accept the reality and give up, or will he look at me and Xihuang's strength and attitude with admiration...]
【Go all out and pay back a hundredfold? 】
"Now," King Kessel's eyes returned to Thales:
"It's your turn to speak."
now you.
The king's words were plain, but they echoed countless times in Thales's heart:
"what do you have?"
"what can you do?"
King Kessel said coldly:
"To make up for your folly?"
Thales was silent.
He looked at the dim lights in the room and didn't know what to think.
"how?"
King Kessel sneered, mockingly:
"Can't you hold back a word for a long time?"
But the next second, Thales suddenly spoke.
"do you hate me?"
The tone is ethereal and the voice is indifferent.
At that moment, King Kessel, as calm as he was, couldn't help but wonder:
"What?"
Thales took a deep breath, looked at the empty corner, and spoke in a daze:
"I asked……"
"From Broken Dragon Fortress to Longxiao City, from Yongxing City to Western Wasteland, you have constantly plotted against me and taken advantage of me. You have also put me in danger many times, trapped me to death, and thrown your own son into the wolves.
"
King Kessel frowned deeply.
"Why?"
Thales sighed:
"Why do you hate me so much?"
"Is it like Duo Li wrote that my birth killed my mother, so you also hold a grudge against me?"
At that moment, King Kessel’s eyes sharpened!
"Or, before giving birth to me, my mother, Serenjielana, did something so outrageous that you will hate her for the rest of your life?"
Thales stared at King Kessel.
Serenjailana.
Sure enough, the name worked.
Because the iron-fisted king, who always said he was decisive and decisive, was actually frowning and his eyes were dark at this moment.
It was as if we were facing an unprecedented chess game.
Thales smiled.
"How, can we complete the 'Sand King', promote the reform of the military system, and use it as a bargaining chip to prosper the kingdom..."
He gritted his teeth and stared at the silent King Kessel V: