"Your Majesty, the envoy from the Kingdom of Cassander requests an audience... as does the envoy from the Kingdom of Thrace. They are both seeking an audience."
The voice of the tiefling captain of the guard came from outside.
"They've both arrived already?"
"They certainly move quickly. Not even leaving me a moment to rest."
Cassius shook his wings and stretched his massive draconic frame, unable to suppress a sigh.
The Kingdom of Cassander was ruled by Otis Aragorn, eldest son of Aragorn I. He held the southeastern reaches of the Holy Fadlan Empire, commanding vast territories that included the Atea Plain, the Heris Basin, and the Lewin Great Forest.
The terrain there was broad and open, blessed with a year-round mild climate and boundless wealth of produce. Known as the "Land Blessed by the Sun God," it was the very cradle of the Holy Fadlan Empire.
It was from the lands of Cassander that the old emperor had built his foundation, continually expanding his borders until Holy Fadlan grew into the colossus it once was.
After the Great Collapse of Holy Fadlan, the bulk of its vast expanse had split into three, and the Kingdom of Cassander was the mightiest among them.
Now the War of the Kings had already raged for several months. Fighting on two fronts, Cassander's Godblood Legion still held firm control over the former holy city of the Fadlan Empire—Teotihuacan, known as the "City of Sunbeams"—and continued to occupy the Tower of the Eternal Sun God.
Intelligence on the Kingdom of Cassander was projected for everyone in the hall to see.
Cassius asked casually, "What do you think... the people of Cassander have come for? Speak your minds freely. Do not concern yourselves with my thoughts."
"To declare war!"
"They're here to declare war on us!"
Tinia spoke up eagerly.
The courtiers in the hall looked rather exasperated. Trump, as her nominal tutor, even hung his head and covered half of his hideous face with a hand.
"Why?" Cassius's mouth twitched slightly.
Seeming to think she had earned his approval, Tinia quickly trotted forward, wagging her tail and chiming in excitement, "Master, you're so powerful, they must find you an eyesore!"
"Besides, the ministers told me Cassander is the richest place in the south. They say gold practically flows through the soil there! If we could just plunder it, heheh—"
"Awoooo—!"
A pained shriek cut her short.
The atavistic white dragon was kicked right out the doorway, tumbling more than a dozen times across the flagstones outside before wobbling back to her feet—by then seeing stars, completely dazed.
"All right, go play somewhere else," Cassius said mildly, then added, "Trump, you are personally responsible for putting Tinia through a crash course in politics and history. I want to see results within a year."
"Yes, Master."
"This subordinate will... certainly not fail your high expectations."
Trump nodded repeatedly, squeezing out a grimace uglier than weeping.
On the other hand, the hobgoblin marshal Duoluo took a step forward, dropping to one knee before the dais. In a deep voice, he said, "Your Majesty, I believe they have also come seeking an alliance."
"Oh? How do you figure?"
"Befriend the distant, attack the near."
Duoluo pronounced each word deliberately, deploying a phrase he had learned from the players.
"To secure complete control of the City of Sunbeams, the Kingdom of Cassander is simultaneously warring with both Seleucia and Thrace. Even if Cassander is the strongest of the three, they must be under immense wartime pressure."
"Meanwhile, our Empire lies squarely in the Kingdom of Thrace's rear. We could launch a surprise attack from behind through the Anzeta Corridor at any moment."
"Once the Empire joins the fray, even if we do not cripple Thrace, we can at least force them into hasty troop reassignments, leaving them unable to attend to the southern front. That would drastically relieve pressure on Cassander's front lines."
Duoluo spoke with supreme confidence and steady conviction, prompting nods of agreement throughout the hall—including from the red dragon himself.
"Very good."
"Then do you think we should enter the war?"
"..."
Duoluo lowered his head in thought. Only after a long silence did he look up, his tone resolute and his eyes burning with ambition.
"Your Majesty, this subordinate believes the fragmentation of Holy Fadlan presents a rare opportunity. The Empire ought to mass all its military might in the south, coordinating with the Kingdom of Cassander to launch a pincer attack on Thrace, striving to carve up the region of Thrace entirely."
"If the south is reunited into a single empire once more... it will become exceedingly difficult for us to push southward again, let alone realize our grand design of dominating the Feanso Continent."
This time, however, the red dragon did not nod in agreement. He simply continued watching the assembly, gesturing for the discussion to continue.
Trump the ogre stepped forward unhurriedly and dropped to one knee before the dais as well.
"Marshal Duoluo, are you not being a bit too extreme?"
"The Empire has only just unified Anzeta. The wars and the exploitation of the nobles have wreaked severe havoc on productivity across the former Northlands. This is a time when countless tasks lie neglected and development is of utmost urgency."
"We have not even finished digesting the lands within our borders, yet you want to throw our entire strength into the south?"
"Even if the Empire truly could conquer the Kingdom of Thrace, do you think we have any spare capacity to govern it?"
Trump questioned him sharply and mercilessly.
His words left little room for maneuver—for he had already gleaned Cassius's stance from his earlier silence.
"You..."
Duoluo's face flushed crimson at once, though his years in high command enabled him to rein in his fury.
The hobgoblin marshal snorted coldly and retorted, "Lord Trump, by the time your Five-Year Development Plan is completed, I fear Cassander will have already wiped out the Kingdom of Thrace, and the Empire won't even get a drop of the broth!"
Trump scoffed mockingly, "You think the Kingdom of Thrace will fall in three years? Do you think the godblood nobility under Wilhelm are useless bums?"
Seeing that he could not outargue Trump, Duoluo resorted directly to the rhetorical tricks taught by his player advisors.
"Hmph, I see you have been cowed by their reputation. Are you underestimating the Empire's might? Or perhaps... you doubt His Majesty's power?"
Trump merely gave a cold chuckle and replied at an unhurried pace, "You've improved, Marshal Duoluo. You've even begun picking up the usual human tricks..."
"Trump, I think it is you who picked up the humans' cowardly hesitation!"
"Courage without wisdom is mere recklessness. On that count, I'm afraid you can hardly compare even to Lady Tinia out by the door."
"You—"
"Enough."
Cassius's voice rang out.
Trump and Duoluo fell silent at once, retreating back to their original places.
Duoluo still glared sideways in indignation, while Trump looked rather pleased with himself, serenely half-closing his eyes as though he had never just engaged in a dispute.
"Let this pointless arguing end here. Send in the envoy from the Kingdom of Cassander first."
"Yes, Your Majesty," the courtiers answered in unison.
Chapter 381