Chapter 3 The Instigator (Part 1)

The important ministers and lords in the hall began to whisper, and many even smiled.

"Good girl," Duke Cullen said with a smile to the "undesirable" Duke Falkenhauser next to him, "Have you ever learned how to be venomous?"

"Poisonous tongue? Where is it?" Cyril Falkenhauser said quietly with a smirking smile, "But in my opinion, this is a natural ability of women."

In the hall, Russell's face froze at first, and then his eyes flashed with anger: "Using this kind of trick to drive apart Exeter's monarchs and ministers? It's really the imperial style of the stars - just like you who murdered our country shamelessly!" Like Prince Moral!"

Thales' heart jumped violently: The main dish is here!

Hearing this, most of the stars and nobles in the hall showed unwillingness and anger!

But a few people began to think deeply.

"That duchess is really reflexive, she has already counterattacked the sword before she knew it." Before Thales could react, Gilbert smiled approvingly: "Your Highness, the Duchess of Tebac One sword, already has the result."

Thales turned his head to look at the beautiful duchess.

Lyanna seemed to feel Thales' gaze, and turned her head abruptly, her gaze piercing like a blade!

Thales was startled, smiled quickly, and then looked around pretending to be nonchalant—it seemed that he just inadvertently glanced at the duchess.

Gilbert chuckled lightly: "This is not simply to sow discord, but to test out whether the will and purpose of King Nun and Grand Duke Heisha are consistent in this crisis—this is very important!"

Thales' eyebrows twitched!

Gilbert patiently said: "And Russell hastily brought back to the point, which is an answer - obviously he also knows that he can no longer be entangled in the topic of whether King Nun or Grand Duke Heisha is stronger or weaker. "

"In the first round of the sword competition, he was already the one who was forced to draw the sword first."

Thales suddenly realized, and remembered Gilbert's deduction in the carriage before - the assassination of the Exeter Mission was also the wish of some people in their own country. It seems...

Although there is no evidence.

but no matter...

At least in the eyes of many people, the quarrel between the Grand Duke Heisha and King Nun is indeed not small.

The field of vision returned to the hall.

"We, murdered your prince?" The one-eyed dragon of Nantrester snorted, "Even a fool can see that the assassination of your mission is a conspiracy to provoke war between the two countries-Exter likes it that much." Being used as a swordsman? Even my hunting dog is not as obedient as you!"

"Xingchen people, do you think we care about whether you are innocents or the main messenger?" Russell said slowly.

"Since you are not interested in the truth—then why do you still come here? Why don't you just chop off a few heads on the street and return them to King Nun?" Duke Jann of the South Bank Territory said with a sneer.

Hearing this, Russell's eyes burst into anger and hatred. Under the watchful eyes of the nobles in the hall, he took a step forward, holding the scroll of red dragon wax high in his right hand!

On the throne, King Kessel V clasped his hands, his chin drooped slightly, and his eyes were gloomy and deep.

"No matter who despicably murdered His Royal Highness—we will tear him to pieces! Exter will uphold justice himself, and there is no need to pretend to others!"

"But our prince! Exeter was the king, and the only son and heir of the Grand Duke of Dragon Clouds! He died in the land of your stars!"

Russell opened his arms, turned around abruptly, and fiercely swept over every lord, noble or official in the hall with fiery eyes.

"His last blood fell on the land of the stars, the last thing he breathed was the air of the stars, and the last thing he saw was the scenery of the stars—he came to the stars with a mission of kindness, but you failed to protect him!"

"Whether intentional or unintentional,

It was your incompetence and connivance that killed him! "

"that's enough!"

"Xingchen must take responsibility and pay the price!"

Russell's eyes widened in anger, and he tore off the seal of the red dragon's wax——pulled the scroll away!

"Both Exeter and King Nun must get an explanation from Xingchen!"

The six dukes frowned almost simultaneously!

Thales' pupils shrank, and he saw that there was no signature or seal at the bottom of the scroll full of words.

Some are just a fingerprint.

Bright red handprints.

Could it be - the bloody handprint of King Nuen?

There was an uproar in the hall again!

"He didn't have a signature or a seal. I watched him with my own eyes, cut open my palm, and pressed the palm print!"

"This is King Nunn's anger and despair! Do you understand! Star people?"

Russell's last words were almost uttered through gritted teeth.

The uproar in the hall began to gradually decrease.

Thales had only heard about the assassination of Exeter's mission before. To him, the strange foreign prince seemed to be indifferent—but now, he finally understood the seriousness of the matter.

Until the heavy voice of the Supreme King sounded again:

"I understand King Nunn's anger and despair - believe me, I have experienced that feeling - and the stars will never evade their responsibilities."

Kessel said indifferently.

The one-eyed dragon Kosde gritted his back teeth imperceptibly.

The king is—is he going to give in?

How can it be? How could the evil dragons in the north be satisfied if they didn't pay a sufficient price and cut off a sufficient piece of meat from the northern border?

If he is subdued, King Kessel V will not only gain a reputation of being weak and incompetent, but he is also doomed to have even worse relations with the already discordant northern border.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help looking at Val Arend who was opposite, but the man in military uniform just frowned and said nothing.

It was like the calm before the eruption of the volcano.

"Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty." Russell put down his hand, and said coldly, "Yes, I remembered. You, hehe, of course I understand what you said."

Many people showed strange expressions.

But Kessel ignored his sarcasm, and said directly: "Stop talking nonsense—what is King Nunn's condition?"

Under everyone's complicated eyes, Russell snorted coldly, opened the scroll again, and began to read aloud.

"Extreme, from His Majesty Nun to the nine Grand Dukes, after learning of the tragedy, endured terrible grief and despair with great reason, and agreed that the stars must be responsible for Prince Moral's misfortune. responsibility."

After saying this, Russell raised his head and looked around.

Until Kessel nodded slightly:

"It's reasonable. It's a disgrace to all the stars that the honorable Prince Moral suffered misfortune in the country."

Russell shrank his cold eyes slightly, then lowered his head and continued to read

"First, appease the dead. The stars must return the remains of our envoys in a complete, dignified, and honorable manner, especially the remains of Prince Moral."

"Second, uphold justice. Help us find out and hand over the murderer and the mastermind behind the scenes."

Falkenhauser snorted softly: "Assist them? God, it sounds like a shout from a superior to a subordinate."

He seemed to be complaining, and said to Duke Cullen beside him.

But the latter, who was preoccupied, just stared at Russell solemnly.

The words of Exeter's emergency envoy continued:

"Thirdly, recast honor. Your Majesty Kessel, please personally issue a public apology to the Kingdom of Exeter."

Thales frowned.

Gilbert's words reappeared in his mind.

[Whether it's war or peace, His Majesty cannot escape the accusations of being cold-blooded, ruthless, unsympathetic to the people, or weak and deceitful, and humiliating the stars. This will greatly damage the prestige and authority of His Majesty and the Canxing royal family in the country. ]

But Russell's indifferent and straightforward words continued:

"Fourth, compensation for losses. Regardless of land or resources, we must be compensated accordingly. Exter should be compensated by the two northern border counties that are not smaller than Songguo County's territory, or Xingchen Donghai 30% of the priority quota for the high-quality perpetual oil of the whaling industry, or 20% of the priority quota of the first-grade asphalt mine on the South Bank of the Stars, or one of the three."

"Fifth, maintain fairness. Exter and the stars must renew the "Fortress Peace Treaty", especially the unreasonable borders twelve years ago-Pine Cone County, Zaratan County, and Revo County , Bear County and Luming County should return to the rule of Exeter unconditionally. The Earl of Watch City should withdraw their reclamation team in the northern Great Needle Forest, and the number of hunters and herdsmen put in the Great Needle Forest every year should be equal to that of the adjacent Black Needle Forest. After discussion, the Grand Dukes of Shaling decided together that the Earl of Lone Old Tower should retract their scout patrol line for six miles, and stop unreasonably preventing the Exeters from entering the public hunting area."

Needle drop can be heard silently in the hall.

But Thales knew that this was just an appearance.

Russell gently put down the scroll.

"The above are His Majesty Nunn's and the conditions of the Kingdom of Exeter."

The terrible silence in the hall was finally broken.

"What shit are you talking about!"

Earl Zemuto couldn't stand it anymore, he roared: "Watch City will not retreat a single step! It will not give up Pine Cone County and Bear County! Tell that black sand collar bastard: want our territory, Bring your own soldiers to get it!"

Earl Forrest also said coldly: "The same is true for Luming County! Moreover, Gu Laota can patrol wherever he wants!"

But the Duke of the North, who had the most authority to speak, said nothing at this moment, just staring at King Kessel V.

People with different expressions in the hall all looked at the Supreme King.

"Nuen, Nuen," Kessel stared at the steps under his feet, his face was flat, as if something insignificant had happened: "Exter wants to exchange a dead prince for our seven counties , too greedy."

Russell raised his head and stared at Kessel, and said without showing any sign of weakness: "Exter lost not only a prince, but also our glory!"

"He sent out with good intentions, but he was treated like this! Who will wash away Exeter's shame? Who will appease the dragon's anger?"

"Moreover, the stars! What you took away was the only son of a father!" Having said this, Russell gritted his teeth in resentment: "The only orthodox heir of King Nun visited the Kingdom of Stars with friendship and peace, but Died by a despicable assassination!"

"King Nunn lost his blood relatives, his only son, and his only heir! Exter lost Dragon Clouds City's next Grand Duke, the future hope of the Walton family!"

In the end, Russell literally yelled out:

"Under such a blow, King Nuen hasn't become angry yet. Instead, he raised conditions—isn't this the most restrained and sensible choice?"

The hall was filled with the unwilling gasps of the nobles.

And Kessel's tone was still flat, but full of unquestionable meaning: "The first three items can satisfy you, while the fourth and fifth items..."

The king's voice spread coldly in the hall: "The stars will not cede our land, nor will they hand over the quota of resources—if I say so, what are you going to do?"

Val slowly frowned.

Duke Cullen sighed deeply, and Falkenhauser gave an ugly laugh.

Lyanna and Jen both pursed their lips and said nothing.

Thales lowered his head bitterly: Is war really inevitable?

"Hahahaha, His Majesty Kessel," Russell laughed angrily, "When we came to Yongxing, we also brought the request of King Nun and the nine Grand Dukes, and King Eddie also rejected us. "

"Then what happened?" Russell spread his hands and looked around the hall.

Many of the older lords, nobles and officials present tensed up.

"Yes, we sent troops 'generously'."

"For what it deserves," Baron Russell said with quickened breathing, his face getting colder, and gritted his teeth:

"The giant dragon will fetch it by itself."

Everyone in the large conference hall began to think deeply about the consequences of these words.

Twelve years ago, the flames of war and disasters that spread to most of the stars are still vivid in my mind.

"If justice cannot be done, fairness will unfortunately be dusted."

Russell raised his right hand with a sense of oppression, and then squeezed it slowly: "Of course, Exeter can only choose to use war to safeguard our honor and His Majesty's dignity."

I only heard him threatening every word:

"At that time, it wasn't a problem that a few counties or some permanent oil could solve."

"enough!"

Kessel seemed to be full of deep meaning and said:

"From your point of view, from King Nun's point of view, there is no other way between the stars and the dragon to resolve this matter decently?"

"Do you really want to see the subjects of the two countries shed blood on the border?"

"War or peace, it depends on you, Your Majesty," Russell responded very quickly: "Should we bear the humiliation and be sympathetic to the subjects, or go to war at all costs?"

He coldly glanced at the officials of the stars, especially Earl Zemuto, and said with a sarcasm: "Especially, your northern border is not enough to hold the Broken Dragon Fortress even in front of the army of the Grand Duke of Black Sand." When the army is strong."

The Duke of the North clenched his fists.

"During the Bloody Year, the Northern Territory faced Exter's most powerful soldiers directly, and suffered a huge amount of damage, second only to the Southwest Blade Commander," Gilbert sighed in Thales' ear, "Once upon a time There was a time when there were more widows than children in the North."

"You want me to make such a difficult decision?" Kessel snorted coldly, "Why don't you just let Xingchen change to a king!"

"Your Majesty, you are the supreme king of the stars, and you are destined to take on such a responsibility." Russell raised his head and smiled softly:

"If you can't do it, then it's as you said—in the hall full of nobles, replace someone with more responsibility to lead the stars, and Exeter is also happy to see it."

The people in the entire conference hall were in commotion!

Many people shouted and cursed!

But Exeter's emergency envoy is not finished yet!

"Anyway," Russell said viciously, "Xingchen's next king is destined not to be named Canxing anymore, isn't he?"

Many nobles looked at Kessel with strange expressions, and more people looked at Thales.

This envoy, doesn't he know that the state is a matter of the meeting?

Thales' brain suddenly flicked!

Sure enough, the mission was assassinated, the lord forced the palace, and the dragon came to make an envoy—all of these are connected. If I didn't show up, it would be a well-planned chain plan. As Gilbert said, in the star and Aix With each other's caring people, and with mutual understanding, they intend to belong to the throne of the stars after the Iron Fist King.

But Kessel, his father, why did he bring the topic here?

And the words that came from his ears made Thales shudder:

"So, Exeter, or the nobles of Exeter," Kessel raised his head in the astonishment of the people in the hall, and looked at Russell coldly: "A certain star who is more interested Noble, come to be the supreme king of the stars?"

"With all due respect," Russell said with a contemptuous smile, "none of you here meets our expectations."

"The Exeters only admire heroes on the battlefield—even our enemies."

"Is there anyone among you who can meet such a condition?"

"Yes, my vassals are either too far away, or they are unwilling to send troops," Kessel sighed inexplicably: "Those who can gain prestige and recognition on the battlefield..."

"The only one left is the one who has to fight for his own territory, isn't he?"

The entire hall suddenly fell silent for the king's inexplicable words.

Russell realized something, he looked at a person, gradually showing doubts.

No.

King Kessel...

He is...

When everyone was confused, the chubby Duke Cullen realized something. He sighed deeply, and looked at that person, showing a face full of pain.

Under Thales' surprised eyes, Gilbert let out a low cry as if he had suddenly realized, but then he gritted his teeth and sighed.

Amidst the doubts and surprises in the hall, King Kessel V took a deep breath, closed his eyes and said:

"I see."

The king said silently:

"From colluding with Exeter's careerists, assassinating the mission, and stirring up conflicts."

"To state the possibility of war in front of me, propose to issue a general edict."

"And then to incite the lords who are about to make a move, forcing me to set up an heir, and watching our infighting with a cold eye."

"Until the envoy of Exeter in front of me forced me into a dilemma, no matter which step I took, it would be the biggest blow to me."

"In the end, you succeeded in instigating the war and colluding with Exeter. Of course, you can easily gain prestige on the battlefield and force me to abdicate."

"For this reason, he even sacrificed his own land, his own people, and his own country."

"Really, traitor."

Each sentence of the Supreme King's words is more frightening.

Thales listened to all this with accelerated breathing.

The Iron Fist King, King Kessel V, opened his eyes desolately, and looked to the side of the hall, a person who had been silent for a long time.

The king's eyes are full of darkness at this moment:

"It is you."

He said slowly:

"The mastermind of all conspiracies."

The king uttered a name that no one expected in a low and turbid voice:

"Val Arend."