Banana Sis: The Fellow Countrywoman She Admired Is Like This in Private?! / Eblana's Thoughts; The Duke's Coalition Arrives

Banana Sister: So This Was What the Kin She Admired Was Like in Private!

Meanwhile, outside the imperial palace.

Two Drac sisters who shared Talulah's bloodline stood before the palace, waiting to be summoned.

"Big Sister, why are we here to seek an audience with Emperor Talulah?"

The younger girl, with long golden hair, asked the woman beside her, who resembled her but had whiter hair and a more mature, alluring bearing.

"If we do not wish to leave Victoria just like this, then this is something we must do."

Ablana explained to her younger sister, Weed—or rather, Lafcini.

As for Emperor Talulah, Ablana had begun paying attention to and investigating her information as early as Talulah's rise in the frigid lands of Ursus. It could even be said that she was one of the people on Terra who paid the closest attention to Talulah's intelligence.

Compared to the two sisters, Talulah was undoubtedly far more capable and many times more successful.

They had both been adopted by nobles, yet Talulah had inherited the legacy of Ursus's immortal Black Serpent, become the new Grand Duke of Ursus, and taken control of the Third Army Group. That alone was enough to make Ablana look up to her.

That was the position of Grand Duke in Ursus, a top-tier power on Terra that could rival Victoria—not to mention an entire group army. Compared to that, the Deep Pool that Ablana and her sister had spent years building was little more than child's play, utterly unworthy of mention before Talulah.

Yet achievements that were beyond the reach of both sisters were merely a beginning for Talulah. In the following months, Talulah mobilized her army and secretly established a terrifying Wendigo Legion. In less than ten days, she marched her forces into Holy Steed Castle, seized the throne of Ursus, and shocked every nation across Terra in one stroke.

She held a coronation ceremony and Military Parade in Holy Steed Castle, officially becoming the new Emperor of Ursus beneath the gaze of countless spectators. Then, without pause, she launched a war against Kazimierz and conquered it within mere days.

Even after seizing all that, the ambitious and talented Red Dragon remained unsatisfied. She turned her greedy gaze toward Victoria once more, forcibly invading Terra's strongest nation. Taking advantage of the Sarkaz raid on Londinium and its weakened defenses, she brazenly occupied the capital and ascended Victoria's throne within it.

Compared to Emperor Talulah, Ablana felt that her and her sister's dream of restoring the Tara Dynasty was nothing more than child's play. Everything she had longed for until now was within Talulah's easy grasp, perhaps even too insignificant for her to bother pursuing.

Though they shared the same blood, the gap between Ablana and her sister and Talulah was as vast as the distance between two different worlds.

Now, Ablana had come here on the eve of Talulah's war against Victoria's Dukes. On one hand, she was curious about this kin who had defied fate through her own effort, sweat, and talent. On the other, she had come for self-preservation and surrender.

Judging from the situation, Talulah was actually at a disadvantage. She had brought only two Group Armies deep into Victoria and was about to face encirclement by the Duke Coalition Army. Yet Ablana believed Talulah could not possibly have failed to consider that. Since she still dared to seize Londinium under such circumstances, she must have been confident in her ability to resist—or even defeat—the Duke Coalition Army.

Based on Emperor Talulah's past accomplishments, she was not the kind of person who did things without confidence.

After all, Emperor Talulah had never suffered defeat to this day. Anything she set her sights on would inevitably fall into her hands.

In other words, Talulah had arrived, and another nation was about to fall.

If Talulah conquered Victoria and incorporated it into her rule as its Emperor, then what would she think of Ablana and her sister Lafcini, who also possessed Drac blood and held a degree of claim to Victoria's throne, if they did not come to submit now?

Ablana put herself in Talulah's shoes. If they could not promptly and proactively demonstrate their submission, then to prevent other Drac bloodlines from becoming threats to her rule, she and Lafcini would likely be physically erased from this land at Emperor Talulah's command.

It was precisely because she had considered this that, upon learning Talulah had led her group army to conquer Londinium, Ablana hurried here at top speed without stopping, all to seek an audience with her.

Thus, after the two Red Dragon sisters had waited for an unknown amount of time, the guard who had gone to report their arrival finally returned and led them into the palace.

Ablana finally got her wish and saw the Red Dragon Emperor seated upon the throne. Talulah radiated an aura so imposing that even Ablana felt immense pressure from it. Though a woman, she was heroic, noble, beautiful, and majestic.

And An Xiu, who had somehow procured another chair, placed it beside the throne, and sat down on it.

Wait, who was this guy?

Ablana did know An Xiu. After all, she paid close attention to Talulah's intelligence, and An Xiu had stood beside Talulah on the platform during the coronation ceremony, so she remembered his face.

But beyond that, she could find nothing else about him. He did not appear to possess any exceptional ability, nor did he hold an important post. Though he had been named the new Duke of Ursus, he had neither a group army nor troops of his own. The only military achievement she knew of was that he had led some members of the Wendigo Legion in slaughtering a large number of Ursus nobles.

To put it bluntly, anyone could have done that. You could have tied a dog to the job and nothing would have gone wrong.

Yet someone like that could sit directly beside Talulah while Talulah herself sat upon the throne?

Even more astonishingly, Emperor Talulah was not angry at all and actually allowed it?

Before she could think any further, Ablana and her sister Lafcini had already been brought before Talulah. To express their sincerity, the sisters immediately lowered their heads and knelt.

"Ablana Dublin, together with my younger sister Lafcini Dublin, pays respects to the great Red Dragon, Her Majesty Talulah."

"You are Drac as well?"

Seeing the sisters' undisguised racial features, Talulah showed an interested expression.

She had originally believed herself to be the last Drac on this land. She had not expected to have kin after all.

Talulah was delighted by this.

As for Ablana's earlier concern that Talulah might see their shared bloodline as a threat to her rule? Clearly, Talulah had no such thoughts and had not even considered it.

"Yes, Your Majesty. My sister and I are indeed Drac."

Ablana nodded in confirmation.

"What brings you here?"

Talulah asked.

"We are willing to offer Your Majesty our loyalty and hope to serve you."

"Serve me?"

"That is correct. We are willing to obey all of Your Majesty's arrangements. We ask only that Your Majesty accept the two of us."

"I see..."

Completely failing to catch Ablana's intent or hidden meaning, Talulah turned to An Xiu beside her.

"What do you think, An Xiu?"

An Xiu replied without much concern.

"If they want to serve you, accept them. They are both Drac, after all. Their strength certainly will not be lacking."

"That makes sense. Then could I trouble you to arrange a place for them, An Xiu?"

"Sure."

Since he had nothing else to do for the time being, An Xiu nodded directly, rose to his feet, and looked down at the two sisters.

"You two, come with me."

Ablana, still kneeling, glanced at her sister before nodding.

"Yes, sir."

As she followed An Xiu out of the Throne Hall, Ablana's thoughts began racing wildly.

From Talulah and An Xiu's brief exchange just now, she had already noticed something strange.

This man's attitude toward Talulah, the Emperor, was far too casual. Not only had Talulah not shown the slightest anger, she had indulged him greatly...

Ablana put herself in Talulah's position. If one of her subordinates dared speak to her with that attitude, the grass on his grave would already be three meters tall.

Unless his identity was not as simple as it appeared.

At that moment, countless possibilities flashed through Ablana's mind.

Could it be that this man was... Emperor Talulah's favored male consort? Was that why she indulged him so much?

Yes, even under these circumstances, Ablana still did not consider the possibility that Talulah was a puppet.

After all, as the intelligence she had investigated showed, every army under Talulah's command—including the Wendigo Legion—had been firmly controlled by Talulah alone until now. What kind of puppet possessed that much authority? And what sort of mastermind would dare cultivate a puppet that way?

If someone truly raised a puppet like that, then they should not be called a mastermind behind the scenes. They should be called an angel investor.

Thus, after discarding the only correct answer, the only possibility Ablana could think of was that he was a male consort.

And likely the kind with especially impressive skills, capable of taming the domineering Emperor Talulah completely in bed. Judging by his attitude, this man was clearly beginning to act like the master before Emperor Talulah.

Hiss... She had not expected Emperor Talulah to have this sort of personality in private. Then again, it was perfectly normal for a woman to have such needs. But allowing one of her men to ride roughshod over her because of that was something Ablana found difficult to understand.

But if that was the case, then as long as Emperor Talulah's attitude remained unchanged, following this man might unexpectedly have a promising future?

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Ablana's Thoughts, the Arrival of the Duke Coalition Army

Inside the imperial palace, along a side road stretching beside the courtyard.

An Xiu led Ablana and Weed to a Side Hall and arranged for them to stay there.

"The conditions are a little rough. The palace was looted by Sarkaz troops not long ago, after all. But the basic furniture and daily necessities have been prepared again. I trust you will not mind?"

"Of course not. Thank you for personally escorting my sister and me here, sir."

Ablana replied respectfully.

"May I ask what positions you intend to arrange for my sister and me under Her Majesty's command?"

"That depends on what you want to do. If you want to earn merit, I can arrange for you to serve as officers in the army. You must know a little about Ata's experience. If you join the military, you definitely will not need to worry about lacking opportunities to show what you can do."

"If you do not want to fight and kill others and would prefer a more peaceful life, I can also arrange some idle posts in the rear. Considering your Drac identities and capabilities, your starting positions will not be low."

"So, tell me what you want."

An Xiu asked.

A sharp glint flashed through Ablana's eyes.

"My sister and I do not seek high positions. We only wish to remain by Her Majesty's side—or by your side, Lord An Xiu."

"You want to stay by my side and Ata's? In that case, I can arrange for you to become Ata's Attendants or Guards."

An Xiu nodded.

He could casually appoint people even to posts like attendant and guard, positions practically equivalent to trusted confidants?

Ablana pondered inwardly.

Positions such as an Emperor's Attendants and Guards, which gave them countless opportunities to interact with the ruler of a nation, were generally selected and appointed personally by the Emperor. If anyone else dared interfere and arrange personnel for such roles, they would practically be begging to lose their head.

After all, the choices of Attendants and Guards concerned the Emperor's personal safety. If you were even interfering with the selection of the Emperor's confidants, what were you trying to do? Monitor the Emperor, or plant assassins?

Anyone who dared do such a thing was no ordinary minister. They were openly declaring themselves an ambitious traitor. Even just to preserve her own authority, the Emperor would have to crush them without mercy.

Yet this man named An Xiu not only did it, he did so as though it were only natural. He seemed completely unconcerned that Emperor Talulah might resent him for it. He was so casual that it was as if he regarded himself as the Emperor.

What degree of favor could allow him to act so much like the master? Was Emperor Talulah truly this indulgent toward her man?

Though countless thoughts ran through her mind, Ablana's outward reaction was not slow. She pulled her sister along and thanked the man before them.

"Thank you for your trust, sir. From now on, my sister and I shall serve at Her Majesty's and your command."

"Mm. If there is anything you do not understand, you can ask someone, or simply come find me. I have plenty of free time most days, so I do not mind occasionally making time to chat with people."

"Oh? May I ask what post you usually hold, sir? When should my sister and I come by so that we will not disturb you?"

Hearing that she would have opportunities to interact with An Xiu later, Ablana's eyes brightened slightly as she hurriedly asked.

"You can come whenever, as long as it is not too late. Ata has not arranged any specific position for me. I do whatever I want most of the time. Normally, I cannot be bothered to take on any work, so you can think of me as spending most of my time eating, drinking, and having fun. Every now and then, when I feel like it, I lead troops out to slaughter some nobles or capitalists for fun."

"Come to think of it, I am actually quite interested in Victoria's cat-eared girls. Once Ata takes Victoria, I plan to have her form a Feline Maid Corps in the palace so I can properly experience a life of drunken luxury."

Ablana: "..."

I see. What a lifestyle.

He could casually place people among the Emperor's Guards, mobilize armies at will without asking permission, kill whoever he wanted whenever he was in the mood, and show no respect whatsoever toward the Emperor. The Emperor had only just conquered a nation, yet before rewarding her meritorious subjects, he already dared ask her to form a Feline Maid Corps for him.

The extent of his authority was utterly absurd. Other than having an Emperor above him, he could practically do whatever he pleased. Yet everything he said revealed that Her Majesty Talulah granted whatever he asked for.

It was only because Ablana had repeatedly confirmed from the very beginning of her investigation into Talulah that Emperor Talulah truly held all power in her own hands. She was unquestionably an Empress who had transformed an entire vast empire into a realm ruled by her word alone, and who had slaughtered every opponent the moment they disagreed with her. Otherwise, Ablana might truly have believed that this man was the actual ruler of the nation.

"If there is an opportunity, my sister and I will certainly come visit you, sir. We only hope you will not find us troublesome when the time comes."

After exchanging another round of pleasantries, Ablana watched An Xiu's departing back. Only after a long while did she lead her sister into their room in the Side Hall.

Thus, Ablana and Weed remained behind as Attendants, responsible for obeying Talulah's orders and tending to Talulah's daily needs.

An Xiu was not worried that the sisters might harbor ulterior motives. Given Talulah's current strength, even if they truly dared cause trouble, the two Red Dragon sisters together would only amount to one sword stroke each.

Time slowly passed, and in the blink of an eye, several days went by.

On this day, the guards outside the city sent a report. After several days of waiting, the coalition army assembled by Victoria's Dukes had finally arrived at Londinium.

Twenty or thirty kilometers from the city, an enormous and astonishingly large army had established camp.

"Your Grace, the High-Speed Warships and logistical supplies have all arrived. We can launch an attack at any time."

Hearing the report from their subordinate, the Dukes of Victoria slowly nodded.

"Are there still only two Ursus Group Armies in Londinium? Are you certain there are no other reinforcements?"