The Church's Choice
At Sacred Light Mountain, the war in the Northern Continent diverted the outside world's attention, Pope Pius VII to enjoy a few rare days of peace.
As a pope, Pope Pius VII was undoubtedly tragic.
During his term, a series of historical problems erupted one after another, and he himself was embroiled in various scandals.
They kept taking measures to solve the problem, but unfortunately the Lord of Dawn did not protect them, so the problem became more and more troublesome the more it was solved.
This situation continued until the Beastfolk invasion, at which point everyone's attention shifted away from the Church, allowing him to catch his breath.
Unfortunately, happy times are always short-lived. After only a year of good times, new troubles came knocking.
The spies sent to the Orc Empire were captured, and the Church obtained some evidence that they had secretly instigated the war.
If their reputation were good enough, they could simply insist that it was fabricated by the Beastfolk and be done with it. Unfortunately, the Dawn Holy See has a really bad reputation on the continent, and once exposed, it would be a huge shock.
In particular, their various sabotage tactics during alliance meetings, if someone were to link the two together, would be their doom.
"Idiots, you're all a bunch of idiots! How could you expose something like this? What are you all good for...?"
Faced with the enraged Pope, everyone lowered their heads. There was no other way; almost every department within the Church had been embroiled in scandals.
It's just that this time the bombshell is bigger, making things more complicated.
"Your Majesty, the ones captured by the Beastfolk are members of the Order of Judgment Knights. It would be best to recall Blake and inquire about the specifics."
"The leader of the Order of Judgment Knights, Gure, added without hesitation."
Political struggles allow no room for sentimentality.
As his old adversary, the Order of Judgment Knights have suffered another defeat, so there's no reason for him not to take action.
"Commander Gurei, things haven't come to that. The new Behemoth Emperor has only captured our people; he hasn't taken any action against them."
Although Hank was imprisoned, Xiandell remained in the Behemoth Emperor and was not implicated.
Alex was a playboy to begin with, but he was forced into the position by the old Behemoth Emperor. We cannot treat him with the mindset of an ordinary person.
If handled well, even a bad thing can turn into a good thing.
Recalling Blake now would only arouse suspicion from the major powers!
Bishop Solon defended him.
When something goes wrong, someone always has to take responsibility. If Blake comes back now, he'll definitely be the one primarily responsible.
As political allies, it's natural to offer help in times like these.
They work hard outside, even if they don't achieve great things. But when they return after the matter is resolved, it's a completely different story.
"Bishop Solon, you can't say that. If the Beastfolk have something on you, that's a potential problem."
Even if they reach an agreement this time and don't leak it, what about the future?
We can't always be at the mercy of others, can we?
Gu Lei said with dissatisfaction.
Want to get through this easily? That's impossible. Even if you can't kill your enemy, you'll at least have to scrape them clean.
The cake is only so big; if some people get more, others will get less.
Having finally found an opportunity, he was determined that the Order of Judgment Knights would not give up until they were robbed of their lives.
First, the two argued, then it escalated into a fierce battle between two opposing camps, which quickly dragged other factions into the fray, turning the council hall into a marketplace.
Seeing the argument escalating, Pope Pius VII could no longer remain seated and immediately shouted, "Silence!"
"Look at all of you, what kind of state are you in now?"
"We can discuss assigning blame later; let's first discuss whether the Beastfolk's proposal is in our best interest!"
It's unclear when exactly, but Pope Pius VII has developed a habit of constantly talking about "interests." This seems out of place for a pope, yet it's remarkably effective.
Whenever I encounter a problem that I can't solve, I can quickly find a solution by approaching it from the perspective of "interests".
Since it's so effective, it should naturally be promoted and popularized. Even though the outside world Pope Pius VII harshly, his prestige within the Church remains very high.
"Your Majesty, the Beastfolk have two main demands: for the Human Alliance to cease hostilities and for assassination."
If we look at it separately, what really troubles us is getting the Human Alliance to cease hostilities. If we act too aggressively, it could easily arouse suspicion from all sides.
Besides, the Order of Judgment Knights have all gone to the front lines. If they were to withdraw without even fighting a single battle, it would be a loss of face.
Assassination, you know.
Since Caesar III ascended the throne, he has caused us no end of trouble. It would be best if we could get rid of him.
As for the other people the Beastfolk requested, they were all important figures within the Alpha Kingdom; they could be dealt with as soon as the opportunity arose.
The only problem is that these people are very concerned about their safety, making it difficult to get close to them, let alone assassinate them.
Unless we...
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Archbishop Soren swallowed them back. As one of the oldest powers among humans, the Church was naturally not lacking in underhanded methods.
However, some of their methods were too ruthless and inconsistent with the role the Church played, and the price they had to pay was too high, so they gradually faded from public view.
"Your Majesty, it would be too easy for them to agree to the Beastfolk's conditions so readily."
Moreover, whether it's Human Alliance to cease hostilities or assassinating Caesar III, it will require us to pay a heavy price.
Since they've given us a difficult task, we can retaliate in kind. We don't need to ask for too much; just enough to inflict heavy losses on the Alpha Kingdom's Northern Expeditionary Army.
Give them information on the internal factions of the Alpha Kingdom, and let them target and severely punish certain factions to disrupt the internal balance of power within the Alpha Kingdom.
Even if the assassination attempt on Caesar III fails, there will still be a mess for him to clean up.
Gu Lei said with a cold laugh.
It's clear that he genuinely despises the incompetence of the Orc Empire, and he couldn't help but offer advice.
After a moment's thought, Pope Pius VII nodded slightly and said, "Let the Beastfolk give it a try. We won't lose out regardless of their success or failure."
Inform Bishop Montesol to prepare. Once we reach an agreement with the Beastfolk, we will push forward with the ceasefire negotiation proposal.
However, that's not enough. To get the Alliance to agree to a ceasefire, we also need to help the Beastfolk.
Sauron, mobilize our connections and help the Beastfolk persuade other races to intervene and mediate.
As soon as he finished speaking, Pope Pius VII sensed something was amiss. It seemed the Church had become far too involved in this war.
Especially now, the bias towards the Beastfolk is too obvious; they're practically ready to jump out and support the Orc Empire outright.
As a human faction, playing this game is clearly a misguided move. If a mine were to explode one day, they would be annihilated.
"Forget it, let's not let Bishop Montesol take any action."
Our previous performance has left many flaws, and we must be the pro-war faction at the upcoming alliance meeting.
Tell Bishop Montesol to exaggerate the difficulty of the Annihilation of the Orc Empire at the Alliance Conference, and then call on all nations to jointly send seven million troops to the Annihilation of the Orc Empire!
Pope Pius VII said with a cold laugh.
To advance a plan, you don't necessarily have to take personal charge; sometimes, adopting the opposite approach can achieve the same goal.
The human race could certainly muster seven million troops. But to actually deploy that many troops on the battlefield was nothing short of a pipe dream.
The heavy logistical burden is enough to cripple any force. Even if the burden is shared by the various forces within the alliance, the cost will still be enough to cripple everyone.
However, given the vast territory of the Orc Empire, it would be impossible to completely annihilate them without an army of several million.
By slightly exaggerating the difficulty, the number "seven million" can be made more believable.
Unable to bear the losses, the plan naturally could not proceed. Furthermore, with the involvement of various ethnic groups on the mainland, negotiation became the best option.
In Nadersonburg, thanks to the joint efforts of the garrison and the civilians and soldiers in the city, the work of exhuming the body and clearing the construction debris was finally completed.
The ruins left from the great battle clearly show that the Red Dragon Maxim's looting caused the Locknerd Family enormous losses.
The detailed loss report had reached Thorsten. Looking at the detailed list, he almost burst into tears.
It was incredibly brutal; the long list of casualties was no less than that of a battle.
The problem is that wars demand achievements, and they fought a complete mess. The dragon that started the trouble simply walked away, leaving the Locknerd Family to foot the bill for all the losses.
If he hadn't still had some sense, he would have wanted to organize a dragon-slaying team to seek justice from Maxim.
Since they are living beings, they naturally have weaknesses, and Giant Dragon are no exception.
However, compared to ordinary creatures, Giant Dragon's weaknesses are not so obvious. Even if their weaknesses were discovered, they are not something ordinary people could exploit.
As an ancient and noble family, the Locknerd Family has a history of such matters.
After weighing the pros and cons, Thorsten ultimately abandoned his idea of immediate revenge.
The direct casualties from the battle exceeded three thousand, and the casualties from the fire exceeded five thousand.
Tens of thousands of houses were destroyed, and the property losses were countless. Most of the city's residents were left homeless overnight.
Those who could live in Nadersonburg were not ordinary serfs. They were either distant or close relatives of the Locknerd Family, or the families of close retainers, or at the very least, the families of elite soldiers.
Since we're all family, the family naturally has to take full responsibility for what happened.
Having just suffered heavy losses from the Beastfolk invasion, the Locknerd Family is now facing another blow, further exacerbating their already strained finances.
We simply can't afford any more trouble. If we succeed in slaying the dragon and it provokes the Dragon Race's revenge, then we're doomed.
No matter how secretive they were, it was useless. With such a thing just happened, and Maxim having an accident, it would be hard for the Dragon Race not to suspect them.
For the strong, evidence is never a necessary factor; suspicion is enough.
"You can't reason with Giant Dragon unless you have fists as hard as theirs."
Even if retaliation is to be carried out, it should wait until the storm has passed, or until Maxim has enemies all over the continent before taking action.
"What?"
"Did this Red Dragon appear in the Border Defense Army camp before robbing Nadersonburg?"
Thorsten exclaimed.
After the Southeast Front Army, Southwest Front Army, and Central Front Army arrived in the North, together with the armies of the nobles from the northern provinces, they became the new Border Defense Army of the Alpha Kingdom.
A thought flashed through Thorsten's mind and he realized the problem. The current Border Defense Army commander was their family's mortal enemy.
The fact that the Red Dragon failed to rob the Border Defense Army and then immediately came to rob Nadersonburg made it hard for him not to make connections.
"Yes, Viscount!"
According to the Border Defense Army, the evil dragon descended from the sky, demanding gold coins and the princess from the guards. It was only after Count Hudson intervened and negotiated with the dragon that it was driven away.
There are many versions of the specific content of the conversation. Some say that he was scared away by Hudson; others say that Hudson patiently explained to the dragon that there was no... in the camp.
Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Thorsten's expression darkened further. Neither version of the story could prove that the dragon's attack on Nadersonburg was related to Hudson.
The information gathered can only prove one thing— Count Hudson is powerful; he can even deal with a dragon with just a few words.
Perhaps noticing the change in his expression, the young officer in charge of gathering information quickly swallowed back the words he hadn't finished saying.
It's not fair to blame the subordinates for being tactless; their feud with the Coslo Family is a dark chapter in the Locknerd Family's history.
The deeply humiliated members of the Coslo Family must remember this and always seek an opportunity for revenge.
The victorious Locknerd Family wasn't so concerned. Over the years, they had trampled hundreds or even thousands of nobles underfoot; who could remember a bunch of impoverished people!
Many people wanted revenge, but after so many years, the Locknerd Family is still thriving, while their former enemies have turned to dust one by one.
If it weren't for Hudson's sudden rise to power and his investigation into the family's records, they would have almost forgotten about this enemy.
The memory of their enemies came to mind, but it was ultimately a painful and shameful chapter in their family history. It was enough for the family elders to know; there was no need to make it known to the whole world.
"I understand what happened. You may all leave now!"
Thorsten said with a gloomy expression.
The landmines planted by our ancestors have suddenly exploded, and those of us who are the younger generation can only swallow our pride and bear it.
Even if they were willing to ease tensions and let bygones be bygones, the Coslo Family would never agree!
Knowing that the dragon attack might be related to Hudson, but having no evidence, he couldn't even use it as an excuse.
"This is troublesome, this is really difficult to handle!"
After making a sigh, Thorsten muttered to himself.
"No! We must find a way to remove Hudson and keep him as the Border Defense Army commander, or our family will be in danger!"
He could think about it, but he had absolutely no idea how to do it.
The Locknerd Family wields considerable influence, but they cannot sway the kingdom's decisions. At the very least, the position of commander-in-chief of the Border Defense Army is not one they can decide on their own.
To bring down Hudson, we not only need to find something to hold against him, but we also need to find a replacement.
If the kingdom had a better option, such a high-ranking and powerful core position would never have been given to Hudson, this suddenly rich upstart.
The most capable generals were all in the Northern Expeditionary Army. Among the generals who remained in the country, Hudson's military exploits were the most outstanding.
Suddenly wanting to replace someone is something even King, let alone the Locknerd Family, couldn't do.
The first to oppose them wasn't anyone else, but the Locknerd Family's most important ally. The Five Great Northern Families were closely allied, but each had their own agenda.
With Hudson as the commander of the Border Defense Army, only the Locknerd Family is in danger; if an idiot were to take over, all the families in the North would be in danger.
The fighting at the front lines is becoming increasingly fierce, and no one can say for sure whether the Northern Expeditionary Army can escape unscathed.
The Human Alliance's reinforcements are slow to arrive. If the Beastfolk defeat the Northern Expeditionary Army and march south again, the Border Defense Army will be everyone's last line of defense.
If we don't appoint a capable general to command the front lines, everyone will feel uneasy!
In this context, everyone is looking out for themselves; who cares about the Locknerd Family?
In a sense, to bring down Hudson now would mean going against most of the kingdom's nobles.