Chapter 418

As Rebecca said, Claudia was very interested in foreign cultures, and even the impending revolution did not stop her from studying hard before the war.

"What's going on? Is war about to break out?"

Claudia asked slowly as she flipped through the ancient book in her hands.

"Soon, in two days, at the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns," Leon said.

"The Festival of a Thousand Lanterns..."

The beautiful woman's blue eyes trembled slightly, and then she spoke slowly.

"It is a traditional festival of human society with a history of more than 900 years. It was originally created to commemorate the first magician in human history, and over the past 900 years, it has gradually become a major annual festival."

Leon raised an eyebrow. "Oh, it seems you've done a lot of homework these past few days, senior."

Claudia tapped her temple. "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated."

She closed the ancient book in front of her, looked up at the couple.

"Well, the official operation will begin in two days. Have you made a plan?"

Leon nodded and told Claudia about his plan to use the paper lantern and the Imprint Stone to resonate.

Claudia paused for a moment, then said,

"A good plan. But the preparation time is too short. Can you gather enough paper lanterns and Imprint Stone?"

"We came to you specifically because of this problem."

Leon said, "We've collected enough Imprint Stone, but we're still short a lot of paper lanterns."

The beautiful woman blinked and joked, "Then what do you want with me? Do I look like I'm good at making paper lanterns?"

Leon smiled and said, "After all, you promised to be my helper, so you can't just fight. You should also participate in the logistical preparations."

"Hey kid, don't you dare! We agreed to help you declare war on the Empire, not to find you paper lanterns."

"... Then, senior—"

"I want to raise the bet."

"Add to the bet?"

Claudia nodded. "Our initial agreement was that Helena would come to your house to play with Noa, and I would help you; but now that you're asking me to help you find paper lanterns, I'll have to charge you more."

"Please speak, senior."

Claudia smiled with satisfaction; the young man was indeed perceptive.

She leaned forward and beckoned to the couple with her finger.

The couple joined them, and Claudia whispered something in their ears.

After listening, Leon and Losweiser's expressions were somewhat complicated.

"This..."

"What? You won't agree?"

"No, no, no, it's just... I didn't expect you to be interested in that kind of thing, senior."

Claudia crossed her arms and said leisurely, "It's Helena. She seems to really like that kind of thing. So what's your answer?"

"Sure, no problem. We'll get on it after this is over."

"Very good."

"Could you offer some advice on paper lanterns, senior?"

"Um."

Claudia nodded. "You're looking for paper lantern suppliers, which is a good approach, but the suppliers in the Empire are very scattered, and the efficiency of collecting paper lanterns is also very low."

"In order to ensure that there are enough paper lanterns on the day of the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns, the Empire's Royal Family specially built a warehouse containing tens of thousands of paper lanterns, enough to cover the area from the Royal Family to the Lower City."

"If you sneak into the warehouse, put the Imprint Stone inside the paper lantern beforehand, and then use Illusion magic to cover it up, you can make the Imprint Stone appear throughout the entire empire on the day of the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns."

After listening to Claudia's account, Leon was stunned for a moment.

"What's wrong? Didn't you understand?"

"No, no, no."

Leon scratched his head. "It's just... if there really is a warehouse, why don't Rebecca and Nacho, who are active in the Empire all year round, know about it?"

Claudia has only been in the Empire for less than a week, while Rebecca and the others have been active in the Empire for five years.

But the matter of the paper lantern warehouse was never mentioned.

This left General Leon somewhat puzzled.

Claudia picked up the stack of newspapers on the table and waved them in her hand.

"Because this news was just announced this morning. In order to make a good impression on the public during the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns, the Empire specially built a warehouse to store paper lanterns this year. It's all written in detail in the newspaper."

"... ha?"

"Leon, you and your Lionheart Society have actually fallen into a misconception, which is that 'to obtain intelligence, you must go to great lengths.'"

Claudia patiently explained to Leon, "But in some special circumstances, the most crucial intelligence is often hidden in the most inconspicuous corner."

Leon pondered Claudia's words carefully.

At the same time, I suddenly recalled the newspaper vendor's calls before I even entered the library:

"Midtown Morning Post, Midtown Morning Post!"

"At the border of the two districts, the arched bridge collapsed. Whose responsibility is it?"

"The mystery of the large warehouse has finally been revealed; what was inside all along?"

"With the Thousand Lanterns Festival approaching, the crime rate remains high, and hundreds of police officers have been robbed. Is this a sign of distorted humanity or moral decay?"

So... that large warehouse... was the paper lantern that Leon had been searching for all along?

However, at the time, I thought these things were all too sensationalist in their titles, so—

Etc!

This is such a clickbait title!

How could Leon possibly buy a newspaper with a headline like "**Stolen"?

Yeah, so it's all the pig's fault—

"Oh dear!"

As I was pondering, I suddenly felt a snap on my forehead.

It was Claudia. She rolled the newspaper into a tube and reached over to tap Leon on the head.

It's like an elder educating a naive and inexperienced child.

Losweiser was about to chuckle when she was also struck.

The couple rubbed their foreheads, their movements and expressions remarkably identical.

"When you look up at the vast starry sky, be careful of the puddles under your feet."

That's a very interesting sentence.

Leon wanted to clear his name, expose the corruption of the empire, and free the people from their suffering, but he didn't have time to buy a newspaper.

When people are heading towards their distant goals, they often tend to overlook some trivial details.

Those seemingly trivial details might be the key to turning the tide.

"Alright, I'm not trying to give you all these grand principles. Just consider this a sharing of experience, which I believe will be helpful for your future."

The couple nodded in understanding.

"Well then... if this plan succeeds, don't forget what you promised me."

"Don't worry, senior, leave this to the Melkwy family!"

126 Why did you provoke him?

After saying goodbye to Claudia for the time being, Leon and Losweiser planned to return to the Lionheart Society to discuss things with Rebecca and the others.

After all, although they could get the Empire's paper lanterns for free, they didn't know much about the specifics of that warehouse.

For example, the exact location of the warehouse, its surrounding environment, the number of people responsible for guarding the warehouse, and whether the Empire's Royal Family directly sends people to guard it, etc.

If we go there rashly and something goes wrong, the entire plan for the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns will be ruined.

Walking down the streets of Midtown, Leon scratched his head, looking slightly agitated.

Losweiser noticed his subtle emotional fluctuation and asked softly, "What's wrong?"

Leon sighed softly, "The Festival of a Thousand Lanterns is the day after tomorrow. If we can't get the preparations done tonight or tomorrow night, this plan will fall through."

As a team leader, you always have to bear more pressure than others at critical moments.

Although Leon had once been the Queen of the Dragon Slayer Army, leading his warriors in many battles across the land, the situation now was quite different from what it had been back then.

You must know that General Leon is a born Dragon Slayer Saint Body. If he is in charge of slaying dragons, the one who will feel the pressure will definitely not be him, but the first-class merit and Special Merit on the other side.

This was the first time he had led a group of revolutionaries who were oppressed and had no choice but to stand up and resist.

On the one hand, he was afraid of failing. A brave and invincible general who could only be stopped by sending an inside traitor to end the epic war between humans and dragons within ten years would find it hard to accept a defeat.

On the other hand, they were also afraid of letting down the expectations of everyone in the Lionheart Society.

They had gathered here, hoping for so long, that Leon would return and lead them to overthrow this corrupt empire.

But if all of everyone's efforts were to be in vain, the consequences would be unbearable for Leon.

He had to be responsible to those who believed in him and placed their hopes on him; he couldn't let his master and everyone down.

Therefore, that pressure was like an invisible mountain, pressing heavily on his shoulders.

Losweiser discreetly observed his profile.

She knew what Leon was worried about, and she knew what he was afraid of.

She also knew that at times like this, any words of comfort would seem pale and powerless.

What Leon needed was not comfort, nor an outlet for his stress.

Only Losweiser knows what he truly needs.

The Queen withdrew her gaze, looked ahead, and said in a light tone,

"You used to rarely worry about 'what will happen if I fail' before you did something."

Leon shook his head with a wry smile. "This time is different, Losweiser."

"What's the difference?"

"This time, I'm leading everyone to accomplish this. If my flawed decisions cause the entire plan to fail, then—"

"Then I will share the consequences of failure with you."

Losweiser's tone remained calm, as if she were recounting an ordinary event.

"Whether it's the disappointment and accusations from everyone in the Lionheart Society, or the joint counterattack from the Empire and the Dragon Race, whatever it may be, I will accept it with you."

Simple words, a calm tone, yet they conveyed unwavering determination.

Leon stumbled, almost instinctively muttering, "Why...?"

Losweiser took a few steps, then turned back. She didn't smile; her eyes and expression were extremely serious.

"Because you are my prisoner, I am also responsible for not disciplining you properly."

What the heck, really.

Leon chuckled, stepped forward, opened his arms, and before Losweiser could react, gave her a bear hug.

By the time Losweiser came to her senses, it was too late.

"Hey, what are you doing? -- In broad daylight on the street, with so many people watching -- Let go, you idiot!"

Losweiser struggled symbolically for a moment.