Diplomatic Mission to Dragunov (Part 2)

The Prime Minister reread the parchment scroll in his hand, but his doubts only deepened. His Majesty's order to send envoys to Dragunov for peace talks was expected, but what he hadn't anticipated was that His Majesty would appoint the Oddek siblings as envoys to the Kingdom of Donagunov. What puzzled him even more was the letter His Majesty wrote to Oddek: 'Identity exposed, life or death at your own risk.' These mere eight words left the astute Prime Minister utterly bewildered.

What baffled the Prime Minister even more was that His Majesty had ordered him to send envoys with lavish gifts to the Cuyis Tree Sea to cultivate good relations with the beings within. While the previous orders only confused the Prime Minister, the final one filled him with unease! His Majesty had ordered him to transfer Langu to the vicinity of West City —a prelude to Langu regaining command of the Western Border Army! As the one who had brought Langu down, this was the situation the Prime Minister least wanted to face, yet he could not refuse the King's orders. For a moment, the Prime Minister paced anxiously in his study.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the study door, followed by the Butler's voice at the door.

"My lord, Duke Gould has come to visit you!"

"Gould? What's this guy doing here?"

Upon hearing the Butler's report, the Prime Minister felt a sense of unease. He didn't particularly like Gould and therefore hadn't had much interaction with him. However, now that the Duke had come to visit, whether out of politeness or due to the Duke's status, the Prime Minister felt obligated to see him. Therefore, he told the Butler, "Please have the Duke rest in the drawing room; I'll be there shortly!"

"Yes!"

After receiving the Prime Minister's reply, the Butler left the study.

"I'm sorry, I've been busy with official duties and have kept Your Highness waiting!"

Upon seeing the Prime Minister arrive, Gould immediately stood up from his chair and strode to greet him as he entered the reception room.

"Prime Minister, you are too kind. It is I, the Duke, who should be embarrassed! I came on a whim and disturbed your work. Gould apologizes to you!"

"Your Grace, you're too kind! Please have a seat!"

After some pleasantries, the two men took their seats as host and guest. Once the maids had placed the drinks and pastries down and left the hall, the Prime Minister asked Gould, "May I ask what brings the Duke here today?"

"You're too kind, Prime Minister. Gould simply has a question on his mind, which is why he has come to visit today, hoping that the Prime Minister can enlighten Gould!"

Seeing Gould abandon his usual frivolous ways and politely ask him for advice, the Prime Minister's interest was immediately piqued. He asked, "Oh? What is it that troubles the Duke so much? I hope Your Highness will tell me, and see if I can offer some guidance!"

"The question I'm asking might stump everyone in the world, but it's an easy one for the Prime Minister to answer. He can certainly clear up my doubts!"

Upon hearing this, the Prime Minister realized that something was amiss, but he had already spoken, so he could only grit his teeth and listen to the rest of the story.

"Gould simply wants to ask the Prime Minister whether His Majesty will order the Prime Minister to arrest General Oddek, or send General Oddek as an envoy to the Kingdom of Donagunov, or some other method of handling the matter?"

After Gould finished speaking, the Prime Minister looked Gould up and down with a strange gaze. After a long while, the Prime Minister said, "Your Grace, are you here today to gather information for General Oddek?"

Faced with the Prime Minister's question, Gould did not evade it, but answered directly, "That's right! Then, I wonder if the Prime Minister would be willing to tell me?"

"Your Grace, what are you saying! I was already planning to deliver His Majesty's order to the Duke's residence and ask you to pass it on to General Oddek. What's wrong with telling you in advance? To be honest, Your Grace, His Majesty did order General Oddek to go to the Kingdom of Donagunov, but it's not just General Oddek who needs to go to the Kingdom of Donagunov; your fiancée, Miss Diphiya, is also on the way!"

Hearing that his brother had only sent Sordil as an envoy to the Kingdom of Donagunov, Gould breathed a sigh of relief. As for what the Prime Minister later said about Diphiya also going along, Gould wasn't particularly concerned. Having learned the information Sordil needed, Gould's task was complete. After chatting casually with the Prime Minister for a few moments, Gould took his leave.

"The relationship between these two is really interesting!"

After seeing Gould off, the Prime Minister watched Gould depart and said thoughtfully. After standing at the gate for a while, the Prime Minister returned to his study to deal with the troublesome matters His Majesty the King had entrusted to him.

Cuyis Tree Sea, Fostadu

Mountain Top

"Diphiya, how is the situation? Has Gould gotten any useful information from the Prime Minister?"

Diphiya rolled her eyes at Sordil, then said unhurriedly, "Sordil, you're too impatient! In the last quarter of an hour, you've asked me this question dozens of times! Please, use your clever brain to think about it. How could Gould possibly make a round trip to the Prime Minister's residence and bring back the message in just a quarter of an hour?"

"I have to be anxious! If my mistake leads to Belmod expelling us from the Kingdom of Tsuyioru Xiu, or capturing us alive and sending us to Fostadu, or even hiding us away, then everything we've done before will have been in vain!"

Seeing the anxious Sordil, Diphiya put aside her indifference and comforted him, "Sordil, don't worry. We don't know the situation yet. Maybe things aren't as bad as you think! Besides, didn't you say that even if the king of Cuiyi'aorshu didn't send you as an envoy to Dragunov, you would still have a way to solve this problem?"

"There is a solution! But it can only be used as a last resort, and once we use that solution, we will have no other options!"

Just as the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, Diphiya suddenly closed her eyes. After a long while, Diphiya slowly opened her eyes and said excitedly, "Sordil, you don't need to worry! Gould just sent word that His Majesty the King has ordered you to be an envoy to the Kingdom of Donagunov, but I don't know why, I have to go with him too!"

"Hmm? Haha!"

After Diphiya relayed the information Gould had gathered, Sordil pondered for a moment, then burst into laughter. However, his pounding heart betrayed his lingering fear and relief. Besides these feelings, Sordil constantly reminded himself that he must never act so rashly again. After all, good fortune wouldn't always be on his side, and if he made another mistake, he might kill all his comrades who stood by him—something he absolutely could not accept!