Chapter 191

Ryan thought to himself, "That's right, you're quite magnanimous, but still not as magnanimous Amabena."

"Why do I say that? It's simple. The Augustus Empire has the Iron Blood Legion, the Imperial Regular Army, and especially the recently rising Holy Blood Army, which is capable of taking on ten opponents at once. Your Queen, put your hand on your heart and tell me, in a situation where the numbers are equal, could the Moonlight Knight Order defeat the Holy Blood Army?"

"... cannot."

Although she didn't want to admit it, Elvian knew it was true.

"Is that so? So what do we have? The Northern Coalition seems to have a larger territory than Augustus, but it is still a disorganized mess. Once Augustus Army crosses the Kingdom of Lotte, it will inevitably be defeated one by one. Therefore, the Kingdom of Lotte can only remain neutral and lean towards Augustus for now, and Your Majesty's most urgent task is to quickly establish the Verdea Federation and integrate the Northern Coalition."

"Not only that, the war with the Augustus Empire must first eliminate the Holy Blood Army, because the Holy Blood Legion is still growing. If their numbers reach 50,000, no one will be able to stop them."

Elvian's heart skipped a beat.

Ryan's words truly resonated with her.

That's exactly what she's been worried about most lately!

She was confident even against the Iron Blood Army, but against the Holy Blood Army, she couldn't win, she simply couldn't win!

"Our biggest advantage right now is our numbers, so we must act swiftly!" Ryan said resolutely. "Your Majesty! Every step we take could lead to total defeat, and the collapse of our kingdom could happen in an instant! The kingdom may seem powerful, but it is fraught with danger. The Augustus Empire harbors wolfish ambitions, and this is truly a time of crisis for our very survival!"

Elvian was moved. "I understand all that you've said... So, what's your solution?"

"Though I am a commoner, I have a sincere heart. Just as I said, first we will establish a federation and integrate the Northern Coalition. Then we will quickly launch a war. Before that, I will have Lotte pretend to be allied with Augustus to lure the Holy Blood Army into our territory. Then we will trap them like turtles in a jar and wipe out most of the Holy Blood Army. Oh right! Especially that Shally. As long as we can get rid of her, the Holy Blood Army will be no threat."

Elvian nodded slightly.

"... That's true."

If Ryan can handle the Kingdom of Lotte and work with her to deliver a heavy blow to the Holy Blood Army, then the advantage will be theirs.

This Rider is meticulous, courageous and resourceful. It seems that his years of traveling around have broadened his horizons. His ideas are indeed bold and detailed. I was wrong about him before... Elvian thought to herself.

"Rider, you've come up with all this, it seems you really have thought about Wildea's future seriously. Thank you for your hard work."

"It's not hard work, it's not hard work." Ryan shook his head, his eyes shining. "It's all for the Queen. Avril often tells me that no matter where I am, I must remember that I am a Wilderian. I remember it."

What does it mean to be the Queen's most trusted confidant, Master Ryan?

This is it!

"I see. If all the Wilder people had your righteousness, how could they not unify the Northern Continent?"

Elvian chuckled, finding Ryan more and more pleasing to the eye.

Avril's judgment is indeed excellent. As expected of someone chosen by the moon goddess, how could she possibly favor a good-for-nothing?

"If we can eliminate the Holy Blood Legion, then the other forces of Augustus will be no threat. I am confident that I can completely take over the Augustus Empire in no more than three years!"

"Well..."

Ryan was speechless. "Damn it, you guys need three years for everything? Without this three-year period, you can't do anything?"

"Rider, I will seriously consider what you have said. I entrust the Kingdom of Lotte to you... Go and call Monica in. I have something to tell her."

"Yes, ma'am."

Creak~

Ryan pushed open the door and saw Monica waiting at the door.

"Her Queen invites you in."

Monica gave him a puzzled look, then went inside and closed the door.

"His Your Majesty."

"Monica, from today onwards, you will assist Rider in handling matters concerning the Kingdom of Lotte in secret."

"?"

Monica was taken aback. "Your Majesty, Rider, he..."

"He is a Wilderian," Elvian said calmly. "There are some things you don't need to know. You can do whatever he wants, all for the sake of the great unification of the Northern Coalition. However, you must report his situation to me every day, and if you find any signs of disloyalty, you must tell me immediately."

Although she temporarily trusted Ryan, Elvian still needed to be careful given the gravity of the matter.

"Yes."

Monica understood.

This Rider might be a spy planted by His Your Majesty, but he could potentially harbor rebellious intentions.

Indeed, given the situation, even Amabena listened to him, which was equivalent to directly controlling a kingdom, so his ambition naturally swelled.

"Alright, you can leave now. Remember, your relationship with Rider must never be known to outsiders."

After giving her explanation, Elvian closed the belongings.

She sat on the throne, lost in thought.

"I never expected Rider to have such talent. His sense of righteousness is truly moving. Let's not tell Avril yet. If it's true, once the Verdea Federation is established, I will grant him the title of Duke and make good use of him in the future."

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"If it's fake... then let such a person never exist in the world again. Such a traitor is not worthy of Avril's trust."

She had originally planned to tell Rider about 'Avril' and expose his hypocrisy, but now it seems that things are not going as she thought. Since Amabena trusts Rider so much, why not take this opportunity to take over the Kingdom of Lotte?

The initial idea was to form an alliance, but even after forming an alliance, it would still be very inconvenient. If the Kingdom of Lotte were to renege on its promise, the Moonlight Knight Order would easily encounter danger if they entered its territory.

Therefore, taking it down is the safest approach!

Of course, this is all predicated on Ryan genuinely standing by her side, which seems secure at the moment, but...

"That guy Rider is meticulous and a bit dishonest. Amabena must have been deceived by him... Sigh~ Avril is honest. These two... are not a good match."

"But Avril's personality makes it unlikely she'll leave Rider easily. What should we do?... Well, let's observe for a while first."

I was just thinking about it.

A figure walked in from outside the hall.

"Your Majesty," Alfred bowed, "You summoned me?"

"Teacher, I plan to convene the Northern Coalition Conference and propose the establishment of a federation."

Alfred paused, "Your Majesty, the Kingdom of Lotte is still unresolved. Isn't this a bit... too hasty?"

"It's alright, I have other arrangements for the Kingdom of Lotte. Teacher, the Augustus Empire is recovering too quickly. Right now, there are still some forces in the Western Barbarians and the Southern Territory that are hostile to it. If we wait until the Western Territory conquers the Great Plains and the situation in the Southern Territory stabilizes, we will never be able to win with our strength."

Elvian said in a deep voice, "More importantly, the Holy Blood Legion is too terrifying. Right now, they don't have many people, and the Moonlight Knight Order were able to win. But once the Holy Blood Army grows to the same size as the Moonlight Knight Order..."

"We are bound to lose." Alfred lowered his head. "I have also thought about this problem, but right now Wildea is caught in the vortex of fighting with the Augustus Empire for Lot, and the other members of the United Nations may not be as concerned as before."

"I think it's the opposite. Since the war hasn't started yet, Wildea still has room to maneuver. If we bring up the Federation after the war has started, other countries will have their own opinions."

If war breaks out, Wildea won't have as much energy to focus on this matter.

"In that case, I will get to work on it and strive to establish the Verdea Federation as quickly as possible."

Although Alfred was somewhat worried, things had already come to this point, and Augustus wouldn't give them any more time.

Once the Holy Blood Army's iron cavalry tramples across the Kingdom of Lotte, the Northern Coalition, if it cannot unite as one, will inevitably be defeated piecemeal by the Empire.

"Go, teacher," Elvian. "A new era is coming, and the future of the Northern Continent will surely belong to Wildea."

On the other side.

On the streets of Silvermoon City.

Monica pretended to walk around with Ryan, then started to turn back towards the castle.

"His Your Majesty has ordered me to obey you, so, Rider Ryder, what do you intend to do next?" Monica was a loyal knight, and since Elvian had spoken, she would certainly follow orders.

This saved Ryan a lot of trouble.

Old Joe is unreliable; he's off gallivanting somewhere. Without him, the operation to 'capture' Monica might not succeed, so this is actually the best-case scenario.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush. I'll have Amabena contact Augustus later. Our goal is to eliminate the Holy Blood Army, so it has to be Shally who signs the contract with the Kingdom of Lotte. Once she arrives, we'll take her down. That's the best help we can give the Queen."

"Get rid of Shally!" Monica perked up. She was no longer sleepy when she heard this, because the last time the allied forces attacked, they were routed by the Holy Blood Army. Now the entire Northern Coalition was saying that the Moonlight Knight Order could not possibly be a match for the Holy Blood Army.

Monica was not convinced.

Last time, they took advantage of an information gap, and the Moonlight Cavalry only numbered a thousand. Being defeated by 'Shally' in a preemptive strike doesn't prove anything.

In addition to fulfilling the Queen's mission, she came to the Kingdom of Lotte to vindicate the Knights!

The mere Holy Blood Army can be crushed with a flick of the finger!

"Rider Ryder, I will fully cooperate with you. Once Shally arrives in Silvermoon City, I will show her how terrifying the Moonlight Knight Order!"

"Wow! Lady Monica is awesome! With you here, what are the Holy Blood Army compared to her?" Ryan gave a thumbs up. "We'll definitely take down that Shally!"

It seems the Second Wife has a high level of hatred towards the Northern Coalition. I'll have to be more careful when I go out in the future.

"Rider Ryder, I'm counting on you."

"Loyalty goes without saying."

After the two parted ways, Ryan returned to the castle.

Since there's no need to capture Monica, Ryan plans to have Dilia investigate the extent to which the City of Desire has expanded its influence within the Northern Coalition.

He had previously persuaded Elvian to establish a federation as soon as possible in order to force the people of the City of Desire to take action. After all, he was currently in the shadows while his enemies were also in the shadows, which wouldn't do. Only by getting Veldria to fight the City of Desire first would he have a chance.

Go ahead and fight, turn Northern Coalition into a huge mess, and I'll go all in with my trump card.

humming a song, Ryan found Dilia, whose Magic Power restrictions had been lifted, but due to the contract, she was completely obedient to Ryan.

"...Finding other layouts of the City of Desire, that's probably a bit difficult." Dilia played with her hair. "This operation was all directly ordered by the City Lord. All the councilors don't communicate with each other. I don't even know which councilors are on the mission."

"If you understand that, why would I need you to come up with a solution?" Ryan said disdainfully. "Have you gone mad from believing in desire?"

Dilia: "..."

I'm just telling you about my situation, why are you using such nasty language?

Hmph, how dare you say such things! You are disrespectful to the gods of desire. Be careful you don't suffer divine punishment.

"I can try to investigate, but whether it will be successful is hard to say."

Are there many members of parliament?

"Too many to count."

"No wonder you were able to get the position."

Ryan suddenly realized that the position of senator wasn't exactly an important one, so it wasn't surprising that it ended up on Dilia's head. However, this made it difficult to be certain.

It seems we can only try to find as much as we can, and the worst-case scenario is that we have to wait for the federal conference to convene.

However, by then Wilder might be in a very passive position.

Sigh~ Damn loyalty, why am I so considerate of Her Majesty the Queen?

Forget it, let the Alts handle the troublesome matters.

After Dilia left, Ryan returned to his room, intending to examine the Northern Coalition's files, hoping to find the mole within them.

After all, he has a wealth of experience in being an inside man.

"Lord Ryan ~~"

Amabena pushed open the door and carefully squeezed in.

Why didn't you go to dinner?

"I ate something on the way back, so I'm not hungry." Ryan glanced at the time; it was already past seven.

Thump~

Two big lumps were pressing down on his head.

Then Amabena started massaging his shoulders.

Ryan: "..."

"Lord Ryan?~"

"Uh... a massage is fine, but don't touch me."

"Hehe~ You're back? Do you want to eat first, or take a shower first? Or... eat me first?"