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Aboard the ship, Arthur looked at the not-so-heavy suitcase in his hands and fell into a brief silence.

To be honest, Arthur had already guessed what was inside the suitcase Queen Victoria had given him.

For Princess Beatrice to deliver it personally and specifically instruct him not to use it for five years, whatever was inside had to be extremely important to both Arthur and Queen Victoria.

Combined with his conversation with Queen Victoria that day, the contents of the suitcase had practically revealed themselves.

"Alas!" Arthur sighed, his heart filled with gratitude toward Queen Victoria.

The fact that Queen Victoria could entrust something so important to Arthur actually meant that, between her son and grandson, Queen Victoria had chosen the latter—even though his future actions might deliver a tremendous blow to the British Empire she had built with her own hands.

The journey from Australia to New Zealand had taken two days, but the return trip from New Zealand to Australia took Arthur a full four days.

It was not that Arthur had taken a detour along the way. He had simply been in a hurry when he came, whereas he was in no rush to leave.

As one of the few large colonies in Oceania apart from mainland Australia, New Zealand was different from Australia.

If Australia was a country riding atop a mine cart, then New Zealand was a kingdom of livestock and a kingdom of sheep.

Furthermore, thanks to its excellent geographical position, New Zealand could serve as Australia's eastern shield. Controlling Australia and New Zealand meant controlling all of Oceania.

Apart from Australia and New Zealand, the only other relatively large region in Oceania was New Guinea, which was divided between Britain and Germany in the north and south.

The New Guinea territories ruled by Britain were handed over to Australia for administration in 1906. As things stood, that date could be brought forward even further.

As for the German territories, Australia could seize them as soon as Germany entered the First World War.

In other words, New Guinea was practically a sure thing for Australia—a juicy prize that could also serve as Australia's excellent northern shield and springboard.

With both New Zealand and New Guinea under its control, Australia would instantly become Oceania's irreplaceable hegemon.

The reason Arthur had slowed his journey on the way back was to survey the distance and geography between New Zealand and Australia.

Unlike British New Guinea, New Zealand had always remained in the hands of the British Empire. Even after becoming a dominion in 1907, its politics, diplomacy, and economy remained under the control of the British Empire.

It was not until 1947 that New Zealand gained complete independence, but the price was becoming a member of the Commonwealth and continuing to recognize the British monarch as its head of state.

All of this had to be blamed on Britain's long-standing policy of maintaining a continental balance of power: every continent had to contain at least two evenly matched nations.

But now that Arthur possessed the trump card Queen Victoria had given him, it might not be impossible to wrest control of New Zealand from Edward—unless Edward was unafraid of losing his throne.

Four days passed in the blink of an eye. By the time Arthur finished his survey, the warship had already sailed into the Port of Sydney.

Because they were keeping a low profile, there were not many people there to welcome him. Only Butler Hunter and Governor Evan stood waiting in the wind at the port.

"Your Highness!"

When the two saw Arthur disembark from the warship under the protection of several guards, they hurried forward and spoke respectfully.

"Butler Hunter, how are my mother and Patricia doing?" Arthur asked with a smile.

Butler Hunter had looked after Arthur's family's daily life ever since the days when Arthur was Duke Arthur. He was one of Arthur's most trusted assistants.

"Very well, Your Highness. The only issue is that the two young ladies have been wanting to go out and play in the streets of Sydney. But under your orders, they were only allowed to move around near the Government Building, so they had to give up." At the mention of Miss Patricia and Miss Marguerite, Butler Hunter's face immediately filled with a smile.

"Hmm. If they want to go out and play, let them. Australia is stable now, but they still need to have the proper guards with them. Give each of the two young ladies a monthly allowance of one thousand pounds, and let them spend the next couple of days touring Australia properly!" Arthur said with a smile.

When they had first arrived in Australia, Arthur had ordered his two younger sisters not to stray too far from the Government Building as a precaution.

Now, Australia's situation had stabilized, and its economy was flourishing.

It was time to lift that order and let them properly explore their new homeland.

"Yes, Your Highness." Butler Hunter nodded.

"Governor Evan, how is the Lower House's vote progressing?" Arthur asked, turning his gaze toward Governor Evan, who had been waiting nearby for a long time.

Before Arthur left, he had given the Lower House a task: to vote on the officials for the first Cabinet Government.

To ensure the authority and fairness of the vote, the election had been divided into two rounds. The first round would select three candidates for each Cabinet position, and the second would determine the specific members of the Cabinet Government.

"Very smoothly, Your Highness. Two days ago, we successfully finalized the list of candidates. Now we only have to select the final Cabinet Government list under your witness." Governor Evan spoke with a smile.

The election of the Cabinet Government was a major event for the nation. Even though Arthur had ordered them to hold the election as quickly as possible, the Lower House had not dared finalize the list of Cabinet Members without Arthur present.

As a result, the final election date had been postponed again and again. Even now, only the first round of selection had just been completed.

"Hmm. The process still needs to be accelerated. Notify all the members of Parliament that the final election will be held three days from now. Decide on the members of our Cabinet Government as soon as possible. The government's various development projects should also begin as quickly as possible." Arthur nodded and issued his order.

Australia's various developments were now in their golden age, but the nation could not develop without a Cabinet Government.

Therefore, the final members of the Cabinet Government had to be decided as quickly as possible, followed by an immediate transition into the process of national development.

After all, Arthur remained the ultimate decision-maker for Australia's development. The Cabinet Government's greater role was to carry out Arthur's orders.

Therefore, for every Cabinet Government official, loyalty mattered more than ability.

"Yes, Your Highness." Governor Evan hurriedly nodded.

For Governor Evan, this was also the easiest opportunity he had ever had to enter the Cabinet.

First, he concurrently served as governor and Prime Minister. Although his authority was not particularly great, his prestige was considered the highest among all the officials.

Second, because Australia's capital was in New South Wales, Governor Evan had also had more contact with Arthur than any other governor.

As long as he won Arthur's favor and trust, his hope of entering the Cabinet Government would be even greater.

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