The illusion faded, and Xu Yi's figure gradually vanished before Raymond.
Raymond stood where he was, his head lowered as he pondered in silence.
Only after a long while did the sound of footsteps approaching rouse him.
He looked up and saw his mother's familiar face.
"Mother, why didn't you speak to President Xu yourself? Did you... really do something to make him angry?" Unable to suppress his questions, Raymond asked outright.
"Perhaps..." Servini glanced at the spot where the illusion had been and sighed softly. "But this is something very important to me and to the entire Lampari Kingdom. You could even say it is something we must do."
"What exactly is it?" Raymond frowned.
Servini looked deeply into Raymond's eyes.
"Raymond, President Xu just asked whether you were ready to become involved in affairs of state. Now let me ask you this: are you ready to give everything you have for the Lampari Kingdom?"
Raymond immediately straightened his chest and answered proudly, "Of course! I'm ready to give everything for the kingdom at any time!"
"Very good." Servini nodded. "Then let me ask you another question. What do we need most to make the Lampari Kingdom truly powerful?"
"Well..." Raymond froze.
The question was far too broad, leaving him at a loss for an answer.
After thinking for quite some time, he answered hesitantly, "I think it would be... unity and hard work. As long as everyone in the kingdom stands together and works hard, we can strengthen the country in every respect. Then the kingdom will naturally become powerful."
"I'm not asking you to answer a question from your social politics class. I'm asking for something more concrete," Servini said, shaking her head.
A moment later, realization suddenly crossed his face. He snapped his head up, looked