Grand Duke Galbutte pondered in silence for a while, then slowly shook his head.
"Your Majesty, I don't think there's any need to worry. Xu Yi may have acted somewhat more aggressively this time than he has in the past, but I don't believe his thinking has changed. Perhaps... he was simply a little impatient this time?"
The Candel emperor glanced sidelong at Grand Duke Galbutte and smiled. "You certainly have a great deal of confidence in Xu Yi."
Grand Duke Galbutte fell silent for a moment, then straightened and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, given what Xu Yi has done over the past ten years, of course I have confidence in him."
Seeing the resolute expression on the face of his most trusted minister, the Candel emperor fell silent.
Ten years ago, when the Xinfei Merchant Guild was at the height of its power and even the combined armies of the Two Great Empires could not withstand the Xinfei Merchant Guild Guard Corps, no one would have believed that Xu Yi had no ambitions.
Yet Xu Yi had casually passed up what everyone considered a golden opportunity, rejecting the temptation of supreme power. Instead, he had worked hard to persuade every country on the continent to commit to developing the magic industry sector, adopting a stance of pursuing development through peace. It had truly defied everyone's expectations.
And for the ten years that followed, Xu Yi had led the Xinfei Merchant Guild in faithfully putting the words of his Bonta Declaration into practice. From beginning to end, he had devoted himself wholeheartedly to helping the countries of the Sains Continent develop their magic industry sectors and improve their people's living conditions, never once deviating from that course.
Leaving other countries aside, the Candel Empire alone had seen tremendous improvements over