Making demands
"Will Mr. Kask cooperate with us?" Kronos asked.
This matter can only be addressed by Portland talking to Kask, since Kronos is not very familiar with him and there is no basis for mutual trust.
"Although Kask isn't an Beyonder, the Wolf Family still has some family traditions and knows about the mutual distrust between the Royal Family and the church. Therefore, he's still sensible enough not to offend the Royal Family for such a small political achievement."
That's true. Those politicians who aren't at a high level might not know, but the Wolf Family is an Earl, so it's impossible for them not to know these things. Therefore, it's impossible for them to side with the church.
"Let's go to the Higher Education Committee together later and explain these pros and cons to him. He's unlikely to be that naive."
Upon hearing Portland's statement, Kronos nodded in agreement.
Professor Portland originally planned to leave right now, but with only so much time to deal with matters at Backlund University, it wouldn't be right to just leave here. So, after being persuaded by Kronos, he decided to finish up first before leaving.
Since Portland was dealing with university affairs, Kronos flipped through Portland's mechanical structure manuscripts.
Kronos's understanding of mechanical structures was indeed limited, but he could still see the value of Portland's stack of manuscripts. If all of them were realized, it would be no problem to accelerate the pace of technological development by a whole new level. That's the power of a top Scientists.
But this very Scientists, fearing being bothered by trivial matters, dared not advance to his extraordinary level.
If such a Scientists could live for hundreds or even thousands of years, Kronos couldn't even imagine how far society would develop.
Thinking about all this, Kronos's aversion to the Church of Steam and Machinery inexplicably increased.
Professor Portland worked until after 11 a. m., without even having time for lunch or a break, and then dragged Kronos straight to the Higher Education Committee.
The two men arrived at Mr. Kask's office just before he was about to take his lunch break and cornered him inside.
The three men spent over two hours in Kask's office plotting and refining the entire plan.
Portland and Kask, after all, lived several decades longer than Kronos, so their joint plan was far more comprehensive than Kronos'.
As for Kronos's suggestion to personally deliver the message, it was immediately rejected by the two of them. Who knew if there were any people or Beyonder Item monitoring the area near those two Church?
Once you leave a trace, these people will definitely come knocking on your door, and then it won't be easy to escape.
Therefore, the best approach is to have multiple layers of delegation, and finally send a completely unaware stranger to deliver the message.
Their main strategy was to delay for a few days, and then deliver the Message to the other two churches on that day.
Portland and Kask shared similar views with Kronos, believing it to be a good opportunity to exploit the Church of Steam and Machinery.
Once the Message reaches the ears of the Church of Steam and Machinery, they will most likely begin to pull strings, and Portland and Kask, as the leaders of this Project, will certainly receive a substantial gift.
None of the three felt guilty about giving a gift like this.
But the timing has to be carefully controlled and done naturally, otherwise, if they were really targeted by a True God Churches and a Sequence 3 Archbishop, not to mention the three of them who are nobody, even His Majesty George III would be in trouble.
During the seminar that afternoon, Kronos made no attempt to conceal his proposal for Church of Steam and Machinery.
The Church of Steam and Machinery was brought into the Research Center, and its best members provided regular training to Research Center researchers to improve their overall skills.
Their previous estimates were correct; most people present had no idea what the Church of Steam and Machinery's purpose was, and many even thought the Church of Steam and Machinery was of noble character.
So they started performing as planned.
Kronos was the one who provided support, Professor Portland, who had never been fond of the Church of Steam and Machinery, continued his persona and resolutely opposed it, while Kask remained absolutely neutral.
The meeting lasted from 2 PM until after 5 PM, but in the end, no conclusion was reached, so it had to be postponed until next time.
The Backlund Technical College Reorganization Group doesn't meet every day; usually it's only two or three times a week. Today was just a coincidence that they happened to be having a meeting.
Kronos and his two companions planned to delay him for a week, so that Kronos could go to the Church of Steam and Machinery today to apply for what he wanted, Kask could also receive a generous gift before the next meeting.
As for Portland, what he wanted wasn't just anything ordinary, but some advanced technology, or an opportunity that could inspire him—something even the Church of Steam and Machinery wouldn't easily obtain. He would only proceed with the proposal once he had it.
So Kronos is currently on his way to the Saint Hilleran Cathedral.
In the eyes of the Church of Steam and Machinery, Kronos's contribution was not significant, so they wouldn't give him anything valuable. Fortunately, Kronos's request wasn't high either; he just wanted to borrow Emperor Roselle's items for a week or two, which would be enough for Kronos to Record all the Information about the Black Emperor Card.
Kronos was now an "important" figure in the Saint Hilleran Cathedral, so as soon as Kronos stepped into Gate Church, someone led him to the back of the Church.
"Brother Kronos, have you come to bring me good Message?" Ikanser asked directly.
Kronos looked distressed. "Captain Ikanser, we had a meeting today, so I brought up your ideas. Actually, many people agreed with your efforts; nearly half of the people approved them on the spot."
"However, some members of this Reorganization Group still don't quite understand your good intentions."
Ikanser showed no change in expression upon hearing Kronos's words, as he had expected it.
There will always be some people who can figure out what the Church of Steam and Machinery is trying to do, and there will be others who are staunch supporters of the Royal Family and don't like the church interfering in anything.
Kronos continued, "The person in charge of our Reorganization Group is Mr. Kask Wolf. His attitude is quite subtle; he neither supports nor opposes it, just sits there smiling and watching. I can't quite figure out what he means."
"The main problem is Professor Portland; he's the one who's firmly opposed. No matter how much I try to persuade him, he won't soften his stance at all, and there's nothing I can do about it."
When Ikanser heard the name Portland, he frowned slightly. He clearly knew the name; it was a stubborn, unyielding rock that wouldn't easily yield.
"Kask?" Ikanser repeated the name softly.
"Yes, Mr. Kask Wolf, he's a member of the Higher Education Committee, now the head of our group, and a very influential person," Kronos quickly introduced.
Ikanser asked, "Wolf? Isn't that an Earl?"
"That's right, Earl Wolf is Mr. Kask's younger brother."
Ikanser nodded knowingly, then continued, "Do you know what this gentleman's hobbies are?"
Here comes the real drama—isn't this exactly what Kronos and the other two have been waiting for?
Kronos hesitated for a moment, then said, "I heard that this old gentleman was originally supposed to be the heir to the Earl Wolf, but after making a name for himself in politics, he gave up his right to inherit the title and passed it on to his younger brother."
"I feel that he doesn't have much need for material things, but he doesn't understand much about politics and power."
Kronos's hints were very clear; he essentially said it outright.
Ikanser naturally understood, but this matter was indeed a bit difficult to handle.
The Church of Steam and Machinery has virtually no influence in the political and military spheres, so it has virtually no hope of helping such a person advance in the ranks on its own. The only option is to engage in some exchanges of benefits with other forces.
However, Ikanser naturally wouldn't show any of this in front of Kronos, so he simply nodded.
Seeing that Ikanser had lost all desire to communicate, Kronos cursed inwardly, thinking, "This guy really uses me when he needs me and then doesn't use me when he doesn't. He hasn't shown me any interest at all."
Then we'll have to fight for it ourselves, so Kronos spoke up, "Captain Ikanser, I'd like to ask if our Church has anything left behind by Emperor Roselle?"
Ikanser glanced at him, surprised that this little guy would actually ask for a reward on his own.
"I don't know. Okay, wait here for a moment, I'll go ask the Archbishop." After saying that, Ikanser turned and left.
Kronos truly hadn't expected this person to have such a way of doing things, and he really wanted to throw a few Scroll at him.
Even the gatekeepers at the Church entrance knew that there were items belonging to Emperor Roselle Church, yet this Captain of the Machinery Hivemind of the Backlund Diocese claimed he didn't know, clearly trying to Gloves.
Ikanser walked all the way to the door of Archbishop Horamick's room.
He straightened his clothes and then knocked on the door.
"Please come in." An aged voice came from inside the house.
Ikanser then slowly pushed Gate and respectfully walked in.
Archbishop Horamick sat on the sofa in the room, holding a book in his hand, reading intently.
Ikanser bowed slightly as he walked up to him and said, "Archbishop, that lad from the Argel Family has arrived."
Horamick didn't even look up, and said directly, "What is it? Just say it."