"Over there in that Graycast Corridor?"
With the defense of the Empire and the deployment of troops to the Demon Realm settled, the sinister Divine Wings brought up the assassination plan for Suolaer again.
"That idiot went crazy for failing to become the Grand Foundry Master!"
Hard Armor said disdainfully:
"Whether it succeeds or fails, the only thing an assassination can do is harm himself! He should understand this better than anyone! Don't forget his—"
"Hmm... isn't this a good thing?"
Another voice suddenly came from behind them, and the councilors all fell silent in response to their confusion.
But then the Whale Tail flicked its nimble tail and said calmly:
"I think it's worth a try, but don't get your hopes up too high."
It looked at the other skeletons:
"Whether the assassination of the Grand Foundry Master succeeds or fails, it can plunge the Graycast Corridor into a short period of internal strife."
"At this point, whether Suolaer seizes the opportunity to gain momentum or is exposed and killed, it will be a good thing for us."
Whale Tail said calmly:
"Now that we have decided on the plan to send out troops in waves, let's stop thinking about getting more ships from the Graycast Corridor."
"On the contrary, what we need to consider is keeping the Graycast Corridor from looking east, so that our plan can be completed without anyone noticing."
"Assassinating the Grand Foundry Master would be a very good method."
"We could even deliberately let the assassination fail, anger the newly appointed Grand Foundry Master, watch him uncover a major case, and create chaos in the Graycast Corridor, ultimately exposing that fool Suolaer."
"With Suolaer dead, we can now recruit new adventurers and artisans."
The council chamber, furnished with a stone round table and high-backed chairs, was deathly silent. After a long while, the skeletal councilor, Divine Wings, clapped repeatedly with his skeletal hands.
"That's a great idea. Leave this to me; I'll select a few loyal followers to do it."
At this moment, the Hard Armor skeleton suddenly raised its hand and said:
"Although I oppose assassination, since you all agree, I will not offer any further opinion."
"However, there's one more thing. I noticed the description of the ' Second Holy See ' in the briefing. Although it's currently just a medium-sized rebel force located in the north of the Theocracy, should we establish contact with them beforehand? Or should we take action?"
"Didn't that visitor from afar also mention the Second Holy See? I remember he used the term 'scabies' to describe it back then, haha, I wonder if it's already seeped into my bones by now."
Upon hearing this, the members of Congress burst into laughter. After a few laughs, Crown said:
"In fact, you can take a look at the third briefing on this matter. That report came from a sandcastle in the northwest of the Alliance, and we haven't received any similar news yet."
The councilors quickly found the last briefing and began reading. The Essence Knight, thousands of miles away, had provided a detailed description of the Soul Returner —a new species—including, but not limited to, the personality traits, average combat strength, and lifestyle habits of these creatures.
Unrestrained and capricious – will push and pull any door they see, and if it's not locked, will go in and rummage through it in a very impolite manner;
Lacking common sense – having almost no knowledge of the history of the Empire and the Alliance, the exact words were that they only knew there were these two forces in the south, and even asked why the Skeleton Alliance, which is clearly a council system, still has a class of knights;
Impulsive and easily angered – he frequently demands that the soldiers stationed at the sandcastle spar with him, and each time he resorts to violence.
Money-grubbing – willing to accept any offer of payment, even for a small sum;
And most importantly: they fall asleep instantly – the Soul Returner spend nearly half of their time sleeping each day. Once they clearly indicate that they need rest, nothing can wake them up. This is currently classified as a side effect of being resurrected after death.
In general, the Soul Returner is a type of undead creature that has been resurrected. Based on known information, its combat power is significantly enhanced after resurrection compared to its pre-mortem state. It is more hyperactive and irritable, and prone to emotional outbursts. However, its weaknesses are also obvious: it has an unusually strong desire for money and experiences a fixed period of weakness (disconnection) each day.
Therefore, although the Soul Returner may seem dangerous, they are actually quite easy to manage if properly commanded.
In the briefing, the Essence Knight of the northwestern sandcastle stated that they had sent a Soul Returner to deliver a message requesting the hiring of one hundred elite Soul Returner from the mysterious powerful Adrian to assist in the defense.
He reported this matter to apply for funding and, incidentally, to inquire with the members of parliament whether they were interested in promoting the plan.
The five skeleton councilors finished reading the briefing, and then, for what seemed like the umpteenth time that day, fell silent.
Clearly, today's emergency meeting was indeed urgent enough; none of the three issues were easy to handle.
"Come on, let's all talk about it. Why are you holding back?"
Crown glanced around at the group, finally fixing his gaze on the senator directly opposite him:
" Hard Armor, you are in charge of the western front. I believe this matter can be left to you to make the decision. The four of us will not express any opinions."
The Crown skull then looked at the other three:
"Is everything alright? Anyway, what we need to focus on is the other battlefield, while the war in the Demon Realm must be kept secret and outsiders must not be allowed to interfere."
The Divine Wings, the Giant Arms, and the Whale Tail nodded, handing over the decision-making power to the Hard Armor.
The Hard Armor skeleton pondered for a long time before finally saying:
"I think we should approve the funding request first. I'll send a few trusted men to oversee the operation. If the results are as described in the Essence Knight' briefing, then we can proceed with additional hiring later."
"Agree."
The Crown skull nodded.
"Agree."
The Divine Wings, the Giant Arms, and the Whale Tail all spoke at once.
"Since that's the case..."
The Crown once again turned its gaze toward the Hard Armor:
"So how should we handle the relationship between our Skeleton Alliance and the Second Holy See?"
"After all, you just said you had to choose between building connections and taking action."
Hard Armor nodded and said:
"I think it depends on the quality of the Soul Returner. If they are just mediocre, then there is no need to spend any more money. We can just condemn them diplomatically, since they can't fight us anyway."
"If the Soul Returner are indeed as elite as that knight said, we can temporarily establish a good relationship with them, and it would be best to obtain preferential treatment in hiring Soul Returner. Although this is Adrian's business and not Ed's, at least for now they are still united and have not broken apart, right?"
"Agree."
The four members of parliament spoke in unison, and then asked in Crown:
"The three items for today's emergency meeting have been discussed. Are there any other topics?"
"No."
The four councilors spoke in turn, and then all five stood up. Crown looked around at the four and said:
"Alright, everyone, please go ahead and get busy."
"May everything go smoothly, and may the Alliance reach new heights."