While the three were fast asleep, the higher-ups of the Great Labyrinth City had already begun working overtime.
Those high-ranking officials in charge of domestic affairs have entered the "core" of the Great Labyrinth City to discuss how to treat the foreign envoys.
Meanwhile, the high-ranking officials, whose primary focus was on practical applications, entered the heavily guarded Great Labyrinth City Prison and began inspecting the illegally modified Antasia from the inside out.
The cover of the power compartment was opened, and mechanical arms reached in to pull out the Blood Corpse one by one.
The Blood Corpse, who had been flailing their arms in terror while suspended in the air, calmed down after hearing a somewhat hoarse whistle.
Everyone looked at Gray, who was pushing a wheelchair, with suspicion and uncertainty. The young merchant had a confident look on his face, while the old vampire who whistled looked like he had given up on life.
Seeing that Bennett had made him put on a show in front of so many high-ranking officials in the Graycast Corridor, Gray lowered his head and whispered:
"Well done, as a reward, I won't be shocking you today."
A bearded minister approached Gray, looking at Bennett in his wheelchair with surprise:
"It really is a living, controllable vampire count!"
His voice betrayed his surprise, and even the tone changed at the end:
"Who could have managed to render him incapable of fighting while maintaining the seal that controlled the high-ranking Blood Corpse without affecting it?"
It's no wonder the minister was so surprised. Ever since the Graycast Corridor changed the Blood Corpse's status from "enemy" to "a dangerous material," people have long lost their original awe of the Blood Corpse.
However, they absolutely do not make mistakes in certain matters, and the lessons learned from the bloodshed of their predecessors are passed down from generation to generation among them.
What's happening now is a blatant provocation against a lesson passed down from our predecessors—
"Only Low Tier Blood Corpse without reason can be enslaved; Blood Corpse that have gained reason and titles need to be eliminated as soon as possible."
Just now, Gray simply patted the old man on the shoulder, and the old man emitted a sound that humans could not understand. The group of Blood Corpse then quieted down and were being inspected one by one by the fully armored mechanical warriors.
Seeing the minister's shocked face, Gray bowed and said:
"My lord, as I confessed in my previous statement, this vampire count, and the newly renovated fortress behind you, are actually gifts from the leader of the Second Holy See."
The minister, who had rushed here without fully understanding the situation or reading the confession aloud, was somewhat embarrassed. He realized that his excessive anxiety had revealed that he had not done his homework.
However, now that things had come to this, he, who was good at being straightforward, no longer intended to hide anything, but instead asked the young man in front of him frankly:
"I haven't finished reading it yet. Tell me why you're receiving such preferential treatment?"
Reflecting on Ed's courteous treatment and the unattainable dream of becoming Grand Foundry Master, Gray calmly said:
"Because we can benefit each other— the Graycast Corridor possesses extremely high-level bio-armor production capabilities, enabling them to quickly arm a group of unarmed civilians, giving them the combat power that would otherwise require years of training. The person who established the Second Holy See plans to launch a counterattack against the Holy City, but he doesn't have that many usable people at the moment, so he needs us to provide some bio-armor technology that can be opened up to arm more soldiers."
The minister in front of him nodded:
"Go on."
"And the Second Holy See also possesses what we need: food."
Gray said slowly and deliberately:
"When I first arrived at the Second Holy See, most of the area was still wasteland and forest, but by the time I arrived there a second time, large areas of farmland had been cultivated. These Tree Worship Church are experts in modifying plants, able to Alienation many crop seeds that we don't have and plant them."
"After eliminating some of the resurrected Blood Corpse, their first batch of food has been harvested. Please rest assured, I have personally consumed all the types of food imported this time for an extended period of time and have not experienced any adverse reactions. As for the crops we have never seen before, I have also written a report and submitted it. I wonder if it has reached you?"
The minister before Gray did not choose to answer his final question.
His smile grew even wider as he patted Gray on the shoulder with a laugh.
"Good lad, young people have such drive! To be honest, if I were in your position, I probably wouldn't have the courage to break my spine and take a gamble."
Feeling the pain in his shoulder, Gray looked at the intricate metal structure beneath the minister's coat and thought to himself that it must be quite rare for someone to be in such a sorry state as he had been.
He never lost his respect for the elderly man because of his lack of formality.
Those who can climb to high positions in the Graycast Corridor either possess technical skills or shrewdness, while combat prowess is also an indispensable element.
Gray secretly speculated that the minister with the half-white beard in front of him should be able to fight at least to a draw with a vampire marquis. Of course, this was on the premise that he was fully armed. After all, for the members of the Graycast Corridor, the combat power shown in naked combat and fully armed combat was completely different.
The minister before him laughed heartily twice, patted his chest, and said:
"If the trade route can be successfully established, I will personally present a previously unpublished blueprint for a suit of armor to that visionary leader of the Second Holy See."
Gray paused for a moment, thought for a moment, and then advised:
"My lord, this seems inappropriate..."
The minister waved his hand, signaling him to shut up:
"What's wrong? There's nothing wrong!"
After saying that, he plunged into the Antasia and began to examine the state of the Aberration plants that had grown seamlessly into the fortress.
Watching the busy figures of the many executives, Gray quietly asked Bennett in his wheelchair:
"What are the chief engineer's thoughts in this situation?"
Bennett sighed and said:
"I only hope that Lord Antos will Descent upon this place. With so many high-ranking figures gathered here, if he were to Descent, the Graycast Corridor would be instantly destroyed from within, and the gates of the Demon Realm would be opened to the entire world!"
"Yes, very good."
Gray said emotionlessly:
"At least you're willing to tell me the truth now, which is much better than when you were full of lies and traps."
He paused, then his tone became serious:
"But I don't really like your idea, so..."
"Sizzle~"
"Ughhhhhh..."