I will be crowned king

After careful consideration, Anson decided to observe first.

Of course, this has absolutely nothing to do with being cowardly. At most, it is just from the heart - even if I tell Luther Franz the situation, the other party may not terminate such an important meeting just because of such a "little" unexpected accident. Mediation, right?

As for the Inquisition... I just made a small suggestion. Whether to adopt it or not is entirely their business, right?

What's more, they also have their own intelligence network, and they may already know that the Black Mage is back; even if there is a one-in-a-million chance, if they really decide to be reckless once, they have time to stop, right?

To sum up, voluntarily self-destructing is a stupid act that is reckless and does not give oneself any retreat. Being decisive and following one's heart is a decision that is responsible for oneself and rational enough...

Well, I'm just timid.

Sitting in the shadow in the corner of the smoking room, Anson was holding a cup of coffee leisurely, enjoying the cake that Lisa had given him, and admiring the "drama" that was going on in front of him.

An elf, a woman, an old man.

Three figures sit around the fireplace, constantly changing the objects and expressions of conversation among the psychedelic smoke, the flickering wine glasses, and the dim firelight of the fireplace; trying their best to show sincerity to one person, and then convey it to the other. hypocritical.

The scene of mediation and negotiation in front of him made Anson couldn't help but recall the gangster movies of his previous life; the Archbishop, dressed in a formal suit and holding a pipe in his hand, always overlapped with a man masturbating a cat in his sight.

Maurice Périgord, the ambassador of the Kingdom of Iser, is an elf who looks very similar to a human. He claims to have one-eighth of the blood of the Ostria family. His conversation is humorous and he often quotes scriptures. The other two smiled knowingly.

Compared with his elegant words, his attitude was extremely tough; Luther Franz interrupted the quarrel time and time again and tried to persuade Morris to give in, but was rejected; and whenever the archbishop proposed conditions, He will very cleverly lead the topic to other places.

This meaningless conversation lasted for nearly thirty minutes. The elf ambassador, who put down his empty wine glass, asked to go to the bathroom. This euphemistic "truce" invitation was immediately approved by the other two.

"boom."

As the door closed, two voices of relief sounded almost simultaneously in the smoking room.

"He still wants more concessions."

Luther Franz put down his pipe, with the blazing fire reflected in his pupils: "The situation on the front line can no longer be hidden, we have to give the elves something practical."

"Can't you find a way to bribe this sissy?" Holding a glass of floral-scented wine, Mrs. Catalina said very dissatisfied:

"Old Luther, do you know how much losses the Railway Commission has borne for the kingdom because of this damn war? The daily maintenance costs and employee wages alone have already made many people dissatisfied!"

Catarina Vera, the widow of former Railway Commission Chairman Conse Vera, single-handedly supported the Vera family after her husband's death; because the Kingdom of Clovis stipulated that women were not allowed to become members of parliament, she had to find a She married her husband and supported him as the new chairman.

Anson had an acquaintance with this lady: she and her pale husband were among the five people who watched the murder on the Iron Sky.

Including Viscount Bogner, three of the five "audiences" of the murder were shills for a certain novelist... Whenever he thought of this incident, Anson regretted why he didn't shoot him.

"Just because he is greedy enough, he will appear here tonight." Luther Franz said coldly:

"The traditional handicrafts and dances of the Yser Elf are very popular. I have allocated a low-interest loan of 100,000 gold coins to his luxury store and dance school...just to make him willing to negotiate tonight."

"One hundred thousand gold coins? Is he an elf or a vampire?!"

The stunned Lady Caterina cursed angrily. Not only her, but Anson sitting in the corner couldn't help but gasped.

Just through negotiation, you can get one hundred thousand gold coins...this money can arm ten full infantry regiments!

"He is a greedy elf like a vampire, which is exactly what we need." Seeing the disgusted expression of Lady Catalina opposite him, Archbishop Luther, who was puffing away his smoke, put out his pipe:

"What this greedy elf wants now is not money, but an ambassadorial status that allows him to continue making money. We need to give him some capital to brag in front of the Elf King."

Mrs. Caralina sighed: "So what do you need me to do, old Luther?"

"The short answer is, I want you to convince the Railroad Commission to cut the workforce by one-tenth."

"What?!"

"You heard me right, Lady Caterina, I want the Railway Commission to lay off one-tenth of its staff in the royal capital." The archbishop wrote lightly:

“In return, I assure you as Archbishop that the Church of Order will not reduce any investment in the railway company.”

"This will not only show the Elf King Yser that Clovis has no intention of invading them, but also alleviate your current loss situation."

"My Lord Archbishop, do you know what you are talking about?!"

"Yes, I'm awake."

"The Railroad Commission has forty thousand employees in Clovis. Are you going to turn four thousand railroad workers into homeless men?"

"I'm sorry for their situation."

"This matter requires the approval of the entire committee, which I, a small chairman, cannot do!"

"I have great confidence in you."

Looking at the unwavering Archbishop, Lady Catalina frowned angrily: "I don't understand, Old Luther, I really don't understand... It was you who fought against all odds and got the Church of Order to agree to establish a new home in the Kingdom of Clovis. You gave us the first investment to build the railway, and you made an exception by letting the church give us the technology!"

"Now you are destroying it for a disgusting vampire, why?!"

"On the contrary, I am doing this to protect it." Luther Franz calmly poured a glass of wine and gently pushed it in front of Mrs. Catalina:

"When the Elf Ambassador of Ithel comes back, you're going to sit here and tell him that the Railroad Commission is willing to give in...right?"

The indignant Lady Caterina looked at the archbishop's emotionless face. The slightly threatening words made her slowly stand up, pick up the wine glass and drink it all in one gulp, then coldly walked out of the room.

Anson and Luther Franz were the only two people left in the smoke-filled smoking room.

"Do you think I'm particularly ruthless?"

In the empty room, Luther Franz suddenly spoke without warning.

Are you asking me? Anson, who was sitting in the corner, was a little confused. He could only smile reluctantly and said: "No, I think you are trying your best to avoid a war... This requires a lot of courage."

"Courage?" The Archbishop suddenly showed a sarcastic smile:

"Then let me tell you another thing. Regardless of tonight's mediation, these four thousand people will be fired - because the outbreak of the war led to the port blockade, the railway committee, which has suffered heavy losses, has long been discussing the matter of laying off workers. .”

"And the actual number of people they're going to lay off is 8,000."

Luther Franz sipped the wine in the glass. The bright purple-red liquid looked like blood against the fire.

"The only thing that can stop them is that firing too many people will cause the railway company's stock price to fall, causing the Church of Order to reduce its support for them."

"Now that she has permission from me, I guess she is in a hurry to go to her husband and tell the waiting committee members about the 'quota' of four thousand people."

Anson suddenly realized.

So that's what happened... Seeing Mrs. Catalina being forced by the Archbishop to leave the table angrily, he almost thought that the other party was a "good nobleman with a conscience"... Sure enough, he was overthinking.

"The railway company will return to profitability. The Elf Ambassador received an investment of one hundred thousand gold coins and his contribution... Now there are only four thousand unemployed railway workers between Clovis City and true peace."

Luther Franz looked back at Anson, with no ripples in his calm eyes: "And you, Anson Bach, will tell Mace Honnard about the railway company's dismissal of employees. Do you understand why?"

Anson nodded silently.

If the Black Mage really plans to start a riot in the outer city, then he will definitely not let these four thousand people go; as long as he follows them, he can find the Old God Sect organization and kill them all.

As for the life and death of these four thousand people...it was not within the scope of their discussion from the beginning. It was just a symbol, not even a number.

"When the banquet is over, you can go to Madam Caterina and ask for information about the four thousand people; she knows your identity, and when she saw you being brought in by me, she must have guessed what I meant - what time is it now?"

"Nine fifty!"

Anson, who took out his pocket watch, immediately replied.

Luther Franz nodded lightly: "It's time for you to meet with Professor Mace Honnard. Do you know what to do?"

"certainly."

As long as he hasn't started fighting with the trial court yet... Anson twitched his lips.

……………………

When the anxious Anson left the smoking room and returned to the hall along the stairs, the atmosphere of the entire banquet was gradually heating up; all the guests had arrived, carefully prepared musicians were playing in the corner of the hall, and the gentlemen and ladies were listening. Listening to soothing music, they pointed at the machines on the display stand in front of the hall and talked about it.

It was an instrument that looked extremely precise. The upper and lower ends were fixed to the brass pipes on both sides of the display stand. Several panting scholars were still fixing it with wrenches; under the illumination of the gas lamp, the connections Thousands of gears on nearly a hundred joysticks are completely exposed, showing an aesthetic that is completely different from traditional handicrafts.

Difference engine.

This was the first time Anson Bach saw the "miracle of the Ring of Order" with his own eyes. In the memory of "pre-Anson", he had only read about it in books; the technology for manufacturing and using difference engines was the Church of Order. top secret, just like the steam core.

The difference engine in front of him was slightly different from the one in his memory. Anson guessed that the model or purpose of the machine might be different.

At this moment, a familiar voice sounded from behind him:

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Anson, who was trembling slightly behind his back, turned around naturally and saw Mace Honnard sitting at the table with a cup of hot coffee and smiling at him:

"Dear Anson, take a rest, the presentation session will begin soon."

Anson nodded with an excited expression, pretending to be nervous and pulled out a chair next to Mace Honnard and sat down.

Although he was definitely nervous.

Looking at his restless student, Professor Mace Honnard smiled gently, took a glass of wine from the passing waiter and handed it to him.

The frightened Anson immediately stretched out his hands to take it. Just when he wanted to express his gratitude to the professor, he heard the professor's gentle words again:

"The information you provided today is important."

Anson froze.

"Relax, my dear student." Mace Honard said leisurely. He took a sip of coffee and turned his eyes to the elf ambassador not far away who was mingling with the guests:

"Look, our Lord Maurice Périgord is so beautiful. Who can remember that not long ago, he and his Ethel Elf Embassy were the most deserted place in the entire inner city. If you want to see His Majesty, you have to advance. bribe."

"In the blink of an eye, he became the most popular darling in the entire Clovis City. He was invited to all banquets... Haha, may the Lord of Order bless him with such good luck."

Mace Honnard smiled and blessed, without any trace of falsehood in his expression.

Anson, who had a stiff smile, simply didn't know what to say.

An Old God spellcaster conveying the blessings of the Circle of Order to another elf...that's a pious thing to know.

But this is not the point... Anson, who calmed down his emotions a little, took the opportunity to take the wine glass and looked at Mace Honnard with a solemn expression:

"Professor, do you plan to..."

"Relax... dear Anson, relax."

The smiling Mace Hornard raised his hand to stop Anson who wanted to ask further: "There are many surprises waiting for us tonight, so don't be so anxious."

Well, what do you mean?

Many surprises... In addition to killing the elf ambassador, does Mace Honard have other plans?

Thinking of this, the sincere Anson suddenly had the urge to turn around and run away!

But he immediately rejected this idea... In addition to the fact that the black mage was sitting next to him and couldn't escape at all, the more important thing was that he didn't know where Lisa was now.

Calm down, be sure to calm down, at least you are safe now... uh... probably... maybe... safe for the time being.

Just as he was thinking wildly, the lights above his head suddenly dimmed, and the entire banquet hall fell into darkness.

Accompanied by the noisy whispers and exclamations of the guests, an amplified voice sounded in front of the display stand:

"Ladies and gentlemen, what will be displayed in front of you tonight is the last work completed by Saint Isaac with the help of many friends in the first year of the Saints calendar!"

“While completing it, Saint Isaac himself did not know whether he had actually succeeded, and he was assassinated that day; and the work fell into obscurity – to this day!”

"The Order Church Research Institute will take the lead and work with colleagues from St. Isaac's College to restore this last work of St. Isaac's a hundred years ago!"

"That exciting moment will happen again tonight!"