Warhammer: Return of the Dragon.

The war will never end, there is no such thing as a post-war period, and every gap is just the prelude to the next fight. The only thing mortals can do is to seize the time to rest and make final preparations for the impending doom...

Final preparation for death.

After the Emperor made it clear that he knew about the declaration of war from Ulthuan, he remained unusually silent about the fate of his neighbor. If it were in the past, Karl would immediately convene the Council of Electors to unite the power of the Empire and curb the rapid growth of the elves' influence in the Old World.

But the real opponent is always the one who knows you best. Karl doesn't want to regard the elves as his opponents. Before he figures out what kind of behemoth Ulthuan will become after the unification of the elves, he thinks it is a good choice to watch from the sidelines for the time being.

Thorgrim's view was simple: while he settled the people of Karak Dreadhold, Pointy-Ears would sort out the mess in Bretonnia, and then the dwarves and elves would unite again and destroy the Skaven city.

Uberrick, a remote town in Reikland, welcomed several important figures at this time.

Imrick served tea and said nothing about what happened in Karak Dreadnought. Apart from a few more scars on his body and the severe damage to Caledor's armor when he walked out of the tunnel, the Phoenix King was as relaxed as ever.

When Carl mentioned things about Ulthuan, the Phoenix King pretended to be surprised and could hardly hold his tea.

"Declared war? That's rare, but I'm not the Dragon Prince. Caledor is now ruled by my descendants and the Council of Nobles. The Phoenix King must respect the sovereignty of each kingdom and will not interfere too much in sensitive matters."

Karl Franz was observing the Phoenix King's demeanor. The elf had no intention of discussing the matter in detail, as if the matter was not important to him.

"May I take it that you had no part in this?"

"No, I just learned about the relevant resolution. The Dragon Court and the Caledor Noble Council did not inform me of the relevant matters."

Imrik, who lied with open eyes, knew that Carl just wanted to get a signal. Was this an invasion of a human kingdom by the elven monarch, or a struggle between an elven force and the human kingdom? If it was the former, the empire that considered itself the overlord of the old world would not sit idly by and watch the collapse of its neighbor's regime.

Although the Holy Grail Grandpa is annoying, he is at least still a human being and a part of the side of order.

Karl stroked his chin and began to ponder what kind of attitude he should adopt here to show the emperor's prestige.

Although the Battle of Dreadnought caused the dwarves to be displaced, the courage and responsibility shown by the Empire still won the recognition of the elves and dwarves, and the High King also praised Carl's wisdom and honor.

Gaining the recognition of the dwarves is very important to the emperor.

He also considered how to keep the dwarves from Karak Dreadnought...

"Your Majesty Thorgrin, how do you plan to resettle the residents of Karak Dreadnought?"

"Eternal Peak has enough..."

"I have an idea, Thorgrin."

Imrik suddenly interrupted, he couldn't just sit there and watch the emperor snatch the short stack away, where could he find a hundred thousand ashes fighters.

"Speak." Thorgrin was obviously more familiar with Imrik, which made Carl feel a little uncomfortable.

"My former flag bearer... Edgar, proposed a plan for the Skaven City at the Caledor Noble Council. We all know that it is impossible to completely destroy the evil city that has been buried underground for thousands of years through normal means. Carl should have a say in this. How long did it take Rick to destroy the Altdorf Underground City?"

Speaking of the city hidden under the palace, Carl's face changed: "Twenty years, it took Rick County twenty years to completely destroy the underground city of Altdorf... but we still believe that the rats are hiding in the dark corners."

"Yes, the scale of the Altdorf underground city is not very large..."

"Let's get straight to the point. I know Skaven better than anyone." Thorgrin looked impatient. He was tired of the elves' temptations. There were a lot of troubles waiting for the High King, but Imrik still had time to talk nonsense. "We are considering digging a giant canal to connect the ocean and the Skaven Magic City, allowing the seawater to flow back into the ground and solve all problems at once."

The pollution problem does not need to be compared with the trouble caused by the Skaven. Imrik also agrees with this idea. The power of nature has been fully demonstrated in Karak Dreadnought. Rats are good at digging holes, but elves are good at making waves.

"This is a bold plan... You want the dwarves of Fort Dreadnought to be the construction workers of this canal."

“It requires taking a little risk…”

"Okay, I agree."

As Imrick expected, Thorgren agreed very quickly without asking for specific details, as if he was throwing a hot potato and couldn't wait to solve it.

Seeing the elves were somewhat surprised, Thorgrim rubbed his temples with his big hands and sighed: "At least half of the Dreadnought Dwarves are ready to go to Kadrin... Let them fight with the rats in vain, why not try your bold idea.

If you need the dwarves to do anything else, I will listen to you this time."

"Belegar, he is an expert at digging holes. Perhaps you should consider asking him to come back from Highland Castle and contribute to the cause of rat extermination."

Carl, who couldn't get a word in, felt that the elves and dwarves' heated discussion was more and more weird. During the summit, Imrik and Thorgrim would debate endlessly over some small issues, and their words were so heated that they seemed about to fight.

But it seems that after having a common goal, the monarchs of two different races were able to put aside all prejudices and achieve effective cooperation in the fastest way.

Out of politeness, Carl wasn't going to get involved in this weird conversation, but someone would always notice him.

"Emperor Franz, what do you think of this?"

Maybe Atila wanted to see the joke, or maybe she really wanted to help Kal. The sharp-minded princess had noticed the emperor's embarrassment. Originally, this was a post-war conversation between monarchs, but because of the familiarity between the elves and dwarves, it turned into a two-way cooperation agreement.

"The Empire supports this. The threat of the Skaven is imminent and we cannot sit idly by. But if we focus on the Withered Swamp, all the issues determined at the summit will be put on hold in the short term..."

"There is no need to rush the expedition to Norsca, but the Skaven must be dealt with..." Atila responded and made a seemingly strange request.

"Compared to these things, as Prince Terenlock, I have sent an invitation to the Emperor of the Empire on behalf of the Lord of Caledor. Prince Draknir sincerely invites you to go to Tal Kaled. Before the fleet sets off..."

"How come I didn't know about this?" Imrik stopped his heated discussion with Thorgrin, turned around and asked his wife, "Are you guys secretly doing something behind my back and don't recognize me as the Phoenix King?"
"You can continue to discuss with the High King how to eliminate the ratmen, and don't have to bother dealing with diplomatic affairs." Atila rolled her eyes, her tone full of disgust. When it comes to killing ratmen, you are more anxious than anyone else, and no one wants to pay attention to you.

"Now?" Carl asked doubtfully. Even if the post-war affairs were handed over to Kurt, it would take at least several months to reach Ulthuan from Altdorf.

Atila nodded solemnly: “As you can see, the world is facing many challenges. The war between Caledor and Bretonnia is by no means due to some boring personal grudges... Draconir believes that the capabilities demonstrated by the Empire in the future will far exceed the expectations of the War Council. Caledor is eager to deepen cooperation with the Empire, which has nothing to do with the matters discussed at the summit.

I will arrange for the best wizards to prepare military-grade teleportation spells to ensure that you can see Prince Caledor immediately, and if it is safe...Imric!"

"Well, you guys are really good at making trouble for me..." Imrick reluctantly took out a bunch of things that looked like the seal of the Phoenix King and threw them to his wife: "Karl, I am an old friend... Of course, this is all nonsense. I will fully guarantee your safety. During your stay in Ulthuan, any threat to you will be a provocation to me and my family."

Carl first looked at the High King, and after getting Thorgrin's nod, he smiled. This was a good piece of steel for forging. He was worried that he had difficulty figuring out the strength of the elves.

The emperor smiled and agreed to the invitation.

"It seems I can't refuse." (End of this chapter)