Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

"The Ursus Empire can't offer any terms. What nonsense are you spouting? You must be exhausted today. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have summoned you to the palace so late at night. Go back and rest."

Witt finally raised his head and gave Fyodor, who was hidden in the shadow of the Ursus Empire's double-headed eagle symbol, a deep look. He bowed slightly, put his gray bowler hat on his head, turned around, and walked towards the door.

Suddenly, Fyodor's pleading voice came from behind:

"Witt, are you telling the truth?"

Witt pursed his lips, didn't answer, opened the door, and left without looking back.

He couldn't answer, because the answer was already in everyone's heart.

What could the Ursus Empire offer to negotiate with Victoria, a rising world order builder and a declining, fading war empire? Ursus only had the power to choose: to accept Victoria's visit or not.

As for what they could get from Victoria, Witt felt that Ursus had no say in the matter. Although theoretically, Ursus should have that power—if His Majesty Fyodor were to declare Ursus back at war, restart the war machine, and plunge Ursus into another conflict, he would certainly have the right to negotiate with Victoria; on the battlefield, Ursus was second to none!

But if that were the case, future generations, when referring to this period of the Ursus Empire, would say it was a microcosm of the previous emperor's era, the last vestiges of an empire. Then, the Ursus Empire might become just a "legend" passed down by word of mouth among some romantic bards.

War will destroy this country!

The following day, the Emperor's envoy appeared at the chaotic Duma meeting, and surrounded by royalists, formally announced the decision to receive the Victorian delegation. As for any agreements that Ursus and Victoria could reach...

“His Majesty the magnanimous and benevolent Fyodor will allow ten gentlemen from among you each day to visit Victoria’s envoy in their own way and personally explain their insights and aspirations to him.”

In short, I'm done with you guys, you can say whatever you want, it's up to you.

A reasonably decent and clever way to deal with it.

Amidst the astonished and delighted gazes of the crowd, the State Duma chamber was filled with shouts of "Long live His Majesty!" A joyous atmosphere permeated both inside and outside the parliament.

.........

Victoria, Lentinium.

Wayne had just returned to Victoria when he began his work.

He first sought out the elderly Kal'tsit, asking her to help draft the declaration abolishing the sacred treaty. Yes, he had her ghostwrite it. Wayne couldn't write such grammatically complex and sophisticated Victorian literature.

He then summoned Winston and handed over Edward's urn along with the pair of gleaming dragon horns.

Winster was initially a little uncomfortable with Wayne's sudden act of giving him an urn, thinking that Wayne was implying that the unicorn's negligence at Lungmen had almost put Wayne in danger, and that Wayne was warning him not to get senile and end up in an urn.

But after Wayne explained the origin of the urn and took out the pair of dragon horns, a strange and indescribable look flashed in Winster's eyes.

Edward Atrias. A Drak who chose to flee in the struggle for the throne, ultimately died in a foreign land. Winston probably never imagined that more than ten years after he had the unicorn pressure Wei Yanwu and cooperated with the Yan Kingdom's true dragon to force Wei Yanwu to kill Edward, he would see Edward again, albeit in this way.

He gently stroked the dragon horns, then looked at Wayne and asked:

"What do you intend to do, Your Highness?"

“I need you to be a witness. In all of Victoria, you are the only one qualified.”

It is ancient enough to have witnessed the truce between Drak and Aslan, the signing of the Holy Treaty, the transition of Victoria from the Age of the Red Dragons to the Age of the Lion Kings, Victoria's rise from unification to its current status as the leading power on Terra, and the creation of the world system with Victoria at its head. Across the entire land, perhaps no one knows Victoria as well as Winster.

Only he is qualified to be a witness, to witness the passing of another era of Victoria and the beginning of a new era for Victoria.

Winster nodded emphatically:

"My pleasure, Your Highness!"

Chapter 128 My Senior Citizen Allowance

Ursus Empire, Tundra, Infected Guerrilla Forces – “Shield” Temporary Outpost.

Talulah gently rubbed the large, swollen bump on the forehead of the Elafia girl in front of her, and asked with some concern:

"Are they being watched by the disciplinary squad again?"

Alina nodded with a wry smile:

“We’ve lingered in this area for far too long, Talulah. The disciplinary squad is already here. If it weren’t for Miss Yelena and the Yetis keeping watch nearby today, I might not have made it back…”

"Don't say things like that." Talulah covered Alina's mouth, her beautiful eyebrows furrowing in anger, and retorted, "You won't be in danger. No matter what happens, I will protect you."

Alina's gaze softened, and she patted Talulah's hand, signaling her to let go.

"Of course I believe you. But we have to move as soon as possible. This village has been targeted by the police. Although the villagers have helped us hide, if we show up in the vicinity again, the police may take action against the civilians in the village."

Using the massacre of civilians as a pretext to coerce the guerrillas and hidden infected into revealing themselves is a common tactic of the picket line. In this vast, icy plain far from Saint-Germain-des-Prés, where even intercity networks don't cover it, no one will hold them accountable. Talulah knows the importance of not involving civilians, especially since the villagers in this village are unusually tolerant of the guerrillas; she doesn't want them to be harmed by the picket line.

After a moment's hesitation, she decided to say:

"Let's move tonight under cover of darkness. You go and inform the old people and children in the camp, and I'll go and inform Yelena and the others. The Shield Guards don't take orders from me, but they'll listen to Yelena to some extent. If we ask her, maybe we can get the Shield Guards to help cover our retreat."

As she spoke, she paused, gritted her teeth, and took out a Kosichean gold coin from her somewhat dirty and old military uniform, handing it to Alina.

"Give this to the people in this village."

Koschei was a Grand Duke, entitled to issue his own precious metal currency within his duchy, though the national currency of the Ursus Empire also circulated. One Koschei gold coin was roughly equivalent to three Ursus gold coins. In a country where a poor person's year's labor could only earn a single silver coin, a Koschei gold coin worth the equivalent of three hundred Ursus silver coins was undoubtedly a fortune.

Alina looked at her best friend with some surprise, and Talulah quickly explained:

"No, no, this is something I confiscated from the disciplinary squad last time..."

She didn't want to reveal her identity to Alina, and she didn't want to have any further connection with Koschche.

"If it weren't for the kind help of the villagers, we might not have survived the harsh winter just two weeks ago. In that case, our team would have suffered huge losses. They saved our lives, and this is just a small token of our gratitude."

Alina smiled, accepting Talulah's explanation, took the gold coins, and nodded.

"I will help."

Talulah breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as she was about to go find Yelena to discuss the evacuation, a commotion arose outside the tents in the camp. She frowned, pulled back the curtain, and went out, only to find that the warriors, including even the seemingly unapproachable Yeti squad and the taciturn Shield Guards, were gathered at the camp entrance, cheering loudly. They seemed completely unconcerned that such a commotion would attract the attention of the patrols roaming nearby.

Talulah curiously stepped forward and asked, "What are you doing!"

"It's the captain! The captain is back!" the young man with the scar on his face cheered. Although there was still a thick wall of people in front of him, and he couldn't see the tall figure in the distance, just hearing the news made him forget the cold and feel full of energy again!

This is the power of a strong backbone!

"Captain? Has Mr. Patriot returned?!"

Talulah's expression faltered slightly, then she exclaimed with delight, trying to squeeze to the front of the crowd. However, she was completely blocked by the impenetrable wall of shield guards at the front. Even her calls for the shield guards were drowned out by the loud cheers and went unnoticed. Just as Talulah was stamping her foot in frustration, a pair of large hands gently grabbed her hem and lifted her up. In her stunned yet slightly flustered gray eyes, she saw the tall figure of Bozokasti.

The Sarkaz giant, the Ursus warrior, had a slight smile in his crimson eyes as he said calmly:

"Long time no see... Leader... It seems... I'm not too late to come back."

Bozokastie originally thought that when he returned, the number of people in the camp would likely have drastically decreased. After all, without his strongest combat force, the Yetis and Shield Guards alone would not be able to raid the black mines on the snowfields. They could win, but it would leave the rear defense forces vulnerable. You must know that the guerrillas are not only composed of combat personnel, but also include many elderly, weak, women, children and infected people. They have no combat ability and can only be protected.

Without the ability to raid Ursus's stronghold, it would be difficult to obtain sufficient supplies and food. Without supplies and food, it would be difficult to survive the blizzards that could strike at any moment on the tundra, and many would die from the harsh weather. But to his surprise, the camp was not small in number.

Talulah tried to break free but failed. She remained suspended in that position, offering an awkward yet polite smile.

“Welcome back, Mr. Patriot. Your return is timely; we are preparing to evacuate this area. Ursus's scouts have tracked us here. Your return increases our chances of a successful evacuation.”

"No...."

Patriot shook his head. Under Talulah's puzzled gaze, he released the little Drak girl, pulled the heavy halberd stuck in a nearby rock, and said loudly:

"We...aren't leaving!"

"We...fight back!"

Talulah's expression changed, and she quickly said:

“Mr. Patriot, you've just returned and may not be aware of our current situation. Although the guerrillas haven't suffered major losses recently, their supplies are almost exhausted. Our soldiers haven't even had enough to eat. To send them to deal with the now-vigilant military police is a bit much…”

She didn't doubt Patriot's fighting ability; she believed that even a whole squad of scouts wouldn't be a match for Patriot. But Patriot was, after all, just one person. He could defeat the enemy, but he couldn't protect his teammates at the same time. What if their position was exposed and the enemy raided their base?

But before Talulah could finish speaking, Patriot stepped aside, giving her a clear view.

Talulah's voice suddenly stopped, and she began to cough violently. As she coughed, her eyes widened, and she couldn't help but walk over. Looking at the mountain of food, military supplies, and cotton-padded coats bearing the Victoria x Kazdel emblem, her mouth gradually opened, and her jaw almost dropped to the ground.

“Mr. Bozokastie, the escort service provided by His Highness the Prince and His Highness the Princess has now officially ended. The inventory has been completed. Here is the list for your review.”

A man dressed in steampunk armor handed a list to Bozokasti.

Suddenly on a whim, the captain took the list, placed it in front of Talulah, and smiled:

"Leader...this is my...subsidy. Would you like to take a look?"

When Talulah later spoke to Yelena about this scene, Miss Froststar cheerfully described Captain Bojocasti at the time as—an old man who was happily showing off his old man's pension to his children.

PS: I'm really stuck in Bengbu. FPX broke through once, and then EDG did it again. What kind of operation is this?

A few days ago: Four LPL teams advanced to the next round this year, an all-Icelandic showdown!

The day before yesterday: This year, we'll be watching EDG, LNG, and RNG.

Yesterday: This year, it all comes down to LNG and RNG.

Today: This year, it all depends on LNG.

Tomorrow: I sent it this year.

Come on, guys, show some spirit!

Chapter 129 One sentence frightens the black snake into revealing its true form.

"Father, may I open it?"

After all the supplies were moved into the tent, Yelena excitedly knelt down in front of a bag labeled "daily necessities" and asked eagerly.

Bozokasti glanced at the clearly somewhat agitated Ice Princess and shrugged:

"Open it."

Yelena swiftly picked up a broadsword and sliced ​​open the thick woven bag with a snap, revealing a series of small tin boxes inside. She took one out, opened it curiously, and her eyes widened immediately.

"Fork, spoon, water glass..."

She took the items out of the box one by one, neatly arranging them on the ground beside her, muttering their names. But after a while, she got stuck, turned her head, held up a cylindrical object no longer than a finger, and asked curiously:

"Father, what is this?"

Bozokas examined the object in Yelena's hand, and said somewhat uncertainly:

"This is... lipstick?"

He stood up, walked over to Yelena, and said, "How come there's something in here?" He also took out a tin box, opened it, and examined it.

The metal box was divided into three compartments, neatly filled with many items, including everyday items such as water cups and tableware that Bozokasti would normally recognize, as well as many things that clearly looked like cosmetics. He even saw several packs of obviously expensive cigars on the side.