Yes, Madam Prime Minister

Chapter Sixty-Six: Confinement, Jokes, They're Getting Anxious

It was described as a large room, but it was actually very narrow, measuring 1.6 meters wide and more than 3 meters long. Apart from two equally narrow bunk beds, there was nothing else.

The bunk bed took up most of the space in the already cramped room, leaving little room for even moving around.

"Wait a minute, Alice and Ambrina will sleep on the lower bunks here, Elena and I will sleep on the upper bunks, and you can decide on the other two yourself."

Ronan opened up the allocation of beds.

Fortunately, Ambrina had plenty of food and drink in her stomach. She had already stocked up on a lot of snacks, and in addition, she had bought a lot of things when she went shopping at the market. Among them were smoked meat and sausages that could be eaten directly, as well as several bottles of milk and more than twenty bottles of different kinds of wine, all of which were specialties of Wright City and other special cities. There were low-alcohol red wines and high-alcohol spirits such as absinthe.

“Don’t worry, I still have a trump card,” Ronan continued, speaking to Ambrina and the other Heidi people.

“A trump card? Young master, you mean…” Elena deliberately asked this question. Of course, she wasn’t just putting on an act with Ronan. She did have a trump card, which was her and Ronan’s “armor.” The armor could enhance physical fitness and isolate external forces, but it was still unclear whether it could isolate forces that affected magic.

Ronan immediately interrupted Elena, "You know it, no need to say it out loud. Anyway, everyone, don't worry, I'm very confident that I can deal with this group, which is why I let you come with me into their territory. It's not that they trapped us, but that we've broken into the heart of the enemy."

Ambrina's gaze remained fixed on Ronan. It was Ronan's confident demeanor, maintained since they encountered this strange ship, that made her feel so at ease and calm. When she came down from the top cabin earlier, her gaze had only been away from Ronan for a moment before she couldn't help but tense up, her heart pounding wildly.

At this moment, Ronan's words not only reassured her, but also stirred a flutter in her heart—a feeling she had never experienced before, one that was indescribable.

"Next, Elena and I will take turns on duty, and the rest of you can go to sleep."

Ronan then announced.

“Lord Ronan, this…” Priestess Trisca was about to suggest that a few of them take turns on duty when Ronan interrupted her with a raised hand.

Ronan said, "Elena and I are stronger, so it's safer for us. You guys shouldn't cause trouble."

Nothing happened all night.

The next day arrived, and everyone who had fallen asleep late at night got up. Ronan could only estimate that it was around noon, because there was no day or night in the submarine, and the concept of time had begun to blur.

Forget about sending food or drinks; they didn't even send a single person to say a word.

It was obvious that the other party was doing it on purpose. They planned to put Ronan and his group into a state of hunger and thirst, and keep them in a state of no contact with the outside world for a long time. They would put immense pressure on them both physically and mentally, and when hunger, thirst, confinement, and time chaos completely overwhelmed Ronan, they wouldn't even need to ask Ronan for the key. Ronan himself would go crazy, lying at the door shouting for them to come and take the key away.

Unfortunately, the other party clearly did not know Ambrina's specific information beforehand. They probably thought she was a noble lady whom Ronan would have to treat well, and that Ronan would be more likely to comply with her presence.

This idea isn't entirely wrong. Ronan didn't cause trouble because of Ambrina, but it was also because of her that Ronan came to the submarine without hesitation.

Physical and mental pressure? Ronan had long anticipated this; he had used similar tactics many times when he led the purges back in the day.

The fact that this princess could provide such a large amount of food and water was something the other party certainly hadn't expected beforehand.

It's likely that by the time the submarine runs out of supplies and needs to surface to a secluded location to secretly send a ship for resupply, Ronan's side will still have food and drink.

Around afternoon, the other side realized that there was no movement from Ronan's side, and finally couldn't help but send someone over to check the situation.

However, when Frederick, the man with the short beard and big nose, came over and peeked through the small window in the door, despite making a noise, no one looked in his direction. When he saw the scene inside, he almost doubted his eyes.

Ronan sat on the ground, seemingly deep in thought and preparing for his next move, while everyone else remained silent, their eyes fixed on him.

What's going on with this group of people?

How come they're more relaxed than on vacation when they're locked up in this place with no food or water?

Frederick had no idea that Ronan and his group had already eaten and drunk some alcohol more than two hours earlier.

Shortly before he arrived, Ronan, still feeling the effects of the red wine, started telling jokes. As a time traveler from the internet age, even though he didn't remember many jokes, and most of them were old and worn out, if he randomly picked a couple and adapted them slightly, they would still be fresh and hilarious in this era.

At this moment, everyone is waiting for Ronan to tell the next joke.

"Speaking of which, in Willand there lived a couple, the woman named Mary and the man named John," Ronan began his story, making fun of Willand a standard opening in the Kingdom of Phos. "Mary asked John, 'Who is more important to you, me or your mother?'"

At this point, Ronan deliberately paused. For a moment, everyone—Ambrina, the two maids, and the five Heidi people including Trisca—opened their eyes wide, eager to know how "John" would answer.

Because this question is so universal, it is easy for anyone, regardless of gender or social class, to understand, and to comprehend how challenging it is.

Seeing everyone's eagerness to know what happened next, Ronan shook his head to sober up and said slowly, "John, answer me, my mom told me to come out, but you told me to come in. Who do you think is more important?"

For a moment, the air fell silent.

"Pfft!" Elena was the first to react, and couldn't help but burst out laughing, breaking the silence.

Immediately, the five Heidi people laughed out loud, but then stopped, because although they did not know Ambrina's identity, they knew that she was a noble lady whom even Ronan had to respect.

Ambrina was completely bewildered. What was going on? What did it mean?

"Young Master," Alice whispered a reproachful rebuke to Ronan, scolding him for telling such risqué jokes in front of the princess.

Ronan ignored Alice, sensed that the short-bearded, big-nosed man was gone, and then spoke, "I was just trying to lighten the mood. I was being rude, Miss Ambrina."

Ambrina shook her head slightly. Although she didn't quite understand what was wrong with her, she didn't mind Ronan's rudeness.

Ronan stood up and stretched. "In short, the 'He's in a hurry' plan was successfully completed."

He's in a hurry to come up with a plan? What is that?

Ronan explained, "Because their time is extremely limited, they want us to be anxious. And everything that just happened was to make them realize that we are not in a hurry at all, and to make them anxious instead."

Chapter Sixty-Seven: In a panic, arrangements have to be made; the magic of fate really won't work.

If Ronan and his group haven't returned to Wright City in another five or six days, things will get really serious. Even if they don't know about Ambrina, they should know that if Ronan, as the secretary-general, goes missing, it will inevitably lead to a massive manhunt.

In this era, there was no technology to preserve food for long periods of time. This submarine would have to surface for resupply soon. Moreover, such a submarine could not approach the shore, and it dared not even get close to areas with many ships. Only a supply ship could be sent to a relatively remote place to deliver supplies.

Submarines don't have to worry about being detected, but supply ships are different.

Moreover, very few people know that Ronan went to sea, so it's easy to trace them back to the Seapipers by following their lead.

Therefore, their goal is to force Ronan to hand over the key within a day or two, and then take the noble lady whom Ronan has to treat with care as a hostage, and take Ronan to the main city of the Haidi people that collapsed and sank, to open the legendary temple.

Meanwhile, in the submarine's conference room, an old masked Seapiper being pushed in a wheelchair by a maid, a woman wearing a headscarf, and a tall, thin middle-aged man with bald patches on both sides of his hair were listening to Frederick, who had a large nose, report on the situation.

“...That’s the situation.” Frederick finished explaining what he had seen.

After he finished speaking, the entire conference room fell into dead silence. They didn't expect to force Ronan to hand over the key in a day. After all, the body of a high-ranking mage is different from that of an ordinary person. He can go without food and water for several days without much problem. But how could he possibly talk and laugh after being locked up in such a cramped place for most of the day?

Moreover, not only Ronan was in great shape, but everyone else was also relaxed and at ease, and even the three women didn't seem flustered at all.

Let alone Ronan and his group being confined to that cabin, even if they were allowed to move freely in the submarine, they would feel extremely oppressed within two days.

Frederick, with his big nose, couldn't help but add, "I think this guy named Ronan might be a little off his mind."

"This isn't the time to talk about that," the tall, thin middle-aged man said seriously. "According to our prior intelligence, Ronan is no small fry. His prolonged disappearance will inevitably attract a search. We don't have time to waste on him. What we need to do now is..."

Frederick touched his nose and looked at the middle-aged man. "Mr. John, when I arrived, that fellow was telling a story. Once upon a time, in Wieland, there was a couple, the man named John..."

After hearing this risqué joke, John, a middle-aged man, twitched his eye twice. He was from Weyland, also named John, and a Christian.

John, the middle-aged man, let out a long sigh of relief, seemingly not taking the joke to heart at all. Then he said in a serious tone, "I suspect he's just faking it. If he's locked up for another day, he definitely won't be able to hold on."

Frederick laughed. "He can pretend, but can those Heidi people, and those delicate noble ladies, pretend too? They were all very relaxed; I saw it with my own eyes."

“Perhaps some kind of method was used,” John, the middle-aged man, said with a stern face. “Or perhaps you’re mistaken.”

Bang bang, the old man in the wheelchair tapped the table, "We're discussing serious business."

At this moment, the woman who had remained silent spoke, her voice cold and calm, "Do you need me to monitor them?"

“Nadi, there’s no need.” The old man from the Seapipe spoke in a hoarse voice, like a black voice. “Getting the key is the best-case scenario. Since we haven’t achieved that, forcing it will only put us in a passive position and put us in Ronan’s rhythm.”

Frederick, with his large nose, sat down at the conference table, his expression flippant. "Then tell me your proposal, our wise and insightful old sir." He paused deliberately at the end of the words, emphasizing each syllable.

Nadi, the woman wearing a headscarf, gave Frederick an unpleasant sidelong glance, but said nothing.

The old man's half-masked face remained fixed on that smiling expression, like a statue, only his eyeballs twitched slightly. "There's no plan, just release Ronan and his group. You and John will keep an eye on Ronan, Frederick. The noble lady will be handed over to Nadi. Let the two maids do some chores, and the rest of the Heidi people will help operate the other devices."

"Aren't you afraid they'll sabotage us on purpose?" Frederick retorted.

The old man's eyes slanted outwards. "We're currently a thousand meters below sea level. Do you dare to deliberately cause trouble?"

At this position, no one dared to make any rash moves, because if the submarine encountered any problems, neither the Seapiper, whose swimming skills were beyond human comprehension, nor Ronan, a second-tier orthodox mage whose physique could not be considered normal, would be able to return to the surface alive.

John, a middle-aged man, stroked his chin. "That way, they'll be scattered. Will he agree?"

“He will agree. He is a very sensible civil servant who is best at balancing confrontation and compromise. Have you forgotten that when you first locked them up, he never thought of resisting? This man will not back down an inch when confrontation is necessary, and he will never do anything unnecessary when compromise is necessary.”

"That's what the old Haitian with the half-mask said."

Nadi then left; her job was to bring the person over.

Meanwhile, Ronan sat on the edge of the bed, taking a nap with his eyes closed. He didn't think about what the other party would do next, assuming it was something he had considered several hours earlier.

He's just a little unhappy right now.

The reason for his unhappiness was that this should have been an opportunity for him to advance his magic rank, but he was not prepared.

Fate magic is an opportunity to advance in rank whenever the owner encounters a turning point in their destiny. The owner is given two choices, and after making the choice, they will obtain the magic of the next rank, the specific magic of which depends on the choice.

However, all of this is based on one premise: that one's magic power must meet the requirements for advancement. For example, when Ronan was advancing to the second rank, his magic power had already met the requirements for the second rank, so he advanced when he met Dinia.

At this moment, his magic power level is only around 2.5, so even if he encounters a significant turning point in his life, he will not have the opportunity to advance.

Many people who awaken the magic of destiny have many opportunities when they are young, but lack the magic power. When they get older, they have enough magic power, but they don't encounter opportunities, and so their lives just pass by.

A freak like Dinia, with an abundance of natural magic, is not unique, but Ronan has certainly never seen another like her.

If Ronan could have a second chance, he would definitely choose the elemental magic of rituals. Don't be fooled by the fact that it requires sacrifices and sounds sinister; it's actually the most orthodox magic. With the four elements of earth, fire, wind, and water, as long as you think, practice, and constantly train and fight, your magic will definitely improve. It's much more reliable than fate magic.

Compared to the Heavenly Oath, which always carries the risk of backlash, it is far more secure.

At that moment, the door to the room suddenly opened, and a woman wearing a headscarf came to Ronan and his group. She then explained the arrangements for Ronan and his companions.

As expected, Ronan's reaction was very calm.

Chapter Sixty-Eight: Illness, Medicine, and Fury

“One question.” Ronan held up one finger and pointed at Ambrina. “She shouldn’t be out of my sight, right?”

"Probably not," Nadi replied decisively.

Hearing this, Ambrina patted her chest. Ever since she encountered the strange ship, she had been filled with questions: Who were these people? What was going on with this strange ship? Why were they looking for Ronan? What was the so-called key? Where were they going? With so many questions, how could her mind not be in turmoil?

Moreover, she actually has a very poor mental fortitude. Ever since that incident three years ago, she has been plagued by doubts and worries whenever she encounters even the slightest thing. She can't even sleep, and she has to force herself to stop thinking about it and to calm herself down.

Her previous composure was not due to good mental fortitude, but rather a kind of "illness" she had developed over the past three years, although many people would consider this "illness" a sign of excellent character.

But the side effect is that she has to sleep in the little bed she slept in as a child, a bed full of memories, otherwise she will suffer from insomnia all night.

Last night, in that cramped room, on that unfamiliar bed, Ambrina thought she would definitely have insomnia, but she didn't.

She slept on the lower bunk, looking down at the shop under the upper bunk. Ronan was right there within her reach, just like sleeping on the bed from her childhood. The old nanny who used to read her stories and never lied to her, now deceased, was right there within her reach, making her feel so at ease.

She fell asleep in no time, and when she opened her eyes again, a night had passed and the next day had arrived.

Her illness seems to have improved.

Ambrina felt like she was recovering from a serious illness; she wasn't fully recovered and couldn't live without Ronan, her "medicine."

Ronan nodded to the woman in the headscarf and said, "Then there's no problem. Elena, Alice, you two follow their arrangements. If you have any objections, come to me. Trisca, don't act rashly. We are in the deep sea now."

Alice was, after all, his personally trained disciple; as long as she wasn't standing up for her friends, she was quite reliable.

Elena is more reliable than Alice, both in terms of combat strength and mental fortitude.

As long as the five Heidi men don't act impulsively, there won't be any problems.

The only one to worry about is Ambrina. This princess is too quiet and too calm. At first, this could be explained by her mental fortitude, but now that she is still like this, Ronan can hardly understand it. He can only make sure that she is always within his sight.

"Follow me," Nadi, the woman in the headscarf, said coldly, and walked forward without turning her head.

Soon, Ronan and Ambrina followed her to the location of several other key figures.

"It's nice to meet you again, First Mate," the old Seapiper with the half-mask greeted.

Ronan showed no sign of tension about being surrounded by enemies, and jokingly said, "You remember a joke for so long, this old man is more petty than a little girl."

Pfft, Frederick with the big nose was trying to suppress his laughter but couldn't help it.

John, the middle-aged man, stared intently at Ronan. He disliked Ronan's penchant for making jokes, just as he disliked Frederick.

The old man in the wheelchair ignored Ronan's teasing and went straight to the point, "We are currently at a depth of 1,000 meters underwater. Next, we will dive another 500 meters and then proceed to the location of the 'Lost Bubble.' After passing through the Lost Bubble, we will arrive at the site where the main city of the Sea Flute people sank in the past."

Ronan interjected, "Excuse me, but wasn't the main city of the Haidi people destroyed by those priests?"

"Mortals can only destroy what mortals have built. How can mortals destroy what the true gods have created?" The old man with the half-mask had a hoarse voice that carried a strange sense of vicissitude. Although he was answering Ronan's question, it sounded like a priest on the verge of death reciting a passage from a lost divine scripture.

However, as an atheist, Ronan was not swayed. "So what do we do once we get there? Treasure hunt?"

"Open the temple," the old man replied.

"What's inside the temple?" Ronan asked again.

"Nobody knows," the old man replied.

Ronan didn't believe it at all. The big-nosed woman, the turbaned woman, the bald middle-aged man, and the maid pushing the wheelchair—four high-ranking magicians. They might not be rich, but they could easily live a life free from worries about food and clothing. If they didn't have any information, why would they accompany an old man from the Seapipes to play a treasure hunt game in the ocean that might be life-threatening?