People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

All I can say about this is that those who understand will understand, and those who don't understand won't understand. Forcing oneself to understand something when one doesn't is not beneficial to them. As for whether those who understand truly understand or are just pretending, it doesn't matter.

In any case, the Grand Commandant achieved his goal.

Ernst glanced at the representatives of the countries sitting in the front row below the stage. People like the Duke of Kester, Islam Witt, and Queen Ivignad of the White Kingdom who had just raised a question had all frowned slightly and chosen to remain silent.

This silence signifies tacit consent.

At the very least, the countries qualified for permanent seats on the Security Council cannot possibly be unaware of the significance of these things. That is enough.

"Please go down quickly."

P.S.: I overslept, sorry.

Chapter 576 Letania, the Death of the Crouching Dragon and the Young Phoenix

Colombia champions exploration, Letania pursues art, and Casimir strives for profit.

There wasn't much opposition to Colombia's nomination; it certainly deserved that spot.

Although it has a short history, Colombia’s development is remarkable. From a barren land exploited by the Grand Duke of Victoria’s borderlands to a prosperous and modern “New World country” today, Colombia has many advantages that its predecessors could hardly match.

In a way, its emergence provides a good example for countries outside the core circle, showing everyone that even if you are not in the richest core circle of Terra, even if you do not submit to the hegemony of Victoria, you have the right to live proudly and well on this land!

Of course, its status as a permanent member of the Security Council is not solely based on symbolic significance. Compared to established powers like Casimir and Letania, Colombia's overall national strength is not inferior. In fact, due to the lack of a conservative aristocratic class and President Mark Max's "always healthy, always right, always farsighted" autocratic rule, Colombia is on a path of "always being one step ahead." Its overall national strength is gradually widening the gap with countries like Letania, which "changed and then reverted," and countries like Casimir, torn apart by internal strife.

Finally, although the factors are minor, given the significant contributions of Colombian company RheinLife to the exploration of space outside the Terra isolation layer, people are more willing to give Colombia this opportunity.

Although Rhine Life is technically a Colombian private company and has no direct affiliation with the government.

And soon it may no longer be a "Columbia company".

The last country's candidate was the most difficult to choose.

In Ernst's eyes, the two countries, Chiletania and Casimir, were like two outstanding talents, each more extraordinary than the last.

Leitania has internal power held by the Electors, making its political situation resemble a Victorian Empire that hasn't been blown up. Casimir, on the other hand, is constantly hampered by the Merchants' Association and engages in frequent minor and major conflicts with the Overseer's Council.

In Turinia, the remnants of the Witch King's faction are causing trouble everywhere, with the Elector secretly helping them. In Kazimierz, the Business Federation is plotting to usurp the throne, and the Unarmed Alliance is lurking within.

In Letania, there are traitors who attempt to kidnap the Elector's daughter and install her as a puppet. Kazimierz is no less formidable; a major power outage nearly turns the World Games into a classic case study on safety regulations for Terra's mobile cities!

4. As for the corruption and backwardness of the political system, the sharp contradictions between social classes, the ideological divide, the gap between the rich and the poor, the uneven distribution, the solidification of social classes, the hardship of life, and so on, there are too many problems to list.

When Ernst selected the first few countries, he was aiming to see which was stronger, more powerful, and could bring more benefits to the World Summit. But choosing between these two countries, frankly, seemed somewhat like a competition to see which was worse.

Even if it's terrible, you still have to choose one, right?

There's really no other way. Besides them, the other countries are full of freaks.

Look at those countries like Sargon, Iberia, and Rembitt. Can it even choose? No, it doesn't have the strength, you know? It would be a joke if it were elected.

It's already a good thing that A doesn't have the ability; the real fear is that if he's actually promoted, he won't understand the discussions on the proposals, and then when it's time to vote, he'll secretly click "no," tormenting his teammates. That would be a huge embarrassment.

Besides, even if it's bad, it's still better than having no choice at all, right, Gaul?

L Letania and Casimir are among the best of the worst, so it depends on the situation.

After much deliberation and numerous discussions with representatives from Casimir and Letania, as well as consulting with other permanent members of the Security Council at the World Summit, Ernst finally decided that Letania and Casimir would not be selected.

The reason is simple: the World Summit is about getting things done.

Q. Kazimir has a long-standing feud with the Ursus Empire, a confirmed permanent member of the Security Council, and there are no signs of reconciliation yet.

U. Ursus Islam Witt's opinion was: "The Ursus Empire will respect the resolutions of the World Summit, but if Kazimir joins the permanent members of the Security Council, then, with all due respect, the World Summit may not reach any resolutions."

N's concern wasn't entirely unfounded, after all, Ernst had personally experienced something like this—during the World Games, Casimir refused to invite the Ursus Empire to participate.

Furthermore, Kazimierz's strength was roughly equal to that of Letania. In fact, due to the rise of internal capital forces, the Knights of Conquest, due to internal strife and the corruption of the Commercial Federation, had their fighting power gradually decline, and they might not even be a match for Letania now.

Yan Guo Taiwei's opinion was: "Since the World Summit is committed to maintaining peace and stability throughout Terra, its internal strength, if not completely equal, should at least not be too disparate."

Although Ernst believed that Casimir had considerable potential—if the Business Federation could truly defeat the Supervisory Council, Casimir, having fully transitioned into a capitalist country, could potentially become a "mini-Columbia" within the core circle—it was a pity that the International Summit was not a loan organization. Just as the Grand Marshal had said, current strength was the most important thing.

Ernst agreed, saying that one must look at the present first and walk the path at hand before there is a way forward. He naturally couldn't go to the victory of the loan business association.

Furthermore, although Ernst managed to smooth things over in his speech, the incident at the Games of Nations could not be hidden from these truly important figures; it had indeed caused a very negative impact. In particular, the Duke of Caesar, who had accepted Russell's invitation to attend the Games, still harbored resentment over the matter.

"Kasimir is so rude."

Putting everything else aside, she is actually the kind of person who values ​​political credibility the most, yet also the least.

She invited people to parties, and if they had ulterior motives, she certainly didn't hesitate to poison or assassinate them, arranging for three hundred axemen to ensure their safe departure. She did this to the Duke of Stafford and Kent Windermere.

But if someone invites her to a party, that's a different story.

Not to mention a super party like the World Games, if you don't have the strength, then don't even bother participating. Even though she, the Duke of Kester, appeared incredibly calm at the time, she was actually panicking inside when the mobile city malfunctioned. After the investigation, although she didn't have the time to stay in the Grand Knight Territory and directly attack Casimir because of the Duke's coalition's siege of Londinium, she still kept the matter in mind.

Now that she's become Victoria's representative, it's only natural that this debt needs to be settled!

Politics, to put it bluntly, is a more complex and sophisticated form of interpersonal relations. Especially when two choices are roughly equal, the attitude of the person making the choice becomes exceptionally important.

Kazimir was able to fight Ursus more than a dozen times and still be alive today, which means he has indeed mastered the Ursus ways.

He may not please everyone, but he can make everyone unhappy.

Regarding Colombia's opinion, Colombian Vice President Wilson stated, "I have no opinion."

They don't get involved in the inner circle's struggles, and they only have some grudges against Victoria, but Victoria, well, those who know, know.

The capital has been captured by the Sarkaz, and the Duke of Caesar was able to negotiate and cooperate with them while simultaneously besieging the capital, even making a deal with Ernst to "support the Sarkaz's establishment of a state." For a mere Grand Duke of a border territory to lose Colombia is a trivial matter.

It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter at all. It's not my land that's being lost, so what does it have to do with me?

This is why Ernst felt that the Duke of Caesar was a better representative than Windermere.

If it were the Duke of Windermere, this situation would at least require some maneuvering, but the Duke of Castle is not so particular. As long as it benefits her, she is happy to exchange her conscience for a little bit of ambition.

Ernst was fairly satisfied with the result.

At the very least, Letania's rise to power means that Ernst, the interim secretary-general, has another legitimate reason to visit Letania.

You should go and see what's going on with Viviana!

Thus, the two emperors of Letania, who were not a very centralized empire, finally took to the podium under the impetus of favorable timing, location, and popular support.

The coat of arms of Letania was already displayed on the big screen. Queen Ivignad, with a smile on her face, extended her hand and shook hands with Ernst in a friendly manner. Then, following custom, she placed her hand on the Charter of the International Summit, raised her other hand, and solemnly began to speak:

"Thank you all for recognizing the beauty of music, art, and classical aesthetics. I also thank my colleagues for recognizing the Empire of Letania."

"The Empire of Letania solemnly swears that, as one of the five trusted and entrusted permanent members of the Security Council, it will spare no effort to uphold the authority of the Summit of Nations, ensure the peace and development of Terra, and preserve the diverse civilization of Terra."

The audience burst into warm applause.

It's not just applauding Letania's election, but also applauding the formal establishment of the Terra Summit's permanent member mechanism and the formal establishment of the Summit itself!

The next day, when people woke up, they would see this news on the front page of every media outlet in every country.

—The First Plenary Session of the Terra Summit Concludes Successfully

[March 1, 1095. Before the smoke of the Battle of Londinium had completely cleared, a new organization aimed at maintaining world peace and promoting international cooperation—the Terra International Summit—was officially established at the International Summit venue in Tukarim, the capital of Shelag.]

[Prime Minister Ernst Shivaesh of Serrag has announced the convening of the first International Summit in the country's capital, Tukarim. With the exception of a small number of forces considered unrecognized, most political powers in Terra have been invited to attend. Some observers remain pessimistic, predicting that the summit will become "a recognized forum for expressing international hatred," rather than the platform for promoting cooperation that Ernst envisioned. But no one can deny that this will be the starting point of a new order in Terra.]

They might exclaim something like this:

"let us wait and see."

P.S.: The last paragraph is a review from the book review section by the expert [Base Merchant Old Marlowe]. It's a well-written piece, much better than what I prepared. I really liked it, so I just modified it a bit and added it. It doesn't exceed the word limit, so I won't add extra cat biscuits. Thank you for the idea!

Leave request sent while being soaked in heavy rain. (The rest of the text appears to be unrelated and possibly spam/advertisement.)

Last night there was a torrential downpour in Chongqing. I went out for dinner without an umbrella, and it started raining again when I came back. I got soaked to the bone, and I couldn't get out of bed at noon today. My head hurts a lot.

I just picked up some medicine. I'll take it and see how it goes. If it doesn't work, I'll probably need an IV drip. Sorry to take the day off today.

Chapter 577 This station's reporter, the Shapeshifter Cluster, is reporting for you.

Victoria, Londinium, Iron Palace, Temporary Meeting Room of the Kazdel Military Council.

The raid failed because of the Windermere Guards' relentless fighting and Jeragand's intervention and protection; he was unable to kill the Duke of Windermere within the limited time, or even leave her with a fatal wound.

While he was launching his surprise attack, the airship was even attacked by Rhodes Island, which should now be called Babel Tower. His apprentice Ascalon, the new master of the Banshee Royal Court, Aifanir, and Misery, the Originium Arts master from the original Babel Tower faction, caused quite a commotion on the airship.

Ersula was defeated and bound by Aifanil, Manfred and Ascalon exchanged only three blows before Manfred was nearly killed. Meanwhile, the elite soldiers on the airship were forcibly distorted by Misery, embedding themselves into the ground. If the Sarkaz airship hadn't operated not through sophisticated mechanical structures but through the will of undead spirits, eliminating the risk of damage from digging, simply figuring out how to extract these impaled soldiers would have been a massive brain drain for Theresis.

Incidentally, it took quite a while just to dig them out.

Judging from the written report, the Military Committee 5 appears to have not lost. The Duke of Victoria's allied forces were struck at the heart of the enemy, suffering heavy losses of elite soldiers, while their own airships were not significantly damaged, and casualties were kept within acceptable limits.

But Therese was not so optimistic.

Because, whether it was Ascalon, Aifanil, or Misery, they all noticed the special features of this airship.

Ascalon witnessed the undead spirit that saved Manfred. As the new queen of the Banshee, Aphrodite was already very sensitive to the existence of undead spirits, and Misery, a master of Originium Arts, could also be somewhat aware of something after burying the person in the ground.

One of the Sarkaz's biggest trump cards, the undead hidden beneath the airship's hull, has been exposed.

What they gained in return was merely the "loss of soldiers." Even though these sword guards were Windermere's elite, to Victoria they were nothing more than dispensable consumables. To put it bluntly, as long as Victoria and the Duke of Windermere were still alive, even if these sword guards were wiped out, she had the ability to train another batch. It was simply a matter of money and manpower, and those were the two things Victoria had no shortage of!

The situation doesn't seem optimistic at all.

Logically, Therese should be thinking of ways to deal with this mess, but contrary to his usual behavior, he rejected Ducarre's suggestion and went to the conference room alone.

The shapeshifters were waiting for him here, as was Theresa.

What do you want me to see?

Theresa was somewhat puzzled. This meeting was not of her own volition; she was busy directing the repair of the Shard and was quite occupied, but Theresa had sent her the invitation the moment she returned.

"There are some things that we must witness together."

As he wiped the dried bloodstains from his armor, he glanced at the shapeshifter and said:

"How far is it going?"

The shapeshifter closed its eyes, seemingly sensing something, then slowly opened them and replied:

"The candidates for the five permanent members of the Security Council have been selected."

"Victoria, Ursus, Columbia, Flame, Letania."

"what is that?"

Theresa asked with some curiosity.

Her awakening was brief. When she awoke, Theresis had blocked all information within the city, and she could only access outdated "news" from the intercity network.

Judging from Theresis's serious and solemn expression, and his decision to bring in shapeshifters, the matter he was focusing on seemed to be of extraordinary importance, important enough to influence his judgment and the situation on the Londinium battlefield.

Victoria, Ursus, Colombia, Yan, Letania. These are all familiar names from across the land, aren't they?

Theresa remembered the last thing she saw on the intercity network about the World's Fair.

Is this news a follow-up to the World's Fair held in Kjerag last year on its own soil? Countries showcased their achievements and works, and art, culture, and technology exchanged ideas on the same stage, receiving appreciation and criticism. Understanding and communication were achieved at this time, and the seeds of reconciliation slowly sprouted.

What a wonderful thing that was. Theresa only regretted that she couldn't see that grand event, and that she couldn't personally bring the Sarkaz and Kazdel to it.

She thought Ernst wouldn't refuse her, would he? After all, Manfred and Ersula had personally gone to the fair and described the spectacle to her, who was curious.

Kal'tsit also said that he could be trusted and that there was no hatred in his heart.

But if it's an expo, what does it mean that the permanent members of the Security Council, and also the five countries selected as the venue, are involved?

Then why not exclude Sherag himself?

The shapeshifter took in Theresa's curious gaze, and saw no need to hide anything from her:

"It was the World Summit. The first Terra World Summit."

“Almost every country on Terra participated in this conference, which was held in Shelag. Part of us were there, watching the changes unfold.”

Changes: changes in the landscape, changes in policies, changes in attitudes, changes in the future.

"At the first meeting, five permanent members were elected. They will be the true leaders of the World Summit in the future, controlling the future situation of Terra in order to avoid the outbreak of war."

"An overly idealistic delusion."

Therese said calmly,

"War stems from conflicting interests, and conflicts are everywhere; war cannot be eliminated unless absolute violence is used to dictatorially distribute everything."

"How naive it is to expect that mutual understanding among human beings can resolve the almost irreconcilable contradiction of life and death."

Theresa frowned slightly. She didn't disagree with Theresis's words; he did have some merit. Unless one was materially wealthy enough to satisfy all desires, conflicts of interest would always exist.

Moreover, even if such a situation of "high abundance" truly existed, Theresa couldn't be sure whether people would actually hold hands and become friends, or whether the world would truly become a better place.

After all, material abundance does not mean that everyone can be wealthy. Even in Kazdel, the city she and Theresis once jointly ruled, it was not uncommon for five percent of the royal nobles to live in the inner city and occupy seventy to eighty percent of Kazdel's resources.