People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

Moreover, it must be said that the Duke of Windermere did not hold the Earl of March (whose actual title was that of the Junior Duke) in high regard:

"This guy doesn't look like a Victorian at all! He reeks of Colombian money!"

Uh, is this rating really not high?

To be more objective, it sounds like you're praising her.

Ernst subconsciously turned his gaze toward Eleanor, and Eleanor, in turn, also looked toward him sitting in the audience.

Or rather, of all the grand dukes present, apart from Windermere who brought Ernst and Kast who clearly knew something, everyone's eyes would occasionally turn to him.

After all, so far, no so-called "observers" have been invited to the Duke of Victoria's allied forces' war councils. Even Kal'tsit, who offered military advice, simply went directly to Windermere instead of coming to the meeting.

This is a place where people talk behind closed doors, and may even discuss some rather "sensitive" topics. Not just anyone can come in.

Not to mention, this bystander's identity is quite special.

"It seems that no one is very interested in what I have to say."

The Duke of Windermere, clearly aware of where everyone else's attention was, shrugged slightly and turned her gaze toward Caster.

As one of the leaders of the dukes, the Duke of Caesar would usually be the one to bring up Ernst. Then Windermere would follow up, giving Ernst a chance to say a few words.

Although the two don't get along, they are also the people who understand each other's thoughts best, and they have that tacit understanding.

But this time, Kessler, having received Windermere's look, didn't bring up Ernst's topic. Instead, he gently tapped the table, coughed twice, and slowly said:

"Now that Duke Windermere has finished speaking, I also have some information to share with you all."

“Just yesterday evening, I received a message from the city of Londinium.”

She looked at Windermere, as if trying to read something from his eyes.

But Windermere's curious gaze was genuine and unmistakable.

"A minor disturbance occurred in the city of Londinium yesterday afternoon."

She paused again and looked at Ernst. But Ernst remained silent, listening intently, his face expressionless.

Finally, she introduced:

"The matter involves the Sarkaz extremists who are entrenched in the city of Lentinium, as well as the Lentinium Self-Salvation Army. However, the culprit behind this unrest does not belong to either of them."

The Duke of Caesar waved to someone behind him, and a servant immediately handed him a folder. He stood up, took out all the photos from the folder, and distributed them to everyone present, including Windermere and Ernst.

The photo isn't very clear, and the background isn't in the city of Lentinium; judging from the iconic coastline, it's Iberia.

In the photo, a girl with short gray hair looks somewhat bewildered as she gazes at the vast sea, lost in thought.

Needless to say, this is Talulah.

"The person in the photo is called Talulah."

"To be precise, her name is Talulah Atrias."

"This surname has been absent from our lives for a long time, but I think none of you here are unfamiliar with it, right?"

After speaking, Caster deliberately turned his head to glance at Eleanor.

“Earl March is still very young. Would you like me to introduce him to you?”

Eleanor shook her head with a forced smile: "I do know the Red Dragon's surname."

"But where did this imposter come from? Wasn't the Red Dragon lineage extinct long ago?"

She said loudly.

“Victoria already issued a statement on this matter, and even conducted an official investigation and expressed condolences. Now, another imposter claiming to be the Red Dragon has appeared in Lentinium. What a desecration this is! This is disrespectful to Victoria!”

The first law of politics: Only what is officially denied can be believed.

Ernst looked at Kester.

Are they putting on a double act?

One person pointed out Talulah's surname, while the other asserted that the red dragons were extinct. Their back-and-forth seemed to set the tone for the whole affair.

But will this tactic work?

Ernst had certainly considered that the Victorians might directly deny Talulah's identity as a red dragon.

But it doesn't matter.

In the midst of chaos, everything is contained. Whether Talulah is a red dragon or not is completely irrelevant. Even if she isn't, as long as she claims to be one and organizes a rebellion within Londinium City, gaining enough people's approval, then she is one even if she isn't.

This is not uncommon. In the original storyline, the Rainbow Squad's "doctor" only spoke a few words of French to the Gallic people and treated their illnesses. As a result, the patients compiled a portrait of Corsica I, which all had a bit of the "doctor's" demeanor.

In the realm of public opinion, speculation is often equated with fact. A hundred official denials are less effective than the public believing even once.

Moreover, what credibility does the Victorian government have left? Aside from physical repression, the Grand Duke's attempt to make ordinary people deny the achievements of a red dragon through statements is simply wishful thinking.

So, this trick seems useful, but it's actually meaningless. The dukes do nothing all day, so this trick is just wishful thinking and self-deception behind closed doors.

Not to mention, they themselves couldn't possibly believe it.

Nobody would take the risk of that one in a million!

If this is Kessler's response, then Ernst may have overestimated her.

However, as soon as Eleanor finished speaking, Kester shook his head.

In front of everyone, she unexpectedly admitted to it:

“Talulah Atrias is a true red dragon.”

"I have already consulted Governor Wei Yanwu of Longmen, and I believe the relevant evidence will be delivered soon."

Her words immediately caused a commotion in the meeting room. Godottin gave Kaist a strange look and stroked his chin, while Windermere looked at Ernst with some confusion, seemingly wanting to ask something. Eleanor sat down sullenly, squinting at Kaist, while the others whispered among themselves.

When Kester spoke again, he pointed the finger at an unexpected person:

"Miss Abrahana, what are your and the Duke of Wellington's thoughts on this?"

Ernst raised an eyebrow.

The old drunkard's heart was not in the wine; Xiang Zhuang's sword dance was aimed at Liu Bang.

Indeed, the Duke of Caster raised a pointed question: if Victoria acknowledges Talulah's identity, what will happen to Abrahina?

She is now leading a portion of the Duke of Wellington's army in the Dukes' alliance. Although Ernst knows through Lavshini that her real target is actually Tara, at least on the surface, she has always been fighting under the banner of the "Victoria Red Dragon".

If Talulah didn't exist, Abrahim's weak claim would be barely acceptable. But the problem is, Talulah does exist.

One of them was inside the city, and the other was outside, so they seemed to have no effect on Abrahana.

But what if, at this very moment, Kester suddenly announces that the Duke's allies support Talulah?

The Dukes' alliance's support for Talulah is perfectly legitimate. As the Grand Duke, helping the rightful heir is something that, although most people don't want to do, is at least seen as normal and reasonable by the general public.

But now, the question arises: with such an orthodox figure present, do you support Brana or not?

If you help her, you'll be doing all the work for Talulah, and in the end, you won't get anything—do you really expect Talulah, a lone commander, to share the spoils with you?

If you're not going to help, then you need to explain why. The Duke's coalition isn't something you can just come and go as you please. And if Abrahana's true intentions are exposed, then Abrahana and Wellington will both be cutting themselves off from the coalition and from Victoria.

This tactic of exploiting an excuse is quite clever of Kester's.

But having played chess for so long, she clearly didn't expect that there was a type of person who, even if she didn't play chess, would hit someone with the chessboard.

Abrahim and Wellington's scheme was something even Kevin wouldn't dare to carry out.

Abrahana smiled slightly and shook her head:

"I have no opinion. Everything is up to the Allied Command."

Kess frowned deeply, sensing a thorny problem.

This was clearly not what she had expected.

The other party's attitude was far too subservient; the more they "submitted," the more she felt that Abrahim and Wellington were acting strangely!

There are probably more variables in this battle than she thought.

"In that case, I have no further questions."

Caster sat down, deep in thought, and chose to change the subject for the time being.

"As you all have probably noticed, this Miss Talulah is no ordinary person. The photos you have were taken at the Iberian anti-terrorism base."

"Mr. Ernst, as a representative of the Human Rights Council of the World Summit, is there anything you would like to say about her?"

Ernst straightened the wrinkles in his suit and stood up.

"Yes, quite a lot."

Take leave at the beginning of the month

I went out for interviews to prepare my thesis proposal and didn't get back until very late. Following the author's lead, I'll also take a leave of absence at the beginning of the month.

Goodnight everybody!

Purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding, purple sweet potato pudding

Chapter 830 Balance of Power: Stability Without Chaos

"The World Summit is unaware of Miss Talulah's past in Longmen of Yan Kingdom and the Dukedom of Kosiech of Ursus Empire."

"But Miss Talulah is now undoubtedly in Lentinium as an investigator for the International Human Rights Council of the World Summit, carrying out humanitarian aid and investigating human rights violations. She is a commissioner of the World Summit."

Looking at Ernst as he made his statement, Keith's expression was not pleasant.

Taruline^倛，☆粶★疚怡叁·榴中转《群：拉的身份，尔斯特不知？》

How could you not know? If this gets out, even Xiao Ke probably won't believe it!

She wasn't the only one who thought this way; the vast majority of people present thought the same.

To put it another way, if you really didn't know, how were you able to recite Talulah's origins just now?

Kester did mention "seeking confirmation from Governor Wei Yanwu of Lungmen" briefly, but he didn't mention at all that Talulah had been kidnapped and lived in the Dukedom of Kosiech in the Ursus Empire.

She wasn't fishing for information; she just didn't want the matter to become any more complicated. To verify Talulah's identity, all they needed to do was find Lungmen, where Edward had fled years ago. There was no need to drag in such a behemoth as Ursus; she couldn't handle it!

But Ernst still pulled Ursus out without any hesitation.

Now, all the dukes present knew. Talulah was not only suspected to be Edward Atrias's child and a descendant of the Red Dragon, but also had a significant connection with Wei Yanwu, the governor of Lungmen, and even an inextricable link with a duke of the Ursus Empire.

Looking at the solemn expressions of the dukes present, Kessler knew that Ernst had achieved his goal.

The more complex a person's identity, the less likely it is that they will be directly attacked.

Human relationships are a complicated thing. If you want to kill someone, you might end up killing their whole family, and even their relatives, friends, master, apprentice, and so on.

Moreover, none of the people potentially backing Talulah are minor figures. If the entire Victoria could reach a consensus and unite as one, there might be a possibility of directly ignoring those vested interests and taking action. But for Victoria to reach a consensus and unite as one is inherently unlikely.

If they had that ability, they would have broken through Lontinim long ago, leaving no room for Talulah to perform.

The dukes were no small fry; precisely because they were, they were more cautious in their actions. If it were just a couple of street thugs, or someone like the Sarkaz of Londinium—a helpless, universally hated "invincible" individual—then they would act without hesitation against Talulah. After all, they were all just worthless lives anyway; a moment of rage could lead to bloodshed, but ultimately, it was just a matter of exchanging one's life for another.

The common people can just kill, kill, kill, but the dukes have a lot more to consider.

Ernst's statement, "I was unaware of the World Summit," seemed to be an attempt to shirk responsibility, but it inadvertently revealed crucial information. Whether he actually knew or not, the dukes knew he knew, and Ernst knew the dukes knew he knew, but as long as Ernst insisted he didn't know, or said he "only received the news a minute before the meeting," the dukes had no recourse.

Because once these words are spoken, the focus is no longer on whether Ernst knew about them or not.

As for forcing Ernst to admit or take responsibility, let's not even talk about whether Ernst will accept Victoria's offer after he has already taken on the pressure from Agor. Even if he does, what responsibility are you planning to force him to take?

Was it a case of poor personnel management? Should we send him to Londinium and have him arrested?

What kind of dream is this? Ernst dares to go in, but do you dare to let him in? What if he really gets hurt by the Sarkaz in the city? Then what about the ocean, the World Summit, the demon exploration, and so on? So many things, so many messes—who will take care of them?

Victoria may be far from the ocean and evil spirits, so you may not care, but what about other countries?

The World Summit has only one veto power, but no vote to approve!

As for the last sentence, it's more like Ernst issuing a get-out-of-jail-free card.

A cause must be justified to wage war; this has always been the case throughout history. In the game, you can't declare war without a reason; declaring war without cause can even result in punishment.

Talulah could certainly enter Londinium with a "return of the queen," but that would undoubtedly give others ammunition to criticize her. Victoria currently has no emperor, and the grand dukes don't need a summit of nations to elect one for them. Therefore, the role of a human rights council investigator is clearly more appropriate.

Are there any Victorians in Londinium? Yes.

The grand dukes could, of course, grit their teeth and make a "difficult decision" to say that all the Victorians in the city were dead. But Talulah's entry was so sudden that they clearly hadn't had time to make that decision.

How did the Victorians in Narentinium live?

What can happen under the rule of the Saakaz extremists? Can they expect a life of peace and prosperity?