What's wrong with building a steel torrent in a dungeon?

This can be said to be a heavy blow to Grand Duke Hastings.

Without a steady supply of supplies, how could the Duke of Hastings have the capital to fight Margaret?

No one understood why Arthas, as the emperor, would attack the Northern Orthodox Church at this time. You know, the imperial power and the religious power in Feruman have always cooperated very happily.

When the previous Emperor Feruman, Arthas's father, was still alive, the Northern Orthodox Church could be said to have devoted all its efforts to consolidating the imperial power and had no intention of seizing the throne to gain benefits.

Afterwards, the old emperor died suddenly and the new emperor ascended the throne. The Northern Orthodox Church did not take the opportunity to cause trouble, nor did it even put forward any harsh conditions. It directly helped Artsas to hold the coronation ceremony and obtained the canonization from the Northern Orthodox Church. Only then was Artsas able to sit firmly on the throne of the emperor in such a short time.

However, less than half a year had passed when Arthas directly attacked the Northern Orthodox Church.

In just over ten days, Arthas arrested almost all the clergy in the capital and beheaded them in public.

Clean, neat and beautiful.

It seems that before this, Arthas had made sufficient preparations.

The Northern Orthodox Church can be said to be the mouthpiece of the elves, which can be seen at the meeting of the Holy Alliance. At the same time, it is also relying on the influence of the Northern Orthodox Church among the lower-class people that it can continuously mobilize (search) personnel (scrape) materials and money to support the front line. And a large part of these scrambled money and food will flow to the royal family.

From the purse.

In other words, the longer the war lasts, the more benefits the royal family of the Feruman Empire will gain.

So no one understands why Arthas did this.

Angering the elves would not be good for him, the royal family, or the entire empire.

The only one who benefited from this was probably Margaret.

However, don't forget that Margaret is the great enemy of the Feruman Empire! She gained the title of God of War by stepping on Arthas's father. Because she killed so many Feruman people, her name was used to scare naughty children.

Why would Arthas help a queen who has a "family feud" like this?

However, the elves, Duke Hastings and others obviously no longer had time to think about this problem.

Now the supplies on the front line are only enough to last for two months. If the supply line cannot be restored during this period, Grand Duke Hastings and his men will be doomed.

Finally, the elves prepared to send troops to punish the Feruman Empire under the pretext of persecuting members of the Holy Alliance.

only··

It seemed that Grand Duke Hastings could not wait for the elves to gather their forces and defeat Arthas across the sea.

Margaret never thought that God would give her such a great gift. Naturally, she would not miss such an opportunity. She hurriedly began to assemble troops for counterattack, which intensified the supply consumption of Grand Duke Hastings.

Grand Duke Hastings knew that the situation was hopeless, so he had no choice but to order the frontline troops to retreat. However, he did not expect that Margaret was one step ahead of him. Before he was ready to retreat, she led her troops deep into the enemy's territory and arrived behind the Northern Roll Empire army. Then she launched a surprise attack on the route they had to take.

The commander of the Northern Roll Empire never expected that Margaret, as the emperor, would dare to lead the troops in a raid. If they were not careful, they would fall into a siege by an enemy that was ten times their size.

But not only did she launch a surprise attack, she also launched the attack at the right time! She directly blocked the retreating troops' path.

The army of the Northern Roll Empire had little morale, and the generals and soldiers had no desire to fight. As a result, they failed to break through Margaret's defense after two days of attack, and had to choose another way to retreat, but it was too late, and they were eventually attacked from both sides by Count Tilly and Wallenstein.

Not long after, the army of the Northern Roll Empire was defeated. A large number of soldiers laid down their weapons and became prisoners. Only one or two out of ten were able to successfully escape back to the Duchy of Hastings.

After Margaret annihilated the enemy's main force cleanly and efficiently, she continued to swing her sword towards the Duchy of Hastings.

At this time, the people in the Duchy of Hastings were in panic, and a large number of people fled with their entire families. Every day, Margaret received a large number of surrender letters from the nobles of the opposing faction.

However, Margaret did not agree to the nobles' surrender, but told them that unless Grand Duke Hastings deposed the ridiculous emperor and pledged allegiance to Margaret, she would continue to attack and ruthlessly kill any noble belonging to the Duchy of Hastings.

Everyone with a discerning eye could see that the situation was hopeless, so they wrote to the Duke of Hastings asking him to surrender.

But Grand Duke Hastings didn't think so, and he still wanted to rely on the strong walls of the Principality to continue to resist until the elves arrived. He summoned his vassals and gave an impassioned speech in the castle, saying that he would fight Margaret to the death, even if every soldier of the Principality of Hastings shed blood.

However, he did not expect that a sharp dagger cut his throat the next day. His vassal (representatives of public opinion) had already discussed privately that if Lord Hastings was stubborn, he would be sent directly to see the twelve pillars of gods.

Go to hell and bleed everyone! We still want to live well!

After the death of Grand Duke Hastings, the Northern Roll Empire also quickly collapsed. The emperor disappeared, the palace was looted, and all members of the Hastings family either fled or were beheaded in the chaos as a tribute to their military achievements.

At this point, Margaret completely won the war, and the war that lasted for more than half a year came to an end.

Margaret was then re-coroned in Vienna, presided over by Christina.

What was different from the last time was that almost all the dukes of the Holy Roll Empire came to participate this time. Even if they could not come in person, they sent important people and brought precious gifts.

However, it is interesting to note that the only grand duke who did not send an envoy was Margaret’s relative, the equally powerful Grand Duke Habsburg.

From the time Margaret became emperor until now, Archduke Habsburg seemed to have not made any moves. He neither publicly expressed his support nor stood against her.

Everyone thought that the domestic war had been basically settled, and that Grand Duke Habsburg should have made some statement. However, he remained indifferent as before, as if he was not a noble of the Holy Roel Empire at all.

No one knows what is really going on in Archduke Habsburg's mind.

Margaret did not show any displeasure about this, and did not even mention the Duke of Habsburg, but continued her coronation ceremony.

This pair of the most powerful siblings in the Holy Roll Empire are really hard to understand.

At the coronation ceremony, the grand dukes knelt on one knee sincerely and swore their oath of allegiance to Margaret. They also expressed their willingness to fulfill obligations such as taxation and military service, and their willingness to agree to Margaret sending a governor to jointly govern the internal affairs of the principality.

It can be said that Margaret completed the reorganization of power with more than a year of fighting. What the Holy Roel Empire had been trying to accomplish for generations was finally accomplished in her hands.

People seemed to see a great leader reappear in the impoverished and weak Holy Roel Empire. Young Margaret will lead the empire back to the pinnacle of the continent.

however……

When Margaret looked towards her empire, she saw the muskets behind the soldiers, the clothes of the civilians, and the ubiquitous figures of the Jingxi Chamber of Commerce on the streets, and a thick haze immediately appeared in her eyes.

He did take back power.

But it seems that times have changed.

After all, the position of emperor came a little too late.

Chapter 143: The Emperor's Internal and External Troubles

The Golden Dome Cathedral at night.

"Sister, please spare me tonight! I am really too tired." After the coronation ceremony, Christina, the abbess, washed off all her makeup and lay exhausted on the soft bed.

"Okay... Sister, have a good rest tonight." Fran couldn't wait to have a great battle with Christina, but when she saw Christina looking so tired, she felt a little reluctant.

"Thank you, sister!"

Looking at the body lying on the bed, Fran swallowed, but finally restrained her evil hands.

But at this moment she suddenly thought of a good idea, so she said: "Sister, how about I give you a massage?"

"Massage? Can you do it? Why haven't I heard that you can give massages?" Christina said with some concern.

"I'm a professional! Back then, I did this to please Besi... Anyway, when I was in the demon world, I learned the true art of massage." As she spoke, Fran had squeezed the aloe vera gel onto her hands, and then began to massage Christina's back with both hands.

Soon, waves of blushing and heartbeating sounds came out of Christina's mouth.

"Sister, how is your technique? Do you want to add another hour?" Fran asked.

"It feels so good...ah! Be a little gentler. Sister, how did you learn these strange techniques?" Christina said, "Ah, sister, your technique is so comfortable...very accurate. The tiredness in my body is gone in an instant."

"Come to think of it, sister, didn't you just put a crown on Margaret today? Why does she look like she had fought with me for a hundred nights?" Fran said.

"It's not that simple." Christina said, "As the spokesperson of the Holy Roman Empire, I have to stand in the hall like Margaret, chatting with the nobles and discussing government affairs. It's exhausting. Just remembering the appearance and background information of so many archdukes is enough to give me a headache for a long time.

Their total height is half your height."

After hearing this, Fran felt dizzy. It would be better for her to die in the young lady's belly than to let her memorize so much information.

"But speaking of which..." Fran said, "Margaret didn't seem very happy during the coronation ceremony. She finally got the power she had always dreamed of and became the first emperor with real power in the Holy Roel Empire in a hundred years, but I saw that she was always worried."

"Isn't it because of you?" Margaret asked.

"Me? This has nothing to do with me." Fran said, "I haven't provoked her recently. I have actively carried out all her instructions. If she wants food, I give her food. If she wants ammunition, I give her ammunition! It's more like I'm her servant. If it weren't for the cheap food I provided, she would never have been able to survive until the Fruman Empire drama.

Change. "

"Humph! You're still playing dumb in front of your sister. Do you think I don't know that you're selling supplies to both sides?" Christina ruthlessly exposed Fran, and then said: "Margaret got the ruling power of the Northern Roll Empire, but before that you had already obtained a lot of mineral resources and urban land there through mortgage and low-price acquisition! So...

In fact, you are the first beneficiary. "

"So my sister knows everything." Fran scratched her head embarrassedly.

"Of course, you didn't hide your actions. And I know, and Margaret must know it too." Christina said: "Not only that, she even overdrew her tax revenue in order to buy supplies from you. After a war, you got the lion's share of the profits. Do you think she will be happy?"

"Isn't this a different division of labor in the revolution?" Fran said shamelessly, "In our Vienna Alliance, Margaret is responsible for conquering cities, my sister is responsible for stabilizing the people's hearts, and I am responsible for production and construction."

"And all the finances of the Holy Roel Empire went into the pockets of Orila City?" Christina rolled her eyes at Fran, then said worriedly, "Sister, you better be careful next time."

"Sister, do you think Margaret will turn against me next?" Fran asked curiously.

"Isn't it? You now own the first chamber of commerce in the Holy Roel Empire, have opened up trade routes with the Orc Empire, and are the only force that can mass-produce firearms! You have all three of money, food, and weapons. If you were Margaret, do you think you would be happy?"

"That's true." Fran said.

"Besides you, the internal trouble, there is also the external trouble of the elves." Christina said, "The Feruman Empire has betrayed us, and the elves will obviously not let it go. Now the Northern Alliance has begun to gather troops. Their target is of course the Feruman Empire, but after the matter of the Feruman Empire is settled, what do you think the Northern Alliance will do?

Will the alliance choose to leave directly?"

"Of course not! The elves support the Feruman Empire, isn't it just to crush Margaret and me?" Fran said, "Since we are here, we will definitely do our job cleanly before leaving!"

After saying this, a sly look appeared on Fran's face, and she said, "It seems that Her Majesty Margaret is quite busy. The internal and external troubles sound even more dangerous than before."

"Of course. Haven't you heard that wherever the Northern Alliance goes, there will be chaos?" Christina said, "By then, there will be constant fighting on the Calradia continent, with the Ferumens, the elves, Margarita, and all the forces fighting! Sister, you must be careful next time. What if Margarita and the elves unite?

That would be troublesome.”

Fran said, "I don't think this will happen. With Margaret's personality, how could she surrender to the elves? She just regained power, and in the blink of an eye she became a slave of a foreign race! If she really did this, her prestige would be ruined. Maybe everyone would think that she was a puppet of the elves, helping the elves to deal with the Holy Lold Emperor.

The nobility of the country."

"Indeed... The best strategy for us is to unite with Emperor Arthas of Fruman and Margaret to deal with the external threat of the elves. This way, we can also avoid going to war with Margaret."

"Yes." Fran said, "This is indeed the best option for the Vienna Alliance! No matter what, we should first drive away the neighbors who are eyeing us covetously, and then discuss how to divide the property."

"It's just..." Christina said, "This Arthas is too mysterious. It is said that before he became emperor, he had been responsible for guarding the time and space rifts and rarely appeared in the court of the Feruman Empire. There are rumors that the old emperor of Feruman did not like him and even wanted to change his heir, but the old emperor died too quickly.

"Not only us, all the forces don't know the new Emperor Arthas, nor do they know what his purpose is in rebelling against the elves." Fran said, "But if he is smart enough, he should take the initiative to find us. After all, the elves' primary target is him! He should try his best to find

Find allies to fight against the elves together."

Just as Fran finished her words, there was a knock on the door.

Every time Fran stayed at the Cathedral, the one guarding outside was always Vatican, whom Christina trusted the most.

Vanti was well aware of the unclear relationship between Fran and Christina, and could roughly guess what the two were doing when they were locked in the room, so unless there was something extremely urgent, he would never disturb them.

"What's the matter?" Christina quickly stood up and nervously wiped the sticky liquid off her smooth body.

"Lady Saint!" Vanti said, "I am the messenger of Her Majesty Margaret. I want you to go to the palace immediately."

"Now?" Christina looked out the window. It was already late at night.

"Yes. She said that an envoy from the Feruman Empire brought very important news and hoped to discuss it in detail with Her Majesty the Saint."

An envoy from the Feruman Empire?

It seems that Emperor Arthas is a smart man.

Fran and Christina looked at each other.

Chapter 144 This is my application for membership

If Christina was invited, Fran shouldn't have gone. Otherwise, Fran's presence in Christina's bedroom would have been exposed!

At night, the mayor of Orila City and the Holy Maiden of the Shinra Church were in the same room. Even if Fran was eloquent, she couldn't explain it clearly. She couldn't just say that he was drinking tea in Christina's room.

But not long after, Catherine also came over and handed a similar invitation to Fran.

It seems that Margaret can still distinguish right from wrong and knows that their biggest enemy right now is the elves, so she did not vent her anger on Fran because of her performance in the war.

The two took a carriage to the palace, but found that the meeting place was not Margaret's bedroom, but the official parliament hall. It is not known whether Margaret changed her personality after taking back the real power, or because the messenger was a man.

When they arrived at the parliament hall, Margaret was already sitting on her throne, and next to her was a hot woman wearing a black cloak.

Hmm? This woman is obviously a great beauty, why didn't Margaret invite her to her bedroom? Give the Ferumans a little Shinra shock. Did Margaret really change her personality?

Fran looked at Margaret in disbelief.

However, Margaret still looked mysterious at this time, and seemed to be no different from before.

"The guests are all here." Margaret stood up and said, "Please allow me to introduce the two sides. This is Christina, the Saint of the Holy Roman Empire, and this is Fran, the Lord of Orila City. Both of you are members of the Vienna Alliance. During this period, it was the close cooperation between the three of us that resolved a conflict.

Another crisis.”

"This is the envoy of Emperor Arthas, Miss Lilith." Margaret then introduced