Now, the shipping routes between the M Continent and the Solun Continent have stabilized completely, and the first group of officials arriving here has rarely had the opportunity to report to the Empire.
This is mainly because they need to bring along a group of nobles who are not easy to deal with, such as the Avar people and those from the Dragon Church.
Rene, accompanied by the maid Safira, got off the ship, stretched lazily, and said to his brother next to him, “The Empire’s ships are becoming more and more stable. I remember when we came here, we got seasick quite a bit.”
Alan chimed in, “It’s probably because the attacks from sea monsters have decreased. There aren’t as many monster encounters along the route as there were at the beginning.”
The two brothers chatted as they walked towards the coast entrance, while Safira nervously followed Alan’s maid, curiously gazing at this legendary continent and the Empire.
After inspecting everyone’s identification at the entrance and confirming their identities, they all boarded the horse-drawn carriage and prepared to leave.
Sure, there are magic-powered cars, and after the war ended, military transport vehicles have begun to be made available for civilian use. The civilian versions also no longer pursue military modifications but rather develop towards comfort. However, since it is just getting started, the accompanying infrastructure has only just begun to be built. While there are cars on the Empire’s main roads, for shorter distances, the horse-drawn carriage is still the main mode of transport.
After the carriage had been traveling for a while, Safira looked out the window with curiosity and surprise, only to find that the Empire was not quite what she had imagined; it seemed there weren’t as many high-rise buildings as she had envisioned.
There were also no forests built of concrete and steel as Rene had described.
However, people indeed adhered very well to etiquette and order, and one could see people queuing everywhere.
“Master, why are there so few houses on the road? Where do you usually live?”
“What are you talking about? We haven’t even left the harbor entrance,”
…..
When the old Pierre saw his two sons accompanied by two foreign maids, he silently extended his hand, and an attendant behind him promptly handed over a whip, scaring Rene and Alan into hurriedly explaining that it was a gift from Lord Sean, which stopped the old Pierre from acting on the impulse to whip.
“Are you pregnant?”
“No, not at all.”
Looking at his two nervous sons, old Pierre felt a bit regretful but ultimately got down to business, saying, “When reporting to Your Majesty, just answer honestly and do not conceal anything. Don’t have any schemes.”
The two brothers nodded repeatedly.
During the round-table meeting the next day, while waiting to see the report, the two brothers looked at the Avar delegation not far away.
They had come to formally surrender on behalf of the Avar people, who had previously invaded the continent, to show their submission to the Empire; this was a critical decision, and feeling nervous was only natural. However, the delegation appeared to be very haggard, as if they hadn’t slept a wink all night.
The truth was that this delegation made the same mistake as Safira, mistaking the harbor entrance for the capital of the Empire and the Empire’s port for the imperial capital. It was only at the moment they boarded the train that they realized what they were looking at was merely a more developed harbor of the Empire.
Even though the Avar delegation had come to surrender, there is a technique to surrendering, such as proposing more favorable conditions for themselves, after all, they were surrendering and would integrate into the Empire, thus it was reasonable to request some benefits.
However, any thoughts of negotiating conditions disappeared after arriving in the capital.
The gap in strength was too great. Just yesterday, the Avar delegation aimlessly wandered around the imperial capital, feeling fortunate that they hadn’t heeded the words of those madmen who recklessly used Supremacy Magic.
However, the delegation also experienced unprecedented helplessness and confusion; no one knew what the delegation was thinking all night, but throughout the night, not a single member of the delegation slept. It was unclear if it was the night lights that stung the eyes of the Avar delegation or the vehicles passing by that left them bewildered.
Especially after arriving at the grandly constructed royal palace, although this palace was not particularly grand, filled with simple and unpretentious realism, based solely on area and appearance, it was even less imposing than the palaces built by the “Solun Ruler” on the Solun Continent. However, inside the palace were fantastical devices that the delegation had never seen, even the toilets were fully automated.
And the Empire was not great because of its splendid palace, but rather the palace was great because of the Empire. Even if this palace had no equipment beyond its time, it was enough to instill fear in the Avar delegation.
When it was the turn of the Avar delegation, the representative timidly presented the overnight amended surrender terms.
Lind was surrounded by meritorious civil officials and military generals, and these individuals seemed to know that the Avar people were coming, so they all wore their medals and were dressed formally. It should be noted that even the civil officials’ attire was modified from military uniforms, the oppressive atmosphere created by the founding officials was not ordinary. The representative barely took two steps before he felt as if his feet were burdened with a thousand pounds, and in the end, it was the Sister beside Lind who handed him the Avar people’s surrender letter.
Lind glanced at it briefly, sighed, and tossed the surrender letter aside, saying, “Rewrite it.”
The Avar delegation was immediately frightened and knelt down, especially the Avar representative, who trembled as he took back the surrender letter.
“I accept your order.”
Some Avar nobles who once derived pleasure from killing on the Solun Continent nearly urinated themselves in this palace, as the current situation made the delegation rely solely on their survival instincts to hold it together.
Just two glances at the surrender letter made Lind realize that the Avar people hadn’t grasped the situation yet. The willingness to allow the Avar people to surrender gracefully was purely out of fear of provoking a desperate reaction that might lead to the reckless use of Supremacy Magic, which would pollute the environment. The Empire, it seemed, didn’t need vassal states at present. After all, with current technology, wherever the railroads were laid, that place would be the territory of the Empire.
Moreover, there isn’t a strong sense of national identity on the Solun Continent; such planning can be done slowly, as everyone is essentially trapped in a shared area, and their cultures are relatively similar.
Later, Lind also met with other officials from Solun and listened to their reports.
It appeared that Sean was living fairly well on the Solun Continent; his indecisive illness had not resurfaced, or perhaps there was nothing on the Solun Continent that could cause Sean any indecisiveness.
The Goddess Church was also spreading smoothly, especially in that region controlled by the Night Sanctuary, where the faith in the Goddess could be seamlessly integrated.
However, the congregations in those three regions were somewhat fanatic, needing to be guided onto the correct path. In this respect, it might be more troublesome than dealing with faithful believers from regions where faith is weaker.
With Lind’s assistance, 550C gradually extended its control over the Solun Continent. At least before 550C falls into sleep again, the Empire will welcome rapid development and ultimately achieve unification.
