In the Name of the Queen

Hansa City, Governor's Mansion, Banquet Hall.

The reception dinner was held grandly.

Attending the banquet were the main officials of the Governor's District, senior officers of the Fourth Fleet and officers of the newly formed garrison of the Governor's District, as well as distinguished guests from all walks of life.

These guests were mainly business elites.

Although the last hunting operation was aimed at only Samaritan merchants, which made merchants from other countries very happy, they were also very panicked afterwards.

This time it was Samaritan merchants, who will it be next time? How many people who come out to do business and make money these days can withstand strict inspections?

There are indeed honest merchants, but most of them have been squeezed out and closed down by their peers.

The merchants present can be said to make money based on their own abilities, but there are some unclean places.

They are really afraid of being liquidated, but considering the terrifying naval combat capabilities of the Fourth Fleet, they dare not escape, and this period of time is simply tortured.

This time, Queen Sylph invited them to attend the reception dinner, which also made these uneasy merchants feel a little relieved.

They are eager to know the Queen's attitude towards merchants.

Should they be raised to be slaughtered as pigs, or should they benefit each other, or should they be used unilaterally?

The merchants’ demands were not high. They came to seek wealth. As long as they did not demand both money and their lives, everything was negotiable.

The dinner was very sumptuous, and the singing and dancing performances were wonderful. Count Sif even went on stage to present a melodious song for everyone.

Listening to this song, some merchants figured out the meaning.

This song is a ballad from the far east, telling the story of a law-abiding merchant and forty robbers.

The song is humorous, and the story ends with the robbers being buried in a cave.

The Sassanid merchant who was most familiar with this story smiled knowingly.

Count Sif was the spokesperson for the queen. She hinted on behalf of the queen that as long as they could roughly abide by the law and not act recklessly, there would be plenty of opportunities for the Hansa to make money.

Sassanid merchants have footprints all over the world. The reason why they are not as famous as Samaritan merchants and have so much wealth is mainly because they have taboos.

The business philosophy of the Sassanians is completely different from that of the Samaritans. They prefer to establish good relationships with their trading partners, and always give up three points when making money, so that everyone can make a profit.

As long as the queen keeps her word, this is their version.

The Talia merchants also heard the taste.

They were slightly disappointed, but not completely disappointed.

If they can make illegal money, Talia merchants will never abide by the law. They are not much better than Samaritans when they are unscrupulous.

But their business philosophy is flexibility and adapting to local customs.

If the trading partner is a country with strict laws, they will abide by the law more than anyone else. If the trading partner is a lawless place with chaotic legal system, they will be more unrestrained than anyone else.

Of course, they must abide by the law in the jurisdiction of Queen Sylph.

Although this will affect profits, it is better to make less money than no profit.

The Talia merchants exchanged glances. They believed that Hansa could become a trading partner, and it was at least worth trying to include Hansa in the trade route.

Most merchants decided to increase investment in the Hansa region.

They may not believe Roland, but this is the promise of the queen after all, and it is trustworthy.

After understanding what Sif conveyed, the meal was much more comfortable.

The business representatives toasted the governor and the earl happily.

The queen was high above, with a cold face and did not speak, so they did not dare to act rashly.

Representatives of large and small countries such as the Golden Kite Kingdom, Weimar Federation, Pruden Kingdom, and Oden Kingdom also attended the dinner.

Hansa is not the capital of the empire and has no embassy, ​​but after all, it is the location of the queen's palace, so there are still consulates. These consuls sent blessings to Queen Sif on behalf of their governments and congratulated her on rectifying the business environment and cracking down on illegal merchants.

Although it was a congratulation, some people were sincere and some were weird.

Sif, played by the magic mirror, had a blank expression and just responded politely. Sif, who played the earl, sat next to him but felt uncomfortable listening.

This is normal. You can't expect everyone to be friends with you unless you are gold.

Queen Mirror picked up the wine glass and accepted the toast from the representative of the Golden Kite Kingdom. She just pursed her lips lightly and didn't drink a sip.

She didn't even want to give a polite response to the ill-intentioned "blessing".

Just as Sif was silent with a stern face, Glenchar, the Consul of the Kingdom of Oden, stood up and walked towards Queen Sylph with a wine glass.

Roland and Sif looked at each other, and the real show was about to begin.

Just before the dinner began, they had just received information from Alina that the Kingdom of Oden's army had failed in its sneak attack on Oro Town. In anger, they organized a strong attack that failed again and had to wait for artillery reinforcements.

The Kingdom of Oden marched very quickly, and the artillery arrived two days later. However, before they had time to bombard Oro Town, Jess's light cavalry also arrived.

Cavalry versus artillery, another massacre.

Jess's cavalry bypassed the infantry phalanx in front and rushed directly to the artillery in the rear, killing hundreds of people and destroying more than 70 artillery pieces with bombs, completely crushing the offensive of the Kingdom of Oden.

After the great victory in Oro Town, Roland decisively ordered to abandon the city and evacuate overnight.

Defending the border can only repel the enemy, not annihilate them completely.

It is better to cut off one finger than to hurt ten fingers. Only a war of annihilation can hurt the enemy.

Roland let the enemy in, frustrated their spirit, and then surrounded and annihilated them.

This is the only way to eliminate the most enemies at the lowest cost and complete the logging task.

He was a little curious about what the representative of the Kingdom of Oden was going to say. Was it a declaration of war?

As he watched, the representative of the Kingdom of Oden toasted the Magic Mirror Sylph, and then took out a sealed letter.

"This is a handwritten letter from our Majesty Sven to you."

Roland and Sylph were a little surprised.

The war has already started, what's the use of a handwritten letter? Does Sven VII think he has the upper hand and wants to take the opportunity to blackmail?

He can't be that stupid.

Sylph opened the handwritten letter, quickly read it, and was stunned for five seconds. She asked in disbelief:

"Mr. Grenchar, does your king mean that I marry him and then the two countries merge?"

"Yes."

"What if I don't agree?"

The Magic Mirror's tone was cold, but the expression he looked at Sylph was a little more joyful, and he didn't care how ugly Sylph's face was.

"That is an offense to our country, which means war."

This arrogant statement, comparable to Yelang declaring war on the Han Dynasty, made Roland stunned.

It is normal for a king to seek marriage from the queen of another country. Although it is rude, it is at least a serious diplomatic behavior.

Although it sounds shameful to start a war when a marriage proposal fails, it has happened countless times in history, so it is barely normal.

But where does the Kingdom of Oden get the confidence to go to war with the Sussex Empire?

This arrogant behavior of Oden is really outrageous.

Roland did not get angry, but frowned vigilantly. This is really too abnormal, most likely there is a conspiracy behind it.

He was still thinking, but Sif was not happy.

She pinched the back of Roland's hand hard under the table, almost pinching off a piece of meat.

She was really angry. Roland didn't get angry at such a rude behavior?

Sif's anger awakened Roland.

What conspiracy is there, let's put it aside first. This rude guy has to pay the price now, immediately!

He held Sif's hand with his backhand and wrote two words.

Reject, kill.

Sif smiled with satisfaction. This is what her guardian knight should say.

She immediately passed the order to the magic mirror.

Sylph snorted coldly and said coldly: "My body and soul belong to Sussex, including my marriage. It's wishful thinking for a savage from the wild land to want to marry me."

The Queen's refusal was completely inconsistent with her usual elegant and cold personality, but it made the Sussex people present very excited.

Where did this country barbarian come from, and also wanted to get his hands on the white rose of the empire?

Her Majesty's meaning was very clear, she would only marry a Sussex person.

Great, they have one too

Well, they don't have any chance. Her Majesty already has Governor Roland.

Damn it, then bless them.

Just as the emotions of the young Sussex people fluctuated, Consul Glenchar of Oden responded calmly:

"In this case, I declare war on your country on behalf of His Majesty the King. The reason for the declaration of war is the insulting rejection of the marriage and the naval battle 153 years ago."

The Queen of Magic Mirror cast her eyes on Sif and asked slowly:

"Count, how should we deal with the enemy?"

"Kill!"

After asking and answering herself, Sif grabbed the first section of the three-section spear under the table and threw it out.

"Puff!"

The tip of the spear pierced Glenchar's chest, killing the unfortunate fool on the spot.

Sif walked to the center of the hall, pulled out the tip of the spear, took out the letter paper, dipped it in Glenchar's blood, and wrote a particularly ostentatious line of words on the letter paper.

"Crown Prince of Sussex and Acting Emperor Sylph Sussex York, accepts the challenge."

She grabbed the letter paper, threw it at Glenchar's deputy, and said calmly:

"Get out!"