Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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However, she is now a sixth-tier mage, and it is against the convention for a sixth-tier mage to directly participate in the war.

This treaty, known as the Hollande Treaty, is a very bloody chapter in history.

Before Orans, all the countries in the Western Continent were standard feudal states. The great lords, who were dukes and counts, were all summoning mages. This was because summoning was hereditary, which meant that the throne could be passed down. In the feudal era, hereditary succession meant relative stability, and a regime needed stability.

But below that, there were viscounts, barons, knights, and all sorts of magicians. Whoever was stronger had a higher rank and more territory. At that time, an ordinary person could never enter the ruling class because violence was everything, and magicians were the greatest form of violence.

Nations fight each other, vassals within a country fight each other, and those under the vassals fight each other.

Magicians, intellectuals who wield violence, are far more brutal than ordinary brutes.

Later, Orans rose to power. He was even more violent than the previous kings because he recruited a large group of people who were extremely powerful but not summoners and therefore could not become great lords. Relying on his own overwhelming strength and a group of top experts of the same era, he ousted the hereditary nobles of the previous dynasty of the Kingdom of Phos and made the strongest of them the great lords.

It can be said that the rules have been completely broken.

Orans himself is a seventh-tier being. He is strong in his own body and can summon a large number of summoned creatures. He is followed by five seventh-tier beings, each a humanoid calamity, more than ten sixth-tier beings, all of whom are weapons of mass destruction, and a whole string of fifth-tier beings. Wiping out a hundred-man squad is as easy as playing a game for them.

At that time, the entire Western Continent had no choice but to unite and besiege Orans. In that war, ordinary soldiers, no, even mages below the third rank, were not qualified to be cannon fodder.

A great battle quickly devolved into a battle of exchange, with mages trading their lives for each other.

Because if you kill civilians, destroy farmland and irrigation systems, and slaughter civilians and livestock, the other side will do the same. In the end, everyone will be left all alone.

The golden age of the past came to an end in a war that lasted less than six months.

Finally, Oranus summoned the magicians from both sides to discuss the future.

The top mages who were still alive at the time didn't want to fight anymore. They were all working themselves to the bone as lords, serving a bunch of filthy paupers and unscrupulous merchants. Were it worth it for dignified earls and even dukes to risk their lives in war? No, it wasn't.

Orans drafted a pact that magicians of the fifth rank and above would not participate in wars.

The group of magicians were moved to tears, pounding their chests in frustration, exclaiming, "Where the hell were you all this time?"

As a result, the top mages simply stopped being lords and left it to their subordinates to do. They couldn't be lords anyway, because too many mages below them had died.

Why don't we all step back and become hidden weapons, the scales of arbitration? We still have power, we still have money, we don't need to fight to the death, and we have plenty of time to go back to playing music and dancing.

Centuries have passed and the situation remains the same. Even now, fourth-tier mages are reluctant to participate in wars. Their thinking is easy to understand: "I have property, land, and privileges, why should I participate in wars? If I participate and slaughter the enemy's ordinary soldiers, the enemy will have to send mages as well. Am I supposed to trade my life with them? It's a lose-lose situation."

Back then, Dinia, who was only a fifth-tier warrior but whose strength was greater than that of a typical sixth-tier warrior, slaughtered the people of Weland indiscriminately, which infuriated the entire Western Continent, who cursed him for his lack of martial ethics.

“Minister, I’d like to stretch my legs a bit,” Golan suggested.

Dinia can't do it, but she can. She's only at level three.

“I’ll go too,” Camille said. She was weaker, only at the second tier.

"Don't chase them too far, and don't kill too many," Dinia cautioned.

She wasn't saying this out of mercy to the enemy, but because she felt that even if the other side surrendered, the two of them would still slaughter everyone on the other side, including the mage, if she didn't say a word.

Both of them have this ability. As an elemental mage, Grandan is a standard turret-type mage, a cannon fodder killer. Camille's eyes, transplanted from Rabelais, have one side that cannot extinguish fire and the other that cannot melt ice. Low-level mages who are hit by these eyes will die.

Both Golan and Camille were ambitious and eager to climb the social ladder.

A few days later, Dinia and his two companions left the east and continued north, reverting to their original identities and no longer disguising themselves, beginning their inspection tour as officials.

From Burgundy, then Lorraine, the most important place on this trip, because the iron mines and steel mills are mostly there, and the territory of Count Marcus of Lorraine, who has close ties with Ronan and has benefited the most from the new policy of land-for-shares, is also there. This is the only place Ronan instructed her to send no less than one hundred people to see the Father before she set off, with no upper limit.

Officials must be killed, nobles must be killed, merchants must be killed, and even members of parliament and clergy cannot be spared. As a steel production base, this place must have continuous and high-intensity anti-corruption efforts.

The Ministry of the Interior's investigation team should have already arrived by now.

Dinia knew that her nickname "Crimson Sea" would soon return, because many people would die in Lorraine.

After completing this, we will pass through the Champagne region and then head south back to the capital.

Chapter 445 The Old Oak Tree, End of Chapter. Perhaps you should try to be a little more humorous.

By early December, the war had ended, but it was not yet over.

On the west side of the palace square, under a huge and ancient oak tree, a round table was set up, where negotiating representatives from various countries were led to by palace attendants.

There was only one table in the open air, under the trees, but no one felt that the Kingdom of Fas was being impolite; on the contrary, they felt extremely honored.

Over three hundred years ago, King Orans, along with other princes, nobles, and top magicians from various countries, reached the Orans Convention, also known as the Oak Convention, under this tree, which is over five hundred years old.

Looking at this giant tree, which stands fifteen meters tall and has a base diameter of over ten meters, the delegates couldn't help but stand in solemn silence, as if they had entered that magnificent golden age. The interlacing patterns on the trunk seemed to be ancient and mysterious writing telling them the story of that era.

Of course, they wouldn't think that more than 300 years ago, they were just cannon fodder.

The representatives took their seats as arranged by the waiters.

Soon, the representatives of the Netherlands and the Svets Alliance were furious, absolutely furious, because they had no place at the Grand Round Table. The Weylanders had a place, the Belials had a place, the Imperials had a place, even the Venians who had only said a few words of nonsense had a place, and even the Northern Alliance had one. The two countries that had actually sent troops had no place at all.

"Excuse me, I apologize for my rudeness. I will go and fetch a chair right away." The palace official apologized immediately and then disappeared in a flash.

A little over a minute later, several male servants came over.

Instantly, the representatives from various countries covered their mouths, but still couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Because instead of the high-backed chairs they brought, they brought stools, which had no backrests and were noticeably shorter than their chairs.

The court official slowly said, "Her Majesty the Queen heard that the Dutch and Switz people are tall and like to stand out, so she specially prepared matching chairs for the two representatives."

The two representatives, whose faces were already flushed with anger, were now so enraged that their veins were bulging. "Hmph," they snorted and turned to leave.

The two men had assumed that Wieland, Villa, and the representatives of the Empire would rise up to dissuade them, or simply berate the Kingdom of Phos for its lack of manners.

However, the representatives of these three countries were completely immobile, as if their butts were glued to the ground, and they didn't even utter a word, only smiling.

The palace official spoke again, "Even if you two noble lords leave, this meeting will still have to continue."

The representatives from the Netherlands and Switz stood still, their fists clenched tightly. They took a deep breath, as if swallowing all their anger and resentment, and walked to the low stool and sat down.

The representative from Villa looked at the court official and asked, "Where is your country's representative?"

"Excuse me, we'll be there soon. Please wait a moment. Considering that you've come so early in the morning, Her Majesty has prepared some snacks for you," said the court official.

A short while later, a young and handsome man came over carrying a large plate of potstickers.

The representative from Wieland froze for two seconds before returning to normal.

A large plate of potstickers was placed on the round table, and the servants beside the man placed plates and forks in front of the delegates, along with a plate of dipping sauce.

Potstickers filled with beef and cheese, served with a dipping sauce made of black vinegar, minced garlic, and olive oil.

After seeing everyone try them, the young and handsome man asked, "Gentlemen, how are these potstickers?"

“It’s very good, especially with this sauce,” the Venaya representative said. When it comes to food, they have a lot to say, and the balsamic vinegar and olive oil are their local specialties, so of course they have to praise them.

“Not very good.” Nedland, who was holding back his resentment, took the opportunity to express his dissatisfaction. “You could say it’s bad. It’s obvious that the Kingdom of Phos is exaggerating its culinary skills.”

"The cheese inside isn't as good as our country's goat cheese," the Switz Alliance representative added.

Suddenly, the handsome man's expression changed. "I suggest you take back your words. I did this myself."

The representatives of both countries were stunned. What a boastful tone! Who is this? Someone who, at most, can only play the role of a lover because of their face. What kind of person dares to speak to them like this?

However, considering that the other party might be a courtier favored by the Queen, the Dutch representative merely scoffed dismissively.

The representative from the Switz Alliance dared to say, "This is not a place for you."

Beside him, the representative from Wieland was barely able to contain himself. Having once served as the governor's assistant secretary in the colony, he was the only one present who recognized this young and handsome man.

He is currently the secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. He is not here to directly participate in the negotiations, because Wieland has not declared war on the Kingdom of Phos, nor is it an ally of the Netherlands or Switz. His official purpose in coming here is to assist in the negotiations.

Therefore, it's impossible for Wieland to send a proper diplomatic official over.

The same applies to the other countries; their representatives are people who appear to have power but actually have no power, and their words can be taken seriously or not.

Only the representatives of the Netherlands and the Switz Union were proper diplomatic officials whose words and actions truly represented their countries.

Clang! A coin landed on the table.

This is an invitation to a duel.

"As if to reintroduce myself, I, Ronan Tess, the Marquis of Rhine, now extend a duel challenge to you both. Do you accept?"

The young and handsome man was none other than Ronan.

And Ronan, of course, they knew.

"You..." The Svets Alliance representative choked.

The Dutch representative gritted his teeth. "Ha! If we accept, does the Marquis really think he can just kill us with a single sword right here in this palace, under this tree that represents justice?"

"Why don't you give it a try?" Ronan said provocatively.

This completely silenced the Dutch representative; he dared not try, he was afraid of dying.

At this moment, two servants brought over a chair and placed it down. Ronan sat down and, with a flick of his finger, retrieved the coin. "Alright, gentlemen," he said, "we can now discuss the matter of war reparations between the Netherlands and Switz."

“Wait a minute,” the Dutch representative called out. “Reparations? You looted many of our country’s treasuries, and you expect us to pay you reparations?” They suffered enormous losses, while the Kingdom of Fass only had some ports along the coast bombarded by ships. It would be more appropriate for them to compensate the Kingdom of Fass for their losses.

Ronan glanced disdainfully at the Dutch representative. "Well, I was discussing this with the gentlemen. The word 'gentlemen' doesn't include cowards or wimps, so please shut up, okay?"

"Ahem, Mr. Artes, in diplomatic settings, jokes should be kept within bounds," said Representative Villa.

Ronan smiled slightly. "Alright, enough joking. Seriously, defeated and weak countries have no right to decide who owns the interests. It's up to us major powers and relevant countries to decide. Actually, my intention from the beginning was very clear: I wanted the people from the Netherlands and Switz to leave. This negotiation doesn't need you at all. However, you shamelessly stayed here and refused to leave, which is unbearable to watch."

“Hmm, I think a little humor is actually acceptable in diplomatic settings,” Representative Wieland echoed.

The representatives from the Northern Alliance and Vena nodded, thinking to themselves, "Lord Luo, you should try to be a little more humorous. Speaking so bluntly makes it impossible for anyone to respond."

Chapter 446 Performance Art, Side Effects, and the Conflict Between Old and New

Representative Weyland didn't know how to describe his feelings at this moment. He couldn't say he was a little surprised; he simply hadn't expected it at all. He knew Ronan was going to cause trouble when he saw him, but this trouble was really a bit too much. Even the Rus' people of the East weren't good at this. What happened to the elegant Frenchman?

In his view, Ronan's performance art is essentially a negotiation technique.

He first seizes the initiative by acting like a barbarian, and by doing so, he acts unreasonable, making it impossible for everyone to reason with him and drawing them into his rhythm.

Of course, even though he knew Ronan was using a trick, he didn't have any way to counter it.

There are two reasons. First, this war was initiated by the Netherlands and the Switz, but it was also the two sides that stopped it first, and the initiative has completely shifted to the Kingdom of Phos.

Secondly, he, a Weylander, was only there to lend a hand, and that was all he could do.

The Belials and the Imperials shared similar ideas.

It can only be said that they did not know that Ronan was actually acting out of necessity.

He used this war to incite the people's patriotism and to get ethnic minorities in the country to join the war in order to deepen their sense of identity. However, patriotism and shared understanding are easy to ignite but difficult to extinguish.

A ruler may be rational, but a swayed populace may not necessarily agree with his rationality.

Therefore, Ronan could only resort to performance art, and his art would be processed by public opinion and spread throughout the capital in the following days.

The use of low stools to entertain the representatives from the Netherlands and Switz was intended for the somewhat cultured middle class.

Deliberately picking a fight and then shouting for a duel is a show for the lower classes. The lower classes can't understand how aggressive the low stool is because they think the low stool is just a kind of aristocratic affectation. They feel that the aggressiveness of the common people is more relatable and truly satisfying.

"Alright, just say what you're thinking." The imperial representative was getting impatient.

“Then let’s get straight to the point,” Ronan said. “War reparations are negotiable, but there are a few conditions that our country will never compromise on.”

“First, the timber that the Netherlands ordered from the Northern Alliance will be transferred as compensation.” As he said this, Ronan’s gaze lingered on the representatives of Willand and Villa for a few seconds.

The major coastal nations of the western continent primarily rely on large sailing warships for their naval power, which require trees growing in cold climates.

The Netherlands relies almost entirely on the northern source of timber for its shipbuilding. If this timber supply decreases, its shipbuilding capacity will decline significantly, and its economy will suffer, given that so many people in the Netherlands depend on shipbuilding for their livelihood.

The Wehlanders and the Beliales were pleased with this situation, as they had already felt threatened by the Dutch in maritime trade.

Moreover, the shipbuilding industry of the Kingdom of Fas is only so-so, and the demand for timber is not that high. In the end, this timber will fall into the hands of the two countries.

Ronan then added, "Secondly, the eastern region of the Switz Alliance should be restored to the Empire."

At this, the Imperials' eyes lit up.

"Do you think we might agree to your conditions?" the Dutch representative asked.

“That’s absolutely impossible,” the Switz Alliance representative declared loudly.

"Is that so? I suggest you use 'I' instead of 'we,' right, gentlemen?"

As Ronan spoke, he glanced around, especially at Villa and the Empire.

Villa and the imperial representatives were somewhat embarrassed. After all, it was they who had instigated the incident. Without them, the Netherlands and Switz would not have dared to invade the Kingdom of Phos.

But now, they really want to express their support for Ronan, not only because they can benefit from Ronan's proposal, but also because the Netherlands is a rebellious little brother to Villa who wants to replace his big brother as the leader of the sea, and the Switz Alliance is the birthplace of Protestant heresy to the Empire, the most rebellious of the rebellious.

At this point, the representatives from the Netherlands and Switz also realized the problem.

They were sold.

No, it shouldn't be said that they were betrayed, because the Netherlands and Villa, Switz and the Empire, were originally "enemies." They were foolish enough to trust their enemies.