Chapter 1191: Request For Help
Hence, as soon as he heard Cate mentioning the prisoners, Elder Zumar immediately thought of that matter. At the same time, he was also secretly resentful towards them as he thought, Why haven’t those fools learned their lesson yet? Hasn’t Delano already set an example for them?!
“Elder Zumar, you misunderstood. This time, we didn’t malign anyone. Many people witnessed the sailors of The Star attacking and beating Prince Vincent up. Regardless of which country we’re in, assaulting a member of the royal family is a felony that will warrant a death sentence. We didn’t execute those prisoners out of consideration that the people of the Tower of Dusk are our guests. Hence, we decided to wait for President Felic to return before discussing what to do about those people. However, President Felic obviously doesn’t take the Gilded Kingdom seriously. As soon as he returned, he snatched the prisoners away, and even caused such a huge ruckus. That left us in a passive situation,” the right wing minister Burgess said to Zumar politely, but he didn’t show any intentions of compromising.
A few sailors attacked and assaulted Prince Vincent? As soon as Elder Zumar heard this, he knew there had to be something fishy about the matter. Thus, he immediately coldly said, “In this case, tell me, did those sailors assassinate Vincent, or did Vincent create trouble with the sailors?”
In fact, Zumar could guess even without thinking that the sailors did not have the courage or a need to assassinate the prince. Even if someone wanted to assassinate a royal, they wouldn’t target a good-for-nothing like Vincent. Clearly, the problem of this matter lay with Vincent, who was probably instigated by the ministers who were in support of a war.
Of course, Burgess couldn’t answer Elder Zumar’s question, and he also knew that it wasn’t necessary to answer. However, he insisted, “Elder Zumar, no matter what, it’s a fact that those sailors attacked and beat Prince Vincent up. Besides, the fact that President Felic led his men to cause a huge trouble at the barracks of the royal guards is a blatant provocation and an insult to the Gilded Kingdom’s dignity. In response, we’re only asking for President Felic to apologize to our country, and hand over those prisoners, as well as the ones who were involved in creating a nuisance.”
“Yes, Elder Zumar, you naturally won’t feel anything, since the victim of this matter is not the Illuminati. However, is the dignity of our Gilded Kingdom something worthless that can be trampled on at will?” Immediately after Burgess spoke up, a few ministers whose status was not inferior to Elder Zumar’s also expressed their displeasure to him.
As the most authoritative person in the military, Cridia also chimed in with a solemn expression at this point. He said in a low voice, “Elder Zumar, it’s the irrefutable duty of the soldiers of the Gilded Kingdom to maintain the dignity of the kingdom. It’s also a political affair that we have to handle. Is the Illuminati going to interfere with the political affairs of the kingdom?”
Cridia’s words were rather serious as he was separating religion from politics and national affairs. Even though the relationship between the Illuminati and the Gilded Kingdom was close, interference in political affairs by a religious organization was quite a taboo. The Illuminati could certainly influence the decisions of the Gilded Kingdom, but there was an unspoken rule that everyone was clear about. However, he couldn’t talk about it. Once he did, the Illuminati would clearly be at fault.
If other people had said that, Elder Zumar would have long flown into a rage, but after hearing it from Cridia, he decided to curb his anger. The Whale Family was a statesman’s family which existed since the Gilded Kingdom’s beginnings. It could be considered an ancient family that had thousands of years of heritage, and even Elder Zumar had to give him face.
Elder Zumar was speechless after hearing Cridia’s words. After taking a glance at everyone else, he coldly said, “I just want to tell you that even if President Felic becomes an enemy of the Gilded Kingdom, he is still the guest of the Gilded Kingdom.”
Previously, High Priest Poer had launched a sneak attack on Saint Edmund who was presiding over the ritual back in the underground world, and even snatched the holy relic of the Illuminati. Although High Priest Poer was bewitched by the Whispering God back then, Zumar knew very well that there were lots of people who had the same thoughts as High Priest Poer in the Gilded Kingdom. They were merely hiding their desires.
However, why didn’t those people think about what the Gilded Kingdom would be like without the Illuminati? Therefore, Elder Zumar directly made his stand clear. The Gilded Kingdom could go ahead and deal with the Tower of Dusk, but if they did, the Illuminati would not give them their support at all. Without the support of the Illuminati, on what grounds could the kingdom deal with the Tower of Dusk?
As expected, once they heard such biased words from Elder Zumar, Burgess and the others were speechless. The reason that they chose to declare war on the Breezy Plains was because they thought that they would have the support of the Illuminati, and that they would be able to suppress the Sanctuary powerhouses of the Breezy Plains with the help of the Illuminati, and then have the soldiers occupy the Breezy Plains. However, without the Illuminati’s support, it would be difficult to deal with Lin LI, let alone the powerful and famous Ashen Warlock in the Breezy Plains.
However, as the favorite disciple of the Illuminati’s lord, Cantory finally stood out at this juncture, and said to Elder Zumar, “Elder Zumar, I will report to Teacher about this matter with utmost honesty. I believe his decision is enough to represent the decision of the Illuminati.”
As soon as Cantory said that, the ministers, including Burgess, all felt less troubled than before. Exactly, no matter how competent Elder Zumar might be, he was just an elder of the Illuminati, and could not represent the entire Illuminati. The one who could truly represent the Illuminati was the lord, who was Cantory’s teacher. In terms of status, Elder Zumar could not compare to him at all.
Although Cantory did not directly undermine Elder Zumar, Elder Zumar was not a fool, and could naturally tell the meaning behind those words. However, it was the truth because as the disciple of the Illuminati’s lord and the prophesized world’s savior who was also the next contender for the holy lord’s seat, Cantory was far beyond what Elder Zumar could compare to.
Besides, Cantory did not say that he supported the idea of the Gilded Kingdom waging a war on the Breezy Plains on behalf of the Illuminati. Instead, he merely said that he would inform the lord of the matter truthfully. However, no one knew what Cantory would say when reporting to the lord. Hence, Elder Zumar also had some difficulty retorting against Cantory.
Seeing that Elder Zumar had nothing more to say, the several ministers and generals who were in support of war immediately began to attack the Tower of Dusk by criticizing their tyrannical behavior. Anyway, now that Elder Zumar was present, and there was also Saint Edmund to help them, they didn’t think that President Felic of the Tower of Dusk would dare to do something to harm them openly.
However, just as they were all condemning Lin Li and criticizing his actions with righteous indignation, a voice suddenly came from the back of the council hall. It made all of them fall silent immediately.
“What the lord means is very clear. President Felic is a friend of the Illuminati, what are you trying to do?!” Saint Edmund hollered as he walked over from the back of the council hall together with King Bradlor.
President Felic is the friend of the Illuminati? What a joke! Saint Edmund’s words immediately made everyone in the council hall fall silent as they turned to look at him in disbelief. However, not a single person dared to question Edmund in his face, not even Cantory, who was a disciple of the holy lord.
Outsiders might not know yet, but as a disciple of the lord, Cantory was well aware of the situation in the Illuminati. Although the four saints of the Illuminati were said to be subordinate to the lord, they actually had the power to supervise the lord. Compared to the lord, they might just be slightly inferior in terms of status. Many of the Illuminati’s decisions were made after the lord discussed them with the four saints as the former could not dictate it alone.
Saint Edmund of the Chaos Sanctuary was responsible for diplomatic duties and contacting the external forces on behalf of the Illuminati. Hence, in a sense, Edmund’s stand could somewhat represent the Illuminati. Given Edmund’s status, he definitely had proof and his reasons for saying so.
Hence, after hearing Edmund’s words, Cantory immediately froze on the spot. Although he was the disciple of the lord, and was also said to be the most promising successor of the lord, he hadn’t assumed the position yet. Besides, even the lord now was quite respectful to the four saints. Hence, even if Cantory became the next lord, he wouldn’t dare to disregard the four saints.
All the plans that he had formulated had been foiled, and yet he ended up with such an outcome. Deep down, Cantory genuinely resented Lin Li to the core. However, he didn’t show any of his emotions or the slightest bit of dissatisfaction on his face. Instead, he retreated to his father’s side while saying, “Sorry, Saint Edmund, since this is Teacher’s decision, we’ll follow your command.”
“Yes, President Felic is not only a friend of the Illuminati, but also a friend of the Gilded Kingdom.” Bradlor smiled bitterly and spoke to the ministers after hearing Edmund’s words.
Bradlor’s attitude had really changed drastically. Previously, they were so close to declaring war against the Tower of Dusk, and yet they actually said that Felic was a friend of the Gilded Kingdom. Not only were the ministers who were in support of the war flabbergasted, even the peace supporters were confused.
“But Your Majesty…” General Cate was a little anxious because the matter had escalated to such a great extent, and since the Gilded Kingdom chose not to hold it against the Tower of Dusk, they would definitely get someone to take the rap. As the captain of the royal guards and the main person in charge, he probably had to be the scapegoat.
Bradlor raised his hand to stop Cate before saying, “I know, this matter was caused by Prince Vincent. Vincent is a royal, and yet there was misconduct on his side, and he caused the reputation of the royal family to be marred. I’ve decided to ground him as a warning. On the other hand, General Cate is also guilty of negligence of his duties, so he will be punished with a demotion and detainment.”
Bradlor’s announcement caused a huge uproar in the council hall as no one knew what Edmund and Bradlor had talked about to cause such an extreme change in Bradlor’s attitude. However, since Saint Edmund and King Bradlor had already said so, there was nothing else they could say.
After King Bradlor announced the punishment for Prince Vincent and General Cate with a stern expression, Edmund also came close to Lin Li. He wasn’t enthusiastic and friendly, but he wasn’t cold, either. “President Felic, sorry to have caused so much trouble for you.”
Although his attitude wasn’t very enthusiastic, it still made the ministers of the Gilded Kingdom’s jaws drop in shock. Saint Edmund had more dealings with the Gilded Kingdom. After all, he was responsible for the external and diplomatic affairs of the Illuminati. However, anyone who had interacted with him before would feel like they were on tenterhooks, and no one had ever seen such a warm side to him before.
Hearing Edmund’s words, Lin Li smiled faintly, and said, “Saint Edmund, you’re being too polite. It’s just a trivial matter. If there’s nothing else, I will take my leave now.”
Lin Li was initially nonchalant about the possible war with the Gilded Kingdom; hence, he didn’t take to heart the Gilded Kingdom’s clamoring before this. Anyway, they would at most go to war, so there was no point in getting upset over them.
“Alright, President Felic, I’ll visit you again sometime.” Edmund didn’t have the lofty attitude of a saint when facing Lin Li. Instead, he was exchanging pleasantries with him like they were friends.
Of course, Lin Li was well aware of the reason behind Edmund’s attitude. After all, they were waiting to resurrect the founding saint of the Illuminati on Cursed Island. After exchanging some pleasantries, he left the council hall with Elder Zumar as if nothing had happened.
After waiting for Lin Li to leave, King Bradlor glanced at the ministers below with a helpless expression, and said, “Okay, that’s it for today, everyone, you may leave. Remember this lesson, and from today onwards, stay far away from the Tower of Dusk.”
After hearing King Bradlor’s words, all the ministers, be it those who were in support of war or peace, left the council hall in silence with their heads hung low in dejection. Those who were in support of war were obviously disappointed that there wasn’t going to be a war, and although the peace supporters were in favor of peace, they didn’t feel any glory for the kingdom in the latest events.
However, after the ministers left the palace, Burgess and Cantory, as well as several generals including Cate, did not leave separately. Instead, a few carriages arrived in front of the Chancellor’s residence. Burgess and the others got out of the carriage. They then looked at each other with a bitter smile before entering the Chancellor’s residence.