“Lord Krober, what do you want from me?

You can just tell me directly. As long as my Crab Claw Family can afford it, I can make the decision and give it to you directly.

As long as you can promise to let the Crab Claw Family continue to rule Red Crab Island."

He also didn't expect that Krober would become the Prime Minister of the Court.

The Prime Minister of the Court represents the will of the ruler at the political level and is usually the most trusted nobleman of the ruler.

Grand Duke Veronica has always been diligent in her work, which is well known to the nobles of both countries.

Moreover, the nobles of the Golden Duchy all originated from the Emerald Kingdom, and were born with an excellent talent for internal friction.

Therefore, due to various considerations, the Golden Duchy has not appointed even a single prime minister since its founding.

And now, the first prime minister of the Golden Duchy was standing right in front of him.

At this moment, Lucas suddenly felt a little regretful. Why did he agree to the conditions proposed by Edwin Bronze Wrath?

Although he had his reasons for not wanting to go to the battlefield, if he knew that the person he instigated was the Prime Minister of the Golden Duchy, he would rather rush to the battlefield with most of his family's strength.

"That's good... I've really offended Lady Veronica."

Lucas thought with tears in his eyes.

"It's okay, Mr. Lucas. I'm not a demon. I just have a request that I would like to trouble you with."

Kroeber gave Lucas a rather perfect smile.

But to Lucas, this smile was like a devil's mask, hiding a terrifying aura that made him shudder.

"Please speak, Lord Krober."

When Lucas heard about the conditions, his first reaction was happiness. This showed that Krober had no intention of destroying the Crab Claw Family, and the Crab Claw Family could continue to survive.

The second reaction is heartache.

Because he knew that if he wanted to shut Krober up, he would probably have to pay a large sum of money.

"I have a report here regarding the current resource and population shortages within the territory. Viscount Lucas, please review it and give me some advice."

Krober pulled out a small, neatly folded square of paper from his pocket.

Lucas breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the paper.

"On such a small piece of paper, how much can he write even if he squeezes in? It's nothing more than writing a few more gold coins. My Red Crab Island is short of everything except money!"

Lucas respectfully took the small square of paper from Krober, and as soon as he opened it, the smile on his face disappeared instantly.

"Lord Krober...what do you mean?"

Spread out the paper in your palm, and there are two simple words written on the small piece of paper.

"all!"

"Oh? How come Mr. Lucas can't even read now? Isn't it written very clearly? I want all the property of the Crab Claw family!"

"Impossible! Don't even think about it! If you take away all of the Crab Claw Family's wealth, wouldn't that mean the Crab Claw Family is doomed?"

Lucas no longer cared about being a fence-sitter. In the face of family crisis, he had to stand up to safeguard the family's interests, even if it meant making enemies with Krober and Grand Duchess Veronica behind him.

"Don't want to? You have to be willing even if you don't want to! Viscount Lucas, this is not something you can decide!"

Regarding this matter, Krober naturally would not give in, because the main purpose of his trip to Red Crab Island was to give blood transfusion to his territory.

If this goal cannot be achieved, then wouldn't he have brought so many people here in vain?

"Lord Krober, since you are determined to put our Crab Claw family to death, please do not blame us for joining the hands of His Excellency Bronze Fury."

After hearing this, Krober burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha, Lucas, why are you so naive all of a sudden? Do you think Edwin will avenge you, a poor wretch who lost everything?"

Krober's words hit the pain point in Lucas' heart.

Like the Golden Duchy, the laws of the Emerald Kingdom also stipulate that anyone who discovers a new island can directly swear allegiance to the king and become a vassal of the crown.

However, due to personal reasons, many of King Alvise's policies threatened the interests of the nobles, so he was quite unpopular among the nobles.

The same is true for Lucas. Although the Crab Claw family also came from common people, since becoming nobles, the Crab Claw family has looked down on common people more and more.

They wantonly enjoyed the privileges and glory from the nobles, and naturally felt dissatisfied with their master who favored the common people.

And at this time, the Duke next door, Edwin Bronze Wrath extended an olive branch to the Crab Claw Family.

But the problem is that Edwin is greedy, vindictive, arrogant and not a suitable candidate to be the lord.

But in order not to offend this petty dragon knight, the Crab Claw Family had to pretend to be nice.

Nominally a vassal of King Alvis, he is also a subordinate of Edwin Bronze Fury.

In fact, the Crab Claw Family is not interested in either of these two people and just wants to stay on Red Crab Island and be their own local emperor.

This is why he was dealing with the tasks from Bronze Wrath while pretending to please Krober.

The phrase "having the best of both worlds" is the most appropriate to describe them.

"Then... Lord Krober, you must not be too cruel. My Crab Claw family is not the kind of nobles that can be bullied at will. According to the laws of the kingdom, I have the right to challenge you to a duel!"

Due to the martial nature of this world, dueling culture is also very popular.

If the nobles on both sides have disagreements during the discussion, they can resolve them through a duel.

The victor takes it all, while the loser eats dust.

At this time, Lucas proposed a duel with Kroeber, which was also a good way to save himself.

Reduce the dispute between the two families to a personal issue.

He is the strongest of the Crab Claw Clan and the only Earth Knight.

If he loses, it means that the Crab Claw Family is now unable to resist the Amethyst Rose Family.

So whether everything was robbed or his clan was exterminated, he had no choice but to accept it calmly.

If they win, not only can they resolve this crisis, but they may also be able to use this opportunity to reap considerable benefits for the Crab Claw Family.

So, no matter whether he wins or loses, Lucas, as the patriarch of the Crab Claw family, has done his best.

"As expected of an old noble, your mindset changes so quickly. Okay, I accept your request for a duel."

For Krober, he also had to learn the game among the nobles, and it was easy to destroy the Crab Claw family.

But how to maximize benefits is what a qualified aristocrat should learn.