At this moment, the lookout tower in Pulton Harbor.
Surrounded by a crowd, Isabella, dressed in a deep red brocade robe, stepped onto the stairs and ascended the spiral staircase to the top floor.
Eddington, who had been waiting there, ordered the guards beside him to open the iron gate to the rooftop after he saw Isabella.
As the lock was opened, the heavy iron gate slowly opened with the push of the guards, and Isabella, wearing a hood, walked onto the rooftop. Behind her, apart from several naval officers such as Eddington, James, who had been temporarily appointed captain of the Royal Guard, followed closely behind.
As soon as she stepped onto the rooftop, the sea breeze blew open Isabella's hood, revealing her cold and stern face.
The wind was strong, and the air contained not only a lot of salty and humid moisture, but also a faint smell of gunpowder. Isabella wrinkled her nose and stretched out an arm from her long robe that covered her entire body. Edinton, who was standing next to her, immediately handed her a pair of binoculars.
As Isabella took the binoculars, everyone behind her turned their gaze to the vast, surging ocean.
As a result, everyone's expression grew increasingly solemn. Listening to the cannon fire mixed with the wind, Eddington frowned deeply, and even his clenched hands were sweating profusely.
Just a few days ago, when the military exercises had just begun, he was still angry, feeling that the provocative actions of the Yan people had crossed the country's bottom line. But today, that anger that had been buried in his heart has gradually turned into fear.
The military exercise launched by the Yan Kingdom, which lasted for five days, was both wide-ranging and intense, making people's hearts pound.
Such a large-scale operation is unprecedented even in the history of this country. Even a joint military exercise between the United States of Shenglu and the United States of Hunli cannot compare to the military exercise of Yan Kingdom this time. Of course, there is no possibility of that now.
As a result, Eddington felt the pressure coming from the other side growing heavier and heavier, as if a mountain was pressing down on his back, making it hard to breathe.
Moreover, it wasn't just him; Eddington knew that everyone's mood had become increasingly heavy these past few days, and even Her Majesty the Queen, who was always positive and optimistic, hadn't shown a single smile in the last two days.
It was obvious that she also felt immense pressure.
At that moment, Eddington looked at Isabella's profile and saw her brows furrowing deeper and deeper. He took a step forward and whispered:
"Your Majesty, fortunately these fellows did not approach our port any further."
Isabella slowly lowered the binoculars and said indifferently, "It's close enough."
"Closer still, that's an amphibious landing operation."
Upon hearing this, Eddington's heart skipped a beat, and he said in a low voice with a bitter expression, "According to the observations from Merida Port, the Yan people have conducted a landing operation exercise on our Fate Island. Last night, they bombed it for more than three hours."
Isabella gazed at the sea and said, "The buildings on the island should be almost completely destroyed."
Eddington sighed softly, "That's right, Your Majesty."
He paused for a moment, then said, "I apologize, Your Majesty, but I implore you once again to leave Pulton Harbor immediately..."
Before she could finish speaking, Isabella suddenly turned and walked into the doorway. The crowd behind her immediately dispersed, and she strode down the stairs. Edington quickly followed her.
“Your Majesty…you really…” Eddington whispered, following behind Isabella, but Isabella only uttered one sentence:
"I will not leave until their exercise is over."
“But, if…” Eddington raised an eyebrow at Isabella, who turned her cold face away:
"I saw it." With that, she turned her face and walked straight down the stairs.
Eddington shut his mouth and silently followed behind Isabella.
——
Two days later, at 3 PM.
With several bugle calls resounding through the sky, the seven-day naval military exercise came to a close.
In the final round of exercises, steam-powered ironclad warships deployed in various sea areas fired shells toward ports of various countries. However, this was merely a bombardment in the air, and the shells eventually fell into the sea.
This move, however, sent shivers down the spines of the navies of various nations in the ports. In particular, in the waters near Hurricane, the Huns even sounded the alarm for an attack. But after seeing the steam-powered ironclad ships slowly turn around, the Huns finally lifted the alarm with a sense of dread.
Later that evening, Qin Ze, who was still in the Roman Islands, received reports from the various fleets.
"Your Majesty, our naval military exercise has successfully concluded. It lasted for seven days. During this period, the nations remained law-abiding and did not send troops to obstruct it."
Qin Ze nodded slightly and said slowly, "Very good, half of the goal has been achieved."
"Now, let's just wait patiently for a couple of days."
——
But what was both reasonable and unexpected was that just a few hours later, shortly after nine o'clock in the evening, the communications soldier who had returned from the sea brought news.
"Your Majesty, our fleet stationed in the territorial waters of the Kingdom of Sheng Lu has sent word that the Kingdom's Admiral Lukat requests an audience with you. He hopes that you can arrange a meeting with them. As for the time and place, you can decide, and they will fully cooperate."
Upon hearing this, Qin Ze rested his chin on his hand and said, "Okay, I understand."
Tell him I'll think about it and let him go back first.
"Yes, Your Majesty." The communications soldier immediately boarded a boat and left.
——
Meanwhile, a somber meeting was being held at the Pulton Inner Harbor Maritime Authority.
"It's still unclear whether their military exercises have ended. This might just be a tactic used by the Yan Kingdom. Why would they send ships over at this time?"
"You should know that although their fleet has retreated some distance, it is still stuck in our territorial waters. As for how many warships they have, we have no way of knowing," Dorfin said, shaking his head.
As soon as he finished speaking, Eddington glanced at Isabella, whose expression was grave, took a deep breath, and stood up, saying:
"I think it's no longer worth considering."
"Your Majesty, I request permission to go and communicate with the people of Yan in order to reach an agreement for the upcoming meeting."
After he finished speaking, everyone except Dorfen, who still looked hesitant and wanted to say something, remained silent.
In the ensuing silence, Isabella slowly rose, looking solemnly at Eddington, and said:
"Very well, General Eddington, then please make the trip."
Eddington nodded and replied resolutely, "Yes, Your Majesty."
Shortly afterward, just as Eddington was about to depart, Isabella secretly gave him a letter that read:
"General Eddington, if this mission goes smoothly, please deliver this letter to the commander of the Yan Kingdom."
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