After the Soul Meeting concluded in the West City Council Hall.
After a few seconds of silence, Emerson was the first to open his eyes: "Gentlemen, I believe you are all aware of His Majesty's decree?"
As a military advisor, Cumberland, sitting to the side, muttered to himself, "Can we assemble a fleet capable of bringing back Wanrao and launching a surprise attack on Gugu City...?"
Emerson turned his gaze to the Ragrens, who were in charge of the business department: "How many ships does the kingdom currently have at its disposal?"
Lady Raglan answered without hesitation: "A new three-masted cargo ship, the Karak, will be launched in the middle of this month. Together with the existing 'Black Pearl,' 'Saint Sidlow,' and 'Divine Will,' the Kingdom will now have a total of four ships at its disposal."
Mr. Raglan added, "Of these four ships, the largest can carry 220 people and the smallest less than 150, so together they can only carry about 700 people."
Emerson crossed his arms, looked at the murals on the ceiling of the council chamber, and sighed deeply: "Only 700 people... far from His Majesty's requirements."
Cumberland suddenly said, "There is a way."
Emerson looked at him.
“Rent all available ships in the kingdom!” Cumberland stroked his beard and said, “We can rent cargo ships from the Southern Empire, warships from the Northern Island tribes, and even fishing boats from the surrounding residents.”
Ulysses asked doubtfully, "Won't such a large-scale leasing of ships attract the attention of the enemy?"
Cumberland shook his head slightly: "First, Ulster is in turmoil, not to mention they are fighting Connaught and have no time to pay attention to the situation at sea; second, we can lease ships in batches under the names of individuals or shops, and hide the requisitioned ships in the temporary port of Waiheke Island, which can minimize attention."
Terence did some calculations on paper, then turned to Lady Raglan and asked, "The rental and deposit for the ships will be a huge expense. Can the kingdom afford it?"
The latter showed no sign of worry: "Please rest assured, with the kingdom's current financial resources, it wouldn't be a problem to lease, or even buy, all of these ships."
Upon hearing this, Cumberland turned his gaze to Huggins: "This plan must be kept absolutely secret..."
Huggins bowed slightly and said in a low voice, "Rest assured, the alien forces of the entire Muxi City will monitor the entire city around the clock."
Cumberland nodded slightly, then looked around at the people around him. He suddenly noticed that Emerson hadn't said much since the end of the Soul Meeting, so he asked, "As the Prime Minister, what are your opinions on His Majesty's plans?"
Emerson shook his head and said to the other attendees, "Please carry out your respective tasks according to His Majesty's orders."
Watching the others walk out the door, Cumberland looked at Emerson: "Do you have something to say about His Majesty's plan?"
"The Kingdom of Ulster is currently beset by internal and external troubles. At this time, using a large fleet to launch a surprise attack on Gugu Port and rescue a large number of slaves to use as soldiers is a very risky plan, but if successful, it will completely open up the strategic situation in the North. I fully support this plan. I'm thinking about something else now..."
Cumberland asked curiously, "The other thing?"
"If Your Majesty's raid succeeds, it will mean that the kingdom's puppet regime has successfully established itself in the north. Then, the refugees from Holy Guard City will have a place to settle."
Upon hearing Emerson's words, Cumberland exclaimed in surprise, "You want to settle the refugees of Holy Guard City among the barbarians? Have you forgotten? Holy Guard City just ended a war with the northern barbarians!"
The latter reminded the former: "The former enemy of Saint Guard City was the combined forces of Ulster and Connaught. The southern barbarian tribes were merely forced to participate in this battle. Moreover, the puppet regime in the north is now fighting against the Kingdom of Ulster, which aligns with the shared hatred of the people of Saint Guard City and the barbarian tribes."
Cumberland thought for a moment and then raised another question: "If the refugees from Holy Guard City are relocated to the northern barbarian territory, it would mean that the Kingdom of Muxi would completely break ties with the Church."
"Could things get any worse?" Emerson retorted. "Having taken in heretics, apostates, and scholars, Twilight City has done everything it could to offend the Church. Haven't you noticed that since the Silver Ring Campaign, the Church has turned all its attention to us?"
Cumberland reviewed the Church's actions: stationing troops on the border, accepting refugees, intervening in the internal affairs of Holy Guard City... The Church's recent actions, while seemingly vying for control of Holy Guard City, were in fact aimed at curbing the development of Twilight City.
Emerson frowned and said, "Originally, before the Silver Ring War was over, we still had the Silver Ring and barbarian armies to help restrain the Church's power. But now, the Silver Ring Kingdom has been destroyed, the only barrier in front of us has disappeared, and the Church can finally free up its hands to deal with us."
"The Father Church's three major dioceses span most of the continent, encompassing over 120 kingdoms. With so many countries, a single holy decree from the Pope would declare Twilight City heretical, and His Majesty's ruling foundation would be declared illegitimate. At that time, our southern neighbor, Lone Rock City, would be able to use its naval forces to cut off our trade routes; and the iron cavalry of Holy Guard City could use the military fortress of Watchtower to step into the undefended Moon Creek Plains. Silver Ring City, North Stone Mine, and even Twilight City would be completely exposed to the enemy's arrows."
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