Prell City Hall, Sebadian is guarded by a group of guards and squeezed into the back of the house. Tomatoes, eggs, mustard and rotten vegetable leaves were covered in paste, and cats and dogs meowed up and nibbled on them.

Using the magic of light to scare off the animals, Sebadian entered the living room and was cleaning up, when his nephew rushed in and shouted, "The old man is not good!

Sebadian shouted, "Look at what I look like!"

It was already night when he returned to the city of Prell, and the city was in chaos, and the two groups of people who supported the return to the empire and those who supported the defection to the Fei Gong were already practicing on the streets. As the mayor, he still did not give a clear explanation of the ownership of the city, which made people on both sides very dissatisfied, and the front and back doors of the city hall were surrounded by water.

Wesley hurriedly changed his clothes and reported on his way to the Imperial Army garrison. Although he didn't see Count Donne, the other party's reply was very clear. After dawn tomorrow, Prell City will be targeted.

"Don't worry," said Sebadian, "sir...... I mean, the cardinal, for his part, promised to stop the Imperial Army from attacking us. ”

Wesley belongs to the kind of person with high IQ and low emotional intelligence, and he opened his mouth and came: "It's just this?

Sebadian twitched the corners of his mouth: "The cardinal said that the will of the people should be respected, so I called the people of the city council to meet overnight. ”

Wesley continued to be unintentional: "That won't have a result, you will be beaten on either side you throw, ah......"

With that, he was kicked, and Sebadian's heart was being roasted on the fire by this question.

Another servant came to report that the members of the city council had arrived.

"They also know that big things are not good", Sebadian shook his head and smiled bitterly.

Prell City has a city council, but this council is either an elected city council, or Sebadian has organized some big businessmen to make his own plans.

Obviously, these people are not representative of the citizens of the city as a whole, but there is no way to set up a city council in a hurry, and can only hope to stabilize the city through these people.

In the council room, twenty or thirty big-bellied and bejeweled businessmen gathered together and shouted and discussed.

"Lord Mayor, if you don't give a letter, those riotous people will rush into the house to rob money and people!"

"Those guys from the city guard are useless at all, they are divided into two factions to fight!"

"Mayor, you're just from the Duke...... Oh, the cardinal has come back, has the Duke promised to take us?"

"Do we have only one choice but to defect to the Fei Gong? Earl Don may not be able to win, and if the Empress is angry, will the Fei Gong fight to the death with the Empress here to protect the city?"

"This city is called Prell City! Where will the cardinal put his face if he doesn't protect it? And the Fei Communist Party advocates the abolition of oppression, will it sit back and watch us be oppressed by the Empire?"

"Wouldn't it be enough to change the name? You have to think about it, if you defect to the Fei Gong, we will not be able to have more than seven employees under us, and all big business will be monopolized by the Fei Gong's guild and commune, are you willing?"

"Is it time to think about business?

"You're as small as a halfling!"

"You're as greedy as goblins!"

The discussion soon turned into a quarrel, and the quarrel turned into a brawl again, and Sebadian reluctantly stopped by releasing three divine light balls in succession to make the council room so bright that he could blind.

"Don't make any noise!"

Sebadian took out the majesty of the mayor and said in a deep voice: "I declared the allegiance of Prell City to the cardinal because we are still the subjects of the cardinal de jure in law, which is the eternal order that His Majesty the Emperor of the Empire also adheres to. ”

The merchants kept their faces bitter and did not speak, they could not deny this.

Sebadian continued: "But the cardinal rejects this doctrine, saying that when he abandoned the dukedom before, it had nothing to do with Hadron and the Empire. His original realm was annexed to the Fiq, and where our city was, and the citizens, he returned it to the kingdom of Hadrang. ”

The merchants rejoiced, but a word from one made their faces darker.

The middle-aged man looked completely different from the other indulgent merchants, not only was he lean, but his eyes were extraordinarily bright, and Sebadian remembered that his name was Vicis, and that he was a moneylender, but he only lent gold bushels, and did not tain the gold coins of the kingdom and empire.

"The Kingdom of Hadrang, or even the Dawning Empire, will not treat us as their own. My friend told me that Princess Ariel had recently asked Earl Don to strike us hard in the palace, and her attitude was to a certain extent representative of His Majesty the Emperor. Everyone knows very well that His Majesty the Divine Emperor has always been at odds with the Temple of Commerce, and he also has a very bad impression of merchants. ”

Sebadian nodded and said, "When I communicated with the cardinal, although he said that it was up to us to choose, his hint was very clear, and he wanted us to remain neutral here. ”

The merchants chimed in, and this was the ideal choice for them.

Vicis shook his head and sighed: "Can we remain neutral with our strength alone?"

This is the source of Sebadian's troubles, and Prell City simply does not have such power.

"There are two groups of people out there, one group is mainly the thieves' guild in the city, and the ones who encourage them must be merchants who represent the specialties of Hadlang, Sachiton, Redstone, and even the northern countries. ”

"The other group is a guild of laborers organized by coachmen and porters, and behind them are merchants who specialize in reselling surplus supplies in the Alpha Zone. ”

"Yes, all of you. To remain neutral, you must first unite internally, and then deal with external forces. But we are all fighting ourselves, so how can we stop external forces from reaching out?"

The merchants laughed, hiding the unnaturalness on their faces.

That's right, as the most powerful businessmen in Prell City, they have different inclinations about the prospects of Prell City.

Of course, the businessmen who control the channels of the Fei Gong want to rely on the Fei Gong, as long as the supply of goods is in hand, the channel is simple, and smuggling is a big deal.

The merchants, who are agents of various countries, want the city to return to the empire, with the support of the empire, and the supply of goods in hand, the channels are simple, and smuggling is a big deal.

They all know the style of the Fei Gong, and if any faction prevails in public opinion, the Fei Gong will not be strong, so they all instigate the forces under their control to build momentum on the streets.

But now it seems that the forces on both sides are evenly matched, which has made the best option, that is, neutrality, lose its foundation.

Sebadian looked at Vicis, and the other party also smiled back, so the former butler with high IQ and EQ suddenly understood who this guy was talking for.

"Vicis, if you're going to come up with another option, it's best to make it clear right away that it's very solid," Sebadian said. ”

"The mayor deserves to be the mayor", Vicis nodded, then turned to the door, bowed his head and said respectfully: "Her Royal Highness, Your Highness the Council." ”

A man and a woman entered the hall, because the girl walking in front was so dazzling that the man behind him was not noticed.

The girl was extremely young, fifteen or sixteen years old, and her appearance was unusually beautiful, and her clothes were unusually rich. But far beyond that was her long, iridescent hair, like a rainbow on top of it. The flickering brilliance was brighter than the light ball released by Sebadi just now, making everyone subconsciously cover their eyes.

The girl's voice was not sweet, with a deep shock that would confuse her gender: "Hello everyone, I am Ginny, the Holy Maiden of the Temple of Commerce. ”

Everyone was stunned, the Holy Maiden of the Temple of Commerce!?

The girl snapped her fingers, and her long iridescent hair became even brighter, and then countless gold coins jumped out of her head with a clang, and fell to her feet with a clatter, burying her ankles in an instant.

It was a golden bushel that never wore out, and the eyes of the merchants were green when they saw it.

With another snap of his fingers, the golden bushel turned backwards and returned to the girl's colored hair. The hair fluttered and fluttered, and the air was filled with the unique aura of Jin Buer, which made people believe that the scene just now really happened, and it was not an ordinary illusion.

"Your Highness......"

The man behind her brought a chair and made her sit in the middle of the hall like a queen, and the man stood beside her, showing a bright smile, and said gently: "I am the director of the Void Consortium, Lohiphus, on behalf of the Consortium and the Temple of Commerce, to discuss with you the ownership of Prell City. ”

Even though Sebadian was prepared, he was still extremely shocked: "Do you want to rule this city in the Temple of Commerce?"

The merchants also gasped in unison, the Temple of Commerce has always cooperated with various countries, attached to the royal power and lords, and has never ruled a city alone, is it now that the city of Prell is going to establish its own rule?

"No, no, you still don't know enough about the teachings of the Temple of Commerce......"

Lohiphus waved his finger and said, "The Temple of Commerce has never cared about who will rule cities and kingdoms, nor will it rule itself, but only with promoting the prosperity of commerce. ”

His tone was unusually forceful and irrefutable: "Mayor Sebadian and you are wondering where this city is going, your best option is neutrality, but Viciss is right, you don't have enough strength to remain neutral yourself. So, here we are. ”

"Think about it, if the Temple of Commerce were to settle here, and then support your declaration of neutrality, and turn the city into a completely neutral autonomous city-state, then whether it was the Dawning Empire or the Crimson Alliance...... Oh, you must not know that the Fei Communist Party has officially established a state, and its name is the Crimson Alliance. In short, other forces will be happy to see it. ”

The merchants nodded their heads, and with the support of the Temple of Commerce, Prell City did have enough strength to be neutral.

Sebadian, who didn't only think about interests like ordinary businessmen, frowned and asked, "What about your conditions, such as the change of the name of the city, or the management of the city?"

"No, no, don't want everything, except ......"

Rochifus pointed his finger at the merchants, "There are no conditions other than that your business is settled in gold bushels. ”

The saint behind her added: "It is necessary to provide us with a place to build a shrine, and not to prohibit the circulation of gold bushels, either publicly or privately. ”

Lochifos continued: "We are happy to see the stability of the city, which is a fundamental prerequisite for a prosperous business, so we will strongly support the mayor in managing the city and facilitate it in all aspects. ”

Sebadian closed his eyes, and he remembered that he had suggested that the old man marry ...... No, marry a rich widow to pay off the debt.

Thinking of the old man's warning not long ago, saying that if he wants to go down this road, he must have the consciousness of bearing the consequences, and he is faintly uneasy in his heart.

But now it seems that this is the only option.

Sebadian opened his eyes, and he was not polite, and said directly: "We definitely have no opinion on our side, but we still need to follow my master...... Oh, the leader of the Red Alliance, besides, on the side of the Empire, I am afraid that you will also need to convince His Majesty the God Emperor. ”

Loshypheus nodded, "That's what we're supposed to do." ”

He pointed to Vicis and said, "This is the agent of our Temple of Commerce in Prell City, and you can discuss the details with him." ”

Ginny and Loshyphus walked out of the door of the council chamber, and there was laughter inside, urging the mayor to make a proclamation and calm the people.

The rainbow light on her hair was retracted, and the luxurious long skirt turned back into an ordinary dress, and the saint looked like a very ordinary girl at this time.

As if they didn't exist, they stepped out of the crowd and walked the streets.

Because of its proximity to the Phillips, the city of Prell was better built than the kingdom of Hadrang, and the road paved with some kind of gel mixed with gravel and gravel was like a whole rock, which was smooth and did not reflect light, whether it was a wheel or a horseshoe, it was very labor-saving to run on, and it was very comfortable for people to walk.

There are high street lights at intervals on both sides of the street, which are unusually bright. The buildings on both sides of the road are several storeys of stone buildings, and in the thick and powerful frames, the wood, stone, brick and even glass walls of various colors are colorful and colorful under the light.

Cows, horses, rabbits, and even puppets that are squares, pulling carriages galloping on the road, dividing the flow of people and traffic with railings, and people in yellow vests waving chess pieces to direct traffic at intersections, everything seems to be in order.

Ginny sighed, "This is indeed a bit close to what His Majesty said...... The City of Dreams is closer than Everincense and Valentine, and Aroma's Shrine of Loyalty and Valentine's Castle of Divine Light are too much of an eyesore. ”

Rohifus said respectfully: "Yes, Your Highness, it is still just a prototype, and when the city develops to the east and the port is established, the scale may be dozens of times larger." ”

"I really can't think of it," said Ginny in a relieved tone, "We've been trying to build a city-state dominated by us, so that we can test the way to make Kim Buel penetrate deeper into all aspects of mortal life, and then spread it out as a template." ”

"In the past, the city-states either couldn't afford to do business on a large scale, or their relations with neighboring countries were difficult to handle, but I didn't expect new developments here. ”

Losifers nodded: "This is also an opportunity given by the historical process, at least the Red Union intends to promote it, and I think Theresia will also acquiesce." ”

"Hadron is not the main direction of her struggle with Richie, this is still her hometown, and in basic human terms, she probably doesn't want her hometown to become a bloody battlefield. ”

"Now it's time for her to put more pressure on our temple of commerce, and our actions in Prell City are also a low-profile gesture on our part of looking for ways to make up for our losses. ”

Ginny chuckled: "Theresia, I'm afraid I don't have much mortal heart now, so what is the basic human nature to talk about?"

She looked at her assistant and smiled meaningfully: "In comparison, you, the great devil of the past, may be more human than her. ”

Rohiphus coughed and said, "Your Highness, I am also diligent and dedicated, so why do you want to be sarcastic about me." ”

Ginny said, "Rohiphus, although you were a great devil in your previous life, and you have lived half your life as a mortal in the Storm Islands, and you have much more experience than me, your understanding of human nature is still not comprehensive enough. ”

Compared with the ignorant rainbow dragon that just came out of the Dragon Domain, Ginny has indeed grown a lot now, and at that time she followed Lohemoth to "operate" Hathaway, and she had to let Lohemoth explain everywhere.

Lohiphus smiled bitterly, who made the rainbow dragon the dragon who understood people's hearts the most, Her Majesty the goddess really picked a good saint.

He had no choice but to listen: "Please ask the Holy Maiden for advice." ”

"Human nature is indeed greedy, lazy and cowardly, but greed will make self-progress, will pursue wealth, and the pursuit of wealth will make the world progress. ”

"The other side of laziness is the pursuit of wisdom, and magic technology has developed faster not only in war, but also in life. ”

"As for cowardice, it is the most basic self-preservation. If everyone had not been cowardly, mortals would have died long ago. ”

Lohifus nodded first: "Indeed, human nature is complex......"

Then he frowned again: "It sounds like our Goddess Her Majesty is not only using the golden bushel to absorb the power of faith, but also pursuing goodness and good order?"

"How is that possible......"

Ginny smiled: "I gradually understand more of the teachings of the goddess, the goddess does want to establish some kind of order, but that order will not stand in front of the mortals to ask what to do, it will only be like air, so that mortals cannot do without it." ”

"It's not good or evil, Rohiphus. Do you think that Her Majesty the Goddess is in fact like Asmodeich, who grabs the souls of mortals through golden bushels?"

Lohipphus was a little embarrassed: "When I was first purified by His Majesty, I did think so. I thought that His Majesty had just changed the way, using gold busheres instead of the devil to lure, and indirectly absorbing the souls of mortals in the main plane. ”

Ginny shook her head, "The difference between gods and demons is that gods need mortal souls to be presented in a form that conforms to their path, rather than eating souls as food. ”

"Through the circulation of the golden bushels, the goddess makes the business laws condensed on the golden bushel continue to expand, and makes mortals believe in the laws of trade and obtain the power of faith from them. ”

"The law of trading is indeed based on human nature, and as I said earlier, human nature does not care about good or evil, so the path of Her Majesty the Goddess does not care about good or evil. ”

Loshyphus nodded his head, he still understood this.

He still smiled bitterly: "But so far, most of the mortal souls revolving around Jin Buer are manifestations of the evil of human nature." ”

Ginny also sighed a little: "This is our biggest challenge, the goddess still lacks an ally, an ally who proves that on the road of Jin Buer, she can also show the goodness of human nature." ”

"For the golden bush to penetrate deeper into the mortals, there must be a clear order before the mortals, and a good order. Whether or not that kind of good can be achieved, at least it can convince mortals to come together and work for it. ”

"You see, Theresia's eternal order, though it seems absurd to us, is in keeping with the goodness of human nature because it has won the support of too many mortals. ”

As Ginny said this, the distant sky suddenly exploded into orange fireworks, and then from both the north and south directions came a dull vibration like thunder, and it also lit up faintly.

The army of the Fei Communist Party fought with the Imperial Legion......

Lochifus smiled and said, "I bet it's a fee...... No, the Red Union's army opened fire to celebrate the founding of the country, scaring the Imperial Legion into firing back. ”

Then he asked curiously, "Could the Crimson Lady be an ally of the goddess?"

Ginny pursed her lips and shook her head slowly, but resolutely, "As I said before, the goddess regards Lady Crimson as her future enemy. Even if there will be a temporary cooperation in something like Prell City, we and Red Union will definitely not come together. ”

Rohipphus looked at the sky, crossed his arms, and said in an expectant tone, "I don't know which god it will be, but I bet it must be a goddess, and it is beautiful." ”