After a long period of repression, Duke Cullen was the first to sigh:

"I thought, divide the troops, that's their second mistake?"

Sordor Raed's face tensed, and he was silent.

At the head of the long table, King Kessel sat up straight, and for the first time his grim face emerged from the darkness:

"Gilbert?"

The Foreign Secretary, who had not spoken for a long time, "Cunning Fox" Gilbert looked solemn and nodded slightly.

"Perhaps ideologically, the Exeters understand the pros and cons of this, but only in action...... Can't do it. ”

Tails' teacher had a sharp eye and began to analyze the situation:

"Pray for the immediate interests of Yuancheng, and the most motivated is to seek progress. ”

"It's none of your business to guard the city, be cautious, and of course seek stability. ”

Gilbert snorted:

"As for Longxiao City, one is the Valhalla Palace, which is profound and fearful, and the other is that the heroine Walton is in power and is despised. ”

"The most embarrassing position is a dilemma. ”

Tails' heart sank.

"They tend to win by surprise and get prestige, and that's normal. ”

Gilbert sighed slowly:

"I think the consideration behind this choice is not the military, but the politics. ”

"A hundred opinionated wise men are not as good as a hundred fools who work together. ”

Tails looked at the split white pieces on the map, distraught.

No.

Thelma, what did you think at the time?

"Speaking of political ......"

Juke Man interrupted this small solemnity, only to hear the treasurer wonder:

"This war was provoked by the family killers, and the war was in full swing, so Rumba didn't do anything behind it?

Sordor looked at the scar-faced man in Myco.

The latter put away the information in his hand and nodded:

"Since the coronation of Chaman, the Black Sand Collar has been stumbling on the Grand Dukes who do not respect the king's orders, and this is the norm. ”

But the scar-faced man's tone changed:

"But this time it was very strange, from the declaration of war to the conscription, from the promotion to the engagement, from the spies to the officials, the Black Sand Collar almost stopped all internal and external means of harassment and obstruction, did not interfere in the war of the three cities, and only concentrated on its own internal affairs to calm the turmoil. ”

All the monarchs in the imperial meeting were stunned.

The King's gaze was on the Foreign Secretary.

I saw Gilbert nodding, but worried:

"Yes, diplomatically, King Chaman even issued a proclamation in solidarity, condemning the Liberal Alliance, and giving full support to the Three Cities to the west and seeking justice. ”

As soon as these words came out, everyone was stunned again.

Only Tails bit his lower lip.

"So this time," Prime Minister Cullen rubbed his chin thoughtfully:

"Not only did Rumba not do anything, but more than ever, he was a good king who was generous and selfless?"

The monarchs looked at each other, very puzzled.

Until the king's words broke the doubt, as if throwing a solid ice into the lake:

"He moved. ”

King Kessel clasped his hands, and a cold light flashed in his eyes:

"In a way that didn't move. ”

The words fell, and many people still did not understand.

"Moved, moved, moved, in a way that didn't move?"

Viscount Connie was puzzled:

"Your Majesty, I don't understand. ”

"You're saying that Rumba has undisclosed private dealings with them?"

The king did not answer, but only raised his gaze.

"Tails. ”

At the long table, the only teenager subconsciously clenched his knees.

But King Kessel's voice still sounded coldly, and penetrated into his ears without hindrance:

"Tell me why King Chaman moved. ”

"How did he move?"

Tails felt a chill in his heart.

Why did Charman move?

All eyes came in a volley, and he looked up with difficulty.

Tails stared at the king in a daze.

On the other side, Gilbert, despite his concern, coughed lightly and encouraged him with his eyes.

As a result, the words of Duke Tyers of Star Lake sounded for the first time at the Imperial Council.

"After Nunn's death, the only thing that could make Walton, Ronnie, and Leco one was King Chaman's ruthless and unruly methods, which made them feel threatened. ”

The second prince took a deep breath, tried not to think about anything else, and slowly spoke:

"But when King Chaman made it clear that he was holding back and didn't want to get involved in their affairs......"

Tails didn't go any further.

The ministers looked at each other and realized a little.

But the king's words sounded faintly again, with a hint of scrutiny and even questioning:

"What else?"

Tails tightened his knees.

It took a great deal of effort for him to loosen the palm of his hand that was clasping his knee.

"Originally, Long Xiao, Qiyuan, and Guarding the Three Cities joined forces to conquer the Freedom Alliance, which was a move against the king. ”

Duke Xinghu spoke again, and this time, everyone listened carefully to his analysis:

But after the scene of Rumba's surprise visit to Longxiao City on the day of the political hearing, the whole country knew that the king had won a great victory in the political battle. ”

Listen to Politics Day.

Tails struggled to dispel the shadow of that day:

"There is no point in the three cities taking advantage of this war against King Chaman again. ”

"They lost the greatest motivation to resist the king, but they were forced to mobilize in order to fulfill their covenant. ”

The gentlemen of the meeting whispered and nodded to each other.

Tails let out a sigh of relief.

"And so. ”

The king's words rang out again, and he seemed unwilling to let him go.

Tails was silent for a moment.

At that moment, he vaguely knew what King Kessel wanted him to say.

But......

Tails was expressionless and distracted, but he instinctively spoke:

"On the day of the alliance, the Prince of Stars, who was a hostage of Longxiao City, secretly colluded with King Chaman......"

The ministers looked back and forth, and at that moment they did not know what to mean.

Tails breathed in a trance:

Later, he was suddenly kidnapped and disappeared unknown. ”

"Not only did that mess up the situation, but it also made the three cities that had made the covenant lose trust...... Be suspicious of each other. ”

Speaking of which, Tails was empty.

Yes.

Everything is connected.

It was his choice of listening to the political day that affected the situation of the battle at Fort Liberty, thousands of miles away at this moment.

Perhaps this is what King Kessel wants him to say.

Among the factors that hurt the centrifugation of the three cities and the failure of the little slippery head......

There is him.

Tails felt a pain in his heart.

"In this way, this expedition, Longxiao City is the name, praying for the benefit of the distant city, and guarding the city is swaying in the meantime, seeking profit. ”

Tails struggled to open and close his lips, as if to say something that had nothing to do with him:

"They have lost the biggest foundation for sincere cooperation, and only the appearance of each family is separated. ”

"Whether it is a disagreement or a division of troops, it is all doomed. ”

Oh, yes.

Each has a ghost, and the appearance is detached.

Isn't this the biggest thing he's seen in the Northland in the past few years?

Isn't it the strongest weapon he used to counter Rumba in the night of dragon's blood?

The prince's face stiffened, and he left a long silence on the long table.

It took a moment for Kessel to snort.

He rarely, perhaps for the first time in his life, praised his son:

"Good. ”

On the other side, Gilbert sighed.

"The sky is high and the throne is far away, and the enemy is evil. ”

The words of the Foreign Secretary are full of emotion:

"In the far west of the border, King Chaman only deliberately did not move, and the events before Ren slowly fermented, so that the people of the Northland forgot why they stood together and why they fought side by side. ”

In the Ballard room, everyone was immersed in the unspeakable atmosphere of this moment.

Until Sodot breathed too long.

"Your Highness is right, and Count Cassel is right. ”

"It's not war, it's not military, it's not chess," the military adviser showed exhaustion in his eyes:

"It's politics. ”

"Perhaps at the negotiating table and in the banquet hall, in the face of the king's pressing steps, with a common purpose, the alliance of the three cities can be like brothers. ”

"But in this case, when the army goes out to command the battlefield and the actual interests are at stake, the three cities have their own calculations and do not belong to each other, and there is no strongman like King Nunn to suppress ......"

Sodot's face was sad:

"Then it is inevitable that there will be discord, it will be difficult to work together, and even differences in ideas, and they will fight separately. ”

Tails closed his eyes gently.

At that moment, what flashed in his mind was a fragment of memory from a long time ago, which seemed to be a few lines of ancient poetry:

[The army is uneven, hesitating and geese are walking. 】

Viscount Connie coughed:

"I felt it when I walked in the Northland...... When to take a strong risk, when to show weakness and retreat, every move of the king of the king of killing relatives is clear, and everything is seen clearly, and there must be a master to make a decision. ”

On the other side, the scar-faced man of the secret department nodded.

"The 'Night Stalker' Lhasa Kambida has been placed on the secret department's key list," he replied cautiously.

"We are watching him with all our might, whether it is to meet the king or to go home for leave. ”

Viscount Connie nodded in satisfaction.

The king knocked on the table:

"Go on. ”

After the feeling and sigh just now, the Imperial Council returned to its previous atmosphere, and Sodor Red's voice sounded again:

"After dividing the troops, Kierkegaard of Longxiao City personally led the army, attacked day and night along the Shanliu River, and bit the only elite of the Freedom Alliance. ”

He picked out a few of the three white pieces and placed them on the side of the black knight.

Feeling uncomfortable, Tails watched the war rehearsal on the long table, and suddenly remembered the first meeting he and Ashida had met on Red Square Street many years ago.

It was also a chess and card room.

The Wizard of Qi is also strategizing and moving the chess pieces.

It's just that time has passed, and things are not people.

"It went well at first, but as the battle progressed, it ......"

The next moment, Soduo's pupils shrank, and several white pieces fell one after another.

"One-armed was captured. ”

Everyone was stunned for a moment.

Including Tails.

In the next second, there was an uproar in the conference room:

"How?"

"That's Kierkegaard!"

"The elite soldiers of Longxiao City ......"

"Even if you don't have the help of the other two cities, you shouldn't lose to such an opponent, right?"

Faced with the tide of doubts, Soduo's face was also solemn, and he shook his head:

"There is no information, we just know: coincidence, luck, it just happened. ”

The scar-faced man of the secret department nodded, agreeing to the military advisor's answer.

Tails' face was cloudy, and he thought back to the Kierkegaard.

"the best man under King Nunn".

It's hard to believe that he will lose to a small army of unknown countries in a head-to-head duel, and he will be captured.

The scar-faced man turned out the information:

"We only know that after the commander was captured, the hearts of the troops in Longxiao City were disheartened. ”

"They were defeated and retreated under the swift attack of the enemy, and even failed to command for a time, and could not care for each other. ”

"Even the Grand Duchess herself was lost in the chaos and her whereabouts are unknown. ”

"Dragons have no leader, almost like walking dead. ”

Lost in the midst of the rebels.

Small slippery head.

The prince took a deep breath, trying to keep his expression constant.

Tails felt Gilbert's hand press against his palm, motioning for him to be at ease.

Soduo's words resounded, repeating the battle thousands of miles away:

At the same time, on the frontal battlefield, the troops of Qiyuan City were on the front line, wanting to take advantage of the emptiness inside the opponent and go all out to attack the city. ”

But the next moment, Sord's face darkened, and his fingers tapped on the side of Fort Liberty on the map, vibrating the black and white pieces on it.

"The Exeters suffered more damage than expected - this time, the soldiers and civilians of the Free Alliance sacrificed their lives and deaths, and their resistance was stubborn. ”

"Qiyuan City has been repeatedly attacked. ”

The words are solemn, and the meaning behind them is even more worrying.

"Repeated attacks ......"

Gilbert silently repeated the sentence, with a sense of feeling.

In the confusion of the ministers, Soduo coughed, moved the second white piece to the flank, and continued to explain:

"As for the kings of the guarding city, they went to the periphery to consolidate the battle line, and by the way, they collected grain and grass to maintain law and order. ”

But not only did they gain nothing, but they were met with desperate resistance from countless bitter people, and the morale of the army was low, like a quagmire. ”

The king at the end of the long table frowned and looked at the Foreign Secretary:

"Bitter people?"

Gilbert raised his glasses and flipped through a notebook in his hand:

"Most of the Freedom Alliance, the eastern part of the Beihai Kingdom, including the western part of the territory of Qiyuan City, these areas were originally part of the empire's Xitao Province, and the aborigines of its area were called Xitao 'bitter people'. ”

"Although they were at the end of the Golden Corridor, most of them lived in poverty and low status, and for hundreds of years, whether it was the accession of the Exeter and the Commas, or the Senate of the Liberal League established by the nobles in compromise, they were quite harsh. ”

Tails moved, remembering the story of the bitter people of Xitao that Ian, the heir of Qiyuan City and the "nasty ghost" told him.

"I don't understand. ”

The Minister of Commerce and Trade, Viscount Connie opened his mouth to voice everyone's questions:

"When I visited the Golden Corridor, the troops and people of the Freedom Alliance ...... Shouldn't you be so tough, let alone facing the Yankees?"

Sodot shook his head:

"No, it's because you're dealing with the Northlanders. ”

This time, Sordor looked at the cunning fox of the stars.

Gilbert sighed, and he reopened the record:

"Twenty years ago, Nunn's son, Suril Walton, led an army to conquer Fort Liberty. ”

"After the city was broken, in order to avenge the death of his subordinates, he slaughtered the city for three days, and plundered it without restrictions, causing ten rooms and nine empty rooms, and the people were hungry and cannibalistic. ”

Tails frowned.

This information ......

In the records of the Exeters......

No.

Treasurer, Jocco Man nodded gloomily:

"I remember that the Northlanders were said to have tried to block the news at first—and the more fortunate ones were to compare the inhuman brute to Prince Horace, and it was a laugh. ”

Gilbert frowned and continued:

"The governor of the alliance was even cut off ten fingers, dragged around the city for twenty miles and died, hanging his body to show the public, in order to set an example, his state was tragic, and the surrounding area was shocked. ”

The Foreign Secretary lowered his glasses and covered his notebook:

"And the current Governor of the League is the grandson of the previous Governor. ”

Tails looked at Gilbert's notebook.

The history on paper is understated, and the real past is thick and depressing.

"So they're going to rebel. ”

Hearing this, Prime Minister Cullen sighed deeply:

"Tyranny reigns at the head, and there is no place where people are inherently cowardly and ready to be slaughtered. ”

Perhaps this sentence poked something, and the imperial meeting was silent for a while, and no one answered.

Only Kilbert nodded and said with emotion:

"Cause and effect, the current appearance of this war was actually doomed twenty years ago. ”

"Now, the Northlanders are only ...... for their previous brutality"

"It's just a matter of paying off the debt. ”