Mystery: The New Dark Emperor Arrives

Chapter 561 Gathering of Royal Members
Alice looked out the car window and said, "I am suddenly full of expectations for this journey. It is best to have a thrilling journey."

Hobert, who was sitting opposite him, also looked out the window: "The excitement is acceptable, but with the goddess on top, it's best not to be thrilling."

Then he smiled and said: "There should be no danger for us in Loen."

In addition to Hobert, there is also a demigod who protects the safety of the royal delegation, the kind old man Lakemont who Hobert has met.

The general division of labor between the two is that Lakemont protects Prince Bertram and Hobert protects Princess Alice.

There are also 4 Sequence 5s protecting the other 4 royal family members. Although they are also princes and princesses in name, they are not born to the queen and princess, so their status in the royal family is far inferior to Alice.

In addition to the six of them, there are also several "mid-sequence" security personnel, but they have no fixed protection targets and are mobile forces.

In addition, there is a guard composed of 50 guards, including several Beyonders.

The rest of the delegation were servants and people from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

At this time, in the luxurious restaurant of the first-class carriage, Alice was chatting face to face with Hobert.

Alice looked away from the car window: "The 'light bulb' you invented is shocking."

Prince Bertram, who was sitting aside, smiled and said: "Alice described the effect of the electric light to me, but it is really unimaginable."

Hobert also withdrew his gaze: "His Royal Highness should be able to see you soon, because many nobles have already placed orders for light bulbs with my newly established company.

"Queens will be the first to get electricity, the first to have electric lights."

Hobert has rented another large factory building not far from Queens and plans to convert it into a small power plant to solve the power problem in Queens.

Because it is a small power plant, there is no need to use such a large boiler and chimney, so it is enough to renovate the factory building and assemble a large boiler.

The most critical point is that the electricity used at this time is only for lighting, and there is no industrial electricity, so a small power plant should be able to temporarily supply the electricity in Queens.

After hearing what Hobert said, Prince Bertram smiled expectantly and said, "Nobles are supposed to lead the trend."

After Hobert showed a polite smile, he said to Alice: "I didn't invent the light bulb, but I can promote this product to thousands of households."

Alice said: "This is already amazing."

Prince Bertram on the side was obviously not interested in this topic: "Mr. Earl, I heard that you have met Princess Ethel of Feneport Kingdom before? She also attended your wedding?"

Hobert nodded: "We have indeed dealt with him several times."

Then he explained: "The reason why she attended my wedding was because our disguise as father and son was hidden from everyone, and the royal family of Feneport at that time was trying to win over us."

Bertram was more interested in: "I heard that the princess always kept her hair short and fought braver than men on the battlefield?"

Hobert was slightly startled: "She, she does have short hair."

"What about her character? Is she really as resolute as the rumors say?"

Before Hobert could reply, Alice on the other side had an unhappy look on her face and said, "Bertram! Watch your words and deeds! We are going to attend a diplomatic event! We can't be as casual as in the palace!"

Bertram immediately smiled and said as if to reflect: "It is indeed not prudent to inquire about other countries' princesses."

Hobert thought to himself: It seems that Alice is the real leader of this exchange operation.And this Prince Bertram looks a bit useless. At this important event, he only cares about the princess of the Kingdom of Feneport?Or is this what royal nobles look like?Is this prince just more straightforward?

Alice gradually recovered her smile and continued to say to Hobert: "I heard from some sources that Ethel also took you to her manor in the suburbs? It is said that that is a place that only her cronies are qualified to go. .”

Hobert suddenly couldn't laugh or cry: Aren't you two brothers and sisters the same?It's just that the focus is different.

He said: "She really wants to win over me and consolidate her political position."

Fortunately, Hobert played a decisive role in the battle of Feneport City. Otherwise, the matter of going to Ethel's private estate would definitely be investigated over and over again.

Among the first-class carriages, except for an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, only Hobert had been to Feneport. Moreover, he had stayed in the South Colson area and knew the lower society of the Feneport Kingdom very well.

Compared with the foreign ministry official who is over 50 years old, everyone prefers to talk to the young and handsome Hobert about issues about the Kingdom of Feneport.

The journey to Maxi was spent in boring chatting. The group first took a train from Backlund and crossed the Balqis Mountains in the east.

Then on the vast Tuckwell Plain, we switched to another railway line, first heading south and then continuing eastward. After passing the entire Tuckwell Plain, the remaining veins of the central plateau appeared in front of everyone.

It can be said that a central plateau separates the countries of the northern continent.

This also makes the northern continent destined to be difficult to unify, because according to common sense, after crossing the central plateau to attack other countries, it will become very difficult to transport manpower and materials to the front line.

Most of the territory of the small country of Masi is the remnant of the central plateau, which is famous for various summer resorts.

Even when the northern continent ushered in a hot summer, many of the snowy mountains here would not even show signs of melting.

When entering the territory of Masi, the train began to climb and began to drill tunnels frequently.

Hobert also became vigilant. If someone wanted to sabotage this event, it would be best to do it in Ma Xi.

Not only Hobert thought so, but Alice and others also thought of this.

So Alice simply put on pants and a shirt that were easier to move around. Her beautiful legs were neither fat nor thin, just enough to hold up the clothes.

Wearing this in Backlund would look very unladylike, but this is not Backlund.

Alice asked Hobert: "If the enemy attacks, where will their attack come from?"

Hobert thought for a while and said seriously: "From heaven."

Bertram on the side smiled and said, "You really know how to joke."

Almost at the same time, a meteorite seemed to appear in the sky and hit the train directly.

Hobert was ready to take action, but Lakemont had already rushed out of the car and took the initiative to meet the meteorite.

When Hobert saw this, he began to look at both sides of the railroad tracks ahead.

Since one demigod took the initiative, of course the other demigod had to stay on the train.

Just as he expected, fierce burning flames suddenly appeared in front of him, burning towards the carriage.

This time Hobert still got the button provided by the royal family last time, so he made the space around the train become illusory, as if he was in another space, thus avoiding the sudden ambush.

After the train quickly passed through the flames, swarms of fire crows rushed towards the carriage. Hobert did not take action this time, but let the Sequence 5 in the carriage behind block the fire crows.

Soon, the protection personnel sent by Ma Xi also came to support, and the other party chose to retreat immediately.

The attack came and went quickly. The train quickly escaped the enemy's ambush, and Lakemont quickly returned to the carriage: "The other party is led by that bastard Polunov!"

This old man knew the demigods of the enemy country very well. Although they kept covering their faces with flames, they were still recognized by Lakemont.

Then the old man smiled at Hobert and nodded slightly, confirming Hobert's performance just now.

The attack just now was obviously a test by the enemy. Lakemont was a demigod known to protect the royal family, and he would still be exposed when Ma Xi arrived.

But Hobert is different. Not many people know that he is a demigod.

In the attack just now, he only used the sealed object to protect the train and did not expose himself. In Lakemont's opinion, Hobert's approach was very calm.

The attack seemed like a false alarm, and laughter soon returned to the carriage.

Only Hobert and others were more alert, because after the test was over, the opponent's next attack would not be so lighthearted.

Fortunately, the rest of the journey went relatively smoothly. At around four o'clock that afternoon, the train arrived at Masi Railway Station.

Prince Ernest, the crown prince of Ma Xi, personally greeted him at the station. In fact, Ma Xi was also helpless. The exchange activities between the royal families of the two countries were chosen here. In addition to entertaining them wholeheartedly, they also had to carefully protect the royal family members of the two countries for fear that they would go out. What a danger.

This is the helplessness of the small countries in the northern continent. Although they have the protection of the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, they are sometimes inevitably involved in the vortex of battles between powerful countries.

The group of people arrived at the manor where they were staying, and in the evening the Ma Xi royal family held a grand welcome banquet.

The princes and princesses of the Kingdom of Feneport were in another manor, where there was an equally grand welcome banquet.

Taking advantage of the gap during the banquet, Hobert walked around. The Kingdom of Maxi sent a large number of security personnel, who seemed to be led by a demigod.

That's a helper, but it can also be an enemy.

This night, the two demigods who didn't sleep much were on duty in the first half of the night and the other in the second half of the night.

The next day, the communication between the two royal members began, starting with a meeting introduced by Prince Ernest of Maxi.

Ethel is one of the members of the delegation from the Kingdom of Feneport. Even the royal dress cannot hide her heroic spirit. Moreover, according to Hobert's observation, the other royal delegation also has this princess as its leader.

In addition to his MI[-] mission, Hobert is also one of the noble members of the Loen delegation. This is for the convenience of protecting the royal family members at close range.

So during the handshakes and greetings, Hobert lined up behind the members of the Loen royal family.

Ethel had seen Hobert a long time ago. When the two shook hands, Ethel smiled and said: "Geoffrey, Baron! We meet again!"

Hobert smiled and said: "Hello, princess."

He knew that in such a diplomatic situation, as the princess of the Feneport Kingdom who had suffered losses before, she would definitely have to make fun of herself.

So Hobert didn't say anything and just said hello politely.

At the same time, Hobert felt that there was an extra note in the hand held by Ethel.

This made him a little helpless, but in such an occasion, he could only proceed first.

After the greeting process was over, under the interpretation of the translator, the two parties began a friendly face-to-face meeting, which at least seemed very friendly on the surface.

Occasionally, the two parties would communicate on their own in the ancient Fusac language, which was a required course for nobles from various countries in the Northern Continent, and could completely enable barrier-free communication.

But after all, this is a diplomatic event, and it looks more presentable with an interpreter present.

Taking the opportunity to go to the bathroom, Hobert took out the note that Ethel handed to him. There was a simple line on it: See you at Turbony Square at three o'clock in the morning.

As soon as he finished reading it, the words on the note disappeared and the note turned into an ordinary piece of white paper.

Hobert even considered whether this was an attempt by Fenebote to make a mistake.

But thinking about Ethel's eyes at that time, it didn't look like that.After thinking about it for a while, Hobert decided to meet the other party at night. Otherwise, with Ethel's character, if he didn't go, such notes might be handed to him continuously.

At noon, both parties had dinner together, and in the afternoon there was a dance.

On the Loen royal family's side, Princess Alice danced the first dance with Hobert, and everyone applauded halfway through the dance.

The reason why Alice said that Hobert was a good dancer was actually due to his demigod-level charm. This was not something he actively used, but a natural aura that he exuded.

So once Hobert is under the spotlight, he will become particularly attractive. Coupled with his good looks, his coordination with Princess Alice, and his gorgeous clothes, he attracts everyone's applause.

Then the two sides began to invite each other's royal members as dance partners. Hobert took a break and soon received an invitation from Princess Ethel.

This kind of dance involves invitations to each other, so Ethel's invitation is not considered rude.We will also follow the principle of ladies first and give priority to invitations from ladies.

As the dance music started again, the two danced gracefully. Ethel smiled and said, "I didn't expect you to dance so well."

Hobert also smiled and said: "This is a gentleman's battlefield."

"I discovered something very interesting." Ethel said in Hobert's ear: "Your princess is interested in you!"

"I know this." Originally, Hobert was not aware of this, but after these two days of getting along day and night, he would be too slow if he hadn't noticed it yet.

Ethel was slightly startled: "You know? Then why do you still look so indifferent to her?"

Hobert said seriously: "I'm married."

Ethel smiled: "Okay, pretend I didn't say that."

As soon as Hobert left the dance floor, he received Alice's invitation.

As soon as they entered the dance floor, Alice asked in a low voice: "What were you talking about mysteriously just now?"

"Just asking each other how we are doing."

"Lying, I clearly saw her looking at me with ill intentions."

Hobert smiled: "She did praise Princess Alice's elegant dancing just now."

"Liar!"

As soon as the dance ended, Hobert received another invitation from Princess Ethel: Come again?

It was obviously rude not to agree, so Hobert had no choice but to step onto the dance floor again, and a new dance music started. Ethel asked: "Did Alice say something bad about me just now?"

Hobert smiled helplessly: "No, she just praised the princess for her heroic appearance!"

"Humph!" Ethel said, "Tell Alice that her dress is really ugly."

Brother, why don't you say it yourself?
After leaving the dance floor, Alice stepped forward and asked, "What did that guy say?"

Hobert took a deep breath: "She said, your dress is so beautiful!"

"She definitely didn't say that," Alice said, "Tell her, she doesn't have any manners that a princess should have."

Hobert was also a little helpless. He was just here to make soy sauce, so why did he become a translator?

After a while, Ethel came over with a wine glass and a smile: "What did Alice say?"

Hobert showed a somewhat stiff smile: "She said that you are a role model among the royal family."

"Hmph! Liar!"

Hobert sighed inwardly, this is diplomacy!

……

At three o'clock in the morning, after observing from a distance, Hobert appeared on time in Turbonne Square.

In the center of the square is the statue of Teboni. He was once a nobleman of the Kingdom of Feneport. He became independent with the support of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom and other countries in the Northern Continent during the "War of Broken Oaths".

Ma Xicheng has a curfew, and after nine o'clock in the evening, the streets are deserted.

Under the statue, a hooded figure stood: "You're here!"

The other party took off his hood and it was Ethel himself: "I didn't expect you would really dare to come."

Hobert smiled and said: "I don't dare to come. It was the Loen royal family that ruined your plan. Don't make the mistake of targeting the enemy."

Hearing these words, Ethel was relieved: Hobert had no sense of belonging to the Loen Kingdom.

She said: "I asked you to come out because I have something important to discuss with you."

Ethel still likes to be straightforward.

This suited Hobert well: "Please tell me."

"Some members of the Castile family hope to secretly believe in the 'founder'." Ethel looked at Hobert and said.

This surprised Hobert. As we all know, the members of the Feneport royal family are all believers in the Church of the Mother Earth. In other words, they can only believe in the Church of the Mother Earth.

Hobert thought about it for a moment before asking: "Why? Because the 'creator' eliminated the pollution in their bodies."

Don’t you know that those pollutions are also caused by the “creators”?
Ethel asked, "Isn't this enough?"

Hobert thought about it again and then said: "I can't make the decision on this matter, but I will convey it to you.

"But I want to remind you that belief in the 'Creator' is not just about praying to Him and making sacrifices to Him. You also need to be loyal to Him. Can you do it?"

He realized that this was either a test by the Feneport royal family against the "Creator", or they were frightened by the power of the "Creator" and made a surrendering choice.

After all, when the corpse of the ancient God of Death arrived at Alhambra Palace, the angels of the Castile family and the Pope of the Mother Earth Church felt helpless.

The desperation of the demigods and even the extraordinary beings below demigods present can be imagined!

Ethel said: "As long as we are not allowed to work with people from the Augustus family, everything else is easy to discuss."

Hobert frowned, the other party was obviously sincere.

He asked: "What is the real purpose of this exchange event?"

“Discuss the issue of the ownership of the Lundberg territory.” Ethel did not hide anything: “Both sides feel that they should occupy most of the country’s territory.

“But this discussion is about how to carve up Lundborg when the current situation in the Northern Continent is broken.

"Both sides do not want to waste too much force fighting for this small country."

Hobert smiled and said: How ironic that a small country is discussing how to carve up another small country.

Lunburg is also sandwiched between the Kingdom of Loen and the Kingdom of Fenebaud. Due to the country's hilly terrain, the fight for these territories can easily lead to a war of attrition. This is obviously a situation that neither side wants to see.

In addition, Hobert realized that the situation in the Northern Continent was about to be broken. This was the consensus of the top leaders of various countries.

Overcapacity is like a giant sword hanging over people's heads. At this time, many "people of insight" should have reached a consensus to launch a war to consume the excess production capacity and at the same time make farmers, workers, and businessmen Children died on the battlefield to reduce population pressure on major cities.

This is a consideration at the "elite" level. In this extraordinary world, if they are the only ones who think this way, it is not certain whether this war will be fought or not.

But now the world of extraordinary people behind the ordinary world is also brewing a war, which makes this war inevitable.

Hobert's thoughts were racing, and he promised again: "I will convey it to you."

Then he said in a warning tone: “As a friend, I want to remind you: Do not tempt God!”

Ethel nodded solemnly, and then said: "Also as a friend, I want to remind you that the Republic of Intis and the Feysac Empire want to sabotage this exchange event, and they are more likely to target members of the Loen royal family. "

……

Back at the station, Hobert was in his room considering Ethel's request just now, and he decided to put the matter aside for now.

As for Ethel's last reminder, he was not surprised. After all, he had already encountered an ambush by the demigods of the Fusac Empire on the way here.

In the next few days, Hobert remained very vigilant, but nothing happened.

Diplomats from both sides discussed carving up Lundborg in a secret meeting room, and royal members of both sides began to compete with each other since the ball.

Horse racing requires a battle for victory, hunting requires a battle for victory, and it is said that winning or losing is a matter of playing ball.

Hobert just fulfilled his duty to protect the royal family members and turned a deaf ear to their secret rivalry.

Finally, on the fifth day after arriving in Ma Xi, both parties began to enjoy art performances together.

Originally, Hobert thought that they could finally settle down, but he didn't expect that they were rushing to comment on the artistic performance again, leaving Hobert somewhat speechless.

It was a masked party in the evening, and Hobert also watched the performance on stage with Alice and the others as the count.

In Hobert's view, this form of performance is very similar to a rant convention. The actors will put on the iconic makeup of some historical figures, and then use the tone of that historical figure to comment on the past and the present in a humorous style.

Moreover, you can interact on and off stage, and it is not considered rude even if you plan on each other's performance.

This places high demands on actors, because an actor must always answer the audience's questions in the tone of the character he plays in order to be considered a qualified performance.

The actor on the stage at this time had long chestnut hair, a high nose, and two beautifully groomed mustaches, which was exactly what Russell looked like.

"Roselle" said: "If those idiots hadn't assassinated me, the Republic of Intis would have been the most powerful country in the Northern Continent!"

This made the members of the Loen royal family almost applaud together, saying that the joke was very interesting.

Hobert lamented: This actor put a lot of effort into his makeup, and it is very similar to the image of Emperor Russell in some paintings.

"The entire Northern Continent will crawl at my feet!" The actors on the stage performed hard: "And your party will look very ridiculous!"

Suddenly, Hobert felt a sign of danger. He looked at "Roselle" on the stage. He was the source of the danger!

　Thanks to [Ambei Xia] for rewarding the characters in this book.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)