Chapter 235 – #234 Negotiation With Ice Crown

***

Crackling. The fireplace radiated hot heat. In front of him, eight people were gathered together and looking at each other.

They are from a family that ranks 20th in the Kshanberg Empire. He was a representative of the nobles who came to take over Halstenberg.

“The situation is not good. Now is the time to make a decision.”

“I agree. If things continue like this, everything will be taken away by that black-haired beast.”

The black-haired beast refers to Kale Cranberry, who has recently caused an uproar in the empire and has recently been praised as a hero even here in Halstenberg.

The nobles were feeling a sense of crisis due to his unrivaled actions. Even though they arrived much later than they did, they turned the whole situation around like this.

“I think we need to sort things out with Prince Icecrown first.”

“I guess I’ll have to drop the value back.”

“That’s not to say that we will also have a chance.”

After arriving in Halstenberg, they thought the situation was more serious than they thought and quickly cut off Prince Icecrown, who was reduced to a piece of tissue paper.

When they saw Count Cranberry holding on to the cards that everyone had discarded, they thought it was an opportunity and banded together to spread the rumor.

But instead, it became poison and came to them.

Injured soldiers recover, and Prince Icecrown also actively opposes the war… People are beginning to recognize that negotiation is the right path, both in the short term and in the long term.

It was only natural that the value of the Ice Crown Prince rose again.

“Decreasing the value… That’s good. The problem is that it’s not easy, right?”

“Is there a way?”

How to have a discussion but not come up easily.

Then a man raised his hand. He was the head of the Ospal family, the fifth in rank in 1st Empress Angelica’s power.

The nobles looked at him with admiration as he, along with the Biasain family, had been handling the first empress’s dirty work.

“Count Ospal. Is there a trick?”

“It’s not a trick… The first thing to do is to put out the urgent fire right away. If the negotiations proceed and an agreement is reached, the opportunity and all else will be lost.”

“I guess so.”

“That means we have to interfere with the negotiations first.”

“But how?”

Count Ospal held up three of his fingers.

“There are still residents who are outraged by this incident. A group of hunters who have a conflict with Icecrown every year, close friends of those who died, and their bereaved families. If we give them wind, it will be difficult for negotiations to proceed like this.”

“Certainly… Commander-in-Chief Belius will try to unite internally first due to his personality.”

“Even if that’s not the case, it’s okay to question whether we’re finishing things too hastily.”

“Let’s do that first then.”

Greed flashed in the eyes of the nobles. They were more interested in increasing their power rather than preventing the outbreak of war.

***

Haha…”

When I came to my senses, I could feel a foul smell at the tip of my nose.

Rough breathing echoing in the bedroom.

As I lay down on the bed and looked down, I saw two white-haired beauties clinging to me and catching their breath.

Sweaty hair sticking to your forehead… The sight of steam rising over our smooth skin was a glimpse of how hot we had been rolling around just a moment ago.

“Tsk tsk.”

Riel sucked my glans.

Seeing that his eyes were out of focus, it seemed like he was doing it out of habit, rather than saying it was due to lack of focus.

Freyr stumbled and came next to me and lay down.

“Freyr. Are you satisfied now?”

“Yes!”

She had clearly agreed to do it for two hours every two days, but when she continued to fuck him and persuaded him, Riel allowed Freyr to fuck her for an unlimited amount of time.
Love, customs… I realized that I couldn’t handle my sexual desires alone.

I asked, touching Freyr’s small breasts.

“By the way, can you negotiate well tomorrow?”

“Don’t worry. Unlike this country, in our kingdom, royals are truly respected. Above all, I am a little more special than other royals.”

“Hmm? More special?”

Freyr smiled brightly at my question. No answer was given. I just ask you to see it in person tomorrow.

And the next day, I was able to fully grasp its meaning.

“Meet His Highness Freyr.”

“Meet His Highness Freyr.”

About a hundred people bowing in unison toward Freyr. Their faces showed sincere respect.

Just by looking at that expression, I could immediately see why Freyr had said yesterday that he was more special.

“He is the one who sacrificed himself for us.”

“At such a young age…”

It was like that. Freyr was said to have been held hostage by the empire because he personally stepped up to help the starving people of the Icecrown Kingdom.

Perhaps because of that story, she was treated almost like a hero in her own country.

“Is there any problem with Okche?”

Freyr shook her head in response to the question of Marquis Pa Monto, the commander-in-chief of Ice Crown.

“It’s okay. We’re doing very well these days without any problems.”

“Whew. Thank goodness.”

Led by Freyr, the others also exchanged greetings with each other.

A huge river that flows between the two countries. On the frozen bridge crossing there, important figures from the two countries began preparing for negotiations.

Marquis Pamonteau looked at the empire through the thick frost fog and raised his eyebrows.

“But this time there are a lot of people there, Belius. If there are too many people in command, you get lost.”

“Thank you for your concern, Pamonto. Actually, there is a situation here.”

“Regardless of the circumstances, let’s keep the minimum number of people left between us.”

Belius looked troubled.

The nobles currently gathered here are all people who are obsessed with achieving achievements. If that were the case, there was no way to know what kind of complaints the nobles would express.

But surprisingly, the nobles readily accepted the proposal.

“Count Belius. Let it be so.”

“Is that still okay?”

“However, I would like you to tell me everything that happened at the meeting.”

As a result, most of the nobles could not participate in the negotiations and retreated far away. I also joined in with the atmosphere and moved my feet.

– Isn’t it better to stay?

‘Yes. But it doesn’t seem easy to do that.’

Most people are higher in rank than me. Since nobles prioritize based on rank, it didn’t seem easy for me to participate.

‘Are you okay. Anyway, even if we’re far away, there’s a way to hear everything, right?’

However, there was definitely a sense of regret about not being able to attend, because if negotiations are concluded, the credit goes to those who remained at the negotiating table.

Anyway, for that reason, I followed the nobles and Freyr caught me.

“Commander Belius. I wish Count Cranberry would remain.”

“You mean the Earl of Cranberry? In terms of the earldom, the Earl of Cranberry is very sad. That’s not possible.”

“Now that Sir Kael’thas Crareth is gone, Sir Cranberry must be by my side, even if only as a substitute.”

Belius looked back at the noble representatives.

They looked at the nobles who were moving around, and both nodded as if they had made a promise and accepted the offer, saying they understood.

Perez, who saw this, expressed his doubts.

– What. I smell something.

As I said before, if negotiations are concluded here, the credit will go to those who remain at the negotiating table.

In other words, just attending this position is equivalent to being registered as a final candidate.

‘But you give up that position so readily?’

The nobles, who had always been an obstacle, would not have gone crazy as a group today. Is there something up there?

As soon as the number of people decreased, negotiations began.

Originally, Ice Crown wasn’t the type to care about formalities, but since it was up by the river, there was a lot of cold wind blowing, so there was no reason for the people of the empire to waste time and show off.

The empire put forward its demands first.

“What we want is simple. We just want our two countries to come together again like before.”

Negotiations that did not mention any damage suffered and only pursued peace.

It was Icecrown that came over first and caused the problem, so this could be seen as a huge concession.

Hmm. The people of Icecrown were in agony.

They looked back at Freyr from time to time.

‘It’s working.’

It looks like he has something to say, but he can’t say it easily, perhaps because of Freyr. It was clearly visible that he was being cautious, fearing that Freyre might be harmed.

Finally, Pamonto let out a long sigh and opened his mouth. However, the requirements that emerged were beyond bizarre.

“Give us 4 and a half units of food, or send back the people we captured there. Then we will accept their offer.”

“4, 4 and a half?”

The people on the empire side are getting loud and noisy.

-Why are you so surprised? Is that a lot?

‘Ah. If it’s a lot, it can be said to be a lot.’

Four and a half hanels are enough food to feed one territory for about four months. Simply put, it meant that they had to bear the burden of surviving the winter here.

But there was a condition that I couldn’t understand. The thing that was put on the same level of value was that they were prisoners of war.

– Is it because I don’t yet understand the economic value of the human world? The options are so abnormal that it’s ridiculous?

It was like that. Now they were presenting ridiculous options.

Looking at the amount of food requested, it was clear that they were trying to get a good compensation for this incident. To the point where I wonder if we’re just going to start a war.

But they said they would give it up and make peace as long as they returned the prisoners of war. It meant that no matter how much damage was caused by this incident, we would bury it together.

“Then I’ll see you again tomorrow.”

“It’s the same time as today.”

The story ended like that after both parties presented what they wanted.

If it’s really neat, it’s a neat negotiation place.

Both sides move towards each other’s camp.

Curious about the incomprehensible proposal, I sent Freyr away and went to see the general manager, Belius, separately. He was very happy to be with me and welcomed me.

“Haha. Thank you, Count. Thanks to the people of the Temple of Light, not only the fortress soldiers, but Halstenberg as a whole has become much better.”

“Even if you are not in pain right now, your quality of life and satisfaction will increase significantly. It will probably have a steady positive impact on solving this problem.”

“That’s right. From what I can see, the Count is young, but he seems to have very deep thoughts. Someone like the Count of Cranberry should come to a territory like this.”

It seemed like he secretly hoped that I would win this competition. This must be proof that I am receiving great favor from the people here.

“So why did the Count come to see me?”

“I came here because there was something I didn’t understand during the negotiations earlier.”

“It’s a negotiation. If it’s about you, I have to tell you everything without hiding anything. So, what are you curious about?”

I mentioned the story that went back and forth at the negotiation table earlier.

“The two options are very polar opposites. Either give us a huge food reward or just send the captive back and be done with it. It’s not like you’re testing us. Or, did you capture the royal family of Icecrown in the last fight? ?”

An expression of understanding appeared on Belius’ face.

“Well, if this is your first time here, you won’t understand that part. It’s a kind of hypocrisy and bluffing. They’ve been asking for it every year lately.”

“Hypocrisy?”

“We are not greedy enough to back down even if you give us prisoners of war. However, since you have made us angry, give us that much food… Something like that.”

“So there are no people of that level of value among the prisoners?”

Belius smiled and shook his head.

“Nothing. They don’t even have prisoners in the first place.”

“Yes?”

“As you may have seen, this is one of the empire’s largest trade routes where a large amount of trade takes place every year. So, there are some people who dislike the Icecrown people, but on the other hand, there are quite a few who like them.”

Holding a hostage in a place like that for a long time?

“Regardless of whether you receive money or what you do, it is better to repatriate them to their home country as soon as possible… This is what I mean.”

“It is better than wasting money and manpower for no reason. On the other hand, if they capture our prisoners alive, they give them to us right away.”

It’s a request to repatriate a prisoner of war who doesn’t exist…

Was the emotion I felt at the meeting just a matter of mood?

– …

“Anyway, the problem is the problem. 4 and a half Hanil… This is truly an absurd amount.”

“But wouldn’t it be better than leading to war?”

“That’s right. If that happens, the future of the empire will not be guaranteed.”

Belius looked at me.

There was an expression of regret on his face.

“That’s why the Count’s role is important. To be honest, it’s impossible to prepare 4 and a half pieces. Even if you can’t, you have to cut up to half of that in order to accept the offer. The Count, please persuade Prince Icecrown and the country well.”

I left after talking with Belius.

Negotiations that seemed easily turned out to be more complicated than expected.

– The nobles are also very uncomfortable. What do you plan to do now?

Nobles whose attitude suddenly changed.

Ice Crown makes unreasonable demands by presenting options that you don’t understand.

‘Well, the method is simple.’

In cases where it is too difficult to use by hand, there is a very good method. All you have to do is go and listen to the inside story.

Since this was a border area, there were hardly any priests from the Temple of Light. This means that there is nothing wrong with Beres stealing her memories through her dreams.

‘First, let’s eavesdrop a bit, and if that’s not enough, let’s steal memories.’

– Ah. Just leave it to me.

I headed towards Freyr and summoned Naiad. Soon Naiad mobilized her 100,000 spirits and began to eavesdrop on the nobles’ stories.