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Alice looked out the car window and said, "I'm suddenly full of anticipation for this trip. Hopefully, it will be a thrilling and exciting journey."
Hobert, sitting across from her, also looked out the window: "Exciting is acceptable, but goddess above, hopefully not thrilling."
Then he smiled and said, "Within the territory of Loen, we should be safe."
In addition to Hobert, there was also a demigod protecting the royal delegation's safety, the kind old man, Ricmont, whom Hobert had met.
The rough division of labor was that Ricmont protected Prince Bertram, and Hobert protected Princess Alice.
There were also four Sequence 5s protecting the other four royal family members. Although they were nominally princes and princesses as well, they weren't born of the Queen and royal concubines, and so their status in the royal family was far inferior to Alice's.
Besides the six of them, there were also several 'mid-sequence' security personnel, but none of them had fixed protection targets and were part of a mobile force.
In addition, there was a guard of 50 soldiers, including some Beyonders.
The rest of the delegation consisted of servants and people from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
At this time, Alice was chatting with Hobert face-to-face in the luxurious dining car of the first-class carriage.
Alice turned her gaze away from the car window: "Your invention of the 'light bulb' is shocking."
Prince Bertram, sitting next to her, smiled and said, "Alice described the effect of electric lights to me, but it's really hard to imagine."
Hobert also turned his gaze away: "Your Highness will be able to see it soon, because many nobles have already placed orders for light bulbs with my newly established company.
"The Empress Borough will be the first to have electricity and the first to use electric lights."
Hobert had already rented another large factory near the Empress Borough and was preparing to convert it into a small power plant to solve the district's electricity problem.
Because it was a small power plant, there was no need for such a large boiler and chimney, so it was enough to modify the factory and assemble a large boiler.
The key point was that the electricity was only being used for lighting at this time, not for industrial use, so a small power plant should be able to temporarily supply the Empress Borough.
After hearing Hobert's words, Prince Bertram smiled expectantly: "The nobility should lead the trend anyway."
Hobert gave a polite smile and then said to Alice, "I didn't invent the light bulb, but I can promote this product to thousands of households."
Alice said, "That's already amazing."
Prince Bertram, who was sitting next to her, was obviously uninterested in this topic: "Earl, I heard you've met Princess Ethel of Feynapotter before? Did she even attend your wedding?"
Hobert nodded: "I did deal with her a few times."
Then he explained, "The reason she attended my wedding was because our father and son's disguise fooled everyone. The Feynapotter royal family at the time was trying to win us over."
Bertram was more interested in: "I heard that princess always keeps her hair short and fights on the battlefield more bravely than men?"
Hobert was slightly taken aback: "She, she does have short hair."
"What's her personality like? Is she really as decisive as the rumors say?"
Before Hobert could answer, Alice, who was across from him, said unhappily, "Bertram! Watch your words and actions! We're here for a diplomatic mission! Don't be as casual as you are in the palace!"
Bertram immediately smiled and said, as if in self-criticism, "It's indeed not very prudent to inquire about a princess from another country."
Hobert thought: It seems that Alice is the real leader of this exchange. And this Prince Bertram seems a bit useless. He's attending such an important event and only cares about the princess of Feynapotter? Or is this what the royal family is like? Is this prince just being more candid?
Alice gradually regained her smile and continued to say to Hobert, "I heard from some channels that Ethel even took you to her manor in the suburbs? It's said that only her confidants are qualified to go there."
Hobert was a little dumbfounded: Aren't you two siblings the same? Just with different focuses.
He said, "She did want to win me over and consolidate her political position."
Fortunately, Hobert played a decisive role in the battle of Feynapotter, otherwise, the fact that he had been to Ethel's private manor would definitely be investigated over and over again.
On the first-class carriage side, besides an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, only Hobert had been to Feynapotter, and he had stayed in the South Colson area and knew a lot about the lower classes of Feynapotter.
Compared to the fifty-something-year-old official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, everyone preferred to talk to the young and handsome Hobert about Feynapotter.
The journey to Masin was spent in boring small talk. The group first took a train from Backlund, crossing the Balchis Mountains in the east.
Then, on the vast Tucker Plain, they switched to another railway line, first heading south and then continuing east. After passing through the entire Tucker Plain, the spurs of the Central Plateau appeared before everyone's eyes.
It can be said that a Central Plateau separates the countries of the Northern Continent on all sides.
This also makes it difficult for the Northern Continent to unify, because, according to common sense, after crossing the Central Plateau to attack another country, it becomes very difficult to transport manpower and supplies to the front line.
Most of the territory of the small country of Masin is made up of the spurs of the Central Plateau, which is known for its various summer resorts.
Even when the Northern Continent welcomes the scorching summer heat, many of the snow-capped mountains here will not even show signs of melting.
As the train entered Masin, it began to climb and frequently enter tunnels.
Hobert also became vigilant. If anyone wanted to sabotage this event, it would be most appropriate to do so within Masin.
Not only did Hobert think so, but Alice and the others also thought of this.
So Alice simply changed into pants and a shirt that were easier to move around in. Her beautiful legs were neither too fat nor too thin, just right to support the clothes.
Wearing this in Backlund would seem very unladylike, but this wasn't Backlund.
Alice asked Hobert, "If the enemy launches an attack, where will their attack come from?"
Hobert thought for a while and said seriously, "From the sky, maybe."
Bertram, who was next to her, smiled: "You're such a joker."
Almost at the same time, a meteorite seemed to appear in the sky, heading straight for the train.
Hobert was on guard and about to take action, but Ricmont had already rushed out of the car and actively met the meteorite.
Seeing this, Hobert began to watch the sides of the tracks ahead.
Since a demigod had taken the initiative to attack, then another demigod should stay on the train.
As he expected, a stream of intensely burning flames suddenly appeared in front of him, burning towards the carriage.
Hobert still had the button that the royal family had provided last time, so he made the space around the train illusory, as if it were in another space, in order to avoid the sudden ambush.
After the train quickly passed through the flames, flocks of fire crows rushed towards the carriage. This time, Hobert didn't take action, but instead allowed the Sequence 5s in the rear carriages to block the fire crows.
Soon, the security personnel sent by Masin also came to support, and the other side chose to retreat immediately.
The attack came and went quickly, and the train quickly escaped the enemy's ambush. Ricmont also quickly returned to the carriage: "The other side was led by that bastard Polonov!"
The old man knew the demigods of the enemy country very well. Although the other side had been covering his face with flames, Ricmont still recognized him.
Then the old man smiled slightly at Hobert and nodded slightly, as a confirmation of Hobert's performance just now.
The attack just now was obviously the enemy's probing. Ricmont was a well-known demigod protecting the royal family, and he would be exposed in Masin as well.
Hobert was different. Not many people knew that he was a demigod.
In the attack just now, he only used the sealed artifact to protect the train and didn't expose himself. In Ricmont's view, Hobert's approach was very calm.
The attack was like a false alarm, and laughter quickly returned to the carriage.
Only Hobert and others were more vigilant, because after the probing, the other side's next attack would not be so understated.
Fortunately, the rest of the journey was relatively smooth. That afternoon, at four o'clock, the train arrived at Masin Station.
Prince Ernest of Masin personally greeted them at the station. In fact, Masin was also very helpless. The exchange between the two royal families was chosen here. In addition to doing their best to entertain them, they also had to be careful to protect the royal family members of the two countries, for fear that something dangerous would happen to them.
This was the helplessness of small countries in the Northern Continent. Although they were protected by the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, they sometimes inevitably got caught in the vortex of the great powers' struggles.
The group arrived at the manor where they were staying, and that night the Masin royal family held a grand welcome banquet.
The princes and princesses of Feynapotter were in another manor, where there was also a grand welcome banquet.
Taking advantage of the gap during the banquet, Hobert walked around. The Kingdom of Masin had sent a large number of security personnel, apparently led by a demigod.
That was a helper, but it could also be an enemy.
That night, the two demigods who didn't get much sleep, one was on duty in the first half of the night, and the other was on duty in the second half of the night.
The next day, the interaction between the members of the two royal families began, starting with a meeting introduced by Prince Ernest of Masin.
Ethel was one of the members of the Feynapotter delegation. Her court dress couldn't hide her heroic spirit, and according to Hobert's observation, the other party's royal delegation was also headed by this princess.
In addition to his mission from MI9, Hobert was also a member of the Loen delegation of nobles, which was to facilitate close protection of the members of the royal family.
So in the handshake and greetings, Hobert was behind the members of the Loen royal family.
Ethel had seen Hobert long ago. When the two shook hands, Ethel smiled and said, "Baron Jeffrey! We meet again!"
Hobert smiled and said, "Hello, Princess."
He knew that in such a diplomatic setting, the princess of Feynapotter, who had suffered before, would definitely ridicule him.
So Hobert didn't respond, just greeted her politely.
At the same time, Hobert felt that there was a note in his hand that he shook with Ethel.
This made him a little helpless, but in such a situation, he could only accept it first.
As the greeting procedure ended, with the translation of the interpreter, the two sides began friendly talks face-to-face, at least on the surface, they looked very friendly.
Occasionally, the two sides would communicate with each other in ancient Feysac, which was a compulsory course for the nobles of the Northern Continent, and could be communicated without obstacles.
But after all, this was a diplomatic activity, and having a translator present looked more like it.
Taking advantage of the opportunity to go to the washroom, Hobert took out the note Ethel had given him, which had a simple line of words on it: Meet at Terboni Square at 3:00 AM.
As soon as he finished reading it, the words on the note disappeared and the note turned into a plain piece of white paper.
Hobert was considering whether this was a diversionary tactic by Feynapotter.
But thinking about Ethel's eyes at the time, it didn't seem like it.
After thinking about it, 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 non-stop.
The two sides had lunch together at noon, and in the afternoon there was a ball.
On the Loen royal family's side, Princess Alice danced the first dance with Hobert, which drew applause from the crowd halfway through.
The reason Alice said that Hobert danced well was actually because the charm of a demigod was at work. This was not something he actively used, but a natural temperament that he exuded.
So once Hobert was in the spotlight, he would become particularly attractive, coupled with his good looks, and the cooperation between him and Princess Alice, and the gorgeous clothes, so everyone applauded.
Then the two sides began to invite each other's royal family members as dance partners. Hobert rested for a dance, and soon received an invitation from Princess Ethel.
Such a ball was originally about mutual invitations, so Ethel's invitation was not considered impolite. And it would follow the principle of women first, giving priority to women's invitations.
As the music sounded again, the two danced gracefully, and Ethel smiled and said, "I didn't expect you to dance so well."
Hobert also smiled and said, "This is the battlefield of gentlemen."
"I've discovered something very interesting." Ethel whispered in Hobert's ear, "Your princess has feelings for you!"
"I know that." Hobert hadn't noticed this at first, but after spending the last two days together, he would be too slow if he hadn't noticed it.
Ethel was slightly stunned: "You know? Then why do you still seem so indifferent to her?"
Hobert said seriously, "I'm already married."
Ethel smiled: "Okay, I didn't say anything."
Hobert had just left the dance floor when he immediately received an invitation from Alice: Another one?
As soon as he entered the dance floor, Alice whispered, "What were you two talking about so mysteriously just now?"
"Just asking each other about recent events."
"Liar, I clearly saw her looking at me with ill intentions."
Hobert smiled: "She did praise Princess Alice's graceful dance just now."
"Liar!"
As soon as this dance ended, Hobert received another invitation from Princess Ethel: Here we go again?
It would be impolite to refuse, so Hobert had no choice but to step back onto the dance floor. As a new waltz began, Ethel asked, "Did Alice say something bad about me just now?"
Hobert gave a helpless smile. "No, she was just praising how heroic and impressive the princess is!"
"Hmph!" Ethel said, "Help me tell Alice that her dress is truly hideous."
Big sister, why don't you tell her yourself?
Leaving the dance floor, Alice immediately came forward and asked, "What did that fellow say?"
Hobert took a deep breath. "She said your dress is very beautiful!"
"She definitely didn't say that," Alice said. "Help me tell her she has none of the manners a princess should have."
Hobert was also a little helpless. He was just here to be a nobody; how did he become a translator?
Not long after, Ethel came over with a wine glass in hand, smiling. "What did Alice say?"
Hobert forced a stiff smile. "She said you are a role model for the royal family."
"Hmph! Liar!"
Hobert sighed inwardly. This is diplomacy!
...
At three in the morning, Hobert observed from a distance and then appeared on Terboni Square right on time.
In the center of the square was a statue of Terboni, who was once a nobleman of the Feynapotter Kingdom. During the "Oath-Breaking War," he declared independence with the support of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom and other countries in the Northern Continent.
Masin City had a curfew; after nine in the evening, the streets were deserted.
Under the statue stood a hooded figure. "You've come!"
The figure removed the hood. It was Ethel herself. "I didn't expect you'd really dare to come."
Hobert smiled. "What wouldn't I dare to do? It was the Loen royal family who ruined your plans. Don't mistake your target."
Hearing this, Ethel was relieved: Hobert didn't seem to have any sense of belonging to the Loen Kingdom.
She said, "I called you out because I have something important to discuss with you."
Ethel still liked to get straight to the point.
This suited Hobert's taste. "Please, speak."
"Some members of the Castiya family hope to secretly worship the 'Creator'," Ethel said, looking at Hobert.
This surprised Hobert somewhat. It was well known that the Feynapotter royal family were all followers of the Church of the Earth Mother, or rather, the Church of the Earth Mother was the only faith they could have.
Hobert considered it for a moment before asking, "Why? Just because the 'Creator' eliminated the corruption within them?"
Don't you know that the 'Creator' also caused that corruption?
Ethel countered, "Isn't that enough?"
Hobert considered it again before saying, "I can't make the decision on this matter, but I will pass it on."
"However, I must remind you that worshipping the 'Creator' isn't just about praying and offering sacrifices to Him. You must also be loyal to Him. Can you do that?"
He realized that this was either the Feynapotter royal family testing the 'Creator,' or they were so shocked by the 'Creator's' power that they made a submissive choice.
After all, when the corpse of the ancient death god descended on Ellehambella Palace, it once left the Castiya family's angels and the Earth Mother Church's Pope helpless.
The despair of the demigods and even those below demigod level was imaginable!
Ethel said, "As long as we don't have to work with the Augustus family, everything else is negotiable."
Hobert frowned; the other party was clearly very sincere.
He asked, "What is the real purpose of this exchange activity?"
"To discuss the issue of the Lenburg territory's ownership," Ethel didn't hide anything. "Both sides feel they should occupy most of the country's territory."
"However, this discussion is about how to divide Lenburg now that the situation in the Northern Continent has been broken.
"Neither side wants to expend too much military force fighting over this small country."
Hobert smiled and thought: How ironic, discussing how to divide up another small country in a small country.
Lenburg was also sandwiched between the Loen Kingdom and the Feynapotter Kingdom. Because of the country's hilly terrain, it was easy to get bogged down in a war of attrition while fighting for these territories, which was clearly something neither side wanted to see.
In addition, Hobert realized that the situation in the Northern Continent was about to be broken; this was the consensus of the high-level officials of various countries.
Excess capacity was like a giant sword hanging over people's heads. At this time, many "enlightened people" should have reached a consensus: launch a war to consume the excess capacity, and at the same time let the children of farmers, workers, and merchants die on the battlefield to reduce the population pressure in major cities.
This was a consideration at the "elite" level. In this extraordinary world, if only they thought so, it was not certain whether this war would be fought.
But now, the extraordinary world behind the ordinary world was also brewing a war, which made this war inevitable.
Hobert's thoughts raced, and he promised again: "I will pass it on."
Then he warned: "As a friend, I must remind you: Do not test God!"
Ethel nodded solemnly and then said, "Also as a friend, I must remind you that the Intis Republic and the Feysac Empire want to sabotage this exchange activity, and they are more likely to target members of the Loen royal family."
...
Back at the station, Hobert considered Ethel's request in his room. He decided to put the matter aside for now.
As for Ethel's last reminder, he wasn't surprised, after all, he had already encountered an ambush by a Feysac Empire demigod on the way here.
In the following days, Hobert remained very vigilant, but nothing happened.
The diplomatic personnel of both sides were discussing the division of Lenburg in secret meeting rooms, and the royal members of both sides had been competing with each other ever since the ball.
They competed in horse racing, hunting, and even playing ball, apparently.
Hobert only fulfilled his duty to protect the royal family members and turned a deaf ear to their secret competition.
Finally, on the fifth day of arriving in Masin, the two sides began to enjoy artistic performances together.
Hobert thought they could finally relax, but he didn't expect them to compete in giving their opinions on the artistic performances, which left Hobert somewhat speechless.
In the evening was a masquerade ball, and Hobert also watched the performances on stage with Alice and the others as an earl.
In Hobert's view, this form of performance was very similar to a roast, where actors would put on some historical figures' iconic makeup and then use the tone of that historical figure to comment on the past and present in a humorous style.
Moreover, there could be interaction between the stage and the audience, and it was not considered impolite to interrupt the performance.
This placed high demands on the actors, because the actors had to answer the audience's questions in the tone of the person they were playing to be considered a qualified performance.
At this time, the actor on the stage had long chestnut hair, a high nose bridge, and a neatly trimmed mustache, exactly like Roselle.
"Roselle" said: "If those fools hadn't assassinated me, the Intis Republic would definitely be the strongest country in the Northern Continent!"
This made the members of the Loen royal family almost applaud together, indicating that this joke was very funny.
Hobert sighed: The actor had put a lot of effort into the makeup, which was very similar to the image of Emperor Roselle in some paintings.
"The entire Northern Continent will crawl at my feet!" The actor on the stage performed hard: "And your gathering will seem ridiculous!"
Suddenly, Hobert felt a premonition of danger. He looked at "Roselle" on the stage; he was the source of the danger!
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