Chapter 1466: Akaola Incident, Pretext

Xia Duo had previously guessed that the arrival of the Akaola envoy might be because Cormanthor was brewing some kind of action, causing things over in Akaola to become unsustainable.

As for what exactly it was, he did not go to ask those in the know; he had been too busy to even catch his breath during this period, so how could he have any spare time to care about foreign affairs?

But now that Luowei mentioned this matter again, and seemed to have a fairly good understanding of the hidden details, Xia Duo took the opportunity to ask:

"What do you know? Could it be that there is some hidden story behind this?"

"Of course there is!"

Seeing that Xia Duo was finally interested in his information, Luowei immediately began to explain, "I heard that the health of the current Akaola Mianwang might be failing, and the most critical thing is that Cormanthor already knows this news.

"It is said that it seems to have been obtained from the Alliance Ambassador sent by Akaola to Evereska, through some underhanded method!"

Hearing this news, Xia Duo suddenly felt a sense of crisis. If he had previously held the mindset of watching the show and being a bystander regarding Akaola, he no longer thought so now that Akaola was truly facing a crisis.

In the east of the Northland, the only buffer zone between Netheril and Cormanthor is likely Akaola. Although the theoretical territories of the two countries are adjacent, having Akaola on the side, bordering both, means it is a strategic buffer.

Losing this buffer, if Cormanthor wants to expand, it will undoubtedly clash with Netheril. As for the possibility of it continuing to develop eastward or southward, it is not entirely non-existent.

But to the east of Cormanthor are mountain ranges, and to the south and north are seas; the lowest cost for expansion is still to the west. After all, the so-called "Nether Territory" is merely something the Netherese claim themselves, but have not actually occupied.

If it were not for the fact that the Northland Alliance has already been established, and the threat of the Drow War has not yet dissipated, perhaps Cormanthor would already be planning to expand westward.

Thinking of this, Xia Duo put away his smile and asked Luowei with a serious face:

"Is this news accurate? Who did you hear it from? Does the teacher know about this?"

A series of questions almost stunned Luowei. Seeing Xia Duo's serious expression, he slowly reacted and asked, "Is there a problem with this matter?"

Hearing this response, Xia Duo could not help but let out a long sigh in his heart. In fact, there are quite a few wise men in Netheril, but most Netherese Mages do not possess a long-term strategic vision.

This may be a limitation of the era, but it is even more so a lack of relevant knowledge.

Xia Duo did not mean to look down on Luowei. In fact, if Luowei had been placed on Earth to grow and develop from a young age, the achievements he would have attained would certainly be higher than his own.

It is not that Luowei is incapable, but that the environment limited him.

Of course, considering that his relationship with Luowei had not yet reached the point of sharing everything, Xia Duo only said, "This matter could be very serious; answer my question first."

Subsequently, Luowei replied: "I heard it from Councilor Haichenite. The teacher should know about it too. As for the authenticity of this matter, I cannot be sure."

Of course, this matter refers to—the Akaola Mianwang is failing, and this news has been learned by Cormanthor.

As for the matter of Akaola signing a Common Defense Agreement with Netheril, this has already spread in Seventon and can basically be called common knowledge.

It is unlikely to be a rumor, but whether the agreement can eventually be signed is another matter.

……

Hearing Luowei say that the news came from Councilor Haichenite, Xia Duo knew that the possibility of this being true was likely quite high.

Councilor Haichenite was originally Kangjienio's deputy. After Kangjienio retired, Iolum did not replace him with someone he trusted more, but continued to use Haichenite.

To a certain extent, what Haichenite says can represent Iolum, represent the Arcane Union, and even represent Netheril.

Even if it were just idle gossip, Haichenite, who had worked under two generations of presidents for most of his life, probably wouldn't be so careless as to casually fabricate stories about a foreign head of state.

"This really is 'disaster striking from the sky while sitting at home'!" Xia Duo sighed inwardly.

Cormanthor's Yilisier Mianwang has been in power for nearly a thousand years without any news of failing, while the Akaola Mianwang, if he remembered correctly, had been in power for less than four hundred years.

Considering that the position of Akaola Mianwang has been passed down in the Kaiersaike (Pure Gold Sun Crown) family for thousands of years, to ensure the stability of the rule, the age of the current Akaola Mianwang at the time of taking office should not have exceeded 300 years.

Calculating this way, based on natural lifespan alone, he should have at least nearly a hundred years left to live. If one counts the extension of life by spells, he might live even longer.

The current situation is somewhat abnormal.

However, this has not been unheard of in the history of the Elves. Many Mianwangs are themselves High Mages, and if a mage's experiment fails, there might be some fatal injuries.

Or perhaps, due to assassination by political enemies or encountering an accident, but these situations are not the norm.

The accidental passing of a Mianwang often requires a long and tedious investigation, and the subsequent successor, whether to avenge them or punish the creator of the accident, eventually puts the matter to rest.

There is too much room for manipulation here. In Elven society, the accidental passing of a Mianwang is often the opening of a grand drama.

Although the current Akaola Mianwang is not yet dead and can even clearly make a will, such an unnatural death will almost certainly trigger an investigation.

Even if the succeeding Mianwang wants to end the investigation as soon as possible, his opponents may not necessarily agree, especially in the current situation where Cormanthor is highly likely to intervene.

Perhaps the final investigation result will be that the successor clearly favored by the current Mianwang becomes the murderer.

Just imagining it, Xia Duo could mentally construct long segments of dark court dramas. Of course, the final new Mianwang would not be the ultimate beneficiary of the incident; the mastermind behind the scenes would be.

However, for the moment, Xia Duo did not have any particularly good solutions for the predicament Akaola was facing. A joint defense agreement might be effective, but it is ultimately someone else's business, not to mention that there is a race gap in between.

If Netheril interferes with the succession of the Akaola Mianwang today, even if it only ensures the fairness of the succession process and does not change the specific result, it will become a fatal point of attack for Cormanthor in the future.

Some things can be done, but cannot be said, and even less can they be put on the table to provide others with a handle.

……

After the experiment ended that day, Xia Duo did not return directly to his residence, but came to Iolum's Study.

In the past, at this time, Iolum would rest here for a while, either handling official business or having a little wine, but today, Xia Duo did not see him after arriving.

After contacting him, he learned that he was currently at Gustav Tower, discussing matters with the members of the Seven Towers, and it was precisely related to Akaola.

Thus, Xia Duo simply took out his portable notebook, sorting out the results of the recent partial tests and the direction for the next steps, while waiting for Iolum to return.