Chapter 1497: Kusilei's Ambition (1)

Kesi's gaze shifted toward those two young officials.

The first one's legs went a bit soft when he stood up.

"Your Majesty, I... I am merely a scribe under the Minister of Finance, responsible for organizing accounts... I do not know of any plans held by Lord Xierta..."

The second one followed and stood up; his voice was slightly steadier than the first, but his speaking speed was noticeably faster.

"Your Majesty, I did not participate either. Lord Xierta never mentioned this matter to me, and I have not received any relevant orders or notifications."

Kesi looked at them and spoke slowly.

"I do not care how many of you knew of this plan and failed to report it to me. After today, all matters related to this attack incident will be handled by the Imperial Supreme Court."

"Xierta's actions have already been classified as treason; he betrayed the Klock Imperium at the same time he attacked the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance delegation."

"Starting today, the Eastern Border Defense Force is directly taken over by the Military Affairs Bureau, and all deputy positions and subordinate officers will undergo investigation."

"I want every one of you to remember that I am the legitimate new Emperor of the Klock Imperium. My decisions are made by me. My responsibilities are borne by me."

"Anyone who tests my bottom line in the name of loyalty will meet the same end as Xierta."

As he spoke, Kesi looked at Gelun, who hurriedly lowered his eyes and bowed in salute.

"Your Majesty is wise."

The ministers nearby also followed suit, whispering in agreement.

"Your Majesty is wise."

"Tomorrow morning, all heads of relevant departments are to report to the Military Affairs Bureau to discuss the takeover process of the border defense forces. You are dismissed."

Kesi turned from his main seat and walked toward the side door, which closed behind him.

The ministers in the side hall stood up one after another to leave, but Gelun stood where he was, not moving.

It was not until the Minister of Finance beside him walked over and whispered.

"He has left."

Gelun nodded without speaking.

The Minister of Finance whispered again.

"Xierta... there is nothing we can do. The person is already gone; the most important thing now is to distance ourselves."

Gelun turned his head to look at him and said.

"I know."

The Minister of Finance glanced at him, said nothing more, and turned to walk toward the door.

The two young officials followed behind him with quick steps.

Gelun was the last to walk out of the side hall.

When he exited through the side door, there was no one else in the corridor; on the way back to his residence, Gelun whispered to himself.

"Xierta, your loyalty... ultimately earned you the status of a traitor; what we did was completely meaningless."

Klock Imperium, Southern Border, Duke Kusa's territory, main planet Lanos.

Kusilei, the eldest son of Duke Kusa, stood before the viewing window on the top floor of his residence, looking out at the skyline of the main planet's capital city.

The capital city of this planet covered one-third of the main continent's area.

Kusilei watched as large transport ships were unloading, transferring crates of weapons, ammunition, and prefabricated building components down from orbit.

Behind him stood a row of staff members in dark gray uniforms, each holding a Data Pad.

The staff member closest to him stepped forward to report.

"My Lord, we have received the first batch of replies to the emergency procurement orders we sent to Lanos Star and Kaerniya Star yesterday."

"Three major military industrial enterprises on Lanos Star have agreed to take the order, with two of them stating they can deliver the first batch of orbital defense weapons within five Standard Days. Kaerniya Star replied that it would be slightly slower, but they promised to complete our ship armor plate requirements within ten Standard Days."

Kusilei looked at the city outside the window and asked.

"Did they take the opportunity to raise prices?"

"The two enterprises on Lanos Star quoted prices about twenty percent higher than usual. According to information gathered by our people, several other nobles are also purchasing weapons from Lanos Star, and the concentrated demand has pushed the prices up."

"Twenty percent? That is within an acceptable range. Tell them to follow the normal cycle and not to delay. If they complete the order within the deadline, there will be long-term cooperation contracts in the future."

"If they try to delay delivery to drive up the price, I will transfer the order to Feier Star in the west."

"Understood, my Lord."

Another staff member stepped forward half a step and said.

"My Lord, the main planet Lanos has currently completed the recruitment and registration of the first batch of new soldiers, totaling approximately 1.12 million people; it is expected that the second batch of conscription will be completed next week."

"Conscription on the other planets is also proceeding very smoothly."

"Are the training grounds sufficient?"

Kusilei asked.

"They are sufficient. In terms of weapons and equipment, our previously stored light weapons inventory is enough to support the training needs of the first batch of new soldiers, while heavy equipment will need to wait for the delivery of orders from the military industrial enterprises."

Kusilei nodded, turned half his body, and looked at another staff member.

"What about the mercenary fleet? How are the talks going with the several mercenary groups?"

The third staff member stepped forward, turning to a new page on the Data Pad.

"There are currently three mercenary groups that have confirmed their intent. The largest one is the 'Iron Claw' mercenary group, with a fleet size of about 140 ships, mainly operating in the area between the Southern Border and the Dongjing."

"Their asking price is a one-time payment of 5 billion Klock Coins, plus a share of the spoils after the campaign ends. There are two other smaller ones, with about 120 to 125 Capital Ships; their quotes are cheaper, but the condition of their ships and the quality of their personnel are not as good as Iron Claw."

"Iron Claw's asking price is too high—5 billion, with the share calculated separately. They also want a share of the spoils?"

Kusilei's brows furrowed slightly.

"The leader of Iron Claw clearly stated that they do not accept a fixed remuneration model. He said their fleet has been fighting in the Southern Border for several years, and their reputation there is worth this price."

Kusilei was silent for a moment, weighing the pros and cons before saying.

"Fine, give them the 5 billion plus the share. But the share ratio must be pushed down; compress it from 15 percent of the total value of the spoils to 10 percent. If they can agree to this ratio, then sign the contract."

Understood.

At this moment, another communication terminal in the corner rang.

A low-level clerk responsible for information aggregation walked over quickly and handed a Data Pad with both hands to a staff officer behind Kusilei.

The staff officer took it, looked at it, his expression changed slightly, and he walked to Kusilei's side to speak in a low voice.

My lord, news just received. Kesi has already dealt with Xierta, the charge is treason. Xierta led troops to attack the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance delegation and was killed on the spot.

His Majesty Kesi summoned all the ministers early this morning, displayed Xierta's head in front of them, and announced that the troops under Xierta would be taken over directly by the Military Affairs Department.