Chapter 1840

A rubber rod as thick as a finger was placed over a candle to roast. Under the scorching flame, the tip of the rubber rod softened and blackened, finally pressing against a document. The high temperature caused the area around the seal to turn slightly yellow. A pure gold ring was pressed into that patch of soft rubber, leaving behind a distinct, three-dimensional seal.

Senator Bloomer put the ring back on his finger and took one last look at the document on the table. This was the military transfer order he had signed with Princess Pedera.

This document had no official legal standing; Bloomer had no authority to transfer those 260,000 troops. However, in reality, as long as this item existed along with Bloomer's personal endorsement, those 260,000 troops would be transferred under Princess Pedera's name—which meant they would fall into Su Xiao's hands. Given the current level of chaos in the Empire, Bloomer's document was more effective than any official one. The other side was already an empty shell, possessing nominal command but no real power.

Pedera sat upright at the desk. It was evident that she was somewhat nervous, her hands clasped tightly together.

After Bloomer glanced at Princess Pedera, he picked up the document on the table. Just as Princess Pedera reached out to take it, Bloomer raised his hand and looked at Su Xiao. The meaning was clear: he, Bloomer, could lose a round, but he would not lose to this little white rabbit.

Su Xiao raised his hand to take the document, and this time, Bloomer reached out his arm.

"Of these soldiers, 240,000 are at the Western Frontier Fortress. Andoha might fall one day, but the Empire cannot fall. No matter what happens, absolutely do not mobilize those 240,000 soldiers. Just let them guard the Western Frontier Fortress. Blue Lion Streich is overstepping his authority by commanding those 240,000 soldiers, but that is not important. Without him and those 240,000 soldiers, the barbarians in the west would have long since invaded the Empire's interior."

Bloomer gripped the document tightly, awaiting Su Xiao's reply. Clearly, this senator had not had his brain rotted away by royal power; he knew that internal strife within the Empire was fine, but it could not be allowed to lead to an invasion by foreign tribes.

"Agreed."

Su Xiao certainly wouldn't go to mobilize those 240,000 soldiers; it held little significance for seizing power. If he could seize royal power through force alone, he wouldn't have come to the Senate in such an open and aboveboard manner; he would have snuck in to assassinate Bloomer.

Upon receiving Su Xiao's reply, Bloomer let go of the document in his hand and leaned back against the wolf-skin chair with his eyes closed.

"Regarding the Sea Clan's unrest, I will give you an answer by five o'clock at the latest. However..."

Bloomer slightly opened one eye. Some things must never be made explicit, or it would result in a mutual destruction.

Su Xiao tucked the folded document into his coat and signaled to Pedera that they could leave. Pedera, having just been ignored, was a bit angry, but she could only pout; she didn't dare say anything to Bloomer.

When Su Xiao led Pedera out of the Senatorial Mansion, the Old Mystic, Bubu Wang, and the Ahoge King were already waiting at the entrance.

"Did it go smoothly?"

The Old Mystic still wore that kindly expression.

"Very smoothly. Before five o'clock this evening, the Moon Queen will be sent over. As for her current state, don't hold too much hope. The fact that that old fox Bloomer is willing to hand her over shows that the Moon Queen no longer has any value."

Upon hearing this, the Old Mystic sighed, his expression unchanged. He wasn't actually trying to ensure the Moon Queen's safety, but rather acting out of loyalty to the Black King. He didn't want to see the Moon Queen imprisoned like a pet; the most likely thing he would do was let the Moon Queen go to see the Black King.

Just as they arrived at the main entrance of the Senate, the Old Shaman's hand trembled uncontrollably. This was caused by anger, but he didn't mention saving Queen Moon. That was simply impossible; Blumer was not just for show. Taking action now would only cause Queen Moon's death.

The act of seizing military power made the Old Mystic certain that Su Xiao was reliable, so he began to seek Su Xiao's opinion.

"How many legion commanders oversee these 260,000 soldiers?"

Su Xiao first needed to stabilize the military power he had obtained, but he didn't intend to manage it in depth; that would be too much of a waste of time. Stabilizing it was enough.

"To be precise, there are 560,000 soldiers in total. 260,000 is just the number of regular troops established by the Empire. Now, with the civil war raging within the Empire's borders, coupled with the barbarians in the west repeatedly charging the fortresses, the number of soldiers in each legion is severely over-staffed. Of the 560,000 soldiers, 240,000 are at the Western Frontier Fortress—those 240,000 must absolutely not be moved. Of the remaining 320,000, 100,000 are at the Southern Fortress, responsible for defending against the potential appearance of the Sea Clan. The final 220,000 are at the Iron Sun Barracks outside the Holy City; they are all reserve soldiers and still need at least three months of training before they can be sent to the southern or northern borders."

The Old Mystic was very knowledgeable about the distribution of these 560,000 soldiers, even having them clearly marked on the Empire's map.

"Are these all border defense troops? In whose hands are the Holy City's garrison troops?"

Su Xiao slowed his pace, observing the map in his hand.

"The command of the Holy City's garrison troops is in the hands of Princess Sayeto. She is a woman who is... more like a man than any man."

As the Old Mystic spoke, he glanced at Pedera. Just hearing the name Sayeto made Pedera shrink her neck in fear. To her, this was practically a childhood trauma. Because of her weak, rabbit-like personality, the Royal Sayeto felt she was a disgrace to the royal family, so she had sent her to the barracks for training for a few days. Pedera had nearly died there. It was precisely because of Sayeto that Pedera had such a soft, cute personality.

Su Xiao began to organize the intelligence he now possessed. Besides his side, there were four other parties vying for royal power: two dukes he had never met, Princess Sayeto, and Senator Bloomer.

He had already encountered the old fox at the end; he was very difficult to deal with. Although he had seized military power from him, the other party's influence was already deeply rooted in the Holy City. Losing military power would, at most, cause the other party to feel the pain for a few days; it wouldn't reach the level of damaging his foundation.

"In other words, nearly one-fifth of the border defense troops are now nominally in our hands?"

"That's right. Although due to the Empire's situation, most of the troops cannot be mobilized, military power is also an indispensable thing for us."

The Old Mystic pointed to the southwest corner of the map, indicating that it was the Western Frontier Fortress.

"Summon the legion commanders of these legions. They should all be in the Holy City, right?"

"Four of them are in the Holy City. Blue Lion Streich has spent his whole life at the Western Frontier Fortress; it's unlikely he will return."

"Then summon those four."

What Su Xiao was going to do next was simple: directly intervene in the struggle for royal power and search for rule-breakers among the factions participating in the struggle.

At seven o'clock that evening, inside a manor south of the Holy City—this was the Old Mystic's property, bestowed upon him by the Black King. However, the Old Mystic had no children, and he didn't value wealth. He had once pursued his own strength, but after the Black King died, the Old Mystic abandoned the pursuit he had always held and settled in a small church. The specific reason was unknown.

Although the Old Mystic didn't live in the manor, as a gift from the Black King, it had been kept in perfect order over the years. Servants came regularly to clean it, and there were even a dozen hunting dogs kept in the courtyard.

In the courtyard, there was a domed residence, so large that one could easily get lost. In the second-floor conference hall, five people sat around a long table, each with two to three guards standing behind them.

Of these five, four were legion commanders of the Empire, and one was the Commander-in-Chief. This Commander-in-Chief was the highest military leader of those 560,000 soldiers, named Wu Fu. Above him were the Senate and the royal family system.

The four legion commanders were all somewhat uneasy. They had received news that the Senate had handed them over to Princess Pedera's jurisdiction. They all knew what a terrifying person Senator Bloomer was, and Princess Pedera, who had seized military power from his hands, was already equated to a female devil in their minds.

At first, these legion commanders were all very confused. They had heard of Princess Pedera, and upon learning that she had taken over military power, their reaction was that this was definitely fake news. But later, their Commander-in-Chief, Wu Fu, confirmed this news.

Just as the legion commanders were full of unease, the door was pushed open. A man they had never seen before sat at the head of the table, followed by an old man and a blonde girl. As for Princess Pedera, she didn't show up at all.

"Everyone, please sit."

Su Xiao looked around at the people in the conference hall. None of these people had weak auras. Although the Empire was in civil war, there were basically no 'connected' people in the military. After all, the Black King had passed away less than twenty years ago; the great tree of the Empire wouldn't rot to its trunk so quickly.

The legion commanders looked at each other and didn't sit down. However, Commander-in-Chief Wu Fu sat down. He was a tough, somewhat short man wearing chainmail and a red cape draped over his back.

"Lord Kuku Lin, I am Wu Fu."

"Hmm, I've heard of you."

"It is my honor."

This simple dialogue made the four legion commanders sit down obediently, their backs straight. Their direct superior was so respectful to this man, so they certainly didn't dare to act out of turn. People who could climb to such positions were not simple characters.

"Tell me, how do you and the Senate distribute the military funds allocated by the Empire?"

Su Xiao's gaze fell on Wu Fu. Wu Fu was somewhat embarrassed; he didn't expect Su Xiao to bring the matter out into the open directly, which made his heart skip a beat.

"An eighty-twenty split."

Wu Fu appeared calm, but in reality, he was struggling to control his racing heart. An eighty-twenty split didn't mean the military got eighty and the Senate got twenty, but the other way around. The military could only get twenty percent of the total military funds. Even more exaggeratedly, Wu Fu had lied for the sake of the border garrison. The true distribution was ninety percent to the Senate and ten percent to the military. Of that ten percent, 70% was sent to the border garrison; that side could not afford any problems.

For the sake of the military, Wu Fu was going all out. The moment he saw Su Xiao, he knew Su Xiao was a ruthless person who didn't blink when killing, but he still chose to deceive Su Xiao for the sake of the border troops.