Three months passed in the blink of an eye. Cerydra had completely unified the entire North, started recruiting soldiers and horses, and the Northern Country was becoming stronger and stronger.
Most people held a positive attitude towards the unification of the Northern Country. After all, the stronger the country, the better their lives would be.
But where there is joy, there will naturally be sorrow.
And the person most troubled was none other than the Northern Kingdoms Prince, Numa Seika.
"So it has finally come, hasn't it?"
Ever since he was captured by Cerydra, he had never left Cerydra's side... This didn't mean he was always physically next to Cerydra, but rather that wherever Cerydra went, she would keep this puppet prince in her grasp, not letting him escape her control.
And today, Numa Seika, who had been staying deep in the palace, finally met his ultimate fate...
Numa Seika threw the paper filled with text onto the table, then collapsed powerlessly onto his throne.
As a puppet prince, Numa Seika didn't need to handle any affairs within the palace; he just needed to sit there.
But today, with the occurrence of a certain event, Numa Seika had to face everything happening in reality.
That event was...
The court officials submitted a petition, requesting the monarch to abdicate!
Upon learning of this news, the expression on Numa Seika's face was very painful, because as early as when he became a puppet, he had already started trying to find ways to escape Caesar's control.
But so much time had passed, and he had no way at all, not even able to secretly cultivate his own forces.
Everyone in this palace seemed to have sided with Caesar, leaving Numa Seika with no opportunity at all.
Numa Seika was not a coward, but a prince with grand ideals, wanting to revive his kingdom. Even as a puppet, he had his own trump card: forcing things with his own death!
If Cerydra went too far, Numa Seika would even dare to rush into the street alone and point his sword at Cerydra... It's just that things hadn't reached that point yet, and Numa Seika had been enduring it.
If things really reached that point, Caesar probably wouldn't kill the monarch in the street.
Even if the other party dared to, Numa Seika had already thought about what he should do. He just needed to reveal the full truth before his death, letting the entire Northern Country know what Cerydra had done, and finally say that one sentence...
"Even if I die, I am still the descendant of the former king, the Northern Kingdoms Prince!"
Wouldn't that do it?
Although this method couldn't defeat Caesar and reclaim his throne, it could at least cause the other party a lot of trouble while leaving his name in history.
"If things really reach that point, I will absolutely not compromise..."
Numa Seika had already made his plans in his heart. As long as Caesar asked him to go through the so-called "Three Refusals and Three Yields," he would definitely not act according to the other party's wishes, but would instead directly read out the other party's crimes and draw his sword to fight.
Even if it meant death, he would never submit to the other party!
Knock, knock, knock!
Just after Numa Seika made up his mind, a familiar knock on the door reached his ears.
"Come in."
After quickly tidying up his appearance, Numa Seika let the person enter his study. However, upon seeing who it was, the prince's expression immediately became ugly.
"Daughter of the Sea..."
Even the ill-informed Numa Seika had heard of this person's great reputation, and his face showed undisguised apprehension.
When they first met, this woman had fought sixty thousand alone, wiping out the armies of those nobles. Later, she became the backbone of the entire army, leading troops to conquer everywhere.
Almost half of the nobles in the entire Northern Country had been defeated by Hysilens, which shows how terrifying this person was... Whether in combat ability or leading troops, she had almost reached the pinnacle.
Numa Seika pursed his lips. Although he didn't like that shorty Cerydra at all, deep down he was extremely envious that she could have a subordinate like Hysilens, unlike his former self... having almost no one to use!
"Prince Seika..." Hysilens performed a knight's salute and went straight to the point. "How have you considered the petition submitted earlier?"
Although there were basic etiquettes on the surface, Hysilens was well aware of what she was doing now...
Forcing the palace!
Ever since Numa Seika became a puppet, he had been making some small moves.
Cerydra had never paid much attention to these petty matters that couldn't be brought to the table; just treating them as after-dinner entertainment had already left the other party completely helpless.
But this time, the situation was a bit different.
Caesar no longer needed Numa Seika as a puppet prince, because after a long period of observation, Cerydra had learned that in this northern land, it was always the strong who were respected, and there was no such thing as "orthodoxy."
That Cerydra could allow the other party to abdicate in such a "civilized" manner, rather than just killing him, was already a rare mercy.
Numa Seika did not have high political means, and his combat power was only passable, not reaching the level of a Teigu User, especially after his martial arts were crippled, making him even less of a threat.
In other words, the current Numa Seika was not worth Cerydra's attention, which is why she had Hysilens, a "minister," come to ask.
"I agree to this matter... Cerydra's actions during this period of time are enough to prove that she is capable of taking over this country."
"Entrusting all of this to her, I am very relieved."
Although he agreed verbally, he already had other ideas in his heart. Numa Seika didn't want his little schemes to be seen through by the other party, otherwise his plan would be a complete failure.
But who was Hysilens?
The Demigod of the Ocean!
How could Numa Seika's little plan be hidden from her?
And even without using the power of a Demigod, Hysilens still sensed the anomaly in him.
"Prince Seika, although you agreed verbally, there seems to be a fire burning in your eyes; there is absolutely no intention of submission!"
"What if you do something that has a bad influence in front of the court officials? What should be done then?"
Hysilens's tone was full of gentleness, but Numa Seika heard a hint of threat and suspicion in it, and could only try to keep things as they were to avoid being discovered.
"How could that be? I am also sincerely convinced by Caesar; it's impossible to do better than her."
"..."
As the conversation ended, both sides fell into silence, seemingly waiting for the other's next move.
"...I believe you!"
After a long time, the oppressive feeling on Hysilens's body gradually disappeared, and a smile appeared on her face, finally allowing Numa Seika to breathe a sigh of relief.
But the other party's next sentence caused Numa Seika to plummet back into the abyss.
"But just in case, I need to place some insurance on you. I believe that as someone who is'sincerely convinced,' you certainly won't object, right?"
The power of the Ocean Demigod manifested at this moment; some blurry, indistinct colors appeared around Hysilens, along with that intoxicating singing.
Numa Seika's consciousness gradually sank into these songs, but at the very last moment, he still heard the sentence Hysilens left behind.
"Listen to me..."
PS: Reconsidered. This is the Northern Country where the plot is sparse, so Cerydra can be a bit more "merciful."
But if it were the Empire, where scum is everywhere, then she would have to be ruthless...
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