novelraw #252 - Section 252
#252 - Section 252
Those officials had long wanted to restrict the Church, and the one Roger had reminded to support Windsor's administration was especially excited. They hadn't expected Windsor to submit such crucial and complete evidence, which would force even the Elven Queen to restrain the Church of Nature.
It could only be said that as a ruler, one could never be purely devoted to their faith. Her heart was not pure enough; she possessed multiple identities to lead the Elven Empire without it collapsing.
Windsor was used to such expectant gazes. As the 'perfect princess,' she enjoyed everyone's love and lived up to their expectations, always delivering the most flawless performance.
But this time, the performance would exceed everyone's expectations!
Originally, she both anticipated and resented Roger's use of reverse psychology, which had set her rebellion on a path of no return.
However, being in this familiar environment, feeling that familiar 'responsibility' on her shoulders, she was instead grateful that Roger had planned this path for her.
Having tasted freedom, she no longer wanted to endure the feeling of being caged and performing at others' command, not even for a second longer.
Windsor rose with graceful bearing, her beauty and temperament embodying the essence of the Elven race's millennia of civilization. She lightly bowed to the other governing elders before speaking:
"The matter I propose now is that the Church of Nature can no longer provide any assistance to the Empire. It consumes massive resources for no reason, slowing down our development. I hope to ban its proselytization and expel the Church from the Elven Empire!"
"You're being absurd! All elves are devout believers. You're shaking the foundations of the Empire's rule!"
The Elven Queen immediately slammed her hand on the table, staring at her daughter in disbelief, unable to imagine that she would propose such an outrageous idea.
Expel the Church? Expel the Church of Nature, which had existed since the Empire's founding? How could any elf have such an absurd thought?
Indeed, the Church had made some mistakes, but with a little supervision, they would still be good partners of the royal family.
Windsor seemed not to hear the Elven Queen's reprimand and continued, "Then, everyone, please vote!"
"This proposal of yours won't pass." The Elven Queen leaned on the table, looking at Windsor with extraordinary presence. "I agree to restrict the Church of Nature's authority, Windsor. You still have the chance to change your proposal. Don't disappoint me."
The officials present were dumbfounded by the inexplicably complicated gaze.
Who would have thought that the Queen and her daughter would have a conflict?
Didn't the princess discuss it with Her Majesty before the proposal?
This was a matter for the royal family, and the dignitaries present were unwilling to get involved. They lowered their heads, as if they had heard nothing.
Princess Windsor had always been well-behaved. Now that she was being restrained by Her Majesty on the spot, she would definitely modify the proposal, right?
"My proposal is as such. Everyone, please vote."
With that, Windsor raised a hand herself, casting her own vote to show her determination to expel the Church of Nature from the Elven Empire.
"Let's see who dares to support such a nonsensical decision?" The Elven Queen, unable to control her daughter, vented her anger on all the officials.
Windsor stood up straight, very nervous, actually without any confidence.
Roger's plan for her only went as far as making the firm proposal, telling her that someone would naturally cooperate with her to ensure the successful completion of the vote.
But facing the Elven Queen, whose mentality had completely broken down and was in a state of great anger, Windsor still felt very unsure, not knowing where this meeting would ultimately lead.
Gladys's threat was substantial. As Queen, she had the power to veto. Even if everyone disliked the Church of Nature and passed the proposal despite the Queen's pressure, she could still veto everyone's decision!
Swish, swish, swish!
But still, six hands were raised.
Those were the six officials who had agreed with Roger to support Windsor.
Although Windsor's proposal was extremely bold, Roger had promised them not only benefits but also threats. Each of them had some unspeakable little secrets in Roger's hands.
The arrow was on the string and had to be released. Windsor had already made the proposal, which was incredibly crazy. They had to fulfill their promise; otherwise, the consequences would be more terrifying than facing the Elven Queen's anger...
Including Windsor's own vote, she now had seven votes.
There were a total of nineteen officials in the Elven Empire, not even half.
"Not bad, daughter, you surprise me. You actually managed to win over six officials."
The Elven Queen looked at Windsor mockingly. The six officials who were now supporting her were not forces close to the royal family but rather Windsor's accumulation over the years.
Once she ascended the throne, with these officials plus the connections the Elven Queen transferred to her, the royal family would absolutely control the officials' meeting, and their power within the Empire would be infinitely expanded.
As long as Windsor had the ideas, she might do even better than her mother?
But that was in the future. The Elven Queen didn't speak now so that more people wouldn't support Windsor. Then Windsor wouldn't even reach half the votes.
Just then, another hand was raised.
It was the Elven Empire's Grand Prince, the Elven Queen's most beloved consort, Windsor's father, Prince Mickey.
Instantly, Gladys's expression froze. She felt an unbelievable betrayal: "Mickey, is this your arrangement? But your votes are still not enough."
Eight votes in favor still didn't exceed half. Windsor's proposal couldn't pass.
Mickey looked helplessly at his daughter, then at his wife, and said with a headache, "Dear, I didn't communicate with Windsor beforehand. At this moment, I just want to remind you that this empire will one day be hers."
"But right now, this is my country."
"When Windsor becomes Queen and still wants to expel the Church, I may be old by then, and I may have to face all the pressure alone. I just want to do more for my daughter while I still have the fighting strength."
"I... I understand."
The Elven Queen's expression instantly froze. She also thought of the scene her husband described.
She was well aware of the power of the Church of Nature, but she was also well aware of her daughter's stubbornness.
If she still wanted to expel the Church of Nature when she became Queen, and she was dead or unable to fight, it would be a young Queen fighting against divine power...
That was an extremely dangerous scene, and there was even the possibility of assassination!
Such things had happened in the history of the Elven Empire. Which ambitious emperor could allow someone to point fingers at them madly?
Even though Gladys was a devout believer, she hadn't lost her mind. Her daughter was in the first place in her heart.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have tried her best to build her perfect reputation.
It could be said that, for the Elven Queen, Windsor was more important than this country.
Moreover, this country would eventually belong to Windsor. Would there be any benefit to her except to prove her mother's strength if she suppressed her proposal and defeated her will today?
She seemed to understand that she had to choose between her daughter and her faith.
She also had to choose between her lifelong efforts and her faith.
The Elven Queen sighed softly, looked at her daughter standing proudly, and found that Windsor, who dared to disobey her will and was no longer so well-behaved today, was particularly charming.
"Maybe, this is the growth everyone is expecting?"
Thinking this way, the Elven Queen raised her hand to support the proposal to expel the Church.
Immediately afterward, the officials close to the royal family also raised their hands, and Windsor's proposal was passed unanimously.
Everyone realized that this empire was about to change.
Chapter 228: You Talk About War, and I'm Not Sleepy!
Above the Yas Leaf, the Eternal Night.
Before Roger tricked Windsor into staging a drama of motherly love and filial piety, and she herself wanted to return to the Empire, he had never actually left the Elven Empire.
Similar to some kind of after-sales service, he was still watching the little friend he had tricked from above, lest she perform poorly or lose control of the situation due to her mother's overly powerful aura, which could lead to some unpleasant scenes.
Although it is often said that even tigers don't eat their cubs, there have never been kind stories in the royal family. According to their analysis, the Elven Queen had a 98% probability of supporting Windsor's proposal.
But there was still a certain probability that she wouldn't awaken the maternal love in her heart, leading to Windsor's rebellion being suppressed in one wave, which was also possible.
At that time, for the sake of the little friend's mental health, the Empire would definitely have to intervene to avoid Windsor from completely becoming a puppet of the Elven Queen.
High returns are always accompanied by high risks. If one operation went wrong, Windsor might become completely withdrawn, and he naturally couldn't just walk away.
More importantly, for the sake of the subsequent operations, his superior, our Qing Teng Empire's respected Eternal Night Empress, had also arrived at the Eternal Night, watching the voting and decision-making of the Elven Empire's officials' meeting with great interest.
As the Elven Queen raised her hand to support Windsor, representing the beginning of the Elven Empire's break with the God of Nature and shouldering the responsibility of expelling theocracy, the Eternal Night Empress, as an audience member, also breathed a sigh of relief.
"Congratulations, Luo Jie, my dear minister, on completing another wave of layout. When the Dark Elves return to the surface, they will definitely be pleasantly surprised to face their old home."
The Eternal Night Empress sighed and withdrew her gaze, looking at Luo Jie, "However, can my dear minister satisfy my curiosity and recount the negotiation process with the little princess?"
"The process is arduous, complex, and boring. I think Her Majesty wouldn't like such a long-winded story without a real war."
"Arduous? Then it seems that our Duke is really doing his best for the Empire. Would you like me to massage you, relieve your muscles and bones, and open up your Qi and blood?"
She got up and stretched out a small hand to put it on Luo Jie's shoulder.
"Uh... that won't be necessary, right? I'm young, and my body is still good."
Luo Jie took a half step back with a guilty conscience, afraid that if he really received the Empress's service, he would die without regret.
He always felt that the Eternal Night Empress looked at him with a dangerous meaning.
"Oh, your body is good, but my body is not good. Then you can massage my shoulders."
The Eternal Night Empress saw that this guy was like an eel, not giving her a chance to toss him around, so she immediately changed her plan and started using him.
Luo Jie was still a little guilty and didn't dare to refuse, so he could only obediently do the work, deliberately using a flattering tone: "Your Majesty, is this strength suitable?"
Instantly, the Eternal Night Empress got goosebumps all over, but seeing through that he was trying to be lazy, she said with a straight face: "Not very suitable, it is recommended to increase the strength!"
[Shameless woman! You secretly cast Stone Skin on yourself for the massage. Even a legendary berserker's massage wouldn't be strong enough!]
Luo Jie muttered in his heart, but since he had started acting, he could only grit his teeth and continue acting.
After all, this was the work that the maid usually did for him. Even if his physique was much better than that of Earthlings, he wouldn't specifically practice the strength of his fingers.
He could explode and rush a few times, but over time, his endurance would definitely not be good.
The Eternal Night Empress squinted her eyes. Some things didn't bring physical enjoyment, but the sense of accomplishment in her heart was very strong.
Who in this empire could enjoy the commander's personal massage?
The monarch and her minister casually chatted about the current imperial situation, which was the real purpose of her coming to Luo Jie.
The God of Knowledge had already taken action, and the Seven Gods' camp had begun to change their moves. They had basically completed the power integration of the Eternal Night World and should also think about the next overall direction of the Empire.
The System Child plan had worked very well, effectively delaying the Seven Gods' footsteps.
During this time, the Eternal Night Empress had been devoting a lot of energy to helping the System Children because the Eternal Night World had few targets left that were worthy of her attention.
Luo Jie and Margaret alone could solve most of the surrounding national forces.
Her strength could be used to fight against the Seven Gods and support those planes for more time.
But it was only a delay.
In five to seven years, the Seven Gods would still break through the defenses established by the System Children, find the outside of the Eternal Night World, and deliver the final judgment.
What's more, the Seven Gods had now spread the Road to Godhood, which was equivalent to luring more powerhouses from mortals and believers to fight for them.
Even some System Children had not resisted the temptation of eternal life and had chosen to lean towards the Seven Gods' camp.
After all, their strength and the forces they controlled could directly compete with the Church. Through some special means, they could easily grasp such intelligence.
The Seven Gods did not block or seal it off, and this was originally bait that was released.
In the end, these emerging demigods and weak divine powers only divided the resistance of the mortals who had finally united, allowing the power of faith to be concentrated and temporarily exist in other divine kingdoms.
Therefore, the effect of the System Child plan had been weakening compared to the past. True mortals who would never bend their knees to the gods were only a minority. More people just hadn't gotten the price they were satisfied with.
Originally, the Seven Gods in the past wouldn't have thought that mortals were worth such a price.
If they weren't converting one plane after another into the void, just from the perspective of resistance, the System Children had effectively proven the value of mortals by fighting until now. They at least had the strength to bring trouble to the Seven Gods.
The reopened Road to Godhood represented the re-breaking of the solidified classes of the past. Although only a very few powerhouses could ignite the divine fire, this core force of resistance returned to the Seven Gods, inevitably reducing the number of the Empire's resistance allies.
After becoming a god, the plane of birth might not be so meaningful. The height of thinking was different with different strengths. Many gods would not live and die with the mortals of their plane, nor would they risk their lives for them.
"The System Children have new variables, and the Empire's productivity has dropped significantly, so our front-line situation is not good."
The Eternal Night Empress sighed with a headache. Although she alone was equivalent to an army, watching the excellent talents she had nurtured turn into enemies put an immense psychological burden on her.
“Although the Seven Gods don't treat these gods as true allies, the temptation of godhood and eternity is indeed extremely great. Those who have this qualification will probably think about breaking free from the Seven Gods' control; it would be very easy, right?”
Roger also gradually saw through the Seven Gods' moves. This was an upright and aboveboard scheme, yet it made them feel very helpless.
Because the Seven Gods' camp had accumulated enough strength and also held a preemptive advantage, even if new gods appeared, they couldn't truly pose a threat to them. On the contrary, the mortals who united to stop their advance were the most annoying.
“So, I plan to lower the exchange prices in the system and open up more items and skills. This will increase the System Children's dependence on us.”
The Eternal Night Empress spoke her thoughts. The main reason she came to Roger this time was to discuss this matter.
“That's not a problem. As our control over this world increases, and the Eternal Night's combat formations are completed, we can also explore other planes once we have a complete fleet. Lowering prices is sustainable.”
Roger first analyzed the feasibility of the Eternal Night Empress's idea, then suddenly changed the subject, “But the System Children we cultivate are comrades who will fight alongside us, not simply competing with the Seven Gods for customers. The current pricing system is already very reasonable. Lowering prices will cause those System Children to develop a habit of getting something for nothing, and their growth ceiling will be locked.”