"Thank you - may I ask if you know a ..."
"I can't say anything, miss."
"...Thank you. Please lead the way."
When Sixus got into the car again, he was met with the puzzled look of the executive officer.
"They said 'missions,' " Cornell said.
"Yes."
"That's a 'mission'!" Cornell whispered. "Oh my! It's as if we were on a diplomatic mission to another country. Do these damned places even have the concept of a country?"
Sixus's answer was a letter.
"open to take a look."
"...?"
"Open it and take a look."
Cornell quickly opened the letter and his eyes widened after reading it.
"I see." Sixus sighed.
"Indeed, the existence of the review team is necessary. I don't want His Majesty to have only the Shadow Lions as his trusted troop."
"But some things are different from what you think, and some people are beyond common sense."
"Then..." Cornell stammered, "Then why did she send me..."
"Probably third-hand insurance."
Sixus smiled.
"Just like you don't trust the Security Bureau, she can't listen to everything you say, right?"
Cornell took out his handkerchief and began to wipe his sweat. He stared at the letter, at the last paragraph.
"count……"
"Esun... Count Hitzfeld..."
Chapter 192: Count Aishun-Hitzfell
When they arrived at the Posa Mansion, Sixus and his party received a very warm welcome.
The most surprising thing was meeting old acquaintances right away. No matter they were from the priest group or the agents, Sixus was very happy to see them all here in their entirety.
The dinner was hosted by Baliu, and it seemed that she was the boss here. A few minutes after the banquet started, Leon came back. He and Sixus knew each other, and they had fought side by side to deal with the beach incident.
The food was not very rich, just roasted meat, fruit, and wine, but Connell still devoured it all - there was no shortage of dried meat on a long sea voyage, but fresh fruit was very rare.
"We didn't dare to eat the food sent by the locals on the road." Sixus had to explain to him, "By the way, let me introduce... This is Lin Cornell, the executive officer of the review team."
"I'm probably just here to take a look!" Seeing Leon approaching him, Cornell consciously put his hands in the basin to wash and dry them, and shook hands with him cautiously, "Nice to meet you, Agent! We all know your story... I have to say, not everyone has the courage to make up their minds to break away from Corneril's influence."
This flattery frightened Leon so much that he was stunned. He took the opportunity to ask Sixus: "What's wrong with this guy...?"
Seeing that Cornell was chatting with Baliu, Sixus simply told him everything he had seen and guessed on the way. At the end, he took out the letter and handed it to Leon, saying, "Maybe he was frightened by His Majesty."
"Count Hitzfeld." Leon raised his eyebrows at the end, then returned the letter casually: "To be honest, it's a bit low."
"Too low?" This time it was Sixus' turn to glare. She opened her mouth and said, "...What on earth are you doing here?"
"Nothing much, just killed a few evil gods - I mean the kind that can destroy Lazarus, which is even more powerful than that. By the way, I also dispersed the gray fog here, and won a new territory for the human world that is about twice the size of Sara's territory."
Li Ang shook the glass in his hand, "And that's not even the point."
"Then what's the key?"
"She has a group of followers. If she wants, she can rebuild the kingdom of God here on earth."
This was so shocking that Cornell turned around and heard these words. He was so shocked that he couldn't hold the glass properly, and his crotch was soaked by the mellow wine.
"That's it." Li Ang nodded. "Since the others are not here, I will tell you what I know and what I can say first."
As a security agent of noble origin, he was not as hostile to the people of the Review Committee as most Shadow Lions. Since the White Shadow Palace sent Cornell here, it meant that they needed to let him know something, so he would just say what he could.
Anyway, the crew of the Pierre knew all of this, so it didn't matter whether I said it or not.
So he began to tell the story - from the time the Pierre left the port, to their arrival at the north shore of Goli, to their investigation into the abnormal conditions in Iverria, until the man-eating water monster was dug out, and the mechanical floating city appeared in the sky.
"Floating city!?" Cornell couldn't help but exclaimed, "Oh my God! Are those claims true?"
All the way from Inian Harbor, those "crazy" natives had told him about the floating city many times, but Cornell had always treated it as nonsense and never imagined it was true.
Sixus glared at him and motioned him to be quiet. Leon continued the description and the topic turned to the secret of Hitzfeld's life experience.
"From the evidence we have collected so far, Dr. Mechanical Coldis is her biological father." Leon's words were like a thunderclap in a clear sky, and both Cornell and Sixus were dumbfounded.
"This... this is simply..." Sixus's lips opened and closed, "That means, in the Shadow Poison Needle case, she..."
"Yeah." Leon looked down at the carpet under his seat. "Although it seems that we cooperated with Rand An to kill him, I think the reason why he suddenly stopped moving is related to what happened later."
"In other words, it should actually be her credit."
"Aisun Hitzfell killed his evil father with his own hands."
After a moment of shock, Cornell pinched his neck and gasped.
He understood it completely.
I understand why the White Shadow Palace issued such an appointment.
Indeed, it is against the rules to directly grant a young person the title of earldom across levels and processes, and it can even be said to be nonsense, but if she has such achievements to prove her moral character, it is another matter.
No...actually this has nothing to do with morality at all!
Cornell was really stunned. His mind was a mess and it took him a long time to come to his senses. Those great nobles would not allow a young girl to enjoy a similar status just because of her noble character. The real reason why they would accept this - the reason why they would accept that Asun Hitzfeld was awarded the title of earl was precisely because she had an evil father!
This is ironic and funny... because Cornell has dealt with those cowards many times and he knows them too well.
"I was not sure if I could talk about this." Leon looked at Cornell, "But since Connie brought this appointment, it means that His Majesty wants to make this information public internally."
"I think she must have had enough of some of the comments. How should I put it... I personally think it's quite funny."
It's really funny.
Both Baliu and Sixus had gloomy faces.
When you have done your best, endured humiliation, sacrificed and contributed everything you can, and saved the country from danger more than once, those people will make things difficult for you, suspecting whether your sincerity has bad motives.
And when you once again prove yourself with your noble character, and even kill your father with your own hands to stick to your beliefs, what they care about is not your nobleness, but the fact that you once had an evil father.
They recognized her for this reason.
It's not because of admiration, but because of fear.
If she is pushed too hard, will she repeat her father's old path?
The Mechanical Kingdom, the Mechanical Apostles... Even after experiencing a catastrophe, they are still a considerable force. Now she has her own loyal soldiers - in the final analysis, she can make them feel "fearful".
This is what makes those who know the truth feel most ridiculous, angry and sad.
Hitzfeld deserves this treatment, but it shouldn't be based on people being afraid of her.
They should treat her well and respect her from the bottom of their hearts... Like now, they are trying to please her and win her over because they are afraid of her potential and strength... This is totally wrong.
Sisyphe asked Cornell sarcastically: "I will not interfere with your actions now, Mr. Cornell. If you have a chance to see her later, you can ask her whatever you want."
"No! No!" Cornell put his hands in front of his chest and smiled dryly: "That would be too rude... For such a meritorious minister... we should give her some freedom..."
As he said this, Cornell couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
Even he himself was forced to do so - because he was afraid of the shadow left by the "Mechanical Kingdom", he began to flatter her, please her, and win her over.
And she hasn't even shown up yet!
Thinking about what he was thinking when he set out, he suddenly felt a little bored and had no interest in getting involved in this matter anymore.
It seems that Your Majesty has already known the truth of this matter.
Your Majesty is very powerful, so I won’t worry about so much and will just do as Your Majesty wishes.
With this thought, Cornell's mind suddenly opened up. He stopped thinking about his mission and took on the role of a pure listener, quietly listening to Li Ang continue to talk.
It must be admitted that this is a legendary adventure.
People turned into animals, a gray fog maze in the fjord.
A mechanical clock tower in ruins, a groundbreaking cinema.
Leon didn't tell us about the details of Coldis's performance in the video, but that was enough. He kept talking about how the Pierre was taken to the Blood Sea by the portal in the fjord, and how they experienced the Black Fog Sea. Cornell was amazed and surprised that they could come back alive.
"We have to thank our captain for this." Leon nodded and raised his glass to signal them: "Captain Hitzfeld, Count Hitzfeld."
The others followed suit, picking up their glasses in silence, even Cornell.
"So..." After finishing the cup, he asked hesitantly, "She is the most crucial person? Whether it's sneaking into the Sea King City to investigate 'Yinsel', or using that secret technique to guide you to send the Apis Cube, she is the core of everything. Is she the one who connects everything together?"
"Exactly."
"Let me ask you a more personal question." Cornell glanced at Sixus and continued to look at Leon. "She has done so much...she has worked harder than anyone else, but she didn't get anything before. Those gifts are completely insignificant compared to what she has paid."
"So why does she insist on this?"
"What supports her to do this?"
"You asked a good question, Mr. Executive..." It was Baliu who answered him. She smiled and shook her head: "Before I answer you, I also want to ask you a question - this is probably why so many people are suspicious of her, right?"
“Because I can’t understand it.”
“Because I can’t do it.”
"So I wonder if she has other intentions."
"I suspect that her sacrifice was fake, that she did all this just to gain favor from His Majesty. I think there is no such noble person in the world. It is impossible for anyone... to be so despicable!!"
The volume at the end was too high, and Cornell's lips twitched, as if he was being accused and scolded.
He couldn't reply, because that would make him feel guilty.
"Then I can tell you now that there are many such 'bastards'." Baliu stood up shakily.
"From Fili Niffinks (Saint Fili who founded the Mechanical Yang Cult) to Jodin Frentes (the second Pope), to Nosa Ferdinand, Jane Pussion... there are too many bastards like this! Even we ourselves are one of them!"
"Baliu..." Leon stood up and tried to support her, "You drank too much!"
"I'm not drunk...!"
"You don't need to tell him these truths..."
"What did I say?" Bariu was still struggling. "Who said it? Did Sanfeli say it? Did Jodin say it? Or Ferdinand? Pusiangsi? Did anyone here brag about what they did? Did anyone tell others - 'You can live well because of me'?"
"Don't be stupid...Leon! Let me go...We just didn't say enough! We are like mules that can't talk and only know how to pull the millstone!"
The two men dragged each other downstairs, leaving Sixus and Cornell in silence at the table.
Cornell didn’t know what others thought, but he felt that... he wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.
……
Cornell had a dreamless night and did not wake up until noon the next day.
He was afraid that he had neglected something, so he quickly washed and dressed, went down to the hall, and found that there were a few new faces there, chatting and laughing with the doctors who were traveling with them.
After getting to know these people, Cornell learned that they were all from the Pierre and belonged to the same elite unit. Cornell could not help but respect them. His overly reserved words made these people feel a little uncomfortable, especially Darent. He heard that Cornell was a member of the review team and wanted to play a trick on him, but this attitude made him feel a little uneasy.
"Let me ask again, there is also a Prince of Oman traveling with you..." Cornell carefully raised his doubts.
"It's King Aman." Ethan corrected him, "He's not here. He left us after Aisha returned."
"Where did he go?"
"He didn't say that it was either returning to Goli or becoming a ranger. I personally prefer the latter."
Does that mean Goli will also become a no-man's land?
Cornell was surprised and secretly kept this matter in mind.
He was a Sarayan, and whether out of patriotism or just for the sake of the overall situation, he naturally thought it was most appropriate to give these territories to Sara.
"And what about...Prince Tenetz?"
"Your Highness..."
