Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 265 Two Minutes

At that moment, Thales's gaze swept over the tense standoff: Rumba's plans and objectives had been thwarted, and the two countries had avoided war.

But if he stops here...

not enough.

Selma's life, his own life, and the lives of so many others fighting in Valhalla... their lives.

And who will save us?
Selma watched him anxiously from under the table and quietly told him to come down.

But—Thales clenched his fist—his battle was not over yet.

There is still one last step left.

At the Star Council meeting, when Thales fiercely questioned the cliff-guarding duke "One-Eyed" Gustave, Gilbert, while praising him, also sighed and told him that such a splendid counterattack, which left the opponent with no way out, was actually "not a wise way of governing."

Later, through many experiences, Thales realized that in the game of power, only inexperienced novices and hot-headed fools would act like the vengeful protagonists in popular chivalric romances, greedy for momentary gains and launching ruthless, unrelenting attacks against their political enemies. Thales, for example, seemed to be winning every battle, but in the end, he forced Kosted into becoming a mortal enemy. The prince's ruthless style also made many of the onlookers feel uneasy, and in the end, they all chose to stand on the side of the one-eyed prince and unanimously refused to recognize Thales's right to succession as an illegitimate son.

Politics is not a life-or-death sword fight between two people, but a chain of actions involving a group of people in the same power arena. From means to results, every move will involve the interests and attitudes of multiple parties. For example, just now, after Thales refuted Lombard to the point of silence, he inevitably intensified the conflict between the Grand Dukes and Lombard, which will bring disastrous consequences to himself: in order to protect himself, the Grand Duke of Black Sand will annihilate them all here.

A satisfying ending is far more difficult to achieve than a triumphant victory, but it is also far more important—this is what Gilbert wanted to tell Thales in the Hall of Stars.

Because victory often means further confrontation, while the end requires maximum compromise.

Thales took a deep breath.

But he had to do it.

As for Ashida's "advice," he completely disregarded it without even thinking about it—choosing him wouldn't have been any better than falling out with Rumba.

But just as he was about to speak...

"Clang!" A piercing metallic clang suddenly erupted in the arena!

It's unclear who made the first move—Rumba's half-sword had already clashed with Ronnie's longsword!
Immediately following this, sounds of intense fighting could be heard from outside the hall:

"Hold them off!"

"Take out the lightly armored ones first!"

In the equally dangerous hall, in an instant, Rumba and Ronnie exchanged two sword strikes, both with fierce expressions, pacing back and forth, entering a fighting stance.

Thales, standing on the square table, stared wide-eyed, nearly spitting out blood.

Fuck!
These northerners!
Don't you listen to human language?

Thales glanced anxiously at the gate—though he couldn't see anything, he knew that Rumba's forces had an overwhelming advantage. Even if they could make Black Sand Territory pay a price, they would surely die.

No...

No!

Ignoring the stares of others, just as Ronnie and Rumba were exchanging swords for the second time, Thales raised his head again and roared:
"Chaman Lumba!"

"Are you just going to give up your ideals, abandon the chance to save Exter, and let it sink into chaos, letting the stars overshadow you?"

How ironic—at this moment, Thales, his heart pounding, complained to himself: just a few minutes ago, he was speaking highly of the dangers of Rumba's ideas in front of the disdainful dukes, and now he had to earnestly encourage the desperate Rumba to pick up his ideals again!
Rumba frowned slightly, took two steps back, and parried a heavy slash from Olech's side.

"You told me that what you wanted was just a little bit more than self-preservation, revenge, and the destruction of King Nunn and Dragoncity!" Thales shouted as they were temporarily separated. "For that 'little bit,' you paid so much, snatching the last chance of survival from an already hopeless situation!"

Because of the unusual commotion inside the hall, the sounds of fighting outside continued unabated.

In the chaos, Thales screamed hoarsely, "Then why not take another risk and see if we can seize a new chance to live?"

"Think of your brother and father!"

Rumba suddenly looked up, his face contorted.

"Boy! I've had enough of your nagging!" The Black Sand Grand Duke gritted his teeth and swung his sword back at Oleshius: "You just want to save your own life, don't you?"

"roll!"

Fake!

A surge of anger welled up in Thales' heart.

next second.

"Thales!"

At Selma's startled cry, Thales took a deep breath and resolutely jumped down from the table!

Amidst the sounds of fighting outside the hall, the prince, disregarding his aching feet, charged forward, arms crossed and head in the astonishment of everyone present!

He charged straight into the battle circle of Rumba, Ronnie, and Aurelius!
Selma's outstretched hand could only brush past his sleeve.

Leco and Grand Duke Trudida stared wide-eyed at the prince's suicidal act.

Ronnie's pupils contracted! His thrust, which he was about to make, stopped abruptly in mid-air, and even Olesch beside him stopped moving.

Rumba opened his mouth in surprise and did not move forward.

"Bang!" Thales, in a fit of emotion, abruptly stopped.

He stopped in the center of the three men, suppressing his heart which was pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of his chest, and raised both arms to the three men holding swords on either side!
The prince, like the most fearless warrior, stood firmly between the three.

They were forced to stop.

"Are you crazy?" Ronnie roared, his face grim. "Are you looking for death?!"

The enraged prince roared back without hesitation, "So what if we are? We're going to be surrounded and killed anyway!"

Thales felt the cold, sharp blades on either side of him, turned his head, and, his voice hoarse, felt tears and snot welling up in his eyes: "Rumba, if you have the chance to go back to the beginning, back to where you started, to play against us again, to try to rebuild your Exter instead of accepting the defeat you have now—why not give it a try?"

"You still have to save this country!"

Rumba stared at him in disbelief, clenching his teeth, the blade of his sword trembling slightly.

"My lords!"

The prince, still catching his breath, turned his head, first glancing at the disgruntled Aurelius and Ronnie, then staring intently at the astonished Grand Duke Lyco behind the table, and Trudida, who had somehow slipped away. He clenched his fist and said fiercely, "I swear on my life, we have a way to save ourselves, we don't have to die here in vain!"

Ronnie and Aurelius exchanged a glance, their bulging muscles still tense.

The sounds of fighting outside the hall continued to be intense.

The extent of casualties is unknown.

The brief standoff was immediately broken by Rumba. The Grand Duke of Black Sands, suppressing his emotions, roared with his chest heaving, "What the hell are you planning to do?"

Thales took a deep breath.

“Like you said, I’m going to save ‘your’ life,” the prince said, racking his brains, “and incidentally, save the lives of the rest of us!”

“Prince Thales, we are all very impressed with you,” Grand Duke Lyco’s voice came coldly, filled with displeasure.

"But from this moment on, this is now Exter's internal affair!"

He was clearly unhappy with the prince's claim that he had "saved his life."

"Of course!" Thales shouted angrily.

"So my job is only to offer suggestions and try to persuade you!" Thales shouted. "The choice is yours!"

"Can't we wait two minutes before killing each other?"

"Yankee!"

Whether it was his crazy behavior that earned him respect and attention, or the effect of that insulting "Yankee," the hall fell silent immediately after Thales finished speaking.

For a moment, only the heavy breathing of the crowd could be heard.

At this moment, the sounds of fighting outside the hall became even more jarring in the background.

"Two minutes!" Thales repeated anxiously.

Grand Duke Lecce glared at him with eyes wide open and nostrils flared.

Rumba, on the other hand, had sharp eyes and seemed hesitant.

Selma looked at him with concern.

Just as Thales, with his arms raised high, felt he was about to give up...

Rumba took a deep breath and exhaled heavily, as if he had made up his mind.

He lowered his sword, then plunged it fiercely into the ground.

"Black Sand Territory, hold your ground!" Rumba shouted angrily, "No one is to move without my order!"

The noise outside the hall immediately subsided considerably.

Thales immediately turned his piercing gaze toward Grand Duke Lyco.

The eldest son had a strange expression. He first slowly closed his eyes, and then suddenly opened them.

"Lord Justin!" the bald Grand Duke's voice boomed unusually loudly: "I trouble you to hold back for now!"

“Your Excellency,” Lord Justin’s voice came through, “Do you need any help?” Lyco and Rumba’s eyes met in mid-air. “No.”

A few seconds later, the sounds outside the hall completely ceased.

Ronnie and Aurelius exchanged a glance, one resentful and the other furious, as they put down their weapons.

Seeing this, Trudida whistled softly, seemingly quite pleased with himself—until Grand Duke Leco's glare struck him.

“Two minutes,” Lyco said coldly.

Thales finally breathed a sigh of relief and put down his aching arm.

But he couldn't rest.

Because all eyes in the entire hall were once again on him, heavier, colder, and harder to bear than ever before.

The prince pinched his thigh, forced himself to stay alert, and looked up at the two people who were emotionally unstable and had unpleasant expressions.

Damn.

One side wants to break the co-governance pledge system, end the state of separation between the public and private spheres, and reshape the centralized Exeter system.

One side must uphold the framework of the co-governance pledge, eliminate dissidents and traitors among them, and safeguard its own interests.

Two minutes.

He only had two minutes.

To persuade two parties whose fundamental goals and basic interests are in great conflict...

Let's shake hands and make peace!
and……

He was the one who pointed out this huge disagreement and conflict!
Under the intense, murderous glares of both sides, Thales sincerely felt at that moment:

Compared to this, the seemingly unreasonable Giza and Ashida are like docile kittens and puppies, obedient and easy to coax.

But he had no choice.

Selma and I are still here, while our other companions are still fighting hard—I don’t know how many have already fallen.

He must succeed!
The next second, before anyone else could speak, Thales straightened his chest and spoke anxiously.

"Rumba!"

He said quickly, "What you're worried about is that after you leave here, the major guilds will join forces against you, which could be detrimental to you, or even destroy you?"

"right!"

Grand Duke Lombard, leaning on his sword, pursed his lips, his gaze cold, and remained silent.

But Thales no longer had time to consider his response.

The prince suddenly turned his head to look at the other four people:

"My lords, your most urgent wish now is to escape alive from the Hall of Heroes, which is tightly controlled by Rumba, and from his overwhelming encirclement, to return to your own territories and protect your families!"

"right!"

The four exchanged glances, remaining silent amidst their dissatisfaction and anger.

Selma stared blankly at Thales, worried about his predicament caught between the two sides.

Thales shook his head and blew out a breath to clear his head.

He gritted his teeth, raised his head, and stared at the dragon spear carving in the clouds at the very top.

"Therefore, one side wants to live in the future and avoid the threats from the Grand Dukes, while the other side wants to live in the present and avoid being besieged by the Black Sand Territory."

“Therefore, you must reach a consensus here: cover up the true cause of King Nunn’s death,” Thales felt a tightness in his chest, but he still forced the words out of his throat: “The dukes will ensure that Lumba does not leave Valhalla with the crime of regicide and will abandon any future attempts to harm him.”

Grand Duke Lecco snorted coldly.

“Rumba, at this very moment, spares our lives and lets us leave alive,” the prince said coldly, “trading the present for the future.”

Rumba grinned, revealing his teeth.

“It’s no use,” the Black Sand Grand Duke shook his head dismissively. “Thanks to you, they now fear me and are afraid of me, and they will not let me go.”

Rumba glanced coldly at the dukes: "Even if it's not the crime of regicide, sooner or later, for this reason or that reason, they will lead their troops to conquer me and destroy me."

Ronnie tapped his sword blade at the opportune moment: "Very clever."

At that moment, Thales had never hated the oblivious Ronnie so much.

hateful.

Get straight to the point as quickly as possible!

Thales suddenly looked up and spoke to Rumba, his words quickening: "That's right, they won't let you go, because you are the outcast who trampled on the co-governance oath by regicide and tried to completely destroy it with change."

"To uphold the oath of shared governance, and for their own interests, the four dukes will surely join forces to destroy you!"

Seeing Rumba's increasingly hostile gaze, Thales' expression turned serious, and his tone abruptly changed: "Unless..."

Under everyone's gaze, Thales said solemnly:
“Unless Chaman Lumba’s life is already tied to the co-governance oath—destroying you is tantamount to destroying the co-governance oath and the system it represents!”

This statement came out.

"what?"

The four dukes, including Rumba, stared wide-eyed at Thales in disbelief.

Only Selma shook her head thoughtfully, as if she understood something.

But the prince once again surprised the men.

Thales Canxing took a deep breath, his gaze resolute, his tone firm, and with a mixture of anxiety and decisiveness, he swung his arm!
"I propose, gentlemen!"

Grand Duke Leco raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

But the prince hadn't finished speaking.

"Following the great traditions of Exter since ancient times, and in accordance with the constant practice of the Nekaru Covenant..."

Thales gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and quickly recalled what Gilbert had taught him.

A perfect ending.

Political compromise.

A bond of shared interests.

"Following the unfortunate passing of King Nunn, the assembled dukes, at this time and in this place..."

The prince suddenly opened his eyes, his expression resolute:
"Let's convene a meeting to elect a king!"

In that instant, all five dukes changed color!
"You will jointly elect the Grand Duke of Black Sands, Chaman Lumba..."

"For the great Kingdom of Exter..."

Thales pointed his arm directly at the astonished Grand Duke of Black Sands and said in a loud, serious voice:
"The next co-elected king!"

At that moment, the flames of all the braziers in the hall seemed to tremble simultaneously.

The room fell completely silent.

After Thales finished speaking, he pressed his hand to his rapidly beating heart and gasped for breath.

one second.

two seconds.

In the quiet hall, Trudida blinked in surprise and took three deep breaths.

Ronnie and Aurelius stood frozen in place, like statues, their gazes fixed on the prince.

Grand Duke Lecce remained expressionless, but his eyebrows and upper lip twitched incessantly, and his wrinkles rippled.

The murderous aura they had just displayed in their life-or-death struggle seemed to dissipate in an instant.

Even Selma, who was deep in thought, forgot to think for a moment and stared wide-eyed at Thales.

Charman Rumba—the person Thales was pointing to—stared at the Star Prince with an unprecedentedly strange look.

this……

The Black Sand Grand Duke, who had been exuding murderous intent, swallowed hard.

This boy...

He just said...

What did you say?
A joint election... for the king?
I always felt that little Thales couldn't have said all that in those two minutes...

What do you think?
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(End of this chapter)