Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

Chapter 350 Intelligence from the Queen

Derek Corleone is one of the few remaining members of the Corleone royal family.

She was one of the few royals who stood by the King and Queen during the Northwest Regional Conference when the Corleone royal family collectively betrayed them.

From then on, Drey Coleon gained Cohen's trust and, after several years of experience, became the head of the intelligence department of the Military Intelligence Bureau.

Director Derui frowned, and his expression was not good.

He had repeatedly stated before he came that the meeting convened by the acting director today was very important and that, in principle, no one was allowed to come to see him. Why did he still come?
Derek glanced at Nephthys, who sat in the main seat. Nephthys didn't even look up and said calmly:

"Perhaps there's been some unexpected situation; let's go check it out."

"Yes, ma'am."

Derry nodded to the crowd and quietly left the office.

Upon seeing Dreyfus, Griffin disregarded formalities and hurriedly handed the intelligence to his superior, lowering his voice:

"Chief, intelligence has just arrived from the Kingdom of Serene!"

After reading it, Derek's pupils contracted slightly. Then, noticing the date on the intelligence report, his expression changed slightly, and he asked in a deep voice:
"Wasn't this intelligence sent out yesterday?"
Why is it taking so long to arrive?

Deputy Director Griffin's expression immediately changed, and his voice softened as he said in a low voice:

"Chief, the people below do not have the authority to know the details of this Prince Seran of the Kingdom of Seren, so they have classified the intelligence as ordinary level."

It was simply submitted to the analyst in the department as usual, and was not presented to the office immediately.

I discovered this intelligence while I was on patrol, which is why I rushed to find you.

Derry frowned deeply and said:
"I understand. Gather the personnel who received and translated this intelligence and have them ready to be questioned at any time."

"it is good."

Derek walked back to his office with the intelligence in his hand, then went straight to Nephthys's side and whispered:
"Madam, there's an update that might require your attention."

Nephthys took the intelligence report, and after reading it, she also noticed the timestamp and cast an inquiring glance at Director Dre.

Drey had no choice but to repeat Griffin's explanation.

Nephthys didn't criticize them too harshly, and said to everyone:

"The following discussion will be chaired by Lord Snape. I'm going to the palace."

"Yes."

……

Florence, the Queen's office.

Queen Adeline Angeline is reviewing documents.

Her exquisitely beautiful face always wore an air of coldness and indifference.

It seems that nothing in the world, except for Cohen, can affect her emotions.

Nephthys knocked gently on the door, and after receiving permission, she pushed it open and came in.

Yalder looked up at the orphan of the "Night Rose" family that her man had brought back, and asked:

"Weren't we discussing intelligence plans for an attack on the Ceylon border?"

What happened? "

Nephthys replied:

"Something has happened; this is intelligence from the Kingdom of Serene."

A serious expression appeared on Adele's face when the Kingdom of Serene was mentioned.

The Kingdom of Serene is the third kingdom in the northwestern continent, after the Kingdom of Windbreak and the Kingdom of Ceylon.

While its overall national strength is the weakest of the three countries, the events that occurred at the Northwest Regional Exchange Conference have made this country one that Effie must pay close attention to.

At the time, Cohen revealed the true identity of Prince Thrann, who represented the Kingdom of Thrann, as the third tomb owner of the "Black Tomb" and also the founder of the Kingdom of Thrann.

After the Northwest Regional Conference concluded, the three tomb owners continued to operate in the Kingdom of Thranduil under the name of Prince Thranduil. They even revealed their true identities to the Thranduil royal family and gradually gained real power in Thranduil.

Therefore, in the eyes of those in the know, the Kingdom of Serene became a puppet kingdom supported by the Black Tomb.

Melantha, as the head of the Northwest branch of the Black Tomb, had also made contact with the Kingdom of Serene, but her status in the Black Tomb was too disparate from that of the Three Tomb Masters, so she was unable to obtain any valuable information.

Furthermore, the Third Tomb Master made it clear that he would not interfere with any of the actions of the Northwest Headquarters, and also asked Melantha not to affect him.

After Yardel developed the eavesdropping array, the technology was quickly deployed to military intelligence stations across the country, including the Kingdom of Serene.

Since then, the Military Intelligence Bureau has been able to obtain some intelligence about the Kingdom of Serene on and off, until today when this rather sensitive intelligence was delivered—

A large-scale troop movement has occurred within the Kingdom of Seren, and the person in charge of the movement is none other than Prince Seren.

Given the upcoming border offensive and defensive battle on the Ceylon border, this situation cannot be ignored by Nefertis.

After reading the intelligence, Adele said softly:
"The Kingdom of Serene is very far from Efein and Ceylon, and there is the Kingdom of Windbreak and several small countries in between. Logically speaking, their troop movements should not be related to our actions."

However, at this sensitive time, we really can't ignore it.

Who is currently in charge of the military intelligence station in the Kingdom of Serene?

Nephthys quickly replied:
"Station Master of Toringard Station, Alva Diaz, formerly the Deputy Commander of the Royal Guard."

Toringard is the capital of Thereon and is known for its bronze storm totems.

Adele pondered for a moment and then said:

"Have him continue to monitor Serene's military movements. Headquarters should also send a few more people over there to try and figure out their intentions."

"Okay, where is the gentleman?"

"I'll go and inform them. Your most important task right now is the operation on the Ceylon border."

"it is good."

After Nephthys left, Adel picked up the intelligence again and then contacted Cohen.

Cohen was naturally delighted to receive a message from the Queen, but his mood soon soured as the news brought to him by Adele cast a shadow over him.

Black Tomb has finally made a move!

When Cohen began to formally take action against the Kingdom of Ceylon, he had already considered the involvement of the "Black Tomb".

However, since Melantha was the head of the Northwest branch of Black Tomb, and even she did not receive relevant instructions from the higher-ups of Black Tomb, Cohen gradually stopped taking "Black Tomb" seriously.

Unexpectedly, at this crucial juncture when they were about to officially launch an attack on Ceylon, "Black Tomb" still made a move, even bypassing Melantha, the head of the Northwest branch, which is quite intriguing.

Adele's voice was comforting:

"However, you don't need to worry too much. Serene's troop deployment should not have any direct relationship with our military operations in Ceylon."

According to intelligence, the troop deployment only began the day before yesterday. Given the vast distance between the two locations, even if Black Tomb wanted to take any action, there simply wasn't enough time.

Is Melanie next to you?

You can ask her.

Melanie was there, of course; not only was she there, but she was also in his arms, listening to their conversation the whole time.

However, Cohen did not allow Melantha to speak in order to avoid making his sister, the Queen, jealous.

Melantha, upon hearing Adel mention her, disregarded Cohen's previous hints and spoke directly:
"I haven't received any relevant intelligence. Ever since the identity of that third tomb master was exposed, he has taken over all the members of the Black Tomb in the Kingdom of Serene."

However, I can try to find out from a different angle.

Adele paused noticeably for a moment, then said:

"It would be best to find out, but wouldn't doing so arouse suspicion?"

Cohen, on a sudden inspiration, said:
"Why not ask the three tomb owners for their opinion under the pretext of taking action against Effie?"
Melantha, tell them that you discovered the conflict between King Efein and Shazo and Joren in the Kingdom of Ceylon, and that you also realized that Efein was about to join forces with the Crown City to attack the border of Ceylon.

They hoped to draw some troops from the three tomb owners to disrupt Effie's plans.

Let's see how they respond, shall we?

Melantha's eyes lit up, and she said:

"Hey, that's a good idea."

After saying that, he went to make the contact.

Adele also expressed her approval of Cohen's approach, saying:

"That's how it's done."

Also, once you've finished dealing with things in Ceylon, return home as soon as possible. We also need to start preparing for the Noble Martial Arts Festival.

The list of participants needs to be finalized as soon as possible.

Cohen replied:

"It should be finished within a month, sis. You can start the selection process in China first, following the Supernatural Arena model. I'll give Raymond a heads-up and ask him to cooperate."

The two exchanged some more intimate words until another official document arrived from Adele's side, at which point Cohen reluctantly ended the call.

Having been away for so long, he began to miss the gentleness and love of the most beautiful woman on the mainland.

Melantha entered a room on the first floor and said to Cohen, who followed her in:
"The three tomb masters are saints, and they are generally not responsible for trivial matters such as communication and contact."

Although I am now the head of the Northwest branch, I still do not have his direct contact information.

I will contact his student Naxtos Warren later, a legendary dark mage who was brought to Serane from the Black Tomb headquarters.

Initially, he was chosen to head the Northwest branch, but later I broke through to the half-step legendary level, only to be just one step away from becoming a legendary figure, which ultimately led to me getting the position.

At this point, Melanie's lips curved into a captivating smile. It was precisely her breakthrough to the half-step legendary realm that had brought her together with the man before her. Cohen nodded slightly, and after a moment's thought, asked:

"Has your 'Black Tomb' ever had a precedent of three tomb owners directly interfering in a country's military and political affairs?"

Melanie suppressed her emotions and decisively shook her head:

"Never before. The existence of the Black Tomb is not exactly honorable, and its practices have been resisted and loathed by many people."

If they were to interfere in the political affairs of human nations, it would easily arouse the suspicion of the five great empires.

Therefore, the behavior of the three tomb owners this time is highly unusual. I think if you hadn't exposed Prince Thrann's identity at the Northwest Regional Conference, this matter would probably still be top secret.

Cohen frowned even more deeply. If that's the case, the most correct thing for Prince Thran to do after his identity was exposed was to quickly sever ties with the Kingdom of Thran. Why then did he make such a grand entrance into Thran and even seize power?
Isn't this blatantly making others wary?

Black Tomb can exist as an assassin organization, but if it were to develop as a human nation, it would easily provoke resistance from outsiders.

After all, the elements within the "Black Tomb" are far too complex: demons, devils, liches, divine abominations, demon children, dark mages, fallen ones...

If such chaotic and disorderly forces were to form a human nation, it would visibly bring great disasters and turmoil to the continent.

But Black Tomb still did it anyway.

Cohen couldn't help but think of what would happen in the future—a war of nations!
Perhaps the higher-ups of the Black Tomb also learned some information about the future through some means, and therefore made plans in advance, wanting to use the Kingdom of Serene to obtain a "ticket" to the future!
This is probably the most reasonable speculation, so the actions of the three tomb masters may also be related to the development of the Kingdom of Serene.

While Cohen was deep in thought, Melantha contacted Naxtos Warren, the legendary dark mage and student of the three tomb masters.

After receiving the communication from the head of the Northwest branch, Nactor looked rather uneasy, still harboring some resentment towards this "salesperson" who had taken his position.

However, since the other party was now considered a high-ranking member of the organization, it was inappropriate to put on airs. After the communication was connected, he still greeted them according to protocol.

Melantha's full code name in "Black Tomb" was "Northwest Branch Salesperson". After being promoted to head of the Northwest Branch, her code name naturally changed.

Her current codename within the "Black Tomb" is "Soul Whisperer," which is related to her extraordinary profession, "The Listener."

As a student of the three tomb masters, Nactus didn't have a code name; Melantha simply called him by his name.

Although her transcendental rank is lower than Naxos', in terms of status, she is undoubtedly higher than a legendary rank without any official position.

After all, in the eyes of the Black Tomb's higher-ups, Melantha was one of the few important members of the Black Tomb who survived the Northwest Regional Conference.

Melantha's voice carried the authority of a superior:

“Nactos, is the tomb lord available? I have something important to report to him.”

Nactus was quite displeased with Melantha's tone, but due to the organization's strict internal rules, he couldn't say anything, and his response was also very cold:
"The tomb owner is now the regent of the Kingdom of Serene and has to deal with a lot of government affairs every day. If there is nothing urgent, please talk to me first."

Melantha's voice carried a hint of disdain:
“Nactus Archmage, if it weren’t for the fact that I was contacting you personally, I wouldn’t be doing this.”

I hope you will inform the tomb owner as soon as possible, otherwise, if this delays important matters, I, as a mere head of the Northwest branch, cannot bear the responsibility.”

Nactus's expression froze, a nameless anger rising in his chest. When he spoke again, his voice was clearly filled with emotion:

“Soul Speaker, if it’s really urgent, you should come to Toringard yourself!”

Melanie smiled faintly:
"Archmage, I don't have that much time to waste here with you. In short, whether or not to inform the Tomb Master is up to you to decide!"

After saying that, he hung up the call immediately.

Nactus was stunned, and his anger intensified.

After a moment of silence, they went to the palace in Serene.

Although he was very unhappy that Melantha had taken his place, he also admitted that Melantha was indeed very capable. He was worried that Melantha's words were so serious that he might have messed up something important.

He was just angry and wanted to deliberately make things difficult for him, but he didn't expect Melantha to be even more ruthless, throwing the problem at him and putting him in a difficult position.

Narctos soon found the third tomb owner, who is now Prince Nairn Thrann.

After listening to Narctus's account, the three tomb owners said in a deep voice:

"You can contact him. I told the 'Soul Whisperer' not to contact us unless necessary."

Since he contacted you today, it means he must have something important to say.

Although reluctant, Nactus contacted Melantha as instructed by the three tomb masters.

After hearing the voices of the three tomb owners, Melantha gave Cohen a wink, then slowly revealed her plan:

"...According to feedback from my intelligence agents, troops are rapidly gathering in the southern border of Efein and near the City of Crown. After the defeats of Xia Zuo of the Eastern Empire and Qiao Lun of the Central Empire, Efein should accelerate its offensive against the border legion of Ceylon."

"This is likely to happen within the next month or two. It's a great opportunity to avenge our brothers and sisters in the Northwest!"

The three tomb owners fell into deep thought, and after a while, slowly said:
"Do you want Serene to send troops to launch a surprise attack on King Efein from behind?"

Melanza replied:
"Yes, I can smooth things over with Prince Charles, so that Serene's army can enter Effie legitimately."

The three tomb owners shook their heads and replied:

“'Soul Whisperer,' your plan is excellent. No wonder the higher-ups have such high hopes for your abilities. However, this time it probably won't go according to your plan.”

Melanie feigned surprise and asked:

"why?
Don't the adults care at all about the humiliation and defeat they suffered in Florence last time?

The three tomb owners patiently explained:

"Black Tomb will retaliate for this sooner or later, but not now."

On one hand, the 'Cobalt Soul Academy' had an agreement with the Great Tomb Master and his group that they wouldn't attack him if he was above the Legendary rank. On the other hand, Serene has other important missions to complete recently and cannot spare any troops for the time being.

A glint of light flashed in Cohen's eyes as he listened to the conversation.

Important task!

The fact that Black Tomb could abandon its crucial mission of attacking him, a matter of life and death, filled Cohen with intense curiosity.

Melanie paused for a moment, then asked:

"The reason given by the tomb master cannot convince me. In my opinion, killing King Effie and avenging the saints, legendary figures, and numerous gold and silver-ranked assassins who died in the Black Tomb is the most important thing."

If the tomb owner is unwilling, I will communicate this matter directly with headquarters.

Melanza's meaning was clear: the Third Tomb Master was not her direct superior, and she did not want to give up the plan, so she was prepared to report it directly to her direct superior.

The three tomb owners were also somewhat helpless. After all, Melantha's suggestion was very good in terms of both reason and emotion, and it could even be said that it was quite in line with the interests of the "Black Tomb". If they did not tell him the real reason, it would indeed be difficult to justify themselves.

He pondered for a moment and then said:
"You don't need to complain to headquarters about me. I originally planned to inform you after this matter was fully launched, but since you're involved, I'll tell you in advance."

This matter must be kept absolutely secret; do not reveal it to anyone.

Cohen and Melantha both tensed up, waiting for the three tomb masters to speak.

The third tomb owner paused for a moment, then lowered his voice:
"King Efein is indeed our number one enemy in the Black Tomb, but compared to the interests of a kingdom, the small country of Efein is not worth our attention at the moment."

The interests of a kingdom!

Upon hearing this, Cohen and Melanie both perked up.

What actions could affect the interests of a kingdom?

The three tomb owners continued:

"The reason we're not sending you troops is simple: Serene is preparing to attack the Kingdom of Windbreak!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Cohen paused, his pupils contracted, and a look of shock flashed in his eyes.

The words of the third tomb owner were completely unexpected.

In his past life's game memories, "Black Tomb" never used the Kingdom of Serene to attack the Kingdom of Windbreak.

He quickly figured everything out; the reason that prompted "Black Tomb" to take action against the Windrise Kingdom probably lay with him.

It was his alliance with the Windblow Kingdom to attack Ceylon that prompted the Windblow Kingdom to launch its eighteenth expedition to the southeastern region of Ceylon, which gave Black Tomb the opportunity to stab the Windblow Kingdom in the back.

Cohen suppressed his emotions and listened to the Third Tomb Master continue.

The three tomb masters seemed to be giving Melantha time to process this news. After a slight pause, they continued:

"Speaking of which, we should thank King Efein. If he hadn't persuaded the Windrider family of the Windbreath Kingdom to launch the eighteenth expedition to Ceylon, we would hardly have found such a good opportunity."

Soul Whisperer, in fact, I have personally spoken in secret with King Gaius of the Kingdom of Ceylon once, and he has agreed to our plan.

We're preparing to leave the Windbreak Kingdom with an unforgettable memory on the Ash Plains!

The first target of the Windrise Kingdom's attack was the Ash Plains, located in the heart of southeastern Ceylon.

Cohen could almost picture Black Tomb and Gaius's plan—feigning defeat to lure the enemy deeper into their territory.

Once the elite soldiers of the Windbreak Kingdom have penetrated deep into the Ash Plains, the army of the Serene Kingdom will attack from the rear. With this pincer attack, Windbreak will inevitably suffer a crushing defeat.

Although Serene's national strength is not as great as that of the Kingdom of Windbreak and the Kingdom of Ceylon.

However, with Ceylon suffering from internal strife and Windbreak's expedition suffering a major defeat, Serene could easily seize the opportunity to become the overlord of the Northwest Continent and gradually erode the power of the Windbreak Kingdom.

A look of deep concentration appeared in Cohen's eyes. No wonder the "Black Tomb" had been so quiet lately; it turned out they had been secretly plotting such a massive and shocking plan.

Melantha then spoke:
"I see. I didn't think this through, and it almost ruined the organization's big plan."

The voices of the three tomb owners softened considerably:
"You're also considering the organization's interests. Don't worry, once we've dealt with the Windrise Kingdom, Effie won't be able to escape."

Let them fight to the death with the Kingdom of Ceylon first. Once they're both weakened, the entire Northwest Continent will be ours.

Melantha asked:
"Is there anything I can do to help?"

As far as I know, King Efein's new wife is from the Winged Elf race, and has a deep connection with the Windrider family, the royal family of the Windbreath Kingdom.

"Effie will very likely interfere with our plans then."

The three tomb owners spoke slowly:
“Your consideration makes sense. Here’s what we’ll do: you keep an eye on all of Effie’s actions for now, and I’ll contact you whenever I need anything.”

(End of this chapter)