A is in StarCraft, just disembarked from the Zerg Prince spaceship.

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......

The council members, whose members were of different races, sat on their respective family's high-backed chairs, each adorned with their family crest.

The majority of the heads of households are elderly or middle-aged. Older people tend to be more composed and patient.

There are a few younger family heads, but they still need to be trained. They sit there with tense expressions, unable to hide their nervousness and ambition.

Most of the heads of the household remained silent, with only a few engaging in casual conversation; their low murmurs echoed through the hall.

At the very front of the tiered seating sat two members of the Fire Ant family.

The red-haired Red Fire Ant family council chairman, Invika Serenhopnos, and his younger brother, the black-skinned head of the Black Fire Ant family and also the chairman of the Xiongbao Association, Sevisma Serenhopnos.

The Speaker of the Council of Invika sat in the main seat, with Sevisma accompanying him.

The Xiongbao Association is no longer viable; he's only able to remain in power because of his brother's influence.

The heads of the families understood each other without saying a word.

Sigh, there's no use being envious; she just has a great older brother.

When he was in power, he helped his younger brother rise to power as well; when he lost power, he was able to protect his younger brother intact.

Everyone has to admit that Speaker Vika's methods are amazing.

Suddenly, the Speaker of Parliament, Invika, in the front row, coughed and cleared his throat.

What he meant was that it was time to be quiet.

The entire hall fell silent instantly.

The heads of the families all took their seats, looking straight ahead with serious expressions. Regardless of their true thoughts, they had to maintain a respectable facade.

The hall doors swung open with a bang, and Orion, dressed in a black tuxedo, walked in: "Oh, everyone's here."

Orion walked through the council members with their varied expressions and stood on the podium at the lowest point of the circular staircase.

He wasn't wearing his Imperial General's uniform today, but rather an elaborate prince's robe.

The Crown Prince loves to wear white, but he prefers to wear black and gray.

He wore a perfectly tailored black suit-style uniform, with a cloak draped with a thick, luxurious gray fur collar. Apart from a dark silver crescent moon entwined with thorns and the name Scalewing, there were no other ornaments on his chest.

He hadn't worn this outfit in a long time, and this attire made him feel as if he had returned to the past. The Second Prince of the Empire was like a blade drawn from its sheath, tempered with ice.

The full set of formal attire from that year.

When the imperial twins appeared together back then, the eldest prince and the second prince, one in black and one in white, exuded an imposing aura, a magnificent sight of the empire.

Unfortunately, we can't see it anymore.

Orion placed his hands on the edge of the podium, looked around, and scanned the familiar or unfamiliar faces on the circular steps.

The initial restlessness among the family heads after he entered was instantly extinguished by an invisible force under his gaze, causing them to fall silent like quails.

Very good. Orion was satisfied and smiled.

I hope everyone will give me some face.

Today, he will address all the members of the noble council, headed by Speaker Einvika.

What are we talking about? We're talking about their military power.

"Distinguished members of parliament, good day." Orion adjusted his microphone and exchanged some perfunctory pleasantries with them.

When you're herding a pig to be slaughtered, you have to coax it a little, right?

Forget it, I'll stop trying to coax her and start threatening her.

Orion pulled out his personal terminal, opened the latest Imperial administrative news page, and saw the message: "[Latest Information: Crown Prince Kyle Lorius confirmed at 1:15 AM standard time that he will be departing from the Crown Prince's ship via the Human Federation's exclusive shipping lane back to the central planet of Liernia. Expected arrival time is...".

"I'm sure everyone has already heard the news. Our Crown Prince is on his way back."

The heads of the noble council all saw it, and there was a slight commotion.

Orion smiled again.

"Why do you think he's back? To celebrate the New Year?"

A heavy breathing sound filled the auditorium.

Orion gave a malicious, beautiful smile: "No, I feel he's back to stab you all in the back."

Many family heads sat up straight without making a sound, and the expressions of many family heads turned ugly.

Is this alarmist? No. Everyone knows this; what he said is true.

Orion shook his head: "The Crown Prince's desired new policies—reducing fiefdoms, revoking privileges, and breaking hereditary systems—alas, every blow is aimed at the nobles. In his eyes, the family glory that you are so proud of is nothing but a stumbling block to the empire's progress, a thorn in your side that must be eliminated. He has changed his mind; he no longer wants fiefdoms and wants to deny the glory that your ancestors earned with their blood and loyalty."

"He wants to reform? Where should he start? He'll start by abolishing the nobility. He wants to undermine the very foundation upon which you all depend for your survival; he wants to trample the wealth and achievements that each family has accumulated over thousands of years."

Silence, deathly silence, with only the sound of heavy breathing rising and falling.

The knuckles of the older noblemen gripped the armrests so tightly they turned white, while the younger ones had shifty eyes filled with doubt and uncertainty.

They were afraid precisely because what he said was true.

The Crown Prince is probably really about to take action against the nobles.

The royalists are a thorn in the Crown Prince's side. If the Crown Prince wants to implement new policies, the first thing he needs to do is reform the Zerg's social system and reduce the number of nobles.

If people want to protect their own assets, they must resist him.

"You must all be thinking we're going to rebel. You're not wrong," Orion chuckled.

Then he changed the subject again: "But, can you rely solely on your private armies, each ruling their own territory, to stop His Highness the Crown Prince's army? Can you stop his most loyal dog, Bishenmantis? The Mantis Army can wipe out an old noble family in half a day, and the example of the Bee Family is still fresh in our minds."

The name Bishenmantis was like a bucket of ice water, instantly extinguishing the sparks that had just ignited among the noble heads present.

The court ruled that Bees should execute all of the dozen or so queen bees in the Bee family that same day.

The bee family couldn't even make a ripple, and the mantis army didn't even get a scratch.

The Mantis Clan Chief is the empire's sharpest blade; who can defeat them?

Moreover, besides the Mantis Legion, the Crown Prince also has eight other legions.

The nine legions have gathered the empire's most powerful races, not just the Mantis Legion.

Orion took in the reactions of all the family heads. He continued, "To passively endure an attack is to face certain death. If you wish to preserve your family, to safeguard the wealth and status accumulated over generations, there is only one way—"

"That means striking first, seizing the initiative, and eliminating him before he can make a move."

This time, many family heads gasped in shock.

Has Orion really gone mad? Eliminating the Crown Prince? Is he going to betray the country again?

"You guys aren't thinking about treason or anything, are you? How come you're still having such unrealistic fantasies even now?" Orion laughed.

"You don't still think there's a way for you and the Crown Prince to coexist peacefully, do you? Do you think the Crown Prince would be like the current Insect Emperor, seeking compromises and ways to coexist with you in order to seize the throne?"

All the members of the council fell silent, their expressions shifting.

Because that's what they really thought before.

Surely the Crown Prince can't really eliminate all the nobles?

But thinking about it carefully, given the Crown Prince's current personality, it is indeed possible.

Orion continued, "If there's no possibility of peaceful coexistence, then we have no choice but to eliminate this crown prince."

The hall was deathly silent; even breathing had stopped. Fear and emotion mingled on their faces, forming distorted expressions.

This act of eliminating the next generation of queen insects still crossed some of their psychological bottom lines.

Orion tapped the microphone, drawing the attention of all the clan heads to him: "It's just killing the Crown Prince, how can you say it's killing the future Queen of Insects? After all, the Crown Prince can be replaced by another Insect."

Orion smiled as he showed off his magnificent princely uniform.

"After this is accomplished, I, Orion Skellway, will succeed to the throne of the Queen. I hereby swear by the blood of the Lirnian royal family and the glory of the Skellway family—"

"The old system remains unchanged! Your fiefdoms, titles, and hereditary privileges will all remain the same! The empire will still be yours and mine, together!"

The overwhelming temptation finally overwhelmed the fear.

All the family heads showed a resolute expression.

Since coexistence with the Crown Prince is impossible, then I might as well choose Orion.

Anyway, Orion can't be worse than the Crown Prince who wants to kill them all.

But the most important question remains: how will they do it? How will they fight against the Crown Prince's army? How will they deal with Bishenmantis?

Orion saw through their intentions: "To get rid of the Crown Prince, we must first get rid of his most obedient henchman. Capture Bishenmantis and take control of his legion."

The heads of the families all looked puzzled.

It sounds simple, everyone knows the best way is to capture Bishenmantis, but the question is, can you actually capture him? Who will fight the Mantis army, who will capture the Mantis patriarch, are you going to do it?

Orion smiled: "Yes, I'll go. But Bishon isn't alone; he represents the will of the princelings' legion, and he also has the private army of the entire Mantis family. To fight him, we need strength, we need concentrated strength. My men are a disorganized mob; they're no match for him."

Speaker Invika slowly asked, "So what do you mean?"

Orion smiled and replied with great confidence and a sense of entitlement: "For the sake of the greater good and our common goal, I ask you all to immediately transfer command of your respective family private armies to me for unified command and integration into an iron fist capable of confronting the princeling army and achieving our great objective."

He used the pretext of resisting the princelings' army and arresting Bishen to demand control over the private armies of the noble families.

"Relinquish military power?!"

This request was like a thunderclap, instantly exploding in the hall.

Relinquishing military power? That would be tantamount to handing over the lifeline of the family to someone else. Who knows if Orion would turn around and bite back after gaining military power?

Do they look that much like idiots?

"Ah, Your Highness! This...this is too much..."

Each family's private army is the foundation of their family's existence, their very lifeblood.

If they didn't have private soldiers, the Crown Prince would probably have confiscated their property long ago.

"Yes, Your Highness, our private army is the foundation of our family; how can we easily..."

Doubts arose.

The heads of noble families whispered among themselves, their faces filled with distrust and resistance.

A palpable sense of antagonism hung over the circular staircase; Orion's demands had crossed their line.

They will absolutely not agree.

Orion's gaze fell on Speaker Invika, who was surrounded by a crowd of stars in the center of the front row.

Speaker Invika raised his eyes and met Orion's gaze.

Orion smiled at him.

There was an unspoken understanding between them.

Dear Invika, set the pace.

Speaker Invika closed his eyes.

He has value, and Orion will continue to use him, even if he intends to abandon all the other foolish colleagues.

To achieve great things, one must be willing to give up some things.

Under the watchful eyes of the skeptical and uneasy crowd, Speaker Invika was the first to raise his hand to vote: "I agree."

"What?!"

A huge commotion broke out in the lobby.

The many family heads looked at the usually wise councilor in disbelief.

Even Sevisma secretly reached out to tug at his brother.

Ignoring their stares, Speaker Vika stretched out a hand and pressed his fingertip hard on the sensor area of ​​his patriarch's quantum computer.

The computer ejected a needle and sucked a drop of his blood.

A red light flashed in the sensing area, followed by a soft "beep" sound, indicating that some kind of permission had been activated and transferred.

"Command of the one million Red Fire Ants' direct guards is transferred to His Highness Orion from this day forward. I believe in His Highness's wisdom and prowess, and that he is capable of accomplishing great things. I hope His Highness will not disappoint us, for there is no other way."

Seeing that his brother had actually done it, the president of the Xiongbao Association, Sevisma, made the same choice without hesitation: "From today onwards, the command of the 1.2 million guards directly under the Black Fire Ant family shall be transferred to His Highness Orion."

Those nobles who had initially vehemently opposed the idea and were full of doubt hesitated when they saw the two leaders of the Fire Ant Clan in front of them.

These two did it first, does that mean there's really no danger?

They have always followed the lead of Speaker Invika, who has consistently demonstrated political correctness over the decades and has never made a mistake.

If Speaker Invika agrees...

With Speaker Invika and his brother setting an example, one after another, the influential nobles in the front row hesitantly rose to their feet.

Whether their actions were quick or slow, willing or unwilling, without exception, they all took out tokens, crystal cards, or bio-keys representing their respective families' private military power, and activated the transfer authority through their families' unique methods, transferring the military power of their private armies to Orion's hands.

Seeing that the big shots in the front row had already done so, the lesser nobles in the back row also rushed to stand up and hand over their families' share of power, whether large or small.

......

************

......

On this day, a message, like a pebble thrown into a stagnant pond, quietly spread at the very bottom of the empire's vast social structure: in garbage dumps, beside garbage cans, among the servants of important figures, in those forgotten corners, and among those powerless and weak races.

His Highness Orion's secret weapon, the Enhancement Elixir, can grant female insects of weaker races a powerful insect form, at the cost of only being weakened for one day after use.

After watching the demonstration, the weaker Zerg races were all won over.

They may know that the price might not just be weakness, but as long as it's not immediate death, they are willing to pay any price.

They desperately wanted power.

Do you know what it feels like to face huge mountains of compressed garbage that emit an indescribable odor under the scorching sun every day, and to rummage through them for any trash that can be exchanged for money?

Do you know what it feels like to be unable to find a job, unable to afford nutritional supplements, so hungry that you eat tree bark and grass leaves, rummage through kitchen waste bins, and fight for food scraps thrown out by male insects or important figures?

Do you know what it feels like to never win the favor of a male insect, to be quickly taken away from the male insect in your species, to live a life of hardship and poverty, just to save enough money to go to the hospital to exchange for a frozen sperm for reproduction, and only then can you continue the species?

Zerg society is militaristic, meritocracy reigns supreme, and no Zergling looks down on a female Zergling without power.

They are looked down upon everywhere, and their basic education conditions are inadequate. Even if a once-in-a-century genius emerges and manages to get out, they eventually find that they cannot enter military academies, become military officers, or enter politics.

Political power was entirely in the hands of the nobles; no one respected them.

These weak races are firmly suppressed at the bottom by invisible discrimination and rigid class divisions, with all paths to upward mobility cut off and no hope of ever rising above their circumstances.

Weakness is the original sin. The weak struggle to even obtain a decent job. Weakness.

Ultimately, all of this stems from their lack of power.

If there were a potion that could temporarily grant them power, allowing them to briefly stand on the same starting line as those powerful races.

Do you know what they are willing to do for this?

They would even be willing to give their lives for it.