After being forced to step down, the once-annoying nun eloped with me.

"Um... well... so... are you still able to move?"

The young nun turned over and looked at Yang Hao with a subtle expression. She said she was worried that little Anna might sleep together when she came over, which could have a negative impact on the child, so...

Why not do it now?

Watching Theresa slowly retreat back into the covers, he felt her two breasts gently brush against the lines of her body.

Yang Hao stared with dead fish eyes.

It's hard to imagine that this is the same girl who was just crying and saying no.

.............

The next morning, the maids were tidying up the bedroom of the highest ruler of the Purple Palace.

As they tidied up, they chattered about the enviable relationship between Baselissa and the future Caesar, and how difficult it would be to get married now that peace had been restored.

"I envy our Baselisa... able to marry and start a family with a man who loves her. Unlike us, even if we wanted to find someone to marry, the people we could find on the street were either already married or not even adults yet... Oh? Did Your Majesty go that far last night? I remember that girl with small breasts couldn't do that..."

How did you figure that out?

"Look, the amount of wetness is different! You can learn this by reading more books... But speaking of which, I'm afraid Lord Caesar's body can't handle this. If we hadn't just returned to the ground and were still relying on the elves for help, we probably would have started preparing nourishing food a few days ago."

"And I've heard that Fen the Elf seems to have feelings for His Majesty Caesar... I heard that Fen left in a huff because Caesar was too busy to pay attention to her..."

"Then we should definitely have the elves send over the nourishing ingredients. Our nation is just starting out, and we can't afford to lose Basilissa and His Majesty Caesar."

The maids chattered away, efficiently changing the sheets to brand new ones, and then carried the dirty ones to the back courtyard to be washed.

Meanwhile, Yang Hao was having a rather unrefined breakfast with Theresa at the restaurant. Just when he thought today would be another ordinary day, Barry suddenly walked in from outside. After whispering a few words in Yang Hao's ear, the man's expression changed drastically.

"What's wrong?" the purple-clad princess asked, puzzled. "Did something happen in Gaparia?"

The Bayezid Empire is not going to get any worse now, so Theresa believes something urgent must have happened in Gaparia.

Unexpectedly, Yang Hao simply shook his head at this: "No, it's not from Gaparia, to be precise, it has little to do with us—in short, it's the [Ironclad Ship] that appeared in Drake Port of the Roman Empire."

Ironclad warships? Is that something the Roman Empire could build? They must be ironclad warships from Isgard, right?

Theresa's confusion made Yang Hao shake his head again:

"If it were Isgard's ironclads, they would have already suppressed Drake Harbor instead of being warmly welcomed by the military district soldiers and deploying infantry—and this news seems to be from just a day or two ago, it's from [Alessar]'s army. In other words, Isgard is in trouble."

In peacetime, when an army from one country enters the territory of another, it is welcomed by the local garrison. After thinking about it, Yang Hao could only think of the US troops stationed in South Korea or Japan.

But then again, has the internal rebellion within the Roman Empire reached the point where foreign military intervention is absolutely necessary? And these Alessar ironclads... to me, they seem to be another ironclad fleet that fought against Issugard's fleet back then.

This is getting interesting: just as Isgard was about to invade Roman Empire, another nation that had previously fought a naval battle suddenly intervened in the Roman Empire's rebellion, deploying its army inland under the pretext of assisting in suppressing the rebellion, and then having its navy patrol the coast...

The people of Isgard must have turned green with envy upon receiving this news, right? If it weren't for the fact that the little queen was still in Roman, Yang Hao would probably be happy to see them make a fool of themselves.

But the problem is that the impact is indeed too great.

So after having breakfast and giving Theresa her daily hug to encourage her efforts in politics, Yang Hao immediately had the elven mage take him to Gaparia. And unsurprisingly, the Isgard diplomats in Gaparia were already making a big fuss about this big news.

Without taking a short break, Yang Hao, led by the elves, arrived at the conference room. Inside, Finn and the anxious black dragon Nia sat facing each other. They seemed to have been discussing the issue for a long time, but the final decision rested with Yang Hao.

Before Yang Hao could sit down, Heilong Nia anxiously stood up and called out:

"Your Majesty Yang Hao—! We implore you to allow our ports to fly your flag to avoid searches and potential blockades by the Alessar ironclad warships!"

An unexpected request. Yang Hao had assumed Nia had come to urge him to send troops out as soon as possible, but...

Your demand is that our national flag be flown in your port?

Yang Hao looked somewhat bewildered, but Fen shrugged and briefly recounted the contents of the previous meeting, which finally eased Yang Hao's worries.

It turns out that Alessar was indeed an enemy of Isugard. They also possessed ironclad warships, and according to Nia, the core of their ironclad warship construction was likely the core of the two steam factories that the Roman Empire had sold off as a package deal.

Moreover, it seems that steam rifles were also sold to the Allese—at least the Isugardians lurking in Drake Harbor clearly saw some elite Allese soldiers carrying steel cylinders and wielding rifles on their way out of the city.

Leaving aside the movements of the elite army, in short, Alessar's navy is patrolling the coast. If nothing unexpected happens, they should be able to patrol to the edge of Isugard's secret port before noon today, and then blockade and plunder this port that does not belong to Roman or any other country—this is the likely fate of that port under normal circumstances.

But if the flags of Gaparia and Bayezid could be flown in this "port without a flag"... then the Alessands would avoid war due to concerns about international repercussions.

...It all seems reasonable. Yang Hao couldn't find a problem either—that's right, you've already let us hang the national flag on that "no man's land," doesn't that mean it's become our port?

Yang Hao knew that his idea was somewhat far-fetched.

"Why not? Let's leave it at that."

But once the national flag is planted, who cares whose territory it originally was?

He beamed with joy. He felt like he'd been given a windfall.

Chapter 5: Ysgard, it seems we'll have to become our dogs. (8K)

"Why not? Let's leave it at that."

Heilong Nia breathed a sigh of relief after hearing Yang Hao's definite answer.

She quickly left first, then ordered the servants waiting outside to plant the flag of Gaparia atop the tower in her port. Afterwards, she received an inquiry from her subordinates:

“But in that case, our port would, in a sense, belong to [Gaparia] rather than [Isgard],” the subordinate sighed. “Legally, this port, which was already [ownerless], would become the property of Gaparia. If any diplomatic incidents occur later, it would be a heavy blow to us!”

"It's better than the port being blockaded and destroyed by the Alessars—go now and ask the elven mages to use their teleportation to raise the flag of Gaparia. Go quickly."

"Yes!"

As her subordinate left, Nia watched her departing figure and couldn't help but sigh: Didn't she know? Didn't she know that by doing this, the secret port she had painstakingly built would legally become Gaparia's "territory"? Didn't she know?

Of course she knew! But the problem is that when God asks you to choose between a bad one and an even worse one, most people will choose the former, and only a very small number of people have the ability to choose to beat God up.

The problem is, the Isgards on Elusia's side don't have the strength to defeat the Ares.

Those two ironclad warships were far beyond our reach. Although we had already ordered the ironclads in the harbor to leave beforehand to avoid being sunk, it was clear that we still had to hold onto the port...

Fortunately, Gaparia was willing to offer assistance. Unfortunately, Nia was facing off against the Regent, who was certainly well aware that this represented an opportunity for them—an opportunity to gain more benefits and territory.

Ugh!

Why do I always have to deal with these kinds of annoying things?

Nia sighed heavily. She returned to the conference room and sat down in her seat under the watchful eyes of Yang Hao and Fen. After taking a sip of juice and resting for a while, she looked into Yang Hao's eyes. She was unwilling to accept this!

In order to save the port, they had no choice but to give it away to Gaparia. As the Black Dragon, as an industrial researcher in Ysgard, and as a close friend of the president, he certainly couldn't swallow this insult.

Although the port's shipment is a done deal, at least Nia can try to ask Yang Hao for more, to get him to exchange it for something else... for example...

"Your Majesty, I will be frank—once the flag of Gaparia is raised in the port, it will be a foregone conclusion that our port will become Gaparia's [legal territory]. Since we have already exchanged a port for this... Your Majesty, wouldn't you like to do something to prevent us from suffering a loss for nothing, and also to build a better relationship for our future mutual benefit?"

Nia practically spat out each word through gritted teeth. Since it was already a fact, there was no point in hiding it; it would be better to just confront it directly and fight for what she wanted.

"Miss Nia, what would you like to say?"

"--The Alessars' protection of the Roman Empire has become a foregone conclusion, but if our country goes to war with the Romans and the Alessars, although we will not be defeated outright, we will certainly be dragged into the quagmire of war and will not be able to stay out of it for a while."

But you should know very well that the Alessars will not allow a neutral port to continue supplying the troops of Issugard, nor will they allow Issugard's trading allies to trade with our troops through various channels... In other words, once war breaks out, the Alessars will disregard the issue of neutral countries and directly attack your ports.

Rather than both of us suffering losses later, let's form an alliance now. In that case, Isogard will be more willing to grant Gaparia and Bayezid more rights to receive spoils after the war, and will also be more willing to offer preferential treatment in the post-war distribution.

Most importantly, you've been exploiting our poverty to monopolize resource trade, and you certainly can't afford to abandon us as a commercial ally. Even if it's just for profit, a victorious Isgard is always better than a defeated one, as it can provide more goods, can't it?"

The black dragon paused here. Then she added, "If that's all, it's not enough to establish a truly trusting relationship between the two countries. If possible, she hopes that the Elf Kingdom and Bayern will not only join the war against the Roman Empire, but also, if the opportunity arises, facilitate the naval battle with Aleser."

She said that Issugard was willing to release the blueprints for the ironclads—but they needed Gaparia and Bayez to provide the parts needed to maintain the ironclads and to provide assistance to Issugard during wartime.

Considering that the port was practically given to Gaparia, Nia demanded that, at least during the war, the two countries' mutual aid would not be charged more than 60% of the price. This meant only making a small profit on cost, but compared to the ironclad battleship blueprints, the port, and the spoils of war from Isgard after the victory, this "less profit" was exchanged for "hundreds of millions more." Anyone would accept that, right?

But the problem was that the other party was Yang Hao. Nia twitched her lips, and unsurprisingly, saw Yang Hao raise his question seriously:

1. How will Ysgard guarantee the distribution of spoils after a victory? What will be used as collateral?

2. Ysgard needs spare parts for naval maintenance, and Gaparia would certainly be willing to produce them. The question is, are there suitable shipyards in the port for these repairs?

Yang Hao's two questions left Heilong silent for a long time. After a moment, Heilong shook his head and said: "None of the above are problems."

Regarding the guarantee, Nia the Black Dragon simply shrugged and pointed to herself: She is the Minister of Industry of Isgard. If you are really worried, Nia can use some of Isgard's core technologies as a guarantee, if permitted. Whether these core technologies will have any effect on the elves is another matter, but at least they will have a great impact on the human side, Bayerzans.

Regarding the shipyard, Nia further pointed out that their secret port itself has some of the functions of a shipyard—as long as Gaparia is willing to provide resources, then the technicians of Isugard can build a shipyard on the spot that is capable of producing ironclad ships.

Yes, it's a shipyard capable of producing ironclad warships.

Upon hearing this, Yang Hao fell completely silent.

It seems that Ysgard has been driven to desperation by the sudden danger of a possible two-front war on land and sea. But thinking about it carefully, it makes sense.

Imagine your army is on another continent where it cannot produce its own ammunition, and all ammunition must be transported by sea and land.

In this situation, you'll be fighting another unit that also uses firearms on the front lines, while at sea, the enemy fleet will periodically attack your transport ships...

Those pirate fleets won't even fight you to the death! They'll just target your slow-moving transport ships loaded with cargo. If they damage them, they'll make a profit and then run away. With these thieves constantly eyeing your ships, no matter how powerful Ysgard is, can he really turn into a two-headed ogre and manage both the front and the rear at the same time?

Of course not! Not to mention, the typhoon season is just around the corner along the coast—

Yang Hao wasn't quite sure why Isgard would choose to make its landing during typhoon season, but he was certain that Isgard's supply lines would only be reduced during the typhoon season—in this situation, every transport ship was a crucial asset that could significantly impact the frontline battle, and Isgard would not abandon even a single transport ship.

So... it rotted.

They needed to find an ally on land to fight against Aresera, and clearly, the elven kingdom of Gaparia was their best option.

Gaparia can produce parts for repairing ironclad ships, but they need blueprints—okay, we in Ysgard will provide them, as long as you don't sell them too expensively during the war, we'll accept them all!

Those repair parts can't be used at the port? No problem, as long as Gaparia provides the raw materials, our technicians will build you a shipyard, and it'll be free!

If possible, it would be even better if you, Ysgard, could also help us make some standardized bullets—that way, you can forget about us sending a port; we'd be willing to capture that Miss President and have her serve you...

"Wait a minute? Miss Nia, are you serious? I don't need your president here. Besides, isn't it going too far to sell out your own president?"

Seemingly having heard some strange and alarming news, Yang Hao quickly shook his head to confirm, and also urged Nia to calm down.

In response to Yang Hao's words, Nia merely sneered a few times, muttering to herself: You know what! If Margarita were here, she probably would have tried every means to sneak into your house and use her charm to get rid of you completely.

However, since this was a formal diplomatic occasion, Nia coughed twice, and the meeting was put into a break.

In the distance, the secret port of Isgard, with the assistance of elven mages, directly raised the flag of Japaria and became a port of Japaria, serving as the outlet to the sea for the United Nations.

Nia, in her lounge, used the magical mirror to communicate directly with the President. She recounted everything that had happened at the meeting to the President, watching as the President's face changed from deathly pale to a greenish-blue, then to a rosy hue, and finally back to a normal flesh color—Nia knew she had seemingly made the right bet.

“You’ve done very well, Nia.” As expected, the President first expressed strong approval of Nia’s work. “We had no choice but to abandon that port under these circumstances, and you did a good job of finding a way to get assistance from Gaparia—but then again, you haven’t been working hard enough lately. If you could make His Majesty the Regent completely smitten with your charm, we could at least avoid more than 5% of the diplomatic losses.”

"Heh, that sounds nice. You want me, a black dragon, to learn how to seduce your vampires? Why don't you wrestle with my big, burly kin?"

"Racial disparities are unavoidable, and I can't leave Issugard anyway—why don't you temporarily assume the duties of president in my place? I could give it a try..."

"No, forget it, unless you want to see Ysgard regress to the feudal era. Forget it. What should I do next?"