As a queen who has lost her kingdom, I can see the comments section.

Even though it was still winter and the temperature was very low, the fountain was still spraying water without any sign of freezing.

This reminded Amelia of the unfrozen river outside.

'Ruth herself appears to be an apostle, and she worships esoteric texts and possesses alchemical abilities.'

Amelia recalled Ruth's abilities and seemed to be deep in thought.

Soon after, they went to the study.

The study was spacious, with many books on the wall shelves, a red carpet on the floor, a wooden coffee table and a soft sofa, and a copper stove in the corner emitting a refreshing fragrance. The wall clock ticked away.

Amelia walked past the bookshelf, her gaze sweeping over the books, then pausing at the window to look at the snowy scene outside through the closed glass before turning her attention back to the sofa and sitting down.

Eileen stayed close to Amelia, and after Amelia sat down, she stood behind her.

Ruth had already personally brewed two cups of hot tea and placed them on the coffee table, the steam rising gently.

There were only the three of them in the study at that moment.

After Ruth sat down, she glanced at Eileen curiously, feeling that she must be Amelia's bodyguard, otherwise there would be no need for her to stay by her side every step of the way.

Then her gaze returned to Amelia, a complex expression appearing on her face: "Your Majesty...is it really Your Majesty?"

“You’ve spoken with me privately, so you shouldn’t still doubt the authenticity of my identity, right?” Amelia said with a smile.

"But what about the Principality of Luban before..."

"Over there... that was just someone impersonating me who got killed. This incident also made me realize that my identity shouldn't be exposed directly, otherwise the people who want to kill me will appear immediately."

"Is that how it is?"

Ruth understood.

Then Ruth said seriously, "Now that His Majesty is safe and sound, what are your plans for the future?"

"My plans?" Amelia leaned back on the sofa, her eyes filled with a distant feeling. "If I say I want to restore my kingdom, wouldn't that make the topic too heavy? Perhaps ignoring everything, finding a place to rest, and living out the rest of my life in peace would be a more leisurely life. However, that would also disappoint many people's expectations, wouldn't it?"

Ruth didn't respond, because it was indeed a heavy topic, and she didn't know how to handle it.

Amelia continued, "So, Ruth, many things can't be changed by how one wants them to be, and people aren't truly pure enough to live only for themselves. I will eventually embark on the path of restoring my kingdom, a path of no return. This isn't a choice, but something I have to do. Running away will never solve anything."

Hearing Amelia say this, Ruth felt a strong emotion welling up inside her.

It is indeed difficult for people to live only for themselves. She couldn't let go of her daughter Phoebe. Only by watching Phoebe grow up healthy and happy could her life be full of vitality.

“I understand.” Ruth nodded solemnly. “Then His Majesty’s arrival in Star River Territory must not be solely for the purpose of returning Phoebe to me.”

“That’s natural, Ruth.” Amelia looked at the woman ten years her senior. “I need you to be mine. I want all your power. Ruth, are you willing?”

"I do," Ruth agreed without much hesitation.

Although helping Amelia restore her kingdom would undoubtedly be an extremely difficult task, what other options did she have?

She couldn't possibly side with the Kingdom of Bagus, the Kingdom of Akti, or the Kingdom of Beren. So, if she didn't choose Amelia, did she intend to occupy the small place of Star River Territory forever on her own?

That's impossible. Just because the three kingdoms didn't have time to deal with her before doesn't mean they won't have time in the future. Her stubbornness will only bring about her own destruction.

Amelia smiled. "Very good, Ruth, I am very satisfied with your choice. From now on, you are also a member of the Silent Throne."

"The Silent Throne?" This was the first time Ruth had heard this title.

“This is an organization I established. As I just mentioned, I cannot reveal my identity openly, so I created an Apostle Organization, an organization completely under my control, which only Apostles can join. In the future, if I do anything external, it will be done in the name of the Silent Throne,” Amelia explained.

"I understand. So I am now a member of the Silent Throne. Are there any more people to join besides Your Majesty?"

"Of course we need to, but there's no need to bring in more people right now."

Amelia shook her head again as she spoke.

Although Ruth still has other apostles, it is clear that not all of them are trustworthy. Until it is certain whether the others have any problems, this matter can only be put on hold for the time being.

Upon hearing Amelia's words, Ruth immediately understood what Amelia meant and showed an apologetic expression: "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I still have many problems here, but I will try to resolve them as soon as possible."

“This isn’t just your problem. You don’t have to rack your brains by yourself. If you don’t understand something, you can discuss it with Harold.”

"I see."

"Oh, right," Amelia seemed to have thought of something else, "there must be quite a few thieves in Star River Territory lately, right?"

Upon hearing Amelia mention this, Ruth's expression immediately turned serious: "That's right, there are a lot of thieves. Based on my judgment, they should all be soldiers from the Kingdom of Bagus in disguise."

"The Kingdom of Baghs?"

“Yes,” Ruth replied. “Actually, the Kingdom of Bagus has been sending people over recently. The apostles have been trying to persuade me to join their cause, but I have refused. I suppose because I have been unwilling to agree, they have started to use all sorts of means to make trouble for me.”

"Why do you think they don't just take direct action, but instead resort to harassment disguised as thieves?"

"Perhaps the power is not enough?"

Ruth had already considered this situation, so she was able to give an answer immediately.

"Insufficient strength? The garrison of Star River Territory is very powerful?"

"What they should be afraid of is not the garrison, but me personally."

"You yourself... I remember you were a mid-level apostle, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"You possess the ability of alchemy?"

"Yes."

“Then tell me more about your abilities.” Amelia smiled. “I’m interested.”

Ruth nodded and honestly explained her situation.

By believing in the mystical book, one can master the abilities of barriers and alchemy. Generally speaking, if an apostle wishes to specialize in a certain ability, he can obtain either the ability of barriers or the ability of alchemy.

Many apostles aspired to specialize, which was especially evident among those who believed in mystical books.

Ruth is the kind of apostle who specializes in alchemy.

Mastery of plant toxins, mastery of biological toxins, and the art of poison fusion!

These are the three abilities that Ruth, now a mid-level apostle, possesses: she can extract materials from plants or animals to create various highly poisonous potions, and she can even combine two poisons to create a more potent poison.

It was precisely because the Kingdom of Bagus possessed a large quantity of poison that it was difficult for them to openly harm Ruth. Otherwise, if Ruth had used her poison effectively, she could have inflicted heavy casualties on the soldiers of the Kingdom of Bagus.

After hearing Ruth recount her abilities, Amelia looked at Ruth with a strange expression. She never expected that this seemingly delicate lady could be so ruthless.

However, this is not a bad thing for me.

“Since the Kingdom of Bagus can’t directly target you because of the poison you possess, then we can put their matter aside for now.” Amelia clarified her future course of action.

"Let's put their business aside?" Ruth was taken aback. "Does Your Majesty have anything else to do?"

“Yes, let’s deal with the situation in the Kingdom of Akti first.” Amelia nodded.

"What about the Kingdom of Akti?"

"Yes, you don't know the situation yet, let me tell you first."

Next, Amelia recounted how the Kingdom of Akti discovered a mist crystal mine and then secretly kidnapped people to mine it.

Ruth was clearly surprised when she learned about this, since the Mist Crystal Mine was located just outside Star River Territory.

"How does Your Majesty intend to handle this matter?" Ruth asked.

“That’s where your opinion comes in,” Amelia said, looking at Ruth. “Although the Mist Crystal Mine isn’t within Star River Territory, it’s not far outside. As the lord of Star River Territory, you should have a good understanding of the situation in Mist Mountain, right? What feasible solutions do you think there are?”

Chapter 126 Planning, Action, and Revisit

This winter seems to be colder than usual.

Because there was so much snow, even though it had only stopped for a short time, it started snowing again in a short while. The clusters of white snowflakes fell gently, turning the mountains and rivers into a pristine white landscape.

On a snowy night, Amelia sat on the sofa in the living room, the sound of firewood burning in the fireplace filling the air. The heat from the fire raised the temperature in the living room considerably, preventing it from getting too cold.

Eileen sat beside her without saying a word.

Not far away, Phoebe was holding a small ball and spinning it in her hand, while Nicole sat beside her watching over her.

Meanwhile, Harold was discussing future plans with Ruth.

Why are only Harold and Ruth discussing this? I understand it's normal that Irene and Nicole aren't involved, but why isn't Amelia participating either?

[Amelia is, after all, Her Majesty; all that's needed is the final decision.]

[What's the situation at the Mist Crystal Mine? Ruth's poisoning abilities are so strong, couldn't she just go there and poison them directly?]

Ruth knows how to make poison, not how to use it. Aside from poison, she's pretty much like an ordinary person. Therefore, using poison to attack isn't as simple as it seems.

While Harold and Ruth were discussing, the comments section would also chime in with their own remarks.

After all, at this point in the scene, apart from the two people discussing serious matters, there's really nothing worth mentioning about the behavior of the others.

Of course, there will also be some strange viewers who keep sending messages like "I will always love Amelia," "I will always love Irene," "I will always love Nicole," "I will always love Rose," and so on.

After a while, Ruth and Harold finished their discussion. Ruth looked at Amelia and said, "Your Majesty, we now face two challenges. One is to rescue the people in the mine, and the other is to resolve the situation in the mine once and for all."

Simply rescuing people is only a temporary solution; as long as the mine remains, the Akti Kingdom will continue to capture people to work as miners.

Amelia asked, "Let's address the first question: how do we rescue the miners?"

"The quickest way to do this is to expose the Akti Kingdom's forced recruitment of people for mining, but this would also let the people of the other two kingdoms know about the Mist Crystal Mine," Ruth replied.

"If you're sure that revealing the Akti Kingdom's abduction of people for mining will save them."

"Simply releasing the news isn't enough; we need to add some details."

Let me explain this in more detail first.

"Your Majesty, it's like this..."

As the lord of her territory, Ruth was quite capable. She explained the situation to Amelia with great clarity, which made Amelia hopeful about rescuing the miners.

Perhaps it really won't take too long for everyone to regain their freedom.

After Ruth finished speaking, she added, "The result of doing this is that all three kingdoms will know about the existence of the Mist Crystal Mine. At that time, the three kingdoms may have some competition, but the competition should not be too fierce. I guess they will compromise quickly and divide the mine among themselves. And at that time, they will have a demand for miners again, and I don't know what they will do then."

Amelia nodded and said, "That's the second problem: how to solve the mine problem once and for all. Ruth, do you have a way to poison the entire mine, making it impossible for anyone to attack?"

Ruth shook her head and said, "Your Majesty, this is difficult to do because the scope is too broad."

She was able to poison so many rivers around the lord's manor to this extent because she had been doing it for many, many years, but the mist crystal mine obviously did not allow her to poison for a long time.