People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

But at least they saw hope.

The chance that a person can overcome Oripathy, natural disasters, and even death!

The opportunity for humanity to truly understand what Originium is!

"Stop staring at that potted plant. No matter how long you stare at it, it won't bloom a flower for you. Let's finish the experiment first."

Levi spoke up, interrupting Palvis's reverie that had already soared into the heavens.

Palvis nodded and looked at Ifrit.

As the only "living thing" in the room, Ifrit looked somewhat bewildered.

The Originium emanating energy fluctuations from the center of the room seemed to have no effect on her. Her Oripathy did not worsen significantly. In fact, she appeared even more lucid than after receiving the sedative.

But Levi knew that it wasn't her who was awake, but the blazing demon within her.

The ancient principle that Originium resonates with other Originium was used by Sarkaz sorcerers in ancient times to create altars and enhance the power of their warriors. In modern times, the mage nation of Letania has transformed the entire country into a massive magical array, based on towering structures and music.

The land is forged into a grand array—the golden symphony.

The essence of Levi's entire experiment was to use the resonance caused by specially treated Originium to awaken the Balrog fragments within Ifrit's body, thereby enabling communication.

His ultimate goal was to use this "source stone of communication" as a medium to transfer the Fire Demon's consciousness from the fragments to another body.

But which body should be chosen?

Levy smiled slightly, a bold idea popping into his mind.

He turned on the microphone in the ward and, to Palvis's astonishment, asked:

“I know you can hear us.”

"It was quite inconvenient for her to communicate with us while huddled on top of a little girl."

"Three choices: a human corpse, a beast's body, or a body of steel."

"Which one do you choose?"

Since we don't know what to choose, let's leave the choice to the future owner of that body.

Inside the room, Ifrit looked up, seemingly searching for the source of the sound. After noticing the one-way glass that blocked the view, a lovely smile gradually appeared on the girl's face.

It looked cute on Ifrit's face, but to the real Balrog, it would probably be a chilling smile.

She listened quietly to Levy's words, but did not respond immediately.

Palvis asked somewhat nervously, "Levi, I'm afraid she can't understand our language. She's a soul from a thousand years ago."

Levi nodded thoughtfully, and was just about to turn on the projector in the room to project the images of the options when he heard Ifrit suddenly speak in an awkward, low childish voice.

"I understand."

"I choose three."

He spoke Victorian.

Palvis exclaimed in surprise, while Levy fell into deep thought.

People from a thousand years ago could understand our language and even express what they wanted to say clearly.

Not only can Originium harbor consciousness, but this consciousness might not even be in a "frozen state" but rather be active?

This thing is getting more and more interesting.

Chapter 185 These are the pure white ballots!

Columbia, District of Columbia, White House.

After walking through the corridor adorned with oil paintings depicting the Battle of Lexington, a famous battle in the Colombian War of Independence, Vina straightened her appearance, nodded slightly to the waiter, took a deep breath, and stepped into the reception room in front of her.

The living room furniture is simple yet sophisticated; the bookshelves, sofa, and table lamp are arranged with care, creating an atmosphere of effortless relaxation. The windows are positioned to ensure optimal natural light, while the style of the curtains and carpet reflects the taste of the building's current owner. But without a doubt, the most striking feature is the tall bird stand placed next to the sofa.

Vina had heard that the Colombian vice president had a habit of keeping pets in the White House, and that it seemed to have gradually become a political rule. Now it seemed that the rumor did have some credibility.

Vina glanced at the bird stand with a hint of curiosity, and as soon as the door behind her opened, she immediately got into the zone.

She turned around, smiled, nodded slightly to Li Boli who had entered the room, and extended her hand to shake his:

"President Wilson, nice to meet you."

Address people by their titles, omitting the "deputy" part if applicable. This is basic etiquette. While it may not be particularly useful, it at least leaves a good first impression.

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Vina. What a beautiful day it is today."

The elderly politician named Wilson gave Vina a polite smile and then asked,

"How was my Victorian opening line? I just heard you came and I practiced it on the spot. I hope it makes you feel at home."

Vina's smile remained unchanged.

To be honest, at this point, she is no longer so sensitive or fearful about being recognized.

If Governor Wei Yanwu of Longmen could recognize her identity, and Duke Windermere could recognize her identity, there's no reason why the Vice President of Colombia would be completely unaware of her identity.

Moreover, she was able to secure this opportunity to meet with the Colombian Vice President thanks in large part to her position.

The Colombian Vice President is very busy. With President Mark Max rarely appearing in public, the Colombian Vice President is practically the de facto ruler of the country.

He doesn't have that much time to meet with every ambassador. Especially a small country like Sherag. Colombia doesn't have diplomatic relations with Sherag, and Sherag didn't apply for or schedule a meeting in advance. If Vice President Wilson wanted, he could simply refuse Vina's meeting request, and Vina wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

In fact, it could be argued that Vice President Wilson's outright refusal was the most logical choice.

If a foreign envoy suddenly appeared out of nowhere requesting an audience with the Emperor of Great Yan, the Emperor would refuse to see him. This would be overstepping his bounds; if he did this, how would the Ministry of Rites and other government departments function?

But if you tell me now that you are actually a Persian prince, a descendant of the Ottomans, and that you came here to ask His Majesty the Emperor to send troops to restore your country, and that after the success you will become the Persian Protectorate, then the situation will be different.

Even if the emperor had no intention of sending troops, he would still have to give them face and meet with them.

Vice President Wilson was in this situation.

Although everyone knew that Vina requested the visit under the guise of being the "Ambassador of Scherrag," everyone knew that Prime Minister Ernst of Scherrag was currently entangled in some shady dealings with several Grand Dukes of Victoria. Who knew if there was something fishy going on behind the scenes?

"Please have a seat, Ms. Vina."

After taking his seat at the head of the sofa, Wilson glanced at Vina and asked directly,

"I wonder if Ms. Vina has come all this way to see me on some important matter?"

Vina smiled slightly and replied:

"I am here on behalf of Prime Minister Ernst, carrying the boundless goodwill and curiosity of the people of Chelág towards Colombia. My primary goal is naturally to promote peaceful exchanges between the two countries and to maintain peace and stability in Terra."

Every decision must begin with a clear purpose. A seasoned politician will not reveal their true intentions immediately.

Wilson nodded solemnly as well:

"Colombia is certainly willing to have friendly exchanges with Sherrag. If I were not busy with state affairs, I would definitely lead a delegation to Sherrag for a state visit."

This is, of course, just a polite remark.

"Moreover, even without official exchanges, the Colombian scientific community has always been encouraged by the District of Columbia to engage with the region. Rhine Life's space program and the Dome Research Station project have been hot topics in the Colombian scientific community during this period."

That's the point.

Wilson had more or less guessed Vina's purpose in coming.

Scherrag had little connection with Columbia, but his closest relationship was with Rhine Labs. He himself didn't believe that Vina's hurried arrival meant something had gone wrong at Rhine Labs.

As expected, when he brought up Rhine Lab to speed up the conversation, Vina took the opportunity to state her own request:

"President Wilson is right. However, some recent problems at Rhine Life have given Scherrag a real headache, and he is worried that this great collaboration may be affected as a result."

Wilson raised an eyebrow, feigning surprise:

"There's a problem with Rhine Lab? What kind of problem is it?"

Vina immediately looked somewhat embarrassed.

Seeing this, Wilson also made a straightforward statement:

"There's no need to hold back, just speak freely. The pursuit of truth is Colombia's highest ideal, and anyone who stands in the way of this goal is Colombia's enemy."

"It's like this: your military recently recalled a group of professionals due to research needs, causing a series of research projects at the Dome Research Station and Rhine Labs to be temporarily suspended..."

Vina left it at that and didn't continue.

It would be impolite to continue.

This statement already conveys a lot of information.

First, Vina made it clear to Wilson that this matter did not simply involve Sherag and Rhine Life, but also the Colombian military.

Unlike other countries, in Colombia, the military and the political establishment are not in a subordinate relationship, but rather are two equal parties. The military has a department to manage the politics of the armed forces, while the Ministry of National Defense, established by the government, is more like an organization that approves funding.

The Ministry of Defense wants to consolidate power and control the military as much as possible, while the military has always been resistant. Large-scale scientific research investments are not actually paid from the funds approved by the Ministry of Defense, but rather from the military's industries.

Directly acknowledging the Colombian military's involvement in the matter was the first step in piquing the interest of President Wilson, a leading figure in the political arena.

The second sentence, "Recalling talent due to scientific research needs," seems to be one thing, but it is actually a narrative trick that refers to two things.

The research needs naturally refer to the Flame Demon Project.

However, the Balrog Project does not need to recall Columbia's talent from Kjerag. Although those who remain in Kjerag are all designated divine professional engineers, they are not of much help to the Balrog Project.

When Vina mentioned recalling talent, she was naturally referring to "Holhaya".

Is Horhaiya a member of the military?

Obviously not. If she were a member of the military, she wouldn't be rebelling against herself and trying to stop the military's investment in the Flame Demon Project.

Ernst instructed Vina to say this, but in reality, he was plotting against Horhyah. He had marked Horhyah.

Holhaya's allegiance is unclear, which is a very troublesome matter. To prevent her from causing trouble for him again in the future, Ernst has to take drastic measures.

If Horhaiya is classified as a "special professional" by the military and the Colombian government is involved, then after the Balrog incident ends, the Colombian political establishment will not accept this military personnel. The military will not recognize Horhaiya at all, and Horhaiya will no longer have a foothold in Colombia.

You'd better behave yourself and come back to Shelag with me obediently.

Some might ask, since she wasn't originally affiliated with either side, wouldn't she return to her original organization after the incident?

That's a naive question.

Why do you think Ernst specifically targeted the Colombian government?

Struggles are like this: one small force is defeated, then another large one comes, one layer after another. When only the military is involved, the situation may be multi-polar, with one superpower and several strong powers. But once the political world gets involved, the situation immediately transforms into a bipolar confrontation.

There is no third-party faction, and even if there were, it wouldn't be an organization of Horhaiya.

The only forces that can stand against a faction are the Colombian scientific community, the Colombian labor community, or the Colombian rednecks—these all sound somewhat possible, but Colombia is currently thriving, so such a situation is naturally impossible.

And what kind of organization can survive the power struggle between the Colombian government and the military without getting involved in either?

Finally, and most simply, is to distance yourself from the situation.

The military's actions mainly slowed down Rhine Lab's projects, such as the Dome Research Station, and have nothing to do with us in Kjerag. I'm doing this purely for your benefit.

Although everyone just smiled knowingly when these words were said, they represented an attitude.

When there's a purpose, attitude comes first. Our old friend, Secretary Dakang, clearly saw the Guangming Peak project as a means to gain political achievements and a higher position; his opening remarks were always about "seeking development for Jingzhou and benefiting the people."

Don't delay either.

But after hearing Vina's words, President Wilson did not respond immediately. Instead, he fell silent, as if waiting for something.

Vina understood.

He was waiting for Vina to make concessions.

Rhine Lab is ultimately a small move. Although this incident may dampen the military's arrogance, the political world has no reason to take action.

That alone would not be enough to impress President Wilson.

To put it bluntly, there wasn't enough profit involved.

To put it bluntly: this matter is beneficial to the political world, but not very beneficial to President Wilson, and may even have disadvantages.

Because while the president of Colombia remains unchanged, the vice president is elected. Moreover, it is a universal suffrage election, a standard Western "vote politics."

Those within the military, and those whose interests are tied to the military, also have the right to vote. He has no reason to offend a large number of voters for such a small benefit.

Moreover, he could even deliberately indulge himself and communicate with the military, thus gaining their favor without doing anything.

Votes matter.