People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

Fortunately, she's still on my side for now. The "demon crisis" and such sounds like "this is definitely part of the Arknights main storyline," but one must live in the present. Let's finish up the expo first, and then delve into these issues.

Ernst was somewhat wary of a repeat of that eerie feeling of "my cabinet moved" that had just occurred.

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

"What are you looking at?"

Kal'tsit frowned, looking at Typhon, who had been staring at the snowball ever since he left the room, and asked,

Is there something wrong with this?

Typhon pouted, his handsome eyebrows almost furrowing into a knot:

"It's not that it's wrong... it's just... so strange!"

"Just now, that gaze clearly left on its own, but why didn't Anma's love melt away?"

Anma's love can form a protective layer, or "a protective barrier," on those targeted by demons. It shifts the demon's gaze from the person to Anma, the one enveloping them, while simultaneously isolating the person's thoughts, rendering them unable to think or act for a short period, severing their cognitive connection with the demon, and thus protecting humanity.

Although Mother Anma has protected Sami for a long time, Anma's love is only for one time. After resisting the evil spirit once, the little snowball containing Mother Anma's power will melt into snow water, no different from an ordinary snowball.

The one in Typhon's hand was clearly still in good condition; in fact, Typhon could even feel a faint warmth emanating from it.

Did Amma's love fail to work?

What was it that made the demon look away?

Chapter 287 Loyalty! Sincerity!

Shelag, Tukarim, Snowfield Express.

Alini looked around the train compartment with some curiosity.

It was her first time riding a train.

Iberia had no trains. During its golden age, the ports built along the Krasdee Sea allowed people to reach any Iberian town. However, the Victorian and Gallo Empires, which were undergoing a steam-Originium technology revolution at the time, were Iberia's geopolitical rivals. The arrogant royal family, relying on Iberia's prosperity and wealth, did not need to learn any technology from any other land-based nation, and the development of train technology in Iberia was very slow.

When the Great Tranquility occurred, the royal family, which had suppressed Iberian exchanges and development, was indeed physically silent. But Iberia also lost the possibility of development.

Although Sherag was among the weakest of the Terran nations in terms of conventional strength, it was relatively stable. At least when Ernst took over the country, the political situation was relatively peaceful and the people lived in peace and contentment. Although the situation was inevitably deteriorating, things had not yet reached an irreconcilable point.

External pressure far outweighs internal pressure, which is Scherage's situation and also why Ernst focused his work on diplomacy.

But Iberia was quite the opposite. This once glorious empire developed rapidly with the help of the Agor "islanders." Its overly advanced productivity satisfied, to some extent, the people's desire for change, just like the white-robed people on the Arabian Peninsula in Ernst's previous life.

However, the contradictions were always suppressed, not resolved. As the Great Tranquility completely destroyed the original ruling order and swept away all the wealth, the contradictions not only did not disappear, but instead erupted intensified and concentrated bursts.

After all, it's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to

The death of Breogan, the chief designer of the Iberian Golden Fleet, was a microcosm of the eruption of contradictions.

In present-day Iberia, the land is plagued by deep-sea cultists acting as traitors, while the coast is threatened by the encroaching sea creatures. The Inquisition and the Punishment Army are constantly on the move, yet the port cities inherited from the golden age continue to deteriorate. Conversely, along the long northern border, the defense line maintained by the National Defense Forces has been largely inactive for a long time. Even the Grand Duke of Victoria barely glances at the impoverished Iberia of today.

It has a bit of a "dog doesn't care" feel to it.

Reform? Development? A return to the golden age?

Iberia is now simply struggling to survive.

Let alone Elene, even Dario, the Grand Inquisitor himself, has only ridden the train a handful of times.

He understood Eleanor's curiosity and excitement, but he still spoke up to remind her:

“Wait a minute, Elene. You’re an apprentice judge now. When you’re out in the world, you need to act like an Iberian.”

“Yes, teacher!” Elena sat up straight and nodded to Dario, but a faint look of doubt immediately appeared on her childish face. “But, teacher, what do Iberians look like?”

Dario opened his mouth.

He subconsciously wanted to say words like "proud," "stand tall," or "proud."

But he was also a little worried. What should he say if Elena looked suspicious?

Are you talking about Iberians?

So, after hesitating for a while, just as Elena was about to forget about the question and got up to go to the door of the private room to open it, he finally answered:

“Tenacious.”

"Iberians are resilient. No matter what setbacks they encounter or what kind of oppression they face, they will never bow their heads and will never give up. That is the true nature of the Iberians."

"Sir, you won't be able to teach a child properly this way."

A slightly mocking voice rang out. Dario looked up, his hand cannon already aimed at the head of the harp-wielding man in the doorway. With just a pull of the trigger, the strange gray-hatted man, along with the carriage wall behind him, would be reduced to ashes by the hand cannon's firepower, enough to annihilate a street!

The man in the grey top hat was clearly startled and quickly took a step back, showing off the harp in his hand to indicate that he meant no harm.

“Who are you?” Dario asked.

The man in the grey top hat answered instantly: "The harpist."

Dario remained silent for a moment, seemingly waiting for the man in the grey top hat to continue, but the man in the grey top hat simply stared at him blankly.

After a long pause, he finally asked, "What is that?"

Now it was the grey top hat's turn to be speechless.

I'd heard that Iberia was now a cultural desert, but I never imagined it would look like this? Harp, don't you recognize a harp?

The man in the grey top hat could only explain, “It’s a musical instrument. I’m the player; everyone on the train has seen me. I meant no harm.”

Dario's gaze lingered on the gray-hatted harp for a long time, until the image of this strange instrument was completely etched into his mind, before he looked away.

It certainly doesn't look threatening.

This instrument looks quite unique; I'm sure I won't mistake it for anything else when I see it again.

but.......

"Do you think you can fool me with such words, Duke of Caster's Grey Hat?"

A cold voice rang out in the private room, and Dario's hand cannon had never been lowered from the beginning.

Standing at the doorway, not far from the gray top hat, Elena was startled and quickly distanced herself from the gray top hat, while drawing her rapier from her waist.

She also has a hand cannon, but she is "unable to operate" it.

Teacher Dario said it was because she didn't yet have a strong enough will and awareness. But she didn't know what a strong enough will and awareness actually was, or how to acquire it.

However, she wasn't the most surprised; the one most surprised was the person in the grey top hat.

"You actually recognized me? What can I say? No wonder you're the Grand Inquisitor Dario, who's known for his 'Judgment' and specializes in identifying those Deep Sea Cultists?"

Now that he'd been recognized, the man in the grey top hat decided to drop the pretense. He bowed slightly, giving a standard Victorian aristocratic salute to Dario's dark cannon muzzle, and then said...

"Can you put down your weapon now, Lord Dario? You won't fire, will you?"

Dario narrowed his eyes: "What makes you think that?"

The man in the grey top hat answered calmly:

"Because neither the Duke nor I are your enemies, the Inquisitor's enemies should be the monster from the sea that you speak of."

"Besides, if I'm not mistaken, the reason you two came to Kjerag was probably because you received an invitation from Mr. Ernst, right?"

"In that case, you should understand that you are not the only ones who have received invitations."

"Are the Iberian messengers really going to launch an attack on the train in Shelag?"

The man in the grey top hat spoke with a hint of disdain and mockery:

"Can you afford this price?"

Can't afford it.

Dario knew perfectly well what was going on.

Whether it's rashly attacking the "envoy" of the Grand Duke of Victoria who hasn't acted hostilely, firing on the site of the World's Fair where a Grand Duke-level figure is suspected to be attending, or affecting the innocent civilians on the train, even the lowest possible cost—paying for the repairs of the train in Shelag—Dario can't afford the price.

He took a deep breath and was about to put down the hand cannon, but Elena, with her cute little eyebrows raised, started to yell:

"What's with the attitude of a lackey? We are Iberians, do you dare offend the Iberians?"

The man in the grey top hat chuckled and said, "I..."

Before he could even utter a word, he realized something was wrong and clicked his tongue.

Those words just now apply not only to the Iberians, but also to him.

He also couldn't do anything rash. In fact, because of his duke's "slightly less-than-pleasant reputation," he had to be even more sensitive.

and.......

The man in the grey top hat glanced warily at the private room next to him, whose door was ajar, and at the burly blond figure standing through the crack.

Oh dear, this isn't going to be good. Some troublesome people have come.

Surely Mr. Ernst wouldn't have sent invitations to these guys too? Or did they come on their own?

In any case, we must go back and report this to His Excellency the Duke first.

The man in the grey top hat slunk away without knocking on the door of the next private room. Elena, a triumphant smile on her face, puffed out her chest and said with a touch of pride:

"Teacher, how was it? I didn't disgrace the Iberians, did I?"

Dario reached out and lovingly stroked Elene's head, nodding gently in affirmation: "You don't."

"However, I still have to thank the gentleman in the next private room."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze to the private room next door, whose door was slightly ajar.

"Thank you for opening the door, sir, which scared away that Chester's lackey. May I ask who you are...?"

"It's nothing, no need to thank me."

The door slammed shut.

Dario's words caught in his throat. He frowned and murmured with some apprehension:

“Sarkaz…”

The box next door.

"I didn't expect you to meddle in such matters. This isn't like you, Manfred."

The pink-clad, sinister-looking Sarkaz woman sat on the sofa, watching Manfred close the door and return to his seat, and made a somewhat meaningful joke.

“I’m just afraid their dispute will spill over to us. The general’s orders for this trip are to keep a low profile and focus on gathering intelligence on Hadley.”

Manfred explained calmly,

“If that Duke of Caesar’s spy makes a scene next door and comes knocking on our door again, the whole carriage will know. I just told him to get lost, don’t be suspicious, Ersula.”

“Yes, yes.” The woman named Ersula smiled and shrugged noncommittally. “Anyway, we’re all the same kind of people.”

“Who we are is unimportant,” Manfred retorted. “What matters is—”

Before he could finish speaking, Ersula waved her hand and answered first.

"I know, I know."

"The important thing is——"

"loyalty!"

Chapter 288 Ensiodis: Beastman Competition Far Surpasses Knight Competition!

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Kjerag. Today is the third day of the World's Fair. You may have missed some of the spectacular sights, but thankfully, you haven't missed this wonderful opportunity.

"Isn't this advertising slogan a bit too flashy?"

Ernst hesitated slightly as he examined the newly submitted plaza projection advertising plan.

Well, this advertisement definitely has the style of Enchiodes: proud, grand, and with a frank and outspoken attitude. Ernst thinks that this is also a kind of confidence.

Enciodes clearly didn't see anything wrong with the advertisement, and he retorted confidently, "If we can't even put up a simple advertisement on our own land, what freedom do we have?"

"You know, Casimir's representatives have been busy these past few days trying to win over guests to their 23rd Knights Tournament. We're now their competitors. If we don't use some tactics, are we really going to lose to them on home soil?"

Ernst: "........."