People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

Ernst knew what she meant. Then, a great silence fell. The mourning daughter was probably going to say that her father had died.

"Then why haven't you reported this to the court all this time?"

Carmen frowned and pressed for an answer.

Amaya glanced at Carmen with some fear and sighed.

"First, the Great Tranquility destroyed Iberia's transportation routes, and I was constantly on the move with no opportunity."

"Secondly, I'm afraid of the courtroom."

"Why?" Carmen frowned.

Amaya turned her head away: "My mother is an Agorian."

Carmen opened her mouth, but no words came out.

Indeed, if Amaya's mother was Agor, she would certainly have feared the court.

After all, during the period immediately following the end of the Great Tranquility, Carmen and the other self-proclaimed saints took some extraordinary measures in order to quickly restore order in Iberia!

This includes the classic political tactic of "creating a common enemy to inspire unity."

And this so-called enemy was naturally the "islanders" who were widespread in Iberia at the time.

The islanders, the Agers who came ashore, brought Ager technology with them, helping Iberia become the first nation to have the right to challenge for hegemony.

But the islanders suffered terribly after the Great Tranquility, as evidenced by the fate of Breogan, the former chief ship designer of the Iberian ships and the designer of the Stutifira.

This great hero of Iberia was expelled, forced to flee, and finally beaten by a mob, dying a miserable death in an alley, with no one even to collect his body.

Those who killed him did not do so because they knew he was Breogan, but simply because they hated that he was an Agor.

This situation has not disappeared today. While Iberia does not have severe discrimination against infected individuals, Agor has replaced it with discrimination.

If Amaya had come to tell the court about this at that time, she most likely wouldn't have been able to see Carmen and would have been hung up and burned to death.

"Ugh."

Mio Carmen sighed deeply.

“Miss Amaya, we need to discuss this matter. Let me arrange for someone to take you to rest first.”

Ernst glanced at Carmen and smiled:

"This is a matter of great importance. Only by thinking things through carefully can we handle it with ease, isn't that right?"

Carmen nodded.

Chapter 739 If I do not return, Dario shall inherit the throne!

Iberia, Granfalo Anti-Terrorist Military Base, Conference Room.

Ernst gets straight to the point:

“This is a trap, Lord Carmen.”

Laurentina chimed in from the side:

"Yes, even Skadi could tell that the other party didn't have any good intentions, right?"

As she spoke, she glanced at Skadi, who nodded in agreement, her expression very serious.

She's not stupid; such a clumsy scam wouldn't fool her at all.

If you were to ask Amaya where she lied, she probably couldn't say. Because she knew nothing about Iberia, nothing about the Stutifaira, nothing about the history of the Golden Age, and therefore no idea how much that ship appealed to Carmen.

Those involved are often blinded, while bystanders see things clearly. This crude trick can probably only fool those brainless sea creatures; it can't possibly fool a well-trained hunter.

But Ernst knew that the key was never "whether this is a trap or not," but "even if he knew it was a trap, would he jump or not?"

"I knew it was a trap."

As Ernst predicted, Carmen's reply was also a sigh tinged with a hint of determination.

"But the Stutifaira must be found at all times; we have no choice but to search for it!"

Laurentina seemed a little puzzled. Although she hadn't spent much time at the military base, she had been following Ernst and often saw Carmen, so she knew a bit about his personality.

In her opinion, Carmen shouldn't be that irrational.

Perhaps to confirm her statement, Laurentina paused for a moment, then added:

"Moreover, I know Amaya."

"Judging from your performance, she shouldn't have been exposed yet. But Amaya is a member of the Deep Sea Cult, and possibly a bishop."

Ernst's pupils contracted slightly:

"you sure?"

"I'm sure. My brain doesn't lie to me."

A wild smile appeared on Laurentina's face. Her scarlet eyes, paired with her somewhat frightening shark teeth, added a touch of madness to her beauty.

She tapped her head, as if making a promise to Ernst and Carmen.

But Ernst knew that she was also mentioning the six mutations in her own brain. [4;]

Laurentina's ability to communicate with Precyth can only be attributed to Originium, or more precisely, to the high concentration of Originium liquid injected into Laurentina's brain by the Deep Sea Church!

She tapped her head, hinting to Ernst that Amaya was connected to the experiment that had been conducted on her. Not only connected, but Amaya might actually be one of the experimenters!

This confirms her identity as a member of the Deep Sea Cult. The only uncertainty is whether she is a Deep Sea Bishop.

After all, it does sound possible that a bishop would personally come to the counter-terrorism base in Granfalo just to lure Carmen into the game, but it certainly requires considerable courage.

The Deep Sea Church is full of cowards; if it weren't for using ordinary people as shields, how could Iberia have been thrown into such turmoil? Would any of them have the audacity to make such a move, risking their own lives to gain an advantage?

However, back then, the Originium experiment targeting Deepsea Hunters was certainly of a high standard. How low could the status of those in the Deepsea Church who were able to participate in this matter be?

The possibility that Amaya was a bishop is actually quite high!

Upon hearing this, Carmen's expression clearly darkened.

Amaya's origins are unclear, so her information should not be easily believed. But the problem isn't about credibility.

It's fair to say that Carmen would go after anyone who mentioned the whereabouts of the Stutifaira, even if there was only the slightest possibility. If Amaya really is the Deep Sea Bishop, then the news she brought is actually more credible.

Because she was targeting Carmen and the World Summit!

False information might fool Carmen, because Carmen really doesn't have the time, energy, or manpower to verify every piece of information. In the past, he would at most write down the information and then find time to verify it himself, but he wouldn't dare to draw manpower from the courtroom.

But now, trying to fool the World Summit with fake news? You're really dreaming!

Putting everything else aside, the Preservator can simply sail out to sea and follow the route you mentioned, easily verifying it, right? What are you planning to do?

It wouldn't even require a high cost; Iberia would only need to pay for the Originium fuel. And that's a sum Iberia has managed to save up over the years—no, after begging for aid—it can afford it!

Therefore, if Amaya really came to the scene with the intention of deceiving Carmen and the World Summit, then the news she brings must be true!

She wanted to force Carmen to lead the Iberian and international summit members out to sea to retrieve the "Fool," a ship that had been lost at sea for decades!

And the trap, needless to say, is definitely at sea.

Wealth originates from the sea, and so does crisis. The Stutifaira has drifted on the high seas for decades; its condition and whether any of its crew survived remain unknown. Moreover, the ocean is the domain of the Terrorfish Seafolk; if the Deep Sea Cultists wished to lay an ambush there, they could potentially create a truly inescapable trap!

No, there's no need for an ambush.

Once they reach the sea, the sea creatures and daphnia will naturally swarm around them and attack, just like dogs will attack animals that invade their territory.

At this point, Carmen also realized the wickedness of Amaya's plan.

Using the hope of Iberia to lure people, if this hadn't happened, Carmen could have continued to convince herself of her "helplessness," focusing all her energy on the fight against terrorism and the concurrent campaign to reclaim lost territory, waiting to reap the benefits of this wave before slowly paying the interest on the World Summit, and gradually accepting the fact that Iberia is no longer what it used to be, and can only live a small, controlled country, perhaps even lacking complete sovereignty.

Although there is no risk involved, a lot is lost in the process.

However, once the group learned of this, it meant that Iberia had another path.

This path allows Iberia to regain some of the glory of its golden age. The return of the Stutifaela will greatly boost morale, and the technology recovered from it can help Iberia repair those long-damaged artifacts from that golden age. In a short time, Iberia can experience a surge in revitalization and development!

Even though it's easy to invite a god but hard to send him away, Carmen can't drive away the anti-terrorism forces already stationed in Iberia. He can formally propose a deal to the World Summit after this anti-terrorism operation ends, using the technology of Gold Iberia to gradually exchange for what they traded out. At least, he will have some bargaining chips to negotiate with the World Summit!

Compared to the former, this process is obviously much more respectable and better suited to Carmen's ideas.

Even Ernst couldn't find a single fault with it.

This is a conspiracy, but it has been made to appear as an open conspiracy. The only difference is that an open conspiracy leverages power to force you to act, otherwise the damage you suffer is no less than that of executing an open conspiracy. And this conspiracy is fundamentally based on Carmen herself.

If it were Dario, Ernst could assure him that he wouldn't care what Amaya said.

What Stutifaela? Absolutely not! Leave the coordinates here and go back to wait for news.

This approach is also the most rational. Because, without a doubt, the international summit is the only thing that can save Iberia.

Carmen's hope that a blatantly suspicious revelation about the Deep Sea Church would benefit the Inquisition is nothing short of overconfidence.

So confident that they could find a chance, perhaps almost nonexistent, in someone else's conspiracy to turn misfortune into good fortune, danger into safety, and transform a conspiracy into a gift.

How should I put this confidence?

It's arrogance!

"So, Lady Carmen, are you sure you want to agree to this?"

Ernst pondered for a moment, then asked, and

Should we invite the World Summit?

Carmen paused slightly.

He had assumed that Ernst would definitely ask the World Summit to participate in the search.

After all, that's the Stutifira! Doesn't Ernst want to know? That's Terra's largest ocean-going warship, the culmination of Agor-Iberian technology, the most dazzling jewel of Golden Iberia!

Just touching it is an honor! Not to mention the value it brings. Wouldn't the World Summit be envious of those technologies? Wouldn't Ernst and Scherrager want a piece of the pie?

Does Ernst want to?

He really doesn't want to.

Those whose virtue does not match their position will inevitably suffer calamity. If one wields the weapon of criticism before one's level of understanding has kept pace, it may bring not peace, but raging war.

The area around Shelag is all mountains and wilderness. What would be the point of using the technology of ocean-going warships? Even if there were other technologies involved, Ernst wouldn't care.

He has no interest in taking this shortcut; if he wanted to, he had plenty of safer, more efficient, and more invincible paths to take.

As for whether the World Summit is necessary, Ernst felt it was uncertain.

Victoria might be interested in these technologies, but given their current situation, even if they were interested, they might not be able to reach out. As for Colombia, Ernst felt Ernst would lower his standards if he even glanced at him. Letania, and neither did Yan Country, participated in this counter-terrorism operation.

If we consider all the possibilities, Ursus is probably the only one who would actually be interested and have the ability to reach out.

Ursus isn't essential; it's merely icing on the cake. Besides, Ursus himself said he'd "closely follow the steps of the World Summit and vote with the big votes," meaning that, at least on the surface, he's unlikely to make a request alone if both Victoria and Colombia express disinterest.

This can be considered a form of checks and balances.

Moreover, Ernst had to remind Carmen:

"The Stutifera may not be worth pursuing at the World Summit."

That's a very tactful way of putting it.

To put it bluntly, it's an old ship from decades ago, drifting at sea for who knows how long. It's unclear how much of its machinery is still in good condition; it might just be a pile of scrap metal. Why would they go to such lengths to repair it?

A hint of sadness flashed across Carmen's face. She was probably taken aback.

But he quickly recovered and nodded to Ernst: ÷·—zero

"I need to go look for it."

"World Summit"

He hesitated for a moment, then slowly said...

"If I haven't heard from you after three days at sea, Dalio will take over my position."

He did not mention the arrangements for the World Summit.

But Ernst understood what he meant.

After all, Dario himself is the Iberian official-appointed diplomat for the World Summit!

Chapter 740 Ernst: I have too many spicy cards!

Even if Carmen hadn't left, Dario would already be considered the de facto head of the court.

After all, Carmen herself has come to Granfalo to oversee the anti-terrorism base, so who else can manage the central court of Perdoni?