Yes, Lady Funina!

They don't even consider whether they have the capability!

Chapter 214 Is it really true? Godfather

Since things have come to this, let's first send someone to expel the 76 diplomats from Sumeru stationed in Fontainebleau!

Although Richard said that fighting was not an option, that did not mean the matter was over.

Furina is no longer the political novice she once was, and she naturally knows how to express the dissatisfaction of Fontaine, which she represents, while ensuring that things are under control.

Expelling diplomats is a very serious diplomatic warning in relations between countries.

If Xumi has not yet given any indication, then Fontaine will withdraw its diplomats stationed in Xumi.

This means that the two countries of Sumeru and Fontaine have completely lost their channels of communication and severed diplomatic ties.

In this situation, it's not an exaggeration to say that the two countries have completely broken off relations, let alone become friends.

This is essentially everything that can be done in the political arena under peacetime conditions.

If things continue to deteriorate, then we'll really have to deploy Fontaine's steel fleet and launch a small-scale war.

Of course, such a situation is highly unlikely to occur, as the actions that Sumeru has taken so far have not reached the point of necessitating war.

Moreover, aside from denying everything, Sumeru did not react excessively to Fontaine's expulsion of diplomats. According to the messages from the Fontaine diplomats stationed in Sumeru, Sumeru acted as if nothing had happened and continued with its usual routines.

Even when the Fontaine diplomats protested, the officials in Sumeru continued to appease them, and even when the Fontaine diplomats came to their door, they only offered meaningless and pointless words.

Throughout the entire performance, it felt like the show was dragging on, just being deliberately dragged out.

This perfectly confirms the intelligence Richard obtained from the Hearth House.

"It seems that Sumeru is plotting something!" Funina said to the people at the round table with a serious expression, her fingers interlaced.

“Yes,” Clarind nodded in agreement.

“Whatever they want to do, all I know is that they have infringed upon Fontaine’s interests,” Funina continued in a deep voice.

"How awful!" Clarind frowned, expressing her displeasure.

“We have to do something!” Funina said, tapping the table.

"So what should we do?" Clarinde asked at the opportune moment.

"I don't know." Funina shook her head, but having already made those harsh remarks, it would be impolite not to take some action.

The main issue is that Sumeru hasn't reacted at all. If they also send back the diplomats from Fontaine, then Funina might be able to use this as an excuse to launch a scathing attack on the other side in the public sphere.

Fighting is definitely out of the question. After all, Richard said that fighting would cost Mora, and Fontaine doesn't have any Mora to spend right now.

Although Fontaine doesn't need to spend money on energy right now, there are many other things that require money. Rebuilding the Fontaine Academy of Sciences will cost money, right? Resettling disaster victims will cost money, right? Maintaining the daily expenses of Mo Mang Palace will cost money, right?

Fontaine may appear to be a formidable opponent, but in reality, she can only rely on bursts of power. Unless she manages to capture Sumeru within a week, Fontaine simply cannot sustain a prolonged battle.

Once they get bogged down, even if Sumeru doesn't do anything, Fontaine itself will collapse first.

But then a problem arises: given the terrain of Sumeru, taking it within a week would require either Navelette flooding the city or Richard using his "Unthinking Slash" to give Sumeru a severe blow.

This is clearly impossible; Sumeru's sins do not warrant such a punishment.

Clarinde was clearly used to Frynn's helplessness, and without Frynn even having to say anything, she looked at Richard and asked, "What should we do?"

“It’s simple. If you don’t know what to do, then do nothing,” Richard offered his solution.

Funina thought Richard was joking; she knew that doing nothing was not an option, which was why she asked what to do.

And then you tell me you're not going to do anything? What are you doing, just leaving me here?

However, out of trust in Richard, Funina did not question him immediately, but instead believed him first.

Regardless of whether the advice is useful or not, just believe it first.

'After all... I can't possibly be smarter than Richard, can I?' Funina thought to herself.

Of course, Funina couldn't say such thoughts directly; she was actually a little bit concerned about saving face.

After hearing Richard's words, our big star seemed to understand what Richard wanted to do, nodded mysteriously, and added, "I see, I understand."

These words left Claude, who was standing nearby, completely bewildered. "What do you understand? You understand?" "I don't understand."

"Lady Furina..." Clorinde was prepared to humbly ask questions, as she also wanted to understand her leader's meaning.

"I'll leave this to you to handle." Fulina completely ignored Clorind. Why would she bother with her?

Did she really think she knew what Richard was planning? If she didn't know, then wouldn't that expose Claurind?

Thinking this to herself, after seeing Clorind's eager eyes, Furina reached out and patted Clorind's shoulder, saying in a pretentious tone, "Say less, observe more."

The meaning is simple: don't ask so many questions, just watch... and that's it.

Richard looked at the two clowns, Furnessa and Claurind, and couldn't help but shake his head.

The reason he didn't say anything to Funina was because, given Xumi's current state, no matter what Fontaine did, unless it started a war or imposed large-scale economic sanctions on Xumi, Xumi wouldn't be able to react at all.

Making things too big would be a loss for Fontaine, while making things too small would give the impression of being all bark and no bite, and all bark and no bite.

So the best thing for the Fontaine authorities right now is to do nothing. Of course, that's what they say, but it doesn't mean they really do nothing.

This might sound a bit convoluted, but it's actually quite simple: do nothing on the surface, but do it secretly in private.

Doesn't Sumeru have an important project right now? They're even willing to infringe on Fontaine's interests for it.

Since that's the case, let's sabotage it.

There's a saying that goes something like this: the more an enemy wants something, the less you should give it to them.

Want your project to succeed?

Then let's keep thinking about it.

Richard already had an idea on how to sabotage the project that Sumeru was currently focusing on.

If he remembers correctly, Ying and Paimon should be in Sumeru right now, right?

As Yae no Miko mentioned before, before they set off for Fontaine, Ying and Paimon had already set off for Sumeru.

Now that we've calculated the time, Ying and the others should have been in Sumeru for quite some time. With their abilities, they should have already established themselves in Sumeru and gotten to know many of the local bigwigs.

These local bullies may not necessarily be aligned with the Sumeru Order.

Richard quickly wrote a letter and attached a token, instructing that these items be delivered to Ying.

The letter was very simple, just telling Ying and the others what the Order Academy was researching, what it wanted to do, and who it was cooperating with.

The rest... is up to Yingmei to do as she pleases.

I'm sure she's currently worried about how to meet the Little Lucky Grass King, and this letter of mine can solve her urgent problem while also achieving my own goal.

Moreover, if Yingzhen can help the little grass god set things right, the little grass god will have to accept a favor from her side no matter what. At that time, wouldn't the other party make some kind of gesture?

Even just relaxing trade restrictions or providing some patented technology would be enough to make Fontaineble a fortune.

Richard knew very well that the Church did not lack technology; rather, it had too much technology, which it kept hidden away, waiting to be used to solidify the divine position of the new god after his arrival.

As for that new god... ha.

Richard quickly put the problem child out of his mind; legally speaking, the other party should still call him 'father'.

But it was clear that Richard was no longer in Inazuma when the stragglers appeared, and Kage and Kamiko obviously wouldn't tell the other party about him.

As for Richard, it was even less likely that he would go and talk to him after seeing the other party being recruited by Dr. Dottore.

Let's each follow our own path. I'll call you junior, and you'll call me dad.

If you really say that, wouldn't that dim-witted kid fight him to the death?

but……

Richard rubbed his chin. The other party should be quite sensible now, since Thor's Heart is probably implanted in him.

But if one possesses divine authority without divine capacity, one will likely end up being nothing more than a false god.

Richard knew very well that becoming a god was not simply a matter of possessing the heart of a god; in addition, one also needed to wield the corresponding authority and have followers.

As for authority, it does indeed contain a part of the heart of God, and it can also be used to leverage the great power within the throne of Thor.

But believers... Richard simply couldn't imagine who could become that troubled child's believer.

------

“Luminous, are we really going to believe… believe that guy named Elheisen, going to see this Lord Dolly?” Paimon looked at his partner with some concern.

"There's no better way now that things have come to this." Ying felt that Elhesen seemed to know something.

“Okay, you’re right.” Paimon nodded, while weighing the ‘funds’ that the man named Elhesen had just given them in his hand.

Regardless, the other party did give Mora the money, and it wasn't a small amount, so they weren't worried about the other party running away with the money...

Of course, neither Paimon nor Ying would do such a thing. They are not short of money. The funds they used to help Richard with his research activities at Yuanxia Palace still have a lot left!

Not to mention, there will be additional rewards after this intelligence is handed over to Richard.

"Speaking of which, we should have gone to Fontaine with the Divine Child and the others first, and met Richard. He has many connections, and maybe he can get things done in Sumeru too?" Paimon said with some regret.

After all, being guided by an expert to speedrun is much faster than figuring it out on your own.

"It's not good to keep bothering people," Ying said.

“That’s true, and I always feel like we’ve been in his shadow all along, his presence is everywhere… To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if he suddenly appeared now and told us there was a way for us to see the Little Lucky Grass King.” Paimon shrugged.

"There's no such thing as a free lunch..." Ying thought Paimon was already so beautiful, so there was no need to dream too much.

Who in the world would feed you food if you weren't related to them?

If such a person truly exists, we would typically call him a 'godfather'!

"Excuse me, are your names Ying and Paimon?"

Just as Ying was talking to Paimon, a man in a dark brown suit and top hat blocked their way. He was holding a photograph of Ying and Paimon.

"Yes, may I ask who you are?" Paimon looked at the man who clearly didn't look like a local of Sumeru and was puzzled as to why the man had stopped him and Ying, and why he was holding their photos.

Could it be that group of people from the Crimson Gold Brigade who came to cause trouble?

The thought had barely crossed Paimon's mind when she quickly dismissed it. No, it shouldn't be those desperados causing trouble.

After all, if they want to cause trouble, they can do it themselves, so why outsource it?

And judging from their attire... they should be from Fontainebleau.

"That must be you two. Mr. Richard asked me to pass on a message to you." The man in the suit carefully put away the photo, clearly pleased that he had found Ying and Paimon so easily.

"Richard?" Paimon and Ying exchanged a glance, almost thinking they had misheard.

"What did you say?" Ying decided to listen to what was said before deciding whether she should call him 'godfather'.

"Ahem, Mr. Richard's message is in the letter. I was only responsible for finding you two. Please come to the Fontainebleau embassy for the specific letter." The man in the suit coughed awkwardly.

"So the letter wasn't with you after all!" Paimon retorted.

Judging from the way the other person spoke just now, it was as if the letter was right there with you, but it turns out you still have to go to a designated location to pick it up.

However, since the other party had come to their door and told them it was Richard's letter, Paimon and Ying were determined to go and take a look no matter what.

That's their biggest sugar daddy.

Paimon and Ying both put their plans to find Dolly on hold and, led by the man in the suit, headed straight for the Fontainebleau embassy.

After their identities were verified inside the embassy, ​​Ying and Paimon finally received the letter Richard had sent them.

After reading the letter, Paimon and Ying looked at each other, glancing behind them to see if Richard had installed surveillance cameras next to them.

Although it's unclear why Richard knew their whereabouts so clearly, one thing is certain.

The information provided by the other party was timely and extremely useful; it could be considered the key to unlocking the Sumeru dungeon.

No, it's even better. Everyone else only gets the answers after clearing the game, but the godfather just tells them the answers and then lets them clear the game!

Really? Godfather!

Chapter 215 The Invisible Hand

Richard's letter to Ying not only told her how to meet the Little Lucky Grass King, but also clearly explained the current situation in Sumeru, the conspiracy of the Order of the Church, and the key to breaking the deadlock. It was completely different from the mysterious voice in Ying's mind before she encountered Daines Reibu and left Inazuma.

"If everyone could be like my godfather, no, Richard, and explain everything clearly and plainly."