Leon's words immediately drew Charlotte's disapproval. Frowning, she said, "From what I understand, the Russian empress is also of the highest rank, isn't she?"
"And those Slavs are not much different from bandits."
Her Highness was simply worried that requesting Russian support would ultimately implicate all of Great Britain.
After all, Tsarist Russia wasn't close, wasn't far, and was nowhere near the Indo-American Federation.
However, Leon ignored Charlotte's words and turned to King George VII. "If Your Majesty still has concerns, you might consider the Empire of Aetherlight."
"After all, the Empire is very far away, and there aren't any Sovereign-level leaders currently ruling it. I'm sure they'd be willing to help if the price was right."
The princes and princesses' expressions immediately changed.
As experienced politicians, they naturally understood Leon's calculations.
But Leon didn't care what his brothers and sisters thought. After all, the true decision rested with King George VII.
Looking at the men and women with varying expressions before him, a flicker of disappointment crossed King George VII's eyes.
Seeking outside help was ultimately a poor option. No matter how flattering Charlotte and Leon's words, Great Britain's autonomy would be significantly diminished after this incident.
But was there any other solution?
Unless Great Britain could immediately produce another Master, this path would be the only option.
Weighing the pros and cons, even though George VII knew Leon had his own ulterior motives, he recognized that the Empire of Aetherlight was a good option.
After a moment's silence, the King addressed Leon in a voice devoid of emotion. "Leon, contact the Empire first and hear their terms."
Leon's excitement grew uncontrollably, while the other princes and princesses present gradually darkened.
But then, Leon was dealt a cold shoulder.
King George VII turned his gaze to Charlotte and continued, "Charlotte, you should also contact the Indo-American Federation."
His Majesty the King of Great Britain certainly wouldn't put all his eggs in one basket.
Even though he had once risen to power through sheer force, he still understood the simple principles of checks and balances.
As for Edley's ambiguous attitude, that wasn't important.
Empire of Aetherlight
The four Master-level Lore Cardians, led by Azrael, looked at the message in their hands with strange expressions.
After a moment's silence, Lucian teased his disciple with a smile. "Azrael."
"If you were in the old Empire of Aetherlight, you would have been considered a territorial expansionist."
"How about we make you a prince of a different surname?"
Azrael couldn't help but smile wryly at this.
He hadn't expected that the conversation he'd had with Leon on the Ye Boat would actually come true. Great Britain would actually come to seek the Empire's help. They even specifically requested that he personally travel to Great Britain to discuss the relevant matters.
"Teacher, please stop mocking me." Azrael shook his head, his expression growing serious. "Great Britain will never agree to become our vassal state."
"At most, they'll pay us some materials in return."
As a nation with Master-level warriors, Great Britain, while far less powerful than Tsarist Russia or the Indo-American Federation, couldn't easily submit to the Empire like Korea did.
Becoming an Empire vassal state wouldn't mean simply paying tribute annually, as it did before the secret realm appeared. It could even bring back substantial rewards from the Empire.
In today's world, if Great Britain truly became a vassal state, it would be at the mercy of the Empire.
Lucian naturally understood the logic behind this; he was only joking.
The old man shook his head slightly, then said, "More materials would be good. After all, if it's just a Master-level secret realm, it shouldn't cause you much trouble, Azrael."
"Whether you go or not is up to you, Azrael. If you don't want to go, then forget it."
By now, everyone in the Empire had reached a consensus: a mere Master-level demon wasn't enough for Azrael to defeat.
That was the value of the deal.
Then, as if to allay Azrael's concerns, Tempest, standing nearby, suddenly said, "Azrael, if you're concerned about what will happen to the Empire after you leave, then there's no need to worry too much."
"Lady Adele has contacted us these past couple of days, and the Empire and the Rebel Secret Realm have basically reached a consensus."
The Rebel Secret Realm was the secret realm where Adele resided.
If Tempest's words were true, then the Empire wasn't as strapped for power as it had been before. After all, the Rebel Secret Realm alone contained four Master-level figures, not to mention the exceptional Adele. Even if she was in poor condition, she was no match for an ordinary Master-level figure.
Hearing their conversation, Azrael couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
For him, going or not didn't make much difference. After all, now that he had his own Lore Cardian space, he wasn't as strict about the quality of the materials.
To be on the safe side, he'd better not go to Great Britain alone.
But is there really enough time for him to develop safely?
Thinking of his recent conversation with Earth's World Consciousness, Azrael couldn't help but sigh silently.
After a long moment, he let out a long sigh and made a decision. "I'll go. After all, Great Britain gave us some respect at Lord Lioren's funeral."
"Besides, they've survived for so long, so they must have some good things."
Although Great Britain's current King George VII was a Master, that didn't mean they hadn't produced Sovereign-level Masters before.
The current situation was simply a lack of successors.
It was more like if the Empire hadn't had Azrael, this freak, its current fate wouldn't be much better than Great Britain's.
Seeing his decision, Lucian and the other two exchanged a glance and ended the conversation.
"In that case, we'll send a letter to Great Britain to inform them later, and we'll also arrange the necessary ceremonial equipment for you."
Although Azrael was going to be a mercenary, he still had to have the necessary entourage to avoid losing the dignity of the Empire.
Azrael had no particular concerns about this, but since Lucian and the others had said so, he had no objection.
So, he simply replied nonchalantly, "Just help me arrange it."
After discussing Great Britain, taking advantage of the presence of the Empire's only four Master-level Lore Cardians, Fujimaru brought up another matter. "We've basically finalized the division of those territories in the north with Tsarist Russia."
"It's time to arrange for some people to immigrate there."
Master Fujimaru was referring to the areas previously occupied by the demon army. She had been busy wrangling with Tsarist Russia over the division of territory.
Although relations between the Empire and Tsarist Russia were currently close, even close brothers should settle accounts. With such vital interests at stake, it was best to be clear.
Of course, Azrael could also choose to sell land to Tsarist Russia, who might be willing to give some of the profits to the Empire.
After all, unofficial history records that the Empire's Taizu became the founding emperor by selling land.
After the deal was reached, the frozen land once ruled by demons would naturally need to recover its vitality.
However, due to the harsh environment, it was unlikely that many people would be willing to migrate there.
However, Fujimaru had already made plans. "First, let the civil engineering Lore Cardians of the Northern Defense Army build the city. Then, those who are willing to migrate will be directly assigned jobs and housing. When their children reach Lore Cardian age, the association will provide an additional set of Black Iron-level materials."
Since the fall of the imperial court, the Empire Cardian Master Association was no longer as stingy as it once was. Students who met the mental strength requirements would be given a batch of free Black Iron-level materials to try their hand at. If they successfully created cards that met the requirements, they would be directly certified as Lore Cardians by the association.
If they failed, they would have to purchase the materials themselves if they wanted to continue trying.
This was done to prevent untalented individuals from wasting materials, and secondly, because the Empire wasn't so lavish these days.
A set of Black Iron-grade materials was expensive; otherwise, Azrael wouldn't have resorted to online loans to create a card when he first arrived in this world. Even though prices had dropped somewhat since the fall of the imperial court, it still required years of savings for an average family.
With this in mind, Azrael had no objection to Fujimaru's arrangement. "Master Fujimaru, please make your own decisions."
He turned to Lucian and asked seriously, "By the way, Teacher, have there been any recent developments with the Mughal people?"
Recalling the erratic [Golden Emperor], a glint of gloom crossed Azrael's eyes.
The Mughal people had been relatively peaceful recently, and friction with the Empire had decreased considerably, leading the young man to wonder if these Indians were harboring a plan for something big.
In response to his question, Lucian first recalled recent intelligence on the Mughals, then said uncertainly, "It seems quite a few secret realms have appeared over there, too."
"As for whether there are any Sovereign-level secret realms, I'm not sure, but I think there probably aren't."
Azrael's eyes flickered at this.
Sovereign-level secret realms were indeed rare. He only knew of three: the Four Evil Gods, Antarctica, and the one that Lord Lioren had successfully suppressed.
But it was unlikely that the [World-Devouring Disaster] possessed only three Sovereign-level secret realms. After all, Earth alone boasted four Sovereign-level Lore Cardians: [White Crown] Edley, [Golden Emperor] Motian, [Empress] Catherine, and [Near-God] Louis Twenty-Four.
If you counted the recently deceased [Eternal Light] Lord Lioren, then Earth had a total of five Sovereign-level Masters.
The number of Masters under the [World-Devouring Disaster] was obviously much greater, otherwise it wouldn't have been able to gain the upper hand in its battle with Earth's World Consciousness.
After a brief silence, Azrael let out a sigh and said, "That's it."
"Then forget about them for now and wait until things are over in Great Britain."
After hearing his words, Lucian and the other two nodded and said, "Let's follow your arrangements, Azrael."
"And with Lady Adele here, there shouldn't be any major problems."
Hearing the name of one of his own kind, Azrael felt a little relieved.
With her around, there shouldn't be any problems, and he could go to Great Britain without worry.