Chapter 151: I'm Sorry, Little Mother-in-Law

The venue was immense, featuring seating areas, a salon art lounge, and a spacious dance floor.

Within the expansive hall, wine glasses clinked as nobles gathered around the grand dance floor or stood among sections draped in deep red silk. Clustered in groups of twos and threes, with flushed faces and beaming smiles, they conversed in low, murmuring tones.

The three thousand three hundred gold and silver hollowed-out lanterns of various shapes, suspended from the dome, blended seamlessly with the intricate ceiling paintings through the ingenuity of master craftsmen. They resembled brilliant stars shining from beneath the heavens and amidst the clouds, illuminating the entire space with dazzling radiance.

The dance floor was covered in a predominantly red carpet woven with a myriad of flowers. Beneath the brilliantly lit dome, it looked like a sprawling patch of blooming flora.

Young nobles, men and women intertwined, stepped upon this flower-strewn dance floor, twirling joyfully to the rhythm. The rising hems of their long gowns looked like peonies suddenly bursting into bloom among the blossoms, opening and folding in an instant.

Upstairs and downstairs, before the exquisite mahogany banisters, amidst the spiral staircases, marble pillars, and silk screens, people gathered everywhere to watch, chat, and rest.

The maidservants weaving through the crowd were each like flowers blossoming in summer, while the noble ladies and princesses of various nations resembled precious jewels of diverse brilliance, encircled by those floral attendants.

Yet, the most dazzling pearl today was undoubtedly the pride of Sorondo.

Cradled by the affection of the entire world, she was the most revered princess of the wizards, as well as the highest-ranking princess of the Sorondo Empire.

Even among the dragon race, there was no shortage of ardent admirers.

Watching that brilliant pearl slowly step into the hall, the scions of many noble houses could not help but fix their gazes upon her. With gentlemanly bows and eyes burning with passionate enthusiasm, they stepped forward hoping to converse or invite her to a dance.

However, when the tall, handsome knight accompanied her into the hall, the gazes of those approaching men—along with the matrons—shifted instantly to the mysterious prince, their eyes filled with excitement and curiosity.

Some spoke of magic, others of martial arts, while some discussed the Son of Lante or the Kingdom in the Clouds, all eager to make the acquaintance of this heroic pilot.

The eyes of the noblewomen burned with an even more intense fervor.

Princess Annabelle of Nefa slowly sipped the wine in her cup, her narrowed eyes simmering with fire. When she saw Louis and Osicris walking hand in hand, her face suddenly paled, and a murderous intent flashed through her gaze.

After exchanging polite pleasantries, Louis swept his gaze across the massive banquet hall.

The grand reception had already been underway for some time. The king and queen seemed to have finished their speeches long ago; they were standing in a lounge area with a sweeping French balcony, admiring various antique trinkets while conversing with surrounding nobles, ministers, and foreign delegates.

Louis and Osicris exchanged a glance and began walking slowly toward them, deciding to wait until the king finished speaking with the others.

Kate and Yingling hurried over with a group of noble maidens, pulling Osicris into their conversation. Today, everyone’s cheeks wore a faint flush, and the unfamiliar young ladies frequently cast shy, sidelong glances at Louis.

A small figure suddenly leaped onto a table beside Louis, bringing with him the distinct scent of a cigar.

"Louis, I've already had preliminary communications with both sides today," Archie said with a grin, looking as though the results had been quite favorable.

Louis nodded. Right now, both the Muggles and the wizards probably wanted to sit down and talk, lacking only a mediator. Archie was perfectly positioned to play both sides to his advantage.

Thanks to Louis, Archie’s status had risen significantly once again.

Louis and Archie retreated to a quiet corner to assess the situation.

Today's wager between the wizards and the Muggles was, in reality, a probe. And today, both factions had witnessed some of each other's cards laid out on the table.

The wizards' card was their ability to deploy "little monsters" at any given moment—essentially unleashing Godzilla into a city—with virtually no way to defend against it.

The Muggles' cards were the Son of Lante and the magitech battleships, covering land, sea, and air.

Consequently, both sides had been thoroughly intimidated today.

The Muggles realized the consequences of going to war with wizards—though today's Dragon-Slaying Gundam had been enhanced by various spells, ordinary "little monsters" were not something they could easily endure.

The wizards also felt that casually unleashing little monsters had lost its novelty—though today’s Son of Lante had also been buffed, the wizards lacked technological understanding and had been utterly stunned by it.

This caused the warmongering wizards and Muggle generals alike to decide to temporarily sheathe their swords.

"Those fools have no idea what the Son of Lante actually is—it only achieves results like that when you're the one piloting it," Archie said, shaking his head with a speechless expression. "So the wizards' little monsters are genuinely formidable, but the Son of Lante is just a facade. It can't actually fight the little monsters, nor does it possess any true deterrent power."

Archie continued, "Moreover, the Son of Lante is deathly afraid of magic. Any ordinary card-suit wizard could take out the pilot with a few spells or dismantle the Son of Lante into spare parts."

"The Son of Lante is something researched and developed jointly by wizards and Muggles," Archie said, taking a drag of his cigar and sighing darkly. "Its emergence has allowed a faction of wizards and Muggles to catch a glimpse of a new future—the future of magical civilization."

"This was His Majesty's original intention when establishing this project—he hopes to use this as a breakthrough to subsequently establish a new academy, a novel institution open to magic and steam, welcoming both Muggles and lower-tier wizards!"

Louis's eyes flickered slightly. The significance of such an academy was monumental.

He and Francesco had constantly pondered the possibility of changing the world on the premise of neither destroying it nor annihilating the current civilization.

Reforming education and transforming the next generation was undoubtedly a critical turning point.

This academy was the starting point to reshape the next generation and rewrite the future.

"But if everyone discovers that the Son of Lante is merely a meaningless product, the so-called 'Academy of Magic and Steam' will become a laughingstock," Archie remarked.

Louis rubbed his temples.

If he buried himself in the laboratory and led everyone in a relentless grind, breakthroughs in this field would undoubtedly emerge. However, the efficiency would be far too low, and he would essentially be making bricks without straw.

Had the Forbidden Sanctuary not vanished, allowing him to rummage through books back and forth just like Anthony did in the past, it might have been feasible—handing the materials over to scientists for research.

"Archie, you didn't come over just to talk nonsense and give me a headache, did you? Spit it out if you have something to say." Louis knew that Archie had likely received instructions from Francesco and was dropping by to talk business.

"The Son of Lante project has been running for over a decade. We've actually found a breakthrough—materials and technology."

Archie's eyes shone brightly as he said, "The Stodgy mercenaries once accompanied an archaeological team and discovered something of value during their excavations—deep-sea antiques, alongside magical books and documents secretly preserved by certain wizards during the ancient Era of Book Burning. We managed to salvage them from the ocean."

"However, during transport, the fleet—along with a massive batch of weaponry from the War God's Hammer—vanished at 'Silent Harbor,'" Archie said, his gaze intense. "As long as this issue is resolved, everything else will fall into place."

He stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and frowned. "Was the task His Majesty entrusted to you previously messed up by any chance?"

Archie suddenly burst into a grin. Originally, this fellow had been deeply worried, but with Louis around, he felt confident. Hence, he couldn't help but wear a gloating expression.

"To be frank with you, Louis, I need to come clean. The fleet getting lost was a mess stirred up by my cousin, 'Michelin.' The planned route wasn't supposed to be that way, but you know how it is—the War God's Hammer has always conducted a lot of business with smaller nations. So not only did he smuggle a bunch of weapons onto the escort fleet, but he also bribed the captain to alter the course."

"Upon learning that the cargo was lost, His Majesty has flown into a rage several times, wishing he could skin him alive. Michelin hasn't been able to eat or sleep lately; he's worried sick. If you help him sort this out, he will undoubtedly bleed to hand over all those weapons to arm our 'Seventh Fleet'."

"Once your fleet is up and running, we can go on archaeological expeditions together or take a stroll through those wizard principalities."

Archie's words were entirely candid, holding nothing back and laying everything out in the open.

Lines of narration suddenly appeared before Louis's eyes:

[Hearts Four (3/3): The Crowley family's merits, Archie's recommendation, and Stuart's reasonable letter of recommendation have earned you 3 votes—in a few days, when the crouching dragons and phoenixes of the mysterious nursing home arrive at the Sorcerer's Association, your new secretary, 'Mr. Edward,' will help you handle the relevant certificates and procedures.]
[Hearts Five (0/3): Once you resolve the incident at Silent Harbor, the chubby boss of War God's Hammer, 'Michelin,' Delphinia (she might write one), and the Rainbow Kingdom's Sorcerer's Association may all help write a letter of recommendation for you.]
[You have discovered a special mysterious event.]
['Silent Harbor']
[The once beautiful Rainbow Kingdom has now become a place of terrifying silence... Whenever a fleet passes through those waters, the mournful and desolate singing of a man can be heard echoing through the fog.]
[Inviters:
1. The archmage 'Hob', who is awake while the rest of the world dreams ("Mother, trust me, you will all survive! I will save you! I will save this kingdom, my homeland!");
2. The despairing people of the Rainbow;
3. The Rainbow King, ministers, and priests who have given up treatment and spend their days picking lice off each other;
4. The regretful Francesco;
5. The Red Queen, 'Elizabeth' ("My old uncle took people there three years ago, why hasn't he returned—wouldn't killing everyone just solve it? Is such a simple matter beyond that idiot?! Surely he hasn't gotten lost there too?!")]
[Detailed Information: You still need to gather more intelligence—perhaps waiting until the king's negotiations conclude, going to spank Her Majesty Delphinia's bottom (optional), and then His Majesty Francesco will actively seek you out for a chat.]

Looking at the narration, Louis fell into deep contemplation.

This matter seemed far from simple. It appeared that even Francesco and the Red Queen didn't know how to resolve it, and it involved a small medieval-era kingdom as well as the Underworld.

Moreover, it looked like he would have to paddle the young mother-in-law's backside—which didn't bode well. If things went wrong, Francesco might beat him to death.

Louis found himself in a difficult spot.

[Hint: Optional]

*Sigh, so many people are waiting for me to save them,* Louis ignored the narration and sighed, *I'm in such a bind.*

[Hint: Optional]

*To save everyone, I suppose I have no choice. I'll just have to take the risk.*

[???]

*Alas, I am driven by circumstance.*

[...]

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