Felix lowered his voice a bit.

“The new Caletta Ambassador is also here.”

Ah, Aldwin Rochester, right? Ru nodded without much emotion about that matter. Whether he was there or not didn’t matter. She had already encountered Carlos several times, and Aldwin wasn’t so special.

Since they lived in the same city, they were bound to meet someday.

“Other diplomats must be very envious. You know the fastest shortcut to Emperor.”
Even though they were meeting for the first time, it was natural for Dragonlord, who casually used informal language, to intervene.

To be precise, it was not the Emperor but Melphius who, always annoyingly trailing around in such gatherings, giving lectures, and dealing appropriately with the somewhat pestering Minister of Finance Felix Keka while keeping an eye on the Emperor. Dragonlord, accustomed to this, cut in rather than the Emperor.

“Ah, Lord Melphius, this is Ambassador Nirva…”

“Ah, yes. Sir Keka. The 25th or 27th Ambassador of Nirva, I’ve lost count because they change so often.”

Melphius smoothly inserted himself between Felix and Ru, gently nudging Felix away.

“It’s a headache when faces keep changing, causing confusion. It hurts my brain.”

“Ah… Well, you’ve been around for a very long time, so it’s natural.”

“Not that long, about 430 years. Anyway, Your Majesty.”

Melphius, with the ambassador in tow, approached the Emperor, smiling broadly. Actually, he found it amusing. Ophelia looked at him as if he were pitiful, but Melphius was diligently working for the peace of this country today as well.

“Ambassador Nirva.”

After quickly facilitating the conversation between Felix Keka and the Emperor, preventing the Emperor from getting irritated and smoothing over any potential clash between the Emperor and Ambassador Nirva, Melphius, under the pretext of this, took Felix in front of Hayden and quickly disappeared. After that, well, it was up to Ambassador Nirva to handle things.

“Long time no see.”

Hayden looked at this young diplomat. Nirva, a small but wealthy country of prosperous merchants. Diplomats sent from there were always skillful and cunning.

“Yes, we briefly met at the last victory commemoration party. I’m glad to see you’re well.”

“I’m always healthy. Nothing bad ever happens…”

The Emperor is difficult. No one can understand what’s on his mind.

The once-proud empire, which had only a facade left, had always been distressed. Diplomats who had been sponging off the empire’s resources by catering to the whims of the eastern nobility were immediately expelled once the Emperor appeared.

The young Emperor didn’t even bother to acknowledge anyone until a ‘proper diplomat’ arrived. In such a situation, Ambassador Nirva, who quickly changed his approach, was always finding the Emperor difficult. But what could he do? It’s Nirva, not Perseita, that pays him.

“Did you bring bad news, Ambassador?”

To say this. The Emperor, smiling, said, ‘If you’re going to talk nonsense, get lost.’ He had already shed blood in the east. Is there any reason for mercy to a foreigner who executed even his own citizens, not to mention the confiscation of titles?

But if he didn’t speak, Nirva would not spare Felix. Being caught in the middle like this was lamentable.
“Bad things… Rather than saying it’s a bad thing, I want to express my gratitude because thanks to Nirva, Your Majesty has opened up a broader sea, allowing us to sail.”

It was a roundabout and sticky way of speaking, but the Emperor understood it right away.

If it were usual, he might have spoken in a similar roundabout manner, and Felix Keka would have obstructed him from getting to the point for a while. Unfortunately, Hayden didn’t have time for that.

‘Should I gouge out all their eyes?’

He didn’t plan to tidy up the ruined country’s appearance but, perhaps because he had spent four hundred years immersed in hedonism, he quickly responded to beautiful beings. While he was dull in other aspects, he was sensitive to Ru, who had personally reconnected the pearls he had torn apart. It was not only amusing but also nauseating how he reacted so sensitively to her. No, this was just his jealousy twisted to the point of being obsessed by her warmth.

Even if he disdained her for being from Kaleta, he would be enraptured by just seeing her face. If he received a warm and affectionate gaze even once, he wouldn’t be able to regain his composure. From Ru’s perspective, she might have just shown a little kindness, but the one receiving it became addicted to her warmth and harbored monopolistic desires beyond measure. She had already been thoroughly ensnared by Hayden.

“Your Majesty.”

Ophelia was looking straight at him. She nervously watched what horrific imagination was rolling in his mind, desperately hoping he wouldn’t implement it into a plan. He could actually easily materialize what was in his mind. Very simply.

“Trade with Kaleta?”