Chapter 496.1: Out In The Open, Hidden In The Dark

"How could it have nothing to do with us?" Despite the sarcasm directed at him, Li Ke remained unflustered and even chuckled as he retorted, "Even the smallest matter involving your son is still a big deal. Didn’t you all come all this way too?"

Cohen didn’t get the implication at first, but quickly caught on to the double meaning and his expression darkened.

Their son could refer to the Golden Lizard Kingdom, or to the Wislanders themselves.

A century and a half ago, there were no Wislanders on the planet. Every single one was genetically engineered by the technical division of the Academy’s predecessor, the Post-War Reconstruction Committee, to be super soldiers, designed under orders from the Department of Defense.

As a governor-general, Cohen naturally knew their origin. He just never cared. The pride and glory of the Army didn’t come from ancient history. It came from the endless road beneath their feet.

Still, not caring was one thing. Being mocked for it was another.

Chu Guang gave the B-class Researcher a surprised glance.

He had assumed from player forum chatter that those bookworms were bad at talking... Or insulting others. But now it seemed that only the field agents who couldn’t ramble endlessly were bad at it.

As the various parties stood motionless in the wheat field, the verbal barbs grew increasingly tense.

King Morgott felt his scalp go numb.

They were standing on his doorstep, after all.

Unable to bear the tension, he finally mustered the courage to smooth things over.

"... All of you have come a long way, and it’s been a hard journey! Perhaps you'd care to rest at the castle first? We can continue discussing matters of the future there. This isn’t exactly the best place for diplomacy..."

Cohen shot the old man a cold glance and gave a signal to the guards at his side.

One of them nodded respectfully, turned around, and walked back to the towering Bison. Entering its open hatch, he reentered the machine.

The massive steel frame slowly lifted off the ground, the gust from its ascent rustling the wheat stalks.

Watching the startled, awe-struck expressions on those unfamiliar faces, Cohen smiled with satisfaction. Flanked by his LV30 guards, he walked straight past the king, through the gate at the riverbank.

They were a vassal state of the Army. He was returning home, so there was no invitation necessary.

Whether king, noble, or commoner... Everyone in the oasis was his servant. Since when did servants invite their masters home?

Realizing he had overstepped, King Morgott lowered his head and dared not even breathe loudly. The other nobles followed suit.

The New Alliance had treated them too kindly. So much so that they had nearly forgotten their status as subordinates.

Only Count Kernway had ambition gleaming in his eyes, already scheming how to curry favor with his new likely master.

He had already offended the New Alliance’s Administrator. He couldn’t afford to screw this up again...

"Damn, this NPC really knows how to put on a show," Night Ten muttered quietly over their communication channel, staring at Cohen’s back.

Gale rubbed his nose and said calmly, "A five star governor-general... Only the Marshal and Army Commanders outrank him."

In other words...

He stood there as the Marshal's representative, holding full authority over all affairs in the Sunset Province, including the power to engage in warfare.

That guy was clearly far more dangerous than Griffin, especially outside the battlefield.

Chu Guang watched Cohen’s back for a moment, then turned his gaze to Wu Changnian, who stood beside their Orca transport craft.

The middle-aged man had already resumed his warm and friendly smile, returning Chu Guang’s gaze with one just as genial.

"A pleasure to meet you, administrator of the New Alliance. I've been wanting to pay you a visit for a long time... You’re even more capable than the media makes you out to be."

"You flatter me, Mr. Wu Changnian."

"Not at all. We owe our victory in this war largely to you." Wu Changnian shook his head, still smiling as he continued, "But our war is just beginning, isn’t it?"

Chu Guang understood what he meant.

The gains won on the battlefield had to be solidified at the negotiating table.

The fact that Triumphant City had sent a five star governor-general of Sunset Province meant their ceasefire negotiation was unlikely to end swiftly or easily.

"You’re right. If possible, I’d also like to understand the Highest Council’s stance."

Wu Changnian smiled pleasantly. "I was just about to bring that up. Shall we speak in private?"

Chu Guang returned the smile. "By all means."

The two walked toward the city gates, chatting as they went.

All that remained were the players still enjoying the spectacle, the upright Bison walker, the Enterprise’s Orcas and assault squad soldiers, and King Morgott along with his entourage of nobles.

Standing beside the long, shuttle-shaped aircraft, Li Ke looked slightly awkward. He had no choice but to step up to King Morgott and clear his throat loudly. "I’m with the Academy."

The king snapped back to attention and quickly responded politely, "What would you have us do, sir?"

"Find me a place to stay... Somewhere near those people."

He pointed at the distant figures of Chu Guang and Wu Changnian and added seriously, "The Academy must have a seat at these ceasefire talks. You understand what I mean?"

Although he had no clue what the Academy had to do with the war, King Morgott knew better than to offend such a colossal force, especially now that his own military had been dissolved.

He nodded quickly. "Understood, understood!"

"Good." Li Ke gave him a satisfied glance, then, flanked by his two android bodyguards, strode confidently through the gate.

Although his awkward entrance had been a bit of a joke, it had ironically eased the tension between the Army and the Enterprise.

And from Li Ke’s totally indifferent expression, it was clear he didn’t care what Cohen had said.

Which made sense.

Those who were far sighted never cared about how much they could gain in the near future. They typically paid more attention to the results which might lead them to greater things in the future.

Typical Researchers weren’t even allowed to know the details of negotiations. Even if Dr. Conclusions learned about it, he wouldn’t care if his subordinates became a laughing stock. As long as the goal was achieved at an acceptable cost... Nothing else mattered.

However, the ceasefire negotiations were not going smoothly.

Though somewhat expected, Cohen's aggressive stance still caught Chu Guang off guard.

...

In the palace of Falcon City, inside a spacious chamber, sat the representatives from the Army, the Enterprise, the Academy, and the New Alliance.

Under the watchful eyes of guards, the castle’s servants anxiously poured tea and fetched water for those high-ranking figures, not daring to slack in the slightest.

Cohen drummed his fingers on the table, radiating a domineering presence that exemplified the brutish, uncompromising nature of the Wislanders.

"If you’re truly serious about peace, then withdraw from Oasis No.2 immediately! That is the condition for restoring order!"

"That’s not realistic."

Unfazed by the pressure, Chu Guang flatly interrupted, "New Alliance military operations will end only after a ceasefire agreement takes effect."

Cohen’s eyebrows rose slightly, surprised at the New Alliance’s firm stance. The reports sent to Triumphant City had described mutual victories between the Army and the New Alliance.

Although Griffin had been disadvantaged due to lack of support, his forces had still inflicted significant losses onto the enemy.

Especially one particularly legendary wastelander, said to have killed over a thousand New Alliance troops himself.

Even if those reports were exaggerated, some part of them had to be true.

Cohen had landed expecting the New Alliance to be equally exhausted, which was why he had arrived with an overbearing attitude.

But now...

The New Alliance’s unwavering response caught him off guard.

For a moment, he couldn’t tell if the man before him was bluffing, or if the situation at the frontlines was worse than he had imagined.

His thoughts spun quickly, but his expression remained unchanged. He lowered his demands slightly. "At the very least, your forces should withdraw 50 kilometers from Horn Fortress. That’s a reasonable buffer zone."

But to his surprise, the man across the table still refused. "The garrison at Horn Fortress hasn’t surrendered. There are 50,000 soldiers there. We can’t just ignore such a threat. Until they lay down arms or the ceasefire progresses, we’re not going anywhere."

Ridiculous.

There was no way Chu Guang would agree to that.

Cohen might not know Horn Fortress’ supply status, but Chu Guang had heard the details clearly from their dear old friend.

The defenders there were low on food, water, and ammunition. Constant harassment had pushed their morale to the brink of collapse and infighting had begun.

If the New Alliance retreated 50 kilometers, the Skeleton Corps and Lion Kingdom’s army would no longer be able to completely cut off their supplies.

And if ammunition ever made it into the fortress, they would be forced to resume battle.

Staring at the clearly misinformed Cohen, Chu Guang said calmly, "Mr. Cohen, have you heard this saying? What you can’t win on the battlefield, you’ll never get at the negotiating table."

Cohen narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"Are you saying we should take this to the battlefield?"

The air in the room seemed to freeze.

At that moment, Li Ke stiffened in his seat.

Wu Changnian remained expressionless but subtly signaled Chu Guang not to push the Army too hard.

The tension at the negotiating table had never been higher.

Chu Guang ignored everyone else, locking eyes with Cohen. "I’m saying you should make a realistic demand."

Their gazes clashed like swords. As sparks seemed to fly across the table.

Though the Army was clearly more powerful, in personal presence alone, Cohen was clearly outmatched by Chu Guang.

Realizing the stalemate would go nowhere, Cohen scoffed, pushed aside his tea, and got to his feet.

Startled, Li Ke, who hadn’t spoken all meeting, quickly tried to smooth things over. "Let’s all calm down. Maybe take a step back?"

"You people clearly aren’t serious about this discussion."

Cohen completely ignored the B-class Researcher and squinted coldly at Chu Guang. "That’s enough for today."

His tone dripped with threat, but Chu Guang merely smiled coolly. "Sounds like you’ve had a long journey. A good night’s rest would help."

"Then let’s continue tomorrow, as you wish."

Chu Guang knew why Cohen was stalling.

The Adjudicator had only just arrived in Sunset Province. They didn’t know what was actually going on at the frontlines.

And with the Expansionists’ history of sugarcoating things, the reports sent to Triumphant City were likely full of shit.

What Cohen knew was that Triumphant Reports was claiming Griffin was fighting the New Alliance to a standstill.

No wonder he was confused by the New Alliance’s tough stance.

Letting him get a clearer picture of Horn Fortress’ situation wouldn’t hurt.

...