Ch.234234. Mediation (3)

# Alicia finished the first page of the agreement smoothly and was now resting alone in her office.

No, she wasn’t exactly alone in her office.

[That went successfully. So the rest is to announce the negotiations in two days, officially conclude the contract, and that’s it?]

“Yes. I’m truly relieved. I don’t want to get involved in the Phoenix Revolution that the Lord Protector has meddled in. It’s clear he would shift all responsibility to me.”

Dragon God Bahamut was counseling Alicia about her concerns.

Since the negotiations had ended successfully, Alicia sighed with relief and declared that she could finally see the end of the revolutionary war.

Though brief in some ways but long in others, the revolutionary war was too threatening an event in a world approaching its end, and most factions didn’t want the flames of revolution reaching their countries.

Alicia also disliked the idea of bearing responsibility for the revolutionary war, so she felt grateful to the Dragon God who had proposed the mediation now that the agreement had concluded safely.

[Well, officially you were the military commander-in-chief of this country, right? Perfect for shifting blame.]

“That’s the problem! I could get dragged into a war I don’t want! It’s a war that only the Lord Protector wants!”

To be frank, this revolutionary war had become a conflict that only the Lord Protector wanted—neither the French government forces nor the Phoenix Cult desired it anymore.

Alicia didn’t want the revolutionary war either, but unfortunately, as the head of state of England, she was in a position where she could be dragged into the revolutionary war according to the Lord Protector’s will.

It was truly fortunate that she had managed to resolve the situation before that worst-case scenario could unfold.

[Haha. If the Lord Protector had respected you as queen, this wouldn’t have happened.]

“I suppose so. The draft is complete now. I just want to sit back, eat some fish and chips, and watch everything unfold with laughter…”

But as is often the case in the world, Alicia’s desired future wouldn’t come easily.

There was one rude person who entered the west wing office where Alicia was staying, making loud footsteps.

“This is an act of treason against England, Your Majesty!”

A man entered, roughly opening the door to the queen’s office with an angry voice.

He seemed genuinely filled with rage, as his face was contorted with anger unlike his usual composed self, glaring at Alicia. It appeared that the Lord Protector had learned about Alicia’s mediation of the revolutionary war.

Even though he was protesting now, it was already too late since the draft had been completed.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s already too late, so just get out.”

It hadn’t even been a few hours since the draft was completed, and the fact that he had quickly discovered this showed that the Lord Protector’s information-gathering abilities were impressive. Unfortunately for him, it was already too late.

The agreement had long been concluded, and the draft completed. Now, once they announced the completion of negotiations to the public and fulfilled the contract, the negotiations would be finalized.

Even if the Lord Protector intervened now, he would only receive cold stares from both France and the Phoenix Cult.

“Your Majesty. By intervening in this revolutionary war, you have trampled on the international benefits that would have come to England! Can this truly be called diplomacy? This agreement that only benefits foreign countries!”

He began strongly criticizing Alicia, who had naturally mediated between the two factions, forgetting his position as a subject.

Yes, the Lord Protector’s plan to continue the revolutionary war for profit had collapsed, and his anger at not gaining as much as expected was directed at the one who had ruined his plans.

Alicia looked at the Lord Protector with disbelief as he used the word “treason”—a strong accusation for a politician—against the queen.

Her face had already grown cold at the mention of treason, wondering how someone could be so brazen to use such logic.

“Really? I didn’t bow my head and voluntarily surrender the country. I simply stopped a meaningless war between humans for the sake of humanity’s survival against the end of the world.”

“Meaningless war? Are you ignoring the international prestige and economic benefits we could gain from that war?”

Yes, if one thought about overcoming the end of the world, meaningless fighting between humans should stop.

However, the Lord Protector countered Alicia’s words, claiming it wasn’t a meaningless war and trying to convince her that much could be gained from it.

“Sure, sure. But it seems the great Lord Protector wanted the Phoenix Cult and French government forces to destroy each other! What an admirably wicked fellow you are! Do you plan to ignore the suffering of the people who would be sacrificed in the revolution?”

At his imperialistic statement, Alicia clapped her hands as if amused, mocking the Lord Protector’s actions and mentioning the common people.

Yes, it was a calculated statement based on the idea that a politician couldn’t ignore the voice of the people, but…

“The cries of the common people have no meaning in today’s world. Now that Awakened ones with supernatural abilities have emerged, the opinions of powerful Awakened are more important than those of the powerless masses.”

“…What?”

The Lord Protector had already transcended common sense.

He claimed that the cries of the people had no meaning and strongly asserted that in this apocalypse, the opinions of Awakened were more important than those of the common people.

It was an utterly outrageous statement to come from the Lord Protector of England, a democratic country.

“Are you serious?”

Alicia was so incredulous that she had to ask if he was being sincere.

But the Lord Protector seemed to have already made up his mind and began to assert his position with an even stronger tone.

“And the opinion of our English Awakened is that using the Phoenix’s fire is what we should rightfully do.”

“Sure. The opinions of powerful Awakened are important. Awakened will become the new noble class. I understand better than anyone that we can’t ignore their opinions. But…”

According to the Lord Protector, English Awakened were claiming that using the Phoenix Revolution to create new interests was what England should rightfully do.

Alicia also acknowledged that the opinions of Awakened were important and that she couldn’t ignore them, but…

“Are you sure that’s really the opinion of English Awakened? Or are you manipulating public opinion?”

“Well, these are the results from investigations I entrusted to reliable institutions.”

She was questioning whether it was truly the opinion of English Awakened.

In the past, one wouldn’t dare mention manipulation, but now, with most infrastructure collapsed due to the apocalypse, manipulating public opinion was something that could be done with eyes closed.

“London is being rebuilt, but with the collapse of past infrastructure, do you sincerely believe you can collect proper public opinion while ignoring all the fraud and corruption caused by Awakened? If so, the Lord Protector is truly a naive person, haha!”

Moreover, using magic or skills possessed by Awakened, they could cheat in ways non-Awakened wouldn’t know about, and the Lord Protector could certainly use that to manipulate public opinion.

Above all, considering that even before the apocalypse, public opinion polls could be greatly manipulated with just a few minor settings, it was impossible to know whether the public opinion the Lord Protector spoke of was truly from a reliable institution.

“Hmph. Do you intend to ignore the will of the people?”

“I have no intention of ignoring it. The royal family serves all subjects. But it seems the subjects you speak of and the subjects I need to care for are completely different.”

Suddenly, the air in the meeting room froze.

Alicia’s words essentially declared a break with the Lord Protector and could be interpreted as meaning she would directly confront him if necessary.

The Lord Protector’s face also hardened rapidly, and he sternly warned the queen with a serious expression.

“Your Majesty. Do not anger me further. I have watched your excessive actions as a subject because you are needed now, but if you cross the line any further, I may commit the disloyalty of laying hands on Your Majesty’s person.”

“Oh, really? I wonder when our Lord Protector started calling himself a loyal subject and using words like ‘disloyalty.'”

He had explicitly mentioned regicide, and Alicia mockingly asked when he had become such a self-proclaimed loyal subject, ridiculing his actions until now.

“As a subject, isn’t it natural duty to serve the queen? I have always been a loyal subject.”

The Lord Protector dismissed it without blinking an eye, saying it was the natural duty of a subject, but…

“That’s utter nonsense. What are you saying, you coward?”

“A coward? Me?”

“Yes, you’re a coward. You always threaten with words, but in reality, you’re more afraid than anyone that the Dragon God might intervene, aren’t you?”

The Lord Protector couldn’t maintain his composure at Alicia’s next words.

His face turned red, and he had to bite his lip, but he couldn’t attack Alicia who stood before him.

The Dragon God’s emblem had appeared behind her at some point, remaining as evidence that the Dragon God was still watching over Alicia.

With that divine protection, the Lord Protector realized once again that Alicia was not just a figurehead who had luckily inherited the queen’s position, but the protagonist of this era. Nevertheless, he did not back down.

“Your Majesty… The more you continue to reject me, the sharper my blade will become. When that day comes, this country will have to make a choice.”

Having essentially declared a break, the Lord Protector quietly stepped back, his cape fluttering.

Now they had reached a situation where either the Lord Protector or the queen would have to die.

However, the mental state of the Lord Protector who had declared war on the queen was not good. After returning to his office, he stood by the window, not even picking up the cooling tea, silently staring outside.

“Why… is everything slipping away from me…”

In front of the Lord Protector was a report that had just arrived today, detailing England’s political situation.

It recorded in detail the rising support for Queen Alicia within Parliament and the results of the negotiation draft she had recently mediated.

Yes, shocked by this report, the Lord Protector had immediately gone to confront Alicia who had acted on her own, but the result was not good—he had only exposed his weaknesses.

As he imagined gloomy scenarios, strength began to enter the Lord Protector’s fingertips, and the cold glass creaked between his fingers.

“Alicia… she was supposed to be just a figurehead. She was supposed to speak as I taught her and move as I showed her.”

But the young queen was different.

She had learned and remembered who her enemies were, and she judged well who she should oppose.

Since the contract with the Dragon God, the Lord Protector had always been hindered by the queen, and he could feel that his path to the throne was growing distant as even his recent interventions had not yielded great benefits due to the queen’s interference.

“Should I have been wary of the Dragon Priestess… No, what I overlooked was… the fact that she is trying to emulate the Dragon Priestess in Seorabeol.”

Despite witnessing the descent of Dragon God Bahamut in Seorabeol and its immense power, the Lord Protector had dismissed it as something happening in East Asia.

He had judged that Dragon God Bahamut would have little influence in this country where Christianity was very strong, as from a Christian perspective, Bahamut was at best heretical and essentially no different from the god of a cult religion. But he paid dearly for this dismissal.

Alicia had summoned the Dragon God to the British Isles, widely proclaimed the fact of their contract, and made the bold decision to change the royal symbol from a lion to the Dragon God—and it was working.

In this apocalypse, the intervention of a clearly visible divine being could give people a sense of security, and there had actually been several instances of its activities, so it was beyond the Lord Protector’s power to stop it.

“If the Dragon Priestess is the representative of God, then the current queen… becomes the face of the era that follows that representative.”

The Lord Protector rose from his seat and opened a bookshelf.

There were profiles of many rivals who had hindered him until now, and by eliminating all of them, his position had become firmly established.

And now just one more step.

Only Alicia’s position remained, but he simply couldn’t overcome it.

“Now that the apocalypse has occurred, I am the rightful guardian of this country. Therefore… the throne of this country is naturally mine. Yes, it is destined to be mine.”

Raindrops began to tap on the windowsill from outside.

In the Lord Protector’s eyes, he saw an unidentified man wearing a black robe, and upon seeing him, the Lord Protector merely nodded firmly.