Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

Upon hearing this, Cohen raised his eyes slightly and slowly spoke:
"Your Majesty's high praise makes me feel a little uncomfortable."

Admittedly, in recent years, Prince Xia Zuo has indeed suffered losses and lost face in several key power struggles because of me.

However, what he relied on was the deep-rooted foundation left by his father, Prince Udi, who had painstakingly built it up over decades.

It has not been truly shaken to this day.

He remains the most powerful prince on this continent and the rightful first in line to the throne of the Eastern Empire.

Behind them stood countless powerful families, veteran military officers, and interest groups who had gathered due to the influence of their fathers.

With such a strong foundation, could a few local defeats really affect the overall situation of the struggle for the throne?
I have reservations about this.

Emperor Eberron gave Cohen a deep look before continuing:
“Cohen, you don’t need to be modest, and don’t underestimate the influence you have.”

Everything in this world, when traced back to its origins, boils down to nothing more than the word 'interest'.

All the tense military confrontations and the unpredictable political games, at their core and ultimate destination, are nothing more than the redistribution and reshuffling of interests.

To put it bluntly, it all boils down to one word—money!

Those behind Xia Zuo were the nobles who held power, the officials who controlled resources, and the forces that dominated a region.

The reason they were willing to unite closely around Xia Zuo, even at the risk of offending me, the reigning emperor, was to do everything possible to push him to the supreme position.

Its fundamental purpose is singular.

That is to reclaim the enormous political privileges, economic resources, and hereditary honors that they believed should have been rightfully theirs upon my brother Udi's ascension to the throne.

They are investing in the future, betting that once Xia Zuo comes to power, he will be able to fulfill the promises his father failed to keep.

Let them receive a larger share of the benefits than they would receive by following me now.

Your appearance has brought about changes, whether it's the ghost fleet's potential control over maritime trade routes or the military technological advantage represented by the blueprints for divine and demonic equipment.

They are all quietly shifting the existing balance of interests.

You have shown new possibilities to some people who might have been content with the status quo or lacked confidence in Xia Zuo.

They saw that perhaps attaching themselves to Grace could bring richer and more stable rewards than following Xia Zuo.

This kind of wait-and-see attitude and wavering based on self-interest is what can truly erode Xia Zuo's core support.

So don't underestimate the weight of the chips you hold.

He paused, giving Cohen time to process what he had just said, before continuing meaningfully:

"Of course, what I just said is only the impact you have brought as the 'Pirate King' Yann Hughes."

New forces and new choices have caused some people to waver and adopt a wait-and-see attitude.

But what truly caused Xia Zuo and the vast interest group behind him to feel the pain and even begin to panic was not your ghost ship at sea, but your other identity—King Effie, Cohen Lyon.

As I just said, what supports the alliance behind Xia Zuo has never been empty loyalty or ideals.

Rather, it's the most practical benefits—money, magical resources, land concessions, and trade monopolies.

And now, Xia Zuo's biggest and most fatal crisis lies precisely in this very foundation.

His coffers are almost empty, and his financial situation is nearing its end!

On the one hand, in order to consolidate and expand his influence, Xia Zuo has spread his operations too thin over the past decade.

He didn't just operate within the empire; his ambitions were too great, and he had a very meticulous network of operations throughout the continent.

Even in the perilous hellish plane, maintaining a few outposts and 'friendship' with certain demon lords requires an annual investment of mountains and seas of gold coins and rare magical materials.

Each of these schemes is a bottomless pit that devours wealth.

On the other hand, I naturally had to deliberately suppress him financially.

This meant that many of the Shazo faction's avenues for accumulating wealth were not as smooth as they had anticipated.

Open source is difficult, while expenses are like flowing water. With one side rising and the other falling, his seemingly huge interest group has developed irreparable rifts.

Discontent with the distribution of wealth and anxieties about the future are quietly spreading.

In short, Prince Xiazuo has been mired in financial difficulties in recent years.

His enormous ambitions and the huge expenses required to maintain his various forces were like an insatiable, greedy beast, devouring his already meager coffers day and night.

If he cannot find a stable and large source of revenue, his seemingly monolithic interest group will likely fall apart before any external enemies intervene, due to uneven distribution of resources and failure to fulfill promises.

It was this looming financial crisis that compelled him to pursue that ambitious plan at all costs.

They fully supported the Kingdom of Ceylon, using it as a springboard to annex Efein.

His ultimate goal is to completely control the three vital deep-water ports along the northwestern continent's coast—Pearl Harbor, Emerald Harbor, and Golden Sail Harbor—by annexing the Kingdom of Ceylon and your Efein.

Once he controls this trade lifeline, he will have essentially seized control of the economic lifeline of the Northwest Sea, and then use it as leverage to coerce the richest family on the mainland—the Golden Wing Family—to submit.

He forced the Golden Wing family to marry their heir, Isabella Winzer, who possessed astonishing business acumen.

As long as Xia Zuo can obtain the strong support of this incredibly wealthy family that controls nearly 30% of the continent's wealth, all the financial problems that have been troubling him will be easily solved.

His grand ambitions will also be fueled by an inexhaustible supply of gold coins.

This is precisely the fundamental reason why your Aifei team fell into such a difficult situation a few years ago, surrounded by powerful enemies.

You have become strategic targets that Xia Zuo must conquer to resolve his own survival crisis.

However, you, Cohen Lyon, and the Effie you rule, become the astonishing variable that breaks all the established script.

No one could have predicted that the monarch of a seemingly insignificant small country, located in the northwest corner of the continent, would possess such power and charisma to turn the tide of events.

You not only withstood the fierce onslaught from the allied forces secretly supported by Ceylon and Shazor.

Furthermore, with a series of dazzling combinations, they turned the tables and gradually pushed Xia Zuo's forces into a desperate situation.

Ironically, you actually won the heart and cooperation of the Golden Winged Daughter, whom Xia Zuo had longed for and regarded as his lifeline.

This was tantamount to rubbing salt into Xia Zuo's most fatal wound.

Your crucial move caused Xia Zuo's elaborate scheme, which he had painstakingly built over a decade and invested countless resources in, to completely collapse and vanish into nothingness.

Even more fatally, this worsened his already precarious and strained financial situation, completely extinguishing any hope of turning things around.

Despite the enormous expenses, the expected source of income has dried up, and cracks have appeared in his alliance, which was based on the exchange of interests.

It was precisely because of your appearance, and the series of heavy blows you dealt to Xia Zuo, that I truly saw the possibility of Grace actually touching that previously unattainable crown.

A look of understanding flashed in Cohen's eyes, instantly connecting many previously vague clues.

He realized that Emperor Eberron probably already knew all about Shazo's schemes and even the power structure of the entire empire.

Perhaps from the moment Xia Zuo began to extend his reach to the Northwest Continent, this reclusive emperor had already seen through all his schemes and ultimate goals.

That's why he remained unmoved even after he had wiped out so many armies and legendary-level superhumans of the Eastern Region Empire.

An even bolder idea suddenly popped into Cohen's mind.

Could the deep friendship between Grace and Isabella also be a move orchestrated by Emperor Eberron long ago?

Did the emperor intentionally guide Grace from childhood to get close to and befriend the future heir of the Golden Wing family?

Later, Isabella devoted herself to helping Grace establish and expand the "Flaming Lips" Chamber of Commerce, which finally gave Grace the capital to compete with Shazo in the economic field.

If all of this was indeed a deliberate arrangement, then Emperor Eberron's foresight and protection of his daughter can be described as painstaking.

Cohen quickly suppressed the turbulent thoughts in his mind and put these speculations aside for the time being.

He raised his head, his gaze clearing again, and asked the most crucial question directly:
"From what His Majesty said, Xia Zuo's finances are on the verge of collapse, while Princess Grace has gained new leverage and more potential supporters watching from the sidelines."

"It seems the situation is very favorable for us right now?"

Eberlen glanced at Cohen and said slowly:

"Don't be too happy yet. Xia Zuo and the forces behind him have been operating for decades. They are deeply rooted and their henchmen are all over the country."

It even infiltrated every corner of the imperial court, every corps of the army, and many key departments in the local area.

They are now like a wounded beast cornered in a desperate situation. Their financial predicament will not make them sit idly by; it will only drive them to take more extreme and ruthless counterattacks.

Xia Zuo has already begun to gamble everything.

There was nowhere on the Demon Tide Continent that he could interfere with, and it was difficult for him to quickly seize the enormous wealth that could turn the tide of the world.

Therefore, he turned his attention to another dimension—the Nine Hells Plane.

A hint of coldness crept into Emperor Eberron's voice:
"War is always the most direct and cruel way to divert internal conflicts and plunder external resources."

As long as a controllable but profitable expansion war is launched against the Nine Hells, the huge military expenditure itself can temporarily alleviate internal pressure.

The direct plunder that war can bring, and more importantly, the opening up and monopolization of trade routes with certain levels of the Nine Hells.

The enormous profits behind this, far beyond what ordinary people can imagine, are enough to drive any resource-hungry force crazy.

The vastness and abundance of the Nine Hells Plane are no less than those of the Material Plane in which we live.

The wealth flowing there is not merely gold coins, but also souls, minerals, knowledge, and forbidden power. Moreover, Xia Zuo's actions have an even more insidious purpose.

Grace's great-grandfather, Zariel, who also wielded considerable influence in the Nine Hells, had always been a thorn in Xia Zuo's side.

Once the Empire and the Nine Hells enter into war, for whatever reason, Grace's connection with this potential ally will be greatly affected, and may even be completely severed.

This was tantamount to severing one of Grace's most important arms.

However, this is no longer a major concern.

Fortunately, you have already taken the first step and established contact with Grand Duke Zariel.

Xia Zuo miscalculated this move.

Cohen's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but ask:
"Your Majesty has told me so many secret stories and analyzed so many interests and consequences today."

"Could it be that they want me to stop Prince Xiazuo's military operation against the Nine Hells Plane?"

As soon as he said it, he immediately shook his head in self-contradiction, a sarcastic smile playing on his lips:
"No, to be more precise, you want me to help the Nine Hells Plane resist, or even severely damage, the Eastern Region Empire's expeditionary force led by the Imperial Prince?"

The idea gave Cohen a sense of almost absurd absurd humor.

An emperor of an empire that dominates the continent secretly hopes, and may even plan, to use external forces to strike at the army that is expanding its territory, led by its legal heir.

Eberron might even secretly hope that Shazor's expeditionary force would suffer a crushing defeat, ideally crippling it so that it would no longer be able to threaten Grace's right to succession.

Emperor Eberron's face remained impassive, his voice flat and devoid of any inflection, yet every word carried a bloodthirsty killing intent:
"At this moment, are you still willing to follow Xia Zuo and embark on an uncertain expedition to the perilous Nine Hells Plane?"

Whether they were generals or soldiers, they were all Xia Zuo's core and most stubborn loyalists.

Their loyalty to Shazo has long surpassed their obligations to the Empire, posing the greatest internal obstacle and potential spark of rebellion to Grace's smooth succession.

He paused slightly, his tone casual, but the content was chilling:

"If you truly have the means and the ability, you can keep this 'loyal' expeditionary force forever on that burning land, turning it into the dust of hell."

This also saves Grace from the inevitable bloodshed that would ensue after she ascends to the throne.

They might even inevitably turn their knives on some acquaintances.

I believe His Majesty Corleone certainly wouldn't want his beloved to make such a difficult choice, or even bear the stigma of a tyrant!

Cohen's lips twitched slightly; Eberlen really had him figured out.

However, a chill couldn't help but creep into his heart.

Is this the art of imperial rule?

In order to ensure a smooth transition of power and to pave the way for the successor, they were able to plan so calmly and thoroughly, using the most elite part of their country's military force.

Along with its commander, they perished in another world!

The ruthlessness of these methods and the depth of their calculations are chilling.

However, Cohen only sighed to himself.

He was not an idealist who was ignorant of the ways of the world; he was well aware of the cruel nature of political struggle.

In the game of power, it's always a life-or-death struggle, leaving no room for sentimentality.

While Eberron's actions were undoubtedly ruthless, his motivation was to ensure Grace's smooth succession and to secure the throne for Cohen's future wife.

Since they share the same stance and the same goal, he naturally has no reason, and even less interest, in playing the role of a compassionate saint.

His position dictates his thinking; he's destined to only consider how to execute Eberron's ruthless plan even more perfectly.

Cohen cut straight to the heart of the matter, asking:
"When exactly does Xia Zuo plan to launch this expedition?"
We need a precise time window to begin preparations.

Emperor Eberron said slowly:
"Within the next three months."

His war machine has begun to run, and his most loyal legions are gathering at the dimensional portal under the guise of 'border exercises'.

The logistics warehouse was also secretly allocating supplies.

In the imperial court, his supporters had already begun to build momentum, proclaiming the necessity and glory of the expedition to the Nine Hells.

I anticipate that within a month at the latest, he will formally propose a motion at the Imperial Conference to forcefully push through the decision to send troops.

Cohen nodded slowly:

"There is enough time. I will establish contact with Grand Duke Zariel in advance and pass on key intelligence such as Shazo's march route and troop deployment."

We have the advantage of terrain at Avernus; we can certainly put on a grand welcome feast.

Emperor Eberron reminded him:

"Don't underestimate Shazo's madness and trump cards, Cohen."

I received intelligence that he may have reached a secret agreement with several large demon tribes entrenched on the edge of the abyss.

At that time, it will likely not only be the Imperial Legion launching a one-sided attack, but the demon army will also launch a large-scale attack from the flanks, raiding Zariel's territory.

Faced with a pincer attack from both the Imperial Legion and the Abyss Demons, even an ancient being like Zariel might not be able to escape unscathed.

Cohen nodded solemnly, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes:
"I understand, I will consider it."

However, speaking of demons, there is another, more urgent matter that you need to know immediately!

Cohen leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice, and recounted the astonishing discovery he had made in the Kingdom of Ceylon.

Emperor Eberron was informed of King Gaius's secret collusion with Sal Ignarion, the Demon Lord of the Lost Lands, and the discovery of the evil "Demon Pillars" used to summon demon legions in a hidden stronghold within the country.

Emperor Eberron's originally calm and composed expression finally showed a noticeable change when he heard the words "Demon Lord Thrall" and "Demon Pillar".

His pupils contracted slightly, and a hint of surprise and seriousness flashed across his face.

He was silent for a moment, then raised his hand and clapped three times, neither too hard nor too softly.

Almost the instant the applause subsided, a ripple of water appeared in the seemingly empty shadows on one side of the study.

A soft light flashed, and Saint Alfie Berry, who had quietly disappeared after leading Cohen into the study, reappeared.

He was still wearing that simple gray mage robe, holding an ancient wooden staff, standing quietly in the same spot, as if he had always been there.

Emperor Eberron turned his gaze to Alfie, his tone unusually solemn, and introduced him to Cohen:
"Cohen, this is Master Alfie Berry, my mentor, the Hundred Star Saint."

On this vast continent, there are very few beings who can consistently surpass him in magical skill and understanding of the laws of the world.

Back then, I was able to stabilize the situation and successfully succeed to the throne thanks to Professor Alfie, who was the biggest and most indispensable pillar.

He is the person I can entrust my life and my country to most.

You and Grace should treat him with the respect due to a junior from now on.

Cohen bowed and accepted.

After the introductions were finished, Emperor Eberron's expression turned solemn again. He turned to Alfie and, in a deep voice, relayed the earth-shattering news brought by Cohen:
"Teacher, Cohen just said that, according to the solid evidence he obtained in Ceylon,..."

Thrall Ignarion, the Demon Lord entrenched in the Lost Lands, is secretly colluding with certain powerful demon tribes in the Abyss, intending to summon a large-scale demon army to descend upon the Lost Lands and even our main human continent.

Even more seriously, they have secretly constructed and activated at least one 'Demon Pillar' within the capital of Ceylon to stabilize the passage.

After hearing Aberron's account, Alfie's expression suddenly changed:
"Sa'ar Ignarianion!"

What exactly does he want to do?
Will this ignite a second war between gods and demons that will sweep across the entire continent and bring untold suffering to all living beings?

Has he forgotten the lesson of that catastrophe ten thousand years ago?

Cohen then picked up the conversation at the opportune moment:
“Master, I once captured a mechanic prisoner who served Thrall.”

He himself admitted that he had been assigned by Thrall to secretly build the 'Demonic Pillar' device for stable communication with the Abyss.

More importantly, he once witnessed the Demon Lord Thrall communicating with a terrifying being through that device during a secret meeting.

Based on his description and our comparison with our knowledge of the Abyss, we can be fairly certain that the being is none other than Valak, the 62nd of the 72 Demon Pillars, the 'Lord of Deception'!

He paused briefly, his gaze sweeping over the solemn faces of Eberron and Alfie, before delivering his final conclusion:

"Based on my subsequent in-depth investigation and cross-verification through multiple channels, I can now almost conclude that..."

The so-called 'Demon Lord' Sal Ignarion, who resides in the Lost Lands and controls the Chaotic Demon Continent, is actually an agent carefully cultivated by the Demon God Valak in the human prime material plane.

And the ultimate goal of all his actions was far more than simply to become king and dominate the lost lands.

Instead, we will seek an opportunity to open a secure passage through the abyss, and bring back the terrifying demon legions that have been sealed away by the gods for so long, to this land that has finally gained ten thousand years of peace!

Emperor Eberron slowly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his eyes were filled with an unprecedented solemnity:
"13,000 years of relative peace has been too long."

Long enough for the deepest wounds to scab over and the most tragic lessons to be buried in the corners of history.

We... including myself, the rulers of the entire continent, are too engrossed in internal power struggles and the struggle for continental supremacy.

However, they gradually relaxed their vigilance towards that cursed land and the abyssal demons who always coveted the world of the living.

Unexpectedly, right under our noses, their tentacles have already infiltrated us silently through agents like Sal.

They almost managed to break the seal! (End of Chapter)