Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 103 The Surviving Highland Mage

Upon seeing this message, Maureen asked Klaus to take over organizing the training while she walked aside, lost in thought.

He felt that this round of negotiations would probably yield some results.

Despite the exciting offensive plays these past two days, both sides have actually revealed their limits.
Therefore, this war is unlikely to break out in the short term.

"Does that mean you'll be returning to China soon?"

The thought flashed through Morin's mind, and he immediately turned his gaze to the northeast.
Festival Hall, Élysée Palace, Paris.

In contrast, Sir Edward Grey, the Breton Foreign Minister, looked unwell with dark circles under his eyes.

Saxony's State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Gottlieb von Jago, appeared much more composed at this moment.

He leisurely savored the coffee prepared by the Gauls, a faint smile playing on his lips.

The defeat on the battlefield forced Edward Gray, who was forced to initiate a second round of negotiations, into a completely passive position from the very beginning.

“Mr. Yage, I think we don’t need to waste any more time.”

After a moment's thought, Sir Grey took the lead in 'Brittanian negotiation'.

"Your country's army has reached the gates of Madrid; this is an open provocation against the peace of all of Europe!"

"Oh~ Really?"

Yago slowly put down the documents in his hand, which were the latest briefings on the Battle of Aragon compiled by his entourage.

He glanced again at the words "Madrid has been surrounded by our troops" on the document, then smiled and said:

"Sir Grey, I think you've misunderstood something. Our army went to help quell the internal strife at the request of the legitimate government of the Kingdom of Aragon!"

"As for the enemy troops being at the city gates, that only proves that those 'rebels' are truly no match for them."

Immediately afterwards, Yago didn't give Gray a chance to retaliate, and went straight to the point, stating the conditions of the Saxon Empire—

The Britannians must completely withdraw from the Kingdom of Aragon and cease all forms of assistance to the Kingdom's army.

"Absolutely impossible!"

Edward Gray resolutely rejected this impossible request.

"I must remind you, Mr. Yago, that our Holy Britannian Empire's expeditionary force is landing in droves. If your country wants to continue fighting, the final outcome of the war is far from certain!"

The two sides then engaged in a heated argument.

Meanwhile, Viviani, the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Republic of Gaul, who was acting as the host and mediator, calmly smoothed things over from the sidelines.

He was naturally in no hurry, after all, it wasn't Gauls dying on the battlefield right now.
However, he did not want the war to get out of control completely. The intelligence from the past few days had confirmed to the Gauls that the Britannians had also increased their troops in the Kingdom of Aragon to 10 divisions.

If the fighting continues like this, it may no longer be a problem that can be resolved through negotiation and consultation.

Thinking of this, he cleared his throat, trying to ease the tension:
"Gentlemen, please calm down. War benefits none of us. I think we might be able to find a solution that is beneficial to all three parties."

"Three parties, humph."

Edward Gray gave a disgruntled snort; he had always been very unhappy about the Gauls getting involved in this matter.

If it weren't for the fact that diplomatic relations with the Saxon Empire had already reached a freezing point, he would be willing to communicate with the Saxon side alone.

When Yago, the Saxon negotiator, heard about the 'three parties,' he raised his eyebrows but said nothing.

The three parties engaged in a fierce debate, openly and covertly vying for their respective national interests, filling the entire festival hall with an unyielding atmosphere of tension.

Ultimately, the Gauls offered a seemingly compromise suggestion:

The three parties temporarily set aside their disputes and will assist the Aragonese royal family as soon as possible in finalizing the succession decision.

Furthermore, in the future, they will jointly invest in the development of pyroxene mineral resources within the Kingdom of Aragon.
This situation is clearly not what the Britannians want.

They originally intended to monopolize Aragon, but now not only have they failed, they've also gotten the Gauls involved.
However, the setbacks in the battle and the tough stance taken by the Saxons forced them to begin considering a certain degree of compromise.

For the Saxons, this was the best solution they could get in the short term.

After all, Saxony did not want to completely push the Gauls into Brittany's arms. The empire was not yet prepared to face two powerful adversaries at the same time.

In fact, for the Gauls, who outwardly benefited the most and even gained the right to participate in the joint development without participating in the battle, this was not the outcome they most desired.

The decision to jointly develop the area also meant that both Britannians and Saxons were openly extending their influence to their own back doorsteps.

For the Gauls, who have always considered the Iberian Peninsula as part of their sphere of influence, this is tantamount to inviting a wolf into their house.

The second round of negotiations lasted for five days, amid an atmosphere where all three parties harbored their own ulterior motives.

Ultimately, the three parties reached a fragile agreement and jointly issued a statement.

The announcement declared that Saxony, Brittany, and Gaul would, in accordance with the principles of peace and friendship, jointly assist the Kingdom of Aragon in its post-war reconstruction and economic development.
And they hope that the protracted succession dispute in the Kingdom of Aragon can end soon.

After the announcement was published and amplified by major newspapers, the entire continent of Europe was immediately enveloped in an atmosphere of "peace has finally arrived" and "long live peace".

Countless people took to the streets, cheering and jumping for joy. Incited by some, they celebrated how a war that could have jeopardized the whole of Europe had been averted through diplomatic efforts.

For a time, the representatives of the three countries who participated in the negotiations became 'heroes' in their respective countries.
However, no one cared about the feelings of the Kingdom of Aragon at this moment.

Just as everyone overlooked the Aragonese Foreign Minister who stood by when the joint communiqué was issued.

He seemed to have absolutely no connection to the negotiations about his own country.

Furthermore, not a single country has stood up to question the blatant interference by these three powerful nations in the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Aragon.

The saying "a weak nation has no diplomacy" is vividly demonstrated in this era.

Meanwhile, the only survivor of the street fighting in Seville finally returned to London under heavy protection.

He had barely disembarked from the ship, and before he could even see his family, he was taken directly to a white tower across the water from Westminster Palace.
The Highland Mage Tower, the heart of the spellcasters of the Holy Britannian Empire, is also one of the most mysterious places on the entire continent of Europe.

The monk, led to a room, hadn't even had a chance to ask anything when he noticed another elderly man in robes in the room—

Archmage Alistair Graham, the highest governing body of the Highland Mage Order, is the council of six.

This is a ninth-ring spellcaster of the Transformation School, and one of only six ninth-ring mages in Brittany.

Normally, ordinary highland mages would have almost no chance to see such a high-level spellcaster.

Because they spend almost all their time in the 'deliberation hall' at the top of the tower.

The surviving highland monk lowered his head in fear and trepidation, and then heard a gentle voice.

"You've worked so hard, my child."

The ninth-ring spellcaster was very friendly, personally pouring a cup of calming tea for the mage who looked to be in very poor mental condition.

"We remember your contributions to the Empire and the Mage Order."

After offering some words of comfort and acknowledging the other party's heroic actions, Archmage Graham got straight to the point.

"Now, my child, tell me what really happened in Seville? How did Master Eldridge fall?"

Upon hearing this question, the highland mage, who had been relatively calm, began to tremble uncontrollably.

It was as if I had recalled some extremely terrifying experience.

His face was deathly pale, his lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.

"Hell. That's hell."

He spoke haltingly, his voice trembling and distorted:

"The Saxons. They must have mastered some evil magic! Absolutely!"

"Evil magic?"

Archmage Graham frowned slightly, then quickly relaxed.

"Relax, kid. Be more specific, what exactly happened?"

"Their soldiers will suddenly appear from every corner of the city—inside walls, under floors, on ceilings."

"Nowhere is safe! You can't kill them all! You'll never kill them all!"

The monk's voice grew louder and louder, his emotions became more and more agitated, and he even began to show signs of madness.

"Calm down!" Archmage Graham had to raise his voice in an attempt to bring the other man back to his senses.

But his words seemed to have the opposite effect.

The other person waved their arms, as if trying to drive away the lingering nightmares from their memories.

"Don't prepare any offensive spells! There aren't enough! Not even one!"

He roared at Archmage Graham, spitting everywhere.

"Make sure every single spell slot is filled with defensive spells! Every single one!"

"I'm going to relearn the Protection system myself! Yes! I'm going to relearn the Protection system! Even if I have to start from scratch, I'm willing to do it!"

This almost insane reaction caused Archmage Graham to furrow his brow deeply.

He could sense that this person seemed to have suffered some kind of intense shock, and was now in a state where normal communication was impossible.

He waved his hand, and two spellcasters in rune armor emerged from the shadows, flanking the still incoherent mage and dragging him away.

"Take him to a quiet room and find a mage from the Bewitching School to examine him," Graham instructed.

"Yes, Grand Master."

(End of this chapter)