The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

"Mr. Qiao Yelan, why did you send us this note in the name of Lateran?"

Madame Sicily had only studied in Lateran, so she wasn't particularly sensitive to the term "Sarkat," but Agnier was—which is why he insisted on accompanying her to the meeting.

[Righteous Person]

This title carries more than just a sense of respect.

When Madame Sicily refused him, Qiao Yelan was neither annoyed nor angry, nor did he threaten or bribe her. He simply chose to leave calmly. Just like the expression on his face when he said those words, Agnier already realized that something was wrong.

Qiao Yelan seemed completely unconcerned about whether Madame Sicily agreed or not.

That's why Agnier asked that question while holding down Madame Sicily.

"So you didn't know, Sakota, who's far from home?"

Qiao Yelan chuckled softly.

"His Holiness the Pope has decided to continue promoting the expansion of the Universal Messenger system. Victoria, Letania, and the Great Yan Dynasty have all agreed to His Holiness the Pope's application. As one of the suppliers in the Universal Messenger system, I have come to Syracuse to seek influence and assist in the establishment of the Universal Messenger system."

Upon hearing this, the woman could no longer maintain her composure, and her heart was filled with turmoil.

She understood Qiao Yelan's words the most thoroughly—the other party was the one with a Lateran background who came to integrate Syracuse!

The clan leaders revered and feared her because it seemed that a kingdom called Lateran stood behind her.

But what if Qiao Yelan, at this moment, arrived in Syracuse with official Lateran credentials and a sum of money, claiming to be looking for a family willing to support Lateran's implementation of the international messenger system...?

This is clearly telling everyone that Madame Sicily is not a spokesperson for Lateran.

Whether she was never the one, or was a discarded pawn, it meant that her decades of effort would be in vain. The families of Syracuse would no longer have any respect for her, but would instead plunge the entire country into division, just as they had in the past.

Without a doubt, Qiao Yelan would be treated as an honored guest by every clan leader, who would flatter and fawn over him, all in order to become a collaborator of Lateran.

If you don't do it, there are plenty of pawns who will.

She wanted to stand up immediately, but the hand on her shoulder felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, pressing down on her firmly.

Agnier bent down deeply and bowed deeply to Qiao Yelan.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Qiao Yelan, those were just common tactics used in negotiations. I would like to express my sincerest apologies and ask you to give us another chance."

His hand remained pressed against Madame Sicily, as if cast from steel.

The woman's hands were clenched tightly, her teeth were clenched, but she dared not show any hostility towards Qiao Yelan.

Madame Sicily had to accept this humiliation, because it was the price she paid for saying no to Qiao Yelan.

Agniel's actions imply that this man is taking on this humiliation for her.

"The opportunity is here, but out of respect for you being Sakorta, I can give you another chance to choose."

Qiao Yelan turned her head and looked at the two of them.

"Furthermore, the decision should be made by the person in charge."

The woman covered Agniel's right hand, which was resting on her left shoulder, with her right hand and took a deep breath.

"We are willing to help you implement the system of international messengers, Your Excellency Qiao Yelan—no matter the cost."

-------------------------------------------------- -----

In Madame Sicily's study, there were no longer any formalities; the four of them simply sat there.

"What does Lord Qiao Yelan need?"

“I need a complete, unified Syracuse with a central government and a formal army—I need you to have the power to treat those families like dogs before you can produce what I want.”

The man's words were weighty from the start, completely shutting down all of Madame Sicily's arguments.

"...It's not that I don't want to do it, it's just that I can't do it right now."

The woman speaks very practically and directly.

However, Qiao Yelan liked this style of conversation very much. Whether you could do it or not didn't matter. As long as you didn't hide anything from him, that was enough.

"Tell me about the problems you need to face."

"The most important issue is that the family is deeply rooted in Syracuse. This is not only the concept in the hearts of the Syracusans, but also closely connected with this land—every family has its own 'wolf'."

"It's not the wolves of the western wilderness, but some kind of... behemoth. Their bodies are not huge, but their strength is in no way inferior to that of a behemoth—they are the true masters of Syracuse."

Madame Sicily took a deep breath and recounted the secrets of Syracuse to Qiao Yelan.

"They had lived for so long that even death was a distant thing for them, so they had to find some amusement for themselves—that's why each of them chose their own representatives and supported these representatives in their battles on the land of Syracuse."

"The so-called families are all forces organized by these representatives. They have obtained the power of the wolves, united more wolves, and then fought with other wolves. As long as the wolves are still there, Syracuse will never have the possibility of unification."

"Next question."

Qiao Yelan said casually.

Madame Sicily and Agniel were both stunned.

"what did you say?"

The woman couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering her.

“I said, the next question, I’ve already dealt with that—before I came to see you.”

The man said something that Madame Sicily could not believe.

“The wolves have left Syracuse, or at least temporarily—just before I came to find you.”

"This...how is this possible?"

“You don’t need to ask about my methods. You just need to verify what I said. Since you were able to find out about the existence of the wolf pack, you must have the means to verify this.”

Qiao Yelan waved her hand, as if she had just swatted a mosquito.

"Next question."

"The next problem is that I don't currently have enough power to consolidate Syracuse—not the armed forces, but the administrative forces that maintain order."

Madame Sicily, somewhat flustered, moved on to the next question, unaware that she had begun to unconsciously obey Qiao Yelan's words.

“Ever since I was forced to purge those radical young people, the judges have gradually become corrupted, and the families’ respect for the judges has reached its lowest point.”

Qiao Yelan nodded. From these two questions, it was clear that Madame Sicily was indeed a very talented leader.

"This is quite simple; just merge the armed forces and the judges together."

He smiled and picked up a book of thorny laws.

"【The Court of Judgments】 would be a great new name."

Chapter 157 Qiao Yelan's [Gun]

"It's not that simple. If I could conquer them by force alone, I would have done it long ago. But it's too difficult. Every family has a complex web of power struggles. Winning them over or suppressing them is not a problem, but destroying a family will definitely lead to a united attack."

Madame Sicily gently shook her head.

"The families of Syracuse are like a pack of wolves; they will fight for fresh meat, but they will also unite to resist lions..."

“A beast will always be a beast. I am not a lion, I am a man. They have claws and teeth, we have guns—times have changed.”

Qiao Yelan remained as calm as ever.

“I heard that you brought back magic and guns from Lateran, but unfortunately, you seem to cherish the opportunity to fire too much—you had this chance before when those people were not on guard against you, but now, that is certainly not the case.”

Madame Sicily hesitated for a moment, but did not refute.

"Wolves only turn into dogs after they've been hurt, and only then do they begin to learn to obey commands—it's meaningless to just hold a book."

The man waved his hand.

"You need an army, a strong enough army."

"The army? The Lateran army?"

Agniel suddenly spoke up, his eyes filled with obvious shock as he looked at Qiao Yelan.

He hadn't forgotten Qiao Yelan's identity. At this moment, the other party mentioned the word "army" and was so calm and composed, which clearly meant that he really had such a force under his command.

Does Lateran intend to launch a full-scale military intervention and brazenly use force to interfere in the situation of surrounding countries?

"No—Latland will always remain neutral, and the Sarkaz will fight for peace, not to start wars."

"Then, sir, are you referring to the army...?"

"Sarkaz mercenaries."

This left not only Agniel but also Madame Sicily completely bewildered.

You, someone who came to negotiate with me through official Lateran channels, also have a Sarkaz mercenary force in your hands?

Are you sure you didn't misidentify the race?

"Yes, I think a Sarkaz mercenary force is the best option."

Qiao Yelan nodded.

"I hope you haven't been sleeping through the whole history class—you should know why Letania was founded, right?"

Madame Sicily and Agniel were both taken aback.

They were all top students at Laterano University, so they naturally understood which period of history Qiao Yelan was referring to.