Yes, Madam Prime Minister

Pierre actually knew this: the copper wasn't sold to a merchant within the kingdom, but to the neighboring country to the east, the Vena Federation, located on the peninsula, commonly known as the Seventeen Cities Federation.

Just northeast of White Star City, across a large urban area, lies the border between the Kingdom and the Venaya Federation.

"Ah, Pierre, you're so brave! You're back so soon, I can't take it anymore."

The lover playfully complained, as if she really couldn't bear it anymore.

Pierre was incredibly excited when he heard the sound. He rubbed his hands together between the large, fleshy mounds for a while, and was about to crawl inside when suddenly there was a knocking sound from outside the door.

"What are you doing? It's so late at night. Can't we talk about it tomorrow?" Pierre shouted.

"Master, something terrible has happened, outside..." Before he could finish speaking, the male steward collapsed.

Then, with a bang, Agustina kicked open the door. Startled, Pierre froze for a moment, while his lover quickly shrank under the covers, completely hiding herself.

Agustina tilted her head back, almost looking down at people with her chin. "Calm down, we're just here to take refuge. Someone tried to assassinate us. Didn't you invite us to stay here? Well, here we are. By the way, look over at the window."

Pierre paused for a moment, then subconsciously looked out the window, only to find that his room's window was completely covered by countless mushrooms.

The moment Dinia entered the villa, the entire villa was completely sealed off by her mushroom magic. From the outside, the villa's exterior was covered with layers of mushrooms of varying sizes. Now, without Dinia's permission, no one could enter or leave the villa.

When Dinah arrived on the second floor, Pierre and his lover were already dressed in their nightgowns.

Dinia gave Ronan a look, and Ronan stepped forward. "Tell me, what exactly are the mayor and the others plotting?"

"I...I don't know." Pierre hesitated for a moment, but still chose to be stubborn.

Ronan sighed and was about to step forward when Agustina spoke first, "I know how to do this, let me do it."

With a kick, the short, stout Pierre was knocked to the ground. Agustina grabbed one of his hands and said, "Crunch, here you come."

With a snap and a thud, followed by a piercing scream of agony.

Pierre's index fingernail and finger bone were crushed by Agustina, and the flesh was rotten.

Fat Pierre clutched his fingertips, which had been crushed and were bleeding profusely, and rolled on the ground in agony, howling in pain.

Chapter Twelve: Surprise, Shamelessness, the Maid Arrives

Inside the room, the fat Pierre was still curled up and rolling around, one hand gripping his fingers, his face contorted in pain, constantly groaning and moaning.

Beside him, his lover was pale and trembling, but she desperately covered her mouth, afraid to make a sound, lest she offend the one-eyed, black-haired madwoman beside her.

Agustina clicked her tongue and shook her head. "You're no good. You're screaming like a pig being slaughtered after just one. Do you want me to help you stop the bleeding?"

Her so-called hemostasis, of course, involved directly burning the wound.

At this moment, Dinia pointed at Pierre's lover and said, "You can leave now." She couldn't leave the villa anyway.

The lover nodded frantically, as if granted a pardon, "Thank you, ma'am, thank you so much." He thanked her repeatedly as he ran out the door.

The slamming of the door seemed to wake the fat Pierre from his agony, and he finally stopped rolling around and yelling.

Ronan walked over and squatted down. "Can we talk now?"

“Tell me, I’ll tell you,” Pierre said hastily, sobbing in terror. “I know what the mayor and the others are doing; they’re smuggling copper ingots.”

"Huh?" Ronan exclaimed in surprise.

Yvette, Dinia, and Agustina were equally surprised; Ronan's casual guess had come true.

Ronan suppressed his astonishment and quickly asked, "How did they do that?"

“I don’t know, I really don’t know,” Pierre kept repeating. “Really, I really don’t know. Believe me, I was just helping with the transport. I don’t know how they managed to get so many copper ingots there so quietly.”

This is interesting.

Ronan moved a chair to the side and placed it in front of Dinia. Then he tore off a piece of the bed sheet and threw it to Pierre to help him bandage the wound and stop the bleeding. He then sat down on the edge of the bed and said, "Tell me, tell me in more detail."

While bandaging himself, Pierre said, panting, "Every now and then, a large number of copper ingots suddenly appear in a Seaman ruin in the northeast of White Star City. I once sent people to hide around, but they couldn't find anything."

"So much copper seemed to appear out of thin air. After the copper ingots appeared, my people—no, I mean, the people I helped hire—transported them to Lops City. Then, naturally, someone made contact with them. Although those people deliberately changed their accents, they couldn't fool me. They were definitely from the Vena Federation. This copper was sold to the Federation."

“I can draw you a map and mark that place, right away.” After saying that, Pierre raised his head and forced a fawning smile onto his pained face. “Sir, do I count as having done a good deed now? Can my punishment be reduced?”

Ronan waved his hand, "Don't rush, the next question is, how did Mayor Ares manage to win over Secretary General Barr?"

This has always been one of Ronan's questions.

The mayors dispatched by the Kingdom's central government to special cities like Wright City and White Star City are mostly losers in the game of power. At best, they are like Winston, who came to lay low temporarily. If they only want to be mayors, then they are mayors. But if they want to make money, they will have to beg on their knees.

When it comes to making money, it's the locals like Ronan and Barr who call the shots.

But Ales clearly takes the lead in making money. How can an outsider like him control Baal?

“I really don’t know,” said the fat Pierre, a question he had never been able to figure out.

Ronan believed Pierre's statement was true. "Then let's change the subject. When Ares first arrived in White Star City, did he exhibit any suspicious behavior?"

“Well, how would I remember? He’s been here for over two years,” Pierre said.

Ronan sighed and turned to Agustina. "Miss Serrano, he has a bad memory. Do you have a solution?"

“That’s easy. When a person is cold, their blood supply is insufficient, and their brain doesn’t work well. Just warm them up.” As she spoke, Agustina opened her palm, and a ball of flame rose from her palm. “Come on, let me burn off the hair on the pig’s head first.”

The flames were at least half a meter away from him. Pierre was already covered in sweat and tears, his fat body trembling. He pushed off with his feet and slid backward on the ground. "No, no, no, I remember, I remember."

"Don't waste time, just say it," Ronan urged impatiently.

"When Mayor Ares arrived, he brought quite a few people with him—butler, servants, cooks, and even gardeners—but strangely, he didn't bring any staff or guards," Pierre said, pointing out the first odd thing about Mayor Ares.

Legally, a person who becomes the mayor of a special city is allowed to appoint a private secretary. There is also a customary rule that the mayor can nominate one of his own people to be the deputy chief of police. Both of these rules are designed to prevent the mayor from being sidelined.

"To be honest, Ares's attitude was a bit too arrogant, so Baal let him experience our hospitality."

Pierre continued.

Dinia, sitting to the side, frowned slightly; she felt like she'd heard the word "enthusiasm" somewhere before.

Ronan's heart jumped into his throat. He had originally planned to let Dinia experience the warmth of the atmosphere.

"Unexpectedly, Ares didn't attend the welcoming banquet at all. Instead, he went directly to the fishing port town where the Haidi people lived and stayed for three days. No one knows what happened during that time. Three days later, he hosted a private banquet for Baal. No one knows what they talked about, but from then on, Baal was almost completely obedient to him. Of course, we didn't want to see this situation, but with the mayor and the secretary-general standing together, there was nothing we could do. Fortunately, the mayor of a special city only serves a maximum term of six years. Baal is of retirement age, so we can just bear with it."

Pierre recounted all the unusual things that had happened at the beginning of Allais's tenure.

There was one more thing he didn't say: if Barr retires, his cousin will likely take over the position of Secretary General.

Pierre wanted a smooth transfer of power, so he sided with Secretary General Barr.

Fat Pierre began to beg for mercy again, "Sir, please spare me. I've told you everything I know. I really didn't participate in their affairs. I was unaware of their conspiracies. Really, if I'm lying, may God punish my son so that he can never get an erection again, and may my daughter become a cheap waitress in a sailor's bar."

"Shut up! Your shamelessness is lowering the standards of us Southerners!" Ronan angrily rebuked.

After his scathing rebuke, Ronan turned to Dinia and said, “Madam, it seems that Mayor Ares must have possessed something very important to the Haidi people before he took office, which led him to their allegiance. He then obtained Baal’s secret from the Haidi people, and finally formed an alliance.”

"Although it has been confirmed that they smuggled copper, I personally feel that there is more to the story than that."

“It seems your men have arrived,” Dinia said to Ronan.

She sensed someone knocking on the door and calling for help outside.

With a wave of his hand, all the mushrooms that had been covering the window dispersed, and Dinia and Ronan came to the window. The two people downstairs were Elena and Alice.

Unlike Elena, Alice is Ronan's right-hand woman, and she helps him handle things that Ronan can't do himself.

With a flick of her finger, Dinia caused the mushrooms on the villa's gate to disperse.

Chapter Thirteen: Full Name, Treason, Verbal Agreement

Elena was accompanied by Ronan's other maid, Alice.

Alice, the daughter of a bookseller in Wright City, was a childhood friend of Ronan's deceased father, Ronan Sr.

That's right, Ronan's father was also named Ronan, and his grandfather was also named Ronan.

However, they don't usually get confused. When he has a family, they usually call him Risen. Ronan's full name is Ronan de Risen Triga Light Artes.

"Ronan" is his given name, no further explanation needed.

The title "Di" indicates that he is a non-hereditary nobleman, a title he received seven years ago. He did not have it before, and his original noble status was of course voluntarily revoked.

"Rison" is the surname of his magic mentor. In fact, Rison only taught him for one day. His real mentor was Rison's student. But Ronan was a promising talent who grew out of Wright City, a place that could be called a magic desert. Would it be reasonable if he wasn't guided by a famous teacher?

If he were a traditional academic, he should use the school's name here. In fact, Ronan could use it if he wanted, but he would have to donate money to the school generously. Ronan isn't a corrupt official, so where would he get the money?

"Trica" ​​is the name of the seven saints of the Seven Saints, representing the wise. Ronan was not religious at all, but it was impossible to be without faith in the kingdom, so he opened an account at the church. Yes, an account, lending money was the core business of the church.

"Wright" means he is a descendant of Baron Wright, which is worthless; there are more descendants of Baron Wright than fish in Blackfish Harbor.

"Artes" is Ronan's true family name.

Alice and Elena hurried up the stairs to the second floor.

"Alice, how is it?" Ronan asked Alice, who had rushed over.

"Can't you let me have a drink of water first?" Alice said, her tone rude. Coupled with her slightly narrow eyes, pale skin, and cool and composed demeanor, anyone who didn't know her would think she was the lady and Ronan was the servant.

Ronan wasn't angry at all about her attitude. He enjoyed arguing with Alice. "You have hands and feet, can't you pour it yourself? Pour a glass for everyone while you're at it. You have no manners as a maid at all. You won't get your bonus this month."

"Hmph, as if I've received a bonus." Alice snorted and went out to get some water.

There are reasons for the way they, master and servant, interact.

The death of Alice's father can be said to be largely related to Ronan.

Eight years ago, after the absurd rebellion in Wright City was suppressed, Ronan, as a representative of the local forces of justice, played an important role in a purge of the local rebels in Wright City.

As we all know, the expansion of such activities was inevitable. Ronan was trying his best to control the scope of the crackdown, only confiscating homes and not killing people. However, Alice's father was almost forty years old and still had the bad habits of a bookish man. He openly questioned the justice of the operation and even gathered a group of people to oppose Ronan's search activities.

He thought he was an opinion leader, but he was just a scapegoat pushed to the forefront by a group of people. And the reason he was chosen to lead the group was not because his nonsense made any sense, but simply because he had some connection with Ronan.

At the time, Ronan didn't want to argue with him, but he got agitated, and then Ronan's men shot him.

With just one shot, everyone scattered. Ronan personally took him to the only reliable doctor in Wright City. If Ronan hadn't personally taken him, no doctor in Wright City would have dared to treat him.

In the end, he still died.

His wife ran away the next day, leaving behind Alice and her sister, two little girls, whom Ronan adopted.

"Elena, you speak," Ronan said, asking Elena to explain the situation.

Elena replied, "After you left, Alice investigated the Seafir people as you instructed. At first, she didn't find anything through the people at the Fisheries Conservation Department, but later she learned about some anomalies from some gamblers, and then..."

Ronan raised his hand to interrupt Elena's narration, "Get to the conclusion."

"According to Alice's investigation, some of the Heidi people in Wright City are buying dry food and building ships privately."

Elena stated the conclusions of Alice's investigation.

Ronan stroked his chin, lost in thought.

Dry rations, shipbuilding? Are the Haidi people about to flee and migrate?

The question is, can they escape? Heading south, let alone reaching the northern end of the Southern Road, even if they do, those small countries would be eager to slaughter them to curry favor with the Kingdom. Heading west, the entire route is the Kingdom's coastline. Although the Kingdom only has some old and dilapidated warships here, they can easily take down fishing boats.

Could it be that the Haidi people are heading east to the Vena Federation?

“I understand,” Yvette suddenly clapped her hands and exclaimed, “Ales was planning to betray the country from the very beginning.”

As soon as she said that, apart from Ronan who was still looking down, playing with his beard and thinking, everyone else—including Dinia sitting quietly in her chair, Agustina idly fiddling with Pierre's collection of antique swords, Elena who had just been talking, the fat Pierre sitting on the floor clutching his bandage, and Alice who had just stepped into the room carrying a tray of tea—was also present.

Everyone froze for a moment, their gazes unanimously focusing on Yvette.

"Ales knew a city lord in the northern part of the Venaya Federation. After losing in the power struggle, he probably had some ideas. However, he didn't have any bargaining chips. He had no money or connections. Even if someone was willing to take him in, he would be useless abroad. It would be better for him to just stay in the country and wait to die. But by chance, he came across something that was very valuable to the Haidi people. So he managed to get the position of mayor of White Star City."

"After arriving in White Star City, he contacted the Haidi people and then took control of the secretary-general. Then he began his plan. First, he needed money, which he obtained through smuggling copper. But money alone was not enough. A wealthy foreigner was just a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered. So he also planned to have a group of Haidi people follow him. The Haidi people were helpless and alone when they arrived at the place, so they could only rely on him."

“This also explains why the Haidi people were willing to take the blame for smuggling; since they were going to escape anyway, they didn’t care about admitting to being the mastermind.” Yvette finished speaking and then looked specifically at Ronan.

At this, Fat Pierre began to tremble violently again. It was all over, all over.

Involvement in smuggling and collusion with foreign powers are not a big deal; at worst, it costs a lot of money. But being suspected of helping an official of a kingdom commit treason is not a problem that money can solve, because an official's defection is a disgrace to the king. If you dare to disgrace the king, he will make you lose your life.

With a hiccup, fat Pierre collapsed onto his back and passed out.

“Miss Orion is right,” Ronan said, clearly agreeing.

However, I don't entirely agree. The Haidi people seemed too foolish throughout the whole affair. Perhaps in the eyes of most people in the kingdom, and even a considerable portion of the locals, the Haidi people were just like the people of those small countries across the river, only good at fishing and singing, poor and lazy, and they didn't believe in their incomparably great Seven Saints Cult. It's normal for them to be foolish.

But Ronan doesn't think so.

Chapter Fourteen: Turning Black into White, Splitting into Two Groups, I Was Careless

The Haidi people have their own civilization, and it has been passed down through generations; anyone who gets to know them will understand this.

However, their population is too small and they are stubbornly conservative. As a result, the vast majority of the Haidi people have not received any education. Even members of the priesthood only have a small portion of the inherited knowledge, and much of this knowledge is so incomprehensible that even they themselves do not understand it.

They've lived on this beach for centuries, and even their rituals, apart from their musical talents, seem to outsiders to be no different from those of uncultured country folk.