Under the stunned gaze of the ministers, the young Hydral spoke to the slightly startled empress:

“Judging from the current situation, the outcome is clear. You have already won.”

“…” Evora was stunned for a moment, then roared in anger, “Ansel, you’re talking bull**! What are you saying —”

“Silence.” The empress interrupted Evora’s words with a cold and cruel gaze and tone, then turned to look at Ansel again, cleared her throat slightly, and her tone improved a lot, “Ansel, continue.”

“First of all, we can confirm one thing, that is the strength of the Black Knight.”

Ansel smiled calmly: “If they hadn’t overly pursued drama, then the Watson territory would have been annihilated in the first place, and no one can deny this.”

The empress nodded: “It should be so.”

“But you are kind and tolerant, Your Majesty. The drama of this war, um…game, let’s temporarily regard it as your mercy to the Watson territory, as an opportunity you gave them out of compassion.”

The elderly empress slightly changed her posture, propped his cheek with one hand, and the corner of her mouth slowly rose: “Well said, if it weren’t for this, it would be too boring.”

“Even so,” Ansel smiled, “the Watson territory exhausted all their extraordinary beings and did not shake the Black Knight at all. Even if the Tower of Babel used a special weapon, they still fell into the trap of the Etheric Academy in the end.”

“Well, it is because of some…technical errors in the Etheric Academy…”

His words changed the faces of the Etheric Academy members present, but Ansel didn’t care and continued: “That turned things out this way.”

“In other words — the subsequent events were just uncontrollable accidents.”

The young Hydral raised his index finger and said with a gentle smile: “Because the Watson territory did not ‘defeat’ the Spirity Lake territory at all. After all, even if the Black Knight was defeated, the extraordinary beings in the Spirity Lake territory would be enough to crush the Watson territory.”

“Since the Watson territory did not defeat the opponent at all, how can we talk about victory?”

“Go to hell, Ansel!” Evora’s eyes were so full of hatred that she seemed to want to eat Ansel alive, “The outcome of a war is never determined until the last moment!”

“But this is not a war, Your Highness.”

Ansel spread his hands helplessly, “The Black Knight is the main reason for the chaos in this situation, but is it Your Majesty who makes the Black Knight like this? Is it Your Majesty’s mistake? No, no no… the Black Knight…wasn’t it the Etheric Academy that took a lot of resources from Your Majesty to build?”

“So how could the one who made a mistake, the one who failed, be you, Your Majesty?”

Sophistry.

This is obvious, undeniable sophistry.

“…”

Evora stared at Ansel for a long time, then suddenly fell silent.

Yes, this is sophistry, but so what? The empress doesn’t care, or to put it another way, she is probably so senile now that she can’t hear that this is sophistry and takes it seriously.

Isn’t that even better?

On the surface, the empress thinks she has won, suppressing her daughter’s arrogance and feeling relaxed and happy.

In fact, the Elder Princess knows she has won. Although she can’t get through on the surface, she has saved her face under such difficult and unfair conditions, and everyone knows it.

Isn’t this a win-win situation!

As for the Etheric Academy…they are big and powerful, and it doesn’t matter if the empress burns them a bit, after all, it’s not us who are being burned.

This outcome is obviously much better than giving both sides a step down, going down on the surface, but the bomb is still buried there.

Looking at the increasingly relaxed smile on the empress’s face, the ministers and nobles all sighed in their hearts — as expected, Lord Ansel is still the most reliable one, it would be better if the process wasn’t so scary.

“Hehehe…Ansel, you understand best who won and who lost in this game.”

The empress disdainfully glanced at her daughter. Seeing the latter silent and head bowed, her satisfaction grew. She turned his gaze to Ansel, speaking in a genial tone, “This game has brought me great pleasure. You are the chief contributor. Although Flamelle can give you everything you desire, I must also reward you. Speak, what do you require?”

Ansel smiled, “Indeed, there is something I wish to request from you.”

“What is it?”

“The Spirity Lake territory.”

The young Hydral spoke softly, “I believe it’s time to expand Hydral’s territory. We need a group of residents and capable individuals. Although the Spirity Lake territory has achieved victory, the final outcome has somewhat tarnished your glory. Strip him of his territory, retain only his title, and then incorporate him and his people into my territory.

This will satisfy my needs and serve as a punishment for Ferdinand.”

“Is that all?” The empress frowned slightly, seemingly displeased that Ansel asked for so little, “But you do indeed enjoy managing territories, so be it then—”

Her words abruptly halted, her gaze lingering momentarily on the always silent Suellen, then shifting to Evora, her face once again breaking into a smile.

“No, a reward that brings me such joy cannot be so meager.”

Ephesande, resting her chin on one hand, spoke cheerfully, “You need capable people, right, Ansel?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Then, I will give you the Tower of Babel.”

In that instant, the temperature in the entire hall seemed to rise by at least twenty degrees.

Evora, who had been keeping her head slightly lowered since her “defeat”, slowly raised her head, her ferocity and madness clearly visible:

“What are you giving him?”

“Evora… who taught you to address me in such a manner?”

Evora’s chest heaved, the entire hall began to blaze with intense flames, but Ephesande made no move to stop it, instead watching her coldly, seemingly enjoying the spectacle of her daughter’s impotent rage.

In the end, Evora, who had not spoken a single word, transformed into flames and disappeared from the hall.

“Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh… Just an immature child.”

The empress laughed merrily, then turned to Ansel, “Don’t mind her. From now on, the Tower of Babel is yours.”

“Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty.”

Ansel bowed slightly in respect to the Emperor.

From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of that demure and dignified young princess, who winked at him.

This absurd war… no, game, has finally come to the most perfect conclusion under the mediation of our kind and sensible Lord Ansel. And everything that follows is what the nobles need to consider.

The empress is on the brink of collapse, she is destined to throw herself into the Flamefeast, a choice that every emperor will inevitably make. Once Evora ascends to the throne, no one wants to become the old dynasty replaced by the new one.

Considering the situation, the situation of the current Hydral is not optimistic, and he seems to have arrived at the capital. It’s time to make contact.

As for the two next-generation divine beings…

After this incident, the relationship seems to be completely falling apart.

*

“Ansel… Ansel! My good man!”

At this moment, the two people who were considered by the ministers and nobles to have “fallen apart” were passionately kissing by the door.

–>