Darkstone Code

Everyone in the office had their own thoughts. For the conservative politicians, even though they lost, they wouldn't admit it. They didn't lose in the political race but to the changes of the times.

In the past few years, when isolationism was rampant, no one ever said they were wrong, let alone mentioned nonsense like "escapism," so they lost to the changes of the times, something beyond human control.

Though, to a certain extent, they indeed lost; the Progressive Party took the stage and began to rule, this doesn't mean they can do nothing.

If they don't show some value of their existence, the people who still stand on the conservative political stance might abandon them, and these people are crucial to the current Conservative Party.

They are the seeds of their next victory, and the best way to keep these seeds is to continue speaking out.

The capitalists have differing opinions as well; they don't consider as much as the politicians, they are just worried that once the Federation Navy and Gafura Navy go to war — even just a minor clash.

If the Federation Navy loses, their cargo ships sailing on the sea and future long-distance trade will be threatened and exploited.

Outsiders would perceive the weakness of the Federation Navy, and some small countries that the Federation disregarded in the past might interfere with Bail Federal's trade on the sea, harming their interests.

Actually, the current situation is quite good; no one is exploiting them, except for occasionally encountering some small-scale pirates; they have no real rivals.

Under these circumstances, the people in the room unified their thoughts for different reasons — for the time being, they couldn't go to war with Gafura's navy or Preton's pirate group.

"...No one can be more sincere or offer better terms than us!"

In another room, Mr. Truman, some Ministry of Foreign Affairs personnel, some International Policy/Affairs Office staff, and Lynch were sitting on one side of the negotiation table, negotiating with the delegation from Nagariel.

Lynch was not qualified to participate in such vital diplomatic negotiations, nor was he likely to have the chance to sit at the negotiation table, which meant he had a chance to speak, yet he is only twenty-one, more than four months away from turning twenty-two, he was still too young, even though he now holds the title of a "young leader."

But Mr. Truman insisted against all odds, letting him sit at the negotiation table. After interacting with him during this period, he found Lynch to be a truly unique bastard.

His ideas are not just radical, but extremely dangerous, as if as long as there's something that sufficiently attracts him, starting a war would be a trivial matter to him. However, it must be said, his thoughts, and his attitude, are quite appealing.

"For the great revival of the Federation!"

This phrase still often appears in Mr. Truman's mind, always stirring his calm heart.

Regardless of what Lynch's intentions were for saying these things, whether to satisfy his own grasp for benefits, at least from the current perspective, his actions wouldn't bring disaster to Bail Federal, but rather could benefit more people.

Capable, thoughtful, with no core interest conflicts, why not use him?

Having scored a point in a "game," Truman had fully replaced the position of the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in this diplomatic negotiation, with him fully in charge of the subsequent negotiations.

It is said the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs has another appointment, possibly needed for western development.

Coming to his senses, Mr. Truman looked at the delegation from Nagariel across the negotiating table, slightly frowning. After that night's incident, the Nagariel delegation's attitude had changed in a peculiar way, becoming ambiguous.

This change was easily perceptible, actually from their willingness to send a delegation to Bail Federal to discuss establishing diplomatic relations, in essence, they had already agreed to establish diplomatic relationships.

Even if some minor unpleasantness occurred, it would at most result in demanding more concessions than before, rather than becoming indecisive.

Something must have happened within these two days to change their perspective.

Sitting at the end, Lynch carefully observed these delegation members; he too sensed their change, much like when aiding those girls in need, where everything had been agreed upon and just about to commence one-on-one assistance, the girl in need suddenly utters, "Isn't this not right."

This absolutely wasn't to create heated atmosphere or to seek more benefits, but rather her true attitude had shifted.

"We've been carefully considering these issues for the past two days..." One of the more important representatives from the Nagariel delegation cleared his throat, looked at the others, pondering his phrasing (to be translated by the translator), "From what we've seen of these contents, I feel it's not enough to allow both sides to establish a foundation of mutual friendship and assistance."

"Furthermore, the incident two days ago has made us aware that, for the people of the Federation, establishing diplomatic relations with Nagariel might not be a suitable option, making our bilateral relations unstable for a certain period in the future."

The person speaking wasn't sitting upright; he leaned back on his chair, elbows on the chair arms, fingers interwoven, "We all know, the Federation is a free country, where the people's final will affects the general trend, it seems we're still lacking some necessary groundwork..."

Lynch lightly coughed, interrupting the representative from Nagariel. This action is indeed very impolite in diplomatic negotiations, drawing all eyes onto Lynch.

Even some staff looked towards Mr. Truman, and through their gaze, Mr. Truman could read their thoughts, that as long as he nodded, Lynch would be removed.

But he didn't do so; he wanted to see what Lynch was going to say, perhaps it might help break the current deadlock.

This is already the third day without any progress; this matter cannot be dragged for too long.

If it took endless attempts or was impossible to establish relations with even a small country, this... might become a new joke in the Federation's diplomatic history.

No one stopped him, and Lynch, with his audacity reaching beyond the skies, let himself go entirely. His first sentence dramatically changed the room's atmosphere, "Did Mr. Preton get in touch with you?"

Compared to the face of the Nagariel diplomatic representative sitting in the main position, which showed little expression change, the faces of the two at the end briefly displayed anger, which Lynch caught.

"Did he offer you conditions that are hard to refuse?"

Without waiting for Nagariel's people to deny or say anything, Lynch continued talking to himself.

"He might have said he would increase your dividend ratio in Nagariel's specialty products' profits, perhaps lower the costs of imported goods, even promised to introduce some outdated but necessary industrial production lines for you."

"He might also have agreed to help you gradually improve some industrial foundations annually, or even offer some military aid on the ocean..."

Mr. Truman and Lynch both stared at the face of the representative from Nagariel.

Despite the representative's unchanged expression, this was actually the biggest change; sometimes keeping composure is important, but at times keeping too much composure can cause issues.

When Lynch placed the country of Nagariel under a merchant, they still remained indifferent instead of getting angry, which was informative.

If anyone dared to say Gafura needed to obey a pirate to roam freely on the ocean, that pirate and all related forces would be uprooted by Gafura the next day to prove that these viewpoints are incorrect.

Nagariel's representative didn't respond in that way; he could remain composed, regardless of his inner feelings, but he was too composed.

Lynch glanced at Mr. Truman, pursed his lips, and also eased his posture, lighting a cigarette, "Did Mr. Preton tell you that Gafura's navy is backing him?"

Now, some changes finally appeared on the face of the Nagariel representative, further confirming to Lynch and Mr. Truman that Preton had met these people secretly.

After saying "sorry," Mr. Truman stood up and exited the room. If Mr. Preton had contacted the delegation privately, this also means he is likely within the territory.

He needed to instruct the Security Committee to quickly organize a force to trace Preton's whereabouts, and if possible, ensure he's kept within the Federation as he would be a very significant actor, his value far exceeding the negotiations with Nagariel.

There's no secret in the political domain; now the top of the Federation, important politicians, and anyone with a stake in this matter almost all know Preton is backed by the Gafura Royal Navy. He's a very critical character, and if his mouth could be pried open, perhaps some surprising secrets could be discovered.

A dark battle was unfolding outside the room, while inside the room, Lynch was launching a more ferocious attack.

He wore a slight smile, one that wasn't as pure and transparent as in the past, making him seem more sunny.

At this moment, his smile made him appear frivolous, rather disdainful, somewhat arrogant, as he slightly raised his chin, looking at the representatives and other members from Nagariel with a condescending glance and attitude.

He blew out a puff of smoke, smacked his lips slightly, "It looks like he offered you an offer you couldn't refuse, but gentlemen, have you considered?"

"Could it be that our terms are so easily refused?"