Chapter 275: Chapter 201: Interested in Developing in the Empire? (Part 2)
"Hatred... your body is crawling with indescribable hatred..."
Perceiving such a bizarre scene, Elma’s tail fur stood on end, and he was almost frightened to jump back, instinctively arching his back towards the Imperial Count.
"And those hatreds are ’alive’!"
Elma only felt his scalp tingle and instinctively moved a bit further away from the other party: "They’re constantly cursing your soul!"
What kind of resilient soul could bear such an unending curse and hatred?
Countless faces continued to squirm outward, and a fragmentary phantom figure seemed about to crawl out of the Count’s body.
Elma instinctively clenched the Philosopher’s Stone given to him by Lord Lin Lan, and in the next second, light patterns extended up his arm, as the overlapping silhouettes seemed to see something terrifying beyond comprehension, emitting frantic cries of extreme fear.
At the same time, a mechanical arm suddenly reached over, gripping the figure’s neck tightly, forcibly pressing it back into the Count’s body.
Wretched wails and curses began to rise and fall.
"You Fes people truly are gifted and exceptional,"
A voice of admiration sounded in Elma’s ear.
Elma looked up, and through the power of the Philosopher’s Stone, he discovered that the youth before him was merely a cold ’prosthetic carrier’.
A solemn, cold soul with white hair down to the waist resided within the heart component, while those wailing, crawling, bizarre resentments clustered and wandered around the heart as residual shadows.
The real ’Elio’ looked outside through the heart’s cockpit, his eyes full of appreciation.
Elma hesitated for a moment, cautiously approaching the Imperial Count’s side.
"Do you need a Philosopher’s Stone?"
He offered the Golden Crystal Stone in his hand toward the Count: "Perhaps Lord Lin Lan has a way to help you dispel them."
"Thank you for your kindness, but it’s unnecessary. These traitors to civilization who turned to the Celestial Calamity still have some use for me."
The young-looking, white-haired Imperial Count merely shook his head: "Besides, I’ve long gotten used to their murmurs. If there were no sounds by my ears, I wouldn’t be able to adapt."
Boos stood to the side, forever with a puzzled expression.
What are these two talking about? Why can’t I understand a single word?
The atmosphere became slightly strange, and Elma withdrew again, moments later, the shop owner placed steaming, fragrant fish meat on the dining table.
"Care for some?"
Elio gulped down his beer in large swigs, smiling as he invited, but Elma, still in a bristling state, refused to come over despite his craving.
"Lord Elio, the Feis Race is inherently fragile and timid."
Seeing the atmosphere tense, Boos mustered the courage to softly mediate: "Perhaps you scared him..."
"Inherently fragile and timid? Ha... that’s the most ridiculous lie I’ve heard lately."
Elio shook his head, putting down his beer glass, and looked at Boos, his tone turning grave: "Do you know what the ’phenomena’ they can perceive mean to ordinary people?"
Boos shook his head puzzled.
"Young people like you, if you could see the world through Fes eyes, within just half a day, your soul would be torn to fragments by the pollution of the Celestial Calamity."
Elio spoke calmly.
Boos’ throat bobbed up and down, were the seemingly silly Fes truly so formidable?
"The fact proves that the souls of the Feis Race are obviously far more resilient than ordinary people."
"Come to think of it, it’s truly absurd that in the Southern Alliance, the Feis Race is almost constantly soaked in the pollution of the sea, enduring the erosion of the Celestial Calamity every day..."
Elio exclaimed sincerely, instinctively cursing: "And under such conditions, the Alliance Chamber of Commerce actually treats the Feis as low-class citizens, making them do (Imperial curse) the hard work?!"
"Tsk tsk tsk... are the senior officials of the Alliance simple-minded fools, or are they deliberately suppressing the Feis Race?"
Elio smacked his lips, his gaze flickering: "What are they really afraid of?"
Speaking of which, during the southern maritime war, the Empire once dredged up some very interesting treasures along the Alliance’s nearby routes.
Elio recalled carefully, among that pile of treasures was a slab engraved with a bas-relief.
——An ancient black beast with the same tails and ears as the Fes People guarding a sword-like tomb, covered in wounds by the thorns of the glamorous flowers climbing the tomb.
Elma’s expression was somewhat bewildered.
"No matter what, you were actually held back by overly powerful racial abilities, but now you’ve broken free from this shackle under the protection of Lord Lin Lan, how interesting..."
Elio suddenly offered an olive branch: "Are you interested in developing in the Empire? Elma?"
So this was his true purpose.
"Soon, the Imperial Legions dispatched by the two Dukes will arrive at Ark Island, and Lord Lin Lan has decided to send a batch of technical personnel to the Empire to advance relations between the two countries."
The Imperial Count said with a smile, "When the time comes, as long as you’re willing to come with me, I can arrange for you to participate in the improvement work of the Empire’s giant structure. You can earn eight hundred Black Soron a month, which... translates to sixteen hundred Ark coins at the agreed exchange rate."
Boos, standing nearby, was taken aback and opened his mouth wide.
Wait a minute, is Elio planning to poach Ark’s talent?
What shocked him even more was the price Elio offered, eight hundred Black Soron a month? What a joke.
It’s important to know that the Empire’s system has always been strict, and the vast majority of hard-working imperial officials don’t receive such high remuneration.
"I won’t make any promises to you."
Elma shook his head firmly at this moment: "I will only adhere to Lord Lin Lan’s arrangements on this matter."
The appreciation in the Imperial Count’s eyes grew stronger.
"Don’t worry, I was just casually mentioning it, it’s not a strong demand."
Elio laughed: "But as long as you’re willing, the Empire’s doors will always be open to the Feis."
Elma’s expression still showed no hesitation.
Ark Island will forever be their little nest, and all the Feis students think this way. Even Mentor Yi Feng spends all day contemplating how to move the entire Silver Moon Academy here...
"These Roro fish are left for you, be sure not to waste food."
The Imperial Count still had a kind expression on his face. He slowly stood up: "Let’s go, Osguta."
Only then did Elma and Boos realize that another tall man had been standing in the shadows.
The isolated envoy followed in the steps of the Imperial Count, and their figures soon disappeared into the smoke-filled night.
Boos finally came to his senses, letting out a long breath, realizing he was drenched in cold sweat. Now, he just wanted to return to his dorm, take a shower, and get a good night’s sleep.
He had never communicated face-to-face with such a big figure like the Count before; today was the first time...
Clearly, this was something worth bragging about, but Boos felt inexplicably complex since the talent the other party valued wasn’t him at all.
If he had the courage to stay working on the giant structure, would he have received Elio’s recognition?
Boos turned back somewhat wistfully, and found that Elma had already swallowed a portion of Roro fish...
"Are you going to eat more?"
Elma winked at the new friend.
Boos: ...
Sometimes he truly envied the Fes Race’s simple mindset and hearty appetite.
·
"Alas, I find myself ultimately unable to converse with young people... I’m not old, right?"
Elio was still rambling on, while Osguta remained as silent as ever, patiently listening to his superior’s endless babbling.
"Osguta, do you think we could steal Ark’s talent and run?" Elio joked.
Osguta then responded in a low voice: "Sir, I have no doubt that without a Golden Navigator in command, the Black Dream Legion would surely be easily crushed by Ark’s warriors."
"You, this cold and serious guy, really don’t give the Empire any face..."
Elio shook his head helplessly, but he did agree with Osguta’s judgment deep down.
He could see that those exaggeratedly built Golden Armored Warriors at Ark were not just a show; every single one of them was a skilled master who had gone through life-and-death battles.
In just half a year, they’ve grown to what they are now, yet it’s unclear how that old monster, Lord Lin Lan, managed to train them...
But Ark is just a small nation; even if it develops rapidly, the area of its land still determines the upper limit of its growth.
Elio firmly believes that under Lord Frost Falcon’s maneuvering, Ark will most likely become part of the new Empire.
Then, wouldn’t it be easy and effortless to acquire outstanding personnel?
