Civilization: Beyond Two Worlds

274 Overbearing Request

Captives.

The expressions of the human representatives sitting changed slightly and they exchanged glances.

This was a brilliant move. As expected of the work of the elves.

Using living captives to exchange for dead bones was undoubtedly a good deal.

If Kang De agreed, it was equivalent to using a group of relatively worthless Goethe captives to calm the greatest storm.

If Kang De did not agree, it would be even better. In His Highness Kang De’s eyes, the safety of his fellow Goethe people who had bravely fought and been captured was not comparable to some gold coins. Goethe people, what do you think?

Kang De’s expression did not change as he said indifferently, “Eh, you still keep captives? This is the first time I know. I thought that every time you win a battle, the first thing you do is slaughter the city and the captives.”

He glanced at Tagris and the Sage beside him, Elandir, and said as if nothing had happened, “Then, the middle and lower-level officers and nobles of the elves went to the city to capture children to eat, and the high-level officers and nobles went around to capture strong or ugly males of inferior races to perform art with their wives.”

Hong San immediately bit his hand. Leona’s cultivation was a little inferior. Although she barely closed her mouth, she still laughed like a fart.

The other humans and elves looked at each other. Only the members of the banquet last night could understand this joke.

Elandir’s face instantly turned the color of a pig’s liver. He looked at Kang De, his eyes filled with intense grief and indignation as if to say, “I’m not, I’m not.” Tagris’s expression did not change, but his right hand was removed from the table as if nothing had happened and moved to his thigh. His shoulder moved slightly as if he was twisting the flesh on his thigh.

A moment later, the Sage could not help but lower his voice in protest, “Your Highness Kang De, please don’t casually slander and fabricate rumors to slander the Twilight Dynasty!”

Kang De widened his eyes. “How can you slander others for no reason? When did I spread rumors?”

Elandir said angrily, “The elves are not a barbaric and bloodthirsty race. We’re the leaders of the civilized world. We can’t allow any actions that violate justice to happen in the sacred royal army…”

Before he could finish, Kang De raised his hand with a strange expression and said, “Wait, wait, oh my god, I’ve never made this rumor!”

The humans present were stunned, then they roared with laughter. Be it whether they were amused or not, whether they felt that it was funny, they all acted very cooperatively.

Everyone slapped the table and stomped their feet, laughing wildly until tears flowed.

On the one hand, it was to give Kang De face. On the other hand, opportunities to mock the elves did not appear every day.

The expressions of the elves changed.

Even if he had been mentally prepared and had already realized it, he still felt indescribable anger and humiliation when he really faced it.

When had the elves been teased, humiliated, and amused by the enemy at the negotiation table?

How many years had it been since such a thing had happened? Or had it ever happened even once?

For a moment, they glared at Kang De. Their gazes were like sharp knives as if they wanted to cut this detestable Cathayan into pieces.

Elandir should be able to deal with such a situation with ease, but the Elven Sage had just been stunned by Kang De. The impact of the night banquet and the conversation after had still not dissipated. If he was careless and passive everywhere, it would really be a huge humiliation.

Amidst the wild laughter and jeering of the humans, Tagris’ expression still did not change.

He slowly said, “Elandir’s words are correct. The Twilight Dynasty will definitely not allow any cruel and barbaric actions to appear in the divine army…”

Without waiting for Kang De to answer, he stood up and said seriously, “The army general who commanded and led all this has an undeniable responsibility for the massacre in Valentine and the surrounding villages and towns.”

“The former commander of the Dusk Legion, Therlandron, was cruel and bloodthirsty. He killed civilians and committed an unforgivable sin. The council has already stripped him of all his military ranks and honor and chased him out of the army. His noble status was abolished and he was given an extremely harsh punishment. His crimes were announced to the entire kingdom.”

Looking around at the humans present, he said in a low voice, “I’ll repeat it again. The actions of individual scum can’t represent the entire Royal Army. We’ve already severely punished the officers who committed war crimes.”

“The Twilight Dynasty won’t avoid mistakes and has the determination and ability to correct them. I advise everyone here not to casually slander and frame them. We’ll use separate cases to judge the honor of the entire Royal Army.”

The human laughter gradually stopped.

The morale of the elves was slightly raised.

Tagris looked around at everyone, then sat down.

No matter the truth, his statement was blameless.

However, because his concept had changed and he had proposed peace negotiations in the council, he had betrayed the interest group he had previously been in and caused the anger of the big shots of the war faction. That was why he had been severely punished and deprived of everything for the crime of losing his master and humiliating the country. After being imprisoned, Therlandron was unwilling to accept the olive branch handed over by the peace faction and become the tool of the other faction. That was why he had cut off all hope of reviving.

Now, it was said that he had been severely punished for starting a massacre… As expected of politics.

Kang De knew that it was useless to dwell on this problem, so he only revealed a mocking smile.

Opposite him, Tagris seemed to have seen through his thoughts, but his expression did not change.

Last night, they had sat together almost intimately and argued, but now, it had become like this.

However, a human noble said angrily, “Is it enough to punish him?”

Elandir, who had just performed badly, adjusted his thoughts and looked over with a cold gaze. “Is it not enough?”

The other party gritted his teeth and said, “There are countless casualties in Valentine…”

“So what?”

Elandir stood up, his gaze arrogant and cold, “According to justice and the law, the Twilight Dynasty punished the soldiers who committed war crimes and gave him a legal punishment to warn the other officers and generals. That’s all—it has nothing to do with you, Valentine, or Goethe.”

This time, it was the humans’ expressions that changed drastically.

The other party’s meaning was very clear. It was very elfin and domineering.

Therlandron was dealt with because he had violated the laws of Twilight, not because he had slaughtered you Goethe people. This was the justice of the elves themselves, not justice for you Goethe people.

—Otherwise, are you worthy?

Without waiting for the human to answer, Elandir revealed a cold smile and released his aura. He was already middle-aged and past the age of showing off, but he had been very angry in the past two days.

“Could it be that you want the Twilight Dynasty to compensate Valentine for the collateral losses?”

He asked the obvious and pressed his hands on the table. He lowered his body and stared at the other party with an oppressive gaze. He smiled, “It’s not impossible. Let’s talk about it when your Goethe army kills its way into Twilight and takes down more than half of the country in March.”

The elves sneered in disdain.

The Goethe people’s faces turned red.

There was no more disdainful insult than this.

The elves’ continuous power projection on this continent continuously branded the power, history, culture, and other marks of the Twilight Dynasty on the citizens of the various races. All kinds of impressions were subtle and inexorable.

The Twilight Dynasty occupied this continent like the largest and most terrifying monster. Shadows were projected and enveloped everyone. Everyone knew the power of the elves.

The land was vast and there were many vassals in the colony. It was abundant in resources and wealth. Its military strength was above the world. The expeditionary army that had won continuously in Goethe was only a small portion of the huge war power of Twilight.

After the war erupted, almost all the Goethe people cursed their dreams and wanted the elves to have the same taste. However, as long as it was a slightly rational Goethe person, they were embarrassed to say things like counterattack and take down the capital of the elves… The difference in strength between the two countries was really too great.

Even the ruler of the human world, the powerful Empire, was extremely afraid of Twilight.

Not to mention a small duchy like Goethe.

Facing the disdain and provocation of the elves, they felt humiliated and angry, but they were still deeply helpless. It was as if they had stood up to resist the invasion, but they already knew the outcome in their hearts… Such despair and helplessness.

At this moment, these Goethe people woke up from their previous excitement and optimism. They were in high spirits in this negotiation, but that was not the case. The elves might not treat this defeat as a dangerous failure, and the Twilight Dynasty still held an overwhelming advantage in this war.

How could this not make people feel despair and disheartened?

However, at this moment, Kang De raised his hand and pressed it. His expression was calm and he did not lose his composure at all.

He said kindly, “Green Elf, sit down.”

However, the Elven Sage clearly could not understand the deeper meaning of this nickname. In fact, using green to represent a certain situation or state was a culture unique to China. It should have officially taken shape in the Yuan Dynasty. Even foreigners did not have this saying, let alone elves from another world.

However, it did not stop Elandir from seeing the mockery in Kang De’s eyes.

Without waiting for him to flare up, Kang De looked at the slightly dejected and angry Goethe person. He smiled and said, “I finally understand this Brother Green’s opinion. It means that they earned their own face. They punished the officers because the massacre was exposed. They felt very embarrassed, so they punished that elf commander to protect their face.”

“As for how many people died in Goethe and how many civilians Valentine was slaughtered, it’s not in their eyes because our country has been invaded and our citizens have been slaughtered. That’s our loss of face. They don’t care.”

“They only protect their face, and we have to earn our own face back.”

Everyone in Goethe understood this principle, but it was precisely because they understood that they were helpless and dejected.

“Hey, hey, hey.”

Kang De smiled. He knocked on the table and made everyone look at him. “Don’t cry. I’m not done yet. You can earn your own face—speak of which, didn’t I already earn it back?”

The elves were spectators and reacted faster. When they heard this, their eyes changed and the arrogant, proud, and disdainful expressions on their faces immediately froze. Then, the Goethe people reacted.

He had earned it back.

Where was it?

Outside the city, the five Dragon Flag Legions and 60,000 elf soldiers had a shocking victory.

The casualties of both sides could basically be said to be one life for another.

The Goethe people who had returned to their senses could not help but be enlightened. They looked at Kang De with more gratitude and respect. After the meeting ended, today’s answer and confrontation would be spread.

It was even more satisfying than Valentine’s speech.

Kang De glanced at Hong San. He was writing in shorthand and the recording pen on the table.

He looked at the elves again and at the pairs of angry but helpless eyes.

—What are you looking at? Haven’t you seen a ferocious man with a nuclear explosion?

“Enough.”

Tagris interrupted and looked at Kang De, “It’s meaningless to argue. Let’s return to the topic. Your Highness Kang De, the elves are willing to exchange the Goethe captives for the corpses of the fallen soldiers. We can exchange all the captives captured by the expeditionary army so far. What do you think?”

Kang De raised his eyebrows and said, “Wait, can captives be exchanged?”

Tagris’ expression changed slightly.

“If that’s the case, we have captives too.”

Kang De revealed his shining teeth, “We don’t have the habit of killing captives. The Dusk Legion that surrendered that day was not completely wiped out. We’re undergoing a selection interrogation. The elf soldiers who participated in the massacre of the civilians will be judged and executed by the people of Valentine…”

Duke Tiling’s expression changed. “You’re willing to exchange captives?”

“Yes and no.”

Kang De raised a finger, “Among the soldiers who surrendered in the Dusk Legion, I’ll choose a hundred seriously injured elf soldiers and 200 elves who committed very light crimes and did not participate in the massacre. Moreover, they’re the only children at home, so I’ll gather 300 elves…”

He smiled. “I’ll exchange all the Goethe soldiers captured by the Elven Expeditionary Force so far with you. This is a very fair deal. After all, the Twilight Dynasty is a responsible large country. They’ll do anything to save innocent soldiers, right? They’re only a group of human captives. How much can they be worth? It’s worth it even if I have to exchange all my captives for an elf, right? Isn’t it, Duke Tagris?”

Elandir protested, “That’s not fair!”

“Mr. Sage wants fairness? Alright, let’s exchange according to the ratio.”

Kang De said, “Then I’ll carve the words ‘this elf was exchanged for by Duke Tagris and the higher-ups of the expeditionary army with a vulgar, lowly, ugly, and stupid Goethe soldier’ on the faces of every elf soldier I exchange for it as a memento. Don’t look at me like that. You can also stab the face of the Goethe captive with the words ‘this Goethe soldier was exchanged for a noble, elegant, and pure honor’. I don’t mind.”

“Shameless!”

“Pervert!”

Elandir almost vomited blood.

Tagris was silent, his expression still unreadable.

He asked, “Since Prince Kang De has such a suggestion, I’m afraid you want Twilight to exchange the corpses of the elf soldiers for something else, right?”

Kang De nodded. “Yes, money. I need money. It’s because you forced me that I had no choice but to kill so many elves. This stained my hands with blood and my conscience. My young heart has been greatly hurt. I want compensation, mental damage, spellcasting consumption, war compensation…”

He continuously made up famous names. Tagris asked directly, “How much?”

Kang De snapped his fingers. “Hong San, give me a number.”

Hong San took out a piece of paper and glanced at it. He said seriously, “Duke, in view of the various unfair treatment and harm suffered by the elves, as well as the subsequent…”

Duke Tiling said coldly, “Tell me the result.”

Hong San swallowed and made his tone sound calm as he read the final conclusion.

“Therefore, with the Sovereign gold coins forged during the Light King’s era as the benchmark, we request the Twilight Dynasty to compensate His Highness Kang De with a total price of 18 million gold coins. At least half of the amount needs to be Sovereign gold coins or equivalent pure gold, and the other half can be compensated with the value of various resources…”