The Flame Elf Queen's words were beyond doubt a step put down for the Elf Sovereigns present to climb down by.
In fact it was a bit of patter Zhao Chen and the Flame Elf Queen had worked out together.
First Zhao Chen would name a startling "high price," and when the Elf Sovereigns could not accept it,
the Flame Elf Queen would step forward and throw out a "price" that looked fairly reasonable.
Zhao Chen said now too, "How many your side is willing to send is entirely up to your side's own wishes. Our Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire will never force it. From where I stand, naturally, the more help we can get the better. After all, everyone has seen for themselves our Owl Dragon interstellar legion fleets' fighting power. The one weakness is in numbers of interstellar warships. Our lack of scale in numbers holds us back in no few military operations. But the help of your side's interstellar legion fleets would be a very great help to us. Even fifteen million interstellar warships would be enough."
In that moment the meeting fell into a brief silence.
The Flame Elf Queen took the lead crisply: "Time is the chance for battle now! If we're going to take part in the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's military operational plan, we must make haste. There's no time for us to discuss it slowly here. So let's simply vote. All in favor of sending fifteen million interstellar warships to support the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's military operation, raise your hands."
When she had said this, the Flame Elf Queen raised her own hand outright.
Then she looked eagerly at the Bluewater Elf Queen and the Emerald Elf King.
As she had pictured it, the Radiant Elf King and the Nightglow Elf King she could not be sure of,
but these two Elf Sovereigns would most likely be willing to back her.
But the three-votes-to-two she had imagined did not come.
The only hand raised was the Flame Elf Queen's, alone.
The hope in the Flame Elf Queen's eyes faded little by little and turned to disbelief.
She looked at the Bluewater Elf Queen and the Emerald Elf King, baffled. "Marietis, Mansfield. Why don't you agree? This is a rare chance for us. So long as we can deal the Devourer Civilization a heavy blow this time and strike back at the Devourer Civilization's universe, not only can we lessen the Devourer Civilization's threat to us, we can raise our Holy Elf Empire's banner high again. In the not-distant future we might even hope to strike back at the Devourer Civilization's universe in full, and wipe out this claw of Order's for good……"
"Salaman, calm down. You're forgetting yourself." Gustav, the Radiant Elf King, spoke now, looking at the Flame Elf Queen evenly. "This matter weighs heavily on our Holy Elf Empire. We can't decide so easily to send these fifteen million interstellar warships."
Salaman, the Flame Elf Queen, looked at them in disbelief, but very soon the anger and bewilderment in her eyes faded, and a self-mocking look took their place.
The corners of her mouth turned up slightly, and she shook her head a little.
Seeing that look on Salaman's face, Zhao Chen beside her felt somewhat helpless inside.
That Salaman, the Flame Elf Queen, could talk with him so easily showed she was unlike the great majority of High Elves.
And the other Elf Sovereigns present were far more cautious.
It was not that they did not long to defeat the Devourer Civilization, but still more they were unwilling to take risks, even the slightest risk.
As the Flame Elf Queen had seen it, with so fine a chance, no one ought to hesitate or refuse.
But in fact the Devourer Civilization's threat to the Holy Elf Empire now was far less than before.
So the Elf Sovereigns' attitude now was all the vaguer.
Sending fifteen million interstellar warships into this sudden military operation looked to them like something very risky.
Zhao Chen had in fact thought of this long ago.
That was also why, when he had been asked to go as envoy to the Holy Elf Empire, Grand Marshal Charlotte's side had already foreseen the worst outcome.
As for why the Emerald Elf King and the Bluewater Elf Queen, whom the Flame Elf Queen thought would back her, had not declared themselves:
ordinarily, the Emerald Elf King and the Bluewater Elf Queen had both had close dealings lately, and had opened several kinds of cooperation with the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire.
So, as the Flame Elf Queen had seen it, these two would back her.
But what she had not understood was that these two belonged, in the end, to the faction in the Holy Elf Empire without a firm stance.
Had they had a firm stance,
the Emerald Elf King would long ago have found a way to break through the present barrier in technology; his greatest wish was to develop T7 technology of the Holy Elf Empire's own.
And the Bluewater Elf Queen would long ago have found a way to set up an interstellar alliance led by the Holy Elf Empire, to end the strife among the other universes' civilizations and develop and prosper together,[1]
instead of only being able to hand what she had achieved to the Owl Dragon Emperor, and fulfill the wish by the Owl Dragon Emperor's hand.
That alone showed well enough that these two Elf Sovereigns were, in nature, still the same as the other Elf Sovereigns.
They were unwilling to bear risk, so they would only do what they wanted within the bounds of risk they could control.
And that way, nothing would ever be done well.
By comparison, the decisive, frank Flame Elf Queen seemed rather out of place.
"Then may I ask what you Elf Sovereigns think? Are you unwilling to work with our Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire on this military operational plan? Or is there something else you're not satisfied with?" Zhao Chen asked straight out.
This direct question left the Elf Sovereigns unable to give an answer for the moment.
That was their irresolute character.
"Ahem, ahem, ahem; this matter is of great weight, and bears on the dispatch of over ten million interstellar warships. To have to decide it all of a sudden is truly rather hard for us. Might we be allowed some time to discuss it?" the Radiant Elf King came forward to say.
The Flame Elf Queen, beside them, clenched her fists; she truly wanted to stand up, grab these fellows, and ask each of them in turn:
time, time.
Every one of them needed time.
Did they not know that at a moment like this, time was vital?
Zhao Chen spoke directly: "I'm sorry; time is just what we're short of at a moment like this. Our Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's military operations that follow have to be properly arranged and deployed. That also depends on whether your side is willing to help us. So I must know at least an answer right now."
Seeing the Owl Dragon Emperor refuse him like this, the Radiant Elf King did not know what to say for the moment.
"Let me ask you one thing first. Are you willing now to send interstellar legion fleets to help us? Even if not fifteen million, only ten million, or five million, or even three million interstellar warships?" Zhao Chen lowered his demands step by step.
His gaze swept the Elf Sovereigns' faces too.
The Nightglow Elf King's expression had not changed all along, as if he did not care about the matter at all.
The Bluewater Elf Queen looked irresolute, as if very torn inside.
The Emerald Elf King seemed to be thinking about something else; his face had worn a look of thought all along.
The Radiant Elf King frowned, several times on the point of speaking, yet nothing came out.
"The Owl Dragon Emperor has made his stand plain. We don't need fifteen million interstellar warships. Can't we do even five million!" The Flame Elf Queen could not hold back; she stood up and slapped both hands on the table.
"Five million interstellar warships isn't many, true. But mind you, half a year ago we had only just helped the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire fight a campaign. We… need a little time to rest and refit too." The moment the Radiant Elf King said it,
the Flame Elf Queen could not help wanting to laugh.
Rest and refit?
Half a year?
The Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, after half a year's rest and refit, now dared strike back at the Devourer Civilization's home universe, and here they still were, agonizing over these things!
"Three million! Give me only three million interstellar warships, and I'll bear all the consequences alone!" the Flame Elf Queen said through gritted teeth.
The Nightglow Elf King spoke now, looking coldly at the Flame Elf Queen. "Bear them alone? How would you bear them, on the strength of being an Elf Sovereign? Don't forget: you can hardly protect yourself right now, and here you are sticking your neck out?"
At these words, Zhao Chen frowned slightly.
There seemed to be some meaning in them.
Zhao Chen looked at the Flame Elf Queen; perhaps he had overlooked something.
The Flame Elf Queen gritted her teeth. "Then one million interstellar warships; won't even that do!"
This time, before the Elf Sovereigns could speak,
Zhao Chen cut in; as things stood, he should not let the Flame Elf Queen stick her neck out again only to be snubbed.
"Since you Elf Sovereigns can't decide in a short time how many interstellar legion fleets to send into this military operation, are you and we still allies?" Zhao Chen asked in return.
"Of course we are. Our Holy Elf Empire has fought shoulder to shoulder with the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, and you and we are allies who've signed an agreement. This matter is a special one: you're attacking the Devourer Civilization's universe of your own accord, which isn't within what our signed agreement requires. If the Devourer Civilization sent legion fleets to invade and attack the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, we'd naturally have nothing to say, and would send legion fleets at once to support you and hold off the enemy's invasion," the Radiant Elf King said solemnly.
That was indeed true.
The alliance agreement the two sides had signed before did indeed require only mutual defense.
Zhao Chen said seriously, "I understand all that. Now, I won't insist that you decide at once to send legion fleets into our military operational plan against the Devourer Civilization's home universe. All we ask is that your side work with our operation to some degree."
"Work with it? How?" the Radiant Elf King asked.
Zhao Chen said, "First, move legion fleets from every quarter at once, as many as possible. Strike the pose of getting ready to start a war, mass at your key military points, and keep it secret from the outside. Create a tense atmosphere locally. Put simply, make whatever spies and moles the Devourer Civilization may have planted with you believe that you too have joined our plan to attack the Devourer Civilization's universe."