Revive Rome: Wait! Why not make the empress fall in love with me first?-Chapter 361 - 159 Showdown

At this point in time, it should be the middle to late stages of Version 2, "Divine Luo Civil War."

The competition between the two most significant forces within the Swabian Duchy, the Falcon Family and the Fishbone Family, was a crucial turning point in the main plot of Version 2.

The Fishbone Family has a tradition of opposing the Emperor, and it is said that the first Count of Fishbone was a ruthless person who consecutively offended three Divine Luo emperors. If not for the feudal practice of "I can’t do anything about the vassals of my vassals," this family, adept at marching towards death, would have long disappeared into the river of history.

Once the Fishbone Family emerged victorious in the Swabian civil war, according to the deductions of the history buffs, there was a high probability that the Fishbone Count would tighten his grip on Swabia and bargain with the Duke of Franconia, but it was unlikely that he would betray the Griffin Family—because the prospect of the Emperor’s Alliance moving south was even more daunting to him.

On the other hand, if the Falcon Family was victorious, the balance of the civil war would immediately tip.

Friedrich, the current Family Head of the Falcon Family, was quite a politically savvy noble, and he probably had seen early on that the Emperor’s victory in the civil war was inevitable.

Therefore, in the original game storyline, after initially seizing control of the Swabian Duchy with the player’s help, he promptly severed the connection between Franconia and Burgundy.

The quest chain that decided this critical node was known as "The Grand Chorus." There were eight methods to take up the quest chain, encompassing six faction forces, with as many as one hundred thousand players ultimately participating.

Sixty thousand helped the Falcon Family while forty thousand assisted the Fishbone Family, with the Falcon Family ultimately winning.

Of course, in this world, there were no players, so most of the antagonistic sub-quests within the quest chain would not be triggered, and both families would not engage in the intense, life-and-death struggle that players inflamed in the original storyline.

What Aske was currently doing, and what he was planning to do next, was quite simple: connect with several factions involved in the quests, to maximize the benefits as much as possible.

For instance, the "Spiritual Body Sect" line, where players associated with the Spiritual Body Sect could, after achieving a certain level of faction reputation, take up clues from the faction NPCs to conduct the "Coin in the Corpse" ceremony within the Swabian Duchy territory, thus summoning the Ferryman of the River Styx to accept the quest chain.

(With his status as a Prophet and his relationship with Thira, he naturally didn’t need to grind faction reputation and directly skipped the prerequisite quests.)

The next day, the three of them found Count Friedrich and hinted that their mission was complete.

"You also speak the truth," Count Friedrich mused, "It’s time to convene a family meeting again. After all, war is upon us, and whether we should fight or defend is indeed something that needs to be decided quickly."

"Although I am the Family Head, I still need to widely listen to the opinions of the family members, to gather collective wisdom before making a decision."

The three of them were nearly sick to their stomachs. Gather collective wisdom, my ass, all the opposition has been brainwashed, and now you’re talking democracy with us?

"What about our compensation?" Medea asked directly in her mind.

"I will transfer the agreed amount to the external account of the Lysine Company within a week," Friedrich responded.

Pffft! Medea almost burst out. What the hell is this, paying straight into Nora’s sister’s account!

She quickly exchanged a covert glance with Aske and Nora, and Aske reluctantly stepped forward to confirm and ask,

"My apologies for the impertinence, Count, but may I ask: if, after the family meeting, you decide to wage war externally, do you plan to stand with His Majesty the Emperor, or side with the Wolf and Griffin Families?"

Friedrich was somewhat surprised and turned his gaze to Nora. She merely smiled and said,

"His question reflects my sentiments as well."

This personal secretary... her position within the Lysine Group is higher than I imagined!

Realizing his previous oversight of this person, Friedrich immediately smiled and said,

"Mr. Aske, as I have said before, we currently only plan to focus on the affairs within the Swabian Duchy and have no rash intent to interfere in the Empire’s civil war..."

"But if the Falcon Family can successfully defeat the Fishbone Family, then gaining direct and indirect control over the entirety of the Swabian Duchy is only a matter of time," Aske bluntly pierced through the rhetoric, "The esteemed ruler of the Swabian Duchy... I fear neither side of the Empire’s civil war will allow you and your family to remain neutral."

Friedrich looked at Nora again, his gaze now bearing a slight chill, while Nora’s expression remained unchanged. She continued to smile, her voice soft yet firm as she said,

"Aske wants to know, and it’s also something I must understand."

Friedrich’s face darkened slightly, and after a long moment, he spoke,

"What if I say, I have no confidence in the Griffin Family?"

Nora kept smiling, silently.

"Though your Church Court stands with the Wolf Family, that still can’t change the internal situation of the Empire," Friedrich said earnestly. "The vast majority of Frank lords are neutrally supporting the Emperor. Just looking at the overall strength of both sides, at least in this civil war, I see no possibility of the Emperor’s defeat — only a swift victory or a stalemate."

"Unless the Church Court enters the fray," he continued with a shift in tone. "However, spring is near, and there have been no orders for conscription issued in Italy, perhaps due to the approaching Magic Tide, right? Under such circumstances, it would be even more unlikely for us to stand on a side with no possibility of victory."

"In other words," Aske asked for confirmation, "if the Falcon Family could control the Swabian Duchy, would you choose to stand with the Emperor’s Alliance and jointly attack the Griffin Family’s forces in Franconia?"

"I did not say that," Friedrich replied with a hint of sarcasm.

He neither admitted nor denied, the meaning was already clear enough. Besides, Medea was able to read minds, so Friedrich naturally did not need to speak more straightforwardly, but rather stared at Aske with a stern expression.

It would certainly be a pity if they couldn’t secure a deal for arms, but the Falcon Family would inevitably need to expand externally. As a "persuasion" for those opposed, Friedrich would of course pay the price — but limited to that alone.

"What he says is true," stated Medea’s mind reading results, confirming that the other party was not foolish enough to lie in front of someone with the Mind Reading Ability.

"Very well," Aske withdrew a letter from his sleeve and handed it to Count Friedrich.

"What is this?" Friedrich took the letter, noticing the Weisbach family crest on the seal, his expression briefly relaxed.

He quickly opened the envelope and rapidly read the contents before raising his head in disbelief:

"You’re not with the Lysine Group?"

"This has nothing to do with my family; it’s purely my personal stance," Nora said candidly.

"I see," Friedrich took only a moment to think, then immediately grasped the whole situation, smiling wryly, "Quite the clever rhetoric, Miss Nora."

"Fortunately, our stances align," Nora said with a smile.

"Yes," Friedrich nodded slightly, "About this matter, I will write a return letter, please convey it to the Weisbach family."

Success! Nora quietly breathed a sigh of relief in her heart; she would soon have the Will III Magic Potion from Eleanor.

Just as she was about to agree verbally, she heard Aske speak again:

"Before that, I would like to confirm one thing: does Your Grace intend to continue entrusting us with tasks?"

Continue entrusting? Didn’t I already entrust you to handle the opposition? Friedrich was momentarily taken aback, then quickly understood.

Their true objective was to facilitate an alliance between the Sorren and Weisbach families to jointly strike at the Duke of Franconia.

And under current circumstances, there were two factors preventing the Falcon Family from controlling the Swabian Duchy: an internal factor, being the anti-war voices within the family, which had been quelled with their assistance.

The other external factor was naturally the Fishbone Earl’s forces blocking the way north of Hexinger, which is to say...

"If you can take care of those people," Friedrich said seriously, "you would gain the friendship of the Sorren family, along with a corresponding substantial reward. The price is yours to name."

As long as he could control the Swabian Duchy, any amount of expenditure would be worthwhile. On the other hand, by making such a statement, Count Friedrich undoubtedly no longer treated the men of the Azure Longsword as envoys of the Weisbach family, but rather as his equal counterparts.

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