Revive Rome: Wait! Why not make the empress fall in love with me first?-Chapter 406 - 21 Task

Before the members of The Azure Longsword could finalize their plan, the Emperor had already sent someone looking for them.

"Looking for me?" Aske asked.

"Yes, looking for you, Lord Aske," the Royal Steward said with a beaming smile.

Following the Chamberlain to the building where the Emperor resided, the Blade Warrior began to disarm, starting with the swords and battle axe on his waist, then removed the short knives on his forearms, the gun holster over his chest, and finally, they found a row of throwing knives inside his tunic...

This guy’s got so many weapons on him!

With the previous assassination attempt in mind, the Blade Warriors’ search was extremely thorough this time, they were just short of asking Aske to strip down entirely. In the end, a special Extraordinary Ability User used an unknown Extraordinary Ability to monitor him once more, and only after confirming there were no issues did they let him in.

Two Blade Warriors flanked him, prepared to subdue him immediately should he make any sudden moves.

The Emperor stood in front of his desk in the study, looking down at the military map of northern Italy. Aske sharply noticed a large red circle drawn on the map, which, judging by the terrain, appeared to be the minefields in the north of Verona City, effectively sealing off the exit near the southern foot of the Alps.

Indeed, with money, one could do as they pleased these days; the Church Court could block tens of thousands of the Emperor’s troops with just these military preparations, leaving them no room to advance or retreat. freewēbnoveℓ.com

"You’re Aske?" the Emperor looked up.

This robust Emperor had blond hair, a prominent nose bridge, deep-set eyes, and skin on his cheeks and neck that was somewhat flushed red, the type that seemed extremely straightforward and rough like a Frankish old man.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Aske nodded slightly. Since he was not a vassal of the Emperor, there was no need to kneel on one knee.

"I’ve heard about you and your Mercenary Group," the Emperor slightly raised his chin and regarded him with a kind of uncomfortable attitude, "Apart from you, they all seem to be young and beautiful females."

"Yes." Aske didn’t know how many times he had explained this but responded very fluently, "Our group’s recruitment criteria are only two: strength or potential. Gender and appearance are not criteria for joining the group. What you see is just a coincidence..."

"Ha! No need to conceal it. From the first glance at you, I knew you were the same type as me, filled with ambition and possessiveness," the Emperor slapped the table and laughed heartily, "At least you’re not like those hypocritical Dukes who always address me as ’Your Majesty’ when they see me but think ’that crazy Frankish old man’ in their hearts."

He walked to the liquor cabinet next to him, "Care for a drink?"

"No thank you," Aske declined politely.

The Blade Warriors at his side sweated a bit, but the Emperor didn’t seem to mind, poured himself a glass of red wine, or perhaps wine, in any case, it was impossible to tell what brand or how precious it was, and he took a quick sip.

"In my younger days," the Emperor began, "I too had dreams of sleeping with many women and having even more children, so that I could ensure at least one child would grow up to be like me."

"Until my great, respectable father summoned me one day and said, ’Little Otto, I’ve arranged a marriage for you, the lady is Miss Theophano from the East Solomon Empire, truly noble and befitting your status yada yada.’"

The Blade Warriors present had their faces turn ashen, they almost wished they could cut their ears off right there, but the Emperor simply kept talking nonchalantly:

"So I had to say goodbye to my harem dreams. Although Theophano bore me four children, we lost one, and another died, leaving only a son and a daughter who grew up to adulthood."

"Then I guess your son must be very much like you," Aske said, complimenting him.

"Ha ha, flattery is not the style of us Franks. However, considering that you come from Constantinople, just like my Theophano, I shall generously forgive you." The Emperor’s eyebrows twitched, clearly enjoying his flattery.

"So, in fact, you don’t need too many women. For me, ruling an empire is difficult, but it’s much simpler than being in love with one woman. Even though my wife loves me a lot, her heart isn’t a hundred percent with me... probably only 84%, with the remaining 16% given to the children."

"That’s also why my Matilda and Otto grew up to be like me, a happy family is the most important guarantee for the healthy growth of children," the Emperor said, winking at him. "Too many women will only lead you to neglect one for the other. If you can’t satisfy your own women, how can you expect your children to respect you... you get what I mean."

"I understand," Aske said with a wry smile, but what is this all about!

"Back to the matter at hand," the Emperor said seriously, "although I still have many doubts about your mercenary group, since Duke Weisbach and the Dragon of Imagination are willing to vouch for you, I can only choose to trust their judgment. Since you are already in our ranks, you should know the predicament we face."

"I know, Your Majesty," Aske nodded, "The road to Verona City has been blocked by a minefield."

"It’s more than that," the Emperor denied, "Our greatest threat is not the minefield, but time... Lord Aske, we are racing against time. For every minute we take to break through the gates of Italy, one more tank or plane from the Church Court comes off the production line."

"Without a doubt, this will lead to more Frankish soldiers dying in the intense heat of war, and that could include you and the women around you. So, we need to resolve this minefield issue quickly, spurring the horses and racing against time, whether it’s by manual demining or going to Venice to find that demigod, do you understand?"

"I understand," Aske thought to himself that he wasn’t going to do manual demining, it seems like they were meant to find the demigod in Venice.

"Well," the Emperor nodded and smiled, "See, our communication is fluid, not like those deceitful dukes who always start and end with cumbersome and pretentious courtesies."

His expression turned serious: "Your team will go to the Venice City State for me, by any means necessary, bring that Demigod Member here, and I allow you to pick any bottle of Level III Magic Potion... Your team is made up of Level 8 or above Transcendents, right? You can choose any Magic Potion that the Saxon Family has. If it’s with other dukes’ families, as long as you can name it, I will also negotiate for you."

A Level III Magic Potion, the price is not bad, it’s the normal rate without any nepotistic ties. Aske nodded and said:

"I will not let you down, Your Majesty."

"Good," the Emperor said with satisfaction, changing his self-reference from ’We’ back to ’I’:

"I see that your team has not had a record of failed missions, and I too hope that this winning streak can continue. Albrecht?"

"I am here, Your Majesty," a knight walked in from outside, the very one who had been saved by everyone on the night of the Devil mutation.

"This is Knight Albrecht from the Weiding Family of Thuringia; he will be responsible for escorting you to Venice City," the Emperor said in a low voice. "Although I would also rather not have any conflict with Purgatory’s Jailer, but..."

"If anyone hinders your mission, in the name of the Empire, but kill without discussion!"

"Understood," Aske and Albrecht said in unison.

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