Chapter 302: Britannia’s Grand Plan

“If this is the answer you have given me…”

Victoria’s voice wasn’t loud, but strangely, it stirred up layers of echoes in the empty hall.

Everyone present, except for Master Graham, felt every word strike their hearts.

“Then I think the huge annual budget the Empire allocates to the War Office and the Foreign Office should perhaps be used to repair the sewers of London.”

The hall fell into silence.

Victoria’s words were somewhat harsh, but no one dared to defy this “Eternal Queen.”

When this ruler of the Empire toured the major colonies in the year of her accession, was assassinated in the North American colonies, and miraculously survived and remained forever young…

Queen Victoria’s popularity among the people instantly reached its peak.

The subjects of the Empire believed that compared to the so-called “Divine Arts” of the Papal States, what happened to their own Queen was the true “Miracle.”

And that upheaval gave Victoria far more than just this, but no one knew the specific details.

People only knew that from then on, the Highland Mage Corps, which had once rivaled the royal family, became loyal to the “Eternal Queen” and became one of the most powerful forces in her hands.

Precisely because of the support of the Highland Mages, the royal family’s control over this vast empire reached its peak, virtually forming the dictatorship of the “Eternal Queen.”

The Prime Minister, the Cabinet, the House of Lords and the House of Commons… became some kind of “messengers,” assisting the Queen in ruling the most powerful nation in the world.

Earl Horatio Herbert Kitchener, who was urgently recalled to the country after the outbreak of the war to serve as the Secretary of State for War, felt his back soaked with cold sweat.

He exchanged a subtle look with several colleagues around him, finally took a deep breath, and stepped forward.

This was something they had discussed before the audience—at times like this, someone had to step up and take the blame, otherwise everyone would be done for.

“Your Majesty, regarding the failure on the Western Front, the War Office has an inescapable responsibility…”

Kitchener lowered his head, his tone sorrowful but coherent: “But please allow me to explain. The collapse in the first month of the war was not due to the slackness of our soldiers, but the disparity in troop strength was simply too great.”

He raised his head and looked towards the throne: “Until Field Marshal French had to order a retreat to the Rouen defense line, our Expeditionary Force had been fighting against the Saxon First Army Group’s main force of nearly 400,000 with barely 100,000 troops…”

“With a four-to-one disparity in strength, plus the Gallic ally’s defense line collapsing completely at the first moment, we were indeed unable to support it alone.”

Victoria looked at him coldly and didn’t speak.

Kitchener knew this meant for him to continue, so he hurriedly sped up his speech: “But this situation will change immediately. The conscription work on the main island is proceeding very smoothly. The patriotic enthusiasm of the people is unprecedentedly high, and the nobles have also set an example by sending their children into the army…”

“As of yesterday, more than 1.5 million volunteers have completed registration and are undergoing recruit training in various training camps.”

“In addition, legions composed of garrisons from various colonies and local auxiliary troops are also about to arrive.”

Kitchener’s voice raised a few notches: “Once this massive fresh force arrives on the Europa continent, we will instantly level the troop disadvantage and even form an overwhelming numerical superiority in local battlefields… That will be the moment we launch a full-scale counterattack.”

The Secretary of State for War paused slightly, observed the Queen’s expression, and seeing she still had no intention of interrupting, continued: “Furthermore, our previous mission to capture the Teutonic Knights’ new weapon proceeded very smoothly. The Empire’s engineers have basically completed reverse engineering…”

“The production lines at the Birmingham factory have also been adjusted, and this new weapon will soon be put into production.”

“By then, the Saxons’ advantage in Armored Knights will cease to exist…”

Kitchener finished speaking, bowed slightly, and took a step back.

After the Secretary of State for War, who fired the opening shot, stepped down, Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey immediately took the baton.

“Your Majesty, although we have indeed suffered some setbacks on the battlefield in the month since the war broke out… we have actually achieved certain results on the diplomatic battlefield.”

Sir Edward Grey—Her Majesty’s most trusted Foreign Secretary—bowed and said: “Currently, the diplomatic team’s negotiations with the Kalmar Union, Romania, Greece, and Montenegro are proceeding very smoothly.”

He paused, deliberately emphasizing his tone: “And the Ottoman Empire. Although they were closer to the Saxon Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire before, under the efforts of our diplomatic staff… and the ‘assistance’ of several Highland Mages, the attitude of Constantinople has undergone a fundamental shift. They have basically agreed to join the Entente camp.”

When mentioning the “assistance” of the Highland Mages, Sir Grey’s tone was somewhat subtle, but everyone present knew well what that meant.

As Sir Grey finished speaking, seeing no one else speak for the moment, First Lord of the Admiralty Churchill also couldn’t wait to stand out.

This stocky minister always wore an aggressive confidence on his face.

“Your Majesty, once the four Balkan countries headed by the Ottomans join the war, the Royal Navy can execute a combat plan that has already been drawn up.”

Churchill waved his arms as if the huge operation map was right in front of him: “We will coordinate with the Army to launch an unprecedented amphibious landing operation in the underbelly of the Balkans! Like a sharp knife, inserting directly into the soft underbelly of the Austro-Hungarian Empire!”

“Right now, the Austro-Hungarian Empire’s offensive in Serbia is frustrated. If these four countries form a coalition force to attack, plus our landing troops in the Balkans… the Austro-Hungarian Empire will face the desperate situation of being attacked from both sides!”

“Not only that.”

Secretary of State for War Kitchener took over the conversation at this moment: “The situation in Russia on the Eastern Front is also excellent. The coalition forces of Kolchak and Denikin are encircling and suppressing the last rebels. Once they free their hands, the eastern border of the Saxon Empire will face tremendous pressure.”

“At that time, if the northern Kalmar Union can blockade the North Sea and the Baltic Sea as we envisioned, and even send troops south to force Saxony to divide its forces to defend the northern coastline… their strength on the Western Front will be greatly weakened!”

“This is pulling one hair and the whole body moves!”

Churchill, who always liked to perform and show off in the eyes of other ministers, summarized: “The military strength of the Saxons on the Western Front will be greatly weakened, and that will be our opportunity to drive them completely back home!”

The ministers spoke one after another, painting a grand blueprint for a strategic counterattack.

It was as if the suffocating cloud of failure just now had been largely blown away by this impassioned strategic vision.

However, Victoria’s expression on the throne did not change in the slightest.

She listened quietly to everyone’s reports, her fingers gently tapping the armrest, making crisp “tap, tap” sounds.

“Grand plans, perfect strategies.”

Victoria finally spoke, with a hint of faint mockery in her tone: “It sounds like as long as we do what you say, we can have afternoon tea in the Royal Palace of Dresden tomorrow?”

The ministers looked at each other, daring not to answer.

“But…”

Victoria’s tone changed, and those cold eyes became sharp again, piercing people’s hearts: “Have you forgotten something? Or are you deliberately avoiding my question?”

“Friedrich Morin… I’m asking about this Saxon.”

Victoria’s voice instantly dropped to freezing point: “This guy known as the ‘Mage Killer,’ this ‘Butcher of Charleroi’ who makes our Expeditionary Force tremble with fear… how do you plan to deal with him?”

“In those grand strategies you depicted, have you considered this variable?”

“In just one month, twelve Highland Mages have fallen, including even senior Master-level spellcasters…”

Victoria leaned forward, her gaze turning to Graham, who was wearing a purple mage robe: “Master Graham, you should know better than I how much resources and time the Empire needs to cultivate a formal mage… And now, they fall in batches at the hands of an unknown young Saxon officer.”

“Tell me, how to solve this problem?”

Facing the Queen’s blunt questioning, the air in the hall solidified again.

Kitchener, Churchill, and the others looked troubled, as if they had eaten something extremely bitter.

For conventional warfare, they had a hundred plans, but when it came to battles between spellcasters, their traditional military means seemed somewhat inadequate.

Finally, Master Graham stepped forward to take the blame.

“Your Majesty, regarding this Morin… the Mage Corps has noticed his threat. In fact, we want to eliminate this heretic more than anyone else.”

He bowed slightly and continued: “We have communicated with the Directorate of Military Intelligence. Regarding this ‘Mage Killer,’ we will no longer treat him as an ordinary enemy commander, but as a ‘High-Value Target’.”

“The military intelligence department is doing its utmost to collect his whereabouts and weaknesses. Once we get an opportunity, we will approach him through various means…”

“At the same time, the Highland Mage Corps will also send people to cooperate with the intelligence department’s operatives to carry out a targeted elimination of him.”

Victoria snorted coldly: “I hope your team this time won’t become a battle record on his medals like the previous ones.”

“Please rest assured, Your Majesty.”

Graham’s expression remained unchanged as he continued: “The previous losses were because we were in the open and he was in the dark, and we lacked understanding of his sudden explosive combat capability… Now that we have taken it seriously, it won’t be so easy for him to succeed.”

After saying this, Graham changed the subject and subtly led the topic in another direction.

“There is one more thing… Your Majesty, we didn’t gain nothing in the Battle of Paris. The observation team we sent collected very valuable intelligence.”

“Oh?” Victoria raised an eyebrow.

“Go on…”