Chapter 277

Chapter 277: Are You Coming?

"Are you joking?" Reinhardt hesitated before asking this poorly-phrased question.

"How could I joke? Do you know who that heavenly girl with me was? She’s Victoria, Victoria Rothschild." Midi casually played his card.

"Rothschild? The Rothschild Guild controlling trade routes across the Sea of Clouds and Skyship technology?" Reinhardt’s face tightened.

Among the powerful factions suppressing the Delos Empire and Belmar Kingdom, this colossal Guild’s influence loomed large.

Victoria Rothschild was renowned as the Guild’s prodigal heir, her reputation eclipsing even her elder brothers—an elite among elites.

Since when had Midi connected with such a figure?

"Correct. If you agree, Victoria will fund you handsomely, provide Arrow Fish Skyships, twenty Black Bats Vanguard ships with full equipment. Oh, and Emil’s ice-breaking tech? I bought it for 200,000 Crystal Coins. Check with Venus Auction House in a few days if you doubt me."

Midi spoke lazily, as if discussing the weather.

200,000 Crystal Coins!

Reinhardt gulped. Wiseman whistled sharply.

Converted to Arad’s currency, that equaled over six million gold coins.

While trivial for a prince, Lower Realm humans couldn’t exchange gold for Crystal Coins here—earning within the Sea of Clouds was the only way.

How long to earn 200,000?

Reinhardt knew only this: in eighteen months, he and Wiseman had never held more than 500 Crystal Coins combined.

Still, poverty hadn’t dulled their judgment. Tempting as Midi’s offer was, Reinhardt wouldn’t yield so easily.

"I won’t agree until I know the ancient battlefield’s truth." Reinhardt set his unreasonable condition, aware Midi owed him nothing.

Yet Midi nodded amiably. "No grand secret. I just want intact ancient warships."

"Intact warships?" Reinhardt frowned. Salvaging wrecks was routine work—he’d found no hidden legacies. Could complete ones hold greater secrets?

"*Complete* ancient warships," Midi emphasized.

The distinction struck Reinhardt. Until now, they’d fished debris from reefs and turbulence—enough for Emil to profit via alchemy and monopolized tech like the auctioned ice-breaker. But intact ships changed everything.

"You aim to conquer the Sea of Clouds?" Reinhardt bolted upright, startled.

Complete warships and hidden alchemists—it mirrored Midi’s past scheme at West Coast’s Faero Bay. Back then, the Flying Sail Family’s designs and Hawk Brigade’s power let him build Vanguard ships early, flipping the battle situation.

Was this guy repeating history, using tech to crush the Sea of Clouds’ factions?

"No interest. No capability either." Midi shook his head.

Reinhardt’s ignorance of the Sea’s factions fueled his assumption. Had he known their combined energy surpassed even the Delos Empire, he’d never suggest technological dominance could topple them.

War was an art built upon lives, yet far more complex than simple arithmetic. If victory could be won by merely revealing advanced techniques, why wage war at all? People would just compare their hidden technologies to decide outcomes.

"Does that mean we’re heading somewhere unusual?" Wiseman whistled, his eyes blazing with fervor.

The exploration of unknowns always ignited the passion of "Wiseman of the Hand of Nightmare". Fundamentally, he deserved the title of adventurer more than Midi or Reinhardt – unburdened and unprincipled, he wandered without attachments.

"To the Stormy Region," Midi answered gravely.

The conference room plunged into silence again.

This stillness didn’t stem from awkwardness, but from the immense implications contained within those five words.

"I’ve heard the Stormy Region’s forbidden in the Sea of Clouds. What’s there?" Reinhardt finally broke the silence after prolonged pause.

Midi smiled faintly. "We’ll only know by seeing for ourselves. But structurally, the Sea of Clouds’ richest resources must lie there. And from my intelligence, its strongest enemies too."

His reason for sharing this freely was simple – in this Sea of Clouds beyond Delos Empire’s reach, Reinhardt and Wiseman were merely two adventurers.

Though clever and ambitious, their lack of foundation and self-made struggles doomed them to insignificance. Without Midi, even if they salvaged an ancient warship for Emil, building a heavy armored cruiser would remain impossible.

Such grand projects required massive funding and resources, beyond any single alchemist’s brilliance.

Only Midi could achieve this.

Backed by Victoria’s support and his formidable personal power to harvest rare materials from Ice Cloud Circle’s lucrative depths.

If Reinhardt’s advantages came from fortunate circumstances, Midi now crushed opposition through sheer strength and kingly strategy.

"You might gain local advantages, but I control the broader game.

Even revealing my plans, you’d still retreat powerless!"

"Let me join." The sudden words came with rare seriousness from Wiseman.

Midi’s eyes flickered with surprise. Though knowing Wiseman’s lack of principles, he hadn’t expected this twice-killed enemy to yield so readily.

"Join unconditionally. Consider my two deaths repaid. Fair trade, no? Just let me experiment with any new species. I simply want fresh subjects."

Fresh subjects?

Perhaps not unprincipled, but driven by insatiable curiosity. Politics, status, allegiances – none could chain this truth-seeker.

Wiseman Newton might be simpler than imagined.

A wry smile touched Midi’s lips. "Agreed."

"What? I refuse!" Reinhardt slammed the table, rising abruptly.

The fourth prince struggled to comprehend – how had his advantageous position crumbled? Now even Wiseman defected?

Before he could process this, Midi’s piercing gaze found him. "Join us, Reinhardt?"

"Wait! Midi Asreks! I’m Delos Empire’s fourth prince! No man’s subordinate!" Reinhardt’s anger vibrated through the room. "Cease nonsense and resume negotiations!"

"We are negotiating," Midi stated coolly. "Choose: Take substantial funding with Arrow Fish Skyships and Black Bats Vanguard ships, abandoning Emil forever. Or join me."

"You consider the latter an option?" Reinhardt sneered.

"Indeed. Objectively, the Stormy Region offers your only path to defeat your second brother and claim Delos’ throne."

Reinhardt froze.

The words struck his deepest vulnerability.

After lengthy silence, the prince rasped, "What makes you certain?"

Midi locked onto Reinhardt’s azure eyes, smiling wordlessly. "Where greatest danger dwells, greatest opportunities await. Isn’t that so… dear prince?"