Chapter 382

382 The Gunman And His Gun

Emma’s POV:

“I don’t want to go too far, Father, Mother. However, I’ve tried all kinds of methods before, such as being nice, being soft-hearted, crying, and begging for your understanding and pity, but my weakness only made me get more harm and insatiable greed.

“This is the last time I’ll meet you over such pointless matters. I’ll go home during the holidays, so you don’t have to worry about me. If you’re still so unreasonable the next time you come, I’ll have to tell Grandfather about this. I don’t think he’ll agree to you coming to the palace to cause trouble, right?”

After speaking, I left without looking at my parents’ stunned faces.

Selma Payne’s POV:

As many nobles and mayors had returned to their territories after the attack on the capital, it would take at least three days to gather them for a meeting. In addition, it was likely that some or even a large number of people would be absent in the final result, which meant that no matter what decision was made, it might receive the support of only some of the city-state.

However, the group of elders was surprisingly unyielding on this.

“Whoever doesn’t come will automatically forfeit.” The Great Elder said, “This is a major matter that concerns the safety of all the city-states, and the power struggle can no longer be a reason for each to do their own thing. Whoever doesn’t come will be giving up their right to make decisions, so they can’t blame anyone else.”

“Aren’t you afraid of the backlash? If the city-states that aren’t here are dissatisfied, how can they gather the entire elven race to fight against Azazel’s party in the future?” I asked in confusion.

The Great Elder suddenly laughed slyly, which was very inconsistent with his white hair and wrinkled face. He didn’t look like a high-ranking leader but a child who was about to succeed in his prank.

“Who would dare to be dissatisfied? Who can be dissatisfied?” He revealed an expression as if everything was under control. They were the ones who were full of righteousness before. In terms of bloodline, contributions, and sacrifice to the elf clan, they were trying to get more benefits for themselves. But look at the current situation, whose side was justice on? Whoever dared to oppose or participate passively would condone the stray werewolves’ evil deeds. If another tragedy happened in the future, compared to the stray werewolves, who had disappeared without a trace, who would be the first to be punished? Do those who have nothing to do with it think they can escape unscathed?

“So, the earliest situation is just that someone is absent. No matter how many people were absent, no one would dare to disrupt the operation of the entire clan. Even if they each had their own plans and did things their own way, no one could make their little plans obvious in front of the elven race. Otherwise, they would be attacked by the others. No one would be willing to sacrifice themselves to be the first to stand out, so this meeting will be a success.”

Looking at his confident expression, I suddenly realized I had already entered a trap. I wasn’t saying that anyone wanted to harm me or the werewolves, but it didn’t feel good to be used as a tool without even realizing it.

If the Council of Elders only thought of this method after I made the suggestion, how could they be so confident?

They didn’t even try to hide the pros and cons of this matter from me, a foreigner. This only meant they thought I was involved, so there was no need to hide it.

The Council of Elders must have wanted to hold a meeting with all the clan leaders for a long time, but they had failed because of many obstacles. Now, I, an outsider, had become their best shield!

Seeing my strange expression, the Great Elder bitterly smiled and said, “We don’t ask for your understanding, Your Highness. It’s just that you’ve seen the current situation of the elven race. No matter how much we pretend to be peaceful, this cover that’s better than nothing still doesn’t work. If he wanted to turn the situation around, he had to end the current fragmented situation first. You’re a Crown Princess, so I’m sure you’re familiar with the twists and turns of politics, so you should know that we can’t do this alone. Anyone who comes will only want to take the scepter of power from our hands. By then, we will fight internally for the leadership.”

“Do you think I can unite the elves? How come I didn’t know I had such a magical ability?”

The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. ‘I came to help you with all my heart, and you pushed me into the fire pit with a flip of your hand?’

I had always adhered to the principle of never getting involved in the internal affairs of the elven race. Judging from the Great Elder’s tone, he was determined to push us to the front.

Once this meeting was initiated by the interim government and became a friendly suggestion of the werewolf pack, everything would change. Who would believe that it was really out of ‘friendship’?

I’d already received a lot of criticism for bringing my diplomatic mission to the elves. Now, the Great Elder’s actions were undoubtedly confirming the rumors that the werewolves were trying to meddle in the internal affairs of the elves!

“If this is your attitude, we have to terminate this cooperation,” I said decisively. “We are here with 120000% sincerity and don’t ask for anything in return. But please don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Can you really solve your crisis by shifting the internal conflicts of the elves to the werewolf pack?”