[Under your swift and decisive measures combined with Maenner Templight's cooperation, the situation in South Kazimierz stabilized at an astonishing speed.]
[The remnants of the Commercial Federation were uprooted after a few probing riots, and their assets became the initial startup capital for national reconstruction.]
[Those knights wallowing in past glories, after witnessing Leithanien's merciless cleanup operations and Maenner's determination to bear the burden of infamy, mostly chose silence or departure.]
[The Ursus Empire's infiltration operations likewise hit a steel wall.]
[Gertrude's Intelligence Department seemed to be everywhere; the moment Ursus agents made contact with disgruntled knight lords, Leithanien's special forces had already surrounded the manor.]
[Being caught red-handed with both personnel and stolen goods placed Ursus in a passive diplomatic position.]
[Faced with the letter of protest submitted by Serafina, complete with clear photographs and confessions, Emperor Fyodor could only recall his ambassador and publicly declare that he "respected the choice of the Kazimierz people," ending this clumsy interference.]
[With the crisis resolved, Maenner Templight was finally able to flex his muscles.]
[With funds, technology, and commissioner guidance provided by Leithanien, new security forces began to form, land reform decrees were posted on bulletin boards in every city, and abandoned factories roared back to life.]
[Leithanien's commodities and Kazimierz's resources began to circulate with unprecedented efficiency, and a new economic sphere centered on Trullinczentyr was taking shape.]
[Meanwhile, within the framework of cooperation with Columbia, the Imperial Academy of Sciences experienced a technological explosion.]
[Scientists and engineers from Columbia brought entirely new design concepts and cutting-edge technologies.]
[You also participated in this, proposing a series of concepts such as anti-ship missiles, drone swarms, powered armor, upgrades to the protection and firepower of main battle tanks and fighter aircraft, while heavily emphasizing the importance of informationization.]
[You knew very well who the future opponent would be, and you were making preparations for it.]
...
Trullinczentyr, a side hall of the Imperial Council Hall, a room dedicated to strategic simulations.
Here there was only a sand table, along with maps hanging on the surrounding walls.
Only a handful of people were in the room, all members of Lacey's core team.
Intelligence Minister Gertrude Strollo, dressed in a sharp men's suit, her gray-black long hair tied behind her head.
Foreign Liaison Minister Serafina, maintaining her gentle and kind demeanor, stood quietly to the side, her Liberi-characteristic feathered ears occasionally twitching lightly.
Minister of Taxation Leinia was holding a thick notebook, ready to take notes at any moment.
As well as Military Minister Taylor and Minister of Economy Meklen.
Wolner, Arturia, and Jian did not appear in the room as their duties were unrelated to imperial strategy.
"Gertrude, give us the situation." Lacey spoke.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Gertrude stepped forward, pointing her baton at the core region of Victoria on the map.
"Regarding the latest intelligence on Victoria: currently, the infighting among the eight Grand Dukes has temporarily eased due to our actions in Siracusa and Kazimierz."
"But privately, the cracks of suspicion are deepening, especially among the three strongest—Wellington Duke, Kaest Duke, and Windermere Duke."
"Based on the analysis of existing intelligence collected by the Intelligence Department."
"Wellington Duke is an ambitious man; he has secretly funded the Thracians' resistance organization 'Deep Pool' for years."
"That pair of Draco sisters, Abra Lana and Rafshini, are very likely pawns used by Wellington Duke to shatter Victoria's existing Aslan orthodoxy and pave his way to the top—tools to be discarded after use."
"As for Kaest Duke, she is the younger sister of the former Lion King and a staunch defender of the Aslan orthodoxy."
"Her conflict with Wellington is irreconcilable, and she is the core of a potential anti-Wellington alliance."
"Of course, this is merely speculation based on current intelligence; at least on the surface, this appears to be the case." Gertrude's expression was not entirely certain as she said this.
"As for Windermere Duke..."
"She appears to side with no one, waiting to sell to the highest bidder."
"The rest are either attached to Wellington or Kaest, or remain neutral, watching which way the wind blows—a bunch of fence-sitters."
"Is the glory of Victoria defined by such a group of people?" Lacey turned around, a look of mockery on his face.
"Truly laughable. Wasn't their previous Lion King overthrown by this very group of 'loyal' nobles working together, eventually ending up with a miserable death?"
"Now they begin to hold high the banner of 'Aslan orthodoxy' again, merely to safeguard their own interests."
Lacey walked to the table, picked up a red chess piece representing Leithanien, and gently placed it outside the map of Victoria.
"We cannot attack directly." Lacey looked at everyone, speaking each word deliberately.
Victoria is not Siracusa, nor is it Kazimierz. It possesses a massive fleet scale and numerous duke private armies; its military strength cannot be underestimated.
The capital, Londinium, is even known as impregnable.
A purely military invasion, even if won, would cost Leithanien dearly, leaving us to watch helplessly as Ursus and Columbia suck our blood.
Therefore, our strategic focus must change.
Lacey extended two fingers, elucidating his plan: "Divide and conquer; use Victorians to check Victorians."
Lacey's gaze first turned to Gertrude: "Intelligence Department, I want you to immediately increase the intensity of infiltration in Victoria."
"First, dig up evidence of Wellington funding Deep Pool for me, but do not rush to publish it. Instead, use an indirect method to let Kaest Duke's spies discover this evidence."
"Remember, let them investigate it themselves, let them guess for themselves; we are only responsible for providing the clues. I want the seed of suspicion to take root and sprout in their hearts."
Lacey continued: "Second, spread rumors and manufacture panic."
"For example, that a certain Duke's fleet is mobilizing in secret, or that a certain Duke is conducting arms deals with the Columbians."
"The content can be half-true and half-false; there is only one goal: to make them unable to trust one another, unable to form a combined force."
Gertrude revealed an excited expression; this task of manipulating human hearts in the shadows suited her appetite perfectly.
"Understood, Your Majesty. I guarantee I will make every one of them feel as if a venomous snake is sleeping beside them."
Lacey nodded, then said to Serafina: "Deep Pool, this Thracians' resistance organization, is the best fuse to ignite this great fire."
"But, it must be controlled in our hands."
"I need you to coordinate with Gertrude to contact the leader of Deep Pool, Abra Lana, and establish cooperation."
Lacey paused, looking into Serafina's eyes: "Serafina, I know your abilities, and I trust in your abilities."
"Go feel her heart, her desires, her fears."
"Provide her with aid—funds, weapons, intelligence, anything is fine."
"But make her understand that this aid is not without a price. What we want is for her actions to conform to our strategic tempo."
"I need this ball of fire to burn at the time I designate, in the place I designate, rather than losing control prematurely or being easily extinguished by others."
"This... won't it be too dangerous?" Serafina's tone was somewhat worried, not for herself, but because of the plan's complexity.
"Abra Lana is a smart person; she is also looking for the power to break the stalemate."
"We are her only choice. What you need to do is make her believe this point." Lacey replied.
After finishing, Lacey looked toward Leinia and Meklen.
"You two, I hope you can analyze the composition of Victoria's economic system. I want to know where their financial lifeline lies, and what the most fragile link is."
"Their stock market, their banks, their trade routes... when necessary, I want to be able to cut their main artery with one knife, creating chaos even more destructive than a military invasion."
Leinia and Meklen nodded in agreement.
Finally, Lacey instructed Taylor: "There will be no large-scale military operations in the next three years, but military training cannot be slackened."
"How to coordinate the armies of Siracusa, Kazimierz, and Leithanien in combat—this is the problem you need to solve."
"Keep a close eye on the Academy as well; once new equipment development is completed, it needs to be immediately deployable and usable."
Taylor patted his chest and guaranteed the mission would be completed.
________________________________________
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