Silence fell over the meeting room once again.

Tanaka Go slammed his fist on the table. "Baka! Those damn Nightmare Tide Qin soldiers, why are they guarding that place?!"

Yamamoto Ichiro raised his hand, signaling him to be quiet.

He looked at Watanabe Jun. "And now? Did those Qin soldiers really disappear?"

"They've really disappeared," Watanabe Jun nodded with certainty. "Our people ventured near the former site of Qingshi County yesterday and observed it all day using Farsight."

"A large number of Refugees were seen in the city, at least a thousand. There are construction sites in progress and farmland being reclaimed; it's a scene of bustling construction."

He closed the file and summarized, "That Great Xia lord named Lin Feng has truly lucked out."

In the meeting room, the five of them fell silent simultaneously.

After a long while, Yamamoto Ichiro spoke slowly, "Is that Mithril Mine still there?"

Watanabe Jun nodded. "It's still there. That ore-prospecting Awakened conducted another scan yesterday; the vein is intact, and the reserves are staggering."

Yamamoto Ichiro's eyes narrowed slightly.

Tanaka Go said anxiously, "Yamamoto-kun, then what are we waiting for? While that Beacon Fire Town hasn't established a firm foothold yet, let's just send troops and attack!"

Inoue Ken sneered. "Attack? That is Great Xia's territory, not some masterless bandit stronghold. If you send troops there, it's a national war."

Tanaka Go said angrily, "Then what do you suggest we do? Just give up like this?"

"Of course not," Inoue Ken looked at Yamamoto Ichiro. "Yamamoto-kun, I have two proposals."

Yamamoto Ichiro tilted his chin. "Speak."

"First," Inoue Ken held up one finger. "Conscript the lord of Baigui County, Umekawa Kojiro."

Tanaka Go was stunned. "Why conscript him?"

Inoue Ken paused, a strange smile curling his lips. "He will soon be teaming up with several other county-level lords to subjugate a Level 30 rare boss—the Nightmare Corrupt Dragon Beast."

"That Corrupt Dragon Beast has a skill called 'Corrupting Breath.' Anyone hit by it will immediately drop five levels, but they won't die."

"My plan is to have Umekawa Kojiro intentionally get hit by Corrupting Breath during this mission, dropping from Level 25 to Level 20. And then..."

He looked at Yamamoto Ichiro, his smile deepening. "And then have him provoke that little lord of Beacon Fire Town."

"The key is to leak the news of him being hit by Corrupting Breath, so Great Xia can easily find out if they investigate."

"As long as he initiates a lord war against Baigui County, we can secretly support Umekawa Kojiro with a piece of purple equipment. Combined with the fact that he's a second-advancement class, it'll be enough for him to crush that little lord."

Tanaka Go frowned. "How do you know he will initiate a war? For a lower-level territory to start a lord war against a higher-level one is suicide. Would a sane person do that?"

Inoue Ken smiled. "That's why Umekawa Kojiro needs to goad him. That little lord is young and impetuous; he might take the bait if provoked."

Yamamoto Ichiro was silent for a moment before asking, "What if he doesn't fall for it?"

Inoue Ken's smile faded slightly. "Then we use the second proposal."

He held up a second finger. "Dispatch a Level 25 death soldier carrying a purple item—the 'Core of Blood Lies'—to lurk around Beacon Fire Town. At Level 25, his presence will definitely cause the Nightmare Tide of a town-level territory to escalate to Level 3."

"Have the death soldier infiltrate the vicinity of Beacon Fire Town and commit suicide using that item. That purple item has a function to mislead calculations, though it's not as good as a gold one."

"But it's enough to make Great Xia calculate that this was a fanatic who, seeing a promising lord in Great Xia, came on his own to perish together with him."

"Afterward, Great Xia will inevitably come knocking. We'll pretend to be unaware, offer a sincere apology, and then..."

He paused, a flicker of heartache crossing his eyes. "Compensate them with a gold accessory."

"A gold accessory?" Tanaka Go gasped. "That's one of only seven in our Sakura Country!"

Inoue Ken gave a bitter smile. "I know. But the Mithril Mine is more important. A gold accessory in exchange for a large Mithril Mine is worth it."

He looked at Yamamoto Ichiro. "The Great Xia side has always been about 'considering the big picture'."

"They won't completely fall out with us over a town-level territory that has already been destroyed. A gold accessory as compensation will be enough to shut them up."

"As for that death soldier, we will claim afterward that it was a 'personal action' and that we've already executed those responsible."

"Even if Great Xia is dissatisfied, there's nothing they can do to us."

A long silence fell over the meeting room.

All five were weighing the pros and cons.

After a long time, Onodera, who had been silent, suddenly spoke, his voice as raspy as sandpaper:

"Gentlemen, I have a question."

Yamamoto Ichiro tilted his chin. "Speak."

Onodera said slowly, "Incidents have been happening one after another in this Qingshi County area—first, Qingshi County was inexplicably destroyed by an upgraded Level 4 Nightmare Tide, and now Beacon Fire Town is to be destroyed."

He paused, a glint of sharpness flashing in his cloudy old eyes. "The Great Xia side isn't stupid. Will they really not realize something is amiss?"

The atmosphere in the meeting room froze slightly.

Tanaka Go frowned. "What Onodera-kun means is..."

"My point is," Onodera looked at Inoue Ken, "Inoue-kun's plan is very thorough, but there is one loophole—Great Xia's intelligence capabilities."

"They might not be able to find out that we used a gold item or that we raised the level of the Nightmare Tide in Qingshi County. But with one 'coincidence' after another, won't they become suspicious?"

"Even if they are suspicious, they have no evidence."

Inoue Ken chimed in, but his tone was a bit more cautious than before. "The anti-calculation function of the gold item 'Seed of Calamity' is absolute. Great Xia investigated for half a year and could only conclude it was an 'accident.' On this point, I am fully confident."

Onodera stared at him. "And what about this time? If Beacon Fire Town is destroyed, will Great Xia link the two 'accidents' together?"

Inoue Ken was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly:

"I understand Onodera-kun's concern. But please allow me to make a few points."

He stood up, walked to the map hanging on the wall, and pointed at the location of Qingshi County:

"First, the time gap. The first 'accident' was a year ago, and the second is now. A year is enough time to dilute many associations. Even if someone remembers, it can be explained as 'that area is inherently unstable'."

"Second, the international lord convention." He turned around and looked at the people present. "The night Beacon Fire Town is destroyed, we will send people there to establish a village. As long as we build a village there and gain the status of a legal territory, Great Xia cannot act against us even if they suspect something."

"Why?" Tanaka Go asked.

"Great Xia has always prided itself on 'following international rules.' They won't risk international condemnation by acting against us for a town-level territory that has already been wiped out."

Tanaka Go was still puzzled. "What if they also use dirty tricks?"