CHAPTER 189: CHAPTER 187 INDECISIVENESS

"I must say, young Perfikot, you’ve handled this matter beautifully this time," Eldest Princess Annie praised Perfikot, who remained calm and serene.

Despite arriving as soon as she learned of the situation, by the time Eldest Princess Annie reached the elective parliament square, the cronies arranged by the shadowy figures were already hanging from the street lamps, and Eastwood had been taken away by the police. Even the crowds in the square had mostly dispersed.

She could only find Perfikot, sipping tea in a lounge inside the elective parliament building, to express her admiration.

Perfikot was indifferent to this, merely saying after she put down her cup of black tea, "These are nothing but shady tactics that cannot be brought to the fore. Although I intervened in time to prevent the situation from worsening, it’s undeniable that once such matters occur, they have a profoundly negative impact.

While I judged those who spread rumors, preventing public opinion from leaning towards the most unfavorable outcome, there are still some who believe the rumors they spread and even think I executed those rumor-mongers to suppress people speaking the truth.

Therefore, the follow-up must be swift; the Empire must catch those behind the scenes and deal with them to prevent any possible negative impact."

"Isn’t it too reckless to do so? The evidence collection isn’t sufficient enough," Eldest Princess Annie preferred a more cautious approach in handling the matter.

These days, through her own forces, she’d conducted investigations and indeed gathered some related evidence, but relying solely on these to definitively nail the shadowy figures would be somewhat challenging. She hoped to bring them to justice with an unquestionably firm stance.

However, Perfikot shook her head and said, "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. We have only two years left; Aunt Annie, do you think the Empire has time to waste now?"

Faced with Perfikot’s questioning, Eldest Princess Annie was speechless.

Seemingly aware of Eldest Princess Annie’s stance, Perfikot advised her, "Aunt Annie, I hope you can adjust your mindset. We are fighting an invisible war, and everything must be approached in a wartime manner. If you continue to be indecisive, I can only question whether the Empress has neglected your character education.

As a ruler, how can you be indecisive at critical moments, hesitant and faltering?"

Saying this, Perfikot wondered if she was being too harsh. She hesitated before adding, "If you can’t make up your mind or aren’t willing to act, let me handle this matter."

Initially, she hoped Eldest Princess Annie would handle the matter, thereby establishing her authority and reputation to lay the groundwork for inheriting the throne in the future.

But if Eldest Princess Annie was simply not up to it, Perfikot didn’t mind completing everything herself.

This, however... Perfikot sighed inwardly; wasn’t this forcing her to be a regent? She certainly didn’t wish to be ranked alongside the likes of Cao Cao and Yuan Shikai!

Some things when done by Eldest Princess Annie and herself would result in entirely different outcomes.

Yet at this point, Perfikot wasn’t as hesitant as Eldest Princess Annie.

"No, young Perfikot, don’t intervene in this matter; give me some time, I’ll go back and discuss it with Mother." Eldest Princess Annie stopped Perfikot, then quickly explained, fearing she’d be disappointed: "Mainly, this involves too many nobles in the background. If they were all dealt with at once, it would destabilize the Empire’s situation. The reason I want to collect ample evidence is precisely because of this.

If we can use strong evidence to prove their crimes and bring them all to justice, the impact on the Empire’s situation would be minimized, avoiding potential social unrest..."

"If not for the end-of-world crisis, Aunt Annie, you’d be doing the right thing." Perfikot listened to Eldest Princess Annie’s explanation but shook her head, "Under normal circumstances, your approach is unimpeachable; it’s the safest and most upright way.

But I’ve already said, we’re facing a war without smoke, everything needs to be decisive because we have no time to waste anymore.

If you can’t swiftly and cleanly resolve everything, those shadowy figures will inevitably incite greater unrest in society!

Sometimes, we can’t make every matter perfect and often have to choose the lesser evil between two bad outcomes."

Perfikot’s words again rendered Eldest Princess Annie silent; she ultimately didn’t say much more, only indicating a need to discuss with the Empress.

"Alright, but do it quickly, we really don’t have time to drag on." Perfikot didn’t continue pressing Eldest Princess Annie, but rather shook her head and left the elective parliament building.

Upon exiting the building, her Steam Knight surrounded her, and Ezio, having waited for some time, also appeared beside her, asking once more, "Do you really not need me to help get rid of those people? The Assassin Brotherhood is quite experienced in this type of thing; they can completely make it look like accidental deaths."

"With accidental deaths, we can’t get hold of their wealth." Perfikot still shook her head, rejecting Ezio’s suggestion, "Developing the Northern Territory and dealing with the end-of-world crisis requires a huge amount of money and resources. These nobles are the pockets I’ve prepared for the Northern Territory expansion plan; if you directly killed them, all that money would just go to their heirs."

Hearing Perfikot’s reasoning, Ezio couldn’t help feeling a sigh; compared to Perfikot, he was indeed too benevolent.

"Alright, don’t worry too much about this matter for now. Aunt Annie hasn’t made a firm decision yet, but the Empress will tell her what should be done in these times." Perfikot was confident in the Empress, a ruler reigning for decades; her skills and disposition were far beyond those of Eldest Princess Annie.

So she quickly shifted the topic to another matter.

Perfikot asked Ezio, "Does the Assassin Brotherhood have intelligence networks in other countries of the Old World?"

"There are some, but not as comprehensive as Victory. They can glean some information, but it’s quite difficult to understand specific details." Though puzzled, Ezio still answered Perfikot’s question.

Perfikot nodded, then said, "Ask the Brotherhood to help check if other countries have discovered the end-of-world crisis. I can’t shake the feeling there’s a deeper reason behind the three nations declaring war against the Empire this time..."

While Perfikot and Ezio were speaking, a man suddenly dashed out from the roadside. He bypassed the Steam Knight’s obstruction at an odd angle, hurling an ignited unknown object towards Perfikot.