The Emperor thought along the lines that Zhuge Liang guided, then realized the full extent of the plan.
"Kong Ming... You mean... We accept their offer and don't veto when they ask for country recognition. So that they will keep their end of the bargain while we keep ours. But they still can't be recognized as a country because of this dispute.
And in the end, the deal between Astral Corporation and the Ming Federation will not go through, but they still can't be recognized as a country because of the dispute?" The Emperor concluded.
"That's the gist of it, Your Majesty," Zhuge Liang nodded.
"But will they keep their word? We are doing this to them, I don't think they will silently accept this. They might still sell their weapons to the Ming Federation," the same strategist voiced his concern once again, and the people in the room nodded in agreement.
Hearing this, Zhuge Liang turned to the strategist.
"Your concern is understandable, but from the information I've gathered from Mr. Owl, Daniel Emberweave always keeps his word and doesn't renege on deals. Also, we know about the contract deals that mages usually use. It's the soul-binding contract. If we use those, we can guarantee that the other side will keep their end of the bargain," said Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang had already learned enough about the information of the modern day and the Curtained World. So he knew what to use and what to exploit.
"But what worries me the most is not Emberweave, but something else. The information that the Grand Councilor told us, Albert, 'Master of Whispers'... this is a name that I don't know, and I don't remember encountering this name while studying the information of the current era," Zhuge Liang spoke, then dialed his phone, trying to contact someone.
The phone signal rang for a few more seconds before it connected, and the familiar voice of a man spoke through the phone.
"Yes? How can I help you, Your Majesty?" The voice of the man in the owl mask inquired about the purpose of the call.
Zhuge Liang looked towards the Emperor, Tianhao Wenzhong, and nodded, requesting him to ask the question in his place since the other side was addressing the Emperor himself. It would be inappropriate for him to respond instead of the emperor. The mistake might be misinterpreted as seeing himself as the Emperor, so Zhuge Liang didn't reply.
"Lord Owl, do you know about the name Albert, Master of Whispers?" asked the Emperor through the phone call.
Hearing the name Albert, the man in the owl mask was startled, but fortunately, his reaction could not be seen by the other side since this call was audio-only.
He went silent and let out a voice of "Hmmmmm...," as if he was trying to think hard about this topic.
"No... I'm sorry, but I really don't know, Your Majesty," the man in the owl mask lied through his teeth without showing any sign of panic in his voice.
"How much is the investigation request?" the imperial guard asked.
"The minimum is 1 million US dollars, and the maximum is 10 million dollars. It depends on how difficult the information is to acquire. We may need up to a year to investigate if what you seek is very rare, unique, or someone who is very hard to find. If after one year there is still no valid information, we will refund half of the payment," the receptionist politely explained.
Hearing this, the imperial guard could only nod and think. A decision regarding this much money couldn't be made by him alone.
"Thank you for the information. As for the information request, I need to ask my superior first. Here... this is the payment for the information about the man in the owl mask," the imperial guard said, handing a card to the receptionist.
After the payment was processed and he received the card back, the man excused himself and returned to the Forbidden Palace to report to his superior.
— Meanwhile - Syndicate Union HQ —
Within an opulent, vast private office that encompassed the entire floor of a skyscraper, complete with a lounge, bar, and various partitioned areas for guests to entertain themselves, a man in his early forties gazed out the window, admiring the afternoon city view. He held a phone to his ear, talking to the other side.
"I've repaid your favor. Someone asked for information about you and Albert, and I did what you asked. Now, I don't owe you anything anymore," the man said into the phone with a solemn tone.
This man was Loki, the god of trickery. He was the founder and chairman of the Syndicate Union, and the reason why Hightower hadn't acted rashly to crush them.
Even though Loki was a weakened god, a god was still a god. Despite the mana depletion problem of the modern day limiting his divine authority, he was still as strong as a Hell Lord at their peak when they came to the mortal world.
"Yes, you don't owe me anything anymore. Thank you, the favor has been successfully repaid, Lord Loki," said the other side, the voice belonging to the Man in the Owl Mask.
"You don't need to thank me. Just do your end of the bargain and bring about the age of gods already. I'm sick of this weakened state of mine," said Loki.
"Yes, Lord Loki," answered the Man in the Owl Mask before the call ended.
Loki put the phone in his pocket, then walked toward a restricted area with steel partitions and a high-security door. Within this partition, there was a wolf floating in a green tank. The wolf didn't move, and it looked like a corpse since its chest wasn't moving and there were no signs of vital signs. However, the body showed no sign of decomposition, suggesting the wolf was in stasis.
Looking at the wolf, Loki's eyes reflected a mix of pain, love, and finally, determination.
"Wait for a bit, son... I'll bring you back. No one will deny you the right to live anymore," Loki uttered as he continued to gaze at the wolf.