IW: Chapter 223 - For the Empire, Father Decides to Give His Daughter to Bai Ye!
Just as humans decay, nations too will one day meet their ruin. Even the Empire, which prospered for a thousand years, is now like a living hell.
Akame Ga Kill world.
Looking at the approaching figures, a hint of amusement flashed in Bai Ye's eyes.
He hadn't expected that after he purged several princes within the country and quelled the internal strife, people from the Empire would actually come.
The visitors were a middle-aged bald man and a blonde girl.
Father and daughter?
He found them somewhat familiar. After recalling for a moment, memories of the two surfaced in his mind.
It seemed to be the father and daughter, civil officials of the Empire, who were killed by the Three Beasts and framed as Night Raid's doing.
He hadn't expected them to come to him.
So... what was their purpose in coming here?
The Hairan Empire's Guard Captain respectfully knelt on one knee, his right hand raised in front of him, and said deferentially, "Your Majesty, the people from the Empire have been brought."
Hairan IX, Hairan Bai Ye!
Having pulled the Hairan Empire out of the mire, the Hairan Empire's people now held immense faith in Bai Ye; those who didn't obey had long since been buried.
"Speak, what is your purpose?"
Bai Ye was very curious why this civil official, who wouldn't have appeared in the anime, would come here.
"Look at me!"
The civil official paused, then raised his head to look at Bai Ye. Even his daughter beside him also cast a curious gaze.
When they had just arrived, the Guard Captain had said that they were not allowed to raise their heads and look directly until their Emperor permitted it.
Looking at the handsome and young emperor before him, Bes was momentarily stunned, and a hint of surprise flashed in his heart. He had never expected that someone capable of ending the Hairan Empire's turmoil and eliminating several of his own brothers to successfully ascend the throne would look like this.
This person, no matter how he looked at him, didn't seem like someone ruthless. Upon seeing him, Bes realized what it meant to never judge a book by its cover.
"Your Majesty, I hope you can help our Empire."
"Are you representing the Empire, or Minister Honest?"
A hint of amusement flashed at the corner of Bai Ye's mouth as he rested his head on his hand, looking down at Bes.
In Bai Ye's view, his stance should be representing the Empire, right?
So now his request should be to oppose Minister Honest, but wouldn't that just give him an opportunity to exploit?
He was now afraid that he wouldn't be given an opportunity.
"The Empire!"
Bes said without hesitation. After he finished speaking, a fanatical expression flashed across his face, and then he looked at Bai Ye: "I want to reshape this decaying Empire. The Empire is like this entirely because of Honest!"
"So you want to use my power? Aren't you afraid that I'll take the opportunity to do something to the Empire?"
The Empire's downfall wasn't solely due to Honest; Minister Honest indeed accelerated the process of the Empire's collapse, but the Empire's decay genuinely existed.
In an Empire that had existed for a thousand years, outside the Imperial Capital, it was extremely difficult for people to survive, while the Imperial Capital was a place where people devoured each other. Nobles controlled everything, and ordinary commoners were killed and exploited for various reasons.
"Combat will only weaken us further."
Bes shook his head, indicating that he didn't believe Bai Ye would choose to go to war with them at this time.
Firstly, the Hairan Empire had also just experienced internal strife; they hadn't even solved their own problems, so how could they send troops to deal with them now?
Secondly, he only wanted to deal with Minister Honest. In Bes's view, after Honest and his pawns died, the Empire would not weaken; instead, it would gather greater and more powerful strength.
So there was no reason for them to attack him at all.
"You see things very clearly."
If he didn't have the Golden Finger, then Bai Ye felt that what Bes said was indeed correct.
There were still many unresolved issues within the Hairan Empire. He himself didn't have much strength; his ability to stabilize the current situation was actually dependent on the help of the Hairan Empire's Royal Guard, the Sea King Crusade.
The Sea King Crusade was composed of the Hairan Empire's strongest individuals, consisting of four squad leaders and one overall captain. They did not participate in the royal family's internal struggles; whoever became emperor, they would follow.
After Bai Ye successfully ascended the throne, he gained the loyalty of the Sea King Crusade, and it was with their help that Bai Ye successfully suppressed the internal problems of the Hairan Empire.
Unlike the Imperial Arms of the Eastern Empire, the Hairan Empire relied on cultivating their own magic power and fighting with it.
However, those who possessed magic power were very few, let alone those who could cultivate to be even stronger.
The four squad leaders probably had the strength of Night Raid's elder brother, while the overall captain could rival Esdeath, but whether they could win, Bai Ye wasn't sure.
Therefore, if things truly followed the usual course, Bai Ye certainly wouldn't be so rude as to directly engage the other party.
No matter what, he would wait until the Revolutionary Army made their move before acting, after all, according to the anime's description, didn't the Revolutionary Army eventually defeat Esdeath and Admiral Budo?
But the situation was different now.
He had no need to be so passive.
But for now, it seemed there was no need to tell him all this, right?
Bai Ye thought darkly to himself, he only needed to spend a little more time stabilizing the Hairan Empire's situation.
"So I hope Your Majesty Bai Ye can make a move!"
Bes looked at Bai Ye with serious eyes, but the next second, the playful smile on Bai Ye's lips made him feel a little uneasy.
"You can't represent the Empire. Minister Honest holds the power, and your little Emperor listens to him. Although Esdeath doesn't listen much, she's clearly not on your side. Budo will only protect the little Emperor and won't care about other matters. You also have the Revolutionary Army internally. Tell me... who can you represent?"
This was nothing more than Bes's wishful thinking!
Bai Ye wouldn't play house with him here!
If Bes could truly represent the Empire's little Emperor and ask him for help, then he would indeed talk to the other party, but in reality, he couldn't represent him at all.
So, no matter how much Bai Ye said to him, it would actually be useless.
"Father..."
Nifu's face flashed with a hint of worry. She looked at Bes, then at Bai Ye, who was sitting on the throne, looking at her father with a playful expression, and a hint of sadness couldn't help but arise in her heart.
Originally, Father had received an order for transfer, and he wanted to return directly to the Empire to see if he could use Budo's strength to contend with the Minister.
But after learning about the Hairan Empire, he decided to first come to the Hairan Empire to see if he could get their help.
Listening to his daughter's soft call, Bes turned and gave Nifu a reassuring expression, but he also understood that he truly couldn't fool the other party on this matter. A cold sweat ran down Bes's forehead.
He was wondering what he should do.
"You can't resolve the Empire's situation. He is different from us."
Bai Ye shook his head. This poor old man, even until death, he wanted to do something for the Empire.
What a pity.
He ultimately died at the Empire's hands.
"Why?"
Bes was unwilling. He had actually thought about this before coming.
"Don't you already have the answer? Isn't that why you chose to leave the Imperial Capital? As someone from the Empire, shouldn't you understand better than me? Why pretend to be confused and ask me?"
Bai Ye's words were like a sharp blade piercing Bes's heart. How could he not know these things?
Just as Bai Ye had said before, wasn't it because he couldn't stand the darkness of the Imperial Capital that he chose to leave?
He was just like a coward, unable to change anything, only able to choose to turn a blind eye.
Lies don't hurt people; truth is the sharpest blade.
"So, it's a refusal, right?"
Bes lowered his head. Since he was rejected, he would go back and resolve this matter in his own way.
"What reason can you give us to enter the Empire?"
Bai Ye did want to use Bes to enter the Empire.
But he needed a reason. He came alone, so what reason could he give for Bai Ye to go there?
"I can request Admiral Budo, on the premise that both sides work together to resolve the Revolutionary Army!"
He wanted to use Bai Ye's power to eliminate Honest. If Honest could be eliminated, it could only be done by the Hairan Empire, so he could only cling to this unrealistic fantasy!
"Then, are we entering as individuals, or as an army?"
Bai Ye's question left Bes stunned.
Yes.
In what form should they enter?
"So, you should talk to Budo first. Otherwise, this is just wishful thinking. Go down and rest."
Bai Ye waved his hand, telling Bes to leave first. He hadn't even confirmed things on his end and was asking Bai Ye to go over; he was thinking a bit too much!
"I understand. I will give you a reply as soon as possible!"
Bes nodded, then left the palace with Nifu, guided by a guard to the sleeping quarters arranged for them.
"Father, do we really have to do this? Won't this be inviting a wolf into the house?"
Nifu had held back from speaking earlier. She thought far ahead. Why would the Hairan Empire help?
Wouldn't they take this opportunity to annex the Empire?
Would they be so kind as to help the Empire?
Isn't a weak and decaying Empire more reassuring?
"We have to use their greed, otherwise they won't help. The situation within the Empire is very complex. If they deal with the Minister and engage Esdeath, they won't win. But if they don't engage Esdeath, then they can't annex the Empire!"
The Empire not only had Esdeath, but also Admiral Budo.
So Bes had planned from the beginning that the Hairan Empire would simply not have a chance to seize control of the Empire. However, he was also prepared for them to annex part of the territory.
But no matter what, if the Empire's cancer could be removed, he felt that all the sacrifices would be worth it!
"But..."
"Just say what you want to say!"
"So... Nifu, I want to leave you here. You marry him!"
"Ah?"
Nifu's eyes widened as she looked at Bes. She never expected her father to say such a thing.
She was to stay here and marry Bai Ye?
"He just ascended the throne, and his harem is currently empty. If you can... In short, Nifu, you're also of marriageable age. He is a monarch, and you just saw him; his appearance, power, and all aspects are top-notch. I think he should be acceptable."
Bes had already thought about this before coming.
Perhaps he could arrange for his daughter to marry their emperor, thereby gaining some more influence.
His daughter was also a beauty, but did he really have to be so despicable?
Bes was also wondering if what he was doing was right.
So he didn't bring up this matter in the great hall; instead, he waited until they returned here to mention it to Nifu. He wanted to ask Nifu's opinion, and if she truly didn't want to, he wouldn't force her.
Nifu's mother died early, and he and she had depended on each other as she grew up. Looking at his grown daughter, how could he be so cruel as to just give her away?
Moreover, the most crucial thing was that he couldn't guarantee he would survive this time.
His opponent was the Minister. If he died, Nifu wouldn't have a good outcome. It would be better to marry Nifu to the Hairan Empire's Emperor; at least she would survive.
"Father, I want to change the Empire, but I..."
Nifu said, her voice growing softer and softer, because she herself knew that trying to change the Empire with their strength seemed a bit like a pipe dream.
The Minister and Esdeath...
They probably weren't people they could deal with, right?
At first, Nifu was somewhat confident, thinking that if they just went back, perhaps they could make a change. After all, Admiral Budo wasn't on their side; he only protected the little Emperor.
For a moment, her previously held beliefs wavered.
On the other side.
The ministers were discussing Bai Ye's previous idea of helping the Empire.
"Your Majesty, wouldn't it be better for us to watch them fight among themselves internally?"
The bearded minister looked at Bai Ye in confusion. He was a staunch supporter of Bai Ye, but he also didn't quite understand why Bai Ye wanted to do this.
"That was before..."
But now it was different; he needed opportunities for draws!
So he had to interfere with the situation there. In the anime, there was no plot involving the Western Empire at all.
"I agree. We should defeat them honorably!"
A middle-aged martial general, brimming with bloodlust, was the first to agree.
He didn't want to use schemes and tricks to defeat the Empire while they were weak; he wanted an honorable victory!
"Your Majesty's aura is so strong..."
The overall captain of the Sea King Crusade subconsciously cast his gaze upon Bai Ye.
It seemed different from before.
But the other side had Esdeath...
"Then... let's discuss how to annex the Empire!"
Bai Ye stood up, and all the ministers, including the members of the Sea King Crusade, involuntarily knelt down. That kingly Haki gave them an indescribable feeling in their hearts.
And for Bai Ye, having transmigrated from that place, no one could stop his determination to unify!
There, any ancient feudal lord's first thought was to unify!
And with the Empire of this land being so corrupt, how could he just stand by and watch his own people suffer on this land?
They would all be his in the future!
So... let's figure out a way to bring the Empire under his command and get all the rewards!
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