"Don't worry, there won't be any problem. You must trust me, and you must trust His Majesty!"

On the phone, the Minister of Finance reassured Mr. Herbs. Just now, Mr. Herbs had called him directly on his private phone line.

This line was a secure line that was not monitored, so they could discuss some more private matters.

On the call, Mr. Herbs expressed his concerns to the Minister of Finance; if Lynch managed to persuade His Majesty the Emperor to change his mind, it would be a disaster—for him personally.

To ensure that the Minister of Finance would stand by his side, he had also prepared some additional incentives deposited into the Minister's foreign account.

It wasn't a small amount, and although the Minister of Finance often dealt with staggering figures and had become less sensitive to numbers, Mr. Herb's sincerity still touched him slightly.

He continuously promised that everything would proceed according to Mr. Herb's ideas and requests, and that no unexpected events would occur. However, this did not seem to reassure Mr. Herbs.

He had to bring up the Emperor to make his point, "You have to understand that an emperor cannot casually change his stance, as that would make people think he is not rigorous or consistent in making decisions. A ruler would not do that!"

Many people, when introducing the Gafura Empire, focus on its monarchical system and the Emperor of this country. This is what people are most interested in, and it is the only thing they want to know about.

Many outsiders don't truly understand this country; they think the Emperor is the entirety of this nation, but in reality, it's not quite that simple.

Gafura's ruling system is actually a bit more complicated than people know. If you're from Gafura, you might understand it better than foreigners do.

Initially, the island's lands were divided among different clans, with various clan lords holding territories of different sizes. They fought each other, and wars were frequent.

Eventually, at the behest of the strongest clan, people began to gradually cease fighting and declared themselves nobles. The first governance system of this nation was not actually a monarchy, but an "aristocratic council system."

Nobles discussed and decided on significant national matters, including electing a king, as they were called back then.

However, in the years that followed, the current Gafura Imperial Family gradually took control of the Noble Council through various means, whether good or bad, and always appeared in the guise of royalty.

Later, after the event known as the "Oak Town Reform," the monarchy abolished the Noble Council system, adopting a monarchical system, and subsequently unified the entire island, pushing its power to the edge of the continent.

Since then, the Imperial Family was established. Although the Imperial Family is the highest symbol of authority in this country, it does not mean that noble ministers are entirely at the Emperor's mercy.

They also possess certain powers and are not as fearful of the Emperor as people might imagine.

The nobles are willing to maintain the current situation primarily because doing so aligns more closely with their interests.

This world war, along with the naval battles with the Federation, has already caused some conflicts between the nobility and the Imperial Family. There is dissatisfaction with the current Emperor, and while they may not intend to act right now, if this situation does not change and continues to decline in the next major event affecting the nation's fate, they may indeed do something.

This is also the reason why, in the face of Mr. Herb's constant pursuit of guarantees, the Minister of Finance could unhesitatingly use the Emperor as assurance.

Ministers highly respect the Imperial Family and the Emperor as long as the Emperor and the Imperial Family can lead everyone to constant victory.

If the Emperor and the Imperial Family cannot achieve this, people will not respect him or it as much anymore.

With this kind of guarantee from the Minister of Finance, Mr. Herbs breathed a sigh of relief. He hesitated slightly before deciding to tell the Minister of Finance the truth.

At this point, continuing to conceal certain matters obviously seemed foolish, as the issue of asymmetric information could lead the Minister of Finance to misplace his efforts. Therefore, he spoke of his real purpose, "Previously, I kept something from you..."

"No, you don't need to tell me; I know what you want to say, it's Lynch, right?" The Minister of Finance was unexpectedly unsurprised and even revealed the truth.

Judging from his tone, he wasn't angry but rather had a faint sense of... pride, which made Mr. Herbs feel like a clown, as he hadn't fooled the Minister of Finance, "Your betting agreement with Lynch is clear to the whole world; you can't hide it from anyone, Herbs."

"However, I don't care whether or not you lied to me; your request doesn't harm me or the Empire in any way, which is why I agreed to it, not because of what you gave me. Understand?"

What the Minister of Finance was saying was not just a formality; it wasn't making excuses for a certain action of his, but it was genuinely the case.

Currently, Gafura is indeed not well-suited for fulfilling those war bonds in large quantities. Their fiscal budget is in disarray, all due to the issues in the Amelia region.

The suddenly deteriorating situation caused the Empire to use several times its planned budget, leading to a somewhat empty treasury. If, at this time, they redeemed those bonds, it would be a fatal blow to the Empire's less-than-optimistic financial situation.

It's most prudent to appropriately slow down the redemption of those bonds, using this portion of money as emergency reserves.

Given that the Minister of Finance already intended to do so, when Mr. Herbs suddenly requested it and could bring him substantial benefits, why should he refuse?

Of course, when communicating with Mr. Herbs, the Minister of Finance wouldn't speak so directly. He always told Mr. Herbs that he was doing this out of their friendly relationship, which also brought him many benefits.

Now, he needed to gently remind Mr. Herbs not to call him frequently to discuss this matter, wasting his time. He'd rather spend that time getting more sleep.

"I'm very sorry!" Even though the Minister of Finance knew the matters behind this, Mr. Herbs still apologized for it.

"I accept your apology. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now..."

Then, Mr. Herbs hung up the phone and began to arrange the evening's party.

As an international banker, he had more or less connections with those keen on international trade and international finance, whether they were businesses or individuals, and soon he had compiled a list.

There were a few celebrities on it, while the rest were people just to fill in the numbers. The real purpose of this party was, bluntly put, to deceive Lynch. So, the status of those invited to the party would not be too high.

He needed these people to join him in flattering Lynch, making Lynch complacent, overlook his threats, and reach the wrong conclusions.

Everything was proceeding in an orderly manner. During the day, Lynch and Jenia went around exploring. With Jenia's royal status, she could easily take Lynch anywhere he wanted to go, including the Imperial Palace.

However, they weren't that bored. They first went to the showcase of the Royal Science Research Institute, where advanced, non-military, and non-confidential technology was displayed, somewhat akin to a science and technology museum, with a futuristic and tech-savvy vibe.

Then, they watched two movies together, both starring Jenia. Watching the woman on the big screen lying in his arms, he had to admit, felt quite peculiar.

Afterward, they took a brief rest before heading to the party that Mr. Herbs had prepared for him.

When a luxurious car stopped at the front of a club, the party host personally came out to greet them. Besides him, some of the heavyweight guests he invited were also there to welcome them.

Not only Lynch was there, but Jenia as well. One was wealthy, and the other noble; people had to show sufficient respect.

"Welcome, my friend!" Mr. Herbs warmly greeted him, gripping Lynch's hand tightly, then addressed Jenia as well.

"I didn't expect you to bring Ms. Jenia to this party..." Mr. Herbs joked, "I prepared a lot of girls, but it seems they'll benefit someone else now."

Lynch's face was full of smiles, "Really? You should have told me earlier; I suddenly realized I did something foolish."

Jenia stood smiling on the side, not showing any displeasure at the dialogue between the two gentlemen. The first thing a mature woman masters is hiding her true attitude.

The two exchanged some pleasantries before entering the club.

As Mr. Herbs introduced outside, the purpose of this party was straightforward; there weren't any overly complicated things—just purely for enjoyment, for Lynch to enjoy.

The club was set up like a strip club, with dance floors and poles. Some dancers wore simple leather outfits and stretched their dance moves in the ambient lighting to the music.

This scene, given the current situation, was quite awkward, because Lynch unexpectedly brought a female companion, making such arrangements quite inappropriate and impolite.

"I'm sorry..." Mr. Herbs was silent for a few seconds before quickly apologizing, "I'll have someone change these shows!"

"No, there's no need!" Jenia stopped him, looking around the room, smiling as she said, "I'm of age, sir."

Mr. Herbs felt a bit embarrassed, ultimately complying with Jenia's request, not replacing those dancers, but this also led to what should have been a very exhilarating party becoming somewhat dull.

Given Jenia's status, along with her being Lynch's companion, no one wanted to find trouble!

The originally planned revelry did not succeed, and the entire party turned into a conversation and a bore.

Through this gathering, Mr. Herbs seemed to realize something as well.

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