The division plan for Val City State was published quickly.

The fertile land on the west shore of the Rodinia River was assigned to the Jin Yuan Republic.

This land is indeed good, but its strategic position is somewhat lacking, as it is separated by the river from the main city area of Val City, belonging to a single region.

Although it's not the best place, it's also not the worst, and the representative of the Jin Yuan Kingdom accepted it without much objection.

The Tirol Kingdom was assigned the southern city, the Sussex Empire the northern city and part of the docks, and the Vladimir Empire the eastern city and part of the docks.

The areas occupied by the Wende Empire were sandwiched between the territories of Sussex and Vladimir, all relatively inferior places.

The occupied zones were divided according to the strength of each country, leaving them with no arguments.

All three major religions could establish their Holy Halls within the city for preaching, but were not allowed to cross boundaries.

The Holy Spring of Light naturally was given to the Divine Court of Light.

After the division was completed, most countries were satisfied.

Val City State was dissatisfied, but fortunately, Val City State had already disappeared, so their feelings were no longer a concern.

After the international conference ended, representatives from various countries left one after another.

Prime Minister William, busy with state affairs, could not leave the Imperial Capital for long, and after the foreign guests departed, he too boarded the warship for the return journey.

Before leaving, he visited Sif, tentatively asking if she wanted to return together.

Sif refused, both courteously and firmly.

She had ample reasons.

She wanted to continue investigating her father's disappearance.

Although she did not plan to return, she still acknowledged William's work.

As he left the Empress's Palace, William merely sighed silently and said nothing.

When Sif was in the Imperial Capital, everyone thought she was a troublesome beauty, and her departure was a relief for many ministers, including him.

Once Sif left, William gradually realized the significance of the Emperor's presence.

The Empire was too large.

Every minister had interest groups behind them, and these groups had conflicting interests.

For instance, the Minister of Overseas Affairs naturally hoped to expand more colonies. But the Minister of Internal Affairs and the Minister of Finance did not think the same way.

Colonial expansion could bring benefits to the Empire, but could not supersede the Empire itself.

Not every colony could be as prosperous and compliant as Balat.

Some places were rich in resources but had fierce local customs, making the maintenance of colonies costly.

The Empire spent money, but the benefits went to the external governors, causing discontent within the central Empire.

The governors shared interests with the Minister of Overseas Affairs but had conflicts with the local officials.

Such conflicts were innumerable.

The Empire was indeed too vast, like a tree reaching the sky, with a complicated network of interest relationships.

Even a shrewd and capable minister like Prime Minister William couldn't reconcile all parties' relations.

If only the Empress could return to the Imperial Capital.

Although the Empress was young, she was, after all, the legitimate Emperor, with an exceptional power of rallying forces.

She had been in Hansa not long, and the previously divided Three Overseas Provinces had already united, reflecting the influence of the Imperial Family.

Without the Empress presiding, many of William's plans could not be implemented.

Sighing, the Prime Minister boarded the ship.

When the monarch is away, commands may not be fully obeyed.

He certainly couldn't forcibly bring the Empress back. If he had such an idea, the furious Three Provinces Army would tear him apart immediately.

With all guests departed, Roland could finally close the door and take stock of the gains.

In the small study room, he locked the door and summoned the soul cards.

The main profession card [Inheritor] turned purple.

Passing on the Elf Race's knowledge and abilities to their own strong individuals could enhance the Inheritor's achievements.

With the Elf Race already extinct, the only one to receive the inheritance was Sif. Along with Sif's continuous growth in strength and level, Roland also continually benefited.

With Sif advancing to Tier Seven, he could achieve a hidden accomplishment, allowing the entire Elf Imperial Family to level up.

This was a rare special achievement that would smoothly allow for his own advancement.

His main profession's advancement path was completely bound to Sif.

As Sif upgraded, he could follow along.

Somewhat opportunistic, but such were the rules.

When Sif advanced, would there still be unpaid Elf Imperial Family? No.

Roland's secondary profession Knight also received an opportunity for advancement.

In the fierce battle with the Golden Tree Demon, he protected the Monarch selflessly, allowing the protected to escape death, directly activating a special branch for advancement.

Roland did not miss the opportunity.

His secondary profession also reached Tier Eight [Guardian].

The [Guardian] trait endowed Roland with powerful vitality and defense, significantly enhancing his survival ability.

Only by surviving can one contribute, and Roland was very satisfied with this advancement.

Additionally, he gained a special ability that could only be activated once a day, [Divine Protection].

He could summon a Divine Shelter to protect himself and those he guarded simultaneously.

Unless the Divine Shelter was breached, he and the protected were safe.

This special ability reminded Roland of the gift ring he obtained while shopping at the Magic Association.

This ring had served its purpose, protecting him under the Tree Demon's attack.

Unfortunately, it was a one-time product; although the ring was not shattered, its stored magic had vanished.

He pondered whether to visit the Magic Association to recharge the ring.

The advantage of the ring was that it didn't require him to judge the timing of its activation and could be used passively.

Paired with [Divine Protection], it could provide a second chance to avoid fatal damage.

What about a third time?

If he encountered three fatal occurrences in a short time, it implied too great a power gap with the enemy.

At that point, he would have no choice but to start over. What else could be done?

Roland stared at the soul cards for quite a while before putting them away.

He knew the cultivation system of the soul cards came from the Second Era, supposedly researched by the King of the Gods, designed to help mortals absorb the Power of Stars for cultivation.

With the end of the Second Era, the soul cards went through countless evolutions, eventually forming the existing system.

Reportedly, the end tier for each card system, Tier Zero, is the True God.

The three Goddesses of the Second Era all followed the card cultivation path.

They succeeded, but no one since then had managed to do so.

After all, the attacks from the Divine Punishment Legion were too hard to withstand.

Roland didn't envision things going so far.

Realistically, he thought of dealing with Mike and Sofia first.

As Roland pondered his life, a knocking sound rang out.

With a specific pattern of long and short sounds, the knocks were unusual.

Roland was somewhat surprised as to why Alina was visiting in broad daylight.

Opening the door, he saw Alina's excited expression.

"Roland, the flow of fate has changed!"

"Calm down, calm down, have a seat and explain slowly."

Roland closed the door, poured a cup of water for Alina, and gestured for her to sit and speak.

Unable to hide her excitement, Alina spoke softly, "Roland, you asked me to observe the fate of those around you to deduce the course of your destiny. Just now, seeing Sif's healthy complexion, I re-observed her fate direction."

"Her life initially should have ended in her twenties, but now it's changed!"

Roland raised an eyebrow, a voice with a feigned calmness tinged with nervousness.

"How much chance does she have to win?"

Alina replied honestly, "I don't know."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.