Chapter 68: Much Stronger Than 996

Chapter 68: Much Stronger Than 996

Before Airael could respond, Linis continued, “Once the child is born, you’ll be able to focus on this matter. Right now, being pregnant makes it difficult for you to concentrate.”

Linis’s admonishing words left Airael unable to retort.

Back with the Elven Race, she ignored the fact that she was now a pregnant woman.

At this moment, the child was still small and not yet showing.

When the baby grew and her belly followed suit, handling affairs would surely become inconvenient.

Thinking about this, Airael realized that she was indeed a bit too anxious.

“Linis, thank you. I was a bit hasty.”

“Right now, don’t think too much. Just focus on the pregnancy! We elves have plenty of time, so there’s no rush in a year or two. Besides, as I just mentioned, we shouldn’t push the Elven Lords too hard. I don’t want another civil war in our tribe!”

Linis closed her eyes and sighed after saying this.

Although her words somewhat protected those Elven Lords, a civil war was certainly not something she wanted to see.

“I also don’t wish for another civil war among the Elven Race. I will come up with a peaceful solution to this matter,” Airael replied, looking at Linis.

“That sounds excellent!” Linis smiled in response.

Linis, you’ve really given me a tricky challenge.

While Airael wore a smile on her face, she wasn’t exactly happy inside.

Getting those Elven Lords to willingly relinquish their power and submit to her wouldn’t be as easy as it sounded.

After visiting Linis, Airael and her entourage made their way back to Avalon Royal Palace.

As they walked, Airael couldn’t stop thinking about her conversation with Linis.

For now, the issue of centralization could wait.

Upon reflection, Airael realized this wasn’t a bad thing at all.

Though she was the Elven Queen, she hadn’t previously taken a direct role in governance, making her presence in the political arena more akin to that of a mascot.

Now that she was taking on a direct role, supported by Linis, lying low for a while on her political journey could actually be beneficial.

If she came on too strong, the Elven Lords, sensing a crisis, might join forces against her.

In that case, her path to centralization would be even more difficult.

After clarifying her thoughts, Airael began to form a preliminary plan in her mind.

In general, to deal with those Elven Lords, she needed to adopt a “boil the frog slowly” approach.

At the outset, she shouldn’t let them feel threatened; instead, she could confuse them with a guise of safety and peace. By the time they realized what was happening, it would already be too late.

Airael couldn’t help but smile.

She could almost envision her successful self leading the Elven Race to glory.

When Airael returned to the royal palace, it was already quite late.

Before entering the palace, she glanced at the sunset and sighed to herself, “So the first day of my reign has come to an end!”

……

The next morning, Airael woke up on time to begin her second day of governance.

According to Hela’s arrangement, after breakfast until noon was her working time—reviewing documents, summoning ministers for discussions, and so forth.

After finishing her morning tasks, it was time for lunch, followed by an afternoon break.

Once the break ended, Airael encountered her free time for the day.

The time was entirely hers to allocate.

She could train, rest, engage in enjoyable activities, or even continue working.

Overall, as a queen, she had to carve out a morning in her work week to handle her duties.

Naturally, Airael was more than happy to comply.

This was way better than her impression of the grueling 996 work schedule!

Before she knew it, two weeks had passed since Airael’s return and formal assumption of leadership.

At this point, news of Airael’s return and her official governance had spread throughout the Elven Race.

Simultaneously, Airael decided to summon the Elven Lords for a meeting at the Elven Royal City.

Upon receiving the Queen’s summons, the Elven Lords respectfully made their way to the Elven Royal City.

In the conference hall, Airael sat silently on the throne as Linis, acting as the chairperson, began to speak.

Standing with her back to Airael, she addressed the gathered Elven Lords, “Fellow compatriots, our Queen, the Mistress of Avalon, Airael, has successfully completed the trial of governance. Now, I have returned all powers of the kingdom to Queen Airael. Please, express your loyalty to our Queen, the Mistress of Avalon, Airael.”

At the moment Linis finished speaking, all the Elven Lords stood and bowed in respect to Airael.

Although she understood that they might not fully accept her, the moment they bowed, Airael couldn’t hide her joy.

This feeling was absolutely amazing!

Incredibly amazing!

Unless you experienced it firsthand, it was truly hard to appreciate the sensation.

Airael realized this was the allure of power.

Next, she steeled her mind and looked at the still-bowing Elven Lords, saying, “Fellow compatriots, please rise.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!” the Elven Lords replied in unison as they resumed their seats.

Thus, the Elven meeting officially commenced.

Airael spoke, “Today’s meeting is held partly because I haven’t had the chance to meet you all for a long while, so I wanted to take this opportunity to see you and become better acquainted.

The second reason is that I wish to discuss the future development of our Elven Race with you. The Elven Race is not just Airael’s race, but the race of every single one of you present here.

I believe no one wishes for our Elven Race to vanish like those legendary races lost to the sands of time, or to merely survive in the shadows of the world.”

“Your Majesty’s concern for the future of our Elven Race is indeed a blessing for us,” Mason from Menas City spoke up, essentially flattering Airael.

After his words, another Elven Lord chimed in, “Having a Queen like you is indeed a blessing for our tribe, and we hope you will lead our Elven Race to rise again.”

Soon, other Elven Lords began to chime in, all praising Airael.

Listening to the flattery, Airael smiled and said, “Thank you all for your compliments. Since everyone is so eager, let’s get down to business!”