Set out

  Set out

  "Hey, Suizi girl, isn't your luggage ready yet?"

  "Charlotte, do you really want me to rip your mouth apart?"

  "What's with you, a pervert? Can't you hurry up? Why are you carrying so many things? Hey, hey, why are you throwing things at my head?"

  ……

  The long and winding campaign trail also has an end, as the weather gradually turned cold, the mainland conference opening time is getting closer. After sending off three batches of messengers to urge him, Governor Norm finally ended his "tour" and decided to set off south immediately to face the greatest challenge in his political career. So on a dismal evening, poor Phil was forced to put down the still-booming safe business, reluctantly bidding farewell to the red-haired female pastor who had just been beaten hotly, arguing with Charlotte, and embarking on the journey to Gray Castle.

  This trip not only includes officials under the Governor's Office and officers of the Giant Bear Army, but also Zena, the Speaker of Parliament, and most members of the State Council. Ludwig, the Speaker who became a lone commander in the Battle of Glorious City, also squeezed into the governor's carriage as the sole representative of 800,000 new citizens of Enoak. As for the Northern States, their leaders were almost all killed in the war, so Governor Norm had to hold an emergency election among the refugees from the Northern States to elect a temporary representative to make up the numbers. Of course, these two representatives are completely under the thumb of Governor Norm and are basically no different from officials under the Governor's Office. This time they are purely going to cheer on Governor Norm.

  There were over a thousand officials, delegates, journalists and their attendants in total. Governor Norm also had Charlotte select one thousand "slightly more capable" (Charlotte's words) elite soldiers from the legion to serve as guards, bringing the entire delegation to two thousand people. Since there were also spirit warships patrolling at sea, everyone could only choose to travel by land, passing through the western regions of New Samaras and New Komi, finally arriving at Grayfort on the border between New Komi and Great Lakes states to attend this continental conference.

  The entire journey was not very long, with a total distance of about 300 miles. However, due to the complexity of personnel and the inexperience of the organizers, the delegation's progress was quite slow. It wasn't until the fourth day after departing from Emon Port that the group of over 2,000 people finally arrived at the border between New Samarrah State and New Mazobra State, where they met with Governor Lyle, who had been waiting anxiously. Given the slowness of traveling by land, Governor Lyle urgently arranged for boats to be dispatched, allowing everyone to board in New Samarrah State and cross the safe inland lake, Lake Dalmia, before finally arriving at Grayhaven for the conference.

  Laird Governor is a mixed-blood of dark elf and human, who has just turned 100 years old. He has short golden hair and azure blue eyes, with healthy wheat-colored skin and a athletic build. As an illegitimate child, Laird does not have a surname. However, his background is obviously extraordinary, able to promote such a young man (half-elf at 100 years old is considered young) to such a high position. If it weren't for the fact that he has too little experience and had just arrived from his hometown at the beginning of the year, without having established a local network, he probably wouldn't have been so easily swayed by Governor Norm's words, giving up the opportunity to run for war zone officer.

  Currently, under the pressure of Governor Lyle and Governor Norm, the southern states have begun to waver. New Komir and New Komanos states have largely fallen to Governor Norm after their parliaments collapsed. Several other states are experiencing internal divisions, with some members already defecting to Governor Norm. Most governors have abandoned their elections, leaving only two regular army generals who qualify to compete against Governor Norm: Lieutenant General Godric, Deputy Commander of the Seventh Fleet, and Colonel Merle Soliton, Senior Staff Officer of the New Continental Army.

  After the main force of the Seventh Fleet and the fleet commander were destroyed outside Emon Harbour, General Godrick immediately gathered up the remaining warships and retreated to Sunhaven at the southernmost tip of New Trael, implementing an avoidance policy. At that time, the Elf Fleet only harassed several northern states and did not penetrate deep into the southernmost part of New Trael.

  Wait until Idriel? Lirien Lieutenant General will toss the elf fleet into disarray, and incidentally send himself to a dead end. After that, Godrick Lieutenant General also saw an opportunity, reversing his conservative attitude in recent days, commanding the remaining 20+ ships to frequently attack, even sneaking up on the North Pole Port once. Due to the infighting among the elf forces, Godrick's fleet achieved considerable results in a short period of time, sinking or damaging over ten elven warships and capturing two merchant vessels. Currently, Godrick Lieutenant General has been touted as a naval hero by several southern state newspapers, and the central government also looks favorably upon him.

  Another Major Morel Solerton is the nephew of General Solerton, the former commander of the New Continent Corps. He has always been valued by the childless general and even has a tendency to cultivate him as his successor. In the New Continent, he also has a reputation for being a young talent. However, in the Battle of North Pole Port, his performance greatly disappointed those who had high expectations of him.

  Idril organized a surprise attack in the rain, Colonel Morel Soliton was inspecting the front line. If he could have led his troops back in time, even if he couldn't turn the tide of defeat, he would have been able to save most of the army. Unfortunately, the colonel was so frightened by the news that he abandoned his regiment and fled with only a few attendants to Stone Fort overnight. Afterwards, he also ignored the approaching Elven Army and led all the regular troops in the city to flee south, indirectly leading to the fall of the city and the loss of the Northern Province. As a result, he was hated by the people in the occupied area, with only General Idriel Lirien receiving more curses.

  After returning to the headquarters of the Great Lakes State, Moll Solerton, who abandoned his duties as a soldier and military officer, became notorious as "Long-legged Moll". The remnants of the New Continental Regiment refused to accept his command and reported his crimes to their homeland. However, at this time, Colonel Moll Solerton was in stark contrast to his cowardice in Northport, decisively launching a large purge with an iron fist, killing at least 300 disobedient soldiers, and seizing military power. When the Great Lakes State Council, which originally supported him, fell due to the New Ennock State food crisis scandal, he forcibly dissolved the new council with armed force and arrested the governor, resulting in conflict with the Great Lakes State Militia, thus sparking the Great Lakes State Civil War.

  Later, under pressure from the Imperial Centre's severe censure and the entry of the Allied armies into the state, his subordinates mutinied one after another. Colonel Morel had no choice but to release the governor and agree to restore the Assembly. If other states were only indifferent to the fate of New Enoo State, then Colonel Morel was truly a rebel.

  Perhaps in consideration of appeasing the powerful Soliton family on New Terra, Central Command merely relieved Colonel Moore of his command and did not cashier him. Colonel Moore Soliton took advantage of still being an active duty officer to run for Zone Commander, but anyone with even a little discernment would not think that Colonel Moore Soliton had any chance of winning the election.

  Lord Rykhard and Governor Norn, along with their wooden staff, analyzed the current situation and made a unanimous judgment: Lieutenant General Godrick was born in New Zealand, served in various colonies for many years, had a deep network of connections, and had many supporters. He also had some prestige among the southern people, and considering his recent military achievements, it was likely that he would become Governor Norn's main opponent in the election campaign. As for Morel Solleton's candidacy, it was simply a joke, and even the Solleton family wouldn't dare to support him openly. It was actually good that Morel Solleton came to the Continental Congress, so they could keep an eye on him and prevent him from secretly colluding with the military to dissolve the assembly again through force.

  Compared to Lieutenant General Godrick, Governor Nohman is a civilian-born official, which is somewhat disadvantageous. However, Governor Nohman sent troops north in June after the Battle of Northern Port, while Godrick did not counterattack until September, so Governor Nohman can make an issue of this during his campaign and attack Godrick for hoarding troops and stealing credit from friendly forces. With the support of the two frontline states, the chances of winning are still relatively high. The staff of the two states also discussed in detail how to effectively utilize Lieutenant General Idriel's heavy-hitting war spoils and how to reflect the voices of the people on the front lines back to the rear. As a result, both men believe that this election is basically a sure win as long as no major mistakes are made.

  The Governor of Lyell provided the delegation with fast ships that could sail and row, raising sails when the wind was favorable and lowering them to row when it wasn't. This method proved efficient on the windy waters of Lake Dalmia. After a day and night of high-speed sailing, the delegation landed one after another along the coast of New Komir State, but due to the fleet dispersing at night, the two governors spent another day gathering everyone together. By the time they slowly made their way from the shores of Lake Dalmia towards Gray Castle, the calendar had already flipped to November 9th, leaving only one day before the scheduled meeting.