Duke Calvin slowly tapped the armrest of his chair, his expression grim.

If I directly petition for Louis to be rewarded, that will only raise suspicion.

Not only will we not gain any advantage, but that child will also be under watch.

He must change the approach to make the entire Empire believe: it's not the Calvin Family supporting Louis, but that the Northern Territory has produced a Louis.

Make everyone, including the Emperor, see a local hero who climbed out on his own and fought bravely to carve out a space for himself.

A meritorious figure who won't shake the Empire's foundation, and a survivor who can stabilize the post-war frontier.

A sudden thought flashed through his mind, and the Duke's eyes gradually lit up.

He slowly sat up straight, tapping his fingers lightly on the table as if striking the rhythm of an impending political maneuver.

If he can organize a complete set of political rhetoric on "speaking for the Northern Territory" and "speaking for the survivors."

Even if it's just a carefully designed facade, it will be enough to push the internal aid process for the Northern Territory within the Empire.

As long as the direction is right, public opinion and court councils will naturally assist him.

And instead of himself going to "request" the Emperor, which would only make the Emperor guard against the influence of great clans on military exploits;

The ideal scenario is for Governor of the North, Duke Edmund, to take the lead and other families to petition, which aligns with the Empire's legal principles and avoids suspicion on himself.

His eyes flashed, and he already had an idea in mind; it would be best if the Governor himself managed the awards and allocations.

Despite His Majesty the Emperor's iron-fisted governance over the years, cutting the power of the Eight Great Clans and being wary of all old nobility.

There is only one exception—Duke Edmund of the Northern Territory.

He is one of the Eight Great Clans, but his position is rock solid.

He has guarded the Northern Territory for over forty years, and his family has declined because of it, his only son even died in battle for the Empire.

Military power, reputation, imperial favor, he possesses all three.

He's arguably the most "trusted" veteran in the current Empire.

And if Duke Edmund led the proposal for post-disaster reconstruction, fighting for resources and political exemptions for survivors across the Northern Territory.

The Emperor would not only not veto it, he perhaps would "graciously agree."

That would mean laying the whole benefit squarely onto Duke Edmund's table.

And in this large plate of post-disaster handling, Louis could at least get a big chunk of the most delicious, central spoils.

Because he is both Duke Edmund's son-in-law and one of the few who actually gained merits in the war and maintained territorial operations post-war as a local lord.

His Red Tide Territory is currently the most intact, well-organized army, unlost granary, and stable public sentiment core of governance in the Northern Territory.

Far stronger than other half-ruined territories and broken walls with scattered troops.

All this means, no matter how the Empire decides to handle the Northern Territory next, Louis must be considered one of the candidates.

Duke Calvin's gaze remained calm, but his mind was already swiftly planning the details of the entire scheme.

First, the Calvin Family must not make an appearance.

If he rashly stepped forward to fight for Louis' honor and territory, it would only alert the Emperor and the Inspectorate.

That emperor, as cold as cold iron, fears most the noble heirs rising again through family influence.

He cannot act, but Edmund can move.

If Duke Edmund steps forward to request the establishment of post-disaster agencies, for rewarding meritorious individuals, it's not only reasonable, but the Emperor would be glad to "go with the flow."

"The ones standing opposite His Majesty seeking aid are most likely to be drawn swords upon; those at His Majesty's feet crying are most likely to be rewarded."

Duke Calvin sneered inwardly, resolving to push the Edmund Family to the forefront.

The second step is to unite the nobility and weave a web of petitions.

Secretly selecting several stable relations, old families capable of speaking in the Imperial Council, preparing to pay some territorial mining rights, procurement rights, resources, gold coins, and other interests in exchange for their support.

Having them support the establishment of the Empire's 'Northern Territory Post-Disaster Reward Bill.'

Not for one person, but for all survivors and all meritorious individuals.

The main aim of this bill will be:

To request the Emperor and the Imperial Council to grant resources and reward power for post-war aftermath in the Northern Territory and establish temporary autonomous institutions to stabilize politics.

The third step is to push for the establishment of the "Northern Territory Post-Disaster Consultation and Autonomous Group."

This is the most critical step.

Establishing this autonomous group seems to assist the Empire in "handling disaster areas, settling people, reorganizing remnants," but is actually crafting a legitimate ruling platform tailored for Louis.

The group will be led nominally by Duke Edmund, with Louis naturally entering the standing committee as the "Red Tide Territory representative."

Titles are mere vanity; only Red Tide Territory holds troops, food, population, law enforcement, and knight organization, and therefore truly has "governing capability."

The Empire only needs to "grant autonomous ruling rights," without deploying a single soldier, and who would oppose?

And this devolvement implicitly signifies authorized legitimate power and resource distribution.

Throughout this process, Duke Calvin will be fully invisible, not signing, not standing out, nor speaking.

He only needs to contribute some wealth and resources, letting these proposals naturally rise, voiced and driven by others.

His influence in the circle of Imperial Nobility will quietly drive these gears to mesh precisely.

Let the Emperor see a grand post-disaster cooperation movement.

Rather than a new Calvin family power emerging in the Northern Territory.

With thoughts settled, Duke Calvin slowly stood up, walked to his desk, and pulled out several encrypted parchment sheets.

He dipped his pen in ink, writing boldly and fluidly, each stroke imbued with calm calculation of family interests.

The first letter was to his sister, Eleanor Calvin, the family's spokesperson in the Imperial Capital.

He instructed her on how to maneuver in the core council and elaborate on Louis's military achievements while concealing overly conspicuous edges.

The second was to Duke Edmund, his in-law.

In a tone of "overcoming crises together," he sincerely expressed that he would fully support his rebuilding of the Northern Territory and could put forward any requests.

The subsequent few were written to several noble political advisors he was quite familiar with in the Imperial Capital's court.

He didn't directly request support for Louis but rather under the banner of "Northern Territory's shared prosperity," "merits in civilian relief," and "reconstruction of a new imperial order," encouraged them to support Duke Edmund.

He dried the ink, packed each letter into black tube-envelopes with family secret seals, and sealed them with copper seals of different levels.

A moment later, a steward quietly appeared to collect the letters.

Then he casually flipped back to the last page of that bulletin, originally thought to be an unimportant post-war roster, only to find an inconspicuous line at the very bottom:

"...Pal Calvin, lost contact in the Doomsday Nest combat zone, confirmed deceased."

He paused his finger, his gaze slightly focused.

"Pal?" he softly uttered the name, as if retrieving a dust-covered plaque from a distant and blurry corner.

Silence prevailed for a moment; his brow didn't furrow, nor did his gaze show sadness, but quickly sifted through that person's outline in his mind.

"Ah... it's him."

"It's that one I sent in the second batch of pioneers last year, was his mother... Esther? No, or Marine?" he paused, eventually unable to recall.

"So be it, not worth remembering evidently means... it was never important."

He gently set the letter down, his fingertips not exerting force, treating it like a discarded piece of paper.

Pal.

Another who couldn't survive the Northern Territory.

"Dead then dead," he spoke plainly, as if confirming a settled account.

A son, he has plenty.

Those without value are destined to be eliminated in the gears of power, and those able to survive will naturally climb up.

This is the truth of the Calvin Family system.

Not everyone is worthy of the honor of the surname; bearing the name Calvin can also be just a one-time disposable try.

He resumed his posture, picking up new documents.

The ember-stained paper lay at the bottom, no longer retaining any sense of presence.

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