The aftermath of the battle had completely devastated the Blue House—the political heart of Wyvernia. Not a single structure remained standing taller than ten meters.
The ground was covered in countless cracks, roads had caved in, trees were uprooted.
Those unfortunate enough to have failed to escape in time were now buried beneath the rubble.
As for Isaac, the President, and the Ten Councilors, they had retreated into the underground bunker beneath the Blue House at the first sign of danger.
The bunker was built to be exceptionally sturdy, buried 500 meters deep—capable of withstanding nuclear strikes and even attacks from Champion-tier Pokémon.
It was also fully stocked with supplies, enough to sustain 300 people for five years.
"With Patriarch Lancaster taking action, Julian has no chance of survival."
Inside the bunker, Isaac was full of confidence in William—or rather, in the two Champion-tier Pokémon William had brought with him.
He then turned to the Ninth Councilor with an unfriendly look and said coldly, "Once this crisis is over, you—a traitor to the nation—will face severe punishment."
In Isaac's eyes, the Ninth Councilor was clearly linked to Drakoria—he even suspected the man was a spy Drakoria had planted in Wyvernia's government.
Under normal circumstances, Isaac would have executed the Ninth Councilor on the spot. But with public outrage over Julian's incident boiling over—and all of it directed at him—he now saw an opportunity.
The Ninth Councilor would become the perfect scapegoat.
The charges were already prepared in Isaac's head: "Conspiring with Drakoria in secret, abusing council authority to release Julian from the military base, and single-handedly causing the entire operation to fail."
High treason, plain and simple. Once that label stuck, he could dump as much filth on the Ninth Councilor as he liked.
The Ninth Councilor, however, wasn't the least bit afraid. He said firmly, "I'm trying to save Wyvernia. Your actions will drag this country into the abyss!"
"Drakoria is not an enemy we can resist. Kidnapping Julian has already crossed their bottom line—if we want our nation to survive, we must attach ourselves to Drakoria!"
It was true—the Ninth Councilor had received support from Drakoria. But at his core, he was truly acting in Wyvernia's best interests.
And for the record—he was a Wyvernian through and through, not a Drakorian spy.
In his view, if their country had to be a vassal state, better it be to Drakoria than the distant Celestria. At least Drakoria treated its allies well.
And unlike Celestria—too far away to offer timely aid—Drakoria was right next door.
Just like now: When things went south, Celestria did send two Champions—but they'd been blocked by Volkaria before they could do anything.
The Ninth Councilor's words gave the other Councilors pause, their expressions turning thoughtful.
They were all politicians—naturally, none of them were fools.
Wyvernia held little international standing on its own, but thanks to its powerful 'godfather', most nations dared not provoke it.
But this 'godfather' was also a bloodsucking leech—claiming a share of every Top-tier Secret Realm, Ancient Ruin, and precious resources in Wyvernia.
Worse, it was at their 'godfather's' behest that they kept provoking Drakoria—which completely ruined relations with their neighbor. By the time they wanted to fix it, it was already too late.
Drakoria was their neighbor—a true superpower. To defy such a colossus meant clinging desperately to their godfather's leg, enduring its exploitation, because without that protection, Drakoria would crush them without mercy.
So in truth, Celestria was no benevolent guardian either.
And if their patron wasn't a good thing, why not switch allegiance? For example, to Drakoria, their next-door powerhouse?
"Bullshit! Drakoria is a pack of wolves—their troops have already crossed into our borders, and our Champion has died in their hands!"
"This is a blood feud! And instead of thinking about revenge, you want to surrender to them?"
"You're nothing but a shameless traitor!" Isaac roared in fury, looking like he was the true picture of patriotism—but in reality, he didn't have a choice.
After all, his rise to power was tied to both the Five-Star Group and Celestria.
Still, his words did stir up some Councilors' hatred toward Drakoria.
An army on their soil? That was blatant invasion, an insult even worse than losing their sole Champion.
A dead Champion was bad enough, but at least they still had Champion-level Pokémon—an invasion, though, was a slap in the face that kept grinding them into the dirt.
"You really think we can defeat Drakoria now? Even if we kill Julian, what does that change? Other than venting your anger, all it'll do is completely enrage Drakoria!"
"Andrew is dead—and even if the other Champion clans send out their ancestors' Pokémon, do you think they can stop John?"
"And let's say they do stop John—Drakoria still has five other Champions, not to mention their army of millions."
"With that kind of power, what can Wyvernia possibly fight with?"
"At that point, we're looking at total annihilation. Wyvernia itself will cease to exist—that's what a true traitor would bring about."
"But if we align ourselves with Drakoria, just like we did with Celestria, Wyvernia can still survive."
The Ninth Councilor looked at Isaac like he was an idiot.
In the face of absolute strength, everything else was a joke—and right now, Drakoria held that absolute strength.
Even if William killed Julian, what good would it do? It wouldn't change a thing.
"You think that siding with Drakoria makes me a traitor and a disgrace—yet see no shame in groveling before Celestria?"
"Yes, Drakoria's troops did cross our borders and killed our Champion—that's real blood debt, no denying that."
"But if you keep clinging to that hatred and insist on fighting Drakoria to the bitter end, who do you think will fall in the end? It's going to be us—because the gap in strength is simply too huge."
"As for your beloved Celestria—do you really think they will risk total war with Drakoria over us?"
"Don't forget: Drakoria also has Volkaria as an ally too—and that ally is strong, fiercely hostile to Celestria, and ready to stand with Drakoria to the end."
"Under these circumstances, Celestria would never go all-out against Drakoria either."
"If we align ourselves with Drakoria now, we at least preserve Wyvernia's sovereignty. Wait until their armies march in, then even if Wyvernia still exists, the power will no longer be in our hands."
What the Ninth Councilor meant was clear:
If they surrendered early, they could still hold on to their power—they'd remain the high-and-mighty Councilors.
But if they didn't surrender and waited until Drakoria conquered them by force, then sorry—that power would be gone. They'd become nothing but figureheads.
It'd be just like in ancient times—Drakoria would act like the Empress Dowager behind the curtain or a Regent King, pulling all the strings.
The Councilors would be mere puppets—if you obeyed, you could keep your throne; if not, they'd replace you without a second thought.
Hearing the Ninth Councilor's words, one of the Councilors who'd originally been filled with hatred toward Drakoria for invading their borders suddenly sobered up.
He realized: 'Resistance changes nothing.'
At most, he'd win himself a glorious reputation as a "patriot."
Better to swallow the humiliation and bide his time—endure it all for Wyvernia's chance to rise again one day.
*****
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