Princess Mia clicks her tongue
‘This flow of conversation… is rather dangerous.’
Mia was acutely aware of the peril in the ongoing discussion between Aima and Mayun. Indeed, the exchange between the two of them had the potential to become extremely inconvenient for Mia — a truly unpleasant conversation.
‘A sibling feud among ancestors affecting the present generation — I cannot accept this.’
The present situation, where people had to take responsibility for their ancestors’ blunders, reminded Mia of something or rather someone.
Yes… it was none other than Mia’s own ancestor, the first Emperor. Furthermore, there was a suspicion that Seima, Aima’s ancestor, had been lured by the Chaos Serpents and tempted into accepting the idea of harnessing the power of the wolves.
The situation felt similar to that of the First Emperor, who had been manipulated by the Chaos Serpents into creating the Tearmoon Empire itself.
Of course, no one could be certain about what happened, but that wasn’t the significant issue.
‘Just the fact that this reminds me of the First Emperor is the problem.’
For Mia, the First Emperor was a past that she wanted to forget. A history that she would like to bury in the dark, where it could never see the light of day ever.
Rather, she was supposed to have already done that at the Yellow Moon House.
‘Despite being my ancestor, he has created quite the troublesome situation for me.’
Although she complained, Mia set her brain into action, fueled by the milk.
With some quick thinking, she was able to organise her thoughts and nodded.
‘In any case, what I need to get them to focus on is the “now”! ’
It was necessary to divert the attention from past problems and shift the focus to the present issues, and it had to be done before someone broached the question : “Your Royal Highness, Princess Mia, what is your opinion regarding the blunder committed by your ancestor?”
So, Mia quietly opened her mouth and began her intervention!
“Oh my! How long do you plan to discuss such trivial matters?”
‘I deliberately used a mocking tone to imply : Isn’t it foolish to continue to dwell on the past? There is no meaning even if you expand the discussion, is there?’
Aima shot Mia an angry look and Mia glared right back at her.
“I am asking, how long will we have to continue such fruitless discussions before you are satisfied?”
‘The longer this discussion continues, the greater the risk of causing me trouble. In that case, it is better to conclude this discussion soon!’
Mia felt this within her heart, and at the same time, felt anger towards her foolish ancestor.
“What do you stand to gain by arguing over something that is already over, something that happened a long time ago?”
Mia emphasised the fact that it was pointless to argue over something from the past. She highlighted and underscored the point to make the message clear.
That’s right, this was a diversion tactic to change the subject, in other words…
“Aima-san, Didn’t you say that the Fire clan is experiencing a shortage of food?”
At that moment, it was the biggest problem. If resolved, there would be no need for Aima to go on a looting spree anymore and there wouldn’t be any source of tension between the Equestrian Kingdom and the other countries. This meant that, for now, setting aside the difficult problems of the past and focusing on a solution for the current problem was the best course of action that Mia wished to appeal for.
Mia had no idea what intention Malong had in bringing Aima to meet with his Father.
Anyway, it was important to divert their attention from the topics that she wished to avoid. Mia clenched her fist tightly and made her plea.
“Even as we speak now, children are suffering from hunger, and the elderly are helpless. In spite of that, why are we wasting time like this?”
From the depths of her heart, Mia sincerely believed that.
A problem like hunger should be solved urgently. Mia knew well how painful it was to be hungry. No one would disagree that it was a problem that needed immediate resolution. Furthermore, an empty stomach often leads to irritability, preventing the resolution of easily solvable problems. Discussions should be held only after a satisfactory meal – like after enjoying a delicious mushroom hot pot, when both the heart and stomach are satisfied, and one gets sleepy. At the very least Mia would in that scenario.
This drowsiness made difficult topics and past constraints seem inconsequential. To prevent over exerting the brain, people would cast away their obsessions and adopt a more efficient way of thinking.This, in essence, was Mia’s art of diplomacy. “Make the opponent satisfied, sleepy and convert them into meek cattle who would permit you to do anything.” abbreviated as ‘Gyuuho tactics’ or ‘Cow Permit tactics’.
While effective only on a small fraction of the population, it worked well with individuals like Mia, Bel and Aima.
“Father, it’s just as Miss Mia says, isn’t it time to let go?”
Malong who had been silent, listening the whole time, decided to speak up
“What do you mean by that, Malong?”
“It is foolish to continue to be held captive by the past. I believe it is about time to let go of those constraints. That’s what I meant.”
Malong was on board and riding Mia’s wave!
Mia did not expect Malong to be the first one to get on board. Such a minor surprise did not cause her to pause. Instead, she embraced the momentum and continued to ride the wave that Malong had created. Mia’s thinking power was as flexible as a jellyfish, flowing unfettered without restraints.
“Shortage of food is an unfortunate event. A situation where the citizens suffer from hunger and thirst would indeed be painful for those at the top overseeing them. However, if it could be used as an opportunity to bring back the people who had once left and help them, then that couldn’t be considered a bad thing.”
Either way, the food supply for the Fire clan had to be provided from somewhere. Mia knew that famines created a breeding ground for epidemics.
And, epidemics know no boundaries…
Therefore, saving the Fire clan from famine was the logical choice.
Nevertheless, it would be challenging to send supplies directly from the Empire, given the uncertainty of their exact location and concerns about the transportation cost. It would be ideal if the Equestrian Kingdom took care of them.
‘All I need to do is steer the discussion so that the Equestrian Kingdom volunteers to help the Fire clan!’
Suddenly, Mia became excited to surf this wave.
“I have alway thought about the Fire clan. That if they did not go extinct then we should find a way to reconcile. Isn’t this the perfect opportunity?”
‘Oh my! As expected of Malong-senpai!
This is going better than I expected! ’
Mia was filled with such joyful thoughts, but…
“It doesn’t matter what you say, but don’t think that we will easily accept it.”
Aima’s cold voice made Mia feel like she was being doused with cold water.
Mia mentally clicked her tongue in reproach at the sullen faced Aima who said those words.
After that, Mia began putting together a theory to persuade Aima.
