The three of them argued in a chaotic mess, and in the end it was Emily Harris who supported Raymond Grant, bringing the quarrel to an end.

　Throughout the entire argument, Michael Smith didn’t say a word, George Evans sat with his eyes closed, resting—no one knew if he was asleep or not—and Peter Wood was already sleeping so soundly that drool was running down his chin.

　They then discussed a few more issues. Several times, Emily Harris asked David Thompson, “Does Dave have any opinions? Please share them.”

　David Thompson always answered solemnly, “Thanks to the graciousness of the Chief President, this humble official has been granted a seat and the chance to witness the elegance of all the commanders and listen to your wise counsel. How could I dare to disturb your far-sightedness and deep strategies with my own shallow and vulgar views? Absolutely not!”

　David Thompson understood very well that he was in an inappropriate position; as long as he spoke up, whether he was right or wrong, it would be wrong! At that point, Emily Harris could easily pin the charge of “recklessly interfering in state affairs” on him!

　Just when everyone thought George Evans was already asleep, he opened his eyes and glanced at David Thompson, a hint of approval appearing at the corner of his mouth.

　“I have a question.” After everyone had finished speaking, George Evans spoke weakly: “In the Battle of Hengchuan, Deputy Commander David captured over ten thousand demon soldiers, including Princess Kadan, the third daughter of the Demon King. We have already brought her back to the imperial capital. How should we deal with her? I request the Chief President’s decision.”

　Emily Harris: “How have demon prisoners been handled in the past?”

　George Evans: “Usually, they’re sent to the labor camps in Wagra to do forced labor. Some of the less dangerous ones—like elf monsters or dwarves—can be kept by the captor and sold at the slave market. But this girl is different; she’s the highest-ranking prisoner we’ve ever captured, and she’s a member of the demon royal family. If we handle her the old way, we might be in big trouble…”

　George Evans didn’t spell it out, but everyone understood what “big trouble” meant: if the Demon King found out his beloved daughter had been sold as a slave, he’d storm over with millions of demon soldiers like a tidal wave. Just thinking about it made everyone’s scalp tingle.

　Jack Miller said seriously, “So are we supposed to obediently hand her back and say, ‘Your Majesty the Demon King, here’s your daughter, safe and sound, not a scratch on her, not even her hymen is broken! Please check carefully, and next time, don’t let her run around. There are lots of bad people in the world these days, and it could be dangerous!’”

　The whole room burst into laughter. Emily Harris laughed so hard he was gasping for breath, pointing at Jack Miller: “You… you’re the number one rascal in the Command Office!”

　“This is indeed a tough problem. If we send her back, it damages our family’s reputation, and outsiders will think we’re afraid of the demons. If we keep her, there could be trouble later…” The border army commander Matthew Foster was also deep in thought.

　David Thompson felt a headache coming on. When he first captured Kadan, he thought it was a great achievement, but now… it seemed like he’d just brought trouble to the Command Office.

　Emily Harris: “Did you get any information out of her? What’s her condition?”

　George Evans gave a wry smile: “She hasn’t said a word. Without special permission, we don’t dare use torture. Every day, all she does is eat, drink, and sleep—she only eats sparrow liver, agave hearts, bird’s nest and the like; only drinks three-hundred-year-old honeydew and rainwater filtered seventeen times at dawn; and as for sleep, it’s even more troublesome. We have to catch over three hundred peacocks, pluck all their feathers to make her a mattress, and there can’t be any noise within fifty meters… If we fail at any of this, she tries to kill herself. She’s already tried twice—didn’t succeed, but she scared one of the guards so badly he had a heart attack and died.”

　“At this point, I don’t dare hope for anything. If His Majesty the Demon King is willing to take his daughter back, I’d even be willing to pay him a year’s salary out of my own pocket!”

　Another round of laughter. Matthew Foster said, “Maybe the Demon King couldn’t stand her either and deliberately let her get captured, just to pass the burden on to us.”

　Jack Miller: “We can’t just let her go for nothing, right? How about we use her as a hostage to negotiate a ceasefire with the Demon King? Honestly, our family’s main enemy in trying to dominate the entire Xichuan continent is the Liufeng family. Fighting the demons is really pointless.”

　Raymond Grant: “Good idea! Why don’t you, Jack Miller, go talk to the Demon King yourself?”

　“Your mother! If you’re so good at talking, why don’t you go?” Everyone present was a top expert of the Zichuan family, but whether it was Jack Miller or Raymond Grant, neither dared to boast that they’d go see the so-called “invincible” Demon King in person.

　“I have a suggestion.” No one knew when Peter Wood had woken up, but in his old, trembling voice he said, “Why don’t we pick some people from among the demon prisoners and have them deliver a message to the Demon King?”

　“Great idea! The older, the wiser!” Emily Harris shouted in approval, and the others all agreed as well.

　Only George Evans objected: “I’m heading back to the Far East tomorrow. Negotiations will drag on for half a year, and I can’t stay here waiting. I think someone else should watch over Kadan.”

　David Thompson had a bad feeling…

　Sure enough, including George Evans, everyone turned their gaze to him.

　“I don’t want to die young!” David Thompson gnashed his teeth in frustration and hurriedly declined: “I don’t think it’s appropriate! I’ve just returned to the capital and don’t even have a place to live yet—it’s not convenient for me to take on this task.”