Everyone finished their tofu puddings in blissful silence. They set their bowls down almost at the exact same time, and when they looked at each other again, the animosity in the air had receded significantly.
Who would have thought that a bowl of tofu pudding would be so conducive to peace? Delicious cuisine really does work wonders sometimes. Michael was also quite surprised. He was afraid that the representatives would fight each other over the tofu pudding, but it appeared that his concerns were unfounded.
They're already done? The two recording officials faltered momentarily before setting their bowls aside, and picking up their pens. They still had to keep detailed records of the conference.
This must be the first time that tofu pudding has restored peace during a conference. Sally also wore a slightly peculiar expression. Conferences of this nature were always very complex affairs. Both sides would always try to fight the opposing party to secure more benefits, and many days could pass without a result being reached. However, it appeared that all of the unnecessary foreplay had been skipped.
"I don't think we need to quarrel over stupid little things, either. The objective of this conference is to put an end to that pointless war so both sides can retreat, and we can then decide the ownership rights to the island." Jinx expressed his opinion on the matter.
"My thoughts exactly. It's just an insignificant island with no notable treasures on it, but a battle suddenly broke out for no reason, and it's very close to escalating into something very serious. We demons do not fear war, but we don't want to fight pointless wars, either, as that would just be a waste of resources. As such, we also want to put an end to this farce." Dracula nodded as he produced two copies of the same map. He tossed one map over to the dragons before spreading open the other map on his own table.
"With regard to the conflict over this island, after a discussion among the top 10 demon subspecies, we've decided to relinquish ownership rights over the island. However, we maintain that we were the first ones to discover the island. There are no special mines or treasures on the island, so I hope your dragon race won't try to claim it, either. My suggestion is that we leave it as is, and make it an island that neither of us have ownership over.
"From geographical perspective, the distance from this island to our Demon Islands and your dragon island is almost identical, so it shouldn't belong to your dragon race. Throughout the course of this battle, many of our brave demon warriors perished, whereas you dragons were quicker to summon reinforcements, so your side suffered almost no casualties. As such, I hope you can pay compensation for the brave demon warriors who have lost their lives.
Dracula pointed at the small red dot on the map, and stated his opinion.
"You want us to give up on the island and pay compensation? Our dragon race does not have a habit of making such major concessions. We can accept your first condition, but not the second one." Fox looked at Dracula with a mocking expression; he didn't even take a single glance at the map.
Gustav pursed his lips, and said, "Tsk, the dragon island has all sorts of precious mines, and your yearly production of gold and silver is staggering. Just a tiny portion of that is enough to pay the compensation, so why do you insist on being so stingy? You can't use all of those precious metals and stones anyway; most of it just ends up being hoarded in your caves. What's the point of hoarding so much riches? Will you be able to spend that stuff in the afterlife?"
"Gold is our faith! Anyone who tries to take our gold must bear the wrath of us Golden Dragons!" Jinx's glowered at the three demons in a menacing display.
"We giant dragons pride ourselves on collecting precious metals and stones; everyone on the Norland Continent knows that. We're not going to pay any compensation. Deaths are inevitable in battle; if we had lost the battle, then we would be happy to give up the island and pay compensation. However, we have surrounded the island, while you demons are trapped on it. It's already a show of kindness from us that we're not making you pay compensation, so what right do you have to state such requirements? If you insist on enforcing those two conditions, then there's no need for this conference to go on any longer." Fox wasn't backing down.
The restaurant fell silent again. Both sides began to discuss it with their own allies, and since spatial magic was used to cut off all sound, no one knew what they were discussing.
Compared to the political discussions I've seen in my past life, their conference is as simple as a quarrel between kindergarteners. Looks like we should be able to wrap things up by tonight. A confident smile appeared on Mag's face, and he placed a series of roujiamos into paper bags before gesturing to Yabemiya.
"Boss, do you want me to bring them out now?" Yabemiya was a little confused. Both sides were involved in heated discussions, so it appeared that the timing wasn't ideal.
"The roujiamos will become soggy if they're left to sit around for too long, so just bring them out now." Mag nodded with a smile. He was going to control the progression of the conference.
"Alright." Yabemiya was still a little concerned, but she nodded and carried out the roujiamos. She placed one roujiamo in front of each representative, and smiled as she said, "This is roujiamo. Please enjoy."
"Hmm?"
The aroma of braised meat wafted through the air, and all of the dragons and demons were immediately drawn to the roujiamos in the little paper bags.
Compared to the faint aroma of the tofu puddings, the scent of this braised meat was extremely rich, like a voluptuous mature woman. It was tempting them in the most direct and straightforward way, and they immediately lost interest in their respective discussions.
"Meat is my favorite food! Let me see what meat cooked by a human tastes like." Jinx was the first to pick up his roujiamo, and he immediately tore open the paper bag, revealing the roujiamo within. All of a sudden, an aroma that was countless times richer than that of raw meat assaulted his senses, and he couldn't help but gulp before taking a large bite.
Between two layers of crispy bai ji bread was tender braised meat. As he bit down, the delicious flavor of the meat exploded in his mouth, and every single one of his taste buds began to jump for joy. He had never tasted anything so delicious in the past. In comparison, all of the meat that he had eaten in his life was trash!
After swallowing the mouthful of roujiamo, the delicious flavor suddenly transformed into violent energy, which caused his heart to thump more quickly, and his blood to churn in his veins.
"Roar!"
Jinx abruptly stood up and let loose a thunderous roar. A golden dragon tail erupted from his backside, instantly pulverizing his chair...