U kidding me?

Early the next morning, Rüdiger Ansenburg, the envoy of the Elector Palatine, came to the Emperor's residence in Bregenz to request an audience, and Laszlo quickly received him.

However, before this, Laszlo's messengers had already departed for Freiburg in Outer Austria and the Bohemian border, notifying the troops stationed in these two locations that they could begin their operations.

Laszlo had no intention of reaching an agreement with the Elector Palatine, but since the man had come all this way, he still needed to meet him.

Morning light streamed through the stained-glass windows of the Count of Bregenz's mansion, casting dappled shadows on the exquisite carpet in the reception room.

Laszlo was carefully reading the peace terms proposed by the Elector Palatine, his expression appearing very relaxed, as if he didn't care about the content on the paper at all.

Rüdiger sat opposite the Emperor, nervously observing his expression, hoping to discern his attitude towards the matter, but unfortunately, he couldn't make anything out.

After a while, Laszlo lightly tossed the peace agreement onto the long table in front of him, as if casually discarding a piece of meaningless trash.

Although he wore a faint smile, the displeasure in his tone was very obvious: "Sir Envoy, does your master really think that a few worthless gifts can absolve him of the crime of betraying the Empire and rebelling against the Emperor?"

Upon hearing this, Rüdiger immediately rose and bowed deeply to the Emperor; when he looked up, he met Laszlo's sharp gaze.

The Emperor's expression remained unchanged, the various gems embedded in his crown gleaming faintly in the shadows.

Before the conversation even began, Rüdiger knew that his Elector Palatine's plan had fallen through.

The Emperor had read the peace agreement but made no mention of the Elector Palatine's self-proclaimed significant concessions, instead focusing his criticism on the meager gifts he had brought.

This was already very telling, and Rüdiger began to ponder how he should phrase his words to convince the Emperor that the Elector Palatine genuinely had the sincerity to achieve peace—though he himself felt that this sincerity was indeed somewhat lacking.

He tried to keep his voice steady and respectfully said: "Your noble Emperor, the Elector Palatine is willing to compensate all parties for their losses in this war, and is willing to support all your reasonable resolutions in the Imperial Diet to show his loyalty to you.

The matter of Mainz was purely a misunderstanding; the Elector Palatine was also misled by treacherous individuals, which is why he was reluctantly involved in some minor conflicts with you..."

"Hahahaha," Laszlo listened to Rüdiger's desperate attempts to quibble and couldn't help but laugh first; after laughing, his expression immediately turned cold, "The Elector Palatine's loyalty?

I swear, that is absolutely the funniest joke I have ever heard in my life. Isn't that right, Sir Envoy?"

Hearing the Emperor's sarcastic and mocking words, Rüdiger's face also became embarrassed; he had already realized that the Emperor was using this as an opportunity to humiliate him.

Before he could open his mouth to continue defending himself, Laszlo spoke again: "Was the war in Mainz a misunderstanding?

Was the Elector Palatine's massacre of the army that went to suppress the Mainz rebels in Seckenheim my hallucination?

Are the wails of those women and children who lost their husbands and fathers singing praises to the glory of the Elector Palatine?

Since the war has reached this point, I have no desire to distinguish right from wrong.

Since the Elector Palatine is unwilling to personally kneel at my feet to apologize, then let the flames of war consume everything."

Laszlo called out, and several Imperial Guards standing at the door entered the room; they came to Rüdiger's side, clearly intending to see him out.

Cold sweat seeped from the back of Rüdiger's neck; he tugged at his uncomfortable collar, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, and cautiously said: "Your Majesty, Frederick is willing to abdicate, willing to return the rule and title of Palatinate to Philip; he will bear all the sins of this war."

"He will bear it?" Laszlo sneered, "Can he bear it? Rebelling against the Empire, rebelling against the Emperor—is this a crime he can bear?

True, the Elector Palatine often rebels against the Empire; it's almost become a tradition.

However, the Elector Palatine once paid a heavy price for rebelling against the Empire, and the Wittelsbach family even lost an Elector seat because of it.

Why do they never learn?

Go back and tell Frederick that what I seek is not land, nor gold, but authority!

I want the entire Empire to know that times have changed, and anyone who openly challenges imperial power will pay a heavy price!"

The reception room fell into dead silence, with only the faint sound of an organ drifting from afar.

Rüdiger felt his legs go a little weak; his throat was dry, and he asked bitterly: "What conditions can appease your wrath?"

"The submission of Palatinate, true submission."

Laszlo replied indifferently; then he waved his hand impatiently, ordering the guards to escort Rüdiger, who was unwilling to leave, out of the room.

From the very beginning, he had not held any expectations for this negotiation; as expected, it was another time-wasting conversation.

Eyczing entered the room at this point, picked up the peace agreement on the table, and after just two glances, he immediately understood why the Emperor was so eager to end the conversation.

The Elector Palatine had actually proposed things he should have done anyway as bargaining chips, such as returning the Mainz territory and recognizing Archbishop Adolf.

Perhaps in his view, this was already a great concession to the Emperor, after all, he was not the losing party in the war, and it seemed that proposing such conditions was already giving the Emperor a lot of face.

Unfortunately, such a misconception directly led to Laszlo's fury; from the very beginning, this agreement had an air of wishful thinking.

"Our Elector Palatine, how should I put it?" Eyczing shook his head and sighed helplessly, "He actually thinks that making everything return to its original state can make it as if this war never happened... I don't know whether to call him naive or arrogant."

"Naive and arrogant!" Laszlo rose and went to the window, gazing at the bustling street scene in the distance, his expression growing even more indifferent, "I really shouldn't have expected any wisdom from the Elector Palatine; his willingness to side with rebels for a mere few towns already speaks volumes."

Eyczing, however, secretly pondered that there were many factors contributing to the Elector Palatine's involvement in the war.

The land ceded by Dieter was certainly part of the reason, as was the Margrave of Baden's deliberate instigation of border conflicts, coupled with the Emperor's relentless pressure.

The Elector Palatine's decision, made under threat, seemed unexpected but was actually reasonable.

However, no one cared what the Elector Palatine had originally thought; in any case, everything had now reached an irreversible point.

After this war, the power of Palatinate would likely be greatly weakened.

Although it would not fall out of the ranks of important princes, it was almost impossible for it to regain its former powerful influence.

"Did you bring the materials I asked you to prepare?"

"Here they are, Your Majesty."

Eyczing presented Laszlo with information on some highly respected or high-ranking nobles, clerics, and urban politicians from Swabia.

Laszlo would then select governors, deputy governors, four deacons, and other important officials from these individuals.

"Has the location for the Permanent Council been chosen?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, the original site was Ulm, but I finally persuaded them to set the location in Constance."

"Good. Switzerland will also be integrated into the Swabia region later, and having the council in Constance can also keep those restless Swiss in check."

"Your Majesty is wise."

Laszlo took the documents and returned to his study to deal with official business; as he had been staying in Tyrol for a long time, the mobile court began to function again.

The large number of bailiffs essential for a traveling Emperor enabled him to maintain close and frequent contact with Vienna, and some important matters were still decided by him.

Once these busy days were over, he would soon be returning to Vienna.

He chose to fully entrust the war in Mainz to Adolf, and later to Gunter; he did not fully understand the battlefield situation and therefore would not easily micromanage.

Moreover, Hungary had sent people to urge him to convene Parliament, which was quite annoying.