Keeping a calm demeanor I asked across my link as the conference room erupted in panicked whispers “Mary... did you or did you not look through this man’s window last night?”

Tellingly defensive Mary stammered “W-well I was out learning about the Blight like you asked me to Master!”

“And why the hell were you outside your flat, unobservable, shadow form? Especially next to a window?!”

“...”

“MARY!”

“Sorry... I guess I was just being careless...”

Silencing the room with a simple raise of his hand Rylen sighed “This is quite the accusation Mr. Wisthfeather. I do hope you’ve brought more than just your account and outspoken hatred of my guest for proof?”

Recoiling in visible disgust the elderly man yelled “Y-y-you...! You would dare call into question my own credibility against a demon!?”

Stern and unfazed Rylen countered “Mr. Wisthfeather that is my duty when addressing such a claim. Considering how your own pockets are no doubt hurting from the loss of our nation’s gunpowder trade I unfortunately can’t expect you to be honest for honesties sake.”

While I understood Rylen was defending my presence I could only sink slightly in my chair knowing the man’s accusation was in fact true. Which actually made me wonder why Rylen was jumping to my defense so quickly?

Turning to address me for the first time Rylen asked, “Mr. Sol, having heard this man’s accusation of attempted murder how do you plead?”

Careful of any lie detection skills I answered best I could “I plead not guilty my king. As for my defense I’ll ask everyone in attendance a question. Has a single one of you laid eyes on my “pet demon” Mary? While I can’t speak to her exact whereabouts as she is currently looking into a separate matter under my command, I assure you I did not order her to harm Mr. Wisthfeather in any way. In fact I fail to see how that would even benefit me as I just made his acquaintance moments ago. Pleasure to meet you by the way.”

The room was silent for a few moments as everyone present ran God knows how many skills against my words. Naturally I’d been careful not to lie in a very politician manner of speaking. Did I order Mary to kill this random noble? No I did not. I ordered her to learn about what he might happen to know. Has anyone laid eyes on her in the capitol? No, because she’s been hiding in my shadow this whole time. Do I know her exact whereabouts? Not exactly because I’m not sure where my shadow ends and what constitutes Mary begins. For once my lack of understanding regarding my monsters is a benefit!

Turning back to Wisthfeather Rylen said “There you have it. Now, who shall present the next- “

Slamming his fists onto the table Wisthfeather screamed “Hold on a moment! You would take this creature at his word?! I demand you have him wrapped in chains this instant and- Hey! What are you-?”

Lifting the man up with one arm from the back of his shirt Valentia asked Rylen “Milord what shall I do with this one?”

Waving a hand he answered “For disturbing this meeting and wasting all of our valuable time with pointless threats please escort Mr. Wisthfeather off castle grounds. He is banned from further attendance until the 4th day if he maintains good behavior.”

With a graceful bow Valentia opened the conference room door and handed the man off to one of her subordinates, all while holding the kicking and screaming noble aloft.

Once the door closed again Rylen coughed and said aloud “I hope that serves to reaffirm my statements yesterday. I will not tolerate any blatant mistreatment of any Dungeon of Season’s representatives. If you are here just to harass my guests then do us all a favor and leave now. The rest of us will work to better the country ourselves. Now, who has a good first topic?”

A bit further up the table on the left side a man wearing a green merchants sash stood and said, “My king, I wish to bring attention to our outstanding trade deal with Chlorostail and how we should seek to fulfill it. The specific instance I speak of regards gunpowder in exchange for magic stones.”

An enormous weight lifted off my shoulders as the conversation shifted away from me. Being the center of attention in a room full of elites was really stressful!

Making a personal note Rylen asked the room “How goes the research into artificial gunpowder or proper substitutes I ordered in wake of the Dungeon of Fireworks collapse? If memory serves their were some positive results stemming from Infernal Redwood bark?”

Immediately falling back down in my chair as I realized the conversation was still tied to me I turned my head as a very stereotypical elderly wizard answered “The results were indeed positive my king. So much so they proved a detriment.”

“You speak of the destruction of the facility in Horspring?”

Nodding the wizard replied “Yes my king, from what our investigative team uncovered the head researchers were conducting an experiment with Infernal Redwood wood ash when the reaction proved too strong. I’ve already sent in requests regarding further testing in an as yet built specialized facility for your approval.”

Turning back to the merchant Rylen posited “Have you reached out to Chlorostail representatives inquiring as to Infernal Redwood wood ash as a substitute for gunpowder?”

“Of course. They jumped at the opportunity to acquire new materials and are rewriting the contract as we speak. That said my king, I ask we reconsider what we stand to gain from the deal ourselves. We are but 7 years into a 15 year contract wherein we received magic stones, a previously rare resource in our borders, for the relatively abundant gunpowder. However I would turn everyone in attendance’s attention to this.”

From behind the merchant a royal knight holding an item wrapped in cloth stepped forward. When instructed he tore the cloth away to reveal a remarkably familiar antler with gemstones imbedded within it.

“This is yet another new resource garnered from the Dungeon of Season’s second floor. From the preliminary tests alone I move we halt all deals working to procure magic stones. Just one of these crystals is easily worth 6 traditionally harvested magic stones. If we could increase the rate at which we acquire these my king... we could phase them out entirely within the decade.”

Rylen put his hands together in silent thought for a moment before saying with his eyes still closed “General Corazen, if we were to stop trade with Chlorostail how do you believe relations would change moving forward?”

Once again near the front of the table a long haired paladin woman with countless insignia stood and answered “Our western border with Chlorostail has been peaceful in recent years Milord but other than our renewed magic stone trade we don’t have much in the way of connections with them. Should we forgo the trade for any reason we would become further segmented. If those in attendance will recall we motioned to continue the deal in spite of the magic stone shortage facing Chlorostail’s dungeons for this very reason last year.”

Opening his eyes and looking to the merchant and wizard Rylen said “Continue pursuit of alternate resources as the contract is reworked. I value our relationship with our neighbor more than any potential resources we stand to gain. Please pose the substitution of magic stones to ease their burden if you would Mr. Juliare.”

“It will be done.” The merchant said before bowing and returning to his chair.

Motioning for the antler to be brought closer for personal inspection Rylen turned to me and asked, “This would belong to one of your “Elemental Elk” would it not Mr. Sol?”

Standing perhaps a bit too fast I answered, “Yes my king!”

Rylen tapped the bright blue crystal with his finger, “Is there anyway we could expand our operations regarding these crystals? Perhaps you’d be interested in beginning a trade for a different resource with the kingdom?”

Noire sending me the exact number of Elemental Crystals sitting in my storage areas thanks to [Micromanaging] I grinned “Actually my king I’m happy to report my creatures have already begun raising Elemental Elk for the express purpose of crystal production. While sending adventurers to my second floor is indeed one method of procurement I would be greatly interested in forming a friendly trade with the kingdom in exchange for technologies. My people are eager to learn trade skill techniques to better our production methods.”

Making another note Rylen said “Then I shall find time to speak with you privately regarding specifics. I’d also be personally interested in hearing just how you rear your monsters without incurring casualties.”

“I shall await your call my king.”

I’d barely taken a seat when the same general from earlier, Corazen, stood and asked “Mr. Sol, I would also like to meet with you soon regarding the possible procurement of mounts for our military. Eyewitness accounts from the Battle of Brooksdam report their utility with reverence. Perhaps we could partake in a joint training exercise?”

Remaining seated I answered “I’m afraid I would be forced to limit what species of mine would be eligible for an exchange. Specifically up to the 3rd floor and above only.”

Seeming to bite her tongue at my words she asked “Might I ask the reason for such a restriction? I’ve taken an interest in the beast you rode during the opening ceremony, forgive me for not knowing its particular name friend.”

“That’s quite all right. My reason for the restriction is a simple one. No one has reached the floor they’re present on yet. I’m afraid I can’t allow the trade of resources made from materials on floors below what’s currently been reached. My Nargacugas for example have never been encountered in their natural habitat.”

Tapping his feather pen against his notepad Rylen asked “And after we’ve reached those floors? Would you be open to the idea then Mr. Sol?”

“Of course! Such an exchange would prove to cement my commitment to this great country I’m sure.” I answered smiling finally standing up to show affirmation for the proposal.

The general returned my smile and nodded “I’ll be in contact then Mr. Sol. We’d love to have you come tour the northern border.”

A feeling of healthy anticipation regarding future deals filled my chest as I sat back down at the same time as the general.

“I shall present the next topic as I’m in need of an update.” Rylen said, notably remaining seated and therefore taking a neutral stance “Has there been any news regarding the whereabouts of Megun Yui or Leol Osin? I’d hoped to reclaim their imp and sprite templates but that seems less likely by the day.”

Thankfully the Yui family remained seated and Eli stood from beside Rylen “I have nothing new to report my king. As is typical after a dungeon war all losing participants are teleported from the Zone of Recompense to a by all accounts random location on our native plane. So far all attempts to reach out to them magically have been met with silence or interference.”

“Does interference infer they are alive but unreceptive?”

A man dressed in long red robes indicative of a royal magician stood “Unfortunately my king interference can be felt from [Telepathy] regardless of the target’s condition as it is a result of the skill’s fixed failure rate.”

“I see. So we can not yet rule out the possibility they yet live?”

This time Eli answered “From what dungeon masters observing the war’s conclusion testify Megun Yui was heavily injured by The Reaper before surrendering. It is unclear if her wounds were severe enough to result in death. A few dungeon masters testify that Megun was equipped with a bag which could possibly have held healing items but they cannot say one way or the other.”

“Understood. Please continue the search until we find a definitive answer. I’d hate for our templates to be lost.”

Asking Claire for some context with a note she wrote back “If a dungeon master directly absorbs another’s corpse they can inherit the first template that former master’s dungeon began with. King Rylen is hoping neither Megun or Leol has been absorbed by another countries masters.”

I relayed the information to my [Named] and received the same connections I’d been hoping didn’t exist echoed back. What had the strange whisper in the garden said? “They had an offer regarding the lost children.”

“Boss do you think...?”

“I do.” I answered crossing my arms while looking around the table.

Noire finished my thought for me, a faint hint of worry in her usual calm voice “Someone at this table is holding either Megun or Leol hostage... and wants to sell them to us.”