Chapter 25

A visitor from the empire

After quite a few delays, the long-awaited diplomat from the empire has finally reached the capital. As per the Queen’s order, I had to be present for the welcoming ceremonies although I thankfully was spared from the banquet, for very obvious reasons.

Whenever I am forced to one for those, I cannot help but feel they are a waste of time and resources which only serve pander to some higher-ups need for self-validation… but in the case of a foreign ambassador, I suppose there is not much choice: whenever it benefits them, such people are quick to take umbrage of any slight, real or imagined.

I have to admit my position on the subject is not objective, as the ‘voices’ have become extremely agitated ever since he introduced himself. They keep on criticizing his family, and by extension him. For once, I have actually learned something from their banter, this man’s family is one of the oldest and most powerful, and appears to have a very long history of betrayal and general untrustworthiness.

As we move to the throne’s room to discuss the terms – finally! – both sides put an end to the unfelt courtesies to – almost, they’re politicians after all – get to the point.

“Wouldn’t your Majesty agree that the kingdom has plagued both our nations for the longest time? Even in times of supposed peace, slavers have preyed upon our dear citizens, masquerading as bandits.”

The Queen answers elusively. “Our position about the Kingdom is well known.”

“In recent months, their so-called faithful have been the cause of trouble all over the empire, and I hear the situation is even worse in the south-western confines of the Queendom.”

“We are afraid you’ve heard wrong; their actions do not have as much impact as they would like others and themselves to believe.”

“Four weeks ago, their armies openly crossed our borders, and many innocents fell victim of their horrible practices. Obviously, we struck back at them but… your Majesty knows full well that for any non-believers; to be a slave in the kingdom is to suffer a life of degradation many times worse than death.” He pauses.

“Obviously.”

“From the prisoners, we learned they are preparing armies to march north upon you and liberate their brethren.”

“Even if their armies were to march against us, our knights are more than prepared to receive them.”

The man gets more disturbed with each of the Queen’s answers, but he suddenly regains his composure to ask. “Your majesty, our countries have enjoyed friendly relations for many decades now: as partners sharing a common enemy, would it not be to our mutual advantage to form a formal alliance?”

“An alliance you say? What can you offer when your main army is stuck south dealing with the nine kings? Also, while it is true that we have held favorable disposition toward each other after the great war, we assume you remember history? Your country fought against us side by side with the kingdom, only to betray them, then us.”

“Sadly, ma’am, it is true, but know it was never the emperor’s wish. Our soldiers and generals were at fault, they had fought against your people for so long years that no matter how irreconcilable ours and the Kingdom’s principle were, they still felt more kinship toward their fellow humans and former allies.”

No matter how much the envoy is convinced of his own thoughts, this is something that happened to other people, and a long time ago by his standard. Whatever the crux of the matter is: he does not know and his beliefs have no bearing on the truth.

“I assure you it is all in the past, but I understand you would be wary... If your Majesty cannot trust our troops to work side by side with yours, then maybe we could work something out. With our engineer corps occupied south, it has become difficult to maintain our border fortifications, but if you were to loan us some greater golems and a few operators, we could easily remedy that.”

There is no lie in his words, but the interest he shows now is much stronger than when he was discussing the alliance. I look at the Queen to warn her, but her attitude tells me she knows.

It is strange. When did I become so good at reading her expressionless face? Still, I suppose it is not as perplexing as her own ability to read a faceless and eyeless skeleton, hiding behind a full armor.

Why did I start using female pronouns? It comes from my conversation with the captain: I realized that using ‘it’ to refer to a person was considered very rude, and no matter its origin, I believe the Queen is as much a person as myself or any other natural being.

“Constructs are precious resources, and no matter their numbers we will always find a use for more. What could you offer us so valuable that we’d expose our precious golems to danger?”

“I am glad you asked Ma’am, it has come to our attention that you are gathering crystals and gems for a new method of enchanting. Would four tons of quartz, two tons of copper and one ton of alum in exchange for one hundred golems be of interest to you?”

So, they know about our enchanting method and the crystal cultivation… and considering the materials proposed it is clear they also know the hows. Sure, I alone can easily extract a few hundred kilos of sand a day, but this is a long and arduous task I would rather not waste my time with.

Unpleasant, I know full well there is a catch, but the offer is too tempting, I cannot help but desire those materials, the copper in particular.

“I fail to see how those things would be of similar value but allow me to confer with my minister of magic affairs, he might see some worth to your demand that I do not.”

The envoy gives us some space and as I approach the queen, she whispers. “Their intelligence service must have a good grasp on the number of greater golems in circulation: accepting their offer would be the same as admitting we can produce more.”

“Then, it really was a trap then? Too bad, it was such a tempting offer.”

“There is no guarantee they’d go through the deal, anyway. Greater golems are valuable resources, in the Kingdom, a single construct would be worth hundreds of slaves. A construct never tires, wants for nothing and has virtually no upkeep cost. I fear giving in to their demands might frighten them enough that they’d rather turn against us despite the risks.”

“But they are already at war!”

“Even so, they might still reach a deal with the Kingdom. The need to defeat an enemy before they become too strong is something even fanatics can understand. Well, there was never a way to keep the secret safe to begin with, and I never intended to try: any casual observation of The City’s excavation would show we aren’t unearthing anything of value.”

“What about the dragon/calamity? Surely, they too understand how fearsome the beast is.”

“It has been inactive and out of their sight for many human generations, for them, it is a legend from times bygone.”

“If fear is what motivates them. Do you not think a demonstration of our dragon-slaying prototype might help them make the right decision?”

“It is worth considering. Fear is not such a great tool as there is always a risk of achieving the opposite of what you set up to, but trust was never something we could expect from their lot… When you show them the enchant, warn them it can only be used by you, me and a few other trusted persons. Even if they are no threat to you, I have no desire to see you face thieves and assassins on a daily basis.”

The conference restarts. “My minister tells me that such material would be a boon in their quest to slay the true dragon which ravaged our countries long ago. I assume it is as much your wish as mine to see the terrible beast finally vanquished?”

“I thought the beast long gone.”

“It has slept in the mountain since the last war, and it cost us dearly to keep it that way. But I assume it would be hard to believe such a spell exists. Would you care for a demonstration?”

The diplomat is deeply troubled by the unexpected turn in the conversation and the sudden proposition. “It would be my pleasure, but wouldn’t an exhibition for such a powerful spell take time to arrange? Should we set a date and place for the demonstration?”

I offer some explanation. “There is no need, I have on my person an experimental, and much-weakened version, of said spell. We can do that anytime.”

“Your majesty.” The Queen offers me her arm, and I lead her to the men. I then use gravity to lift us off the ground and teleport our group up to the coast. As I have people with me this time, I do it in a few jumps.

The envoys, already quite shaken by the happenings, become even more frightful when they see us raise multiple powerful barriers without so much as an effort. In my first experiment, I only got to see the aftermath, but this time, we will assist to the whole thing from safety… If something goes wrong, I am sure the both of us can deal with it

I admit I am quite impressed by the queen’s ability to control multiple spells at the same time. I wonder if over time she has developed the ability to perceive mana, or is simply that talented. Sure, casting multiple instances of the same spell helps, but this is nevertheless a feat akin to juggling misshapen objects in the dark.

She reassures them. “Do not worry about this enchant falling into the wrong hands, it only works for those designated by us.”

Although it was barely a whisper, I hear something about a treasure room and it scares me a little: how do they know about that? More than any warning, it makes me realize the extent of my foolishness, even if I keep it with me at all times, such a destructive tool should have many layers of safeguards.

Unlike last time, I supply mana directly to shorten the cast. Less than a minute later, a small sphere of pure darkness hovers above ground fifty meters ahead of us for a brief instant, before collapsing. An instant later, the earth is scoured from the ground, giant boulders and trees take to the air as though they were nothing but leaves blown by a sudden gust of wind. A few barriers break under the rain of rocks and trees but the others stand fast. See, I knew we were safe.

Both imperials fall to their knees. “This... This...” the envoy probably meant to ask something else but what comes out is. “Can you destroy the dragon?”

“No, with this. As I said, this is a weakened version was made for study. The real thing is hundreds of times more powerful.”

I teleport us back and on arrival, the Queen immediately announces to the haggard envoy.

“We will send you the greater golems and operators you asked for. I hope you will keep your promises this time, it would be a waste to sully our long-standing friendship with another betrayal.”

The man answers hurriedly but despite his assured words, I feel the underlying terror. "Your majesty, the emperor will be delighted by the good news. He too wholeheartedly wishes for our Friendship to grow and bloom into an everlasting alliance.”

There are some more ceremonies for his depart, but the diplomat has no heart to it. As for me, I discreetly break the enchant, shivering at the thought of what could have happened had it fallen into the wrong hands.