A dark space, somewhere unknown.
There was a man there.
“They took the bait.”
In front of him lay a small crystal ball.
It was none other than a Communication Magical Tool.
Unlike the usual communication devices that create images of the other party with light generated from magic, the one before him was something indescribable…
It looked like a swirling black smoke.
[Good… very good. It’s proceeding as planned.]
“Y-You must keep your promise.”
[Whether you’re useful or not will determine that.]
The chilling voice flowing from the device made the man swallow without realizing it.
Had it noticed his actions?
A chuckle began to emerge from beyond the communication tool.
[Finally… finally, the day of revenge has come. A chance to get back for all the humiliation I’ve suffered! Hahaha!!]
“Haha… haha…”
At that maniacal laughter, the man let out a stiff laugh as well.
Simultaneously, the light from the communication device vanished, plunging the surroundings into silence…
“Hoo…”
After briefly observing the scene, he let out a short sigh with trembling eyes.
There was no other choice for him.
One day, an enigmatic man appeared.
Claiming to be a wandering magician, he showed him a horrifying vision.
A world ablaze, destroyed, and dying.
And amidst it all, a colossal giant roamed the land.
Wherever its feet touched, death and destruction, fear and despair spread.
That figure could only be described as a ‘god’.
[I won’t give you a chance to survive.]
Paralyzed with fear, unable to speak, the wandering magician approached him with an unsettling grin.
And for him, there were no other options.
*
The next day, early in the morning.
[His Majesty the Emperor has shown a positive response to the upcoming peace talks.]
“Really?”
As Pachelbel spoke through the communication device, Rudell’s face brightened.
To Rudell’s surprise, the Empire’s response was swift, contrary to his expectations that it would take some time.
Dali, the empire’s reaction was swift.
It was clear that the empire was in a hurry, especially with the hero vouching for them and the Church of the Eaters of Death involved in the matter.
[The special envoys should arrive there by today; given the urgency, they will all be using spatial transition.]
“Got it…”
Spatial transition magic is among the most difficult types of magic without the presence of Daral’s magic.
Even moving one person requires immense resources, making it a magic spell that is seldom used unless it’s a crisis of national importance, and even then, only by emperors or kings.
This meant that this issue was incredibly serious for the empire.
[Before that, I hope you finish all your preparations. May the goddess’s blessing be upon you.]
With that last remark, Pachelbel disappeared…
“What’s up with that guy? Just talking about himself and hanging up, so rude.”
“What can you do… he’s a soldier. Let’s cut him some slack.”
Originally, being stubborn and tough was considered a virtue in the soldier profession.
So it wasn’t surprising that he had such a personality.
After calming down the grumbling Leje, Rudell approached Dagruul, who was sitting across from him.
Despite bringing the largest chair from the fortress, it still looked small compared to Dagruul’s massive frame.
“How do you feel?”
“I don’t have any particular thoughts. And you?”
“I’m not feeling anything particularly different either.”
This incident, the last one, and the one before that.
For Rudell, it was just another day in his routine.
“You are strong, especially for someone your age.”
“Compared to you, Dagruul, I’m nothing.”
“Have you forgotten that it was you who defeated me?”
“Now that you mention it… I apologize. I didn’t mean to offend.”
They say excessive humility can be harmful.
Realizing his faux pas, Rudell quickly apologized to Dagruul.
“Don’t worry about it; I know what your intent was.”
“Thank you.”
Fortunately, Dagruul seemed to be indifferent to it.
“What is it that makes you so strong?”
“What do you mean…?”
“I became strong just to survive, fighting and fighting over and over. That’s how I ended up as the war chief sitting here. What about you?”
“I fought. And as a result, here I am sitting in the position of the chieftain. So, what about you?”
“I…”
At that question, Rudell turned to look at Leje.
There she was enjoying tea time with Silphier and Eleor.
Even that ordinary scene was more beautiful and lovely to Rudell than anyone else in the world.
“I can tell without you saying it.”
“Cough…!!”
Following Rudell’s gaze, Dagruul nodded as if he understood, and Rudell cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Don’t let go of what’s precious; you must hold it tightly.”
“Yes, I’ll take your advice to heart.”
“Speaking of which, I don’t see your companion, the Nord tribe warrior.”
“Are you talking about Kurt? He’s probably training somewhere…”
“Hmm…”
Rudell replied to Dagruul’s question, and Dagruul let out a low groan.
“Do you have some business with Kurt?”
“I don’t need to worry about it; it’s not an important matter.”
“…?”
Though he said that, there was an inexplicable urgency in his expression.
Of course, Rudell couldn’t just ask outright, so he could only wait for Dagruul to speak first.
“By the way, sitting still is making my body stiff. How about we have a spar, if you’re okay with it?”
“I think Leje would match you much better than I would.”
A brief moment of silence.
Then, Dagruul yawned widely, as if bored, and Rudell awkwardly smiled and replied to him.
Thus, a peaceful moment passed by.
*
The empire’s special envoys arrived late at night.
Rudell and his companions, Dagruul, and several Nord tribe warriors were gathered in a hall prepared with a large table alongside Count Gelt, the owner of the fortress, and the empire’s special envoys, each taking their places.
“Well then, we will begin the peace negotiations now.”
With that, Count Gelt announced the start of the meeting, and the first to speak were the empire’s special envoys.
“Our demands are simple: immediately withdraw the troops and return the occupied fortresses. Negotiations will come afterward.”
“I see. Then I have nothing more to say.”
“Yes.”
“Alright, hold on just a minute!!”
As the negotiation approached the brink of collapse right from the start, Rudell raised his voice in urgency.
“Everyone, stop insisting on your own claims and let’s negotiate! We don’t have time to be doing this among ourselves!”
Since the strange occurrences happening in the Eternal Winter Plains were related to the Church, pointless debates only consumed precious time.
At this very moment, the Church was undoubtedly scheming towards their objective: the resurrection of the evil god Thanatos.
However…
“There’s no reason for our Empire to unconditionally cooperate just because you’re a Hero.”
“Why on earth should we listen to a mere Kingdom rookie! The Empire can navigate this crisis without relying on the powers of the Holy Kingdom!”
“…”
Rudell felt a headache coming on as he facepalmed at their disdainful laughter.
The arrogance of those who came for peace negotiations was utterly ridiculous.
The pride of the Imperial nobles was enough to make nobles from other Kingdoms bow down, but this was just too much.
“Ugh…!!”
Meanwhile, beside him, Leje seemed unable to contain her disdain towards Rudell and glared at them as if she was about to charge in, but Rudell shook his head and stopped her.
“Is there really no other negotiation option?”
“Indeed!”
The representative of the special envoys nodded without a moment’s hesitation.
Their rigid demeanor didn’t look promising for persuasion.
“Well then, since it’s getting late, let’s call it a night here and resume the full talks tomorrow morning.”
With an atmosphere like this right from the start, an actual meeting couldn’t possibly happen.
With a short sigh, Rudell shook his head and signaled to Gelt…
Gelt nodded and declared the adjournment.
Thus, the first meeting between the Empire and the Nord tribe ended in an instant without any results.
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