Enlightened Empire

Chapter 307: 309 - Takeover; Behind the Scenes

Once again, the members of the Green Court had come together in the Grand Hall to bicker and argue over who was in charge of their island's defense, and over how best to achieve it. Yet the mood in the room had changed much since the last meeting, and the balance of power had shifted. Amused at the insecure looks from the local warriors, Corco passed the time by trying to guess their petty thoughts. However, for one of them, he didn't have to guess.

“Who let these outsiders into the Grand Hall again? How dare they enter the court after they were already barred from entry before!? What are they doing in here!?”

As soon as he entered the room, Tayali was all fire and brimstone. His finger pointed straight at Corco in accusation, and he also swept across the twenty warriors the king had brought into the hall with him.

“They're guards,” Corco replied in a dry tone. “What, do you expect me to come here by myself, without any protection?”

“How many guards can a single man need!?” Tayali shrieked back.

“Twenty, apparently,” Corco's shrug and indifferent answer seemed to bring Tayali's blood to a boil, just like the king had intended.

“Why would allies need so much protection!?”

“Look, this place isn't very safe, from everything I've heard,” Corco said. “Assassinations and such are happening right under your nose, so I thought it would be prudent to bring some extra protection. The people behind me also happen to be the first heroes of your Verduic War, so they deserve a commendation from your ruler. I've brought them here so they can receive one in a bit.”

Tayali scoffed.

“The warriors of Rasacopa need no help. And claiming heroic actions is easy when no one is around to see it. Who knows what tall tales you will tell the court later, but we are not fools and will not believe your lies.”

This time, Corco didn't have to step forward himself to defend against the madman's conspiracies.

“Captain Tayali, I can vouch for these men and their achievements,” Advisor Phuyu chimed in. “They certainly deserve our respect and gratitude for everything they have done.”

Although the king felt a bit let down that he wouldn't get a chance to dismantle and embarrass Tayali this time, for now he simply leaned back and watched the locals tear each other apart.

“So you're the reason these people were let in, Phuyu. No wonder. Who else but someone of your status could have convinced our men at the port.” Wide-eyed, Tayali set his sights on the old advisor, his face red, with bulging blue veins on his forehead. “And how much did your loyalty cost!?”

“Silence!” The head of ceremony entered the room and shouted his command, and everyone obeyed without question.

Just as things were about to get good, Corco thought, though that may have been the very reason for the ceremony master's early arrival. Since the guy in charge was there, the court session was about to begin and the battle between the forces of Rasacopa was, unfortunately, postponed.

“Princess Sumaci has arrived,” the head of ceremony announced once everyone was calm and in position.

After his words, Sumaci entered the room and took a seat on the throne, as usual. Normally, the members of the court would have to bow during the entrance of their ruler, but Sumaci wasn't queen yet. She was only put in charge of the country affairs on a temporary basis, so no one felt the need to show deference. Surely, most of these people thought that her reign wouldn't last much longer. Corco found that idea adorable.

Once the princess had sat down, the head of ceremony announced, “the court is in session,” and sat back down in his corner off to the side. Before anyone else, even the princess regent, could say anything, Tayali stepped forward and started trouble again.

“Princess, the warriors of Rasacopa are forced to lodge a complaint about the existence of foreigners in the court,” he shouted and pointed at Corco again. “They have no right to be here, and their numbers are a threat! Are they trying to pressure the court into submission by force? They have not even announced their arrival, and simply entered, thus making it impossible to prepare proper letter of complaint in advance. What sort of mess are they turning the court into?”

“The only one who is making a mess is you, Captain Tayali. Do you believe it's proper to speak up first, before your princess regent?” Sumaci looked down on the heated warrior, her ice-cold expression cooling him within seconds.

“The foreigners-” he tried again weakly, but was interrupted by Sumaci this time.

“-are an issue we can deal with in due time. Now, do I have the captain's permission to open the session first, or would you rather we trade places?”

“I have been blinded by my concern for the safety of princess, and have thus lost my head in worry,” Tayali said and stepped back.

At last he had realized the mood in the room. Even his own people were looking at him in shock after he had blatantly ignored the rules of the court and attacked the princess before she had even said a word. For now, even Tayali had understood that more aggression would be the wrong move. Though despite his excuse, he made no attempt at a proper apology. Corco was looking forward to more poorly conceived outbursts from his favorite captain.

“Right,” Sumaci brushed off his excuse. “Since we are on the subject of safety, we should deal with the most pressing matter first. Four days have passed since our last court session, and I'm sure everyone knows why. On the afternoon after the previous session, an attempt on my life was staged, as surely everyone here is well aware. Since then, the sessions have halted, out of safety concerns. Captain Oru, have those concerns been alleviated?”

She looked to the left, where most of Tayali's followers gathered. Oru was captain of the tiger guard and had been loyal to her father before, but seemed closer to Tayali than to anyone else since her return. Corco remembered him as the rude warrior who had insulted him during their reception. In response to Sumaci's question, the man stepped forward, bowed and gave his excuse.

“Of course. The mistakes lay with the guards who were tasked with Princess' protection that day. An unfortunate chain of coincidences have allowed such a slip-up. The issue has been handled, and it will not happen again.” “I bet it won't. What are the results of the investigation?” Sumaci sounded less than convinced, and Corco couldn't blame her. Not that he would blame his wife over something like this anyways.

“The investigation...” The warrior hesitated and looked around the room. He probably thought that his glance at Tayali was sneaky, but Corco saw everything clearly, and he was sure Sumaci had done the same. “The investigation might take some more time. Only a few days won't be enough to thoroughly follow up on all available clues. Even since we are being as thorough as possible to avoid any more mistakes. It is an important issue after all, and should be handled with the greatest care.”

“You've already had three days,” Sumaci argued. “Are you telling me that you have nothing to show me after three days of work?”

“Of course we do! But until everything is ready-”

“And how long will that take, exactly? You don't think it might be more important to inform me early, to guarantee my safety, and the safety of everyone in this room?”

Again, the guard captain looked around, though this time he was interrupted before he could find any help from within the crowd.

“For now, just tell us everything you know,” Sumaci said. Together with her tone, her eyes turned sharp. “Sum up your findings. Surely I am entitled to learn about my own assassination, or is that not knowledge I should have?”

“Of course not, Princess. I mean, of course Princess. I mean... this servant will explain his findings so far, Princess.”

For a few awkward seconds, the warrior struggled with his words, to the bafflement of the spectators in the room. Still, he couldn't just say nothing, so he took a deep breath to find a semblance of composure and replied at last.

“First, it is necessary to mentions that Princess Sumaci's guards cannot be held accountable for their actions. They have been questioned and investigated, and there are no hints that they were involved in the attack in any way. They were forced to leave their post before the attack happened, because an emergency in the neighboring yard needed their attention.”

“And what emergency was that important?” Sumaci asked, as a smile grew on her face. Corco really didn't like her attitude, it felt a bit creepy. Though the guard captain seemed to not realize.

“A fire broke out in the old yard nearby. All possible hands were needed to contain the flames, so Princess' guards had to leave their post and help carry water,” he explained.

“So that means the old yard's safety was more important than mine?” Sumaci surmised. From his wide-open eyes, it seemed like the guard captain understood the implications of his words only now when it was too late.

“Of course not.” He shook his head for emphasis, but Corco would have none of it. His wife had almost been killed in their shitty plots. He wouldn't just let them get away with it like this.

“Then if Sumaci's so important, why did they not stay and let the fucking yard burn down?” Corco asked from the side. The guard captain turned his head to find Corco's displeased face and the twenty warriors behind him. As soon as he made eye contact, he turned back around in a hurry. Maybe he thought that Sumaci would be easier to talk to, but it seemed like her people didn't know their princess very well.

“Princess, that is, after all, the home of your ancestors, a result of their work and dedication over generations,” advisor Phuyu helped out. “It should be treated with respect and needs to be protected.”

“I'm a result of my ancestors as well.” Sumaci insisted. “What a nonsense excuse for those guards to use. They were not tasked to put out fires. They had one mission, to protect me. They failed in their mission. If nothing else, didn't they have at least three seconds to inform me before they ran off? I mean, if you're protecting someone, you really should inform them of a nearby fire, right? At best, they were negligent and reckless, and failed in their duties. At worst, they worked with the assassins. Claiming that they have no fault is ludicrous. They'll have to stand for their crimes, and anyone who shelters them will be suspect as well.”

“Princess, is that not a bit-” the guard captain tried, but Sumaci interrupted him again.

“Stop. No more hiding behind fake morals or traditions. You think I will just sit here and let you do as you please, organizing plots and preventing investigations to protect your people? What, should I stay calm after someone tried to kill me, because anything else would be 'unseemly'? Weren't you about to say something like that? Rather than me calming down, isn't everyone else in here awfully calm, considering their princess was almost killed? How strange.”

As soon as she addressed the room, all the silent officials began to clamber for recognition.

“Princess, everyone has been so worried.”

“Yes, everyone was. Something needs to be done!”

“Indeed, those guards were incompetent, and should be pulled off their posts.”

“Guard captain, what have you been doing!”

“I said all this time that the guard's work is insufficient!”

“There needs to be an investigation!”

If everyone was so bothered, why didn't you speak out earlier?

However, Corco didn't voice his thought, not now that any more words would risk their success. With this, Sumaci had the political capital to clean up the tiger guards, so she decided to take the win and move on.

“Right. We will first listen to the rest of the investigation.” Sumaci turned to the guard captain again. “So what happened to the assassins after?”

“Unfortunately, we don't know their identities,” the captain insisted, though his face was sweaty already. “Despite our best attempts, both assassins were crafty and managed to escape our pursuit. So Princess' claim that they were local warriors cannot be verified.”

“So this time you're telling me that the guards who were meant to protect me just stole away from their post without informing me, for a flimsy reason. And then, just in that small time frame, two assassins happened to be nearby, inside the palace, undiscovered, and attacked me. Then, after they were taken care of by my real guards, a dead man and a man without a leg managed to run away from all of the warriors in the palace and the city, and you could neither catch nor identify them as they did so. And you think my claim that they were warriors from Rasacopa is false as well? Is that the official result of your investigation?”

Sumaci's words once again unveiled the hypocrisy within the guards and caused murmurs among the crowd of officials. Even they would be uncomfortable with such an obvious display of disobedience. Yet despite everything, the guard captain still insisted on his words.

“The investigation has yet to be concluded...” he tried again, but this time even he expected Sumaci's prompt interruption. Corco suspected that he himself didn't know how to end that sentence.

“Don't bother,” the princess said. “The investigation is done. Even with decades of time, the results will not improve. Instead, I will ask you how you intend to protect my security from now on.”

“Of course, the number of guards needs to increase. This servant has already put together a list of loyal men who will protect princess with their lives. Please chose from among them, Princess.”

From within his sleeves, the warrior pulled out a scroll and stepped up to hand it to Sumaci. However, she made no attempt to reach for the list.

“Are they as loyal and trustworthy as the ones who left me to die four days ago?” she asked instead, a sharp expression on her face.

“That was an accident. From now on-”

“No matter how many men you send me, they are useless if they all disappear at the most crucial moments. And if they let assassins in and out of the palace as they please, even the injured and dead ones, they are dangerous.”

Corco tried hard to stifle a laugh. With Sumaci's interpretation, the guards would either be considered traitors or incompetent, even by a neutral observer. In neither case were they fit to protect her, so something needed to change.

“Then who is to protect the princess?” the warrior asked the crucial question. Finally, Sumaci smiled as she presented her response.

“How about the brave warriors from Saniya? They were the ones who protected me during the attack, and are the only reason the assassins failed their mission. They saved me once, so they are far more trustworthy and able than any of the men you've prepared for me.”

“Impossible!” At last, Tayali could no longer quietly stand by. He ignored etiquette once again and stepped next to the guard captain. “Those maids should have never been let inside the palace in the first place. Not with those dangerous weapons. Maybe they even carry their weapons in here, threatening everyone in this room! Who knows what those foreigners had planned by smuggling those hand cannons into the Green Court like this!”

“What makes you think I didn't know that they were armed?” Sumaci asked back. “Are you implying that my personal maids lied and cheated their way inside the palace, with the nefarious goal to serve and protect me? Who would believe such a nonsense story? In truth, the only one who didn't know about their real identity was you, Tayali. Which may just be the reason the assassination failed. What do you think?”

At least for a few seconds, Tayali had nothing to say. With his constant rashness, it was obvious he wasn't built for political intrigue. It had been high time he tripped himself, and now was finally the chance to take advantage of it.

“Now then,” Sumaci continued. “Since the local warriors have proven problematic and their leaders seem unwilling to mend their ways, I have no choice but to employ guards from Saniya from today on. This is the only way to guarantee my safety in these critical times. But in order to prevent more accidents, I will need more than two people guarding me. Thus, I hereby enter a motion that will allow our Medalan allies to enter the island, on a permanent basis, so we may make use of their generous support.”

With his teeth and fists clenched, Tayali still tried to swing the mood of the room, although even he would realize that chances were slim now.

“No matter what I am accused of, no matter how little princess trusts a loyal servant of her father over many years, the Medalans are still foreigners, and cannot be trusted. Even if you dislike the warriors of Rasacopa, they are still ours, while these strange people may develop all kinds of hidden plans after they enter the courts.”

“Who says they cannot be trusted?” at last, advisor Phuyu stepped forward to speak up again.

All the way from the battle back to Rasacopa, Corco had worked the advisor with a combination of threats and benefits to make sure he would support Sumaci's eventual motion in court. The old man had a lot of sway among the warriors, and he had also seen the strength and determination of Saniya's army in battle.

Now he would better understand the consequences of offending them. However, ever since Sumaci's entrance, the old man had stayed annoyingly quiet. Corco had already begun to lose his patience and was ready to speak up himself, when the old man finally discovered his mouth.

“Advisor Phuyu, what do you mean?” a perplexed Tayali asked, his face that of a child who discovered Santa wasn't real. Maybe he would feel betrayed by all his allies right now, one more reason for Corco to suppress a laugh.

“This servant has already compiled a letter to describe just what deeds the foreigners from Medala have done in Rasacopa's name over the past days.”

The old man said and pulled out the letter he had written on their way back.

“The actions of the Medalans were courageous and selfless, fighting for the safety of the Green Island even when they were shunned by its people. On their own, they have defeated a large enemy fleet, despite their inferior numbers, thus proving their mettle at sea. Even more, they did so by sacrificing many of their own men. Even three of their own ships remain on the ocean floor. If they still cannot be trusted after all their achievements, then who can? Do we really wish to stay all on our own against our myriad of enemies? Do we need to offend every last people along the Verduic Sea until the stubborn captain is satisfied?”

Again, a murmur rose in the room. This time, not even Tayali had anything left to say. The pendulum had now completely swung in their favor, and the mood of the room was settled. Now there was no more obstacles left for Corco to lead his troops into Rasacopa, and the path was clear for Sumaci to finally, properly, take power. After a stuttering start, Sumaci's reign was secured.

Once Sumaci had forced her will onto the local warriors, little more was accomplished during the rest of the court session. For the moment, the warriors around Tayali would have to regroup and consider their next steps, since they were now threatened and could no longer act however they wanted in Rasacopa. Even the neutral warriors had to adjust to the new realities of the court, so no one allowed any more motions in the Grand Hall and ran down the clock until the court would reconvene the following day.

Meanwhile, Corco and Sumaci were happy to play along, because they finally had a solid basis to make plans on. Right after the session was adjourned, the couple came together in another meeting. For the first time since their arrival, they could work out a proper development strategy for the Green Island, and Corco was eager to make good use of the chance.

With a sigh, Sumaci took off her heavy outer robe and threw it on the floor. Seemingly exhausted, she plopped into a seat and stared at the ceiling.

“Those are some deeply unpleasant subordinates you have in this place,” Corco commented as he closed the door. For now, the maids and warriors would stay outside to give the couple some space.

“At least we finally achieved something this time. I was starting to think the room was cursed.”

As Sumaci was talking, Corco walked over to her private stash of alcohol. This was a cozy little salon inside Sumaci's private courtyard, so over the past few days, she had added many things to make her stay more comfortable. One was the arrangement of deep, upholstered chairs that let people sink into them, another was the small bar she had installed to mimic the one in Corco's castle. Without servants, the king had to mix something himself, but he was more comfortable doing it himself anyways.

“You want anything?” he asked as he checked on the ice in her stash.

“Heavens, please! I need to get that bastard's face out of my head.”

As Corco began to cut and squeeze some peaches, he thought back to earlier. Of course he knew what face Sumaci was talking about, and right away, Captain Tayali's unaesthetic maw came to his mind, with the eyes too close together, and always a scowl or a mean grin on his lips.

“Why don't we just take him out and be done with that asshole? He tried to kill you, you know?” Corco asked as if he was talking about the weather. He didn't even turn around and simply continued with his work.

In fact, they had fallen into a heated debate about Sumaci's lack of safety measures right after his return. He felt like there was no reason for her to risk her life like that. If her enemies had sent only a few men more, or some more competent ones, Sumaci may have died or been kidnapped. For Corco, her plan was unnecessary in its boldness. Their 'discussion' had lasted for a full hour, with on and off shouting matches, both sides insistent on their opinions.

Only the impending court session had interrupted them, just in time for both to calm down and consider the other side's perspective. As far as Corco was concerned, the issue was done and dusted, and there was no reason to start another fight over it. He had made his stance clear already, so any more arguments about her safety would be pointless. At the same time, everything had turned out fine in the end, so Sumaci had been vindicated in her decision. Thus, there was no reason to open old wounds any more.

Indeed, Sumaci seemed no more agitated by these old issues than he was, and simply acted as if nothing had happened before.

“We can't kill him,” she replied, though she sounded frustrated. “We don't have any concrete evidence that Tayali did anything wrong. Even after all that, we still don't.”

“Who cares? We could search for evidence, I'm sure sooner or later, something will turn up that implicates him. Or we could just fabricate something. Happens all the time. And we can just shut up those who cry foul with money. Or would you rather have another debate on morals?”

“My darling husband, you still underestimate just what kind of influence Tayali has in this place. To the local warriors, he's a hero, and their true leader, now that my father's dead. No one close to him will sell him out, and the attempts will only make more trouble and harm our reputation. Not worth it.”

“Fuck it then. I'll just take him down myself, reason or not. I'll pretend that I've felt slighted or threatened by him. Maybe I've lost my mind. Who cares? The locals hate me anyways, so why shouldn't I just take that sin on me and give you some political breathing room?”

Sumaci sighed in response.

“I don't want you to sacrifice anything for me, or take on any sins. And again, not to belabor the point, but we can't touch him. Not for now. Even if only you were involved in something like that, I will always be suspected if Tayali dies. I stand to gain too much from his death. So all the warriors could turn against us if he dies. There could even be a civil war.”

“That bad, huh?”

Corco came over and handed Sumaci's drink to her. In the end, his creation had turned into some fruity and sugary concoction. It packed a punch although it didn't taste like it. Since it was sort of a free form drink without a recipe, he took the chance to name it the 'tired princess'.

“Thank you.”

Rather than take a sip, she put the drink on a table in front of her for now. After all, there was still a lot to discuss. In the meantime, Corco took a seat himself.

“Yes, it's that bad,” Sumaci continued their conversation. “Maybe even worse. For now, I think our best way of handling Tayali is to make him irrelevant. Give him some high-sounding office with no real power, force him into some edge of the palace where others don't see him to lower his profile. And let other warriors distinguish themselves in the war. By the time we've secured the island, he'll no longer matter, since his entire strength is based on nothing but his reputation.”

“Or we could organize some embarrassment for him, fabricate some scandals or something,” Corco mused. When it came to Tayali, he preferred to get rid of him sooner rather than later. The earlier that guy was out of the picture, the earlier Sumaci would be safe.

“We could,” the girl in question replied, while she stretched forward to reach for her glass, “but either way, his influence won't wane until his position as the island's greatest captain is replaced by some other warrior from Rasacopa. And that can only happen during the war. So no chance of speeding things up.”

“So then our first priority is to guarantee that we survive past the war, and everything else solves itself,” Corco mused.

“That's what I thought. Any bright ideas, teacher?” Sumaci covered her crafty smile with her glass, but made no real attempt to hide it. Either way, Corco didn't care that she was egging him on to ramble about plans and theories again. He'd much rather talk about city development than about political ploys anyways.

“Tons!” he called out in excitement.

For a second, he tried to order his thoughts, before he began.

“So first off, we'll need to defend the region around the island, and make sure we're not entirely boxed in here. So long as we can retain contact with Saniya and mobility at sea, I think we'll do fine. So that's the most immediate concern. With the waterways open, we can keep up supply lines and spot enemy attacks coming from a distance, which means that invading with a land army will be tough for them. At that point, it mostly becomes a battle at sea. In general, it looks like naval combat will be the most important in the war, so we should try to win that one first.”

Corco took a sip before he continued. The drink was a bit too fruity for his tastes, but he knew that it was a flavor Sumaci liked, so he decided to live with it.

“First, let's assess the fleets of our enemies,” he continued. “We're up against the other colored kings, who have around twice your number of ships at their disposal. But that number comes from your people, who have pride coming out of their ears, so let's just say their real strength is thrice yours. Then, we're also up against Cahlia and Borna, though the total number of their ships is still unknown. Finally, they're also supported by at least one of the northern kingdoms, who could send additional ships as reinforcements if they're needed.”

“That's a lot of enemies.”

“It's not quite that bad. For now, we've limited the ships the Arcavians can send past our south coast and into the Verduic Sea. From now on, their numbers will never increase, only reduce. The northern kingdoms are traditionally crap with naval combat as well. They don't have great fleets, and even worse admirals.”

Corco thought back to the captain he had met in the war against Pacha, and it made him laugh. Back then, the blockade of the Narrow Sea had been a universal failure, and the man in charge of it had come to Corco's command tent to beg for peace.

“Finally, that leaves the colored kings,” Corco said. “They're about double or triple your strength, all of them combined. But they only field old-timey galleys with limited sailing capability, and no cannons. Instead, they still use oars and old-fashioned boarding combat. In an open sea battle, they're screwed against our modern galleons, no matter how many there are. All we need is enough experience for our new sailors and good knowledge of the local area so we won't get cornered or ambushed. So long as we can prevent a direct engagement in complex terrain, the colored kings will barely matter in the war, same as my brothers.”

“You think we'll be fine in the open because of the telescopes?” Sumaci guessed.

Corco nodded and continued.

“If we want to avoid combat, our chances are best on the open sea. Our ships are fast and with our tools, we're better at scouting and navigation than them. So it'll be easy to run against stronger enemies, and if their ships are weaker, we can engage and win a decisive battle. Helps that the verdant raidships are practically useless against us so long as it's out in the open without any cover. So we wanna come up with several non-obvious routes that stray far away from from enemy islands. It'd be helpful if they could lead somewhat close past some of our own islands. Depending on surplus manpower and feasibility, we could put up outposts on those, to defend the route. In an emergency, our ships could also find shelter and defend their there, until reinforcements show up.”

“That works,” Sumaci said. “We need to get some people on that right away. I'll see if I can find a captain who can help us out and hasn't totally been bought by Tayali. There has to be at least one, right?”

Sumaci took another sip and thought for a bit, before she continued her husband's thoughts.

“So if it's just experience in the Verduic Sea we need, that can be made up by local captains. Would also help us prop up some new local heroes to replace Tayali. But only if they listen and don't work for him. We might need some time to sift through the numbers and pick a couple good candidates. And even if we've reduced the threat of the verdant raidships, the Arcavians still have more ships than us. We'll need more time to build reinforcements in Saniya so we can make up for our deficit, even if their numbers no longer grow. So, ultimately, what the war comes down to is: 'Can we stall long enough until we have an insurmountable advantage'?”

“That's the idea.” Corco nodded. “When it comes to stalling, we already laid the groundwork with our first battle, which went well beyond belief, really. For the long-term, we had a solution ready before. And now that we've silenced Tayali, we can finally implement some of it. Install some defensive infrastructure along the Green Island's shore and on smaller islands around, beacon towers and cannons and such. Plus, we'd better add some cannons and rifles to your local army, and train some people in them. Just in case land combat happens anyways. I can send those over, together with the cement we'll need for the towers and fortifications. Plus a couple more soldiers too. With our setup back home, we really don't need all that many to defend Qarasi Castle anyways.”

“And how do we transport all those men and materials?” Sumaci asked. “We don't have naval superiority, wasn't that the whole problem?”

“Looks like we'll have to urge the maps again,” Corco said. “In the end, it comes back to our first problem: We would have to guarantee a steady transport channel between the two sides, despite our lack of ships. So we'll need a safe route through the Verdant Isles. But I'd rather we didn't work with that old librarian or his sleepy guard in the future. Our previous plans were leaked some way, and it certainly wasn't me.”

“I'll send out some orders later. It's time the old man retired anyways.”

After their most immediate problems had been resolved, both sat in their comfy chairs and sipped their drinks for a moment. While they sat, Corco brooded over the corruption within their ranks, the most difficult problem to be resolved. In the end, it was Sumaci who broke the silence first.

“There's one major issue we still need to address,” she said. “The cannons and rifles, the cement and soldiers, those things are expensive. How will Rasacopa pay for all of that? Even if I'd be crowned queen in the future, the Green Island and Saniya are still separate kingdoms, and we shouldn't muddle their relations.”

Corco laughed in response.

“Don't worry, I wasn't gonna hand that stuff over for free.”

“Why thank you, merchant king,” Sumaci replied in a sour tone, though her expression was playful.

“Well, for now, your treasury should still have some money saved up from all that business I did with your father before. And you can just pay us in raw materials in the short term. I'll pay you a premium on coal and iron ore, as well as the books in your library which would be worth a ton to me. Plus, there's all that guano on the bat islands that started this mess for us. That's gonna last you a while.”

“Those are only short-term solutions though,” Sumaci sighed and put the glass to her lips again, only to realize that her drink had vanished. “We can't keep selling the treasures of our land to Saniya. This way, we won't have anything left sooner or later, and be confined to poverty.”

“True. But for that, I have a long-term development plan as well.”

Sumaci ignored Corco's raised finger and teacher's attitude and stood up instead. Although her steps were a bit unsteady, she walked up to the bar with no problems.

“This might take a while,” she said without turning around. “Want another drink?”

“Sure, let me help you.”

Corco stood up as well, and followed his wife to try for another new concoction. In this manner, the couple spent the night together, discussing their future.

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