System Change

Osian leaned back in the seat of his throne as he waited for his brother to come in to make the report. It was around the time that their scouts and spies had reported that a number of the Kingdom of Cydaria’s stronger forces would be away in a raid dungeon, one that could take years, if the reports were correct, which, he was sure they were.

After waiting for sometime, his brother, Ryven, entered the throne room, alone. His brother was one of the few people Osian trusted with his life. If someone else, he would not hold these meetings alone.

Osian stood from his throne and walked down the steps to meet his brother, and soon, they found themselves sitting at a table sipping good wine.

“So, the reports?” King Osian asked.

“They are true. A small force of elites left for a raid dungeon, one with time dilation. I don’t know if it was fortunate or unfortunate, but one of our spies was kicked off the team before they left,” his brother explained.

“Oh? What did they do?”

“It was nothing of his doing,” his brother explained. “There were some last-minute additions to the time. A few elites, apparently.”

“Then it is a good thing,” King Osian said. “The more elites that are gone, the better.”

His brother nodded. “I agree. One of those who join at the last minute was the Derek Hunt that Sabrina reported to us. It looks like we won’t have to worry about him after all.”

“Everything is advancing smoothly,” his brother confirmed. “It is how we hoped with Vallum. They will not interfere in anything. Astrus has also agreed to our plans. We only await your orders to march. Cydaria will not know what hit them.”

“Very good,” Osian said. “I am surprised that those Dwarves chose to sit at the side. They have been trading partners with Cydaria for quite some time.”

“They are also trading partners with both Indria and Astrus. They are simply picking the option with the highest chance to succeed,” his brother explained.

“It still leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth to fight alongside Astrus. They are no better than those from Cydaria,” the King said. “If anything, there are more of those like Gerald Torith in Astrus than there are in Cydaria.”

“It is something we must do. Astrus is always looking for a reason to go to war with Cydaria. Once Cydaria is taken care of, we can turn our sights on Astrus. Though, I suspect they plan on doing the same to us,” the duke replied.

“Well, Ryven… that will be left for you to deal with once the war is over. You will be in charge of everything on the battlefield.”

“I understand,” the king’s brother nodded gravely. “I will see to it that our forces are more preserved than those of Astrus. It shouldn’t be too hard to control the bunch. They are itching for a fight. It won’t take much prodding to get them to lead the charge.”

“Just make sure our elites keep Cydaria’s elites tied up until we properly understand the power of their forces. We may have the advantage of being two countries against one, one that is lacking many of their elites, but do not underestimate them,” the king warned his younger brother.

“Do not worry, I won’t,” Ryven replied. “But, speaking of Gerald Torith, we have lost contact with both him and our half-elf spy. I’m afraid they have both been captured.”

The king took in the information for a short time before finally shrugging. “That man no none of our real secrets. He may have guessed that we might invade, but it is all mostly his own conjecture. He was delusional, as well-thinking he would become ruler one day. Besides, he is bound by oaths and contracts. It won’t be easy to learn what he knows, and they will most likely focus on the slave trade and their own kingdom before anything else. We should have plenty of time before they learn anything useful.”

“I agree. He is not worth concerning ourselves over.”

“What of the spy? Does he know anything?” Osian asked.

“No.” Ryven shook his head. “He is half-elf, wanting to become part of the kingdom. He doesn’t know where his orders come from, and he is bound by an oath of silence and contract if he is caught. If he breaks either of those, I will know. Thus far, they are both still intact.”

“Very well,” King Osian replied. “As for Natalie Savannah and Alanah Swan, do what you can to avoid offending either of them. Do not break into any of Alanah Swan’s establishments, don’t touch any of the employees, and stay away from Savannah,” Osian warned once again.

“I have already drafted a letter and contract for Ms. Swan and Ms. Savannah. Once the invasion begins, they will receive the correspondence. What they choose to do after is up to them,” Ryven explained.

“Very good. Make sure to stress that if they choose not to get involved, they will have a place in the new kingdom,” Osian explained.

“It is already included… here.” Ryven took a contract out of his storage ring and handed it over to Osian to read.

Osian looked the contract up and down. It seemed that his younger brother had already thought of everything.

“This is good. Alanah holds no real allegiance to Cydaria, and Natalie Savannah has created a kingdom of her own inside of Cydaria. Her city is part of the kingdom only in name. Hopefully, they won’t make things difficult.”

“Indeed,” Ryven agreed.

“Enough about the upcoming war. How is that brat doing? Has she taken to her training?” King Osian was asking about his niece, Sabrina. Since she returned to the kingdom, she had been put into an intensive training program for her upcoming class upgrade. If everything went well, she would make a fantastic intelligence officer in the future.

“She has taken to it like a fish takes to water,” Ryven replied with a hint of pride in his eyes. “She is doing better than either of us expected. She will surely make great strides in the upcoming months.”

“That is great to hear!” King Osian raised his wineglass and saluted to his niece’s progress.

Ryven raised his glass and touched it to his brother’s. The two brother’s talked about the kingdom and the upcoming war for over an hour while drinking and being merry. It was really one of the few times a king like Osian could let his guard down and relax. Finally, King Osian sighed.

“We will begin the invasion in around three months. I want to first make sure that those who went to the raid are really in a dungeon with time distortion. I believe what I’ve heard, but I would rather not take any risks. If possible, I would also like to learn where the raid dungeon is located. I know its location is a secret that only a few know of.”

“We are searching, but we do not want to give ourselves away. The group was too high a level to follow, but we know which outpost they teleported to from the capital, so it should be in that area,” his brother agreed.

“Good… good. If we can’t locate it before the invasion, that is fine, as well. There will be plenty of time to gather the information once we take control of Cydaria.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Ryven said.

“Now, what do we know about this auction in Savannah so many have heard about? It must not be private, as everyone seems to know of it,” King Osian asked.

“As you already know, it was an auction thrown by the Crown Restaurant. Particularly, one organized by Alanah Swan, herself, and hosted by Stella Brighton, who you would know as Alanah’s right-hand woman,” Ryven began to explain.

“And what exactly was so different with this auction than any of the previous one’s hosted by the Crown?”

“From the reports we have gathered, there were quite a few spectacles that day. First, the Crown Restaurant sold items never before seen. Not only were there meals made with Void Beasts, but there were potions that gave permanent stat boosts. There were also elixirs that increased the user’s Vitality stat. Of course, those elixirs were bought by King Edwin at great cost.”

“That…” the king started, but he couldn’t find the words. More than ever, they needed to make sure not to do anything to outright offend Alanah Swan. If she has the method and means to create such products, then… Osian could only shake his head. The invasion was more important, but they would do everything they could to stay on good terms with the Crown. She was half-elf, at least. Maybe that would play a part in them gaining her favor.

“Exactly. That is why I believe that, while Natalie Savannah is most definitely worrisome, Alanah Swan should be a priority.”

“I agree,” King Osian said. “What were the other matters?”

“The main one has to do with that Derek Hunt once again.” Ryven started.

“Oh? What is it this time? Why does his name keep popping up so suddenly? I hadn’t even heard of him before Sabrina came back. Now I hear it constantly.” Osian asked his brother.

“As far as I can tell, he just came out of nowhere. His first accounting is of him dropping off a Void Beast at a Crown Restaurant in one of Cydaria’s sub-cities. Then, from there, he just kept appearing in important matters. His relationship with Alanah Swan is not simple, and it also seems like he has some sort of relationship with King Edwin. Though I do not know what kind.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, during the auction, Mr. Hunt was able to speak to the king and have the man release someone from a soul contract. The king apparently didn’t look too happy about it, but he did it anyway. Also, Mr. Hunt never seems to bow to anyone, not even the king,” Ryven explained.

“Interesting… very interesting. Make a note to find out more about the man. Who are his allies? Who are his enemies?”

Ryven nodded. “I am already on it. He is most likely the supplier of the Void Beast products auctioned off by the Crown.”

“Then I leave it all to you.”

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