Chapter 440: Catching up (1/2)

Claire notified Trian with the device behind her desk, sending a small enchanted letter through a tube.

“You weren’t the only one being busy,” she said and sat back down, taking a sip of her ale.

“Your assets are growing, both here and in Riverwatch. Investing there got much easier now that we’re in contact with Alistair. The treaty you initiated with Riverwatch benefited both of us greatly. Sulivhaan and Dagon could hardly believe it was you to suggest it. The timing was perfect for both of us. The empire has accepted our independence, mostly citing all the help the Shadows provided in the war efforts and with the demons,” Claire explained.

“Didn’t we cause the demons in the first place? And the war in turn?” Ilea asked.

“Adam Strand caused the demon summoning. Empress Alyris is very much aware of that. We have our theories on the war as well but it is still too recent to make final judgments. Let’s just say that I think Alyris has been looking for a reason to be rid of Baralia for a long time. For them to actually initiate the war might have been the best possible result. I won’t bore you with the politics of it all. Suffice to say we are in a complicated but overall agreeable relationship with the empire. Riverwatch adds to our claim and we add to theirs.” she explained.

“Thousands died from that war,” Ilea said but just shook her head, not about to get into the reasons behind such things.

“We won’t ever engage in war, except if we are attacked or a threat is too dangerous to ignore. I hope you can trust me on this, Ilea. Neither do I believe the empress wanted the war. It simply did align with some of her goals. If you want her reasons, I suggest you go and talk to her yourself.”

Ilea chuckled. “Talk to the Empress of Lys? That’s the last thing on my list.”

Claire nodded. “I thought so too. Turns out I was wrong. I have you to thank for that, I suppose.”

“You met her?” Ilea asked.

“Letters only. We communicated with her together. The leaders of Ravenhall. You have a say in our decisions as well of course. The empire is busy with rebuilding and fortifying their cities as well as with the war efforts. Currently we merely signed treaties as to our independence, the removal of all imperial personnel from the Ravenhall mountain chain and open borders for trade. I assumed you have nothing against such.”

“Of course not. I’m sure they’re glad to have the soldiers and guards back that were stationed here as well,” Ilea said. “They’re still at war then?”

Claire nodded. “Baralia has turned into one of the largest battlefields in recent history. We even have reports of Nipha and Asila joining the empire. Plenty of Shadows have joined as well, mostly as a response to the bounty that was set out for them by Baralia. The Shadow’s Hand however is not officially at war. Members of course are free to act independently as long as Ravenhall or the order are not endangered. We suspect it might have been Alyris in the first place who was responsible for the bounty but it is merely a theory. One that would make a lot of sense. The lack of resistance to our independence may be the payment for the Shadows’ involvement in the war.”

“Might just be they joined for the simple benefits of war. Good way to get some power and gold,” Ilea said in a dry tone.

“Vultures flying over a soon to be corpse. I agree. And yet Baralia is not a corpse quite yet. Their cities are fortresses held by high level nobles and their families. People that have been in power for centuries. They will not give up ground easily. We benefit greatly of course, exporting food, armor, weapons and dozens of other goods into the empire. Most used to rebuild and protect their cities, towns and villages.”

“I forbid any Lilith owned businesses to profit directly from the war efforts but I hope you understand that it is impossible to completely prevent it,” Claire said.

“Sure. As long as we don’t sell machine guns to the front lines, I don’t care,” Ilea said.

“Alistair and I are working close together with the establishments you own in Riverwatch to extract and take in refugees and slaves. It is proving difficult but I dedicated a good sum of gold towards those efforts. I hope you agree.”

Ilea nodded. “Double or triple it if possible. How are the slaves in Baralia? Just used for entertainment and manual labor or is the society a little more advanced than that?”

Claire smiled. “Administrators, cooks, leather workers, smiths, and much more. All useful and needed. That is the main reason why I prioritized those efforts.”

“Always with gold in mind,” Ilea said and shook her head in a joking manner.

“Ravenhall has mostly recovered but now we are starting to retake Morhill. Your smith friend Balduur has agreed to our suggestions by the way. Both cities are additionally building downwards as well, the mountains providing great ground for expansion, now that the Haven is producing ten times the food we previously managed to grow. Before you ask, we are looking into expansion there as well, to not solely rely on its soil.”

“We need all the people we can get. If they are trained and capable, even better,” Claire said.

Ilea nodded. “When will you give yourself the title of Empress?”

“One ruler is not reliable as a form of government. Efficient and simple, yes but I don’t plan to leave behind chaos in case of my death.”

Planning even beyond her own death. Well, I guess I suggested the right person for the job back then.

“Come in,” Claire said.

Trian burst into the room, wide eyed and with a broad grin on his face.

“Hey. You look horny,” Ilea said with a smirk, tilting her head back to look at the man.

He walked up to her, one of his eyes twitching as lightning sparked around his hand.

“Careful now,” Ilea said, her voice traveling through the room with a pulse of powerful mana.

A second of subdued silence passed as her companions were entirely frozen before she giggled.

Claire shook her head and summoned some documents. “Madwoman,” she murmured with a slight smile.

Trian laughed out loud. “Perfect! At least you didn’t waste your time. Do you know how difficult it is to answer the questions of nearly sixty people about the leader of their organization while I think she is dead?!”

Ilea smiled. “Sixty? Damn… I expected like five. Well done.”

“I want an apology,” the man said and crossed his arms. “I don’t give a shit about your powerful healer shit. You said you’d be back sooner.”

“Apologies Trian. There was a powerful blood manipulation spreading in the north, capable of large scale destruction. Then a Sand Elemental was corrupted and we had to put it down before I was nearly killed by one of the Ascended.”

“Thanks.” he said and summoned his own armchair, sitting back before he closed his eyes and cupped his face with both hands. “Wait… Sand Elemental?”

Ilea spent the next twenty minutes retelling her adventure through the Descent, starting with the first layer battle, the exploration, her advancements as well as the Sand Elemental battle. She made sure to share all her discoveries about resistances, levels, elves, Blood Manipulation, third tier general skills, the Ascended and everything else she encountered. She did decide not to share much on the Fae itself.

Claire wrote everything useful down and nodded with increasing joy all the while Trian sunk further and further into his chair.

“So apparently you can get a third class at level three fifty but I’m not sure about the requirements yet,” Ilea said.

Claire nodded and put away another page, enchanting it in the process. “I’ll get a list of general skills together that you might be able to learn quickly. As well as a list of potential resistance trainees within the Hand, the Shadowguard and potentially interested adventurers in the city. You used the arena before. Are you planning to stay for a while?”

“Schedule it for every morning. Sunrise to noon,” Ilea said and gave her a thumbs up. The woman had understood immediately. “I love you,” she whispered.

“I love you too, dear. Anything I should scratch before I hand it to Dagon, Elise and Sulivhaan?” Claire said.

“No. Just make sure that they know the information on the Ascended cannot spread. I don’t want that one entering this city,” Ilea said.

“Of course. We have protocols in place for a potential three or four mark breach but I had not honestly considered a sapient being with such power. Even the elders won’t be able to deal with that,” she said and sighed. “Well, it was only a matter of time. If we want to do more than survive, we will have to be able to fight both Elves and anything else that exists out there. It is at least somewhat comforting that powerful creatures like that should dislike the low mana density,” Claire said.

“A little. Terrifying at the same time,” Ilea said with a smile.

“No shit. We are fishes in a pond right next to the ocean,” Claire said with a smile.

“You like the challenge?” Ilea asked.

“Not in the same way that you do. But of course. It was nearly getting boring. With the Empire accepting our independence. I’ll make sure to triple the power of our defenses. Finally Sulivhaan might accept my budget suggestions,” she said and rubbed her hands together.