Chương 996: Chapter 995: Ambassador

"Do you think they will agree, my lady?" asked Rindale. I still feel uncomfortable when people call me 'my lady'. Though I had long stopped correcting people for using it.

"I don't know, but we have to try." I really hope we will succeed. It will help the dominion tremendously. I wish Robin had been with me; I would have felt more confident. They take him more seriously than me, but he went to the empire. So, I brought his deputy. Rindale is capable enough, but Robin carries a different weight. I looked out of the window at the streets of Owlspring; they were busy and prosperous. Greltheaven is rapidly taking steps toward it.

Our population has already reached nearly a million; a few months more and it will be there. Though it had brought a different challenge altogether. I hope those harsh laws she is implementing will work. I don't like them; nobody does, not even Remus, but they have become necessary because of the condition of the inner city. I had met Valentina a few days ago, after I returned from Panar. I asked her to show some leniency toward the whores.

They had worked hard to build what they had here, and forcing them out would be devastating. She had promised me that she would be lenient. Yes, I used my influence, and I am not ashamed of it. If I couldn't use it for the benefit of my people, then what's the use of all the influence and power?

"We have arrived, my lady," Rindale informed. I cleared my thoughts and nodded before controlling my expression, creating an armor that would not let any thought or any look bother me. Hugo opened the door, and I nodded my thanks to him. He is always with me; he is not just a bodyguard but a friend that I cherish. It's such a regret that he won't protect me forever. At least for the moment, he is still with me; he is going to leave, and that idiot of a woman wants to follow him there.

"Lady Carla, welcome to Azure Manor," greeted the old elf.

"Mojordomo, Varys," I replied, looking at the beautiful blue-stone manor in front of me. It's the house of the ambassador of Benin and has been for over two thousand years. It might not be as grand as many of the buildings around it, but one could see history, power, and, not to mention, beauty through it. There is beautiful carving work done. The swirling sea lines on the manor make one feel as if the building is floating on the water.

"Please follow me, Lady Carla." He said and led me inside. I have come here a couple of times: to attend the parties and to meet the ambassador. She is a powerful woman who has taken this position in her retirement. I admired the artwork and the house's interior as I walked with the elf. He was being very helpful right now, explaining many things about the pieces and architecture as he led me toward his mistress. This building inspired one of the things I had suggested in Legacy.

Soon, we reached the green stone doors, which the elf pushed open, and we stepped inside. There were two people there. One was a familiar old man who nodded with a smile, while the other was a tall old woman of a similar appearance. She was older than she looked. She was wearing a green dress; it looked simple, but it wasn't. Along with it, she wore a verdant pearl necklace and studs. This gave her a matronly look, especially with that gentle smile on her face.

She is a monster; she has eaten people who were fooled by such looks. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Lady Denele, Lord Nathil," I greeted the two. Nathil had come at my request; Remus had asked him to arrange this meeting.

"My dear Lady Carla, it has been far too long." She replied with a sigh.

"I must confess, I was quite saddened when you could not attend my last gathering. I had hoped to introduce you to several good people." Anyone looking at her will see her as a sweet grandmother. Even with all my levels and experience, I have a hard time dissociating that personality from her true nature. She is very good, and that is one of the scariest things about her. Once upon a time, she was a powerful adviser to the Lord of Belnin, but retired. Though she still holds immense influence in Belnin.

It is one of the two reasons we chose her instead of going to the Port Master of Belnin.

"My apologies, Lady Denele. I was busy with the affairs of the legacy." That excuse always works. Her eyes shone upon hearing that.

"I am hearing a lot of things about it. It is my hope that all of them are true," she asked with childlike curiosity.

"There are many rumors, my lady," I replied with a smile.

"It would be wonderful, even if half of the rumors are true. Speaking of which, I am disappointed that you only took seven stores from our kingdom," she said, and her eyes turned to Nathil. They refer to their state as a kingdom, which it was before it merged and became part of the merchant state.

"You took more from a single city than our entire kingdom," Nathil said, laughing as she turned her eyes on me accusingly.

"If you asked for this meeting because you want to offer us more stores in your beautiful legacy, then you have made this old woman very happy," she said with a warm smile on her face. I made my expression serious.

"Unfortunately, that is not my purpose, my lady," I replied, turning to Hugo. He took a long box out of his bag, and I turned to the woman, seeing only curiosity appearing in his eyes. I nodded at him, and he placed it on the beautiful table in front of us. Everyone is curious; not even Nathil knows why I had asked him to arrange this meeting.

"We recently apprehended someone and found that he had something in his possession that belongs to your kingdom," I replied, and a small smile appeared on the old woman's lips.

"You have made this old woman quite curious, Lady Carla," she said. I didn't reply, muttering the unlocking phase to remove the spell before opening the box. The moment I did. The old woman's eyes turned so sharp that I felt as if I were standing in a sea of blades. It was only for a moment before she disappeared, but I don't think I will ever forget the feeling. They are right; she is an S-class.

"Who is it? Whom do you get this from?" She asked, her voice echoing like thunder. Gone is the sweet lady; now she has revealed her real self. The one I heard people talk about with fear in their eyes. The second reason we met her instead of going to Belnin. The former master of this staff has been her friend; some say he was her lover.

"I am not at liberty to say that, my lady. Please talk to Lord Silver about it," I replied, and her eyes.

"Don't give that answer, girl." Immediately, her aura descended, and it was a raging river, and I was a little rock in its path. Still, I refused to be swept away; my aura exploded from me, forming a protection against it. I am so glad for the resistance training from Bell and the Knight. If not for it, I would have been crushed immediately. Likely I would have even failed just a few days ago. I could see surprise appearing in the woman's eyes, but she didn't pull her aura. Instead, she pressed further on me.

"I think that's enough. Lady Delene," Nathil's calm voice broke through the storm, and immediately, all the pressure disappeared as cloud-like comfort covered me.

"I need a name, Nathil," she said, turning his eyes at him.

"And there is a polite way to ask about it." She stared at him intently before her eyes grew calm, then turned to me.

"I would appreciate the name, Lady Carla," she said, her eyes boring into me. They looked normal enough, but I could feel barely controlled intensity behind them. It seemed like we had underestimated her relationship with the master of the staff. Or maybe it is a façade. One needs to be very careful about making assumptions about people like her. She was no warrior. No, she was a courtier. They are a thousand times more dangerous than the warriors.

"As I had said, I am not at liberty to say that. My job is to hand over this staff that belongs to your kingdom and forward the request of Lord Silver," I replied. The intensity threatened to burst out again, but the old woman controlled herself. I am glad; her pressure had descended for only a few seconds, but it had taken everything I had to defend against it. I am glad she gave me a taste; I now understand I had become complacent about my aura progress. Especially in the past week.

"So, you have that person in custody?" She asked, and I nodded. It seemed to calm her a little.

"What request does your Lord have?" she asked.

"We request an artifact. On rent, of course," I replied, and there was no change in her expression. Technically, with their agreement with the undead. They could not provide, sell, or rent an artifact to us. But that agreement has many exceptions. Take the diadem of the baroness we had rented by putting an artifact as collateral, and the irony was that it was one of the undead's artifacts we put up as collateral.

If they decide to rent us another, the agreement for it is designed as a reward for returning this artifact.

"I will decide on that after I have talked to your lord," she stated finally, and I nodded. I am happy with the progress; I had not expected us to provide an artifact or even state their decision immediately. We have played our cards right. Now, we will see whether we get the results we want. A few minutes later, after signing the handover agreement with Nathil as witness, I walked out of the parlor. My job is done; now everything is up to Remus.

"That aura was something else. I fainted from just a whiff of it," Rindale said, his whole body shuddering. Nathil had saved him. Without that protection, the aura would have done far more than make him faint for a few seconds.

"There is still a mountain to climb," Hugo whispered heavily. He is right. We have grown powerful, but there are still people in this world who could crush us with ease.