Chương 588: Limitless Path Chapter Six Hundred Ten

For a Platinum level mission, it really hadn't been that difficult, but they weren't going to get freebies like that every time, and it wasn't really a freebie for most people. Even others who would bring teams to such a mission would have a much tougher time than Beth and her team; not everyone had nearly the stats, skills, weapon skills, and combat experience Beth and her team possessed.

A lot of teams, even a rebirth or two ahead of them, would have had real difficulty with a monster that was so tough and resistant, not to mention a tide of many hundreds of thousands of beasts that would have been much more difficult for others to clear. And that wasn't even mentioning if an individual person took the mission, which would make it all that much harder and take far longer. Without her own insane strength, Beth wasn't sure how she would, even at her current rebirth, take care of this monster.

The only thing she could think would be to wear it down over time, starting by slowing killing off a large part of the beast tide over time before luring the monster out and repeatedly engaging it in battle. Then again, someone at her rebirth, even without her stats, usually had a decent bit of age on her and that led to them having a bit better weapon skills, which would make a big difference.

The team finished cleaning up the site in less than an hour, taking care of almost all the remaining beasts and handling a bit of battlefield cleanup before they took off, returning to the same Hall they had arrived through. The Hall Master was confused on their return, turning to skeptical when Beth claimed they had defeated the monster and were on their way, but that skepticism was put to rest when Beth flexed her power and drove the man to his knees just by the weight of her magical presence.

After that, they were thanked profusely, which Beth cut short, taking the team down to the teleporters before heading to their next destination, which was quite a few hops away. She would have just had them jump back to Arbitus, but using it as a hub didn't really work that well because teleporting to and from the headquarters planet was extremely expensive. Better a handful extra teleports and a few extra checks to go through to save half or three-quarters the price.

A few more teleports might have been a bit of an understatement, but even having used Arbitus it would have been eight teleports to their next destination, so an even dozen wasn't all that many more. They were here for Bjorn's mission this time, one that was a bit more complicated than go kill a single target.

The mission brief detailed a problem between two factions in the system they had teleported to, one that the local Hall Masters weren't able to take part in solving, mainly because local Hall Masters were less negotiators and more the strong arm of the law locally. Cordial relationships with locals were not discouraged, but often times Hall Masters had to lay down the law, even to those in authority, if not especially to those in authority, and so negotiations were often handled by Enforcers from off-world.

There were many exceptions to this general rule, however, and that meant it was a real scatter shot in terms of who handled what and for what reason. In this assignment, it would be their responsibility to get the two involved parties to come to some kind of peaceful settlement. The CRA was brought in in the first place because the parties had started to range fairly far afield in their choice of targets, including CRA members not active in the conflict.

The option was presented that Platinum ambassador would be dispatch to negotiate a truce, or a Diamond Emblem would be sent to the solar system to be very persuasive about the CRA's prerogatives. Of course, just because Beth's team was there to oversee and, in polite terms, aid in the discussion, didn't mean that they wouldn't get any more forceful to make sure that everything went smoothly.

And by smoothly, Beth meant the way the CRA wanted; the involved parties had already infringed, in the CRA's mind, into their territory, and the most important thing was the resolution of the conflict, not to the parties' satisfaction, but to the CRA's. It was a bit heavy-handed, and Beth wasn't the only one that worried about that kind of application of some level of force to a negotiation, but at the same time, it wasn't the CRA striking first, or even second.

It was the CRA getting attacked, in their opinion, and then applying pressure in return to solve a problem that had involved them when they would have rather stayed out of it. It was still a lot better than the Diamond Emblem option, as Beth was thinking of it, though the parties they were there to negotiate with might not realize that Beth's team basically was the Diamond Emblem option.

And speaking of the parties that they were there for, it was two separate polities that had, some time in the past, been one entity. They had diverged, from what the brief had included and the team's basic research showed, rather violently some time more than ten thousand years ago. That wasn't all that long ago on a galactic scale, but it still felt like forever to Beth, who was still adjusting to this whole living thousands of years business.

Whether the feud was old or new, and whether they wanted to escalate things, the CRA was now stepping in to sort things out, and how well things went for the two political entities was going to be based on their continued behavior and actions. Beth wasn't convinced that people that would attack somebody protected by the CRA were going to be very respectful of them.

Considering they were at the level of a Diamond Emblem option, Beth wasn't all that worried, but she didn't get any more hope when they were met by someone who was essentially the equivalent of a part-time worker to be escorted to the place the meetings were supposed to happen.

"Do you think they did it intentionally?" Beth asked the group as they made their way into the building, a four-story brick building with a bland exterior and a very mundane interior.

"Sending some low-level flunky to insult us?" Val ask.

"Oh, no, I was talking about assigning the mission with a lot of talking to the team member that says five words a week," Beth replied, noticing their 'guide' stumble a little as they hadn't bothered keeping their conversation quiet.

"No, I think it was more than Tane wanted results, not a bunch of excuses," Val said with a roll of her eyes.

"Well, as long as they're not too stingy, we can get this done in a couple hours," Beth said with a shrug.

"That's not how negotiations work," Val said with a sigh as they walked up to a conference room. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"That's how my negotiations work," Beth shot back, following the guide into the room. The conference room was about like any other Beth had seen in her life, nothing fancy, just a long table of some kind of cheap wood with chairs surrounding it, plus a second layer of chairs around the outside of the room. There were two very distinct groups present, one on either side of the table, with five people on one side and three on the other, though that was just the people actually seated at the table.

The number of aides and attendants and hangers-on was enough that the rest of the chairs around the outside of the room were filled and a couple were standing by the wall on the far side of the room from the door. Beth did a quick headcount and came up with twenty-three, not including those at the table, her team, or the attendant that led them there, though the man had fled at the first opportunity; maybe the only smart one of this crew.

The group got quite a few looks when they entered, and more than a few double-takes, especially when people realized just how big Bjorn actually was, his head scraping the ceiling even with his back bent a bit. Beth stood for just a moment, just long enough for that intimidation factor their team presented to really sink in, before she moved forward and flicked away the chair at the head of the table, having it disappear into her storage.

Bjorn, surprisingly, was right there with her, setting down the massive edifice he used as a seat in its place and sitting at the table head. Even seated, he towered over everyone else in the room apart from Sera, who had taken a position just behind him and to his right.

Val and Blood had taken up positions by the door, both with their hands clasped behind their backs and standing in an at-ease pose; Beth was pretty sure Val had taught Blood to do that one, elsewise the wolf would be slouching with her hands in her pocket. Beth herself grabbed the chair to Bjorn's left and spun it around, sitting on it backwards and propping her arms on the backrest, a pose that earned her no few dirty looks from the attendants and secretaries in the room.

A quick burst of power, not even channeling her Ideal, just a flexing of strength similar to what Tazeen had used to do on Earth when people first made trouble in her home Hall, had everyone transformed from their scornful and hostile looks to drawn, wan, and fearful.

"So, I hear there's been a problem here?" Bjorn started, Beth keeping her expression schooled but laughing inside. There went his weekly word budget.

"Y-yes, well, we're here to negotiate-" started one of the party of five.

"And who is we?" Beth interrupted, Bjorn more than content to let her take the bit and run.

"How dare you-" somebody else said, getting some color back before their compatriot thumped them, giving them a glare.

"Well, obviously you know us," Beth said, staring around the room with a cold look.

"Considering you left a low-level, part-time cleric to guide is in, you're definitely aware that we represent the CRA, whose interests were harmed in this little conflict of yours. So, maybe you could start with a simple introduction of yourselves so we know who we're dealing with? And perhaps who to blame." The last part didn't go over that well, but Beth didn't really care.

The groups in the room represented the leadership and some of the strongest people of the two factions, the Nok Republic and the Clayborne Sovereignty, and Beth could've wiped the floor with all of them by just glaring a little bit harder. One of the men on the side with five people was the first to recover and speak, saying, "We five are the representative of the republic, and I am lead speaker Alex Noknarra."

"We represent the Clayborne Sovereignty, the true winners of this conflict, and I am Jonathon Smithson," the man sitting in the middle of the three on the opposite side of the table added.

"I really don't care what you think, Mr. Smithson," Beth replied with an uncaring air, watching the man flush a bit in anger.

"You could have captured the entirety of the enemy positions and soldiery, you still wouldn't be the winners here, let me make that abundantly clear."

"What are you saying?!" Jonathon demanded in an angry tone, though it was clear from the contortions of his face that he was holding back and trying not to explode already. In contrast, the representative of the Republic had an almost smug look on his face, clearly relishing how the little dig against him from his counterpart had blown up in said counterpart's face.

"What I mean, ladies and gentlemen, is that the CRA's interests and, in particular, its membership were involved in this war without those members direct contracting. In fact, there were nearly a dozen CRA members of Silver Emblem status that were wounded or killed in battle that were simply secondary casualties of your actions. The Association takes a very dim view of involving its members in conflict, and we are prepared to propose sanctions just based on the interference herein," Beth said.

"You disrupted Association business by destroying goods containers and interrupting teleportation networks," Bjorn continued.

"The Association is also at a material loss directly stemming from your actions. You either pay up or suffer consequences." The big man's tone had not been all that surly, but Beth did notice several people in attendance sweating and pulling at their collars after his statement, though there were also some that were giving her scared looks. Beth smiled at the representatives as they hemmed and hawed for a minute, putting their heads together to discuss something.

The republic was done first, a little surprisingly to her, and they signaled Bjorn they wanted the floor. The man just gave them a slight nod, fitting into his role as lead negotiator, or intimidator, depending on one's outlook, with ease. Beth was still hiding her laughter, as she knew it was just Bjorn's behavior, his usual nature taciturn and abrupt; coupled with his size and Beth's display of power, it gave him a very overwhelming presence.

"What is it, in precise terms, the CRA is seeking?" Alex asked calmly, causing the rest of the room focus on Beth and Bjorn.

"The main terms are a cease of hostilities and a reimbursement from both parties," Bjorn said calmly.

"Reimbursement?" Jonathon asked in a strangled tone.

"Goods were damaged or stole. Operations were interrupted. Our people were injured and even killed. Of course we require reimbursement," Bjorn said coldly.

"And what, uh, what exactly are the CRA's terms for this reimbursement?" Alex asked, clearly the more levelheaded of the lead representatives.

"Luckily for you, we have a nice handy calculation," Beth answered him with a predatory grin.

"There is a full enumerations of damages, including all the items lost or stolen. Without clear evidence of who stole or destroyed some of these goods, both parties are being held responsible for these damages. The total runs to nearly ten orichalcum coins for each side that was party to this conflict. That's not to mention injuries and deaths, which are tabulated separately, and require either side to pay into a fund to the tune of a total of twenty orichalcum coins."

"Y-you! You want…you want forty orichalcums worth of reparations? For a war you weren't even involved in?!" Jonathon sounded rather put upon, his voice cracking as he practically panted from his anger.

"Well, the CRA is open to negotiation," Bjorn said calmly. As a little hope entered some of the eyes in the room, he added, "Though how much we are willing to negotiate, and the terms, depend on your openness during these discussions."

"You should have been careful, but hopefully from now on you'll learn; the CRA always gets their pound of flesh," Beth added, giving the room a massive grin, one mirrored by her wife, and it was hard to determine which made the attendees present shiver more.