Chapter 1144: Tentative Negotiations
True to their word, the three wardens sent a relatively powerful group of mages to escort Leon to the main keep, where they would hold their negotiations. The escorts were quiet, but at least showed no disrespect, while Leon brought Valeria, Gaius, and Anna with him to the meeting, trusting them to be the most politically savvy of his followers.
The keep was a labyrinthine construct, built for one thing and one thing only: defense. The keep had been built into disparate sections, each connected only via a few easily defended halls and doors. If any enemy were to take one of these sections, they’d have to fight hard to even breach another one.
Most of the keep’s halls were relatively small and without much ornamentation, painting an exceptionally austere image of those who called the keep home. While Leon’s tastes ran decidedly simple, even he was starting to feel like the endless halls of black stone and dull gray metal, with so few windows to break the monotony, were too little. There was little artistic flair to the castle, few signs of any kind of joy or life within its walls.
The escort brought Leon’s small group to a door flanked by a pair of ninth-tier mages, and from what Leon could sense, many more mages were waiting in the wings, ready to intervene if violence were to break out. Acting like he neither noticed nor cared about any of these security precautions, Leon advanced right to the door and laid his hand upon the thick enchanted oak. He could easily sense many of the wards locking the door, and with a quick expression, he broke right through them.
“The wardens will—” one of the ninth-tier mages sternly said before trailing off, his surprise at Leon pushing the door open himself clear to see even though his face was obscured by his helmet.
Inside lay a round table, at one end of which sat Uwe, Carver, and Vetta. This time, instead of full black plate, each of them wore plain black tunics, trousers, and boots, all of which were about as ornate and ostentatious as the rest of the keep.
‘At least they’re showing this much trust,’ Leon thought, his mind briefly touching on the accusations levied against him upon his arrival. If they had been truly worried about him, they probably wouldn’t have shown up to this meeting sans armor.
Several other mages between the fifth and eighth-tier were present, too, though none sat at the table. Weathering the glare he received for forcing the door open, Leon took the closest seat, deliberately not sitting exactly opposite from the wardens. The other three took up positions by the door instead of sitting with him.
“We will have to fix that door,” Uwe growled in irritation.