Chapter 217: New Grandera.
“You did what!?” Granuel shouted after we told him about what happened.
“I killed that duke, and then made an announcement to his troops–”
“I heard you the first time!”
“Then why are you asking!?”
“Because it’s ridiculous! You can’t just… kill a duke!”
“Well, I did.” I crossed my arms and met his stare. “It was actually very easy.”
“And now you might’ve brought war upon us all.”
“...I can take ‘em.” I shrugged, my confidence briefly shaken, but it very swiftly returned.
I would not lose to them. I did not need them. I didn’t need to turn a blind eye.
Granuel paused.
“Okay… You recently evolved. If I say you’re as strong as an angel…” He looked at my offended sneer. “Okay. Stronger an angel. I’ll trust you on that. And if so, then maybe you can take them on. Devastate the nation.”
“That’s right.” I squeezed my hand into a fist. “I don’t even know yet where my limits are. This recent evolution gave me more power than even I ever anticipated. They were helpless against me. The entourage of a whole ass duke. They could do nothing. They were no threat.”
Granuel glanced at the spies he sent with me, and they gave him a subtle nod. Rude. I wouldn’t boast without the power to back it up!
“Okay. That gets rid of the worst case scenario. But… there are still some glaring problems with this. What you did might fracture what little unity our factions have left. Trust will dissolve. I won’t be able to operate in the north anymore, at minimum. It’ll be chaos.”
“Ah. Yeah, that could be a problem. You could… try to sell weapons, if everyone’s going to war? I heard that’s good for business.”
He glared at me. “Haell, you… Losing my businesses sucks, but it’s not all I care about! I don’t want my own side to be fighting! Us spilling our own blood only helps those damned angels! There’s still an empire to destroy, and I need New Grandera to last, at least until we’ve crushed all that is of Angelore!”
“Ah…” His grudge went just as deep as my own, if not more. I could respect that. I scratched my head and answered, “Well, I was hoping it won’t come to that. I don’t really want New Grandera to fully splinter either. It was… just an idea that I had. I want to be a deterrent. A neutral force that will stop all sides from going too far. I think it could be a good role for me to play, and I’m very willing to do it.”
Granuel actually gave it some thought before shaking his head. “They won’t stand for that.”
“You might be surprised,” I countered. I looked around my friend’s office, and the spies embedded everywhere. Granuel got my meaning, and ordered them to back away as Moonwash encased the three of us in a sound and fog bubble. “It worked back on Earth.”
He blinked. “Really?”
“Yeah. We had these massive bombs called nukes. They’re… basically items that can cause explosions powerful enough to wipe whole cities off the map. But they were only used for that purpose a grand total of two times. Afterwards, they became a deterrent that prevent the biggest and most powerful countries from fucking with each other too much.”
“Okay… And is that what you want to do? Threaten… to do another Burning of Gardine?”
“What!? Of course not!” I screamed. My hooves splintered his floor, and sent it crashing down onto the next level below.
“...Sorry.” I had Moonwash cancel the sound barrier around us as I ducked my head down there. “Sorry! That’s my bad. And oh shit, someone got hurt!”
I flew down there, pulled the kobold woman out of the rubble, healed her wounds, and then handed her a couple gold coins for the trouble I caused.
“As I was saying,” I said once I came back to Granuel’s office. “The deterrent I represent will be aimed towards their officers and military. The people who actually have power in their societies. I reckon it will be an even better deterrent. A king might still be willing to lose their subjects, even an entire city of them, but they would be far less eager to risk themselves. I know how these people work. Fucking cowards who need others to fight for them. They’ll crumble the moment I bring the battlefield to their doorstep.” The malice dripped off my words, but I made sure I didn’t go around breaking shit this time.
Granuel digested that for a moment, murmuring to himself. “Okay, maybe… I think that can work. But not for everyone. It won’t work for the Draka family. They’re a military house, always have been.”
“Then they will break,” I shrugged.
He sagged back into his chair. “I suppose they will. You’ve made your decision, and they can only count themselves as unfortunate to have attracted your ire.”
A moment of peaceful quiet passed.
“I… see where you’re coming from, you know?” Granuel added quietly. “I don’t really disagree. It’s just so messy and complicated. It’s hard to do the right thing.”
“I know, Granuel. But I’m here now. Stronger than ever before. The cold hard truths of war and reality can be bent by my heat.” The room grew swelteringly hot for a moment, as I briefly summoned a blob of hellfire between us two.
He nodded, before finally standing back up. “Okay. Alright. Let’s do that now then.”
“Hmm?” I tilted my head as we stared at each other.
“We’re going to the Royal Capital of Granland to meet the king and queen!”
I made a sour face. “Blegh. Nobles. Royals.”
My ishkawtan friend shrugged. “This was your fucking idea. So we’re going to do what we can to make it work!”
“And you believe this is important to make that happen?”
“Yes! Of course it would be. It’d stop much of the chaos and confusion. Or did you really think that delivering a speech would be enough, and would end exactly how you want it, instead of spiraling into a set of incidents that neither you nor anyone else could’ve ever anticipated!?”
“Err…” I hesitated. I thought about it with three brains, against his one! “...Nyes?”
A pause.
I grabbed him and jumped out the window! “Let’s go meet the king and queen! Excitement!”
My friend laughed, light and airy, as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
“I’m glad we’re doing this. I’ve always wanted us to have better standards. I want us to be better than them. Otherwise, what’s the point?”
~~~
“This is a mess,” lamented the tyranight duchess Kalyn Kobarin. I’d come to her city with Granuel, and she’d promptly made time for us after we arrived at her manor.
Her tyrannosaurus-like features grew angrier, her voice rumbling into a growl. “You claim to have just killed a duke of my country. Why should I help you?”
“Because they were actively doing genocides and slavery. Or do you not care about that?”
“That’s just your claim. It’s a complicated matter that you do not understand. You can’t just kill someone out of your own suspicions. We have trials for that!”
“I went there myself, and with support. We investigated as best as we can–”
“That’s still not enough! You had no right!”
I pressed my mouth into a thin line after her interruption. I glared at her, and we held that stare for a few seconds. How dare she? Does she not know who I am? What I am? Her estate, her duchy, I could dismantle it all singlehandedly.
“I have made my decision,” I let my aura out so that I could say my piece in full. “I don’t care if it violates your sensibilities, or even your laws. I’ll fight all the wars if I have to. I am positioning myself as a deterrent like this, in order to prevent such atrocities from happening again.”
“You mean like the atrocities that you did?”
I did not flinch. I held her gaze. “Yes. Think of this as my way of atoning.”
“That’s very convenient for you,” she spat.
“It is. But you’re not changing my mind. The die has been cast. I’m only here so that the chaos can be contained. You’ll lose more of your country if you do not help me with this.”
She growled out a heavy sigh. “Just a little more power and you become a tyrant like those angels, huh? I should’ve never made dealings with a wild animal like you.”
I shrugged. “If you act like an animal, then you invite others to do the same. If you’re willing to commit a genocide or enslave entire populations, then you best be ready for someone else to exercise their power and do the same to you.” I gathered curse, hellfire, blood, and space over my palm. “I know I am. I won’t just give my life to anyone, I’m too proud and selfish for that. But you’re free to give it your best shot.”
Kalyn was quiet for a time, and I happily ate her cookies while she was deep in thought. “What about Angelore? You know that a civil war between us only benefits them, right?”
“I know. But I’m prepared for that. I’ll kill them too. I’ll fight alone if I have to. I will be the unstoppable force to crush them, piece by piece.” I borrowed Granuel’s words. “I want us to build something that’s at least better than what they’re doing. Otherwise, what’s the point?” It was too late to hope for something that I’d truly be happy with. The north was an elitist shithole, and the south pretended to be a republic while actually being an impenetrable oligarchy.
Kalyn shook her head. “You’re confident. Too confident.”
“I have good reason to be.”
She sighed. “Fine. You’re an unstable piece of shit, but I agreed to be your main connection point to my nation. I’ll fulfill my end of the bargain. I’ll reap what I sowed.”
~~~
King Alvis Granola glared at me as Kalyn explained the situation. We had arrived at the throne room, and the other nobility present murmured among themselves as the story developed.
“Duke Zander is dead…?”
“Lies!”
“It can’t be…!”
“Even just the claim is unacceptable!”
“That’s right!”
“Guards! Guards!”
“Get her!!”
The royal guards stationed throughout the throne room bolted forward and came for me. I wanted nothing more than to meet their charge and cull them when they inevitably ran, but I had to stay in place here to protect Granuel who was far more vulnerable than me. His presence was a handicap. Was this all planned? Do they want to use my friends against me again?
I gnashed my teeth as I remembered Angerly’s final moments. I glared at the first rank of enemies, and they staggered in place, their ashen faces frozen in fear.
I did not hesitate.
I swung my sword once, and the half-dozen of them were sliced in half, armor and all.
The next set of enemies arrived, and this time they were warier. Humans and ogres and dwarves centaurs met my attacks, but their blades only snapped in half. My swing proved heavier than an ogre’s hammer. Some of them survived the initial slash, but none lived after the next.
Another wave came. Shields buckled and shattered upon my power. A fresh set of injuries were inflicted unto my enemies, and I prepared to execute them, but some were actually smart enough to flee by them.
I let them run.
A kobold breathed deep, and I froze her with my devil eyes. I melted her face off with my curse. That could’ve fucking hit Granuel!
Spells of all kinds followed, along with a barrage of arrows. I narrowed my eyes, burning off most of them before twisting space around me. I shielded my friend with my body from the rest, leaving my armor scratched.
A warm feeling snuck through my growing rage. At least this time, I was strong enough to protect someone.
But I’ve still had just about enough.
The magic I used to defend shifted, becoming an all-consuming force for destruction. It had always been a tool for violence, for the room’s floor was already burning, and the hellfire was beginning to spread further.
That was when the fountan king finally spoke.
“ENOUGH!” he bellowed to his own people. “Stand down. You have not been ordered to attack her.”
I snorted. “That’s fucking convenient, isn’t it? The moment you realize that you’re losing, that’s when you wish for the violence to stop. Not a second before.”
He turned to me. “You killed a duke. My people’s reaction was not unreasonable. They just wanted to apprehend you so we could do a proper investigation into this matter.”
“Bullshit. You let that happen on purpose to test the waters.”
King Alvis shook his head. “It is unfortunate that you think so, but it truly was an accident, Demon Queen Haell Zharignan. I’ll let the issue of you allegedly killing Duke Zander go for now, if you’d be willing to let our own impropriety slide.”
For now? Impropriety? My eyes narrowed. Violence built in my frame. I felt a tap on my side, so I looked down to meet Granuel’s eyes.
He was both calm and pleading.
I understood what he wanted to say.
I sighed. “Fine. I’ll let this go too. For now.”
It fucking grated at me to make this concession. They attacked me! That was enough justification to kill everyone in this throne room. Purge the ruling class. Start over!
“Very well,” the king nodded, before his queen took over the negotiations.
“You admit to having killed one of our dukes. And now you have spilled the blood of our royal guards.” Those dead guards were now being carried away, while the ones who survived were being stabilized before they could be carried away. The nobles who demanded my death, on the other hand, had either already fled, or were currently huddling away in some unseen corner of the room. “After all your atrocities against our nation, you dare to demand more concessions from us? I could have you executed for this.”
“You already tried.” My smile did not reach my eyes.
A heavy silence descended in the room, and the queen managed to look unbothered in the face of it.
I wanted to actually move this negotiation along, so I broke the silence first. “Look. What I ask is simple. Just for you to stop doing genocide or slavery. It’s something that you should’ve already done well before.”
“Those are baseless accusations. We are not doing anything of the sort.”
“Buulshit. I went there and saw it for myself.”
“The words of someone who killed a duke are not acceptable evidence.”
“Then maybe these will be.” I grabbed the ledgers of evidence from Granuel, compiled from the reports of those spies he sent with us.
“Hmmmhh.” The human queen’s expression looked unconvinced as their scribes took the documents away. “I’ll thank you for the information then, once we’ve determined their validity.”
“So you’ll stop this madness, once you’ve done your investigation?”
“We’ll act honorably, according to our own rules and traditions. You have no say in that. You’re not even part of this nation.”
“I’ll tell you the same thing I told your duchess Kalyn over there then. If you’re allowed to do something as terrible as genocide or slavery, then I am allowed to be cruel and violent too.”
I gave my greatsword one practice swing, and the remaining royal guards present twitched as if their lives just flashed before their eyes. Heh. It probably did.
“A tyrant then, just like Angelore,” Queen Efin Granola condemned.
“You are doing a finer job of emulating them than I ever could.”
“Nonsense. You are the only one here who has certifiably done a genocide. The Burning of Gardine.”
My temper flared, but I hardly allowed it to show. “Yes. I know. I’ve been told that way too many times already.”
“Yet it bears repeating. Don’t just dismiss it. You’re being a hypocrite. That should fill you with shame. You can’t just turn around and hold us to a different standard.”
“I do what I have to.” I sighed. “But I do feel shame for that. You can hate me all you want. I understand. But my answer remains the same. I did something terrible, and I’m not letting you or anyone else do the same.”
“If I may interject,” Granuel said during the rising tensions I created. “These factions that want to do genocide and slavery are gaining power and they’re eyeing your throne. What we’re proposing here is for Haell to take your side in the inevitable war and ensure your rule.”
“What!?”
“Nonsense!”
“We would never do such a thing!”
A wave of denial and condemnation immediately arrived Granuel’s way. So those are the nobles in the anti-royal faction. Interesting, interesting.
“That is, again, conjecture,” Queen Efin spoke, and the rest quieted. “Our people are more loyal than you presume. A merchant like you would not understand.”
“It’s an alarming attempt to disrupt our unity, coming from one of our closest allies,” the king added. “We might need to rethink our partnership with you and your affiliates.”
Granuel froze for just a fraction of a fraction of a second, but he did not let his body betray his emotions. “If that’s what it takes. I’m prepared for the consequences. This is a cause that goes beyond money.”
So he said, and I was sure he genuinely believed that. But I could just feel the pain coming from my friend.
Agh, fuck. I need to make it up to him later. Who knows how much money I just lost him.
The negotiations continued for hours longer, only for no solid conclusion to be reached.
“We shall put our own houses to review and consider your proposals,” the king said as our groups finally parted.
Fuck you. I seethed.
~~~
I went to The Council of Southern New Grandera. These were the rulers of this place, the councillors of the ‘republic.’ Granuel spoke to them about my demands, and they were far more open and amicable because I’d already hurt their rival in the north.
“This is unclear,” a harpy councillor stated. They were a rare breed, as most harpies or dwarves held dual loyalties between a duarchy and Southern New Grandera, and thus ineligible for a position of such prominence. “I ask that you clarify. What exactly do you mean by ‘genocide’ and ‘slavery’?”
“It’s pretty self-explanatory,” I replied. “If you don’t know what it means, then err on the side of caution.”
“That’s unreasonable!” A sundertop woman fumed upon my answer. I looked at her, and recalled the profiles and briefings about these councillors through my memory core. Ah. She’s from the extreme end of the spectrum. She might have destroyed whole settlements of her own. At a minimum, she delayed and refused to send troops to take over territory, so that they would be overrun by the cursetaceans. That’s after those villages tried to surrender to New Grandera.
Well, it was one way of keeping their hands ‘clean.’
“Do you have reason to be worried?” I asked menacingly.
The massive sundertop woman did not appreciate that, but her anger slid right off me. Try again after at least a year of constant torture.
The negotiations continued.
“I can see that my colleagues are uncertain,” Council Speaker Orin eventually said. The belfegor man looked just as colorful as ever. “Would you be willing to do a little demonstration of your power, so that we know what we’re dealing with?”
I raised a brow, curious. “Sure. What do you have in mind?”
“A simple spar will suffice. And maybe a little demonstration of your destructive capabilities that allowed you to, well, frankly, burn down a city by yourself.”
The reminder of what I did still stung, but it was a perfectly fair request. I accepted, and we moved onto the nearest arena. Southern New Grandera outfitted their strongest warriors present against me, and I agreed to have myself surrounded from the start. The handicap would only make my point more crystal clear.
“Now!”
“CHARGE!”
As one, they came. A variety of different species, with all their different approaches. Magic rained upon me from above, and I bent many of them out of the way. I twisted, dodged, and parried the arrows and projectiles, doing the same to the charging mass that finally arrived.
Two blades slid past my armor, their trajectories altered in unnatural ways. I struck them with my fists, and then broke the weapon of a charging centaur with my elbow. I kicked a high level dwarf, judging that she could survive my hooves. The darkness of a tyranight covered the battlefield, attempting to blind me to my surroundings. A sundertop charged forth from behind, deadset on ramming me with his three horns. I dodged the sharp implements, and then delivered an empowered uppercut strong enough to knock him out. A belfegor jumped out of his silky white fur, and I backhanded her too.
It was a good attempt, but sadly not enough.
The brawl continued, and I allowed their melee fighters to exhaust themselves against me. All the while the bombardment of spells and arrows continued to hound my every move, completely unimpeded.
Only once they had no more warriors, did I start walking towards their archers and mages who had kept themselves safe so far.
“Ah!”
“We surrender!”
“You’re very strong!”
I did not stop.
“Wait, wait!”
“STOP!”
“Please!”
I finally did as they requested. I laughed with a big smile on my face. “Hah! It’s a joke. You should’ve seen your faces!”
They laughed with me, for no one died in this battle… I hoped. I did not take out my blade once, and I even gave a first-aid heal to some. This was no surprise attack that endangered a friend mine. The people here asked nicely, and I appreciated that. I was the one who accepted the challenge. I held no ill will towards them.
I had a great time fighting with my fists for once! It was a good non-lethal option–an option that I rarely ever took. I probably looked silly the entire time, because I’d had so little training with that way of fighting.
Maybe that could be a fun hobby.
My victims–errr, sparring partners groaned.
~~~
We returned to the council hall. I intended to burn down a patch of the surrounding rainforests in order to demonstrate my destructive power, but the Council Speaker Orin reassured me that it wouldn’t be unnecessary.
“Your loss,” I shrugged.
“We shall take this loss with dignity,” he chuckled amiably.
The talks proceeded much better after that.
A few… days later, we signed the Devil Treaty, as it came to be called. With its inception, Southern New Grandera would now avoid doing ‘warcrimes’ as defined in the document. In exchange, they would be able to ask for my help if some other force tried to do the same to them.
It was a good start.