Chapter 27 : DIABLO (3)
Chapter 27
Diablo
"Diablo is rather hot."
Nora remarked.
"Even hotter than Artheris."
"We sit just below the equator, but if you go further south, we have snow too."
Fury said,
"If you're interested, I could take you to see it."
Nora and Rafinya's eyes went wide.
"Are you serious?"
"If we split off from the group, we could go on ahead. For Rafinya, it wouldn't be difficult. But your mother probably won't allow it, I imagine."
Princess Nora's face fell with disappointment. What he said was true.
Rafinya nodded softly while biting into her orange.
"But I'll try."
"Mr. Fury?"
He walked away from them, approaching an important figure... the Empress herself.
Fury came to a stop before the Empress at precisely the right moment. He bowed his head in accordance with human royal etiquette, flawlessly. His bearing was perfectly composed.
"Your Majesty."
"Prince Fury."
The Empress looked up at the towering figure of the Crown Prince. They shook hands, with the Demon King and The Raven both present.
The girls watched from a distance. Nora could only see that they were exchanging courtesies in the manner of international relations. But Rafinya had quietly cast an enhancement spell, focusing on that position, and she caught the conversation.
"I pay my deepest respects, Your Majesty. It is a great pleasure that Snowhaven has honored us by visiting Diablo on this historic day."
"The pleasure is ours, Prince Fury. Snowhaven sincerely hopes that today's opening of borders will mark the beginning of a transparent and lasting relationship between our two kingdoms."
"Your Majesty's concerns are entirely understandable. A land sealed shut for so long would naturally breed uncertainty. And that is precisely why I come to you now. While Your Majesty and the Demon King are conducting affairs at the highest level, I believe it would be of benefit if we used this opportunity to demonstrate transparency at the level of the next generation."
The Empress raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean by that, Prince?"
Fury paused for a moment. He glanced over at Nora, then turned back.
"This is not the first time I have spoken with Princess Nora. I believe you are already aware of this. We had a brief conversation late last year."
"If Nora's insolence caused you any displeasure, we have already reprimanded her, Prince Fury. I assure you it will not happen again."
"I would not call it displeasure, Your Majesty. In my life, I can count on one hand the number of people who have walked up to me without a trace of fear in their eyes. Princess Nora is one of them. It reminded me of the earliest days of my life. I took a liking to her quick wit."
Fury turned toward his father, then back to the Empress.
"My father sent the personal invitation to Princess Nora with a clear purpose: to allow the next generation to see that Diablo is not a savage land. I would therefore like to request Your Majesty's permission to personally guide Princess Nora on a private tour of our country, so that she may gather firsthand knowledge to convey to the younger generation in Snowhaven."
The moment he finished, the Empress's gaze turned cold.
"A private tour? Prince... the Princess of Snowhaven is not an object to be led wherever one pleases through demon territory. I must decline."
"I humbly ask Your Majesty to reconsider. Having the Princess walk through the city accompanied by hundreds of Snowhaven soldiers would only reinforce an image of suspicion before the press and the public who are watching. It would make it appear as though Your Majesty had sent her as a captive rather than an honored guest. That would not reflect well on Snowhaven's image."
"...."
"On the other hand, if I, as Crown Prince of Diablo, personally serve as her guide, it would be an official declaration that 'the Princess of Snowhaven is under the direct and highest protection of the Demon royal family.'"
Should even a single hair fall from Princess Nora's head due to any threat to her safety, it would mean the end of his political standing as heir, and Diablo would face sanctions from all of humanity. If this were truly a scheme to harm her, he asked the Empress to consider why they would destroy a project his father had spent nearly a decade building, all for nothing.
He paused at just the right moment, then continued.
"I am aware of the sensitivities within Snowhaven regarding the Princess's safety. That is precisely why I am offering myself, to provide protection on par with that of the Demon King himself."
Binding through mutual interest and honor.
He emphasized the words "next generation," "gathering information," and "mission" so that the Empress would understand this was a matter of work and diplomacy, not a date or personal affection. It helped to ease her suspicion that Fury might use Nora as a tool for manipulation.
And when he said,
I took a liking to her quick wit.
Among those who knew him during the peak of the war,
everyone would recognize that this was not a personality trait easily found in Diablo's ultimate weapon. Not even by the Demon King himself.
It also served as a signal that the Fury of today had grown from the Fury of his youth. He was calmer. More composed. And most importantly, he was beginning to embrace the idea of building peace through connecting with the younger generation.
Had Everton been the one speaking these words, the Empress would not have hesitated to stand firm in her refusal.
But this was Fury.
Though his reputation for brutality and terror during the war made every nation wary,
there was one quality that Fury had built an equally firm reputation on. That was his straightforwardness.
Silence fell between them for a moment. The sharp eyes of Empress Ophilis bore deep into those of the Crown Prince of Diablo.
And the Crown Prince knew that the Empress cared deeply about politics.
The mind of Snowhaven's sovereign was working at full speed. The suspicion in her heart had not diminished, but it was being replaced by a cold-blooded calculation of political advantage.
In the Empress's mind, images of the past war flashed one after another. She knew "Fury" better than most would expect. Among all those of demon blood, Fury was the most terrifying general, not because he was cunning or full of schemes, but because he was so blunt it sent chills down the spine.
Unlike Emperor Byleth, who hid his claws behind a diplomat's smile, or the younger brother Everton, who was skilled at spinning people's minds with honeyed words...
Fury was not like that. On every battlefield, Fury had proven to the world that his word was his word. If he said he would crush you, he crushed you head-on. If he swore an oath, he would stake his life to keep it.
This blunt yet razor-sharp quality was precisely what allowed her to begin seeing an "opportunity" in his proposal.
If she allowed Nora to go with Fury, the political benefits could flow right back to Snowhaven.
First, Nora would instantly become the safest person in the entire demon kingdom. Even if radical elements within Diablo attempted to assassinate a human princess to destroy the treaty, Fury would be the first to shield her and hunt them down. She would not even need to expend her own soldiers on a dangerous mission into the inner territories.
Second, if the press saw the Princess of Snowhaven strolling through the city alongside the Demon Crown Prince without a wall of soldiers around her, that image would declare to the human world that Snowhaven did not fear the demons. That Snowhaven was the bold leader, playing the game at a higher level, ready to command this relationship. It would transform Nora's image from "hostage" to "honored goodwill envoy" in the blink of an eye.
Third, Nora might appear naive in her mother's eyes, but that was a fine mask. Allowing Nora access to the inner city would grant Snowhaven "raw intelligence" that could never be obtained through diplomatic documents. Whatever Nora brought back afterward, whether it was their way of life, social conditions, or military readiness, would be intelligence worth its weight in gold. And Diablo would have no right to accuse Snowhaven of sending in a spy, because they were the ones who had invited her in themselves.
Fury's straightforwardness was his greatest strength... but it was also a vulnerability she could exploit.
And if Prince Fury had truly taken a liking to Nora as he claimed... in the future, when Nora would ascend as Empress Ophilis XV,
there lay a doorway of opportunity that could pave the way toward the most powerful alliance the world had ever seen.
She simply had to ensure it remained an "alliance" and not "subjugation." This was a risk that could lead to ruin. But if it was not... the reward would be sweeter and more valuable than anything Mathema had ever gained.
The Empress softened her steely gaze just slightly, feigning a concession based on diplomatic reason, though she had already calculated that in this game, the risk was far smaller than the reward.
"You speak with reason, Prince Fury..."
The Empress said in a voice that was level, commanding, and absolute.
"I will permit Nora to go with you. But do not forget your promise. Should anything go wrong, what you will pay will certainly not be limited to your political future."