288. Compromises
“But the world doesn't care about our rivalries and what not. The Witch is moving. The Cult is no longer a shadow, it’s a stain ready to spread across the continents..” Ravenna said looking at them then smirked “So let’s discuss an alliance against the cult, an alliance to protect humanity”
Landon returned the look with a weary smile. “So, it comes down to compromises to save the world? Is that the heart of it?”
Serena let out a sharp, derisive scoff, folding her arms tightly across her chest. “As if you would ever truly cooperate, Ravenna. Don’t kid yourself; everyone in this room knows exactly how deep your greed runs.” She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing. “The words ‘Alliance’ and ‘Ravenna Solarius’ don’t even belong in the same sentence.”
“Is that so? And I suppose Serena and ‘Alliance’ go hand-in-hand?” Ravenna countered, her voice dropping into a mockingly sweet tone before she broke into a short, cold laugh. “Perhaps you could remind us all what happened to our dear eldest brother, Nolan, when you two were supposedly aligned?”
The mention of their fallen brother hit a nerve. Serena’s composure fractured, her face flushing with agitation as she moved to stand. Before the argument could escalate, Landon stepped between them, his hand raised in a silent command for peace.
“Can you two stop for one moment?” Landon sighed, his voice heavy with the burden of peace keeper between his siblings. “We need to stay on track. Personal grudges won't stop the Cult.”
“I agree with Her Highness,” Eugene said, nodding toward Ravenna. He leaned forward, his expression grave. “I reached the Witch’s lair through a dungeon spawned by the Pope of the Solious Church himself, right inside the main cathedral. It is imperative that we work together, at least regarding the Cult of Absolution. The rot is deeper than we realized.”
“I understand the threat,” Serena retorted, reaching for her wine glass and taking a sharp sip to steady her nerves. “But I cannot trust Ravenna not to backstab me the moment an opportunity presents itself.”
“Your Highness Serena,” Kenric joined in, his voice calm but laced with a cutting logic. “If I may… you would be a corpse right now if Kim City’s physicians hadn't treated your wounds and housed you after we escaped that dungeon.”
He tapped his finger rhythmically against the arm of his chair, pinning her with a steady look. “Kim City physicians could have very easily declared your condition too serious and let nature take its course. After all, having fewer contenders for the throne would benefit Her Highness, wouldn't it? Yet, here you are, drinking wine.”
“That is a fair assessment, don’t you think, Serena?” Landon added, his tone suggesting he was tired of the circular arguments.
From the corner of the room, Benric Solarius stepped forward. He looked between his aunts with a bluntness that only a child of his station could manage. “If I may speak… Aunt Serena, Aunt Ravenna… it might be offensive, but wasn’t it you, Aunt Serena, who abandoned your alliance with Uncle Nolan right before he took the Imperial Navy to attack the Kim Dukedom?”
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
Serena glared at Benric and Gracie, but the silence that followed was deafening. King Finel broke it with a hearty, low chuckle, clapping his hands together.
“It seems even the children can see where the fault lies this time, Your Highness,” the King of Estra said, his amusement fading into a serious edge. “It isn't just you, however. We are all uneasy about siding with anyone who has a history of breaking faith. But survival is a powerful motivator.”
Serena let out a long, defeated sigh. She looked around the room and realized she was the lone survivor of her faction, stripped of the support she could have. There was no one left to take her side right now.
“Fine,” Eugene whispered, sensing the shift in the room as the tension finally began to ebb. He looked at the maps spread across the table. “What will this alliance actually entail? What are the terms we are looking at?”
“Hmm,” Ravenna murmured, taking a deliberate sip of water from a glass of clear, Kim-made crystal. She set it down with a soft clink that seemed to echo in the quiet room. “The terms are simple in theory, though difficult in practice: absolute cooperation regarding any and all matters related to the Cult of Absolution and the Witch. This includes intelligence, recovered relics, and troop movements. We must set aside our personal motivations and exchange every scrap of information we find to oppose them as a collective.”
She slid a thick, high-quality parchment across the polished table. It was titled in a bold script: Humanity’s Alliance Contract (Draft).
“If we aren't willing to share what we know and fight as a single unit,” Ravenna continued, her voice cold and resonant, “the Cult will continue to incite discord from the shadows. They will pick us apart one by one until they eventually succeed. We cannot afford to be a collection of warring factions when the end of the world is on the horizon.”
A heavy silence followed her words. It was Marie who finally broke it. She raised her hand tentatively, her fingers trembling slightly, though her eyes were steady.
“Master… if I may speak?”
Ravenna gave a brief, sharp nod of permission.
“Even if everyone here tries to put their personal feelings aside,” Marie said, her voice growing stronger as she spoke, “the fact remains that you are all still contending for the throne. There is a great deal of honor and prestige to be gained by working alone. If one faction succeeds where others fail, it boosts their claim. It’s… it’s difficult to believe that no one will act in their own self-interest, even after signing a piece of paper.”
“The Saintess speaks the truth,” Eugene said, shifting his weight. As someone who had seen how easily alliances crumbled under the weight of ambition, his support was grimly realistic. “You all have a common enemy, yes, but you also have a common goal: the Crown of Ancorna. The temptation to withhold information to gain a political advantage over your rivals will be inevitable. It’s human nature.”
“There is merit to what he says,” Serena jumped in immediately. She looked at the contract with a mixture of desire and deep suspicion. “We need to outline specific terms and penalties. We have to ensure that no one, especially those with the most to gain, can betray the rest of us the moment our backs are turned.”
The room fell back into a tense, brooding silence. The problem of the throne was an elephant in the room that no one knew how to move. Every person at the table was a shark, and sharks didn't share their prey.
Landon tapped the arm of his chair, a rhythmic, hollow sound that filled the void. After a few moments, he looked up, his gaze sweeping from Serena to Ravenna, and finally to Eugene.
“If that is the core of the issue,” Landon said, his voice strangely calm, “then I believe I can offer a solution from my end.” He paused, the gravity of his next words visible in the way he squared his shoulders. “I am willing to formally give up my claim to the throne.”