[Seryanna’s point of view]

[Present day]

Initially, we thought that the [Elf Queen’s Tears of Joy] was an actual item or maybe a potion of some sort that only the Empress of Anui’Yahna knew how to brew. We were wrong...

After the Empress agreed to sign the contract of exchange as well as the treaty draft that required certain laws to be changed, Princess Elleyzabelle gave her the [Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths]. Upon witnessing its effect, the one to burst into tears was actually Princess Ser’Ezire. Dropping on her knees, she was overwhelmed with joy and cried knowing that her mother was finally freed of the terrible illness that almost took her life.

In that moment, the one to collect those tears was the First Prince Xardun Overtur. The crystal drops fell into a transparent vial, and once enough was gathered, a cork was used to seal it off. Then the vial was handed to Princess Elleyzabelle.

Those were the [Elf Queen’s Tears of Joy]... Apparently, it didn’t matter if it was the mother or the daughter, anyone who belonged to the original bloodline of Anui’Yahna could shed this type of tears. Our only worry was that it might have been just a misinterpretation of the name, however, so as to reassure us this wasn’t the case, after she consumed the potion and finally got better, the Empress also shed tears of joy, enough to fill a second bottle. The only one who could properly identify it, however, was Alkelios, so until then, we had to put our trust on them.

A lie of this magnitude would have shattered our already fragile political connections. It was something that neither side desired, so at the very least, we were certain that they would take all steps necessary so as to prevent something like this from happening.

Now, we had acquired some of the most difficult ingredients on our list. There were many others that were missing as well, but we had no idea at this moment how we were going to obtain them. The orange juice, especially, was a big mystery to us since we knew not how to produce it or where to find it.

With the recovery of Empress Eld’Wanna Anui’Yahna, our reception at the Palace changed for the better. The laws that Princess Elleyzabelle suggested to be added or modified in order to suit the treaty were made official and implemented in the following days. This paved the way towards having an official treaty signed between our two nations. With the Anui’Yahna Empire came the Ledmerra Kingdom as well, and both of them joined our Alliance.

We stayed on the Elf Continent for two more weeks until the final procedures were completed and then we departed from El’Damaran. The Empress sent an impressive escort to lead us to the port, where we were reunited with captain Matthew. We set sail on the same day and our journey back to the Dragon Continent was a peaceful one.

Now, two years later, those trade treaties became the backbone of our Alliance, and it was only starting to pick up speed from now on. More and more adventurers from the Dwarf, Relliar, and Elf continents arrived in Albeyater in the hopes of exploring the Dragon Continent as well as growing stronger by hunting the monsters here. Import and export was booming as well, leading to an overall growth in economic and military power for all of our nations.

Meanwhile, the human navies were less aggressive than they were before, most likely due to the internal turmoil brought over by the Human Heroes. They had no time to go hunting for trade ships or pick battles with our convoys.

This was a most welcomed change since it gave us more time to strengthen our own fleets, to build more ships, train better sailors, and hire stronger escorts. In just a year from now, the Human Continent would become isolated from the rest of the world thanks to our Allied Navy.

Those who were aware of our strength were also aware of the fact that picking a fight with us was not probably the wisest choice they could make at the moment. This was also one of the reasons why Prince Voydarum of the Wind took the words of this potential treaty and alliance with us as seriously as possible. After all, if they joined us, this would also mean a free access for their trade fleets to four other continents. The potential for business was limitless if they knew how to bargain.

It took two days to finish the draft for the treaty with the Majin Kingdom, which Prince Voydarum of the Wind signed in the name of his father. He had the authority and power to do so. With this, we also received a free pass to the Mondarc Port and thus I was one step closer to reuniting with Alkelios.

As our ship set sail for the port, two ships belonging to the Prince joined us as an official escort. This kept the Ten Swords Kingdom’s navy at ease until we dropped anchor in the port.

“Peace or no peace, we can’t allow you to step on our good land just yet!” declared the City Lord of this place after he rushed to our pier to greet us.

“What do we need to do in order to set foot on your land then?” Elleyzabelle asked with a smile.

“Write a formal request to his Majesty the King of Ten Swords, then, if he agrees, we’ll let you in as diplomatic representatives of your nation!” he declared as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

The two guards he arrived with were all shivering in their boots. I guess, they weren’t expecting for actual draconians to arrive in their harbor.

“Very well, we’ll do just that. But... do tell your troops to stay away from my people. If you attack us for any reason, we won’t have any qualms with unleashing our full might against you.” she warned him with a smile.

“O-Of course! W-We’ll... I’ll make sure that no such impoliteness happens!” he declared immediately “By the way, I must compliment you on the good Ten Swords accent you have there, miss!” he added with a smile.

“Thank you, compared to the Dwarf or the Elf language, this one was easy.” she replied with a smile.

I did not know what they were saying, but captain Matthew was kind enough to translate for us. Tanarotte, on the other hand was struggling to pick up the words. Thanks to her abilities, she had been fulfilling various roles: from spy to maid to bait on a fishing line, but no one contested her worth on this ship.

“Captain, they don’t have any anti-air weapons, do they?” I asked as I looked at the port defenses.

“They have a few ballistae, but it would be nearly impossible to bring you down with those things... Why? Wait... you aren’t thinking of just flying off this boat, are you?” he asked as he looked at me with big eyes.

“I was thinking about it...” I replied.

Elleyzabelle, who was just a step away from us, heard me and immediately ordered “Don’t you even dare! Wait on this boat until I tell you otherwise!”

I let out a grumble and then looked up at the sky.

Right now... I’m so close to you... yet so far. I thought.

 

[Alkelios’ point of view]

The Ten Swords Capital was spreading its majesty before us, but rather than feeling impressed, I felt repulsed.

On the walls, hanging by the neck, were countless human corpses, almost as if a massive execution just took place or an enemy took over the capital and were displaying the former rulers to demoralize its residents. It was distasteful, but among them, there were a few that Ildea recognized at first glance.

“Those are my mother’s maids... and that’s... the cook, the gardener... What happened to them? Why are these good men and women…? They... Please, gods, don’t let my mother be among them!” she cried as she ran with her eyes over all the bodies hanged on the walls.

We waited patiently until she was done and saw her letting out a sigh of relief.

“She’s not there, is she?” asked Drumora as she placed her hand on her shoulder.

“No... Thank the gods.” she replied with a weak smile, but there were still tears of sadness flowing down her cheeks. “Still, why have they been hung like traitors? Such a disgraceful death... what was my father thinking?” she wondered.

“Probably not something sane.” I said as I shrugged and then looked around. There were some travelers who were looking our way out of curiosity “We should move, we’re standing out too much.” I remarked.

“Yeah, black hooded cloaks that cover the entire body and masks to cover the faces don’t stand out at all...” the oh~ so optimistic Kalderan commented.

“Well, it’s better than to enter the city and find out that we are wanted men.” Coshun chipped in as he looked back at some adventurers who were whispering to one another while looking our way.

“Ugh... Tamara doesn’t like the stuffy cloaks!” the nekatar grumbled, but she kept her hood down.

“It’s better than what we used to flee Akutan.” Amadeus gave his compliment, sort of.

“True, these are better than your average cloaks, the others are probably just envious of our gear. We should get moving. If we manage to pass the gates, we’ll be safe.” said Risha as she pointed towards them.

For a last-minute disguise, I had to admit that I did fairly well. There was not that much material on hand either, but the masks were enchanted with a bit of my magic that helped disperse one’s perception when they were looking at us. Only someone with relatively high stats could actually pierce through that small illusion.

The reason why I suddenly stopped to make these disguises was because I noticed before everyone else here the horrendous sight that was to welcome us to this city. This meant that something nasty just happened inside the capital, although, I did not think even for a single second that all of those people were individuals close to the Queen. If Ildea did not mention it, I might have never found out.

Thanks to the fact that a tournament was going to be organized soon, the guards were expecting to see a lot of strange fellows trying to get in. Even with our strange getup, we could just blend in with other contestants and declare that ‘thanks to our religious belief, we consider taking off our masks to be an offense to the gods’ or something like that. If the masks failed, Kalderan planned on unmasking himself and showing his Adventurers Guild identification tag.

The ones we didn’t want them to check at any cost were Ildea, Amadeus, Drumora, and Coshun. While I could bring about the excuse of a slave with Coshun, the other three royalties were a bit difficult to pose them as normal folk, after all, once they washed off the dirt and grime off their faces, their natural beauty would be revealed, and it was powerful enough to mesmerize most folk.

Thus, we stepped in line and waited for our turn to enter the city. Kalderan did the talking for us, meanwhile I prayed for good luck.

My wishes were answered, and we were allowed to enter the city without too much fuss. They didn’t even bother to ask us to unmask. Once we mentioned it was for a religious reason, they came to the conclusion on their own that we were part of some recluse cult.

At first, I thought that it was because we were lucky, but apparently the guard was just corrupted. They asked for a gold coin to look the other way. Of course, we paid. Then, when I looked back, I saw that they were doing the same with other suspicious groups.

“The security in this place is lousy...” I remarked.

“It’s a good thing too... look.” Kalderan pointed at the wall.

When I looked over there, I saw the Wanted Posters that asked for the capture Dead or Alive of the former princess Ildeanussi Vermida Kor. The portrait was made really well, making it difficult to mistake her for someone else.

“This is... ridiculous...” said Coshun.

“Dead or Alive... for his own daughter.” Risha gasped in shock, but the person in question, Ildea, remained quiet.

Walking over to the poster, I picked it up and looked at it carefully.

“Is 10000 Gold Coins a lot or too little?” I asked as I looked at Kalderan.

“It’s considered a fortune for anyone... even nobles.”

“Then... this... is indeed ridiculous.” I nodded and then crumbled the poster before tossing it in a pile of junk nearby “Let’s go and register for that Tournament and then get a room at a good inn. We need to rest and think about our next course of action.” I told them.

“Agreed.” Coshun nodded.

“Who will join?” Kalderan asked.

“I will. Coshun and you will fill the numbers. Risha, you’ll stay with the others as a guard.” I replied.

“I was planning on doing that from the start, besides, I’m not as powerful as any of you... I honestly feel pity for the poor bastard who will try to fight any of you in the ring.” Risha commented and then shrugged.

“That’s because you didn’t train your muscles hard enough! When we get the chance, I’ll turn your twig-like arms into a real dragon’s arms!” Coshun laughed as he patted her on the back.

“Bulky arms covered in muscles, no thank you! Besides, I’m a woman!” she hissed back at him.

“We should go...” Ildea spoke in a soft voice as she turned away from the posters and looked at the paved road ahead of us.

I didn’t need to ask her if she was alright, it was clear even to an idiot like me that she was still shaken by what she saw outside just moments ago and if that wasn’t enough, learning that your own father was hunting you down like a common criminal was a blow she really didn’t need right now.

We made our way to the coliseum where the tournament was supposed to take place. Despite the fact that they advertised this competition everywhere, there weren’t that many people trying to get a place in the contest. Rather, the ticket booth was the one that had trouble with people pushing each other.

Registration was done fairly easy; ten silver coins and we were given the token which would allow us and our guests a free pass inside the coliseum through the participants gate. Well, we paid five extra silver coins because there were too many guests in their opinion, but we did not mind.

Once this was done, we found a quiet inn at about ten minutes walking distance from the coliseum and booked two rooms, one for the men and one for the women. I was thinking about putting Coshun and Ildea in the same room to help with their budding romance, but that would have been pushing it in more ways than one, especially given the current circumstances. The poor girl did not need the extra awkwardness now that she knew her father was trying to bring her back Dead or Alive.

We fell asleep with some rather complicated thoughts, but we were finally here, in the Ten Swords Capital. This was our last stop and after tomorrow, maybe we would finally begin to understand what the heck was happening in this country. There was that weird creepy entity that wiped out the entire invading army, there was the thing with the king’s craziness, and probably a bunch of other problems too.

Everything just feels so bloody complicated... Is it too much to ask to get back to my wife’s side? I miss her so much... I thought and then, right before falling asleep, I sent her a new ping to let her know that I was alive and well.