~ Chapter 111: Looming threat ahead ~

[Illsyore's point of view]

The city of Polis had a lot of wares I didn't see in Port Rico. There was even a music shop here which sold flouts and acoustic guitars. Because there was a chance that Lumia was going to be the dance teacher, and Ayuseya was most likely going to give violin lessons, I had to stock up on musical instruments and eventually learn how to make them. To my surprise, Savannah was also quite skillful at the guitar, but there was no one among us who touched a piano.

At the music shop, I bought every single instrument I could find as well as all the books on music displayed here. The merchant's jaw simply dropped when he heard my order, and his brain went into idle mode. His wife took over for him and finished the transaction, but I still had to explain that I didn't mean to buy the property, just the goods.

While walking around the city after I left the music shop, I visited a bookstore and bought almost half of the stock they had. The other part was filled with all sorts of human supremacy ideas. I politely told the shop owner that he should avoid those sorts of books or else foreign customers would most likely avoid his place.

“What?! But these are grand masterpieces in regard to the human superiority ideology! They explain clearly and through factual examples how WE are far more advanced and better than the other species!” he retorted the moment I suggested to stop selling them.

“Erm... How exactly is a human more superior than an elf, an el'doraw, or a draconian when it comes to life expectancy and raw brute strength or magic power without training?” I replied in a calm tone of voice while raising an eyebrow.

“That is... Erm... I think it was written somewhere! There has to be an example that shows humans to be superior to them!” he declared.

“Oh, and compare the reports from populations of equal numbers.” I added with a smile.

“What do you mean?” he asked while taking his nose out of a book.

“Simple. Don't compare two elves from a group of one hundred with one hundred humans from a group of ten thousand. Those are not exactly equal values and numbers may work only in a state of war not when comparing individuals from both sides.” I told him.

“I... I never thought about that.” he knitted his brow as he looked into my eyes.

“Just as it is with books, my friend. It's all about quality, not quantity. I'm not saying that humans might not be better than other species in some things, I just don't believe you should take wrong or misunderstood facts as correct ones just because they put mankind in a better light.” I smiled.

With this last exchange of opinions, I left the library before the conversation turned into a never-ending debate. I also did not want to get into politics, moral ideologies, and the cultural aspects of each civilization from each species.

I visited a tailor's shop as well and bought all the fabric rolls she had, all the sewing kits she had on display, and several sets of clothing meant for both children and adults. For some reason, she was so tankful I made this purchase, she started crying.

“Why are you so happy?” I asked her out of curiosity.

Although I knew that as a merchant, she would be glad to have a customer like me, I didn't think it would be something to make her shed tears of delight.

“With the money the kind gentleman gave me, I can finally pay my debt in full and focus on making better clothes for my customers! It's a dream come true! I'm certain the Goddess of Justice Nazra has sent you my way!” she replied with a clear sense of happiness and joy in her gaze and tone of voice.

I don't think she has anything to do with this, most likely... I thought and just let her believe what she wanted.

If this made her give more offerings to the gods, then it was a win-win situation.

Thus, I left the shop and continued my journey throughout this wonderful city of Polis which was actually the remodeled remains of an ancient kingdom.

When you thought about it, it did hold a bit of a charm to it. The detailed work of the elfin architecture could still be spotted here and there, especially on the building of rich nobles or well-established commoners. But that was about all I could compliment this place about, everything else was a big NO for me.

I wasn't too happy about all the discrimination and hate that was happening in this entire empire. Not to mention the annoying human supremacy that kept sprouting all around me. Just as I told that guy at the library, if he wanted to claim that the human species was the greatest and best out of all of them, then it had to be number one in everything, no matter if it was literature or war. The same could be said about a kingdom or an empire. You couldn't declare it to be the greatest without actually proving this.

Just having the ability to intimidate others didn't make a species or a country 'the greatest', it just made them a bully...

Right now, if these moronic humans didn't get the tip, they would certainly end up fighting a war they would never win because even the gods themselves were against such an egotistical and narcissistic way of think.

Well, technically it was perfectly OK to claim this from a factual point of view, but then you would have had to have proof of this. Currently, there were not 'the greatest' just 'the best in a certain domain... for now'.

Looking around at all of these stuck-up humans who walked around with their slaves like they did some sort of dog of a rare breed made me sick. It wasn't something morally acceptable. It wasn't right, however, I could clearly see how nobles and rich commoners with such beliefs could pose a problem at my academy.

Walking around through this city and traveling through this problematic empire served me multiple purposes, more than I initially anticipated. Of course, I could impose my beliefs with force. Who was going to stop me if I openly declared war against them according to Melkuth's laws?

No one...

But then, who would follow me if I won?

Not that many...

Therefore, I had to make the beliefs of this ENTIRE empire crumble from within. In other words, I had to prove and make them believe in something else, something that will bring them more benefits for their individual selves. After all, a human was like a Dungeon. He would first need to satisfy his own needs and maybe then, if he had the time and will, care about others.

“Greetings, gentleman! Welcome to Mister Bullion's House of Slaves!” said the doorman to a rather fashionable looking place.

It looked like a unicorn puked on it...

“Yeah... I never seen so many jumbled up colors since...” I shut up and simply remembered the 'level that doesn't exist' in a certain game.

“Isn't it wonderful, mister? The master definitely has one of the finest tastes in fashion in this ENTIRE Empire!” he claimed and then laughed.

Then we entered... and it looked like a herd of unicorns puked all over the place then got drunk and turned into weird furniture.

I was 100% certain I was never going to find anything like this anywhere else in the world. Actually, I was going to make sure not to visit any place like this.

And not long afterwards, I met the owner of this place, who... looked surprisingly normal and wore a rather expensive looking elegant white suit. Somehow things did not add up, and I thought he was just another client, but he introduced himself as the fashionable Mister Bullion.

To put it bluntly, the guy had a good sense for fashion, but somehow, he considered 'house decorating' as 'house fashion'. Basically, he was claiming he was 'dressing up' the house in better 'clothes'. So yes, as long as someone kept this man away from architecture, things had a chance not to turn into a unicorn puke explosion or worse.

This wasn't the only slave shop I stopped by. There were more in this city. Kantor was indeed the city with the most slave merchants and slaves, but this did not mean that I managed to visit all the shops there. I chose quality over quantity. This time, I decided for a variable in between. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find all the slaves I wanted in just one shop, and there was one from which I didn't buy even a single one. As a result, I ended up traveling quite a bit and gathering a bit of a line behind me.

At the end of the day, I found myself to be quite satisfied with my purchases, and the lucky few who I managed to save would soon have a chance at a new life once we reached Port Rico. Meanwhile, I had to reunite with my wives.

“Yo! I'm back!” I said as I raised my hand.

The MCV was parked on the side of the road leading to the South gate. Tamara got back from her shopping spree as well. I was surprised we did not bump into each other, but if she wanted to find me, that cat had more ways than I could count and bluntly opening each and every door in this city in a short span of time was one of them.

“Welcome back, Illsy, and what in the name of a bald Melkuth is THAT?!” Nanya asked pointing at the small group of people behind me.

“Oh, them? They are the new slaves I bought!” I replied with a smile.

“Hm? They are... 16 of them, right?” Ayuseya asked after she did a quick count.

“You bought that many? Are you perhaps rich?” Keltaru commented.

“What's wrong?” I asked tilting my head and looking back at the slaves who wore rags for clothing and looked like they didn't know what to hope for the next day.

Some of them were carrying the sickly and those who couldn't stand because of their hunger.

“Illsy, is there anyone among them who needs immediate medical attention?” Zoreya asked as she looked at them worried.

“Immediate no, but they could use some food.” I pointed out.

“Let's go outside, and I can make them a bunch of soup that's good for the body, nya~! Meanwhile!” Tamara said and then jumped in my arms and kissed me.

“Mmph?!” I was surprised and fell on my back.

What got into her? I thought, seeing how this kiss was a bit rougher and more aggressive than her usual ones that called for pampering and petting.

“Puha~!” she let herself breath while she flattened her ears on her head and showed me a feverish gaze. “And nyaow this!” she said and then BIT my right hand.

“YOUCH!” I cried out.

“Oh my! She's marking him?” Shanteya pointed out.

“What the? Mark? What for?” I asked while rubbing my hand, but just when I thought about using my regeneration to erase it, Tamara took my hand into hers and then glared at me... or rather behind me?

Looking back, I noticed the three female nekatar slaves, which I had TOTALLY bought for 100% legit reasons and no 'mofu mofu' intentions, had their ears perked up and were paying attention to the two of us.

“This one is mine! You hear? My mate! Hiss~!” Tamara declared.

The three gulped and flattened their ears on their heads. With a quiet nod, they submitted to my wife's declaration.

“Was this really necessary? I am already your husband. I can't be taken that easily from you.” I showed my worried nekatar wife a soft smile and patted her head.

“Yes, but husband is Illsy... Strong mates attract more females.” she glared at me.

“Huh? I think I can handle myself now with five wives?” I told her raising an eyebrow.

Tamara blinked surprised then let out a giggle.

She patted my head and showed me a gentle smile.

“Good mate. Good mate.” she said and then looking back at Shanteya and the others, she said “You heard that, sister-wives? Husband thinks he can defend himself from female charm attacks. Isn't he cute?”

“Huh?” I blinked.

“Indeed, the pantie-snatching pervert is definitely an easy target for women.” Ayuseya nodded.

“I agree. All evidence points to him being a pervert. Mhm!” Nanya nodded while making a thinking pose.

“If he dares, I'll use him as a nail and my shield as a hammer!” declared Zoreya.

“That's scary!” I complained.

“Although… would a random woman really DARE to try and make a move on OUR husband?” Shanteya asked and then a dangerous and scary aura emanated from all of my wives as they looked at each other.

For a moment, everyone around them took a step back. Even those who were at quite the distance away from us were looking around restlessly as if they were being watched by the hungry eyes of some unstoppable beast.

“Erm...” I lifted a finger up, but Tamara lowered my hand down without looking at me.

Scary... I thought.

A moment later, they all nodded as if the eye-only conversation came to an end.

“Illsy, we apologize, it was wrong to accuse you. If a female will try to get too close to you with romantic interests in mind, we'll make sure she'll change her mind... one way or another.” Shanteya said with a gentle smile, but that scary aura was still surrounding her.

“OK?” I said, although, I was quite certain I was never going to cheat on them or bring in another wife because I had no reason to.

“Calm down now, girls, you're going to scare the new slaves!” Ayuseya told them with a smile as she made her own aura return to normal.

The others nodded and did the same thing.

I had some rather overprotective wives... or cranky at the idea of me messing around with other women. That was a good thing to keep in mind if I did not want to end up experiencing what it was like to turn into a nail.

[Ayuseya's point of view]

Illsyore was so cute when he thought that we were being overprotective of him. We weren't really the type to keep him on a tight leash like that, but we did enjoy teasing him. If he ever told us he wanted to increase the number of his wives, we wouldn't really be bothered that much about it because we trusted him not to get tricked by a gold digger or someone suspicious. The new wife would still need to be approved by us though, just as it happened with Zoreya and Tamara. Although, we firmly believed there was a very low chance for this to happen.

What we did with our little standoff there was simply to intimidate a few individuals who went by undetected by our silly husband.

Women, no matter their species, they knew that one of their best chances to survive as a slave and even hope to have the slimmest chances at earning their freedom back was to become their Master's lover. There were several among those bought by our dear husband who seemed to aim for this.

On the fortunate side of things, they were going to be given their freedom once we reached Port Rico, but not by becoming Illsy's lover. Actually, this possibility was out the window for them with us circling around him, especially Nanya who has been teased a bit too much by us.

Speaking of which, her aura was the most menacing out of all of us. With a single gaze and whip of her tail in the air, she made it clear that Illsy was off limits to them.

This wasn't some sort of special treatment we gave just to the new slaves; everyone was well informed of this by us. We did not want any misunderstandings to arise during our journey together.

“Ayuseya's right. Relax a bit. Sure, there are a few here who would aim at the oldest trick in the book, but ladies, this male isn't going to bite.” Nanya said with a smirk as she walked up to Illsy and pulled his hands around her. “He's ours already...” she then gave him a long kiss.

When their lips parted, she giggled and moved out of his embrace, while Illsy let out a sigh.

“I have no idea what's got into you all, but you don't need to feel so threatened. I'm not going to cheat on you, you know?” he showed us a soft smile.

“Nya~ We're not worried about you, my mate!” Tamara said as her tail waved in the air.

“AHEM!” someone coughed and caught our attention.

It was the butler from before, but now he was being accompanied by several men who looked like guards and that noble against whom I won in the auction, Marquess Gaharian. Looking at him now, he didn't look like the typical slob who was fat enough to be confused with a giant ball of lard. He was well kept and dressed up elegantly.

“What's the meaning of this?” Illsy asked as he made a sign for the slaves to move towards the cars.

Nanya raised her eyebrow and whipped her tail in the air.

“I warned you this would happen, you peasant. My master, Marquess Gaharian has come to claim what is rightfully his!” declared the butler, whose name was Tobias Reluar if I remembered right.

“Indeed! I have been cheated by that woman over there! That... That non-human! She stole my slaves!” declared the Marquess.

“Illsy, don't kill him.” I told him in whisper because I felt Magic Energy focusing on his right arm.

“Hm? Why shouldn't I?” he asked.

“I know how you are feeling, but you shouldn't take an offensive stance for now. This would be better for accommodating the new slaves as well. Besides, I'm not feeling in the least bit offended by his choice of words, if anything, it just proves to show his lack of intellect.” I told him and gently placed my hand on his shoulder.

Letting out a sigh, Illsy scratched the back of his head and then nodded.

“Thank you.” he said.

“You're welcome, my dear.” I showed him a soft smile and then looked at the Marquess “And what proof do you have for your claims?” I asked him.

“Proof? Aren’t my lord's words enough?” the butler asked.

“Nope. I also want some proof. So? Show us the original documents which state the names, date, and price of purchase for the so-called stolen slaves. And I want to see the original copy not some fake.” Illsyore declared in a loud tone of voice as he crossed his arms at his chest.

“YOU DARE?!” the butler shouted and pointed at him.

The guards looked ready to take out their swords and jump on us, but Illsy merely raised an eyebrow at them.

“So, you are declaring that this Marquess is above the laws given by the Emperor?” he asked calmly.

Hearing this, murmurs around the street began to spread and the guards themselves stopped in their tracks.

“What sort of nonsense are you accusing me of?!” the Marquess shouted in retaliation.

“Just as I said, are you declaring that your word is above the laws decreed by his Majesty? If so, then I guess both the guards and the other nobles in this town must be aware of this. No, his Majesty himself must be aware of this as well. After all, the laws that declare how one's slave is identified and purchased were written by the imperial hand, right?” he asked with a smirk.

“Well... Yes, true... But I never said I was against his Majesty's laws! I'm actually an avid supporter of his Majesty!” the Marquess declared and punched his chest.

Hm? It appears that my lessons with Illsy was time well spent. I thought as I analyzed from the sidelines this conversation.

His old self from six years ago would have found himself stuck midway through his declaration because of his uncertainty towards the laws. Even if the Emperor didn't directly write the laws, they were to be taken as if he actually did, and his citizens had to follow them as such. This was the correct way of looking at the laws in a monarchy, and Illsy did well to remember this.

Now, the fact that he trapped him with a possible Lèse-majesté accusation was something far more terrible for the Marquess than the simple theft accusation he was tossing our way. Logically speaking, if he didn't want to end up with the death penalty, he only had to accept Illsy's proposal of showing the said contracts. But there was no way for him to have them, leading to his accusation being a fake one and because he made this statement in public, it would naturally lead to a heavy blow to his reputation and probably several nasty rumors surrounding him emerging here and there.

Basically, it was either execution for Lèse-majesté or a public shaming. The Marquess dug his own whole with this one.

“Erm... The original contracts... are... erm... gone...” he said in a cold sweat.

“Then you have no way to prove your claim over my slaves, which are already bounded to me through magic, and I also have each and every one of their contracts with me. Look.” Illsy said as he took out the contracts from his Inner Mind and showed them to him.

“That there! It's an illusion, right?!” the butler declared pointing at him.

“Huh? What? This? No, they are from my storage crystal. Why would I use an illusion?” he asked tilting his head to the left.

“I'm not listening, you are lying!” the Marquess accused.

“Why would a Supreme need to lie about something as pathetic as this?” Illsy asked knitting his brows.

Hearing that magical word 'Supreme', the guards and the nobles froze in their spot.

“S-Supreme?” the Marquess repeated it.

“Yes. That's why I don't need to lie about something as silly as these contracts, right?” he smiled.

In the Paramanium Empire just like everywhere else on the three continents Thorya, Allasn, and Sorone, the Supreme was a special entity within the country which was more or less above the laws. Their combat potential was undisputed and the guards here were all at most Master Rank. Even if they had a million lives, they still would not be able to fight against a Supreme who could make an entire army of Emperor Ranks kneel.

As I had come to know, some of their stories were a bit exaggerated, and their strength highly depended on their skills, but actually fighting off an army of Emperor Ranks wasn't so farfetched. If it was Dankyun and his seemingly endless supply of crystals, maybe it would be a close win. However, if it were me or Illsy, then even an army of Godlikes would not be much of a problem for us. I would not put my hand in fire against an army of Supremes though, some were indeed far more powerful than they appeared, while the previous Ranks had specific limits.

“I apologize for intervening in this conversation, but I could not stand by to watch any longer.” someone said as he approached us from the alley on our left.

The man was wearing a cloak which covered his head, and he was accompanied by two others who wore a similar cloak.

“Who are you?! And how dare you...” the Marquess asked in anger but stopped mid-sentence.

“Is that any way to greet your brother and the head of the Gaharian family?” the mysterious man asked as he pulled back his cloak, revealing a handsome man, but he indeed resembled the Marquess.

“Brother Julius?!” he asked surprised.

“Who other, my dear brother Cornelius?” the man asked with a charming smile.

The other two pulled back their hoods, revealing a beautiful woman and a handsome man. They were most likely his bodyguards.

“Why are you here?” Cornelius asked.

“To stop you from making a mockery of our family, brother. Now then, Mister Illsyore was it?” he asked as he turned to look at us.

“Yes?” Illsy replied raising an eyebrow.

“I apologize for my brother's foolish accusations. Our mother dropped him on the head when he was a baby.” he said with a short bow of his head and a clear intent of mocking his brother.

“Brother! No matter what, how could you say something as ridiculous as that?!” Cornelius shouted in anger.

“Indeed. Mother dropped him multiple times... He was too fat and had the tendency to bounce back in her arms.” Julius was absolutely savage with him.

“Kuh! I'll remember this brother! Tobias! We're leaving!” with an angry step, he turned around and left.

The guards bowed to Julius and then followed his brother.

“Now then, Mister Illsyore, you are free to leave Polis. As compensation for the discomfort my brother had caused, I have made sure that the guards at the gates won't perceive any tax for you.” he said and then smiled.

“That's kind of you.” Illsy nodded.

“Yes. Now then, please excuse me, I have an idiotic brother to take care of.” he said and then left after Cornelius.

“A good day.” Illsy said and then looking back at me, he shrugged.

With this, the incident regarding the Marquess was settled, and for the first time without shedding a single drop of blood.

Julius Gaharian may have just saved his brother's life with this interruption. I thought as I looked towards the noble who was getting farther and farther away.

[Julius Gaharian's point of view]

Several days after my brother made a mockery of himself by wrongfully accusing a traveler of stealing his slaves, I received a letter from the capital. It was a Call to Arms notification, but while this in itself wasn't something to be worried about, the details about it sent chills down my spine.

The letter let me know that the Emperor was gathering his armies in order to subjugate a Dungeon Lord and his party of Supremes. This in itself was news that could frighten anyone, but they also had the names of these potential targets.

“Illsyore Deus, Nanya Deus, Tamara Deus, Shanteya Deus, Ayuseya Deus, Zoreya Alttoros, and Savannah Azura. The first is presumed to be the name of the Dungeon Lord and the others are his wives... Different species... Zoreya Alttoros is a confirmed Apostle of Melkuth, and Savannah Azura is the former Supreme who worked for the Emperor and is to be considered a Kill-On-Sight target.” I mumbled as I read the letter again.

Feeling weakness in my knees, I took a seat on my chair and looked out the window of my study.

Brother was thinking of conning this group of people? I'm glad I decided to stop him myself. If I didn't... then maybe there wouldn't be a Polis left to send troops to this Call to Arms. Even so... I thought and then looked back at the opened letter on top of my desk “Can the combined force of Paramanium defeat them?” I said.

[First Prince's point of view]

This happened on the very day my father, the Emperor of Paramanium Empire sent out a Call to Arms to mobilize our army and march to intercept Illsyore Deus.

As I was sitting in my study room reading through several reports, I felt a presence near me and placed the papers on my desk.

“Report.” I ordered.

“Illsyore Deus is... dangerous.” said one of the men I had sent as scouts.

Him and his friends weren't part of the military, they were of a different profession, Assassins of the Phantom Rage guild to be more exact. I had hired them as scouts because their skills were unmatched, and because the pay was appropriate, they didn't mind either.

What could I say? I did not mind using such people to do my dirty work. As the First Prince and future Emperor, it was in my duty and right to use any available resource I held in my possession in order to reach my goal. This was something I learned as a child from Savannah Azura when she became my teacher. Back then, I saw her as the most beautiful woman in the country, and maybe that was why my father decided she was too dangerous for me.

For everything she did for this Empire, he disgraced her and sold her off into slavery... But I had planned to buy her through the help of a good friend of mine: General Augustus Zeviore. Unfortunately, he told me that he failed to acquire her as the price reached some rather ridiculous values. It was more than what we could afford, but at the very least Duke Harbrind Vanova didn't get his slimy hands on her. That man didn't have the best intentions for her, but if I had won her, I would have used all of my resources to heal her. Even so, between sending General Zeviore in secret at that private auction and acquiring the money needed to purchase her, my moves were rather limited. If I transferred too many coins, I could have been caught. If father found out I purchased Savannah, he would have ordered her death. This way, at least I knew she didn't end up in that Duke's hands.

Yet, I had to scold General Zeveiore for forgetting to write down the name of her purchaser. What a terrible blunder he could have made, but well... age spared no one, and he was getting quite old.

“How dangerous?” I asked the man hidden in the shadows of my room.

“So far, we have confirmed that his group is filled with individuals who had reached Supreme status. We also managed to use a Dungeon Detection Stone on which the number 3348 was revealed. We presume that he may have some sort of ability to camouflage the true value of his Level.” he said.

“Hm... Do you really believe that?” I asked him.

“Yes. It's impossible for a Dungeon to reach such a level. Actually, I never heard of any Dungeon going past 1000.” he declared.

“Hm. I guess so... But just his party of Supremes can make him to be quite the threat if he were to bare his fangs against Paramanium.” I said and then thought Chances are my father and siblings already know this much, and maybe they even started to make a move behind my back. Should I consider this possibility as a chance to put myself closer to the crown? If they attack, should I join them? No... That would be the fool's mistake. If Savannah were here, she would have told me to wait for now and think of a political opening. This Illsyore could become a threat for Paramanium or an ally. I have to make him an ally if my father aims for an enemy.

“Anything else?” I asked.

“Yes. Illsyore Deus' been moving around the Empire in that strange contraption of his, but we determined their destination. It's Port Rico. He himself mentioned this to the locals on numerous occasions and it didn't appear to be a lie. Rather, for him this is an insignificant piece of information.” he said.

“Interesting. So, he's planning on heading towards Sorone next?” I asked.

“Yes, that's what we are assuming as well. But he's been buying a ridiculous number of slaves on his way there.” he pointed out.

“Slaves? What for?” I asked.

“We don't know, but he isn't treating them badly, and he even freed one of them. I believe her name was Savannah Azura, the female human who worked here as a teacher here at the Palace.” he said.

When he mentioned her name, I froze.

Savannah was bought by... him? I thought and squeezed my hands into fists.

This... I didn't expect this.

True, I did hope that she would be safe and someone good would buy her, then maybe I could buy her from him, but... but this was outside my expectations.

“That woman, Savannah, is she still under the effect of the cursed tattoo?” I asked.

“No. When we saw her, she had no tattoo as far as the gaps in her clothes revealed, and she was happily teaching the slave children. Actually, this Illsyore fellow has a weird way of treating slaves, he doesn't see them as tools but as men and women with equal rights as him. He's a weird fellow that one.” said the scout.

“I understand... Then... he must have removed them... This changes matters...” I said.

“What do you want us to do now, boss?” he asked.

“Hm... For now, there's no need to continue with this mission. It's too dangerous. However, I want you to bring me any incriminating files from Duke Harbrind Vanova office.” I ordered.

“Yes, but incriminating about what?” he asked.

“Anything. Bring me anything you can find, but make sure to replace it with fakes.” I said.

“Understood. We'll take our leave now, your Highness.” he said and then I felt their presence vanishing from my room.

Letting out a sigh, I looked down at the stack of documents on my table and began to think of what all of this could imply towards the future. How exactly would all of this benefit me or trouble me?

A few hours later, my little brother barged into my room without knocking and then declared with a smug look on his face “Brother! Father ordered a Call to Arms! Everyone is to send troops to capture the Dungeon Lord Illsyore and Kill Savannah Azura!”

“What?” I asked as if I didn't hear right.

So, my father chose this path? How foolish. I thought.

“You know brother? If you beg on your knees, maybe I will ask father to spare that silly woman you had a crush on?” he showed me a mocking smile.

Raising an eyebrow, I looked at him for a moment and then closed my eyes.

He thinks I'm a fool, doesn't he? Well, this is good... With a big ego as his, then I know how to manipulate him. I thought and then let out a sigh and got up.

Opening my eyes, I looked at him and then told “I have no feelings for that woman you speak of, brother. However...” I looked away and faked a cough “My health is a bit on the bad side lately. I don't wish to join this battle, but when you return would you offer me the honor of listening to your tales of victory?” I asked and then looked back at him.

My brother was showing me a smile so big and wide it reached all the way to his ears. It was creepy, and no doubt he was thinking that he had somehow 'won' against me.

“Of course, brother! I will tell you of my heroic tales if you ask nicely! Hahaha!” he laughed with his hands on his hips.

“That's kind of you, little brother.” I smiled.

“Hmph! I'm in a good mood now! I will see you after I return from this campaign! Make sure to prepare something nice for my victorious return!” he laughed as he left my room.

“Of course...” I said and as soon as he was gone, my smile vanished. “How foolish.” I said and let out a sigh.

Illsyore was surrounded by Supremes, including my teacher who was wonderful military strategist, but this last detail was unknown even to father. He would have needed to listen to her lessons in order to understand this.

With father moving so fast, then I had to act too while he was gone, but not against the Dungeon Lord who saved Savannah. No, I had to gain his trust not his anger.

No doubt this campaign will turn out to be a major failure. It's possible that more than half of our troops will be decimated by Illsyore. If it's a Call to Arms, then there will be Supremes who will participate in this mission as well. Considering how many they are, I believe father will use at least half of them. The others, he doesn't trust them that much, but maybe I can do something to gain them on my side? Hm... I thought and then looked to my left at the books aligned on my library. “If I use my 'scouts' properly, I can gain some information those guys might want.”

The main reason why father didn't trust them that much was a political one. They didn't agree with several of his decrees and ended up losing something. Besides this one, father chose to protect several nobles who angered these Supremes or wronged them in one way or another. Because of this, they didn't mind acting as guards for the Empire in case of an invasion, but they wouldn't participate directly in a battle.

One of them, if I remember right, had his family's land confiscated by a corrupt noble while he was out exploring a dungeon. Because father protected that noble, he made it clear that he would defend the Empire, but he would not accept any missions from the Emperor until he dealt with that noble... If I can find enough dirt on that guy, or destroy him, then I can gain the Supreme on my side. I thought.

Taking an empty piece of paper, I began to write a couple of letters. I needed to know who angered who. Then I needed to find out a way to demolish the factions that upheld my father's authority within the Empire as well as those who helped my siblings from the shadows. I wanted to either get them on my side or drive them into a neutral state. There was still no certainty as to whether or not causing their houses to fall was a good thing for me or not. If I irked too many beehives, I was bound to get stung at one point.

As for Savannah... my brother was right about her, I still loved her. Maybe it was the love of a foolish student towards his teacher, but so far, she was the only woman who made my heart skip a beat. If anything, I wanted to get on Illsyore's good side and doing so, maybe I could get another chance with her.

No, before I attempted something like that, I had to make sure my own faction was more powerful than father's or my brother's. If they suffered a terrible loss as a result of confronting the Dungeon Lord, then it was for the better. Then all I had to do was appease to him in some way or another. If I could get him on my side, then no one in the Paramanium Empire would be able to oppose me and marrying Savannah won't be a dream anymore!

I will make this happen even if I have to order several assassinations through the Phantom Rage... I thought as I finished writing the first letter.

It was addressed to one of the Supremes who suffered at the hand of a corrupt noble.

[Phantom Rage assassin's point of view]

“Hey, did you send word to the boss about that el'doraw?” I asked as I looked out the window for any followers.

We were currently staying at one of Phantom Rage's hideouts in Aura, the Capital of Paramanium Empire.

“Yeah...” he nodded.

“Hmph. I never expected to find the traitor here. I thought she died like six years ago or something?” I asked him as I walked away from the window and sat down on the chair.

This guy was my partner, and he was currently fiddling with his notes. He was in charge of all the brainy thingies. I was more of the muscles of our two men team.

“Yeah, me too, but the boss said not to presume she was dead. Something about her not being an Emperor anymore.” he said.

“You got that right, she's a freakin' Supreme now! How did she get like that anyway? Is there a trick? Maybe she got that strong because she slept with the Dungeon? Hm? Are there any female Dungeons?” I wondered as I scratched my chin.

It was a valid question in my opinion.

“You don't have luck with the brothel whores let alone a Dungeon!” he scoffed.

“Shut it!” I glared at him and stabbed my dagger in the table.

“Anyway, I've sent the report to the boss about Shanteya Dowesyl. All that's left now is to wait for them to move. If they order us anything we'll do it, until then, let's look for dirt on this guy Duke Harbrind Vanova.” he said and pointed at the name on his notes.

“Shouldn't be too hard. The guy's like a sack of trash that was left to spoil for a full year. He smells so bad even the Merions won't get near him!” I laughed.

“Then it should be an easy job, right?” he smirked.

“Yeah.” I nodded.