Steel and Mana

Chapter 37 – Royal Meeting

I did what I said I would do and woke up before the sun had a chance to peek above the horizon. After a quick shower, I put on the best dress I had, which was not made out of silk but still gave me the look of a noble. Or more like some kind of governor of a Spanish colony in the eighteenth century. To my surprise, my Father and Uncle were both up and ready, so after a brief breakfast, we stepped out of the mansion and prepared to board a carriage that would take us into the middle of the city.

That was when I heard it. A low, resounding echo of a horn, coming from afar, making my insides vibrate. Looking up, I felt my jaw slowly drop as I saw a giant, flying ship come from the west, heading straight to the inner circle. I couldn't see or hear anything else as I just watched it sail over us, getting bigger and bigger as it descended and made its landing.

From the outside, it looked like a ship from a pirate movie I liked to watch as a kid. The only difference is that it flew through the air, its giant sails billowing above, while its underbelly was surrounded by a faint blue hue. I recognized it... that was the hue of mana. I couldn't see the magic circles, which were probably operating within its body, but I knew what that light meant.

"We are lucky." My Uncle whispered, patting me on the back, making me flinch, returning to reality. "That's Justice."

"I guess that is the ship's name?" I asked, finally getting into the carriage as we began traveling forward.

"Yes."

"Father?" I turned towards him, "Did you ever see it before? I never read about it..."

"I saw it once." He nodded, letting out a nostalgic sigh, "But I was little. The Empire has five such ships, all of which are mobile military bases. The Justice, if I know it right, should be on the eastern front."

"What I gathered," Elliot explained to us, "the east reached an agreement of a 2-year cease-fire. The ship has been called back for resupply and maintenance. Well, that is the official story."

I knew that they wouldn't have any more information about it, not without ranks, so I slowly tuned their talking out. Instead, my eyes were drawn towards the inner city walls that were getting bigger and bigger. I saw as the sun finally rose high, illuminating the land, and I felt goosebumps growing all over my body just thinking about the ship's deep horn once again.

I had to reevaluate some things in my mind. I assumed the world was in a similar state of development in every corner of this Ishillia Empire. Evidently not. Some regions were left behind compared to others. I guess this happens when an empire focuses on gaining new territories instead of developing existing ones. Are they aiming to conquer the world? Sooner or later, they would hit a wall. Ignoring the growing problems and such profound differences within the same Empire would do that. With how things were developing on my end, there was a high chance that I would be that wall.

If that ever happens, I will need to get ready. I must develop measures against mages, a stronger army, and superior magic technology. If they have flying ships that they are happy to show to the public, there must be more hidden weapons, which are only seen on the battlefield. The fact that they even consider mortar to be a state secret and won't divulge it, holding architectural advancement as a weapon, was telling enough.

This way, they could determine which region grows to which size, easily keeping places below a certain level. Divide and conquer. They held the reins firmly and dictated how parts of the Empire grew. Which in turn tells me that our domain is deliberately kept as a 'barbarian' outback. I don't know how other territories are, but I can't go and travel the world. Time is of the essence, and I need to use it to the best of my abilities. From now on, I will have to look at the world as if it is much more advanced than my home and act accordingly.

"Stop!"

Turning towards the voice, I saw multiple heavily armored guards approaching the carriage. They were unlike the ones at the bridges, and I could see engraved magic circles on their pauldrons and on one of their shields. What for? I couldn't tell for sure, but they couldn't be witches and wizards. Maybe if a mage is nearby, they can boost their abilities? While I was thinking as to why they had them on their armor, the soldiers checked the carriage and our identities before letting us pass.

Passing through the 10-meter-tall gate, I realized the wall wasn't just as tall as a highrise building but also just as massive. It was at least 15 meters wide, and I could see tunnels leading deeper inside its inner structure. This thing wasn't simply a wall; it was a fortress. Coming out of the other end, the road was no longer made of cobblestone; it was flat, smooth like marble. The houses were three stories tall at maximum, but all of them were their own villas, luxuriously decorated with statues and masterfully crafted dioramas.

"Anyone living here is a decision-maker in the Empire." Father whispered to me, seeing me scan the buildings we were passing by, having family names written on their front gates with gold. "You don't need to envy their homes."

"I do not." I answered with a smile, "There are tasteful decorations, and then there is wasteful extravaganza. This is the latter. Buildings should be pleasing to look at and not cluttered with nonsense. There is a thing called sensory overload, when your eyes don't know what to look at, losing its focus."

"You have interesting ideas." Elliot chuckled, but soon, his smile was gone, replaced with the nervousness he was trying to hide.

I saw the same thing in my Father for the first time, but I couldn't fault him. From what they told me, whatever the Empress wished for was granted. So, who knows what she will think about our little story. But this also meant we had already won if we could persuade her.

Arriving at the palace, it had its own courtyards, and yes, multiple of them. We parked at the front entrance, and after getting out of our carriage, a butler-like man, accompanied by more guards, was waiting for us. This time, we bowed and greeted him respectfully; even though he was not a noble, the fact he served the royal family made him their extension. Disrespecting him was the same as doing to the Empress.

"The items had been investigated, and the supporting evidence looked through. The services of your regions are recorded, and the audience with the Empress will be granted shortly. Please follow me."

While speaking, he only looked at us once; most of the time, his eyes were looking past our faces or over our heads, continuing to ignore us in an arrogant, posh way. Of course, my thoughts remained hidden, making sure my face wouldn't betray me as we followed the man into the palace.

The first room reminded me of a museum with giant paintings on the walls and shiny, armored statues decorating the floor. We weren't there for long as we were quickly led through multiple chambers into the throne room. We were the first to come and stop before the golden throne that was elevated from the ground by four rounds of concentric steps.

We were silent, just like the guards who stood three steps behind us. They became the identical statues I had seen before, making me wonder if they were indeed that or if they were also guards back there. If yes, then they blended in quite nicely. To not get bored quick, I let my eyes continue scanning the room as we made to wait for almost an hour. We couldn't step away, sit down, or even talk; we just stood there, silent, right until I heard a door open somewhere and heavy footsteps coming our way, followed by a pair of much sharper clankings. They were clearly high heels hitting the marble floor, but as per the order, I couldn't look up at her.

But I could look at the floor and her legs. Without moving my head, my eyes darted towards my right, and I caught the bottom of her feet, right up to her ankle. She was wearing black high-heeled shoes with golden straps, and if the floors had been a bit more polished, I may have seen much more than that. I 'watched' as she walked up to her throne, sitting down, shuffling around a little before speaking.

"I was informed of your discovery."

Oh... her voice was a bit deeper than I expected. It was mature, with a hint of coldness accompanying it, and it made me think of Sasha. She was the complete opposite of her, going by the feeling alone, but there was an underlying similarity. She has to be a witch. I had no other explanation for why I felt such a strong urge to think about Sasha when hearing the Empress's voice. Or was I missing her this much? That was also true...

"Which one of you is Elliot?"

"It is me, Your Highness!"

I could hear the fear within my Uncle's voice as he stepped forward, keeping in a bow, answering her questions, retelling the story once again. After that, it was my Father's turn to do the same, and I was expecting my name to be called, but that didn't happen.

"The return of the resources was a satisfactory show of your loyalty. It is worthy of being rewarded. First, you will return with my decree! Elliot, you will present your brother's head and everyone working with him to me within two months! Then you will take over as the new baron and ensure this thievery never happens again!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

"Second, Kalash!"

"Yes!" Father saluted, stepping forward, keeping his head bowed.

"I expected nothing less from one of my guarding beasts. Good job; your reward will be a year's worth of tithes. You won't have to pay it this year."

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

"Now..." She continued, not even acknowledging their thanks at all, her voice remaining calm and somewhat bored throughout the conversation. "The other point you presented to me. Leon, step forth and look at me!" Finally... I was waiting for this.

When I was allowed to look up, I was surprised as the Empress was young-looking, maybe in her mid-twenties? She wore a black attire that was more revealing than anything I saw in the city. The best I could describe it was that it was like some kind of modern, black evening dress with deep cutouts that let her sides and legs show, especially the latter, as she crossed one over the other.

Moving my eyes further up, without pausing, I could scan her slim figure and relatively small breasts, quickly jumping over them to not offend her, settling on observing her face. She was beautiful. In my time, she would be a top model with her deep, ruby-red eyes and long, black hair falling onto her bare shoulders. Even though her eyes were like fire, she looked at me with cold indifference, not even considering me worth talking to. At least, that is how I was feeling.

"Disgusting."

Well... Thanks. I did not expect her to say that straight to my face. Was I in trouble?

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