Olive’s Perspective

Olive stumbled into the wall as the entire palace heaved from the most recent groundquake.

All of Madra shook and rumbled during shattering, the most destructive of the seasons. Through a nearby window, she observed a massive plume of dust shoot into the sky as a building in the capital collapsed.

“What fool builds that high without the power to stabilize it? Will they ever learn?”

She was furious. That was the third collapse in the last week. Watching her city crumble around her, hearing the screams of people caught under the rubble, how could she feel anything other than outrage?

The shaking ceased so she continued down the long winding corridors of the palace toward a meeting room. Her conference this morning was a perfect opportunity to speak with her father. They needed more strict guidelines for new constructions within city limits.

Arriving at the designated room she found all the seats empty save for one. A Colonel sat with a straight back, eyes glued to the wall in front of him. The poor man was already sweating profusely.

With the grace expected of her status, Olive took her own seat. She hid her amusement at the Colonel’s nervousness while she examined the man more closely.

He was short, with close-cropped hair, and a well-trimmed goatee. The mana roiling about inside the man reflected his outward disposition. She noted that he was only Tier five, which explained his trepidation at meeting her father.

General Taoi must have high hopes for the Colonel. Forcing a meeting between an emperor and a Tier five is nothing more than inducing unnecessary terror. Unless the General wants to use this as a chance to teach a valuable lesson.

The others joined them after only a few minutes, Dominus and three of his administrative aides. He was as impressive as always, the aura that washed over the room at his approach made it hard to breathe.

Olive watched while he channeled an inconceivable amount of mana into the foundations of the palace. Keeping the entire structure safe during shattering was something only an emperor could achieve. Perhaps a Tier nine or ten could keep it steady for a while, but not an entire season.

As he entered the room, both Olive and the Colonel rose from their seats and then knelt in supplication.

“Your Majesty,” Olive spoke respectfully.

She could see the Colonel out of the corner of her eye as he tried to speak. His mouth opened and closed several times in rapid succession.

He looks like a fish! Olive thought to herself, admirably holding in her laughter.

Only a few seconds passed before she saw the change. It happened in his mana first, a wave swept through him and the wild undulations of the energy calmed.

With a deep breath, the man practically shouted, “Your Majesty!”

With the formalities complete, Dominus took his seat at the head of the table. The aides spread out to their seats while Olive returned to her own. The Colonel stood, holding his salute, prepared to make his report.

Olive noted the pleased smile on her father's face. It was unlikely anyone else could tell the difference with his stony expressions all being so similar.

The moment everyone was settled the Colonel spoke, this time more relaxed.

Impressive resilience, no wonder General Taoi sent him.

“Your Majesty, Colonel Secht with the final spawning casualty and repairs.”

“I read Taoi’s dispatch with the tallies, you may cover the high points for my staff and any additional details the General added since his communique. Proceed, Colonel Secht.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” He took a few moments to collect his thoughts before continuing.

“Total casualties for the Central Finlest Metropole are significantly below last year's spawning, at only ninety-seven thousand. Estimates for the other metropoles are still coming in, the General believes this year's death toll should not exceed four hundred thousand for the entirety of the empire.”

Everyone in the room, except Dominus, was shocked by the numbers. One million was the expected annual birth rate, had deaths exceeded that number, it would have meant dire consequences for the long-term health of the economy.

With densoon typically claiming a tenth of all new births and spawning, claiming an average of eight hundred thousand, that left a slim annual population growth. The numbers for this year were staggering. A population excess of four hundred thousand was unheard of.

The Colonel only paused for a few seconds to let the good news settle before continuing.

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“No cities or villages were overrun this year, however, three townships were completely destroyed by the beast waves. Operations by the fifth and seventh engineer brigades have already restored two of the locations. Migration efforts will begin by the next moon, under the purview of Major General Markhus.”

Dominus’s usual stony expression turned confused at Secht’s words. Olive was also surprised.

“How were there no losses of villages? That is highly unusual Colonel Secht. Did Taio share his insights into this information with you?”

“Yes, Your Majesty, he did. Taking into account each emperor's individual efforts to protect large swaths of their lands. The reduced casualties can only be explained by an unlikely and highly unusual series of events.

“During stormer, the Graymin suffered massive casualties from the entity known as, the Fireling. I’m sure you have heard from numerous reports, this creature was spotted multiple times across the entirety of the northern border.

"With the casualties they suffered, the Graymin were forced to withhold significant portions of their own forces to deal with the spawning in their territory. General Taio had foreseen this eventuality and withdrew an additional sixty percent of the imperial army to reposition among the northern borders of the metropoles.

"With thier flanks protected, the usual army detachments were in a perfect position to range further southeast. Thus supporting the emperors' efforts defending their populations.

"Additionally, we received numerous reports of the Fireling defending individual villages all across the Southlands.

"Either by luck or some unknown method of detecting beast waves in advance, the Fireling defended no less than forty villages from what would usually result in complete annihilation.

"That concludes my report, Your Majesty," the Colonel saluted once more, then held his perfectly crisp position as he waited to be excused.

Dominus turned an annoyed glare toward Olive. The conversation they had hashed out multiple times over the last five seasons played out across his features.

Olive digested the new information and saw an opportunity to make a positive impact. Before anyone else could come up with the idea she spoke up.

"Your Majesty. I believe we can take advantage of the coming population boom. There are several locations along the southwest shores of the Muranth that are ripe for exploitation.

"If we provide a strong financial incentive for new parents who choose to migrate, we could see an influx of goods within a few seasons.”

“How do you plan to provide an incentive, with the already thin-stretched budget, Oliviala? Also, how do you propose we correct the logistical challenge of bringing goods in from that distance? The southeastern roads are hardly known for their quality.”

“If we triple the Imperial tithe for those migrants, we would provide sufficient incentives without affecting the budget. This would also increase military applicants upon their maturity.

“As for the roads, I believe Feylon has become a hub for trade as of late. We could send the fifth and seventh through Feylon on their way to create the new villages. They can work with the existing population to correct the routing infrastructure with little expense or wasted time.”

Dominus smiled at seeing his daughter take such initiative, especially since she was making salient points. She even kept in mind the needs of the empire as a whole. He also understood that her maneuverings went far below the surface level of this particular discussion.

“Very well, daughter. Solve the issues of additional rations for the two brigades. Strike a balance between emigrants and immigrants regarding defenses and skilled labor. Lastly, find a source of raw materials suitable for the proposed road expansion.

“If you can do all that without impacting the budget, I will allow you to continue sheltering the boy.”

The look of resolute determination that crossed her face was exactly what Dominus wanted to see. His smug smile let her know that she was still ten years too early to outmaneuver him.

“Thank you, Father.” Her expression, full of resolve, was quickly replaced by one of pure joy. She would get to see him soon. Her spies in Feylon had already informed her that he would be coming to the Cruex Academy next season.

She would be ready for him.

As Olive got up to leave the room, Dominus played his final trap card.

“I took the liberty of inviting Prince Ahilee to accompany you to the garden, he should be waiting for you outside. Do enjoy yourself, my child. He has even increased his proposed dowry to two thousand platinum. That would more than pay for your proposed expansion project.”

Dominus shrugged while speaking as if he didn’t care either way. But they both knew his position on the matter was far from ambivalent.

“Thank you for informing me, my dear sweet father. I’ll be sure to give him your regards.”

Olive practically danced out of the conference room, the brilliant smile that decorated her beautiful face enough to freeze the heart of any man.

As expected, Prince Ahilee was standing outside the room when she left. His heart rate spiked as he took in the alluring princess with her perfect teeth on full display. He swept a deep bow, expertly choreographed to present his rich attire to any onlookers lucky enough to observe the handsome boy.

Olive approached him with her unwavering smile. She stopped a meter short of the prince and spoke in a sweet voice that sounded of liquid honey.

“Defend yourself, scum.”

The unfortunate princeling had only a moment to understand what was happening. Not nearly enough time for his brain to change gears before the kick landed squarely between his legs.

The force of the blow was enough to send him through the air nearly hitting his head on the high ceiling.

As he landed, she stood imperiously over his fallen, fetal form.

In a voice now dripping with the promise of pain far beyond his wildest nightmares, she spoke.

“How dare you try to buy me. As if I am some cheap courtesan! If you wish to hold my hand, you must first best me in battle!”

With a final glare over her shoulder at her father, Olive stormed down the passageway.

Dominus looked at the back of his retreating daughter with a fond smile. Just like her mother, he thought to himself before teleporting his aides and himself to their next meeting.

A certain Colonel left forgotten in the conference room, still held his perfect salute. While he agonized over leaving without being dismissed, a fallen prince moaned on the floor nearby.

Both of them now fully understood the gossip surrounding the princess was no fabrication. She truly deserved the moniker bestowed upon her by numerous broken hearts.

The Nutcracker Princess.