Gi walked through the streets of Harlond. Luke's soldiers served as an honor guard by appearances, but Luke kept a watchful eye on both he and Chum as though they would start murdering the populace if given the chance.

And the populace was around.

Perhaps, it was due to the nature of the siege, but many of the citizens seemed unoccupied with nothing better to do than to gawk at the strangers in their midst. Gi subtly released his aura in hopes that it might grant them a better perspective on him, but he needn't have bothered.

They were frankly more interested in King Rellington and Elder Altman than the two monsters in their midst.

"Look at his robe, that's the King of the Thousand Islands. I'm telling you-"

"Elder Altman! Praise Hyshtel!"

"That's Elder Altman? How do you know?"

"There's a portrait of him in the Cathedral near the castle."

"What are they doing with those monsters, ya think?"

"Bah, nobles and their pets probably..."

"I've never met a noble that had an ounce of sense."

"Shhh! They'll hear you!"

The sounds of the crowd washed over Gi and his party, but the human members seemed unaffected. For them, this was just part of the roles they'd taken in leadership. It was a stark reminder that Gi was a King in name only.

While Harlond wasn't as big as some of the cities he'd visited as Richard, it was still quite huge and it took them a long time to make their way to the steps that led up to the castle.

Four guards with long spears guarded either side of the steps proper. Standing at the top was a man dressed in relatively simple clothes with a rapier at his waist. There were no golden threads on either his forest green tunic nor his chestnut breeches.

Only Gi's Soul Senses told him there was anything special about them at all as they had the slightest glow of enchantment.

The man's hair was completely shaved, but he did sport a grey beard that was full and thick. It made him look like a cross between a wizened grandfather and the leader of a motorcycle gang.

"Greetings," the man said, "and welcome to Harlond! I apologize for the lack of fanfare at the arrival of such esteemed guests, but the times are troubling."

"That they are," Elder Altman said, "Well met, General."

Gi had already had his suspicions but that cinched it. This man was General "Steel Arm" Rowan. This man was a peer to King Rellington when it came to power. Though he and Galvina both used a rapier, she would be ashamed to admit it if she ever witnessed this man's skills.

The gods had made sure Gi was familiar with everyone at this man's power and above.

"Please, let us head to the war room while we wait for the Emperor's audience."

"Are you sure that's wise, sir?" Luke asked. Cedrick, who'd been trailing towards the back of the procession, stepped forward at that.

"Sir, I also need to provide you my full report."

The General looked irritated like a dog had sat in his favorite chair and they were too cute to move them. "Luke, it's a siege. I'm confident even the demons know our strategy is to sit and wait. Our potential allies won't find any information there."

"And, Cedrick," he continued, "As you can see, I have no intention of violence. Would your report drastically change how we should approach relations in this instance?"

"No sir," Cedrick said glumly.

"Good. The two of you are dismissed. I will debrief you later after you've had time to eat and rest."

The two of them bowed and then left to follow his orders. The rest of Luke and Cedrick's companies left with them, leaving only the castle guards around. Rowan sighed and looked over to Elder Altman.

"Kids these days. No patience at all."

"The vigor of youth is admirable, but it is the wisdom of the old that is needed to guide."

"Ain't that right," Rowan agreed. "Now please follow me."

They made their way further into the castle. It was made of heavy grey blocks that Gi doubted were from this region, considering how forested it was. His guess would be a quarry near Stonereach considering the similarities in materials.

Where Stonereach was a singular bastion, Harlond was a massive oblong tower with several smaller flanking towers in a more traditional cylinder shape.

The war room was only up a few floors from the base of the castle, just enough to see over its walls into the rest of the city. The demons' army was still blocked by the outer walls so all it did was give Gi a better view of the city.

A map of Veridia and a larger one made of Harlond with its surroundings lay across a long rectangular table. While Gi looked out of the window, the rest of their party found seats.

"Can I offer you something to drink? I've got water and whiskey."

Gi imagined that there was no specific reason that he couldn't drink regular water, but all the monsters in Igna at least had drank salt water directly so he declined.

No one took him up on the refreshment so the General sat down and let out a strange amalgamation of a grunt and a groan as though his body protested the simple movement. It was strange though as Gi knew with his Vitality that he shouldn't have any such issues.

"I'm not one to beat around the bush so let's cut to the chase. Cedrick tells me you're our allies. I've got reports saying you broke the blockade on Stonereach and eliminated the company that was harassing Thornridge. Is being allies your intention?"

The General looked to the humans first, but the King and the Elder looked to Gi so he followed suit.

"I don't think we've been officially acquainted but my name is Gi. My goal in this world is to stop the demon empire from causing harm and to do so with whatever help we can muster."

"In this world is a very specific way to phrase that."

"I don't want to hide my intentions from you, General Rowan. I do have an ulterior motive from this."

"I think if you state it outright then it's just a motive."

"A motive then." Gi left the window and approached where the rest of them were sitting. "I died at the start of the Monster Surge. On the other side, I met Matar and a whole host of other gods that are fighting a battle against a corruption in many more worlds than just this. My soul has a unique resistance to this corruption and the gods need my help to end the threat."

Elder Altman did not look pleased with Gi's honesty. On the other hand, the King seemed placid and both Ellen and Chum just looked bored.

"If they need you, then why are you here? I can send you back right now if that's all you need." The General tapped his rapier, clearly indicating Gi's death, but it wasn't a threat.

Gi shook his head. "It's not that simple. My existence can resist it, but it is not enough. A flame feeds on the air, but you can merely blow on a match to put it out. That same breath on a torch however..."

"So currently you're a babe in swaddling clothes and the gods need a big scary monster. There's some logic to what you say, but I don't see the 'ulterior' motive that impacts us."

Elder Altman had a pained look on his face. Perhaps, he really did want to help the gods even if his god wasn't present - or maybe he just thought what Gi was about to admit was suicide.

Gi said it anyways.

"Humans advance through cultivation. Monsters advance by stages of slaughter and domination. For both, the culmination of that advancement is godhood, but the criteria for that final stage for us is to hold dominion over the world. It's called the God Stage."

Rowan whistled. "Hyshtel's h-," he glanced over at Elder Altman and then ended his sentence with, "damn."

"I know it's a lot to ask-"

"No shit, it's a lot to ask. 'Please sir, can I have your empire?'" Rowan scowled. The General said the words mockingly, but considering the bomb that Gi had just dropped, he was very calm about it.

He pulled over the whiskey that he'd been offering them earlier and poured himself a glass.

"First of all," he started, before taking a swig. "Don't you dare tell the Emperor that. I appreciate your desire to talk straight, but he'd probably take that as a declaration of war."

"I understand-" He cut him off again.

"And second of all, your rule seems like a very light hand if King Rellington here has agreed to it. Hystel knows that we've been trying to pull the Thousand Islands into the fold for a long time now."

He drained the glass and poured himself another. He snatched it up and leaned towards Gi to look him square in the eye.

"What I want to know is if the Emperor flat out refuses, what are you going to do then? The fate of worlds thing sounds awfully serious."

He downed that glass in one go and then poured a third. He knew the man's Vitality was strong so he suspected it would take that whole bottle before he even had the wisp of a buzz, but his question pulled Gi up short.

What would he do if diplomacy failed?

"I'm... not sure. Violence is a tool, but one ill suited for most endeavors. Yet if that is the only tool left to me, should I use it? If you asked me, I would say no, but... if I don't ascend, everyone in this world will be dead or changed regardless. So would violence now not be the lesser of two evils?"

"Is that your answer?"

"No. I was just entertaining your thought process. I will use all of my power to ensure diplomacy does not fail."

Silence filled the room. Chum, for his part, could only understand Gi's side of the conversation. Other than Ellen, the humans seemed tense. Rowan downed his third glass before pouring a fourth and a fifth.

Then General Rowan started to laugh. It was a deep belly laugh that had him holding his glass, threatening to shatter it in his grip.

Gi simply waited.

"I decided I like you, Monster King," General Rowan finally said as his laughter subsided. "You can't politic for shit, but to me, that's a compliment. Hell, I even think I believe you. Is that forest on top of the plateau part of your corruption?"

Gi didn't think he'd classify it as his corruption, but... "Yes, it is."

"Hoo boy. I can see the gods' concerns then. None of our scouts came back from there except one and... let's just say they'd have been better off not coming back at all."

"Does that mean you'll help us?"

"Maybe. I've got one more question. Let's say the Emperor drops the knee today. What happens?"

"Nothing. We work together to rid the world of the demons and as soon as the Demon Emperor and his heirs are dead, I pass the God Stage and ascend."

General Rowan downed his now fifth glass and smacked his lips loudly before putting the glass back down on the table. "All right, I might be better at it than you, but I hate politicking too so let's shoot straight."

"Please."

"Veridia needs help. You ending the blockade helped a lot, but I can't imagine that the demons are going to sit idly by. If they can take the Midnight Grove from the elves, they will easily be able to surround us again and stop food from getting in. You take care of that and I'll try to find some way to convince the Emperor, deal?"

He held out his hand and Gi gripped the man's forearm and they shook. "Deal, but honestly, I must ask why you're willing to help us?"

"I've been a general a long time and as the years wane on, you start to read between the lines. Frosthelm is gone. The notoriously independent Thousand Island Kingdom has already partied up with you and a strange corruption has split our kingdom in two. Something is going on.

"If we didn't have the demons banging on our front door and torching thousand year old forests, I'd probably play it more cautiously, but it's the time to be daring."

Elder Altman spoke up for the first time. "I notice you're not promising anything until we've rescued your flank."

General Rowan grinned like a kid who was found with his hand in the cookie jar. "I said I didn't like politicking. I didn't say I was as bad at it as this fool."

He motioned to Gi and laughed. Gi raised an eyebrow at the man and he quickly clarified.

"Sorry, just a joke. My word is good. These two can vouch for me."

King Rellington sighed. "He's always dealt with us honorably and fairly. For that, I can vouch at least. I won't comment on his sense of humor..."

That just made the General laugh again. "See? And I'm not just being selfish, I need some time to figure out how to broach it with the Emperor. He's still as strong as his prime, but... his memory's not quite there. That makes it very difficult to persuade him without tricking him which I refuse to do."

The General glared at each of them as though daring them to suggest deceit as the best solution. None of them did, but Gi was brought up short.

The gods had been preparing him for this war. Showing him all the major players and their abilties, but not one of them mentioned the Emperor's memory. If it was important enough for the General to mention it, then it was important enough for them to.

Did they somehow not know? Or did they omit it for some reason?

What else had they not told him?