Galeon the Third puffed his cigarette and looked out over the fields. He was located on a hilltop with a sweeping view of his surroundings. It was a beautiful summery field with tiny yellow flowers extending all the way out to the horizon.

He was out of place here but he didn't want to leave. He wanted to become somewhat accustomed to this place. He'd promised certain people that he would try and relax. No work...except for one meeting. That's it. No more work after that.

He was encased in a small glass palace. It was crafted by the faeries of Yun. It was worth a fortune he was sure.

He leaned back in his chair, suppressed a cough, and took in a deep puff. A tiny red dot appeared on the horizon. It raced through the field and lit afield everything in its path. A scorching muddy path was left behind in its wake.

It was a red carriage being pulled by weird six-legged flaming bison. The amount of heat rolling off them distorted the air around them. What did they eat? Lava rocks or something?

Out of the carriage, a beautiful woman stepped out. She had a war helmet on her head, it had two circular holes for her horns. Her skin was pink in color but her attire was formal. She had a beautiful tweed suit with a waistcoat. She looked like a businesswoman. Her feet were adorned with high heels.

Galeon's breath was taken away for a second. He grabbed a little vial he'd prepared for this very occasion. He downed it, it was a suppressor formed by an Incubus. It just eliminated his desire for her. He still thought that she was beautiful but it was separate from his other machinations.

He disposed of the little bottle right away. It wouldn't do to have her see it. His servant opened the door for her. It was an actual ghost. He had a summoning item for it. It was the best birthday gift he'd ever gotten. He hadn't wiped his own butt in years.

She walked into the room with confidence. Galeon shook her hand and leaned back in his chair. "Ghosty, can you get us some drinks?"

"Ghosty?" Her voice had a soft timber. It was nice.

"The ghost was a birthday gift. I've been calling it that since it was eight." He had no problem with being a little bit vulnerable. It endeared people to him.

Some lemonade, various juices made out of apples, mangoes, twine, fig, elven ger's were placed on the table. She poured some Ger for herself and Galeon followed suit.

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"I didn't expect to meet you out here" She waved her hand at the field.

"I never expected it either. I'm on mandatory vacation."

"On whose order's?" She smiled. Her teeth were canine and straighter than an arrow.

"My family."

"So, let's get down to it."

"I'm negotiating a deal with this Medallion. He calls himself a Lord. There is great respect for him in the undead community."

"Oh, Ekame. Do you understand what you're saying?" Ekame was the God of Flaming Demons and Hell-Wings.

"I know exactly what I'm saying. Listen to me, the undead are here to stay. I have no particular love for the undead or the Jun men. The initial contract is worth, 3 million gold plates."

"3 million in exchange for what?"

"A single shipment of Aran Swords. Three thousand fireball scrolls. Something simple to start with."

She laughed at that, "None of this is simple. Giving them anything means that our carriage is tied to theirs. You can't walk back from things like these and I don't want anything to do with this, Galeon."

"Who said that we have to tie our buggy to any carriage at all? I sell to the Kingdom, you sell to Medallion."

She rubbed her fingers on the table. She was thinking about this and what he wanted from her. "Why don't you come out and say it already?"

"I want you to be the frontman, woman, same thing."

"Why would I do that? I have no intention of tying my carriage with theirs."

He had to address this carriage business first. "That's just optics. In due time you'll be your own carriage. Especially, if you have access to our Aran gems. I know a little something about your feuds too. Be the middle-man, take a cut and we give you priority on the sale of our weapons."

"In exchange, you put me and my men at risk. You're the one who gets to conduct some business with us, the undead and the Jun men. All the while, you're on the good side of the Kingdom. Do you really think the Kingdom will win?"

"I don't care who wins. Oh, yes. One last thing, I want you to reward us with a few mines when you ascend your throne or whatever it is you call it over there." She'd already agreed in his mind.

A blood-thirsty grin formed on her face. "What's stopping me from just killing you and taking over everything?"

Galeon put out the cigarette butt and lit up another one. He kept all of them in a tiny gold cigarette case. It was carved with a nymph's image and was cool. Sometimes the nymph would walk out of it and disappear. He had no idea where it went.

"Both of us know you're smart enough to know that you won't do so. Shall we put this into writing?"

Galeon had a little file prepared beforehand. He placed a glass container with a tiny slime in it. Atara, the Demon woman, raised her brow at the little slime box.

Galeon had researched their culture and customs. Atara read over the documents for a few minutes and then placed her thumb in the slime box and rubbed it down at the bottom leaving a fresh fingerprint. Galeon signed his but also placed a thumbprint on it.

Demon-kin weren't keen on using their names. It was a bad omen in their culture. He found it quite preposterous but it didn't stop him from taking care of work.

There were two identical copies. He gave one to Atara.

He reached out his hand to indicate the meeting was over. She grasped his hand and pulled him out of his chair.

This wasn't a turn he'd expected.