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Leo
Leo wore a deadpan expression when he closed the book on selaria, after skimming through it at four times the speed of the last one. The book was almost entirely a propaganda piece, with very little factual information and heavily biased viewpoints.
‘The fuck did I expect…’ He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
There were very few key points that were worthy of note, but one stuck out like a sore thumb.
[ The crown depends entirely on the grace of the nobility for their claim to the throne……… ]
‘Isn't that supposed to be the other way around? That makes It sound like the royalty are just figureheads…’
He was worried how he was going to go about restructuring the government, but if the core was already hollow, then his real challenge lies with removing the nobility. Depending on how poorly the royals themselves are treated by the nobles, it might be easy for him to convince them to implement laws in exchange for booting the nobles and increasing their authority over the kingdom.
With a furrowed brow he turned to Allis, realizing that she would probably know way more than the book. “What can you tell me about the current royalty? Most of this book seems like one big stroke to the nobility's ego, eh, no offence.”
Allis groaned, and the scales on her face scrunched up in a bit of strain. “None taken in the slightest. I hated having to memorize the damn thing. As for royalty, they technically rule the kingdom, however the real power is held by the nobility. They own all the land, wealth and resources, plus they have academy backing.” She finished while aimlessly tracing a claw-like nail across his chest.
“So what's the point in even having a crown, you're pretty much an oligarchy.” He didn't see much of a point in even having a monarchy then.
“The reason is to project unity and have a centralized army. If a kingdom is seen as divided, then they will succumb to constant open conflict with each other. Much cleaner to do backroom politics and assassination attempts than it is for every noble to be fighting each other with their own private army.” Allis explained as her tail coiled loosely around one of his legs.
Leo pinched the bridge of his nose and let out an irritated groan. “So is every kingdom's ruler just a figurehead?”
“Most of them to an extent. I know that the dwarves, elves, tieflings, and beast clans are structured differently, while the dryads are more of a territory.”
‘That… Wait...’ Leo's thought was cut short by a long unanswered question. “How many races and kingdoms are there?”
Allis contemplated the question for a moment before answering. “When it comes to races, I'd guess around a hundred. I've studied the general anatomy of nearly all of them, but there are quite a few sub races that aren't entirely documented, yet they all are similar enough physically that it doesn't matter. That is actually why you stood out to me when we met, you had too many visual relations to so many other races. As for established kingdoms, it was fifty two when I last checked, but that was when I was still in the academy.”
Leo's composure dropped as he processed the information. ‘Okay… Operation culture victory just entered inferno difficulty… She said established kingdoms, that means there could also be a few dozen smaller ones in constant turmoil. Fuck me this is going to take some time… And around a hundred races?! I'm guessing that number includes all the minor races as well, ones without large territories. That's still just a fucking ridiculous number. It is kind of convenient though, since no one too knowledgeable will bat an eye when I pass myself off as one. The fucked ratio still draws attention, but that's for the wrong reasons…’
He turned his head back to his cool clingy companion. “What's the number between major and minor races?”
“About thirty major and the rest are minor, the number changes every few decades though.” She clarified.
“Every few decades? Do new races just pop out of nowhere, or are races just elevated back and forth?” He didn't quite believe how often it changed.
“Well, the gods like to add a few every time a catastrophic event wipes out most of the world's population. Though any race that was established before said cataclysm usually has enough resources left over to restart. The dwarves and elves are some of the oldest, said to have come into being around the first or second era. And while the dragons are just as old, they are considered a minor race, since they have a low population and don't bother with expansion.” She explained while her hand played with his short dark brown hair.
‘The gods just pop life into existence on a whim? That sounds ridicul-… Right, magic...’
The exhausted human shifted back into the bed. “Since I've gotten through all four books, I am pretty much done with everything until Elaria gets back with those supplies. So I'm gonna take a nap while we wait.” Before he got too comfortable, he noticed Allis shift uncomfortably and hug tighter to his arm.
Leo glanced at her with a raised eyebrow, because she looked like she wanted to ask something. “Uh, Allis? What's up?” He asked with a bit of caution.
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She flustered a little. “I know that you're too exhausted to do anything lively… But could you cast that spell you used with your hands last night…?”
He snorted and couldn't suppress the sly smile that stretched across his face. “Sure, and I might have to teach you to cast it your...self…” He trailed off as an Idea came to him.
“Leo?” She asked curiously, since he seemed to go into a momentary daze, but it was soon replaced with a wide and greedy grin spreading across his face.
“I think I just came up with a way to make a lot of money.”
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Elaria
Elaria and Glia were heading back to the Inn after getting some supplies for Leo's projects, some iron plates, wood planks, and a blank journal. Elaria spent almost all the coin she had on the purchases, but Leo would probably make it back many times over.
“So what's the plan after he buys out your service?” Glia casually asked.
“I don't really kn- Wait how did you know?!” Elaria's eyes went wide, and she almost tripped at the question.
Glia gave her an exasperated look, her tail coiling forward for her to absentmindedly pick at the scales. “Elaria, I'm not an idiot. He's basically on par with an arch mage, which means even though he is broke now, he might as well be walking around with a sign that says soon to be rich. And I don't think he wants to have you leaving his side any time soon.”
“I mean, he doesn't have to pay.” Elaria said, her voice a bit distant.
Glia stopped walking, pulled her back by her shoulders, and looked her in the eyes. “Elaria, I'm going to tell you this as a friend. You let the guard hold you back from him and I'll personally slap you upside the head every chance I get.” She smacked her upside the head.
“Ow!”
The blunt woman grinned. “Like that.”
They started walking again as Elaria rubbed the side of her head with an irritated pout. “I just said he didn't have to, like hell if I'm letting anything hold me back from being with him.”
Glia chuckled and laced her fingers behind her head. “Yeah well, remember me when you end up needing guards for your manor, then I get to watch rich people's grass grow.”
“You know, if he makes enough I could ask him to pay for your service as well.” If Leo did make as much coin as she thought he would, then it would only be a few days of work for her close friend to join her.
Her dark scaled companion shook her head. “Nah, as much as I hate guarding the town's lawn, it's peaceful and pays. And no offence, but Leo's situation screams danger. So as much as I would love to take turns with the dragon, I'll stay where I am until you plant some solid roots.”
Elaria nodded understandably. “That's fair, we did take this posting for that reason, but I'd be damned if I let such a perfect guy slip through my claws.” She finished with her head tilted up, looking forward to her future for the first time in a long time.
A sly smile crossed Glia's face. “Oh I bet, just make sure you don't grip too tightly. You'd hate to damage the goo- Ow!” She was cut off by Elaria smacking her upside the head.
Elaria stifled a laugh. “You ass.”
They both started laughing while they entered the Inn and headed for her room.
“So he's in bed being cared for by the healer?” Glia cautiously asked.
“Yeah, her name's Allis, and try to be nice. She might have been a royal bitch, but she has quite the story, and wants to be…better...” She trailed off, freezing in her tracks after taking a few steps into the room.
Glia stepped around her. “I'll believe it when I seeee……it.” Her eyes went wide as they fixated on the scene before them.
Allis was sprawled out in the bed, her body a little limp while wearing a drunk expression of pure bliss. Leo was positioned next to her hips, while he held a small cloth that was buzzing and covered in runes.
His eyes bounced between the two of them. “Uuhhh, welcome back Elaria... And hi Glia… What's up?”
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Leo
After Leo gave a slightly embarrassing explanation regarding his new invention, one of which Glia seemed almost entranced by, Elaria gave him the supplies he asked for. Last night when Kesl stumbled onto the unseemly scene of Leo, Elaria, Allis, and his missing niece, Leo asked what things he used to cook.
‘Hmmm, not nearly enough for the meme, but I should be able to make a few hot plates to set up a stove, and maybe use the wood for a few tools, like a portable magic blender. He has a walk-in freezer, but I could sell him a hand held ice maker so that he could quickly dump some in his drinks. Oh right I almost forgot, I can sell him some recipes! Definitely going to introduce pizza to the world, and I'll make a killing off of a ten percent cut of the profit.’ His thoughts were interrupted by a tapping on his shoulder.
“Um, hey, Leo...could I borrow that cloth for a few days?” Glia awkwardly asked while her tail swayed expectantly.
He arched a brow, not really caring for his quickly made prototype. “Uhhh, sure. In fact you can keep it to make up for canceling. Just clean it bef-”
Glia snatched the cloth, lit up like it was Christmas, and started toward the door. “Alright, bye everyone! See you next week if you don't drop by the gate!” She yelled out to Leo and Elaria, while they both watched speechlessly as she sped out of the room.
He turned to Elaria with a greedy grin plastered across his face, knowing what his featured item for public sale was going to be.
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