-24-

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A groggy voice next to me whined and an arm shuffled in place across my face.

“I don’ wanna get up…”

My partner rolled over in bed—which pulled her long ruby-red hair that had been caught up underneath my arm during the night.

“Ow-ow-ow!”

Hailey cried out, her hands jerking up to her head.

“I keep telling you to put your hair up when you spend the night with me.”

“Yeah I know. I did put it up last night though!” She held up a cloth strip that was still tied in a bow and dangled it in front of me, “It must’ve fallen out.”

“You were tossing around a lot.”

“Hmph. And whose fault is that? You hit me with an ‘oh by the way, the elven government is sending a whole raid division to get us in the morning’. I think half my sleep was just running through nightmare scenarios.”

“I told you so that you wouldn’t worry.”

Hailey turned her head away from me and started pouting. If I thought she was really upset with me I’d be worried, instead I wriggled my way towards her in bed and wrapped my arms around her.

“We’re gonna meet with the Tribunal and everything will go according to plan. They’ll send us support and we’ll figure out what to do about the Renaultian Republic.”

Hailey sighed and placed her hands over mine.

We sat like that until a knock came at the door.

“It’s open!” I shouted out.

“Pardon the intrusion.” A young elven woman entered carrying a tray filled with different types of food and a pitcher filled with what I assumed to be juice. She placed the tray down on the table, bowed, and then quickly turned to leave.

As the woman tried to pass through the doorway, Julius was coming through.

“Oop! Sorry, please go ahead.”

He mimed for her to go through before him when she tilted her head in confusion.

“Good, you’re both awake.”

“Morning, Julius.”

“Gooood morning, Julius!”

Hailey’s early morning sullenness was fading away as the smell of breakfast washed over the room.

“I’ve been thinking about this escort team and—”

“Nope. We’re not talking about it. I only told you so that we wouldn’t have some sort of international incident when they showed up.”

“Airis, listen—”

“I will not. I am going to have a delicious meal with Hailey, get changed into my uniform, and then we’re gonna wait for this Varla person to show up.”

“Okay, but—”

I glared at Julius and he relented, “I’ll go roust the others.”

“Thank you.”

Hailey began to giggle after he left and the door had closed.

“What is so entertaining?”

“You’re just not a morning person. It’s always funny to see. If he had waited even thirty minutes you probably would’ve listened to whatever he was gonna say.”

I released my hold around her and slid off the bed.

“Maybe. But this may have been an exception, I don’t really see an issue with sending an escort to move the leader of another faction through your city to meet with the heads of state.”

Hailey joined me at the table and we surveyed the food. The tray had two large plates, one large bowl, and two small bowls.

To my surprise, the main course seemed rather tame. Like something you would get at any tavern or restaurant in a city. Both plates were identical; a slice of red meat cooked rare, a side of scrambled eggs, and a side of hashed potatoes.

The large bowl contained a mix of veggies. Mostly spinach and leafy lettuce, I could see shavings of carrot, grated ginger, and pepper flakes.

The smaller bowls had some less usual fare. One was filled with a sticky porridge, and the other had cut slices of an orange melon.

“Ooooh this looks so good. Let’s eat!”

Hailey quickly grabbed her utensils and started on her salad.

I was eyeing the steak cut and started there. The juicy meat tickled my tongue with flavor and I let out a sound that made Hailey laugh at me.

By the time we had finished eating and getting dressed our escorts had arrived. Our welcome committee was arranged down in the common room.

Included in their group was Lira, who looked out of sorts in a proper uniform. She stood next to a rather modest looking man. His uniform was lightly armored and embroidered in a fashion much flashier than his counterpart, but his stature and build detracted from its appearance.

“Champion Varla, of the Astral Knights, reporting as ordered.” He bowed his head slightly with his short introduction.

“I am Empress Airis Vanixi. I’ve been told you will be escorting us through the city to meet with the Tribunal this morning.”

“On orders from our Matriarch. We are to take you and your praetorian guardsmen directly to the provisional government’s chamber in the assembly hall.”

“From your Matriarch… Would that be Lady Aisling?”

“Yes, madam.”

“Ahh.”

The gears started to fit together, our escorting force was not dispatched by the government itself, but from our friend, Aisling. I shot a glance at Lira, who had managed to now look even less comfortable in her uniform.

“Well, I have no issues and we are ready to depart as soon as you are, Champion Varla. We shall be in your care.”

----------------------------------------

The assembly hall of the provisional government matched our Citadel in size and footprint, but trivialized it in terms of artistic status.

Like the majority of buildings in Umbraedomis it had elegant curves and was made of white stone, but inset in the walls were red and gold murals and carvings spaced between large pillars. On either end were a pair of spires, and from those soared lattice-like arches that met above the center of the building. Held up by those arches was a great pair of golden wings, which looked very much like the phoenix wings the Empire and the Republic used for their government buildings.

A staircase led up to a massive set of doors, which had ornate designs depicting a massive tree with sprawling roots. Elvish writing was engraved along the roots and up into the base of the tree.

At the heart of the great tree was a painted etching of the imperial crest, a golden phoenix with its wings raised into the sky over top a crimson red laurel wreath. Both above and below the crest were two inscriptions, one in the common language used in the Empire and the other was in the elvish Iọ-ton’ic.

‘IN THE PURSUIT OF PEACE MAY OUR BOND LAST ETERNAL’

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“These words hold the sentiments of our peoples as they were centuries ago, and as they remain today,” Champion Varla pulled open one of the doors for us, motioning to enter, “Our Matriarch wishes for the reunification of the Aestori with the Empire, as do I and many Knights in the Stellae. Should the Tribunal come to an unfavorable decision, know that our order will follow your path.”

He bowed deeply and I, at a loss for words, nodded and stepped through the entryway into the hall.

The interior of the gilded building matched its exterior in terms of beauty and poise. The same red and gold ornamentation along the walls continued through the building, but the floors were a dark-brown, almost black, marble with rich red veins. Large banners were displayed ostentatiously around the central hall, bearing the Aestori’s crest; a silver crescent moon with a filigree styled core. An imperial staircase was centered with the entryway—its steps blocked off with a braided rope tied to the balusters.

A man appeared from an outcrop a short distance from the stairs. He wore a blue vest with a white and gold trim, over a collared white shirt and black slacks. Tall cuffed leather boots came up to his knees.

He walked directly to me, extending his hand out in greeting. I could feel Julius tense up, but I ignored his reaction and met the elf with a handshake.

“Greetings and welcome, Empress Vanixi, to the Hall of the Tribunal. I am called Adellin, and I have the pleasure to serve as Lord-Magistrate as well as an elected councilman of the provisional government here in Umbraedomis.”

He greeted us with impeccable imperial common.

I responded in kind, “Well met, Lord Adellin. Please accept my sincere appreciation for you and the other members for making time to meet with myself, and my attendants.”

“The councilors have finished preparing in the assembly hall. If you are ready, I can take you in through here and we can get our meeting started.”

I glanced to my companions who, aside from Julius, all looked to share the same levels of anxiety that I had.

“Anyone not ready?” I asked, mostly aiming the question at my little sister. She shook her head, giving me a thumbs up and a nervous grin.

Turning back to Lord Adellin I motioned for him to lead on, “We’re all set. Please take us in.”

We were led down a hall that passed underneath the stairway. Lord Adellin pushed a set of doors open with a bit too much zeal, causing them to smack hard against the wall. We shuffled into a huge unoccupied two-story rotunda.

Glancing around the room, I got the feeling that this was not the regular office that the Aestori would use to hold meetings.

There were no desks or workspaces here. Instead we’d been led into a room that resembled a judicial court—the memory of Julius and I being found guilty of treason against the Triumvirate Republics in a rigged trial set by the Renaultians came to mind.

A set of eyes burned their gaze into the back of my head. I turned to find a pair of whitened knuckles gripping a sword hilt.

Maybe I should have let him stay at the inn.

“Julius?”

“Yeah?”

“You doing alright?”

“I’m fine, why?”

“Wanna loosen that threatening hold on your weapon then?”

He looked down at his hand and relaxed the tight hold, “Oh. Sure thing.”

Lord Adellin gestured at a set of chairs that had been arranged on the far side of the room.

“If it suits you, please have a seat and we’ll begin shortly.”

The chairs that had been arranged were cushioned and more extravagant than the others in the room. I took a seat in the middle, with Julius and Hailey taking a seat on either side.

Mei refused a chair, opting to stand instead. She positioned herself behind Julius and I.

Rias nervously took a seat next to Hailey, but scooted her chair further back, almost touching the wooden paneling along the wall.

Once we had all found a seat Lord Adellin excused himself and left the room.

We were positioned facing the doorway we’d came into the room from, which, aside from a door on the second level, was the only other way into this room.

Hailey’s shoulderplate pushed against my own as she leaned towards me, “Does this setup give you a mock throne room kinda vibe, or is it just me?”

“Now that you mention it, kinda.”

“This room looks like a court, but I don’t see a bench or another place a judge would sit. I think they must’ve removed it, and placed these chairs in its place.”

I tilted my head down to the flooring. An almost imperceptible fading in the dark marble boxed us in.

“I think you’re right. It would be weird if they had us sit in place of a judge, and it would be weirder if they sat over us. We’re hoping to establish diplomatic relations, after all.”

I aimed the last statement at Julius, whose soured expression hadn’t changed much since we sat down.

“What’re you implying? Have you forgotten who did basically all the nice talk back in Tolin?”

“I didn’t imply anything. But I would like it if you could wipe the scowl off your face and be a little more agreeable looking.”

The sound of the door banging open stopped our conversation. Lord Adellin had returned, along with four others. They took seats opposite of us as Lord Adellin introduced them.

A tall woman in a red dress was the first to sit, her long legs crossed at the dresses slit, showing off her porcelain skin. She introduced herself as Elin, and held the same title as Lord Adellin. She reminded me of Lady Aisling, both of their faces had a similar shape and Lady Elin’s hair was the same shade of auburn, though it was styled less practically, having been curled and reaching down past her hips. She held herself with quiet reservation unmatched by those who followed in after her.

Next to take his seat was a white-haired man in a black jacket with golden epaulets and white trim. Also sharing the same rank as Lady Elin and Lord Adellin, he was introduced as Fulvius. As he sat, a smirk formed on his face when he took notice of me eyeing him.

I broke eye contact quickly, moving on to the next member walking in.

A young looking—though looks are always deceiving when talking about elves—girl in a sleeveless black dress took a seat between Lady Elin and Lord Fulvius. She’d hushed Lord Adellin just before he’d gotten to her,

“You may call me Sara, It is a pleasure to meet you, Empress.” She introduced herself in elvish, putting unnecessary and deliberate stress on her last word.

Now, their last member looked like he could be Lord Fulvius’ twin, except everything about him seems much more youthful. His face was softer, his clothing was less formal, and his eyes had a sort of vibrancy that Fulvius lacked.

The young man stepped ahead of the rest and bowed his head, “Welcome, comrades-in-arms. I am so glad you’ve made the journey to our city. My name is Gracci, and I am the sitting Consular over the provisional government.”

His introduction was in elvish, and I wondered if that was purposeful or because he may have not known the imperial common. Lady Sara’s quick intro seemed to be purposeful, as if she was looking for my expression to betray me at her switch from Lord Adellin’s common.

» AUTO-TRANSLATION ENABLED: ALTAERIAN TO IỌ-TON’IC

I stood and stepped towards Consular Gracci, extending my arm, “Let us meet as friends then. Though I’m sure you know who we all are, allow me to introduce myself and my companions. I am Airis Vanixi, eldest daughter of Theodin Vanixi, son of Alexandros Vanixi, the last title holder of Emperor of the Empire of the Light. Through this lineage I have recently reclaimed this title of Empress.”

The Consular had accepted my handshake with a smile, and once he’d released his grip on my hand I brought up two interface windows which displayed my Ruler and Empress titles.

I’d chosen to bring them up independently rather than show the single interface so that my Harbinger title given to me by Virgo would remain a secret. I wasn’t sure how the Aestori would react to the knowledge that we were basically operating under the direction of two Goddesses.

Lady Sara took a particular interest in both displays, chuckled to herself, and leaned back in her seat, “Well I suppose that settles any questions we might have had about your authenticity, doesn’t it, Fulvo?”

Lord Fulvius dropped his cool guy act and leaned towards her, “Eeeeh? What’re you on about old lady, you’re the one who’s been probing poor Aisling.”

He looked like a delinquent trying to shake down a little girl. But in a blur, Lord Fulvius’ head rocked back and he returned to a normal seated position, holding a hand to his head.

Lady Elin had reached her hand across and flicked him in the temple in a blink of the eye.

With an exasperated sigh, Consular Gracci moved the meeting forwards. I quickly introduced Julius and Hailey as Commanders over our Divisional Army, Mei as an officer in the Waystrider core and our preferred ambassador to the Aestori, and Rias as my sister and a civilian oversight member.

The Tribunal members were especially curious to know what had happened with the human nations after the fall of the Empire and the events that led up to its reformation. So we started at the fall of Tolin.

Mei took center stage in detailing those events, since she’d been around during that time and had more knowledge regarding it since she had worked with Tatsuko before our recapture of the city.

I detailed the state of Axio as best I could. Since I was the daughter of the Regent Lord, I’d been exposed to much of the scheming that had occurred—which ultimately culminated in the assassination of my father and the overthrowing of the city government by the Renaultians and Maarins.

Lord Fulvius and Consular Gracci looked particularly perturbed when I’d finished talking about Axio, but they weren’t alone because once we shared the events in retaking Tolin, the other three were also visibly shaken.

Many Aestori had served in the imperial legions. When the Empire was shattered by the demons, many of them found themselves cut off from the main forces and regrouped in the Starfall Forests, before traveling on to Umbraedomis.

At the mention of our triumph over a Terror Demon, and an Archdemon at that, I had inadvertently shocked the Tribunal.

I gave a fast break down about the aftermath of our capture of the city, including the attack by the bandit army, the awkward and possibly still dangerous assassin Hikita, the threat of the Renaultians, and the fact that we had also restored the Phoenix God Ignicorus.

Consular Gracci nervously twirled his thumbs.

“If what you say is all true, which we have no reason to doubt you, then the situation is not only extremely dire but you’ve managed to gain a great amount of power in a relatively short period of time. It’s probably unlikely that the Kingdom of Rena—err, rather, the Renaultian Republic—has realized just how powerful you are. If we were to attack this city of Axio with our combined might, we would not only be an unexpected surprise but an overwhelming force.”

“Does that mean you’ll accept our proposal for a new alliance?”

Consular Gracci placed both his hands on his legs, and shook his head. “Well, about that. There’s simply no way we could make a new alliance.”

Huh?

Huuuuh!?