“Welcome to my war room.” Emperor Grandis gestured at the weird, altar-like table in the middle of a circular, grand room. Unlike most rooms, this particular room had over fifteen doors leading to it. “This is where I oversee the entire continent of Grandis.”

Dia had a lot of questions, but it would not do to question the Emperor himself, unless she wanted to look like an idiot. There would be no need to ask; Emperor Grandis would explain in due time.

This thought was not hers alone, from how everyone else was holding their tongue.

“Wow!” Beth spun on the spot. “Pwetty!”

“I’m glad you like it.” Emperor Grandis chuckled. “Would you like to sit in this chair?”

“…This guy is a doting grandfather-type of person, right?” Dia whispered to Risti.

“Got that right in one. Emperor Grandis doesn’t have an heir, so he does get a bit lonely at times. Those close to him often bring their babies and children while they’re discussing work,” Risti replied. “I happen to be one of them.”

“Oh.” Schwarz nodded. “I now see why you call him granduncle. Hmm. Age does do this to people, huh. Why doesn’t he try for a child, then?”

“He’s a hexa-folder. Hard to conceive,” Dia replied. “Which, incidentally, holds true for everyone here too. There’s a reason why everyone celebrated when my brother and I were conceived.”

“I’m actually a bit confused, now that I think about it,” Schwarz muttered. “Dia, how…why did your mother pass away? I mean, I do not recall hearing her being assassinated, and she definitely didn’t lack lifestones either.”

“I’m not…” Dia fell silent. “My father didn’t tell me. I didn’t…want to ask either.”

“We should investigate that when we have time, then,” Schwarz replied. “Clear up all loose ends, you know…”

Dia glanced at the Emperor, who was already accompanied by Nero and Kemata in fawning over the awestruck kid. To be fair, Beth had lived in a relatively normal place up until they headed towards Grandis, so it was reasonable for her to be awed by just about anything.

“A pretty sight, is it not?” Farah murmured. “Sure, none of them are related to my county, but whenever I see something like this, I feel my resolve renewed. Life may be a journey in which we scar ourselves continuously, but there are always stops where we can lather relief on our broken skin.”

Dia looked at Farah, who was undoubtedly emotional after this final parting with her parents. She would never again see them, and while she had put on a tough front…how could she not long for familial affection? Farah’s fondness for Beth was probably a manifestation of her own solitude, her own pain.

“In trying times like these,” Risti murmured, “this is perhaps the only succour we are allowed to have.”

“You can just get a soulmate or something,” Schwarz pointed out.

“Easier said than done,” Risti replied.

Dia looked around in silence as the others devolved into their own activities for a while, before turning her gaze to Farah, whose gaze was distant and unfocused. What did she feel, having orchestrated this entire thing for the sake of her people?

There was no way she could relate.

She gazed at her once more, and then walked over to Beth and the three adults that were just messing around at this point. “Are we not rushed for time?”

Emperor Grandis, who had pulled out a bag of sweets from somewhere somehow, paused. “Right. Indeed. We are. Please take a seat, everyone.”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“Before we do,” Dia added, “I am quite certain that Your Majesty is about to tell us a lot of confidential things. Knowing that we once worked with the Moons, are you certain about this? We have not yet agreed to join your forces, after all.”

Emperor Grandis looked at Dia, his gaze piercing, and his head bobbed once. “Indeed. There are people that would rather protect their own, rather than an abstract vision of humanity. And it is natural for people who do not live under my direct rule to feel anything more than a passing semblance of loyalty. However, the divinities are truly no longer holding anything back.”

“What do you mean by that?” Dia asked, as the others returned to their senses.

“All mana-users have been forcibly conscripted in the territories ruled by the Dark and the Moons,” Emperor Grandis replied. “In fact, preliminary reports indicate that the conscripts have been forcibly indoctrinated with a false loyalty. Brainwashing, in other words.”

“…They’re that desperate?” Nero wondered out loud. “Is the Omen doing something we cannot quite see?”

“That is perhaps the only reason why the divinities have turned mad,” Emperor Grandis replied. “The Coloured Gods might be taking sides too, but they will not do so this early into the war. Like me, they see the only way out as being the kingmaker.”

“Kingmaker…”

“The concept is easy to grasp, is it not?” Emperor Grandis chuckled. “I came across this term in the Celestia Ruins. It seems fitting to use a grand artefact from the Celestia Ruins to carry out this concept.”

“So this city…”

“Grandia is an artefact I got from the Celestia Ruins, yes,” Emperor Grandis replied. “This city was probably intended to help the inhabitants of Celestia…or rather, that city, to survive disasters and emergencies, although I am not sure what kinds of disasters would strike a floating city high above a world. At any rate, however, the disaster that destroyed Celestia happened so quickly that this was never used at all.”

“And so it fell to our world,” Dia muttered.

“Indeed. There is much we could learn from Celestia, and we were in the middle of putting some of them into practice,” Emperor Grandis continued. “However, the technologies involved in its creation are so profound and abstruse that we have to look for the simplest inventions…but we are digressing at this point. I apologise for that.”

“Knowing so much more is nice, though. Thank you for that,” Dia replied.

The Emperor of the Grandis Empire chuckled. “So, having said all this, what do the Seekers of Life feel?”

“…Well, we were intending to stay here,” Dia replied. “Ever since the news broke out. However, if possible, deploy us in areas where we probably won’t need to fight the Moons. It’ll create less problems for everyone.”

“Indeed. The Moons are very…intelligent, to use a neutral term. Employing the Seekers of Life to fight against them will simply open up more avenues for them to sow discord…either them, or the Dark.” He smirked. “Don’t worry. Now, then, on to the serious business.”

He gestured at the weird altar-like object once, infusing mana into it with that small movement, and the whole thing began to glow. The cube-like structure that was Grandia appeared first in mid-air, and Beth let out awed sounds as an impressive miniature landscape appeared in mid-air.

“This…” Dia looked at the illusion or whatever it was. “Emperor Grandis, are you sure you want to show this to us? We are not your war council, and we aren’t professionals in this either. There has to be some issues with confidentiality as well, right?”

“I make the rules. I see no problem.”

Those words stopped Dia’s follow-up dead in their tracks, and some dark thoughts about how it was nice to be the one making rules partied around in her head for a few seconds.

“So, this is the terrain around Grandia…and this is the entire continent, right?” Schwarz craned his neck. “And the colour schemes…wait, what?”

“Yes, it seems that the divinities struck with the force of a raging river,” Dia replied. “Only the immediate area around Grandia is still free of either side. That was fast.”

“I am told that the territories in the Nihila Sovereignty were thoroughly unprepared for an actual attack,” Emperor Grandis murmured. “Everyone had been lulled into a false sense of security, assuming that this war would not affect them. Clearly, this was not the case. Was this planned? Or just an unfortunate coincidence that began with the Thief of Time? Sadly, I will never know.”

He gestured again. “There are two fronts in this war. The southern front has been excluded, since that is where our main forces will face off with the Moons. If possible, I would like the Seekers of Life to hold the northern front. You will be generously compensated in terms of lifestones and artefacts.”

“It’s not like we have anything else to do,” Dia muttered.

“Yeah. And it’s time we tested our full strength,” Schwarz added.

“Bet!”

“Beth is Beth, I see.” Nero rubbed her head. “We’re fine too. I don’t want to be brainwashed or anything anyway.”

“Bit rich coming from a Holy Son, though.” Risti clicked her tongue. “My father’s here, yes? Then there’s no reason to not fight. I want to see him mow down crowds of enemies!”

“What happened to you, little Risti?” Emperor Grandis had a bemused look on his face. “Where did this aggression come from?”

“I don’t know…”