Chapter 133: The Damn Tournament Arc

Viv walked through the hallowed corridors of house Trez, of Helock. It was her first time visiting a manor of the Helockian nobility after a disastrous social season where no one had invited her. Ereska, her roommate, had briefed her, but she was still a bit leery. It would be her first time rubbing elbows with the Paramese nobility in a way that wouldn’t involve dismemberment. Hopefully. It was also the first time she would join high society without her dad guiding her every step and she kind of missed his sardonic voice. Finally, the manor stood in a place where the square meter could be priced in the same order of magnitude as Manhattan, Shibuya, or Neuilly and she’d just come across an aquarium that was larger than her dorm room. Those Trez people were not playing.

Some of the fishes in there looked downright ferocious. There could be human bones under the kelp.

Vic shook her head. This wasn’t a James Bond movie. The impeccable maid guided her to a large door and knocked, popping her head in to whisper.

“Lady Viviane, the traveler, here to see you, madam.”

“Let her in,” a commanding female voice replied.

Viv was summarily escorted in a soberly decorated boudoir with assorted lacquered furniture and vases that all looked made by the same artist, giving an overall zen mood to the secluded room. She didn’t dare inspect anything but she highly suspected there was more money in designer stuff here than could be found in all of Harrak’s knight armory. Such was the way of the world right now.

Her host sat straight-backed on a throne-like couch with elbow rests. A steaming pot waited between the two women alongside an assortment of sweets and biscuits as flawless as if they had been carved from stone. The maid came in and poured an infusion in the cups. She left without a glance.

Vic expected the old woman to start speaking as soon as the door was shut, but she remained silent. Lady Trez kept her white hair straight, except for thin braids. Her face was mature and beautiful, without blemishes beside crow feet by her eyes. They revealed a lifetime of self care. Few people lived long enough to have white hair here, and those that did carried them with grace. Lady Trez carried them with arrogance. They contrasted with a black dress, impossibly matching the room, that cinched her perfectly maintained body. The witch felt a caress on her soul that reminded her of an inspection skill, only incredibly more subtle. If she didn’t have an awareness of her own soul, she would have missed the faint hint. It was rude but not unexpected. Ereska didn’t have to remind her that etiquette did not always apply to the powerful, and that they could use blunt manners as a tool to test their newest acquaintances. It still stung a little.

Viv resisted the urge to inspect in return. That would be really vulgar. As a caster, she was at a disadvantage in social encounters against someone with a social path and nothing would change that.

After almost a minute of awkward silence during which Viv waited patiently, her host finally deigned to address her.

“Thank you for coming. I am the matriarch Trez and I would like to welcome you to my home. And you are Viviane the outlander, I know. We should wait a little more for the tea to cool. It’s a special blend from the shadowlands. Not poisoned. I had it tested on the staff.”

The lady smiled, a sign that Viv could speak in turn. Normally, she would present herself but that was no longer an option.

“Thank you for having me, and for the tea. You wanted to see me?”

“How blunt. Very well, I shall return the favor and dispense with the small talk. I gather you have an idea as to why I have called you here. I have an offer for you. I am sure you have or will receive similar offers in the future, but you will find that our reputation is well-deserved. I have three candidates here, all vetted by myself, healthy, and of good breeding. They have all achieved the third step of their path, all hybrid casters. The contract would cover your… services for two years. The list of benefits can be found in this document. Here. You will find that the terms are more than generous. We also have a history of accommodating promising candidates such as yourself. You only have but to ask.”

The woman placed a contract with enough gold to buy a large house and the paintings of three strapping men on the table. Gears were turning in Vic’s mind and she realized there was only one explanation and she didn’t like it one bit.

“Errrr.”

“If you have any questions about the terms, I can reply here. Later questions can be directed at our lawyer. Or one you may select.”

“No, not that. Urggg it’s probably cultural. Just to be clear, you want me to build you a child?”

“I thought that was obvious. Unaffiliated and powerful individuals will sometimes pair up for this very purpose, or did you not know? I expected you to be at least aware of this opportunity.”

“Errr.”

“If you expected a marriage, I was informed you were a ruler in your own right and would probably prefer remaining untied for future alliances. But I am open to discussions.”

“No just… no. There has been some sort of mistake.”

Viv swallowed the anger she felt at being treated like a broodmare. The woman didn’t mean it as an insult. So Viv should not take it as such. It was normal here in Nyil where the nobility engaged in light eugenics to bring powerful mage bloodlines in their families. This was a testament to her skills.

Still pissed her off though.

“No? You will not entertain the thought at all?”

“Sorry and again this must be cultural but I will not do so for a multitude of reasons.”

“Well this has been a massive waste of my time.”

And of Viv’s time but she imagined Lady Trez didn’t care.

“Out of curiosity, why did you expect I called you here?”

“The Glastian contest? For supremacy among the heirs? You are backing Aldus.”

“Oh that. Yes, I was about to dedicate myself to this project. Why?”

“Sidjin is, well, I am his paramour.”

For the first time, Lady Trez seemed to lose her composure. She pinched her lips, then grabbed the contract and paintings in a strong grip. The paper crinkled under her fingers.

“There has been an oversight. I apologize on behalf of my house for this tactless offer. If you will excuse me for a moment.”

The matriarch stood and left. Bob heard a few hissed words beyond the door but her finesse was not yet high enough to pick them up, even though her northerner had massively improved. She could guess the contents though. Someone had not done their due diligence, and that someone had made Lady Trez act like a fool. That person was in for an ear bashing of epic proportions. It was a wonder these sorts of mistakes still happened in a society with oaths and skills but well. Everyone could get negligent.

Lady Trez returned with a thin smile frozen on her face.

“Yes, the Glastian contest. I gather that Prince Sidjin is open to negotiations then?”

“I understand that it is common among contestants since the winner can decide quite a few things including who gets to be the heir. I assumed you approached me to test the waters. Sidjin has been less than happy with the existence of the contest, even less because it takes place here.”

“I understand that the arena was destroyed when Glastia temporarily lost their outer walls. His fault, by the way.”

“There are more casters taking part as well. Only this place and Mornyr have suitable grounds for fights of that magnitude. But I digress,” Viv said, borrowing one of Ereska’s favorite phrases. “Sidjin does not seem to have an interest in becoming heir. I believe he wants to be left alone.”

The two women sipped tea in the following silence.

“I am myself surprised that he was not stripped of his title,” Viv admitted.

“He would have been but the first prince considered his merits against his faults and found that he should be given a chance. I am no expert but I would assume the possibility of a portal network exclusive to Glastia might have been a factor.”

“Undoubtedly.”

“So you are his paramour. Will you fight?”

“If he lets me. He is convinced I should not risk my life on his behalf when it comes to his family. Thinks I should remain uninvolved.”

“Men can be so foolishly stubborn,” Trez said, rolling her eyes. “In any case, Aldus has a reasonable claim to victory. A better one if Sidjin forfeits in his favor and offers his fighters. Does he have any?”

“He has himself.”

“I suppose he is still the Red Mist. The rules of the contest are so complicated. Politics and blood games should never intermix to this extent. We are not Hallurians for Sardanal’s sake.”

“I thought it was strange as well, but Glastia needs someone who can gather fighters to their banner, I suppose.”

“In any case, if Sidjin’s desire is official immunity via a pardon, I am convinced Aldus would oblige. It depends on whether or not we are in the same bracket. We would still require you to eliminate a contestant, perhaps. Nothing too dangerous for someone of his measure.”

Viv nodded. The truth was that the so-called contest was painfully complex and obviously designed to favor backstabbing and alliances. There were eight contestants, all people of royal blood. Technically, those were six children of the first prince and two cousins. They would meet across three series of duels. Whoever won moved on until a winner was decided across a grand final. Each contestant started with four fighters and no more could be recruited, but they could be swapped and exchanged including with losers if casualties were to occur, and casualties always occurred in the last events. As such, losers could still get something by backing the final winner and supporting them. It was a game of diplomacy and strategy as much as might, though a modicum of strength was required to play at all. She and Trez talked a bit more but it was obvious the canny woman didn’t feel like sharing, and probably wasn’t too familiar with the contestants yet anyway. Most were still to arrive. With a promise to keep in touch, she left. The biscuits had been as delicious as she expected.

 

***

 

“I will not take them,” Elunath calmly said, “and unless you bring me a divine artifact, I will not take anything anymore.”

“What? You were ready to accept valuable stuff and those are prime Hallurian casting tools, an insight into the practices of the faceless.”

“And they are valuable indeed.”

“What changed?”

“Nothing changed,” Elunath said, reclining in his seat. “You just failed to account for the value of time.”

Viv looked askance. She didn’t see what he meant.

“Simply put, the value of our time now is higher than our time in a hundred years. Much can happen in that duration. Perhaps we have grown apart. Perhaps one of us died.”

From his flare, it was obvious who he thought might perish.

“Perhaps we no longer need a contract to work together or perhaps animosity has made cooperation impossible, even with a binding oath. There are ways to sabotage a project that would not break an indenture agreement. The uncertainty means that I care little about what you will be doing in 95 years. I do, however, care about what we can achieve in the three years we have left in this contract. As a reminder, you will be incapacitated for at least three months, which will already reduce the useful time at my disposal. I will therefore not go lower. I believe I have already been generous in allowing you to push so far. You have brought me many interesting items in a very short time frame. Take this as a token of my respect for your work, but now I simply no longer wish to shorten our cooperation any further.”

“Right…” Viv said, “the contract-“

“Gives you the right to negotiate. I am not unwilling to do so, I am merely saying that the value of the last three years is much higher than all the rest combined.”

He smiled.

“I am not cheating you and I assure you that you will have all the time in the world after we are done. You have proven yourself to be valuable and I would not waste your potential, of this you can be certain. Now leave. We are done for now. Unless you would like to start the transition immediately?”

Viv checked her attunement. It sat at a comfortable 37%. She still had a few months, though Solfis had warned her it would climb much faster towards the end. On the other hand she felt… very strong. It would mean very little if she didn’t live though. In any case, the change would stand more chances of success above 45%. Not that she was eager to do it.

“No, thank you. I’ll have to wait a little more.”

“I thought as much. There are signs that do not lie, but when they come, and they will, do not dally. You can survive long without teeth. Or eyes. Not so long without a pancreas. Goodbye.”

 

***

 

That was Viv’s first solution to her impending demise. Three years of really shitty internship. With a boss who’s demonstrated he was an asshole and didn’t care about it. Could be better, could be worse, but Viv got the strong intuition he would ask her to do stuff she was morally opposed to. He would use her and her skills without remorse and probably leave her pissed off, but not enough to attempt to kill him at all costs. That’s the impression she got. The issue was that the books she’d found near the lich only confirmed what she suspected. Transitioning to part elemental alone was excessively difficult. She’d spent an entire week of effort with Solfis’ help and pushed her polymath skill to its maximum to turn the ramblings of a lone man into proper research notes. The lich had been a mage interested in bone magic of all things. He was also too weak to survive the dead lands on his own. Mentions of his path painted him as a hybrid caster. It was clear he never meant to share what he had found, therefore his notes contained many references to works Viv had not found, some of which even the Academy librarian could not help her with. Nevertheless, there were still a few valuable tidbits buried under the mountain of tangents. To change one’s body on a fundamental level required, invariably, to die.

 

To be clear, the casters had to be clinically dead and then keep casting.

 

This would require a willpower and drive Viv simply lacked. Only someone with monstrous stats or an overwhelming, almost divine need to live could manage it. And Viv didn’t have that. As a soldier, she was used to the possibility of dying. Oh, perhaps she would change her mind with a mangled chest and while feeling the cold grasp of death upon her, but that wasn’t enough to pull through. She wasn’t maniacal about staying alive, not in a way that would make a difference. In short, and even with the help of potions and allies, she would still fail even if she managed to piece together the proper method.

That left her with either Elunath or Solfis’ mysterious person. The golem still didn’t want to share and even indicated she should not try to learn more.

The author’s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

//Any knowledge you acquire now would serve no purpose.

//Additionally, they would harm you in case of interrogation.

//Therefore I sternly recommend your ignorance.

//For once.

“Then why tell me at all?”

//So you would be aware there exists another option.

The yellow glare of the golem had landed on Viv. His cruel eyes with the background of towers and the floating stones over Helock provided the most alien landscape to her.

//My role is not to decide for you.

//My role is to provide you with all the relevant knowledge to reduce uncertainty to a minimum.

//Whenever that knowledge is available.

There was a hint of regret in the golem‘s cold voice, one that only Viv could detect. Very few people knew Solfis could feel emotions to an extent. The truth was that elemental change scrolls and books certainly existed in the imperial library back in Harrak. Perhaps some of them had even survived the cataclysm hidden deep under shielded vaults, but Solfis had absolutely no records of them. The data stored in golems were almost exclusively related to war and the conduct of it. Only Irlefen’s desire to make Solfis grow had allowed the ancient war machine to keep entire historical and engineering records. That and engineers storing erotica in the hard drives. In any case, Viv was missing an entire facet of Harrakan society, not just magic but also art, culture, fashion, music… everything that had made the old empire something more than just an oppressive nation. It was gone, only remnants still conserved in dusty collections.

//Do you know what I mourn the most?

“Tell me.”

//Gardening.

//Irlefen loved gardening.

“You told me he would talk to you while he cared for his flowers.”

//Yes.

//Those were the only moments he could truly relax.

//I do not want you to be robbed of the choice to live and die on your own terms.

//Like he was.

“Thank you.”

//Though I prefer it if you could live.

//For obvious reasons.

“Thanks Solfis.”

//I mean to say that your heiress still lacks a certain maturity.

//And she craves gold too much.

“Ah. Well she is gone on a journey of self discovery.”

//One day, second princess Toreka traveled on a journey of self discovery against the wish of her imperial parents.

“How did it go?”

//She was pregnant upon her return.

“Ok shut up it won’t happen.”

 

***