Chapter 3

What's this? Another chapter in the same year? IN THE SAME MONTH? This is madness, what's next? The beginning of the Dagor Dagorath? The return of Alduin? Nuclear annihilation (yes considering the current state of the world)? Well, could be all the three for all I care, this story is fun to write and it's fun reading your reviews so here I am with a new chapter. Before I start, if you have questions leave a review and I'll PM you in my free time with the answer. No I will not answer questions in my chapters because I don't want to take too much time with Author's notes.

Mairon's lair

Since the attack on the village, things had quieted down. Everything had gone according to his plans. Emilia was now seen in a very good light after coming to save the village in her resplendent armour. The village itself was currently being rebuilt by his golems, out of stone and brick this time, according to his instructions and designs he had made with the input of the village elders.

When he first arrived in the domain, he had noticed that the area lacked any semblance of fortification despite the surrounding mountains which would have made fortifications especially effective. The lack of fortifications was something he could not let slide when sooner or later, the Witch Cult would show up and he really did not want to bother with having to protect the civilians during that battle. He had grand plans for the domain and many were already in motion.

Mairon had spent most of the time since Meili's attack personally building stone golems, using his powers to the fullest, day and night without rest. In his spare time, he studied the books in the Forbidden Library. He taught Emilia telepathically and left the Witch-king of Angmar to train her in combat. Emilia's sphere of influence needed to be expanded, and she herself needed to practice managing lands like her rivals.

Priscilla Barielle had many lands under her rule, she was a noble of the highest rank and quite tyrannical. She had gained control of many lands through marriages and the deaths of her husbands. Due to her origins, she was most definitely used to managing cities and towns. Out of all the candidates, Mairon knew that without bending her to his will by force, she will never join them on her own accord, not that he was interested in her doing so, her presence would be more harmful than anything.

Crusch Karsten on the other hand was someone that impressed him. A strong woman who wanted the best for the people of Lugnica and their independence from the Dragon. As the sole heir of the House of Karsten, she was taught how to rule and lead since she was a child. Her desire for the best interests of the people of Lugnica made her a possible ally.

The last remaining candidate he had to consider, at least until the fifth was found, was Anastasia Hoshin. She owned a trading company and would naturally be used to managing finances and creating more capital. She was extremely greedy and that could play in Mairon's favour if he ever needed to manipulate her.

Emilia lacked practice in managing wealth, trade, population, and order in general. Having her just learn the theory and apply them the first time directly to an entire kingdom would be a recipe for disaster.

But fortunately, he had already found a way to both boost her influence and make her practice managing a country. It was a big project perhaps the largest one these lands had ever seen but he was more than sure that he would be able to pull it off in a year if not less considering the nature of his workers, the way this world reacted to magic and the knowledge he had acquired in his long life.

Now the Dark Lord was sitting in Roswaal's office, with several scrolls in his hands waiting for the Court Magician to come back. That should be soon, he could sense the ring he gave the Margrave getting closer. He was proved right when Roswaal entered the room. He immediately smiled and sat in front of Mairon.

"Ram told me you wanted to talk to me," he said his eyes showing intrigue. "How can I help you?"

"I would like to get your approval for these projects," he said placing the various scrolls on the desk for Roswaal to inspect.

Roswaal began looking through them his expression unchanging but he would occasionally glance at Mairon as if to try to tell if he was serious or not "I don't know how to tell you, indeed my family is quite rich but...building something like this is not something my finances can survive."

Mairon chuckled, "If you are referring to the costs of the materials and the workforce, I have both covered," he said grabbing one of the scrolls. "The mountains in your territories will provide the materials we need while I will be providing the workforce," he said calmly. "The spirits will make the construction considerably shorter, they do not need rest or feeding and their numbers know no limits. They will work day and night until their job is done. In my long life, I have studied the earth we walk on to the point that it no longer holds secrets to me and I have witnessed the greatest architects of my lands construct the greatest nation I ever laid eyes upon while being limited on an island and learned from them. Putting these factors together along with my own craft on these seemingly impossible projects will turn them into reasonable ones."

Roswaal looked amused as he laid back on his chair, "I see...but satisfy my curiosity, why are you doing this?"

"I think we both know why but I will amuse you," he said calmly. "Lady Emilia's intellect has made her studies progress steadfastly but those are simple studies, words on paper. I can teach her how to rule a nation for centuries but without any experience, she will still be one step behind her rivals if not more. Along with that, her sphere of influence is close to non-existent and you are not helping her out of a true wish to see her on the throne."

"So by building these cities you hope to give her a chance to make practice ruling a nation and at the same time to expand her influence; the construction will catch the attention of anyone looking to start a business due to lack of competition...Interesting, explain to me how you would like to proceed then."

Mairon nodded, "The easier project of the two is indeed Orod Gûr, the Mountain's Heart. After hollowing it out, shaping what is left to create a citadel wouldn't be hard. That will be the heart of our industry. The city of Rís Mindon on the other hand will take much more effort to construct and that is where most of the workforce will work on. It will stand tall on the entire territory and it will be built next to Orod Gûr's entrance; that way the city will have its back protected by the mountain leaving any possible attacker with the only option to attack from the front where the bulk of the defences would be placed. Both will be connected to each other through tunnels that run within the mountain."

Roswaal smirked. "Oh? You are expecting to be attacked?" he said eyeing the blueprints of the fortifications.

Mairon crossed his hands, "Once Emilia's identity will be made public, I expect the Witch Cult to make its move."

"Who knows? That is certainly a possibility," Roswaal nodded. "But even then...building a city like a fortress isn't it being paranoid?"

"Do not take me for a fool Lord Roswaal," Mairon lectured. "We both know that that there are very few things certain in this world and even those are debatable and Emilia's coronation certainly is not one of them and who knows what would happen then. I am no stranger to seeing people seizing power and then swiftly make their previous rivals meet their end prematurely."

"And Emilia resembles the Witch meaning that no one would bat an eye if she meets her end," Roswaal concluded. "A city like that would be able to withstand the assault of an army. Now, what do you need me for?"

Mairon nodded slowly, "I still need the seal of approval of the lord of these lands and I have a couple of questions to ask you."

Roswaal opened a drawer of his desk and placed a copy of his seal on the desk and then leaned against his seat. "Take it, I don't want you to bother with asking me whenever you want to do something in my lands as long as the terms of our contract are respected. Now ask me anything."

"What exactly is the process of the Royal Selection? Surely the election itself is not happening so soon?" he asked quickly, grabbing the seal.

"Ah yes, I understand why that might be confusing. The meeting we are to attend soon has been announced as the Royal Selection quite confusingly, but it is not the actual selection itself, merely the official meeting launching it, introducing all the candidates to the people and nobles. The selection itself will be in three years' time. Until then, the candidates will be expected to prove, by their actions, their dedication and commitment to the kingdom," Roswaal explained.

'Now I understand why the Sage Council can't rule permanently. They do not even know how to properly name important events,' Mairon thought to himself with annoyance.

"I see. When exactly is this meeting? Where is it going to take place, the Royal Palace or a secret location? If in the first, are the citizens of the capital going to spectate?" Mairon asked.

"The date has yet to be assigned but the meeting will take place at the Royal Castle with closed doors. What's said in it is going to be transcribed and published to the public." the Court Magician explained trying to understand the reasoning for these questions.

Mairon got up, his expression showing his mind being in deep thought. The meeting behind closed doors and being transcribed meaning that there is the possibility that the Nobility can just control what is being said if they wanted to but if there was a leak and then the official transcript clashed against it...

A smirk tried to form on the Dark Lord's expression but he didn't allow it and instead looked at Roswaal. "Thank you for your time and cooperation Lord Roswaal, I will take my leave then."

Roswaal gave him a subtle nod and the Dark Lord left the room heading back to his residence. As he entered the forest, he called the Nazgul and ordered to meet him in his study, he had a task for them. It didn't take long for him to reach his destination, Rem was waiting for him at the entrance as usual.

"Welcome back Lord Mairon," she said bowing her head.

"Let us talk as we walk," he said walking past her. "Any news while I was away?"

"Lady Emilia wishes to talk to you about something regarding Puck. Beatrice came here earlier but after seeing that you weren't here, she left. Your spirit companions are waiting in your study," she reported as she followed him.

"Tell Lady Emilia that I will meet her in her room as soon as I am done conversing with my companions," he replied arriving in front of the door of his study. "Until then I wish not to be disturbed."

Rem bowed, "It will be done, my lord."

With that, the maid left him and he entered the room where the Nine were waiting for him. Mairon went behind his desk and started grabbing several objects; a book, a map of the capital, and an atlas of the mountains around the Mathers Domain. He opened the book revealing it to be a catalog of the beasts of the world he was in and where to find them. He flipped through the pages until he stopped at one in particular.

Winged Dragons

He had had this idea in mind since he had first read about such beasts. The Dark Lord knew how vital aerial troops were, he had even tried to recreate the fell beasts of Mordor using the spirits but they couldn't hold the weight of such a massive creature in the air...Then he came across this book while browsing Beatrice's library where he learned the existence of such beings. Apparently, the only ones able to tame such creatures were in Volacchia and even then few were able to pull off such action due to the aggressive nature of these creatures.

But Sauron was no stranger to aggressive beasts nor were his followers. Now that he needed the Nazgul to move, he could order the submission of these creatures along with the other mission he had for them.

He looked at the Witch-king of Angmar, Er-Mûrazôr. "Bring them here," he said tapping on the image of a winged creature and then on the map of the mountains. "Make them submit."

The Witch-King nodded, "Your will shall be done," he grabbing both the catalog and the map.

The Dark Lord looked at the rest of the Nine, still invisible and disembodied spirits. "Go to the capital, hide in the shadows, report any activity, become masters of whispers and wait for my arrival," he gestured them to leave.

The Nazgul immediately obeyed, leaving the room and heading to accomplish their mission. Mairon got up and left the room heading towards Emilia's chambers.

Upon reaching her door, he knocked, "Lady Emilia, you said you wished to speak to me?"

There was an audible commotion on the other side, "L-Lord Mairon? D-Do not come in!"

He frowned, this was the first time Emilia acted like this, "What is the problem milady?"

"Uhm...just don't!" The half-elf replied from the other side of the door.

Mairon spotted Rem and gestured her to come closer which she did, "Have you not informed her about my incoming visit?"

Rem nodded, "I did, she told me that she would come herself. I would have told you but you asked to not be disturbed my lord."

"Did she tell you in person or through the door?" he then asked

"Through the door," the maid replied.

'This nonsense ends here,' the Dark Lord thought ."Emilia, I am coming in, I apologize in advance."

"E-Eh? I-I told you not to! W-Wait!" Emilia's panicked voice came through the door.

Mairon placed his hand on the pommel of the door and frowned, noticing how cold it was. He turned it and opened the door. To his surprise, a gust of frigid wind washed over him and Rem.

Emilia's room was covered by a thin layer of ice. The half-elf was standing in front of her bed, her arms spread in a vain to hide what was behind her. "I-I told you not to come in!"

"That certainly explains the leak of magic energy I was feeling recently," Mairon said sighing deeply.

After the incident with Meili, while he was working, he had felt an increase in magical energy coming from Emilia's room. He had guessed that his pupil was practicing magic in her free time, which he had commended her for since it showed her diligence but now that he was seeing what was going, he couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. But of course, he didn't let it show and instead made a patient expression.

"Care to explain the reason for all of this?" he asked

"It's my fault, I am sorry, Lia was just trying to help," Puck's voice said.

Both Mairon and Rem peeked over Emilia's shoulder, seeing the small feline spirit resting on the half-elf's bed wrapped in small blankets.

"It's my usual period of magic release, I tried to keep it low but I couldn't hold it in for long," Puck explained simply, waving his hand.

Sauron nodded slowly recalling having read of this period of magic release. Apparently, beings with strong magical capabilities needed to expel the mana in excess, upon reading it he thought of it as nonsense but now that he laid eyes upon it he wondered if he'll be affected by it. Supposedly it happens because one's body can't hold all that magic within them but his was not the body of a mere mortal...But there was no point in asking those questions now, he doubted it affected him and even if it did, he still used magic daily.

"Can you not relieve yourself of this burden all at once?" he asked approaching the spirit.

"Eeeeh? I could if you wanted me to freeze the world over," Puck said giggling a bit.

He chuckled a bit, "I am afraid that would not be an acceptable solution...What about releasing it in various degrees outside?"

Puck hummed for a couple of seconds, "That could work, a snow day for everyone and then back to work."

"We would have to alert the villagers, snow suddenly coming down after what happened could worry them, after all, they are being housed in the fort." Emilia remarked.

"And we would have to tell Lord Roswaal, after all, he's the lord of these lands," Rem muttered.

"Fortunately, there is no need for neither of that," Mairon said nodding to himself. "Roswaal gave me permission to do as I please and if we get the villagers involved, we can turn this unfortunate event into something positive."

Everyone looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"There is a festivity generally referred to as Midwinter in my lands. It is usually held at the beginning of the new year but it varies from region to region. People drink, entertain themselves in the snow, and so on. This could be the occasion to bring this tradition to Lugnica," je explained with a soothing tone

"That sounds lovely," Emilia remarked nodding

"Perfect then, it will be your assignment for the day, organize and manage an event," Mairon said already tasting Emilia's bewilderment with relish.

The half-elf girl blinked a few times ,"Wait...I thought you were going to organize it!"

Mairon let out a light chuckle. "It would have been delightful but unfortunately, I have to attend to more important matters in preparation for the selection. During these days, you've been so diligent and after the attack both of you and the villagers deserve to celebrate the first of many victories."

"B-But I know nothing about Midwinter," Emilia protested, her expression showing a bit of panic.

"You're in luck then, I have written about it for Lady Beatrice and as you know I make copies of everything I write for her. The book is in your room, it's called 'Cultures and Traditions'. Midwinter is on page 43 and starts at the third paragraph." With that, he left the the group heading back to his study.

The Dark Lord was not going to bother with organizing an event that he only learned about back in the day just to blend in between men and elves, it would have been a waste of time, something that he's out of at the moment. More urgent matters required his full attention, with this assignment he is keeping Emilia busy while also making her exercise managing events and he also took care of the problem with Puck that could have slowed down production. Despite the fact that he hated these kinds of events, he recognized that like this he got several birds with one stone so if anything, this action proved to be surprisingly efficient.

On his way back to his study, he stopped in his tracks before deciding to pay a visit to his 'adopted' daughter. He walked to the furthest room of his dwelling and entered.

Meili was on the bed, still completely unconscious but he wasn't worrying for her, he knew that sooner or later she would wake up. He checked if the spells he had put in place to keep the girl's aura in check were still active before leaving when he was satisfied.

The next day

Emilia was walking through the corridors of the residence with a small notebook in hand where she kept the notes she had taken from the book Mairon had referred to her. She had just come back from the fort where she had told the villagers about the festival, and was feeling pretty confident in her preparations although there was something that was still bugging her.

She had a feeling that she had wronged Mairon by keeping Puck's condition from him. She felt guilty, Mairon went to many lengths to help her, worked day and night without stopping for her and she was still hiding things from him. Was it because she didn't trust him? No, she knew that wasn't it. She had hidden it out of fear to disappoint him, after all, Puck was her spirit so she thought that she should have been able to take care of him on her own. What kind of queen could not take care of their own spirit?

The half-elf didn't notice how her expression had changed from a relatively happy one to a saddened one but the maid that was following her did.

"Lady Emilia, are you alright?" she asked in her usual serene tone.

Emilia realized that she must have looked troubled and quickly put up a smile and nodded, "Yes, I was just lost in some thoughts that weren't the most positive; thank you for snapping me out of it."

"Is it because of Lord Mairon's absence?" the maid asked noticing Emilia's body language, her visible tensing at the very mention of his name.

"I've wronged him...Since yesterday he didn't speak to me at all and he hasn't left his study," Emilia muttered bringing her hand to her chest.

"If that's what you think, then you should speak to him and apologize," Rem said as they stopped right in front of the door of Mairon's study.

Emilia took a deep breath and nodded before knocking, "Mairon, it's Emilia...I wish to talk"

"Come in," he immediately replied from the other side.

Emilia walked in and looked at her tutor. He was sitting behind his desk reading a book he took from the forbidden library surrounded by 9 small black spheres, various magical stones and tools. He seemed very focused on his reading, judging from his expression.

She nervously sat down on the chair in front of his desk, "I want to talk about yesterday..."

"What of it?" he asked not taking out his eyes off the book.

Emilia looked down on the ground, "I wanted to apologize."

Unbeknownst to the half-elf, the Dark Lord was trying to figure out what in all of Creation Emilia was talking about. He had already written off the event that had occurred the day before, he was much more focused on the current matter at hand, but it seemed he had to take away time from that to calm Emilia's crippling self-esteem. How troublesome.

He slowly closed his book and looked at her putting on an inquisitive and stoic expression and gestured the half-elf to continue.

"I should have told you about what was going on, you've been so patient with me, you've taught me how to be a better queen and a better leader. You covered me in gifts and knowledge and yet I hid Puck because...I felt ashamed, he is my spirit, my responsibility, and yet I couldn't solve the problem..."

'So that's what this ruckus was all about,' he thought holding in his laughter.

Such triviality hadn't crossed his busy mind especially after he had written it off as dealt with. While he was slightly bothered by being disturbed by a non-existing problem, he still could use this occasion to gain further trust from Emilia.

"Puck is a Great Spirit," he began with a serious tone, crossing his hands on the desk as he did, "and while he is indeed your spirit and your responsibility, that situation was not something that one person can take care of on its own unless they are exceptionally powerful. You see Lady Emilia, something I came to notice is your attitude towards asking for help, in particular, your attitude to see the act of asking for help as something shameful. There is nothing nobler than recognizing one's inability to do something alone, especially having tried it all to solve a problem alone."

Emilia slowly, "I know but..."

Mairon got up and moved to her side and leaned on the edge of the table, his expression turning gentle and warm. "As Queen, of course, that is a bit harder but that is why each monarch has their trusted helpers. Someone that they confess anything to and know that that secret would never escape their lips. I hope with time, I can be that person for you."

"You already are! I don't doubt your discretion...I feared your judgment," she said lowering her head in shame.

"If you asked me to march the troops into the Royal Capital and seize the throne for you, you know what I would say?" he asked her.

She looked up at him and shook her head.

"I'll make sure everything is cleaned up by the time you get there, my queen," he replied placing his hand on her shoulder. "Fear not my judgment for I have no judgment to give you. My allegiance to you will end when the sun rises in the west and sets in the east, when the seas go dry and the mountains blow in the wind like leaves," he declared. "So, until that day, you can always rely on my assistance."

Emilia slowly nodded and smiled, "Thank you Mairon...forgive my foolishness..."

"Foolishness? Yours was not foolishness, that was your scars affecting you," he replied, cryptic on purpose.

"My...scars?" the girl asked unconsciously looking at her body.

"The ones that plague your mind," he said tapping his head. "Caused by years fearing people's looks of disgust, their mockeries, their coldness. You might think that you are capable of taking them but in reality, your mind hides them in its corners but their horrific effect still impacts you. But, one day, those scars will be completely healed and on that day only one thing will weigh you down…the Crown of Lugnica."

Emilia was speechless and could only look at him. An unfamiliar sense of security washed over her, making her feel like that no matter what, things would have been fine,

"But now," He said gesturing the exit "You have a small festival to partake in, I suggest you savor these fleeting moments."

The girl nodded and with a newfound smile got up. "Thank you Mairon..." she said genuinely happy.

"You are welcome," he replied bowing his head ever so slightly.

The girl seemed to be about to leave when she realized something which made her step in her tracks and look at her mentor once again, "Ah Mairon...there was something I wanted to ask you."

He tilted his head slowly ,"Yes?"

"We are going to be making ice statues...We need one last judge...I thought of doing it myself but I don't know much about sculptures and I fear my judgment wouldn't be fair...Can you do it?" the half-elf asked.

Mairon sighed, "Well milady, as you can see I am very busy, I cannot attend and spectate the creative process."

"You don't have to! You can come once everyone is done and give your score, then you would be free to return to your duties!" she said, looking more and more excited.

The Dark Lord had to use all of his will to not decline the offer instantly which he would have certainly done if he hadn't just told her that she could ask him anything no less then a few moments ago. It was a waste of his time and abilities but he could not back out now.

"Very well, but I warn you milady, as a craftsman, I will be harsh with my scores," he warned her as she nodded happily and left the room.

The Dark Lord returned to his seat and sighed heavily at what just occurred. He really didn't want to partake in the festival, especially when he was working on something vital to his plan for the Royal Selection that required his absolute focus.

Mairon grabbed one of the spheres that were on his desk. They looked like a Palantir but they were not both in material and uses. He had used obsidian to make them which he reinforced with magic because the item he was crafting required glass-like materials. The objects he was crafting apparently were called conversing mirrors, a meteor, or Metia depending on where you live, which should allow him to communicate with anyone who possesses another one. Despite having found the book containing the instructions for the creation of such items, it was still a lengthy process that required a lot of focus on his part to the point that producing just one that could only broadcast and not receive, took him 12 hours of nonstop concentration. He was sure that the more he made them, the easier it would become but as of now, he needed quite some time to produce just one.

The objects themselves were being made in preparation for the Royal Selection, a way to get the population's eyes inside the castle where the nobles dropped their facades to show how little they cared for the commoners. This way he'll weaken Emilia's opposition for quite a while. allowing her to gather a following of her own.

Hours passed, the Dark Lord continued working on his projects until he decided to peek outside with his sight. It would seem like the others were done with their trivial competition and so it was time for him to show up, the sooner he did, the sooner he would get back to his work.

Mairon pulled himself up, taking a few seconds to hide his clear annoyance with the situation. He then left the residence and was greeted with snowy scenery. The villagers seemed to be delighted playing with the snow, something he found completely insignificant, although he did wonder why it gave them cause to be so happy. Snow was a naturally occurring phenomenon, some places see snow on a daily basis and while the current snow was not a natural occurence, it had no difference to regular snow. Was it perhaps the feeling of being able to shape something to fit their image that pleases them? In that case, he could relate to them slightly. Or was it just the act itself of playing with that frozen water that made them excited? If this was the case then the whole thing did nothing but take time away from something more useful.

Emilia spotted him and ran to him, "Mairon! You came just in time!"

He forced a smile on his face. "I promised you I would come," he said as she handed him some papers and a board to write on.

"Let's go, there is lot to give score to," she said smiling as she lead him to the sculptures.

With a heavy internal sigh, he followed her and began giving scores to the various sculptures. As he walked in the snowfield, he gave out low scores to basically any adult using only technique and overall looks and almost completely ignoring stylistic choices. The only ones that were spared by his wrath of low scores were the children, not because he wanted to, but to keep appearances as being good to children. The little Petra had made a small snow rabbit which was both anatomically incorrect and disappointingly low effort but he still gave her a 7.

On the other hand, he gave a 9 to a group of three boys who made a snow sculpture of him in his armor. While the details were completely wrong, his pride was pleased so he sent them off with his approval. It was always good to be admired.

He was surprised to see that Rem and Ram had also partaken in the competition but he had to restrain himself from smiting their sculpture which consisted of a fusion of his appearance with Roswaal's. The execution was great but the result was absolutely disgraceful, even Roswaal had agreed with him and they both gave the two maids low scores.

The contest was coming to a close but he was pleasantly surprised to find out that the best was left for last. A massive sculpture that depicted himself and Emilia fighting the demon beasts towered over him. He took his time to admire the sculpture, noticing that it was detailed down to the runes on Emilia's armor.

"Do you like my work, Lord Mairon?" one of the men of the village asked.

The Dark Lord shifted his gaze on him. "It is masterfully done, you have my praises," he said looking up and down at his interlocutor. "Have you ever considered a career in artistry or architecture?"

The man scratched the back of his head, "No, I need to work on the farm, I don't have time for that."

"That is a shame," Mairon immediately said. "And a waste of your talent. This is not the last time we'll talk about this," he added giving the work a 10 and moving on.

After a half-hour, the winner was chosen and thanks to Mairon's high score, the man he talked to won. Emilia was about to give him his prize which consisted of a basket full of goods but Mairon stopped her and told her to give the goods to the children. He approached the winner and smiled.

"Your hard work was repaid and now for your prize," he said crossing his hands. "I have greater plans for these lands and a sculptor with your talent would be very useful. When the time will come, I will call upon you so that you may start working...with a generous salary."

The man widened his eyes and bowed, "Thank you, milord!"

Mairon nodded, "Go now, delight yourself in your victory."

At those words the man left and Mairon began heading back to his workshop. On his way back, Rem and Roswaal joined him and Emilia, both looking quite pleased.

"Everything went smoothly! I am so happy!" Emilia said excitedly as Rem nodded in agreement.

"You did splendidly for your first planned event," Mairon praised.

Emilia smiled happily. "I had a good teacher!" she stated before noticing that Mairon was going back to his study, "Are you not going to join us for dinner today too?"

He shook his head, "Not until my project is complete my lady, I bid you a pleasant continuation of your day."

On the peaks of the mountains, 2 days later

The Witch-King had finally reached his destination after following the map given him by his master. According to the locals, who had indicated the area to him when he arrived in the region, the entire mountainside was infested with vicious winged dragons so aggressive that the shepherds couldn't let their animals roam without being attacked even if they were at the feet of the mountains.

And he knew that he was being observed. His gaze inspected his surroundings, catching glimpses of his targets. He knew he was close to their home and he knew that they were wary of him and for good reason. He could not even be bothered to hide his terrible presence as he marched steadfastly towards what he could feel was their nesting spot.

His intuition proved to be right as he laid his invisible eyes upon a crack between the peaks which the beasts nested in. He was about to move again when several dragons landed around him growling and snarling at him in some pathetic attempt to intimidate him. It may have worked on some low-life peasants but not against Sauron's right hand, especially when he knew that the creatures themselves had their hearts haunted by fear, fear of him.

The only reason they did not flee was that if they did they would leave the nest defenseless. And if they could not run, they had but one option...

"Do you not know Death when you see it, beasts? Surrender yourself to my master and you shall all be spared," he spoke, his voice booming and echoing across the various peaks.

At that, some of the creatures backed away in fear, laying down as a sign of submission...but not all of them, a couple of dragons still glared at him, their bodies were covered in scars and they were the largest and most fearsome of the group that had approached him.

The first flew up into the sky and began to circle around the intruder while the second charged headfirst against him with the objective of ramming him off the cliff. The Ringwraith immediately unsheathed his broadsword and ignited it in flame, elegantly sidestepping the creature's charge before slashing across it as it passed, cutting deep into its flesh.

The other came and came down, intending to rip him apart with its claws but the sky cracked apart as a bolt of lightning struck its head making it shatter into a splatter of blood and bone. Its lifeless body crashed into the ground, splitting the rock open with the weight of its impact.

The injured dragon roared in grief after seeing its ally killed and with the strength found in its anger, rose up and bit onto his arm but its teeth, upon coming into contact with the armour, exploded sending shards into its flesh. It howled in pain as the curse that came with striking a wraith began to consume it.

The once-mighty beast was barely standing, the massive slash on its side bleeding profusely and its jaws shattered. The poor animal stumbled towards where the nests were but fell to the ground as its blood was almost completely drained. It could not think nor feel the way that the higher races could, but pain was something all life could feel and the beast would roar in such pain if it had any energy left in its slowly dying body.

The Witch-King slowly approached the beast, taking his time to admire his work. Placing his sword at the beast's head, he raised it high with both hands.

"Rejoice, your pain is about to end for I have not the time to wait for you to die," he said simply, bringing down the sword on the dragon's head decapitating and decapitating it with a clean cut.

He grabbed the head and tossed it at the remaining dragons. "You shall serve my master...or you will meet the same fate."

Several days later

Felix was inside the carriage, heading towards what he thought was Roswaal L Mather's mansion. His companion, Sir Willhelm Trias was driving the carriage. Both of them were expecting the lush forest and the small village that stood before the mansion the last time they had been in the Mathers Domain, but what they were greeted with instead was a roadblock and a massive construction site.

The roadblock was maintained by a group of armoured knights who stood in the way of the carriage forcing Wilhelm to pull the reins to stop the earth dragon.

One of the knights moved to the side of the carriage. "Who are you? What business do you have here?" he asked in an ethereal voice.

Both Wilhelm and Felix were taken aback by the knight's voice and appearance. The armour was extremely well crafted but resembled nothing they had ever seen in Lugnica and despite being so close they were not able to see the knight's face through the opening of the helmet, there was only darkness there. Some sort of enchantment or spell to conceal their identity perhaps?

"We are messengers from the Royal Capital, we have come to speak to Lady Emilia about the Royal Selection," Felix explained calmly.

The knight nodded and moved back to his companions, they stared at each other quite intensely, presumably talking, and then moved away from the road. Two more knights appeared, both riding some sort of armored animal that once again Wilhelm and Felix couldn't recognize.

The knights gestured for them to follow and so they did. The two looked at their surroundings and noticed that the small village that was supposed to be there was replaced by houses made of stone. The forest that surrounded it was also gone replaced by farming plots…which seemed to not only expand in width and length but also in height when it came to some plants.

Their curiosity only intensified when instead of heading towards the mansion that was visible in the distance, the armoured knights led them down a new road that went instead towards the mountains. After a few moments, a fort appeared within their field of vision along with a giant door in the mountainside.

The fort was manned by many more knights that varied in shape and form. Those that had led them here stopped in front of the great stone doors in the mountain and turned around.

"Lord Mairon will meet you shortly," they said as they rode off back to their posts.

Felix was incredibly puzzled since he was expecting to meet Roswaal and he knew no Lord bearing the name Mairon.

"Wilhelm, what do you think?" he asked as he eyed their surroundings.

"There are a lot of soldiers here," the old man muttered trying to count the silver knights in his sight.

"Greetings esteemed guests of the capital," suddenly Mairon's voice greeted the two as he came out of the mountain along with Rem, who Felix recognized. "I do hope your journey was a safe one."

Felix hopped out of the carriage, "Nyehello! You must be Lord Mairon?"

"Indeed I am, Sir Felix," Mairon replied bowing his head a bit

Felix blinked a few times, "Did we meet before?"

He shook his head ,"No but your reputation as the kingdom's best healer precedes you,"

Felix scratched the back of his head, "Now now, you're making me blush."

"Shall we go?" Mairon asked, pointing his hand toward the inside of the mountain, getting a nod from Felix. "Rem, serve some tea to Sir Wilhelm, he too must be tired after riding for so long,"

Rem nodded and left to prepare the refreshments.

Felix narrowed his eyes a bit. Despite having not said Wilhelm's name in front of him, Lord Mairon already knew it. He guessed that Roswaal informed him but still…

The Dark Lord on the hand gave himself a point. He wanted to give Lady Crusch's servants a taste of the winds of change so that they could report it to her. He wanted them to know that Emilia no longer stood alone as a fragile half-elf but that now she stood tall and with powerful allies. He would not have done any of that if Roswaal had not told him about the accords with Lady Crusch regarding the communication of the date of the Royal Selection's beginning.

The Dark Lord wasted little time in exploring Felix's mind, absorbing everything he could like a sponge. Of course, some memories were impossible for him to crack open without making Crusch's knight aware of what he was doing but he was happy with what he found…

He was intrigued by Felix's choice of dress. Felix was very much a male, which was obvious to Mairon, yet he seemed to relish dressing like a woman and playing with the hearts of men… interesting.

It did not seem to lessen his reputation and standing in any way, which was doubly more curious. Perhaps Mairon had misinterpreted the customs of the new land he had found himself in? Or perhaps it was purely a choice, born out of a personal desire or a traumatic experience. Maybe he could have checked for that while exploring his mind but it was not worth the hassle

Yet for all his cross-dressing, Mairon could tell that the demihuman's true feelings lay with his lady, Duchess Karsten who was ever-present in the man's mind and heart.

They reached the living room where Emilia was waiting. The guest and the half-elf exchanged the usual pleasantries before sitting down to discuss the reason they had met. Felix told them when the Royal Selection would take place and its modalities. After Rem came in with some refreshments which they all drank together, Felix bid them farewell and returned to the carriage so that he could head back to his lady.

Mairon was satisfied with the meeting, having learned that Crusch was planning an expedition against the White Whale from the unsuspecting mind of the cross-dressing catboy. One of his Nazgul in the capital had informed him that the Duchess was gathering men and weapons and he had first thought that she was going to seize the throne by force.

Emilia on the other hand looked nervous, "Two days…"

"Plenty of time to practice more," Mairon said smiling, "as long as you follow what I taught you, everything will go as planned."

"What if I freeze up?" She asked looking up at him.

"Then you just have to look at that ring, it will guide you," he nodded toward the silver ring on her finger, reassuring her.

They were about to continue with their usual routine when a loud commotion outside caught their attention. To their surprise, they found themselves looking at Murazor sitting on a winged dragon's back, the entire courtyard was surrounded by winged dragons of all sizes and colours.

Emilia was in awe but Mairon was too busy calming the beasts down. He knew that the Witch-king had used his terrifying aura to make them submit but he had read about half-human half-dragons hybrids capable of communicating with them and he didn't want anyone to discover how exactly he had tamed these beasts. It would be a mark on his hard-won benevolent reputation.

He used his calming aura to make them feel safe with him, he couldn't take away what they have seen from Murazor but he could make them choose between a benevolent master and a terrible one. The dragons immediately started to land near him and approach him, already feeling safe with him.

"You did well Murazor. You may go, you have earned some time. Recover your strength, for soo I shall have another task for you," Mairon ordered his Nazgul, mindful not to be too brisk with Emilia beside him.

The Witch-king dismounted his new mount and obeyed, heading inside the mountain.

Aside from the fact that he'd now have to spend time calming the terrified dragons, Mairon was quite pleased. Now that he had learned about Crusch's plans, Murazor's timing was perfect as these dragons will soon prove themselves useful.

"I thought that only some in Volacchia could tame them," Emilia muttered in shock.

"We have dealt with the terrible beasts of Mordor, Murazor knows how to treat an aggressive animal," Mairon explained to her. "Now, let us return to our duties, after all, we still have to prepare for the Selection."

Two days later

Emilia was mounted atop her spirit armoured elk. Mairon and twenty-five Silver Knights were astride their own mounts beside her, they would be her escort. Rem was behind them, and would be using her own metal horse to pull the carriage with their baggage.

Once the preparations were done, they departed. By the usual blessed speeds of earth dragons, they were expecting to arrive in 4 hours, sometime around evening, but their horses not needing rest made their journey slightly shorter and they arrived earlier.

They proceeded to Roswaal's residence in the capital and made themselves at home. The rest of the day was spent getting everything in order at their residence. Once night fell and everyone had fallen asleep, Mairon went into the courtyard and summoned his Nazgul. In an instant, eight wraiths manifested in the shadows, their incorporeal forms kneeling before him.

He gave each of them the forms he had prepared for them, armour and cloaks, and sent them back off into disguise to await their mission. He needed them in their physical form now to carry out the next part of his plan. One which involved the mirrors he had spent so long making.

The Dark Lord spent the rest of the night sitting in front of the window staring outside as he thought of what was about to happen. Before he realized it, the sun was rising on the horizon.

The hours of the early morning passed silently, he watched as the city came to life not knowing that today the Selection would take place, an event that would begin the process that would lead to the election of their new monarch. They were ignorant for now, but he will make sure that they will witness it nonetheless.

Soon their residence also came to life as its occupants woke up. Rem began to perform her duties and Emilia was talking to the Silver Knights as part of her morning talk with the spirits. Mairon's eye remained fixed on the Royal Castle and the various residences of the other candidates.

Finally, the hour came at last. Rem helped Emilia put on her armour after wearing her own. The Dark Lord wondered how he should present himself, he thought about going in his current state but he then chose against it. The form of Annatar could be reserved for the after party but now it was time for a knight. With a thought and a spell, his magnificent armour covered his body from head to toe.

Both Rem and Emilia stared at him in awe as he walked out. After all, his armour was imposing, it completely changed his gentle and pleasing appearance into that of a mighty warrior. At the same time, the craftsmanship was beyond masterful.

They remained waiting there for a while. No one spoke, for there was a certain edge in the air. The first to leave was Roswaal who, as the Court Magician had some duties to attend to. Then as the sun reached its zenith, the rest of them readied to leave as well.

They all got on their mounts and rode to the Royal Castle's gates. On the way there, the people on the streets looked at them curiously due to their strange but fascinating steeds and armour but no one had any true interest in them.

Upon arriving, the Royal Knights were surprised to see that Emilia had not come in a carriage but instead had ridden in on a strange mount with many mounted soldiers. They were against letting the Silver Knights in at first, but Emilia insisted that they were her escort and soon they had no choice but to relent.

They left their mounts in the courtyard as they entered the castle. Mairon was rather disappointed by the Royal Castle, it looked imposing from afar but as they got closer it looked more like a church or a cathedral at best. Not at all a worthy seat for a ruler.

As they entered the castle and moved to the throne room, the Dark Lord noted that at least the interior was slightly better than the exterior. Finally, they all stood in front of the door separating them from the throne room, where everyone else had already gathered.

Emilia took a deep breath and looked at Mairon for a moment, asking for assurance. He simply gave a nod and at that moment, the Royal Knights swung open the doors as the herald announced Emilia's arrival.

To everyone's surprise, Emilia's party did not make a single sound as they entered the room and took their position. Absolute silence despite the heavy plated armour moving around. That was thanks to Mairon who had used one of his spells to silence their movement in order to emulate the the Elven warriors of Middle-Earth who were so graceful that their steps didn't even move the air.

He was delighted upon seeing that he had achieved what he was looking for as everyone in the room stared at them in awe, watching as the Silver Knights marched with expert precision before stopping and opening their ranks allowing Emilia to walk in front of them before shuffling back into formation.

Emilia was also absolutely gorgeous as her armour shined under the light of the room giving her the aura of an angelic being.

Mairon had spent the entire morning observing the other royal candidates because he wanted Emilia to be the last to enter the throne room so that she could get all the attention to herself and he had succeeded.

One of the royal knights approached Emilia. "Who is your knight…?" he asked in a low tone of voice.

"That would be me," Mairon said looking down at the man.

"I-I see," the knight said intimidated a bit by Mairon's towering figure. "Please stand with the other knights and wait," he said gesturing to the group of Royal Knights lined up at the left of the Silver Knights' formation.

Mairon turned his gaze towards the pointed direction and upon spotting Reinhard, Felix and the other candidates' knights, moved to join them. Him breaking off from the main formation caused many to begin whispering among the ranks of the nobles and knights.

"Lord Mairon," Reinhard greeted him bowing his head a bit. "It is a pleasure to see you again,"

"Eh?!" Felix gasped analyzing Mairon from head to toe clearly confused by Mairon's armored form which differred a lot from his formal one in size.

"The pleasure is mine, Sir Reinhard," Mairon replied before looking at Felix. "It is also a pleasure to see you again, Sir Felix."

"Y-Yeah, likewise," Crusch's knight replied nodding .

"Damn, Lady Emilia sure got one huge knight didn't she?" suddenly the man behind Mairon said.

The Dark Lord turned around laying his eyes on Priscilla's knight, Aldebaran. He chose to not reply to his comment due to the Selection's start.

The knight that first spoke with Mairon began talking to everyone introducing himself as Marcos Gildark, Knight Commander of the Royal Guard and arbitrator of the Royal Selection, he then started to go on a long-winded explanation about the reason the Selection was taking place. Mairon wanted to cut to the chase but he understood that there were certain rituals that needed to be fulfilled in any other kingdom.

Suddenly, Anastasia cut Marcos off telling him to skip the explanations entirely soon joined by Crusch who seemed to be sure about the reasons for the Selection meetings, which according to her were to have a meeting to meet their rivals and to get to know each other before the competition. She was quickly proved wrong.

Mairon was dumbfounded by the amount of lack of etiquette displayed by everyone involved but remained silent even when Anastasia kept complaining about not having time to hear the whole reason for them to be there asking the other candidates to agree with her but she received no reply.

"Please Marcos continue," Emilia said calmly.

The knight nodded and returned to explain how the four of them were chosen by something called the Dragon Tablet which prophesized the presence of 5 priestesses of the dragon, the only ones able to renew the contract with the dragon and become the new monarch.

Many began to whisper upon hearing the number five but Mairon had a vague idea of who the mysterious fifth was considering the fact that the Sage Council was saying that Reinhard had found the fifth and how his last meeting with the Sword Saint went.

Hence why the Dark Lord was not surprised when Reinhard introduced the fifth candidate who soon proved to be none other than Felt. She walked into the room wearing a frilly yellow dress and immediately walked to Reinhard. She seemingly smiled at him before trying to surprise kick him, an attack the Sword Saint easily blocked.

Mairon would have been amused especially after seeing Felt's rude attitude turned into a comedy because of the dress she was wearing. Unfortunately, the two's antics were only further delaying the Selection which was slow already by itself.

"Oh! The Tower Knight is also here!" Felt remarked as she laid eyes upon Mairon. "Oi! How's the weather up there!"

Mairon cleared his throat since ignoring her would only cause the young lady to get more annoying.

"I'll talk to you later, Felt, let's finish this first," he said in a calm tone.

"Yeah yeah, the sooner we start, the sooner we finish," Felt said rolling her eyes and placing herself with the other candidates. "So what do you want me to do?"

The Sage Council asked Reinhard to prove that Felt was indeed a candidate and the Sword Saint obliged by simply putting an insignia similar to Emilia's in the girl's hand. As soon as the small object touched her hand, it started glowing red.

Upon seeing this, the Sage Council asked Reinhard about the circumstances of his finding. Reinhard explained how he had found Felt in the slums which, of course, upset the various nobles which of course prompted Felt to lash out at them.

Mairon began to wonder if this was actually a circus instead of a Royal Selection since never in his life he had witnessed a court this full of incompetence.

The situation got even worse when Priscilla started insulting Felt who of course tried to pick up a fight with her. Sauron couldn't believe his eyes when Priscilla started a spell with the objective of harming Felt, he would have intervened if it wasn't for Reinhard who did it first.

"This is a holy place! What were you thinking?!" Emilia inquired standing in front of Felt in a protective manner.

"I was about to put that girl in her place," Priscilla said moving her fan in front of her face.

"Have the decency to apologize at least," Emilia said steeling herself.

"Why don't you apologize first for being born? You silver-haired half-elf," Priscilla immediately shot back eyeing Emilia.

"I may look like the Witch but you're the one who acts like her by thinking that your superiority gives you the right to harm others!" Emilia shot back immediately with no hesitation surprising everyone and causing more whispers among the nobles.

Priscilla of course was about to reply but…

"Silence!" One of the members of the Sage Council. "Enough of this useless banter!"

Mairon smirked under his helmet, that was one good comeback, he made a mental note to praise Emilia for it later.

Marcos cleared his throat, "Please, each of you take a step forth."

The first to be called were Priscilla and her knight. As expected of her she claimed to be worthy of the throne because she is the only one fit to rule and everyone should bow to her and those who did would be rewarded. If he hadn't seen her previous actions, Mairon would have been shocked by the insolence this woman was emanating.

Then it was Crusch's and Felix's turn to speak. She promised everyone in the room that she would make the dragon forget about his contract with the Royals because she wanted the people of Lugnica to be more independent. Mairon doubted she would be able to achieve her goal without a major uprising of the people. One person cannot simply choose to eliminate something that the people consider holy by themselves even if they are the Queen.

The next to be called was Anastasia and her knight Julius Juukulius. Miss Hoshin went on a speech on how greedy she was and that commercial hegemony was not enough for her and that she wanted a whole nation for her. The Dark Lord wondered if she truly believed that simply saying that would explain her intentions upon becoming the new monarch.

Finally, Emilia's name was called and so Mairon moved to her side. The half-elf held her head up as she observed the people around her.

"Four hundred years ago, a great calamity destroyed half the world, a calamity that we all know as the Witch of Envy whose name I dare not speak to respect everyone in here. My name is Emilia and I match the Witch's description and that is why it is my duty towards the people to fix the damage she has inflicted on everyone! My wish is to give everyone equal rights and install a principle of meritocracy, this way everyone will have the possibility to climb the social ladder if they work hard enough and deserve it! I want to increase the strength of the Royal Army so that our borders may be safer! I want to maximize the usage of our lands through the use of advanced farming and animal breeding so that everyone may have a warm meal on their table! I want to give our beloved citizens universal rights that protect them from the abuses of those in power! The right to speak their mind, the right to free and just trials and more! This way, no matter their rank no one will be able to arbitrarily torture, kill or punish one of our citizens without a proven reason! I want to build schools so that everyone may get an education and do more with their lives than what it's expected them to do!" she did a pause eyeing Priscilla. "Everyone should have a fair trial managed by an unbiased court where the people charged with offences would be innocent until proven guilty…And lastly, I wish to see the complete and utter destruction of the Witch Cult and of the Demon Beasts that have plagued these beautiful lands! Never again their shadows will darken our doors! Never again their action will bring death and destruction to our towns and villages!"

The room was showered in whispers as Emilia took a step back allowing Mairon to speak.

"As we are talking, we are building the city of Rìs Mindon in the land graciously given by Lord Roswaal. This city will be a place where the principles you just heard about will start to be applied. While the construction has begun less than a week ago, our workforce has already made lots of progress and I am optimistic that we will be able to give more proof of our intentions in the next months. As for the persecution of the Witch's cult and the eradication of the Demon Beasts I can already tell you that soon enough we will bring down the White Whale as we have managed to trace its movements and are now preparing a large scale offensive against it with a force of five thousand knights," he announced.

"Bigger armies tried to subjugate that beast! Even the previous Sword Saint tried and failed!" someone shouted. "What makes your alleged army so different?"

Mairon gestured to his knights, who took off their helmets revealing their emptiness shocking everyone in the room.

"Our army is made of spirits that willingly chose to follow Lady Emilia, they are more than a match for the beast," Mairon added as someone started clapping.

"Yeah kick their asses!" Felt said as she kept clapping. "Finally someone with some brain showed up! You have my vote!"

Emilia and Mairon bowed to the Sages and began heading back to their place.

"Lady Felt, it is your turn," Marcos said surprising the young lady.

"I ain't interested in becoming whatever you want me to become!" Felt barked back shaking her head "I just want to go home!"

"So your forfeit?"

"Yeah Yeah whatever!" she replied.

"This has got to be a joke right? The Astrea family brings us a sewer rat as a candidate while the Mather family brings us a half-elf that wants to give rights to the peasants who can't even think for themselves and open schools to them!"

"I agree with him! This situation is unacceptable!" one of the Sages said, "Even this half-elf's very presence brings filth to this holy place!"

Emilia remained silent, her expression stoic. She was about to address them but she saw that Mairon was already facing them.

"Indeed this situation is quite hilarious, the Duchess Crusch here said that this place depends on the dragon but the truth is that you like to pretend it depends on the dragon," Mairon said with a gentle but firm tone. "You say that you are following the instructions left by the dragon but you push away the results of this decision because you don't like them. You say that Lady Emilia shouldn't be here but she was chosen by the same dragon that four hundred years ago defeated the Witch alongside the Flugel and the Sword Saint. I wonder what happened to the dragon?" he turned around to see if anyone had the gall to answer him "Maybe he forgot what the Witch looked like? No? Then Lady Emilia has the same rights to be here as the Karsten Duchess and so does Lady Felt. Since I have come here all I have seen is senseless bickering and an attempted murder. If someone is going to desecrate this holy place is certainly not going to be Lady Emilia who despite being shunned since she got here, has respected you, this holy place, and its history." He then walked to a certain spot in the room, "Not to mention that despite this room being filled with knights and high officials, someone has managed to enter and no one has noticed."

As he said this he lifted one of the tiles on the floor. He then grabbed the person that was hiding below them who turned out to be Rom, Felt's former guardian.

Mairon forced him on his knees as Felt widened her eyes and rushed to the old man along with a few members of the Royal Guard who apprehended the giant.

"Old man! Let him go!" Felt shouted angrily.

"I am sorry Lady Felt but you no longer can give us orders having forfeited your position," Marcus said shaking his head .

"So that's how it is very well! I will become this place's fucking queen!" she said stepping forward. "I will destroy you all! That is my promise! NOW LET HIM GO!"

The Royal Guards let the old man go and Felt rushed to his side.

"We apologize for the inconvenience…" the member of the Sage council that had previously insulted Emilia said before looking at her, "And I would like to personally apologize to you milady, it is undeniable that you were chosen by the dragon and I let my judgment be clouded by…"

"It is okay, it's not my first time that prejudices had the better of someone, I accept your apologies," Emilia said bowing her head .

"Thank you…unless something else decides us to pay us a visit...I think we can dismiss today's meeting…you are all free to go."

With that everyone began to head for the exit. All of them ignored the fact that the whole Selection was shown to the people already. Mairon had embedded one of the conversing mirrors on the helmet of one of the Silver knights which was connected to the ones in the hands of the Nazgul who, disguised, had gone into the main populated areas and showed the citizens the whole process…

As always I want to thank my beta Tertius711