Now we move on to the next day with Traysek's meeting, but as things are starting to look up, the battle of Ur approaches...

Chapter 54

Expanding the nest

The Next day

Blackfeather manor, Dining room...

At the dining room table in Noble Redguard armor, Traysek awaited the guest with the Headmaid and Rela...Frowning at the time passing...

"Huh...I thought you said he'd be here around this time...looks like he's running a bit late," He commented.

"He's been here for quite a while." Rela pointed while looking at a chair that moved on its own at the statement.

Traysek gave a hard frown, before clicking the button of his scouter to find someone there, "Well I'll be...someone is here...hello there~ no need to be shy, that invisibility is impressive, I couldn't sense you..." with a welcoming smile.

A young man appeared, sitting, trying not to look at the Headmaid, "I wasn't waiting to see such a pair."

Traysek waved him down with a smile, "If you're concerned about the intimidating head maid and my second here, no need to be," he assured, "After all, The former arranged for this meeting today, I do hope them being here won't be an inconvenience for you," with a head bow.

"It takes more than that to intimidate a member of the Defias Brotherhood." the young man laughed, "Unless you're the boss, you can't intimidate one."

"As expected... and I think I met one of you once, working at La Plume D'or, had the same bandana..." The Redguard thought back on.

"If only you know how much he went through..." the newcomer stated with a small laugh.

Traysek raised an eyebrow, "Oh? You're familiar with each other...? He seemed like a quiet man, quiet but not unpleasant,"

"I was nothing but a lowly grunt back there until I was killed by a group of adventurers... As for the boss... he was betrayed and had the gold due to him stolen..." the Masson replied, "However... In this world, some Contracts must be respected or the will of the world acts against you,"

"I think that can be said about any world you're in, any obligation comes with a price," Traysek concurred, "That said, I wasn't aware that was your boss back there, small world indeed..." with a slow nod.

"Edwin Vancleef, the human who can unite the oppressed against the Alliance." the Masson laughed before noticing something, "How unbecoming of me, I forgot to introduce myself. The name's Malius Horgh, Defias assassin and current architect of the Masson Guild."

"It's very nice to meet you Malius~ the Name's Traysek, glad we're acquainted," The Redguard smiled, "So, Malius, Since it's my first time dealing with your guild and all, I want to know what goes into to be bound with you, maybe you could explain that to me? I have heard of your guild, but only enough to know you own most if not all the buildings built in Yamakhroz, including our house there...Correct?" with a smirk.

"You far from the answer, but close at the same time." Malius replied, "The Guild needs to be paid to begin the job, but if we need to build something from the ground up, we get a... particular way of payment; we build whatever you want us to build, but we keep the ownership until fully paid. If you miss the payment, even if it's a day, we increase the amount by 5% for each month we aren't paid."

The Redguard nodded, "I see, good to know and I've got a few rooms in mind for that..." He concurred, "How much for a room and or wing? and does it come insured...?"

"About ten Diamonds-" Malius started to answer with until...

"With the agreement of the master." Roxan cut him off, getting a nod from Rela.

Traysek sighed, "Right, speaking of which..." reached into his back pocket and pulled out the badge, focusing on it...

"Yes?" Swain's voice replied.

"Sorry to disturb you from what you're doing, but I'm meeting with the Masson guild and I have a few necessities I need to add to the house and wondered if it was okay with you," The Redguard asked.

"What kind?" Swain sighed.

"One's that'll be a benefit long-term," Traysek started with, "A medical wing, a Dorm wing, A massage parlor, A Cistern where the operatives and vendors can gather, plan and armor up if not train, and an airship dock, which I'm willing to pay for..." he finished, "If you like I can send a list..."

"Massage parlor?" Swain sounded more confused before sighing again, "Fine, but don't damage or modify the outside walls."

"I won't, I'll also get an intercom system installed in here too, I don't think everyone have will call-stones, and that makes calling for certain members convenient, just wanted to give you a heads up on that as well," The Redguard informed, "I'll pass the word, you sound busy, I'll call back if I need anything..."

"Of course," after the reply, Swain cut the call.

Traysek put the badge away, "Alright, we're good to go there, just don't modify the outer wall, but luckily, these are within them..." with a smile, "So, as you were about to say...The price for the renovations...?"

"The medical wing is 8 Diamonds, the dorm wing is 7 Diamonds, the massage parlor is 6 Diamonds, and a Cistern with a recreation space included is 10 Diamonds." Malius responded, "That would make a total of 35 Diamonds all. As for the docking place for the airships, the boss said that it's on the house since he anticipated that you'd want one."

"Alright, I can pay that in full now," The Redguard assured, "How much for a communicator for the entire housing...? I know you don't know what intercoms are, but I know there's got to be something similar..."

"That'd be... quite pricy to buy and put in..." Malius got nervous, "You're talking about the Alkaran Stones, right? Well, those are around 35 Diamonds, and setting them in is 10 Diamonds, which would be about 45 Diamonds... and if we add the rest... it'd be 80 Diamonds in total."

Traysek whistled at the price, "Well damn, expensive as it should be... okay, for now, I wouldn't need it, the current purchase will do until we get the members required for those stones," He concluded, "As for insurance and upkeep, how much would that cost...?"

"The insurance is about 3 Diamonds yearly and to keep everything good... it would be around 7 Rubies each year." the architect of the Guild replied.

The Redguard smiled at that, "Well then sir, I'll add three more diamonds to that, as well as the rubies..." pulling out a hefty gem bag, handing it to him.

Malius smirked and said, "We'll begin the work tomorrow morning."

"Excellent~ that gives us more than enough time today for advertisements and a meeting on where to take things, thank you," Traysek thanked, "Will I be able to personally contact you again for future services...?"

"Your maid has a way to contact us, so you can ask her if you need anything from us," Malius replied.

Traysek raised an eyebrow, but shook it off, "Alright~ Then that concludes business, I'll keep an eye out for you guys tomorrow, make sure you're let in,"

"Don't be surprised by what you'd see." Malius laughed before offering his hand, "Pleasure doing business."

"Hope to see you again soon," Traysek commented, completing the handshake...

"Well then, see you tomorrow." and he disappeared.

"Interesting, Identical teleportation magic..." The Redguard hummed on, "Can't wait to see what they can do tomorrow..." standing up and stretching.

"What's the plan now?" Rela asked.

"Nothing for now, unless something comes up from Swain's end that we'll need to take care of..." Traysek shrugged, "Our real work doesn't start until after the Renovations...Not to mention, we'd still have to wait a bit for recruits since the battle of Ur is nearing..."

Rela stared at him for a moment before saying, "Want a cup of coffee?"

"I'd love one, Yes," He replied without missing a beat, "I like the way you make 'em"

"Alright." Rela nodded.

Ur...

Church...

As the church was empty of all citizens, a man in red and white holy robes was kneeling and praying to a statue of Celestine.

"Your stares are disturbing me..." he spoke.

Beasley looked around at the well-decorated hall, "You know...? I've only been here a few times as a younger man, never thought I'd back in these halls again...brings back memories..." smiling at something, "I came to inform you, that Volt wishes to speak to us about where to take the next plans, according to him... We've got an anchor to this battle,"

"Is that so..." the man was unimpressed, before getting up, then turning to the former prime minister, showing a man in his 40s wearing a red chasuble over a white alb with a red stole going over his left shoulder. As well as a white cross embedded on the chasuble under his chin. He also wears a white miter that has red, golden, and green straps on the top. And, most unsettling, a white skull mask over the top part of his face. He sighed before saying, "I wonder what he could do this time to save himself..."

"I do pray it's something better than how he did during Feoh's battle," The old Minister grumbled, "If Lady Marpesia still has hope in him, then I'm certain he's got something new..."

"I doubt it." the holy man walked past him, "He is but an overconfident child believing that he's strong."

The Prime Minister gave a light chuckle, "Still the same as always..." under his breath, following the holy man out...

"I know one thing for a fact," the holy man narrowed his eyes, looking at Valery who had an empty look, "If you want to win, use their weakness."

Beasley regarded the Lightbringer, nodding in approval, "Your power's in full effect, Even a Lightbringer couldn't resist its hold it seems... A pity, I thought her the stronger sister..."

"She is." he chuckled, "But even the strongest possess a weakness."

"I see, Luckily her sister's not here to see this," Beasley, "Although, having more than one in your ranks couldn't hurt either,"

"If they do decide to attack, I can easily take control of them." the holy man chuckled, "After all, those monsters are beneath us, humans, and should act as the low-lives that they are."

The Prime minister laughed, "Spoken truly, Archbishop~ And if we can make them kneel here, then there might be a chance to take back Feoh," with a smile, as they reached a door, Beasley being the first to open it, finding Volt, Kin and Hicks waiting...

"I take that you're ready." the Archbishop stated.

The Black dog leader nodded, "Indeed, Archbishop~ The final touches are being added by Gideon, and...We've got a helping hand in this time," He grinned, "Marpesia was more than grateful to lend him to me, but our special friend should come in handy,"

"For the sake of victory, I'd assume that you know what you're doing." the holy man sighed as Valery was following him, "I take that your men have settled in the armory."

"Of course, they've taken to the weapons well, and are currently getting used to their new...Equipment," Kin informed, "The Godslayer weapons are in development as well, just in case you run into..." Pausing with a sigh, "An Old headache of ours..."

"Now... let's talk about some things that must be settled before the battle." the Archbishop sat, "There are some... taint within the kingdom that must be dealt with," he looked at Volt, "Can I count on you to clear that mess?"

The trio of black dogs looked amongst themselves, the lead of them nodding...

"A Taint huh? Sure, we'll take care of your problem," Volt agreed, "But what's the issue...?"

"First, there's a couple of brothers that turned their back on the church," was the answer he got, "I hope that you know what must be done... as for the second problem, some sort of Elder Lord appeared in the Luvenlis territories and claimed them; make sure that they know who sets the rules..."

"You got it, we'll send some teams for them..." Volt concurred, "What about the brothers can you tell me...?"

"Their family is a long-serving member of the nobility of Ur." the holy man answered, "Their father was an exemplary noble... but these two, they put their family to shame. They stopped any business with the church and got themselves some sort of mercenaries as guards." after a sigh, he continued, "Unfortunately, we don't know where to put their great fortune and slaves if anything was to happen to them. We would need someone to keep an eye on them."

The black dog leader smirked, "Well then, the boys do need something new after all...I won't mind taking them off their hands," with a chuckle, "And this...Elden or Elder lord, what about them...?"

At first, there was a heavy silence, "Nothing... they just appeared and took over the Luvenlis territories. Not only that, but some strange kind of soldiers began to appear around... the undying kind..."

"Interesting, the undead eh? Very well, we'll look more into that," Volt assured, "For now, I'll leave with this...You know the people you've got on the wanted posters, the highest bounties...?"

"Everyone knows about them." the holy man answered.

"Right, be wary of them and their leader..." The black dog leader sighed, "Three times, he's foiled me...and is the reason we lost the battle of Feoh..."

Beasley nodded, "He speaks true... I've met his adversary...He's uppity upstart... That's the nicest way I can say that...Even had Feoh's Greatest bard helping him during the battle,"

"That half Pixie is on his side?" there were nods at the Archbishop's question, "If they find out that they can cancel my ability with her voice..."

Kin waved him down, "As long as they didn't join the Bird Of Prey, you won't have that to worry about, maybe it was just a one-time thing, She does have a thing for Princess Alicia..."

"Then... we can turn her to our side if we 'Take in the princess to protect her'," the holy man nodded, "But... is it doable?"

Volt thought on that, "You know...? I'm not sure... For all we know, they could have her rotting in one of her dungeons or exiled her from Feoh, worst case scenario, they're already staying in the same house...I won't be able to know, because my guys there have been wiped out..."

"But not all of mine..." Beasley added with a sly smirk, "There are few there that are still loyal to the alliance...The Esteemed silver-axes for example...I can contact their leader and see if she'll be up to it,"

"We're still gathering resources to get a chance at defending Ur." the Archbishop hummed before adding, "Moreover... I heard that the rebellion isn't going in our favor in Geofu... should they win, we'd have to fight two fronts..."

"I see, well, that'll be something when we get to Geofu, hopefully by then, the favor shifts towards yours there..." Volt commented, before turning to the other two, "Let's go," leading them to the door, "We're going to take off from here, but as for your requests, consider that handled," leaving the room with his men.

"If they're smart about how they'd approach it, they may get some results." the Archbishop stated.

Meanwhile, in Yamakhroz...

The streets were very busy with either food stalls or businesses. Both Eric and Zephyr were walking, looking around.

"I'll admit...It's nice to be back here after all that," he smiled, watching a couple of kids run past them laughing, "So...where are we off to first?"

"I need to get myself a ground mount first." Zephyr sighed, "The only one I currently have is the army's possession."

"Ah, I didn't know you had a rental mount," Erik said, "Alright to the mount store it is...Wonder if I got enough for one... Will need something to get back to them after my free days are up," with a soft chuckle.

"Who knows, you may get one for free." Zephyr joked a little.

"Come on now, I don't think my luck's that good," He rubbed the back of his neck, "I already feel lucky enough as is..."

When they arrived in front of one of the mount vendors, they saw Dargo talking while keeping a hand over an armored saber cat.

Erik raised an eyebrow, "Dargo? Hey! I see you came back too!" with a friendly smile.

Dargo turned toward them, "It's you... how're you doing?"

"We're doing much better, thanks for askin~'" The Nord smiled, "So what brings you here? We're here for a ground mount...Looks like you just got done buying this one,"

"Since I'm returning my badge today, I figured I'd use it now." the Dark Elf replied.

Erik frowned at that, "Return your badge...?" until his eyes widened in realization, "Oh...! You quit the Kletzkrieg, eh...? Wow...What made you quit?"

"I have my own reasons..." Dargo answered.

The Nord nodded in agreement, "Ah... I can understand that, no further details needed..." with a grin, "Well, I don't want to hold you up, It was nice seeing you again, D, I'll catch you later,"

Dargo nodded before walking away with the mount.

After waving at him during his departure, he turned back to Zephyr, "Okay, I think we're up next," as they moved up to the stall...

They saw an older Dark Elf man with a large nasty scar on his left cheek that showed bones on his face.

"How can I help you folks?" he asked.

"Hello there! We're here for a mount that she's in the market for, a ground one to be exact...wanted to see what you had in store," Erik greeted with a friendly smile, nudging her.

"Take your pick." the Dark Elf shrugged before sitting behind a desk, "After all, you can't choose... they do."

"Alright, we'll let you know when we're ready," The Nord assured, as they began to browse...

While not as big as the last mount shop he and Traysek were in, this store had a good stock...The first one they tried was a large lizard type, which blinked at them when they came across it.

Zephyr walked to some mounts that had armor on before setting her eyes on an armored bipedal saber cat with green fur.

The Nord turned from the Moose mount and found her staring at the Sabercat, "He or she is a pretty one~ and they match your element well~" he complimented.

"It's one of the restricted mounts that are sold here." Zephyr pointed, "Thankfully, I still have my badge..."

He smiled, "Right...Armored mounts are for the military, and since you haven't been made to turn yours in yet, I can see why you'd get it...not to mention the fangs and claws it has...it suits you well," with an approved smile.

"What about you, dear sir, anything that caught your eye?" the stable master asked with a smile.

Erik shrugged, "You know...? I haven't thought about it, I was just here with her while she picked hers out, wasn't sure if I had enough to afford one," with a nervous chuckle, however, unbeknownst to him...A certain snow Gryphon watched him with a keen interest...

"I take that one of them took your interest." the stable master stated.

"Hmm..." The Nord hummed, thinking, as a shadow loomed over him...

He then felt something, messing with his hair, putting a hard frown on his face, "Who in the-?" looking up to find big curious eyes looking down him, blinking, belonging to the Snow Gryphon, who cocked its head, "Oh!~ Hi big guy! I haven't gotten around to you yet, But you're gorgeous~ Was that you...?" getting a light peck on the head to confirm it, "Yeah...that was you..." he laughed, "I love your feathers, reminds of the snow from home~"

"Well, it seems like she just got a new owner." the stable master chuckled.

Erik blinked twice in a stupor, "Wait what...? A-are you sure? I'm certain she's expensive," stroking the feathers on its face when it leaned down to him.

He laughed and said, "Consider it a thanks for saving my daughter from that fort."

The Nord frowned hard at that, "Fort...?" eyes going wide when he remembered, "No way...! Your daughter was in that messed up place? Wow...Small world indeed..." nodding to himself, "In that case, you are more than welcome and..." glancing at Zephyr, "Zephyr here also partook in that~" with a proud smile.

"Same with the guy who was before you." the stable master smirked, "I'm not out of the loop."

"Ah, I see... Once again, small world," The Nord nodded, "Well, thank you for the mount, sir~ what's your name?"

"The name's Dandelion," the stable master replied.

Erik smiled, "Nice to meet you, Dandelion, The name's Erik, glad we could help,"

"Here's the deeds." the stable master gave Eric the papers.

He took the papers with a nod, "Appreciate it, I Pray we do business again~"

"I told you that you might get one for free." Zephyr chuckled as she got the papers for her mount.

He sighed with a nod and smile, "You sure wind's your only ability...? and that you don't have Clairvoyance in there somewhere...?" he joked.

"I'm not one of the twin Oracles." Zephyr replied, "I wish that I could predict things."

Erik chuckled, "Don't we all...? That said, I've never heard of those twins, the only one I know that is... Is Grace from the Gem Ahd bar,"

"Those twins aren't affiliated with anyone as they're under the protection of someone called the Knave." Zephyr pointed, "One of the element giver."

He thought about that as they walked, "I see, well either way, you predicted that just like one," he complimented, before smiling, "So, is anywhere else you'd like to go...? You Hungry?"

"Well, it is midday, so why not eat lunch?" Zephyr replied.

"Sure~ Anywhere in mind? favorite place?" Erik asked with a raised eyebrow.

"In all honesty, I don't have something called a favorite place," Zephyr stated.

Erik hummed on that, "No favorite place eh? That's fine, we'll just stop at the first thing,"

After they made the corner, they found a restaurant with a large pizza spinning around, the nord frowning at it...

"Hmm, what kind of food is that...?" He asked her, watching the sign spin like a wheel.

"That's a pizza," Zephyr answered, "It's some sort of pie but with cheese and a salty tomato sauce."

He stopped and thought on that, "Really now...? That...Admittedly sounds good," he noted, "Mind if we stop there then?"

"Sure, why not." Zephyr shrugged.

When they stepped in, they were greeted by the smells of pizza, as well as the crowds of people, either waiting in line or sitting at tables...

"Here's a free table." Zephyr pointed to a table in the corner.

"Sounds good to me, let's go," He nodded, taking a deep whiff of the place, reaching the table. "Gods, the smells in this place..." The Nord complimented, thinking about something, "It makes me wonder why we've never had anything like this before,"

"It takes a lot of time to make one and the cost of some ingredients is... quite high," Zephyr stated.

Erik slowly nodded, "I can imagine... Still, that makes me even more eager to try it," with a smile.

Zephyr picked up one of the scrolls that were on the table, "Which one are you going to have? I think that I'll take the mushroom one."

"oooh~ Excellent choice," The Nord approved, finding the one she mentioned, and scanning the rest..., "Hmm, I guess I'll try the meat-lovers mushroom, can't go wrong there,"

"What about drinks?" Zephyr asked, "I'll go with the mead. You?"

"I'll have the same, goes well with something like this," The Nord shrugged, "I am surprised though, didn't know that was the preferred drink for you,"

"W-Well, it's sweet, you know..." Zephyr blushed as she wrote the order before that a squirrel took it.

He smiled at that, "It's nothing wrong with that, one of the reasons I enjoy it~" Before a slight blush came over his face, "And...it was something I grew up around, it's very good cold, but warmed up? Now that's when flavor comes out..." humming at the thought, "Ever had it with juniper berries?"

"With what?" Zephyr looked confused.

He thought about that, "Ah that's right, it probably doesn't grow here, but those are berries that grow on a small tree, and they're normally used for brewing, insanely poisonous if eaten raw or not boiled enough, seen my share of those accidents there," shivering at an incident.

"That sounds... strange... but not unheard of." Zephyr added, "Some fruits are poisonous unless they have their seeds removed."

"Almost sounds like those very berries, they're most likely different fruits, but just as poisonous," Erik concurred as the waitress walked up to them.

"There you go, dear customers," And each received their pizza and drink.

Erik blinked twice, "Talk about fast... I don't think we waited too long," he complimented, "Thank you~"

Zephyr took a slice and began eating.

He glanced down at his pizza, and took a slice, and tried it, humming at the bite, "Mmm! Oh that's good, I'll have to recommend the crew here, wow!" taking another bite.

"They're the only ones who can do it here," Zephyr pointed, "A lot tried to copy them... but none of them survived the firm battles..."

The Nord frowned, taking a sip of mead, "Yikes...Even restaurant battles get bloody here? What ever happened to cook-offs?" he joked, taking another bite.

"Whoever tries to copy the other and fails... end up paying the price..." Zephyr solemnly said before taking a second slice.

"Mmph!" Erik hummed, taking another sip, "So there were tons of restaurants trying to copy this? I can see why they failed, there's no way to copy a flavor like this...I almost feel bad for the others,"

"Those who tried their best... couldn't even match a fraction of this restaurant's power..." Zephyr added.

He chuckled, "That sounds intimidating, would hate to get on their bad side here," taking a drink, "You really seem to know the history of this place, were you a witness to it?"

Zephyr looked intensely before replying, "Nope, but I heard what was said."

"I see...well, good on them to hold their name down, must've been a challenge," The Nord smiled, taking another bite...

Feoh Kingdom

Niall's Fort

A golden Knight escorted the former princess to a room.

"Your new armor is inside." he stated as he opened the door, "It will also be your quarters for your time here."

She gave the room an overall stare, finding it to be...much smaller and more plain, sighing deeply, "Thank you and give the commander my regards..."

The knight bowed his head slightly before leaving her in the room.

Once left alone, she walked around in her quarters... the walls looked old and a bit worn, sturdy, but older...the bed however was new but low quality...

'I can't tell if I'm in a quarter or dungeon as old as these walls look...' she mentally noted, going over to her armor.

It was nearly the same color but with a few minor changes, making her frown deeply...

'It's...an improvement to my current set of armor, but...' frowning at the small horn, 'Is that a demon horn...? Where's my tiara supposed to go?' looking it over.

There was also a halberd standing next to the armor.

Alicia noted the large weapon, raising an eyebrow, "Is that...? A halberd...?" looking it over..

It was a beautiful weapon for certain, decorated in gold and strange engravings...it looked like a weapon from one of their armories in the holy army.

However...there was a problem...

"Hrrgn!" She grunted, trying to pick it up and hold it in stance, stumbling in step...

It was too damn heavy...

Alicia struggles to stay on her feet while wielding it, 'Why is it so heavy? They honestly can't expect me to start using this... Can they...?'

There was a knock on the door.

The former princess nearly jumped, almost falling over due to the weight of the halberd, lying it back against the wall before addressing who was at the door.

"Who's there?" She asked, furrowing her brow.

"I have two letters for you, my lady," a voice belonging to a young man, "One is from your mother while the other one is from your betrothed."

She had a confused expression, walking up to the door...

When it opened, Alicia still had a dumbfounded look on her face, "Uh...thank you...? and what do you mean by Betrothed...? I had no suiters," taking the letters.

"That's... better discuss it with lady Aurora..." the one armed worker nervously smiled before walking away.

The former princess blinked, watching him leave "O...kay...?" heading back into the room.

On the desk, she held the letter from her mother, sighing deeply... 'Alright... Now let's see what mother's talking about...' opening the letter from her and unraveling it...

My dear daughter Alicia

By the time this letter arrives, I'd be beginning my duties. The public knowledge knows nothing of what happened to me afterward, that's why I'll be going with the name Winifred Fane. I talked with Niall and he assured me that he won't slack off your training as it will be an important step for you, he also pointed out how bad your old armor is... which I approve his observation, that's why he called a mysterious friend of his to get you a new set of armor and a powerful weapon that surpasses the Holy Order's weapons by miles. The commander even said that he prepared one of his strongest guards to train you to use your new weapon. I also approved that you take back the lessons that you had with your former teacher, Esteban, with a new teacher who will come from the Dark Army. I sincerely hope that you become a better person under Niall's supervision.

With love, your mother

P. S: I discussed with someone for your engagement, a person I trust will take care of you.

She was appalled by the letter, shaking almost, 'Gods above... What is the meaning of this...? You not only changed your name but my armor and weapons as well? You know that sword is an heirloom to our family, what has gotten into you, mother...? Why would you do this?! and my engagement? who did you choose exactly? I thought I was done looking for one when I took up being knight...' Alicia took a minute to think it over, remembering another bit of the letter...

'At least she sent someone to teach how to use..."

glancing at the halberd, "That...Despite where they're coming from...But this about my 'engagement...?' That's not sitting well with me, which brings me...' glancing at the next letter, 'To the next letter...I pray this isn't some greasy old man looking for something young and pretty...' opening the next letter with a cautious expression.

To my adorable, cute Alicia

After gaining a title and some land, I finally got enough power to be with you. I also talked for a long time with my future mother-in-law and did approve for both of us. Don't worry, if anyone threatens you, I'll deal with him swiftly. And if you need anything from me, I'll oblige on the spot.

With all of my love to you, Jenelica

The former princess blinked twice at the letter, unsure of what to think...On one hand, she was relieved it wasn't some greasy old man asking for a hand, but on another...This left her conflicted... and for more than one reason... making her sigh deeply...

"Jenelica...So you were the one...Okay..." Slowly nodding, "I wish you would've told me...But it's good I know now..." closing her eyes, thinking it over...

One thing's for sure... They would need to talk about this when they next meet... Sure, her mother approved, but the fact that she's just NOW finding out how her assassin felt, wouldn't stand right until afterward...

She glanced back at the other letter, rereading the part about the new teacher, "I see...So I'll be getting a teacher similar to my old one, huh? and he actually comes from the dark army...? That should go well... Hmm... If he or she's like Esteban...then there just might be a chance there...' sighing after, 'We'll see...'

After her thoughts, a knock was heard...

"The commander wants to talk with you, please report to him." it was a young woman's voice.

Alicia sighed in relief, "Okay, I'll speak with him!" she assured the woman behind the door, 'About time too...let's see what he's got in store...' standing up...

Niall's office...

The old commander looked at some papers before saying, "You sure have a lot to teach, huh?"

"Covering the basis of the general knowledge is merely the beginning," a person answered, "After that, I'll have to cover history as it really was, the elements and their importance..." it was a woman with long red hair, blue sapphire eyes, draconic horns, and wearing a pair of glasses. As for the attire, she's wearing a red coat over a white shirt, black gloves, black pants, and black shoes.

"When she gets here, everything'll be explained to 'er." the commander laughed.

There was a knock on the door, gaining their attention...

"Commander Niall? It's Alicia, you sent for me?" her voice asked behind it.

"Come in!" Niall replied.

The door opens, and Alicia walks in, dressed in her new armor. Spotting the strange Dragonnewt woman...

"Oh um...Hi there..." She greeted the teacher, glancing at Niall, "Commander, you wanted to speak?"

"Aye, it's about your schedule" Niall stated as he showed her a piece of paper, "First thing first, we gonna need to build up some muscles in that scrawny body of yours."

She felt herself sweat slightly, knowing how built some of the soldiers around there were, "Build muscle huh...? Okay..." in a slight shiver.

"I'm gonna have to see who'll get you up to shape before asking him to train you with the halberd..." Niall mumbled before adding, "Anyways, Sthaphrolea here will be in charge of your academic teaching. One of the best if I say so myself, a scholar who knows a lot of stuff." he then laughed.

"'A lot of stuff,' is putting my knowledge lightly." the draconic woman pointed before turning to Alicia, "Nice to meet you, Miss Alicia, I hope that you'll be up to the challenge."

"Y-yeah, I hope so as well, Miss...Uh...Sarthopeia right?" Alicia asked, unsure if she got that right.

"It's Sthaphrolea, pay attention." Sthaphrolea corrected.

The former princess flinched at the sudden change in tone, "R-right, Apologies...your name is going to take some time to pronounce it is all, either way I look forward to your lessons,"

"For today you gonna have to get some things that will be important to ya." Niall pointed, "Firstly, you gonna need a new mount, had to work my contacts to have you one with armor on." he laughed before adding, "Then, you'll need to go get acquainted with the rest 'f my boys."

She nearly gulped there, "The rest of the men huh...?" thinking on their hard judging stares behind those helmets, "That should go...well...I hope,"

"Ha! Don' worry 'bout it." Niall laughed again, "Now then, I think it's about time I get those new recruits a prep talk."

Alicia took a deep breath, maybe this wasn't bad...Her reputation as shield princess had been tarnished...She even knew who was responsible for it and held a bit of vendetta there... But at the same time, she was being offered a second chance here, one unexpected... A second chance to set things right for her family, for her father...A second chance to come back as a better ruler, a second chance...To continue the lessons she once received...

Feoh has been conquered and that's a fact she'd have to accept, and if that means going under a tutelage like this one...

So be it...

She gave a quick bow, "When you're ready, Commander..." coming back up with a genuine smile.

"A'right, time to move!" and the commander got up.

Meanwhile, Hroka fortress, main hall...

At the ruined fort, the knights had gathered under Rey's instruction, as said knight laid a large map out...

"Alright, so here's the thing, if we're to get our names back up there, we'll need to start with the families in the Ur area," The head knight laid out, "According to Lord Nutilus, there are families there willing to give the support we need, as well as smith willing to give us better weapons,"

"I'm personally acquainted with the lords of two families; the Gorgona, winning their name after slaughtering a clan of Lamias that could petrify with a single gaze, and the Leafa, renowned for their unique fighting style," Marquel pointed out.

Rey grinned, "That'll be a good start, I'll need you to brief me on those families when we set out for them," he told him, "What about those other Requests? Have we gotten any responses since being gone?"

"Well, sir, the only positive one is from the Calvinis family." a knight answered, "The Ramonnet didn't answer and the Brenadus turned us down..."

Reynold slowly nodded at that, "I expected as much from the Calvinis family, and I think I know why the Ramonnet family's gone silent, the less said the better there," he chuckled, before furrowing his brow, "But the Bernadus family turning us down, now that's a new one...I didn't expect that one...I know the brothers were outcasted, but to refuse to do business...? hmm..." thinking on it... "Not liking the sounds of that, but three is a great start for now,"

"We're going to meet with them?" Marquel asked.

"Once the horses had their rest, we're just getting back here after all, and we need to plan where to go next should it go poorly," The young knight pointed, "Once they are and we're ready, we'll set out for those nobles you talked about,"

"I'll call them to let them know that we're coming," Marquel stated.

Rey nodded, "Please, see to that, and let me know if they answer or not. " Turning to the rest of the knights, Rey said, "As for the rest of you, be ready for anything and keep an eye out for potential contracts. We'll need every bit of gold to get this place back up and running to its glory... You're all Dismissed!"

The knights soon went their ways, leaving the lead knight in the room with his thoughts...

'Given that Marquel wasn't exactly wrong in seeking out the first lord in our corner, I'm willing to depend on him for those contacts...As for the bernadus brothers, I think I know why they might've refused...Damn...It Looks like Swain or the other birds of prey might've gotten to them...I'll have to seek them out once we have backing...for now, we'll have to focus that attention on the nobles my second mentioned...Once we get those contacts, I'll see if I can get a council here started...getting the feeling I'll need it,' Rolling up the map, and taking it to his office.

Meanwhile, at the Earthmother's Realm...

A strange gold-winged man, who looked like Felkir the blind, stood near a stone table, blowing fire onto it with his wings spread, golden energy flowing from him as well, going into the pit...

Satakal floated next to him with a hard frown, "You've been at that for a while now, feel like letting me takeover again...?"

Akatosh stopped the flame, "Actually, the sword's nearly done, it just needs a blend of godly Dragonfire fire, and OUR at full power in combination," picking up the smoldering and heated-up blade.

"Sounds easy enough, whenever you're ready Akatosh," The Serpent god nodded, grabbing the lower hilt of the sword.

Both gods on opposite sides of the sword took a deep breath...

"YOL, TOOR SHUL!" They both shouted simultaneously, erupting giant gouts of flame, A more ember gold flame came from Akatosh, while a Deep crimson and black flame came from Satakal, blasting into the sword...

They continued their streams, until the sword lifted out of their hands, in a swirl of their flames, until it was wrapped in a ball of combined fire...

The Dragon god sighed in relief, "And We're done with that part, once it absorbs the flames and floats back down, imprint your divine aura and I'll send it down,"

"Hopefully somewhere close right...? because we can't just send that down there without guiding it," The serpent god retorted with.

"Gee~ I'm just going to throw down a mystic divine weapon with no direction on any given turn~" Really?!" Akatosh snapped with.

Satakal sighed deeply, "Sarcasm isn't unbecoming of you, Zeymah..." with an eye-roll, looking up at the glowing ball of fire, "I will say, that is beautiful to watch, I do say we've outdone ourselves here,"

"They'll be more, it'll just be different elements with those..." Akatosh said dismissively, as the ball began to shrink, "And speaking of which, it's almost time..."

The ball shrank until a smoldering dragon sword was left smoking and glowing with draconic aura floated back down, as Satakal grabbed in and channeled his own destroyer aura into it, causing it to form into a double-edged sword with an enflame core, crimson bolts arcing off it...

"Is it supposed to do that...?" The serpent regarded with a frown.

Akatosh nodded, "It's supposed to be in tandem with the elements he often uses, so yeah, it's supposed to do that," inspecting the sword, "Either way, we're done with it, no more foul daedra corruption... I know a particular Daedric lord who's not going to be happy about it, but oh well...his fault for exposing it," with a shrug.

"Are you two done here?" the Earthmother approached them, "Oh my, it would seem that this weapon is almost as strong as Greil's axes."

The Dragon god raised an eyebrow, "Really now...? And what goes into those axes of his...?"

"They were forged using the body of the strongest Demon God of the Divine War." the Earthmother replied nonchalantly, "And to balance the dark powers, the Divine smith of that period sacrificed his existence to add what's necessary to balance the darkness inside the weapons."

"From the body itself..." Satakal put together, "Yeah, I can see how that would be a bit stronger, it must've taken quite a bit to form..."

Akatosh nodded impressed, "So you even had your own divine weapons...this universe sure is something...Is that your champion's personal weapon or was it handed down...?"

"I used them to end the war before sealing them away." the Earthmother smiled, "After that, I decided to gift them to Greil as a sign that he's my champion. Besides, it's not like someone would be able to use them. After all, only I can dictate who has the right to touch them without... suffering the consequences."

The Dragon god nodded at that, "I see, so used by you first...meaning it was God's weapon beforehand... No wonder there's a curse on it, well then..." holding up the blade, "We have weapons like that as well, but this is enough for the current's Dragonborn's first dragon blade from us... Contains both my divine flame and..." shifting it to its second form, "Satakal's destroyer flame, it's also lighting adjacent...So Traysek'll be able to channel his lightning-fire through it...As well as other abilities, but like dragon shouts, those he'll have to figure out and unlock on his own... All there's left now is for him to touch it and it'll activate and blood-link to him... it's infused with our power, we can't exactly leave that floating...nor can we trust any of his crew...Do I have to say why...?" with a knowing look.

"Then why not give it to him through a trial that's worthy of the weapon?" the Earthmother asked, tilting her head, "That's how I figured that Greil was worthy of his weapons."

Akatosh hummed at that, "A trial you say...? I haven't thought of that, I was going to drop this off at a Ruin somewhere and cue him to find it..."

"Given that we've never crafted a weapon like this, I'd say it's needed...and it'll show where he's grown with that power of his," Satakal added in.

"You mean, MY power..." The Dragon god corrected with a narrowed look, "But you're right, he could be tested for this...But it'll probably require the rest of the divines to partake, and they're already not happy that we're still lingering here..."

"Naturally..." The Serpent god sighed, "So this is going be a headache, I can already feel it..."

"Well, luckily for you, I'M going to be dealing with it, not you...So you can rest those pretty scales.. I'll let you know when to call him, for now, I'm taking this," spinning it and de-atomizing the blade, turning to the Earthmother, giving her a smile and bow, "Thank you for allowing me here, Earthmother, and it's finally nice to meet you~ I wished we could've met much earlier...you would've known the truth sooner,"

"You're welcome." the Earthmother giggled, "It was interesting to meet another Divine dragon beside those two that are here."

"Likewise, you remind me a lot of Kyne. I think you two would get along if you met," Akatosh stated, snapping his fingers and opening a flaming portal. "If you or the other dragon gods have questions or concerns, I'm willing to answer them, I'm within the confines of time, it won't be hard to get to me. Good day~, and watch yourself with that one..." Akatosh narrowed his eyes on the serpent before leaving through it, closing up immediately...

Satakal snorted, "Yeah yeah, see you around..." sarcastically waving.

"What an interesting person he was." the Earthmother commented.

"I honestly expected that to go a lot worse. It's nice to know he's still holding that grudge..." Satakal sighed, shaking his head.

"I do wonder why?" the Earthmother giggled.

The serpent god rolled his eyes, "Long story...Anyway I'll need to be ready to contact Traysek, so I'm returning to my dimension, if anything comes up, do let me know," tiredly, slithering into a crystal-like portal...

Somewhere in the desert...

Xunaakt and his forces reached an abandoned city within the borders of the desert.

"What is this place..." the Orc chief wondered, "It feels... familiar."

"What's the plan now?" an Orc asked.

"We'll settle here." Xunaakt answered, "However, we need to raid a village or two, so you'd better rest."

"What about Volt-" an Imp tried to ask before having his head flying.

"Fuck that piece of crap! From now on, he's nothing to us!" the chief roared, "Contact the forces back there and tell them to join us here! We'll begin our conquest from here! And we'll have every kingdom kneeling in front of us! And all the women that we want!"

And the monsters roared.

"Now... let's explore this place..." the Orc Chief smirked, walking deeper into the city.

To be continued...

Whelp...That ended on a cryptic note folks, but fret not...to speed things up, There will be two chapters going up, this one and the next one after it... my co-writer and I have been working on the next arc and some of you are in for a treat :) No Omake or answering reviews this time, there's none to answer after all...Hopefully next time... But I will acknowledge the fact that I'm up to 160 favorites and 172 in followers... it may seem like a small number compared to other stories, but I wanna let you know...not matter the number, I appreciate you all...and hope you all remain to the end of this journey... keep your eye out for the next chapter, stay tuned :D

P.S.: Is someone out there willing to help me come up with chapter titles? I'm starting to run out of ideas! XDDDD