Chapter 9

“Didn’t you say you already worked for the Empire? The Imperial Air Service or whatever.”

“I do, but, er…how do I put it…”

Ah, I’m no good at this.

Though she had a vague idea of how to voice her request, Nemel lacked the eloquence and shrewdness that many of her Noble classmates in the Academy possessed. Her entire family was like that: they were Wizards whose aristocratic traditions helped them stay out of problematic politics and intrigue. Members of House Gran knew how to navigate their own little ship on the currents of imperial affairs and didn’t go out of their way to look for trouble.

Except for a blissfully ignorant young member who had stupidly joined the Imperial Air Service.

“Is your current arrangement unsatisfactory?” Dame Verilyn pressed her, “According to my information, the Empire ensures that their talented citizens are adequately compensated.”

“They do,” Nemel replied. “As long as there is demand for a position, those who fill it are fairly compensated. It’s more stable working for the Empire than it is working for the private sector, too. Highly talented people can even be granted titles and the lands that go along with them.”

“Then your ambitions exceed what the Empire can provide you with.”

“No! No, it’s just, you know…”

“I don’t.”

She didn’t want to say it plainly. It would make her sound incompetent. Or maybe she would seem a coward and an ingrate. She would be admitting to weaknesses that others would surely pounce upon; a deadly vulnerability in the eyes of those who tread the corridors of power.

Nemel twisted around to look at the shuttered window, then back forward to the closed door. It probably hadn’t been long enough for other agents from Arwintar to have rushed over, but she couldn’t be sure. Maybe some local ones were watching them right now, waiting for the chance to snatch the seat that she currently occupied.

“Is something the matter?” Dame Verilyn asked.

“…is there anyone nearby who might be observing us?”

Dame Verilyn fell silent for several moments. She didn’t look around as Nemel had.

“Not that I can tell,” the Frost Dragon in Elf form said. “The other rooms are empty, aside from a fellow on the second floor that has a very odd snore. There is no one on the roof or anywhere near our window. I can’t guarantee the absence of observation through divination spells and effects, but I am protected from them.”

“I see…in that case, do you mind if I cast a few spells?”

The Dragon replied with a silent nod and started to chug down her beer, creating a strange dichotomy with her refined appearance. Nemel stood up and brought to mind spells that she had not used in a long while.

“「Detect Locate」.”

She paused for a moment to see if there was a reaction to the spell. There didn’t appear to be any magical sensors from divination spells in the area. Unless they were using Counter Detect to prevent detection.

“「Counter Detect」.”

“「Silence」.”

“「Darkness」.”

She cast fields around the room that blocked external observation. Counter Detect would prevent careless people from realising that they had been detected by Detect Locate. They were all spells to ensure privacy in the dealings of House Gran’s members, taught to them once they were able to cast the appropriate tier of magic. It was supposedly enough to deter any but the most intrusive attempts at spying.

Releasing a breath, Nemel sat back down. Though she had taken the appropriate measures, the fact that she resorted to using them just unsettled her further.

“Is this truly something to be so nervous about?”

Nemel blinked at the question.

“I…how do you know how nervous I am?”

“You have been around me all day,” Dame Verilyn said. “I know many of your mannerisms, and I am familiar with the Human body. Your breathing, your heartbeat, the movements of your body, all of the scents you emit…they give away more than you think.”

She could sense all of that? Nemel resisted the urge to cover herself. It wouldn’t work, anyway – she was basically more than naked in Dame Verilyn’s perception no matter what she did.

Her instructors at the Military Academy mentioned that, beyond the considerable potency of their regular senses, Dragons had Blindsight. Vibrations and currents in the air and ground; scents and changes in temperature; Dragons had exceptional senses that combined to create a sort of ‘super-sense’. Even magic like Invisibility didn’t work against it – only those with extraordinary concealment skills could get close to a Dragon without being noticed.

“How do you deal with everything that goes on around you?” Nemel asked.

“It’s normal?” Dame Verilyn tilted her head curiously, “Now, what is it that merits such measures?”

“I need your protection. That’s why I asked if I could work for you. By becoming yours, I hoped you could at least keep me safe.”

“Hmm, yes, Lady Zahradnik always takes good care of her subordinates and insists that I should do the same…but are your circumstances really so dire that you require the protection of a Frost Dragon?”

Nemel shifted uncomfortably under Dame Verilyn’s scrutiny. She was in no immediate danger, but she would get in trouble eventually. Asking for help against some unspecified thing that would probably happen was difficult. Even if she acted according to General Ray’s wishes, General Ray’s enemies would act against her. Without allies, influence or any notable personal power, arriving first was akin to being stuck on top of a boulder and trying to fend off a swarm of Trolls with a silk slipper.

“Other people in the Empire – powerful people – are going to come to try and ingratiate themselves with you.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad, from my perspective.”

“It is from mine!” Nemel said tearfully, “I’m basically a nobody. Being a junior officer in the Imperial Air Service isn’t even worth a dried-up potato peel when it comes to the games of power people play in the Empire. Even being the daughter of a baron doesn’t mean anything. You need money and power and powerful allies. I don’t have any of that; you’re the only powerful person I know who might care to help me.”

“Weren’t you sent to me by the Imperial Air Service? That should mean that anyone that crosses you makes an enemy of the Empire, yes?”

“Maybe some countries are like that,” Nemel said, “but not the Empire when it comes to things like this. I was given orders by the commander my unit reports to – General Ray – so technically I’m here under official orders. In reality, I’m here by his personal orders as his bid to get you onto his side…or something like that. I’m supposed to be ensuring that you do, but agents sent by other people for the same reason are bound to appear soon.”

She sighed after everything spilt forth. It probably sounded like whining or begging. Actually, it was. Dame Verilyn munched away at her meal, washing it down with another quaff of her mug.

“As far as I’ve heard,” she said, “the Empire is mostly terrified of the Sorcerous Kingdom. Are you saying that this isn’t the case?”

“Oh, it is,” Nemel replied. “But at the same time, all of these powerful people have survived to thrive under the current Emperor. The Empire has been working the problems out of its system for generations – Emperor Jircniv just knocked over all the dominoes that had been set up. Now, all that’s left are people who are talented, cunning, ambitious, powerful or some combination of that. The powerful and talented can fend everyone else off if they’re in a high position, but I’m not powerful or talented or in a high position.”

“And what do they hope to gain by sending these people to me?”

“Favour. A good word. The recognition of important people in the Sorcerous Kingdom. The Sorcerous Kingdom can tell the Empire to do anything they want, so even the Emperor can’t do anything about it once they’ve made strong allies on the other side.”

Dame Verilyn scraped the remainder of her meal straight off of its plate into her mouth. She finished her drink and settled down with a satisfied burp.

“It won’t work,” she said.

“It won’t?”

“Not at all,” Dame Verilyn nodded. “As far as I know, the Empire is left to see to its own affairs. Any attempts to ‘ingratiate’ oneself to the Sorcerous Kingdom’s administration will simply bounce off the obstinate forehead of an Elder Lich.”

“Is that who you work for?” Nemel frowned, “An Elder Lich?”

“My current task is from the Ministry of Transportation. If you’re asking about who my liege is, I am a Knight of House Zahradnik.”

Just who was this Baroness Zahradnik? A Frontier Noble who ruled what must be a quarter of the Sorcerous Kingdom. Plus she had a Dragon Knight. Was she a Dragon herself?

“Then say that one of these agents managed to form a personal connection with you,” Nemel said. “After getting along for a bit, they ask you to introduce them to Baroness Zahradnik. What would you do?”

“I would ask if she’d be interested in seeing them.”

“And then?”

“And then she would answer? It isn’t as if she would ignore me…”

“…are you making fun of me?”

She must be, but Nemel couldn’t detect the slightest hint of amusement in the Dragon’s voice or expression. Dame Verilyn only responded to her frustration with an unreadable look.

“I apologise if you feel that I have been mocking you in some way,” Dame Verilyn said, “but rest assured, I am not. With how much difficulty you appear to be having, I would advise you to be direct. Humans have a way of veiling their words behind other words, but I am not a Human.”

“That’s a hard thing to ask.”

“Is it?” Dame Verilyn peered at her, “You don’t appear to be very happy speaking in this manner, either. If you ask plainly, then I will answer in kind – if you wish to play your games of intrigue, then I suggest you speak with the Green Dragon north of here.”

“You know about her?”

“She doesn’t seem to be a secret,” Dame Verilyn shrugged. “Over the course of the day, over a dozen people have referred to her in casual conversation. ‘Baroness Blister’ or ‘Old Blister’…there were a few others not so flattering.”

“I-I hope you’re not offended…”

“Why? Greens are terrible people. I would be ecstatic if they all dropped dead at once.”

Nemel wasn’t sure what to think of that. Did Dragons not consider other Dragons as their own kind? Or maybe they only considered Dragons of their own subspecies their kind.

“Now,” Dame Verilyn said, “if you’re not interested in dealing with this other Dragon, I will once again advise you to be forthright. Frost Dragons have no interest in convoluted things.”

“…I don’t want to get in trouble.”

“Most sensible people don’t.”

“What do I need to do to receive your protection?”

“Protection…do you wish to become my pet?”

“P-pet?!”

“If not, how about my vassal?”

“Vassal…”

Was that good? She hadn’t expected it to go in that direction. The Sorcerous Kingdom had adopted the laws of Re-Estize, so that meant she would be a vassal vassal, wouldn’t it?

Across from her, Dame Verilyn pouted.

“I figured I’d at least ask,” she said. “It seems that I never have any luck finding them.”

“What do you need vassals for?”

“Managing my land, mostly. You’d get to pay me taxes too, of course.”

Nemel laughed politely. It sounded like a joke that a stuffy old Nobleman would make. Dame Verilyn fixed her with a stare.

“What’s so funny?”

“N-nothing. I might be a Noble, but my whole family is made up of arcane casters so I’m not exactly the best at demesne management. How about a maid? My sister became a maid for one of the Great Houses. She’s a Wizard, so not a maid maid – well, no…”

Her words trailed off and a frown came unbidden. Dame Verilyn frowned back.

A ducal house was a very wealthy one, and some households collected beautiful or talented maids like showpieces. No, that wasn’t quite correct: any house that could afford to would do so as a matter of prestige. Also, having a maid like her sister, who would eventually be a Wizard capable of casting Third-tier spells, was like having a Platinum-rank bodyguard in one’s staff.

Though not extraordinarily beautiful, Panasis had the good looks that came with the empire’s aristocratic lineages, so one could say she was highly prized as a maid. If considered from that perspective, then maybe Nemel did have what it took to be a maid.

“Does a maid sound alright?” Nemel asked.

What was she saying? She sought protection and ended up asking to become a maid. She thought it would work, but…

“Lady Zahradnik pays her maids a salary,” Dame Verilyn answered. “That is the opposite of paying taxes. Can’t you do something taxable? You appear to savour potatoes – how about a potato farm? I have land enough along the riverfront for ten villages’ worth of potato farms.”

Were potatoes the answer, after all? She had no idea that they could sound so powerful. House Gran had ten villages in their little barony. The idea that Nemel might have as many villages as her family made her head spin.

“I…uh, maybe? Ten potatoes sounds good.”

“Excellent,” Dame Verilyn smiled. “Consider this a tentative agreement – I will have to personally introduce you to Lady Zahradnik and see what she thinks about all this, first.”

Dame Verilyn pulled a notepad out of her bag, writing something down in elegant, flowing cursive.

“Lady Zahradnik…wait, that’s right – what would happen if you introduce all of those agents to Lady Zahradnik?”

“It would depend on what they did.”

“Say they wanted to prop themselves up so that the Sorcerous Kingdom tells the Empire to promote whoever the person is they’re working for.”

“Hmm…I’m not sure – let me ask.”

“A-ask?”

Her prospective new liege did not answer, instead seeming to focus on some distant conversation. Was it a Message spell? Dragons were innate arcane casters, so it wouldn’t be strange, but using metamagic to silently cast a Message spell felt like a waste of mana.

“She says if there are severe administrative inefficiencies that these individuals wish to bring to light, they should go through the proper channels.”

“What would the proper channels be?”

Dame Verilyn paused again.

“If they fear reprisal by imperial authorities, they can contact the central administration of the Sorcerous Kingdom. An investigation on the matter would be conducted and the results evaluated. This would likely involve a full audit and statements taken through mind control.”

“M-mind control…”

Never mind the fact that it was unthinkable to use mind control for investigative purposes, the mere threat of having one’s plots laid bare was enough to deter the most ambitious schemer. Even a ‘clean’ individual would fear that their statements would be used against them. There was also the fact that powerful mind control spells could force people to falsify statements and incriminate themselves. No one would use the ‘proper channels’ to report anything.

“So Lady Zahradnik wouldn’t entertain any efforts to curry her favour?”

“That is highly doubtful,” Dame Verilyn said. “As I mentioned, she is very austere. She has full judicial authority within her demesne, so anyone who she decides steps too far out of line would probably be impaled.”

A nation of monsters…

“By the way,” Dame Verilyn told her, “I mentioned your matter to Lady Zahradnik. She looks forward to seeing you.”

“Seeing me? Here?”

“She’s currently in E-Rantel. We’ll have left Engelfurt before she comes through, but we should be able to meet with her while we’re in the northwest.”

Nemel swallowed. In her desperation to avoid being entangled in imperial politics, she might have become entrapped in something far worse.