A tall bulky man thrusted his blade towards a fierce woman. She angled her body, parrying the blade to the side, and went for counter-thrust. The man pulled his sword back for a parry of his own, only to realize that the woman’s thrust had morphed into a side slash. The two blades collided as the man managed to block in time.

He realized that he could use his strength to overpower the woman, so he pushed onwards. He went for an overhead blow, but the woman was not only quick on her wits, but on her feet as well. Their positions rotated around as the woman tried to go for quick attacks while the man went for attacks with bear-like power.

As the two battled, the man saw an opportunity and closed the gaps between them. He tried to grab the woman, but his world had flipped over without warning. With a loud thud, his entire body slammed into the ground, and he found a blade hovering over his head.

“This is my defeat, Princess,” the man sighed.

“You’ve become sloppy. Have you been slacking off on your training?” Princess Imma said as she raised her sword.

“My apologies, Your Highness.” The man got up and bowed to the princess before excusing himself.

Imma pulled her hair back and wiped the sweat off her forehead. She traded her sword to an attendant for a cup of water and a piece of cloth to wipe her face. The warm water disappeared into her mouth, and her attendants had to pour her two more cups before her thirst was quenched.

Her sword-oath and protector, Alleigh, remarked with a smile, “You seem to be in a good mood, Your Highness. Normally you’d stop after your fifth opponent. Do you require me to recall the spies in the city so you have more people to fight?”

“Please. The Vyssians down the street will suffice. Or perhaps we should pick a fight with a Varangian warrior or two, maybe they’ll give me a better fight,” Imma joked.

“Princess, that’s dangerous.”

“It’s a joke, Alleigh.” Imma raised her head when she saw a hooded man was escorted towards her by her personal guards. She wiped her face one last time and handed the cloth to a servant before meeting the familiar visitor.

“Princess Imma.” The man respectfully bowed towards her.

“If it isn’t Count Marcoir’s right-hand man. Lord Lorferd, was it?” Imma asked.

“I am honored you remember my name, Your Highness,” Lorferd replied with an unchanged face.

Alleigh chuckled and said, “Well, the count’s lapdog is certainly better at flattery than his liege.”

“Alleigh, please.” Imma raised her hand and gave her a glare. “Count Marcoir is our ally. I’d rather you don’t disrespect his men.”

“Apologies. I’ll excuse myself to the side, Princess.”

After Alleigh moved to the corner to sulk, Lorferd handed a letter to Imma. After she gave it a brief glance, she wondered, “The Varangians are going back north en masse?”

“And it’s not just in Northwest Rhankia. Varangians loitering around Northern Vyssium started marching back home by the droves. With some exceptions.”

“Such as?”

“The Varangians at the embassy, and contracted worker-groups hired by the Vyssians.”

Imma stared at the letter in silence for a moment before asking, “Are they going to war?”

“Count Marcoir seems to think so. He’s called his cousins for extra men to defend… what is left of Castle Marcoir. Just in case. Though he doesn’t actually think they’ll attack his meager dwellings.”

“The Varangians wouldn’t dare attack us.”

“Perhaps. We do not know what those things truly want. My lord’s spies are attempting to scout Varangia, but it’s very dangerous what with the monsters and all. There’s also rumors circulating there’s… something else up north.”

“Explain.”

Lorferd pointed his index fingers upwards and held them against his forehead. “Large horned creatures. Some twice the size of man, I heard.”

“Could they be the enemy of the Varangians?”

“I wouldn’t know, Princess.”

Imma placed the letter behind her and nodded her head at Lorferd. “But what do you think, Lord Lorferd?”

Lorferd scratched his head. His normally blank face turned sour for a moment before returning to its normal state. “Something big is happening, Princess. And I am not sure if we are prepared for it.”

“Mmm.” Imma shook her hand and said, “You are dismissed.”

“Ah, Princess. There’s another thing. My lord hopes you keep this information to yourself and your closest ally—allies—only.” Lorferd handed a smaller letter to the princess. It was crumpled, unmarked, and its writing was very messy.

Unlike the previous letter, this one actually gave her a shock. “Why is my brother attempting to contact the northmen?”

“My lord thinks it’s presumptuous to assume what a royal member of the family would want and-”

Imma glared at Lorferd and he folded.

“The Prince wants to pull the Varangians away from you and towards him.”

“I am not blind, I can see that! My father assigned the duty of maintaining diplomatic contact with the tribesmen of Varangia to me, not my brother. What does he gain from taking that job from me by force?”

Lorferd looked to his sides and confirmed that there was nobody but Alleigh nearby. He took a step forward and murmured quietly, “The Prince thinks you want to compete for the throne.”

“He what?!”

Lorferd gestured her hands low. “Princess, it’s been a rumor circulating for some time now especially since you wanted to see those… winged wolves in Varangia.”

“But it’s just a childish desire of mine to see wolves with wings. Would a man not travel to Greatia just to see their fabled raptor cavalry? It’s wolves. With eagle wings. For Humanos’ sake!”

“Princess, you may see it that way. It might as well be the divine truth placed by Humanos. However, some will believe otherwise. After all, there are eldermen that stand to gain much if they install you to power. As far as my lord is concerned, the prince has legitimate reasons to be concerned about… how should I say this… an opposing faction revolving around you.”

Imma grunted and paced in a circle anxiously. “This is nonsense. I do not want the throne.”

“Even still, they’ll try to install you to gain power.”

Imma crossed her arm. “Does Count Marcoir gain anything from me being on the throne?”

“My lord is supporting you because you got his castle back. His honor demands that he tie his fate to yours. Not because he wants the power of the capital.”

“Then at least I can trust you.” The princess looked away with a scowl. Her good mood was ruined by those decrepit old men back in the capital, and she wished she could just go and strangle every single one of them. “The peersthing will make a wise choice when it comes down to the succession.”

Lorferd raised an eyebrow. “You’ve not been keeping track of the peersthing?”

“If I do, it would really look like I am interested in the throne.”

“Nevertheless, it would be healthy for someone like you, a princess of the royal family, to be interested in where the eldermen would steer the peersthing to.”

“Bah! Why does the peersthing even exist? Whose idea was it to give the richest and most powerful elderlies of Rhankia the power to vote for the next monarch? Everyone knows the throne just goes through the blood of the Leosif.”

“I’ve… no right to say anything in this matter. I’m only a lowly vassal to a count.”

“I know. I’m just ranting. You’re dismissed. Tell Count Marcoir that his loyalty will be rewarded.”

Lorferd bowed and took several steps towards the exit but was stopped.

“Ah, I forgot. Tell Count Marcoir to update me on the peersthing, regularly if possible” Imma ordered.

“As you wish, Princess.”

Back at Custodian’s core, the super-A.I. was unusually quiet. Niner and Minos stood at the core room, and one of them was feeling really awkward about the atmosphere.

Niner spoke up, “Master Custodi-”

“My disappointment is immeasurable and if I had a concept of a day, it would be ruined.”

Custodian didn’t want to believe it, but the truth was laid bare. The gigantic tree monster was brought home, chopped into several pieces, meticulously processed. The super-A.I. had several plans for expansion under the assumption that the giant tree would provide a bountiful amount of resources since it was associated with the kojans.

However…

“I need to renew my plans and delete some of them. Who would’ve thought that the tree was just a giant monster and not a kojan,” Custodian said monotonously.

Indeed. After processing the corpse, the tree-monster gave as much resources as a giant monster that roamed the Varangian region, but it was not up to par with a kojan corpse. Still, Custodian got an iron mine and a kojan corpse after that battle, so it was still a profitable outcome.

“With the last kojan, I’ll be at four corpses now. I need six more. What do the scouts report?” Custodian asked.

“No signs. Varangia’s a large place, and we can’t use aerial drones for some areas.”

“But the areas under our influence are clear?”

“Affirmative.”

“Fortify the areas that matter. The food production areas, the surface mines, Mount Varangia village, and so on.”

“Smith’s already working on fortifying our positions, but we’re currently stretched thin. We also have to send resources to the iron mine far up north.”

“Perhaps we should recall the expedition armies,” Custodian wondered.

Niner shook his head. “That may be too hasty. We’ll recall them if it gets too serious. If it’s manpower you need…”

“The humans are more than willing,” Weaver finished Niner’s sentence as he entered the core room. “Most humans are unwilling to trek into Varangia, but there are some who expressed interest in working under our employ.”

“Who are they and what do they want?” Custodian asked.

“Hunters, explorers, and the like. They mostly want the same thing - money, treasures… our equipment. Especially our crossbows. There’s a small group of hunters who said they’re willing to track and map anything as long as we’re willing to give them a few crossbows.”

“This seems like a strangely good deal. What’s… what is that phrase? What’s the catch?” Custodian questioned.

Weaver shrugged. “Nothing. They seem to think our crossbows are mechanical wonders.”

“Fine. Go negotiate a deal with the humans. Make sure they stay far from Mount Varangia and our facilities.”