Aegis – Safe Zone 52

“Safe zone 102 has been lost.” Frank’s voice resonates throughout the council chamber from the System call screen in front of Manfred. “The few survivors who managed to escape the anthrovespids’ attack showed up half dead at the two closest safe zones; safe zones 100 and 101.”

A dark atmosphere fills the council chamber after hearing Frank’s announcement. Safe zones 52 and 53 have been working together ever since safe zone 51 began targeting 52 and have begun to share important information with each other.

While the more populated safe zone 53 has greater access to resources, along with more contacts; the people of safe zone 52 have a higher overall strength and their connections to a more powerful faction. This – along with the history between the leaders of both groups – has led to a beneficial relationship between the two factions.

“Do you know how powerful the anthrovespids’ forces are?” Luke suddenly asks, breaking the silence that had enveloped the room.

Manfred – who had been standing in the center of the room due to the System call – focuses his attention on the screen in anticipation of Frank’s answer.

“Overall, there seem to be about four hundred anthrovespids in safe zone 103; but that number is growing by the day as their ‘queen’ breeds more of them,” Frank says with a grim look on his face, “the individual forces themselves tend to range all the way from level 50 to level 150, likely depending on how old they are.”

Luke frowns at this before looking down in silence as the rest of the council break out into rushed whispers.

Meanwhile, Manfred looks up at Luke and his family after a second and asks, “We have an advantage in levels at the very least, but do you think we can win with our numbers?”

As soon as he asks this, everyone within the room – Wolf’s family included – turns to stare at Luke with various different expressions.

Luke, on the other hand, just continues staring at the ground in front of him as he contemplates something.

This continues for several seconds until he finally looks up and says, “On our own? I highly doubt that we will be able to defeat them. Even with our higher levels, they have about twice our numbers.”

Just as many of the other council members begin to take in breath to speak, Luke continues, cutting them off, “However, we don’t know just how many of their people are closer to level 50, and how many are closer to 150. This will be critical to know if we’re to fight them.”

“That said, we won’t be fighting alone, now will we?” Luke adds with a pointed look towards the screen in front of Manfred, “Frank.”

Everyone in the room once again turns to look at the screen in the center of the room before Frank chuckles.

“Yeah, of course safe zone 53 will help you,” he says with a smile before turning serious, “if you think we can take them together, then we will join you in dealing with these pests.”

Various council members release their breaths in relief as Manfred declares, “Then it’s decided. Safe zones 52 and 53 will deal with the anthrovespids once they get close enough.”

Wolf

Two hours later

I stand in front of Diane in the luxurious space that makes up her room within the Executive Stream with my arms crossed, and a frown on my face.

At the same time, she is sitting on the same couch that has been here every time I have come here, with a look that practically shouts ’guilty’ plastered all over her face.

Ignoring the fact that she is an Administrator, an Empress, and over fifty times my level, I coldly ask, “So when were you planning on telling me?”

“Uh… well…” Diane begins with a light frown as she avoids my gaze like a child caught in the act of stealing a cookie, “eventually?”

My frown turns into a glare as I say, “Let me get this straight. You have a possibility of dying at this Summit, and you didn’t want to leave your kingdom without an heir.”

“This part I can understand,” I continue speaking before she can say anything, “however, when you say a possibility, most people would normally think that there is a pretty decent chance of you dying. But in reality, you have made a few enemies amongst the Sub-Administrators that normally wouldn’t be able to face you but are likely planning to team up against you during the Summit – which really doesn’t make much sense, considering that the one who kills you will get the privileges and will then have to fight the other two – and you are just preparing for the slightest chance that they may have something that can bring you down.”

Diane takes in a breath to speak but stops as my glare sharpens, “Even that I can understand, but these Sub-Administrators are at least one thousand fucking levels below you!”

“Well,” Diane begins, finally taking the chance to speak, “I heard from a friend that they had managed to borrow a Tier 10 item from someone…”

I raise an eyebrow at this before continuing my rant, “Alright, but you then decided that you just had to have an heir, and that this heir should be me – which I still don’t understand by the way. But more importantly, you decided that I wouldn’t likely accept becoming your heir, so you decided to try to manipulate me into the position.”

“I will admit,” Diane suddenly says, turning a little bit serious for the first time in this conversation, “a lot of that last part was because of my bloodlust.”

I stare at her with my eyebrow still raised for several seconds until she looks down and mutters, “Please continue…”

Throughout our ‘conversation,’ I have been struggling to ignore the audience that has been watching us this entire time. Three of them being Moderators who work under either Diane or Leo, with the fourth being Leo himself – who, I might add, is trying – and failing – to hold back his laughter at this situation.

The Moderators, on the other hand, seem completely baffled as to what is going on. As if this conversation shouldn’t be possible with their Empress or something.

Which – if she wasn’t trying to get me to become her heir – likely would be true, considering who she is.

But…

“I don’t care much for bullshit, so get straight to the point,” I state as I go back to glaring at her, meeting her golden eyes with my own golden-blue eyes, “tell me what you want, why you want it, and do it without the bullshitting that you have been doing since we met. Otherwise, I might never speak to you again. And I don’t even care if that leads to problems for me down the line.”

I hate beating around the bush, and I hate being manipulated. I also get the feeling that she really does want me as her heir for whatever reason. Which means that this won’t likely cause me any real problems.

But even if it does… I’m in a dungeon fighting for my life on a daily basis, and I highly doubt that she would go after my family. Not only does that just not seem to be the type of thing she would do, especially after what she has done for me so far, but from what I have been able to gather, the Grand Werewolf Empire is one that prides itself on honor – on their ability to keep their promises – which likely means that they won’t go trying to kill someone that they just made a deal with.

Not to mention that her people seem to like me for whatever reason.

After a few seconds of silence where even Leo’s previously smirking face went blank, Diane heaves a deep sigh and begins to speak in a serious tone, “Alright. If that is what you wish.”

I raise an eyebrow again at her sudden shift.

Her personality is so strange to deal with. At one moment, she acts like a child. Another moment, she is some murderous monster.

And then there is now. When she actually becomes serious.

“At first, I wanted you to become my heir just because you were the most qualified person for the position at the time,” she says whilst crossing her arms across her chest, “you were a harbinger; you were smart; and you were going to become an Administrator whenever you left the dungeon.”

My other brow raises in my surprise at her choice of words.

You were going to become an Administrator whenever you left the dungeon? No ifs or maybes in that statement at all. Just absolute certainty.

“After watching you for a while, I realized that you were what I would have wanted for a son as well, if I were to have ever had one,” she continues, furthering my surprise even more as I openly begin to gape at her, “then there is also the fact that my people all seem to love you.”

I vaguely notice Leo and the Moderators also gaping at her in surprise before she continues speaking.

“Those factors along with how skilled and talented, and the fact that you turned down my offer in the beginning, endeared me to having you as my heir even more. You aren’t obsessed with power, nor are you willing to be used. You are stubborn as hell, and don’t really seem to have many ambitions outside of clearing the dungeon and getting back to your family,” she says with a determined glint in her eyes. “And most importantly, you are honorable.”

Silence fills the room as everyone in it just stares at the Empress in shock.

And here I thought she wanted me on a whim…

I shake my head to wake myself up from my stupor before opening my mouth to speak…

Only for Diane to suddenly appear in front of me whilst putting her finger to my lips as she says, “I don’t want a clear answer right now. Just think about my offer over the years that you are in the dungeon.”

Without waiting for my response, she suddenly snaps her fingers before everything in my vision is covered by a green light and I end up finding myself back in the igloo-like Expanded System Store within the Administrator Dungeon.

Did she just turn that conversation around on me?