Valkyrie's Shadow

Chapter 9

“Well, you two look like you had some fun.”

“Someone had some fun,” Rangobart said as he loaded another bag into the carriage.

“I got your lunch, Prez!”

Dimoiya rummaged through her spoils for a minute before locating a basket covered in red chequered cloth. The food vendor made a big deal out of preparing the meal for the ‘noble young couple’ which, of course, came with the requisite price.

“Rangobart, can you set up the table?”

“Just a moment.”

Rangobart pulled his head out from the luggage compartment and circled around to the open carriage door. It took a moment for him to figure out the contraption that lowered the table from the ceiling.

Even carriages built in Warden’s Vale have all sorts of strange features.

While they weren’t as advanced as House Wagner’s vehicles or as ornate as a high-class carriage in the Empire, Lady Zahradnik was far too modest about the thing. To that point, everything her territory produced was presented in the same manner.

“Is there anything you want from the back before I close things up?” Rangobart asked.

“Eh? The seat doesn’t open up to the back?”

It didn’t, and he ended up moving half of what he put in back out. The sun was directly above by the time they finally made their way out of Crosston. When they got onto the highway and their ride turned perfectly smooth, Dimoiya started serving lunch.

“So,” Lady Waldenstein said, “what did you find out?”

“There isn’t anything special about the town itself,” Dimoiya said. “The people are really different from the ones in Corelyn Harbour and Warden’s Vale, though! It’s almost like they’re all pretending that they’re still a part of Re-Estize.”

“I don’t think there’s anything overly strange about it,” Rangobart said. “Culture doesn’t change so quickly. We were just exposed to the places on the Theocracy border first.”

“Do you think Zahradnik was right about what she said?”

“About how the Empire will follow a similar path to them? I can see why she would say that.”

“But it won’t,” Frianne prompted.

Dimoiya stuck a slice of sandwich on his plate. Rangobart absently picked it up as he considered his reply.

“The influence of the Temples is subdued here,” he said. “Ours will put up much more of a fight. Swaying the minds of millions of people will be much harder than a few hundred thousand.”

“The Sorcerous Kingdom is pretty light on them,” Dimoiya said. “I don’t think we saw a single Death Knight.”

“Some of the men I spoke to claim that they’re bad for business,” Rangobart said. “They’re trying to attract Merchants from Re-Estize and don’t want to scare away what few they have coming from there. That’s something the Empire will have to consider when it comes to Karnassus.”

“It’s probably why they started integrating the Undead security out of the way of the central trade artery,” Frianne said. “Merchant traffic from Karnassus has dropped by half since last summer even though we don’t have a single visible Death Knight in Arwintar. Having Undead posted everywhere would scare away pretty much everyone.”

He supposed it was all part of the same overarching strategy. The world seemingly split itself into two sides since the appearance of the Sorcerous Kingdom. Without their suzerain lifting a finger, the Empire was pressured into shifting its political and economic stance to favour the few relationships still open to them. It was likely the driving cause behind the Empire’s new expansionary policies: what they could no longer gain by trade, they would seize through conquest.

“I wonder if it’s worth the trouble,” Rangobart murmured.

“What is?” Dimoiya asked.

“The Empire still conducts itself as it has in the past,” he answered. “Foreign affairs, especially. We’re fighting an uphill battle trying to maintain diplomatic and economic ties with the City State Alliance. Why not fully invest in our status as a member of the Sorcerous Kingdom’s new hegemony? This parallel effort we’re making seems wasteful at best.”

“Is this from General Ray?” Lady Waldenstein asked.

“No, we’ve never spoken about this.”

“He made the same case to the Court Council when he assumed command of the Sixth Army Group a few months ago and requested a bigger budget.”

“And?” Rangobart leaned forward curiously, “How did the Court Council react?”

“That sort of change isn’t easy to accomplish,” the Head Court Mage said. “Three-quarters of the Empire’s trade goes east these days. The entire country will suffer if we pivot to a more exclusive foreign policy – the Sorcerous Kingdom isn’t a very large market.”

“Did he get his budget increase, at least?”

Lady Waldenstein shot him a reproachful look.

“No. The resources went to the fleet.”

“The fleet?” Rangobart furrowed his brow in confusion, “That’s probably the last place I expected any money to go.”

“We were surprised, as well,” Lady Waldenstein admitted. “There’s been a steady rise in piracy on the northern sea lanes since winter. The navy is outmatched and they’re considering co-opting the Imperial Air Service for anti-piracy operations.”

“Has anyone figured out why this is happening?”

“We’ve yet to receive any relevant information from our intelligence network in Karnassus. It’s utterly strange considering that Veneria has had a spotless record against piracy for over a century. Something catastrophic must have happened to them if pirate fleets are making it to our waters.”

That wasn’t good. The development of The Blister was closely tied to trade on the Golden Strand. Logistical costs would increase dramatically if trade shifted to the inland route through Arwintar, making their exports less attractive – if affordable at all – to foreign markets.

“I think this is all the more reason to shift our focus,” Rangobart said. “The sooner the Empire adopts Undead logistics and lays down the infrastructure to support high-speed transport, the less of a problem these foreign events will be to us. Trying to maintain two incompatible standards is costing us dearly.”

“You’re right,” Lady Waldenstein said. “But I’m not the one you need to convince. Never mind convincing, these things simply take time. Time and leeway.”

Rangobart sucked in his lips, recalling Countess Corelyn’s opening statement to his father’s delegation. Had she somehow considered the Empire’s situation in its entirety in her calculations? If so, she possessed intellect and beauty in equal measure.

To top it off, she didn’t tell a single lie.

She understood the trap that the Empire had found itself in and how it could get itself out. The Imperial Administration was so driven toward efficiency that even the substantial leeway created by the reorganisation of the Imperial Army had already been reallocated. Furthermore, it couldn’t issue further reforms without angering the Temples, hurting themselves economically, and driving resentment against imperial rule through the roof.

Ironically, it was a situation created by the Empire’s iron grip on itself. One of the only ways to pry its metaphorical fingers loose was to have elements of the aristocratic establishment act independently, which was something that the Imperial Administration would normally never allow and certainly wouldn’t ask out of an unwillingness to unravel the precedents it had worked for generations to establish.

Of course, the Sorcerous Kingdom could just tell them to make the required changes and the Empire would have no choice but to obey. That, however, seemed to be contrary to their apparent desire to have the Empire run itself and no one in the Empire wanted outsiders telling them what to do anyway.

“The nobility is going to gain a lot of power in the near future,” Rangobart said. “Both the civilian and martial establishments. How do you think the Imperial Administration will react?”

“If you’re referring to Corelyn’s proposals,” Lady Waldenstein said, “your guess is as good as mine. It has been two generations since any Noble house has made such strong, independent moves in the Empire. Since the Sorcerous Kingdom is involved, the Imperial Administration will probably content itself with collecting the improved tax revenues until they get a better idea of what’s going on.”

“And when they believe they have enough information? I can’t imagine that they’ll let the nobility run around with more power than they already have. Any hope for violent resistance to imperial rule may be quashed, but there are other ways to manoeuvre.”

“It’s all relative, don’t you think? The economic and political side of things has always been less tangible, but it has always been a balance between the Imperial Dynasty and the aristocratic establishment. So long as that balance is maintained, the Empire as a whole only gains in power.”

He wasn’t sure that things would work out so smoothly. Generations of vicious competition created a highly competent body of Nobles, and the more capable one was, the more willing they were to test their boundaries to pursue any opportunities they identified.

“The establishment might not try anything inside the Empire,” Dimoiya said, “but that won’t stop them from trying something outside of it. Most of our factions already have some ties in Karnassus and all of that new wealth coming their way can be used to influence the politics of the City-State Alliance.”

“That’s something for Foreign Affairs to digest,” Lady Waldenstein said. “What do you think they would do?”

“I think they’d allow it,” Dimoiya immediately replied. “It’s just another way for the Empire to expand its influence. If something bad happens, we can use it to justify demands or even go to war to protect imperial interests. With the Sorcerous Kingdom protecting the Empire, it’s a gamble we can make with impunity.”

Rangobart nodded in agreement. Even if the Nobles would gain more power by adapting the Sorcerous Kingdom’s logistics and industrial advances, a faction still wouldn’t be able to challenge the City-State alliance. If they wanted the Empire to intervene on their behalf, they would need to stay in the Emperor’s good graces and the Emperor would be more than happy about having a new way to control the Empire’s aristocratic establishment.

It was about as close to a mutualistic relationship that the current Empire could attain between the Crown and its Nobles, focusing the ambition of its factions; the foundation of a new imperial mandate that could have the Baharuth Empire devour the City-State Alliance within a generation or two.

Maybe that was part of the plan all along…

He wouldn't be surprised if it was. The machinations of the Sorcerous Kingdom tended to be unfathomable in their scope. Whenever he thought he had figured out why they did anything, he would be made aware of yet another layer to their schemes.

The scenery outside his window transitioned from rolling pastoral fields to the familiar parkland of a forestry-focused fief. They occasionally passed wagons loaded with cords of firewood and great lengths of timber.

“This must be Jezne County,” Lady Waldenstein said.

“Jezne…” Rangobart slowly repeated the name, “It sounds like it’s from an older dialect.”

“Of the oak grove, or something like that?” Dimoiya offered.

“I think so,” Rangobart said. “The name matches the local industry. What’s the presiding lord like?”

“She’s an impressive woman,” Lady Waldenstein said. “I can’t say the same for her heir apparent, though.”

“Grr, just thinking about that guy makes me want to punch him in the face,” Dimoiya said.

Rangobart gave Dimoiya a questioning look. She was always energetic, but that energy was rarely spent on expressions of personal violence.

“She was, until recently, the Old Countess,” Lady Waldenstein told him. “The Battle of Katze Plains took her son and her son’s only child, so she ended up becoming the Countess again. House Jezne is a cadet branch of House Blumrush, so she went and found a new heir from Re-Estize.”

“What house is he from?”

“None. He’s just the closest identifiable candidate. His family worked at a town workshop.”

“He’s insufferable,” Dimoiya said. “Like a spoiled scion straight from a Bard’s tale.”

“To be fair,” Lady Waldenstein said, “they only just recently took him in. He has to catch up with years of education.”

“How old is he?” Rangobart asked.

“Twelve or thirteen?” Dimoiya answered sourly, “If you ask me, they should just have him produce a kid and then kill him off. Even the taste of imagined power reveals him for what he is. It’s better not to waste any time on this guy and start fresh.”

“Could we not so casually talk about killing the Sorcerous Kingdom’s Nobles?” Lady Waldenstein said.

“It’s not as if we’re killing them,” Dimoiya replied. “I bet the Sorcerous Kingdom wouldn’t mind, either. Getting stuck with a crappy Count for a generation or two probably isn’t something that they’d tolerate.”

Rangobart had no idea what the Sorcerous Kingdom would do to a ‘crappy Count’, but he couldn’t refute what Dimoiya was saying. It would be in the best interests of the young lord if he showed substantial improvement soon. Traditions of inheritance likely meant nothing to their Undead sovereign in the face of highly problematic performance.

“Are we stopping in the town up ahead?” Rangobart asked.

“We left Crosston less than an hour ago,” Lady Waldenstein said. “Let’s just head straight to E-Rantel.”

He issued instructions to the Soul Eater, then frowned out of his window as the carriage took an unexpected turn.

“They built a way around the town?”

“It looked like it,” Dimoiya said.

The weathered stone walls of the town went by, but the carriage didn’t return to the highway. Instead, it sped northeast through a patchwork of farmland and forest. To their north, the looming peaks of the Azerlisia Mountains steadily drew closer.

“I think I see it,” Dimoiya pointed at something in her window. “I guess we’re entering through a different gate.”

She turned out to be correct. A few minutes later, the road joined with another that led straight to the city’s northern gate.

“The architecture of the city seems in line with those towns in the west,” Rangobart said. “I wonder if anything has changed since it was annexed.”

“Wagner mentioned the slums being repurposed to a Demihuman Quarter,” Lady Waldenstein said.”For the most part, however, it sounded like she was trying to dissuade us from visiting the city.”

“And now we’re visiting it.”

“It couldn’t be that bad,” Lady Waldenstein said. “We all know that it was built by Re-Estize, so it isn’t as if we’ll expect it to be the same as Corelyn Harbour. Didn’t you say you wanted to see how the people were faring under the Sorcerer King’s rule? Dimoiya could use the chance to scout out the city for Foreign Affairs, as well.”

There wasn’t any traffic at the northern gate, and a quick round of questions from the customs officer – it wasn’t an Elder Lich this time – saw them into the city with no issues. They were immediately greeted by the sight of a huge graveyard on their right and rows of demolished buildings on their left. Rangobart stopped the carriage to get out and look around.

“Have you been here before?” Dimoiya fell into step beside him.

“Once,” he replied. “We stopped here for a night on a trip to the Theocracy when I was nine. I believe the outer ring of E-Rantel used to function as a barracks for Re-Estize’s Royal Army.”

Due to its nature as a fortress city, E-Rantel looked quite impressive to his younger self. Now, it looked much smaller – especially since he had moved to Arwintar to attend the Imperial Magic Academy. With age and experience, he also noticed a number of flaws with the city’s design. Foremost amongst them was the fact that it tried to be a fortress city and trade city at the same time. As a result, it served neither of those roles well.

The area being demolished was cordoned off. Rangobart came as close to one of the work sites before calling out to a Dwarf directing a team of Ogres transporting debris.

“Excuse me!”

Several of the Ogres looked at him. The Dwarf didn’t.

“Excuse me, good Dwarf!”

The Dwarf looked up from his paperwork and cast a glance over his shoulder. He bid the Ogres to get back to work before turning to shuffle over.

“Yeah? What do you want?”

“Apologies for interrupting your work,” Rangobart said, “but could you explain what’s happening to the old military district?”

“It’s being torn down,” the Dwarf replied. “All of it. Sorcerous Kingdom’s got no use for this military district. This section here’s going to be another expansion of the Demihuman Quarter.”

He scanned the demolition site behind the Dwarf. The Demihuman Quarter was probably just over the city’s second wall.

“Is the wall coming down too?”

“Naw, we’ve got races that could use the thing.”

“I see…I also noticed that you aren’t employing Undead labour. Why is that?”

“Skeletons can’t sort materials out on their own,” the Dwarf replied. “Ogres aren’t very bright, but they can at least do that.”

He made a mental note about the limits of skeletal labour. They were advertised as ideal for menial tasks, but it seemed that some menial tasks were too complex for them.

“Will you be magically repurposing the material?”

“Hah? What are you talking about?”

“…never mind. We should let you get back to your work. Thank you for your time.”

“Mhm.”

Rangobart and Dimoiya returned to the carriage. Lady Waldenstein’s gaze went back and forth between them, hands folded comfortably over her swollen belly.

“What did you find out?” She asked.

“The entire military district is being repurposed for civilian use,” Rangobart answered. “This part we’re passing will be an expansion of the Demihuman Quarter.”

“How large is the Demihuman population here?”

“That, I didn’t ask. Shall I instruct the Soul Eater to take us there for a look?”

Lady Waldenstein shook her head. Even after her time in Warden’s Vale, she was clearly still uncomfortable around Demihumans.

Without any particular destination in mind, Rangobart asked their Soul Eater to take them to a place where they could be oriented with the city’s layout. It took them straight to the city’s central district, where it rounded a palatial villa before stopping halfway down a wide boulevard lined with fruiting trees.

“Would you like to come down this time, Lady Waldenstein?” Rangobart asked.

The Countess looked up and down the paved lanes before nodding. Rangobart went around to open her door and help her out of the carriage.

“This central district seems normal enough,” Rangobart said. “Government offices, accommodations for the well-to-do, household staff going about their business…”

“What’s that?”

Dimoiya pointed to the opposite side of the boulevard. There, a small crowd was gathered, wrapping around the street corner. An occasional cheer rose from the group.

“Some sort of theatre, perhaps?” Lady Waldenstein offered.

The audience was a good mix of people from different vocations. There were even some household staff from several different manors present. The Death Knight sentry nearby made no move to intervene in whatever was going on, so it seemed to at least be a regular occurrence in the city.

As they made their way across the street to the crowd, a familiar, rhythmic sound caught his attention.

“I think they’re spectating a fight,” he said.

“You mean it’s a fighting pit?” Lady Waldenstein’s wariness visibly melted away.

“It sounds like an exchange of blades, at least,” Rangobart said.

They went to occupy a gap in the crowd, finding what indeed looked like a fighting pit occupying the ground floor of the building. It even had three rows of seating which were filled with Human and Demihuman spectators alike. In the arena itself was a lithe young woman wielding a rapier and dirk squaring off against a tall man with a longsword.

“Oh, she’s super aggressive,” Dimoiya said.

Indeed, the woman seemed to be suppressing the longswordsman through sheer ferocity alone. The point of her blade kept coming and what Rangobart at first thought was a fast-paced exchange was in reality a one-sided flurry of attacks.

“Yep, that’s our Alice,” the man beside him said. “I swear she gets more feisty every day.”

“Is she a crowd favourite?” Dimoiya asked.

“Among us Humans, yeah. The Goblins, too. The bigger Demis favour the Adventurer Guild’s hard hitters. More relatable, maybe.”

“These are Adventures duelling?”

“Yeah, this is their training hall,” the man gave their group a once over. “You folks look like you’re from the Empire.”

“Yes, we’re here on business,” Rangobart nodded. “It’s our first time to E-Rantel under the Sorcerous Kingdom.”

“Well, in that case, welcome back. We've lost out on a lot of trade with Re-Estize and the Theocracy since then, but things are much improved locally.”

“It looked like they were turning the city upside down when we came in.”

“You mean the military district? About damn time, I say. Re-Estize left the place empty most of the time. Us people who actually live here will put it to better use.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Rangobart said. “What do they plan on using it for?”

“Hmm…well, they’re adding that one extension to the Demihuman District, but the rest is being added to the common areas of the city. I hear they’re planning to redo the whole city with all the new space.”

“Is there any way we can orient ourselves to all of the changes?”

“Sure is. The administrative office right next to the Adventurer Guild. They hand out maps for newcomers.”

They stayed for three more bouts before Rangobart had to almost drag Lady Waldenstein and Dimoiya away. The aforementioned maps were available to anyone who wanted them at a display just inside the front door. He held it open between his two travelling companions as they pored over the details on the sidewalk outside.

“It looks like the main plaza is a five-minute walk from here,” Rangobart said. “Should we head over by foot?”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Lady Waldenstein said, “it may be too crowded there to bring a carriage.”

“There’s the Dragon aviary,” Dimoiya pointed at a portion of the central wall north of them.

“It looks like all of the magical shops are in the western quarter,” Lady Waldenstein murmured.

As they continued to identify points of interest, the other people on the street started to rush around them. Rangobart scanned the promenade, but he didn’t notice anything amiss. A moment later, a pair of Maids stopped next to him, lowering their heads toward the road.

“Excuse me, miss,” he asked in a low voice. “What’s going on?”

“His Majesty is returning from his walk around the city,” one of the Maids replied.

Eh?

On the other side for him, Lady Waldenstein and Dimoiya were similarly frozen. They couldn’t exactly run away, so they imitated the two Maids. What seemed like an eternity bowing over the sun-beaten pavement passed before a shadow fell over them.

“Hm? If I’m not mistaken…Countess Waldenstein?”

They looked up at the familiar voice of Momon the Black. Behind him was a skeletal being adorned in incalculably precious robes. Beside the skeletal being was a world-class beauty in a diaphanous white dress. She might have been mistaken for a human but for her black wings and the horns gently curving around the sides of her head. Standing on the opposite side of her was another peerless beauty with dark hair and a sharp look. Going by the Adamantite tag hanging from her neck, she was ‘Beautiful Princess’ Nabe, Momon’s partner.

That’s strange, I don’t feel anything from most of them.

Extremely powerful individuals exuded an aura of strength that even everyday civilians could discern. The Undead being standing between the two gorgeous women should have been Ainz Ooal Gown, the Sorcerer King, but Rangobart felt nothing out of him. Nabe and Momon were similarly absent of any sensation that they should have had. The only one who felt unfathomably powerful was the winged woman, who smiled serenely beside the Sorcerer King.

Was it the effect of some protective item? The Sorcerer King had so many obviously magical items on his person that there was no telling how many enchantments he possessed.

“Acquaintances of yours, Momon?” The Sorcerer King asked.

“Indeed, Your Majesty,” Momon answered. “I met them in Baroness Zahradnik’s territory while they were observing the Adventurer Guild’s activities. This is Frianne von Gushmond, Countess of Waldenstein and the new Imperial Head Court Mage. Beside her is Dimoiya Erex, an officer in the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Last, but not least, is Rangobart Roberbad, Viscount of Brennenthal and Mage Captain in the Imperial Army. They’re all attendees of the trade fair being hosted in Corelyn Harbour.”

“Frianne von Gushmond…” the Sorcerer King seemed to ponder the name, “where have I heard that name before?”

“Frianne von Gushmond is the Academy graduate who produced that treatise on magocratic governance, Your Majesty,” the winged woman said.

“Ah, of course!” the Sorcerer King’s skull bobbed in recognition. “How could I forget? A very interesting read, that. It seems you have a bright future ahead of you, Lady Waldenstein.”

“I am flattered to know that you’ve read my work, Your Majesty,” Lady Waldenstein lowered her head.

“And you,” the Sorcerer King turned his attention to Rangobart, “your name also seems familiar. Have we perhaps met somewhere before?”

Had they? Rangobart was certain that they hadn’t – he would have never forgotten something so important, but when an individual of such power suggested it was so, it naturally led to self-doubt.

“Lord Brennenthal commissioned the Adventurer Guild to survey his new titles, Your Majesty,” Momon said. “I believe you made him a special offer…”

“Yes, I remember now. I am pleased that you have decided to employ our Adventurer Guild, Lord Roberbad. If you need any more coupons, please let us know.”

I can get more?

Rangobart lowered his head in gratitude, his mind spinning as he recalculated everything he had planned out thus far. Coupons were terrifying things. So was the Sorcerer King. There was no way someone like him could have forgotten something that had just happened mere days ago, yet he was confident enough to transform it into a device to facilitate an active conversation with his subordinates.

“Since I know of these two,” the Sorcerer King leaned forward to regard Dimoiya, “does that also mean you are an individual of some renown?”

“That’s…” Dimoiya’s eyes turned down to the cobblestones, then came back up again, “Dimoiya is working hard to join the Baharuth Empire’s diplomatic mission to the Sorcerous Kingdom!”

Seriously? Are you crazy, Dimoiya?

“Hoh, is that so?”

“Your Majesty,” the winged woman said, “we are not aware of any such mission.”

“Foreign Affairs is sitting on it,” Dimoiya put on a glum look. “No one else wants to join and they think I’m too young to be an ambassador.”

The Sorcerer King took a step back, rising to his full height as he cradled his chin between a bony thumb and forefinger. A cold sweat dampened Rangobart’s shirt as he awaited the consequences of Dimoiya’s boldness.

“Albedo.”

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“What are your thoughts on this?”

“The idea that the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs isn’t actively working to establish a diplomatic mission in their suzerain’s capital can only be considered an insult. Shall I have the entire department and their families eviscerated and put on display across the Empire?”

Rangobart felt the blood drain from his face. This was Albedo? The Prime Minister of the Sorcerous Kingdom? The serene smile never left her face as she made her vicious offer.

“Ah, no,” the Sorcerer King cleared his nonexistent throat. “Ahem, let’s try this another way. To be clear, Miss Erex, I would normally frown upon such disregard for hierarchy. In this case, however, the Empire’s deliberations seem meaningless. Albedo, initiate the relevant procedures through the proper channels.”

Prime Minister Albedo placed a hand over her ample cleavage and lowered herself into an elegant curtsey.

“It will be as you command, Your Majesty.”

A king that casually commands empires. Is this the true face of Ainz Ooal Gown?

“Umu. Well, then, we should be on our way. I look forward to seeing you in the future, Ambassador Erex.”

“Woohoo!”