The group this time will be Hana, Klein, Mimi, a small squad of veteran Lordsguard, and I. Since Hukarere wants to get involved in my adventures, we bring her with us too. She's experienced enough as a guard for nobility that she can already be considered a veteran.

I stare at my watch, and when it hits exactly 12:30 PM, we cross through the [Eternal Gate] to Mac Gantus. There's a timezone difference between the capital and Escanso, so we have to leave a bit late to get there right at lunchtime.

When we cross through the heavy metal gate, we notice Confiel coming out of the gate right next to ours, the one labeled "Goloria."

"Greetings, Ryders," he politely starts and gives a nod to the others. His jovial smile is instantly recognizable.

His own knight and Lordsguard also salute us, and we return the pleasantries.

"Have you ever been to Mac Gantus?" Confiel asks as we write down our names in the logbook.

"I haven't," I casually admit.

"But we have, and I'm kind of happy to be going back after such a long time," Hana answers for the rest.

"Not a lot should've changed since we last visited, but it's still a beautiful place," Mimi comments and Klein nods in agreement, the former is very serene, but the latter is a bit stiff from talking with high nobility.

The monkey-girl's quick movements catch Confiel's attention, who then appraises her Camalo armor.

"Your armor was enchanted by God-Ruler Arreira himself, correct?" He casually questions, and Klein turns into a statue from her tension, her long tail shooting straight up like a pike.

"It was. Only a few sets like it exist because of his lack of fondness for mass-production," I proudly answer and grin at Klein's anxiety.

"Fascinating," he mutters as he looks her up and down, then he smiles kindly at her. "I'm sorry for staring so intensely."

"N-no problem…" She strains herself to reply.

 

The Throne of Ascension is the tallest humanoid-made structure, a very wide spiral tower that rises so high above the clouds that it was possible to even see the Sky Lands of the Chimeras before they were gifted a cloaking device by a previous emperor.

As high nobility, we're allowed to leave the Network at the mid-level of the Throne of Ascension, which is actually higher up than even our own castle can reach.

We exit into a rather kaleidoscopic hall. Wide and tall as if it was made for giants; covered in colorful, patterned tiles that makes even the elven Lordsguard a bit dizzy; and illuminated by huge, stained glass windows that seem like dwarven murals of epic events.

The hall itself is populated by dozens of small, but extremely fancy stalls that exude exotic scents. These are shops here that cater exclusively to high nobility, so they offer only the finest (and perhaps most pretentious and overpriced) goods that someone of our class could buy.

The people walking around here are mostly imperials, easily discernible by their colorful clothes and the abundant use of velvet, and among them, humans make up half, while werecats and weredogs make up one quarter each.

We, in our delicate elven clothing, easily stand out along with the other non-imperials due to our lack of vibrancy, but we don't lose out in fanciness.

Though everything is fancy, neither anything nor anyone uses gold or silver as decoration.

Lina's Trivia: Before the first emperor conquered Mac Gantus, it was a decaying city where the nobles gilded nearly everything in gold and silver to boast about their wealth, which the first emperor melted all down the moment he rose to power, so it has become a faux pas to use gilding as a decoration in the capital. Though the first emperor had his artisans create beautiful things, he despised using expensive materials just because they were valuable.

We quickly pass by the stalls since we're not here to buy any ostentatious trinkets, then we leave the hall and exit onto the outer spiral of the Throne, which gives us a great view towards the southern area of the capital.

Mac Gantus is a sea of yellow brick houses with orange clay roof tiles, all carefully measured since there's a height limit for housing. The only thing that can rise above them is the Hyper Loop, the metal rails with proto-trains powered by [Ritualism] that serve as the main means of mass-transport here.

Beyond the sea of houses, we can see the Three Kings Bay, and it's absolutely swarming with all sorts of ships. I even notice an Ironclad, though it lacks the chimney, so it obviously isn't coal-powered.

"A rare dwarven ship. They usually use hidden dwarven-powered waterwheels to move," Lina explains through [Bind].

Another thing that catches my attention is a huge fish, which must be a merfolk submarine made from the remains of a monster.

We enter a large birdcage, and Confiel tells the weredog attendant that we're going down. The fancily-clothed attendant then feeds mana into a gem, and the cage starts sliding down the huge ramp around the pure white Throne of Ascension.

The entire capital is basically in a flat plain with a slight depression towards the Bay, so all we can see in all directions is just the same orange sea of clay roof tiles. Though in the north, there's a lake that's reserved for nobility, so there are only a few fancy ships sailing on it.

We stop near the base of the Throne, and we exit into another hall with more stalls, though these ones are less fancy since they cater to the lower nobility and the rich merchants.

We take a side corridor that circles around the outer edge of the Throne, and we pass by a few restaurants, shops, and inns before we stop in front of a particular establishment, the Bronze Confidential.

It's a fancy place that's worthy of someone of our station while at the same time being affordable enough for the other party, who is a lower noble. The bronze that decorates the interior may have a golden-like luster, but it's used sparsely enough that Ciel finds it "tasteful."

The best feature of this restaurant, though, is the privacy. Each room is enchanted with all sorts of anti-espionage spells that we can control from the inside. And when we enter the room that's been reserved for us, it's clear that it can easily house every Lordsguard we have with room to spare.

"Hermann!" Hana shouts excitedly and runs to her brother, with Mimi following her at a normal walking pace.

The tall, dark-skinned, black-haired young man rises from his seat, and I notice that he's wearing a set of shining knight-grade armor. He looks a little older than me, but the truth is that he might be one or two years younger, possibly due to my higher level slowing down my aging.

 

 

He's not a Tranfkoever anymore…?

Hermann raises his arms and smiles, which annoys me since his manly face is eerily similar to Hana's. His square jaw is kind of enviable, though. Then he receives her in his arms, and his armor clangs loudly, making me appreciate how silent elven armor is.

Hermann may be tall, but he's still shorter than Hana, so she easily gains the upper hand in the bear hug, or orc hug in Rupegia-speak, though his armor still protects him from suffocation.

Maybe I should [Equip] my armor whenever I get hugged by Hana.

"Don't you dare!" She immediately shouts through [Bind].

Geez. Do you girls ever not hear my thoughts?

"No…?" Alissa quietly replies, a bit embarrassed herself, for once.

Mimi joins in the hug, and the three siblings touch their heads together. Hermann is shorter than Mimi too, so I kind of relate to him a bit.

I turn my eyes to the other occupants of the room and smile diplomatically.

The one that's sitting next to Hermann is a mature, gray-mustached, black-skinned man with the build of a mage but the confident demeanor of a noble. His clothes are short and mostly open, tailored to a humid and hot tropical climate, but he's also wearing a semi-transparent, bright blue robe that looks as delicate as elven clothes.

 

 

On his other side is a boy with the same build and height, but with a much younger face and slightly curly hair. His face is strikingly similar to mine, though with a darker skin tone and without my draconic features.

 

 

So… why does Hermann have the same last name as these nobles…?

I don't even show their info to Hana to avoid making her suspicious, but now it's pretty obvious why they didn't want to let Hermann go.

The happy reunion only lasts for a short while because when Hermann and Klein see each other, it's like they both become petrified, their expressions frozen as they just stare at each other in silence.

"I'm sorry…" Are the first words Hermann has to say to Klein, and her dumbfounded expression would be funny if I wasn't starting to feel a bit bitter about their reunion.

I was getting used to not being able to have Klein for myself, but my jealousy is now replaced with anger since Hermann didn't have the resolve to not marry someone else. At least Klein declined to join my harem, but Hermann didn't even do that!

"Hermann…" Stefan sternly warns him, and Hermann's expression becomes stoic as he straightens his posture again, then the old man turns his eyes towards us and smiles diplomatically. "Crown Lords Confiel Rincipio, Wolf Ryder, and Hanafuria Ryder, Dame Klein Foerster, and Miss Mizushina Tranfkoever. I'm honored that such an illustrious party has come to attend this meeting."

Confiel's knight looks a bit miffed that he wasn't named, but nobody here has any reason to know his name.

"Dezen Stefan Grosshil," Confiel softly replies with a simple nod, then extends his hands for the elven greeting.

Stefan has the "Dezen" imperial rank, which awards him a small squad of imperial soldiers, so while he isn't a Lord nor rules over any land, he has the military power of about half of a Root Lord.

Stefan gets up and walks around the table, his son following close behind.

After he gently touches Confiel's hand with his forehead, he gently pulls his son forward. "This is my son, Ahren," he introduces his shy boy, who blushes as he touches Confiel's hand, then the duo comes towards us for handshakes.

Stefan doesn't hesitate to shake my clawed hand, but his boy does, and he also visibly cowers under Hana's glare. They don't shake Mimi's nor Klein's hands, but they at least share respectful nods.

With the annoyingly complex pleasantries out of the way, we all take our seats, with the knights standing behind us and the Lordsguard taking positions at the walls.

I'm quite happy that these seats have been adapted to provide enough room for my tail to hang down. The large number of wereanimals that live here must be what drives this chair design to be the standard.

Klein and Hermann remain standing since they're knights, and it's kind of adorable to see them both making stern expressions when their faces are so young and cute.

Stefan only has two other servants with him, an unknown mage and another knight, but it actually exceeds our expectations a little that he really brought this many people, considering his lower status.

Confiel rings a bell on the table, and the waiters bring out the first course.

"So, Dezen Stefan, as per our last letter, I've brought Hermann's sisters, one of whom is also a Crown Lord," Confiel smoothly starts and gracefully motions towards us.

We start eating slowly, savoring the perfect croutons with a wide variety of spreads given to us.

"Yes, I'm happy that Sir Hermann was able to reunite with part of his family," Stefan calmly replies and warmly smiles at Hermann, who awkwardly shifts on his feet, then Stefan's gaze becomes resolute, like a man ready to face a beast head-on. "But as I've said before, I can't simply release Sir Hermann from service."

We all stop eating and stare at him expressionlessly, slowly breathing to keep ourselves calm as we try to break his composure with our gazes.

I'm actually impressed with the bastard's audacity.

Hermann sweats cold in his shining armor while Ahren seems to die on the spot, his eyes becoming hollow and lifeless as he cowers in fear, yet neither of them says a word.

"It's well past the time for you to tell us the reason why," Confiel coldly demands, and I feel a hint of "danger" in his tone, which likely also affects Stefan, even though he's high-level.

"Let him speak so that he drowns by his own words," Yunia suggests through [Bind], and I accept.

The old mage swallows heavily, but holds Confiel's stare and replies, "We've already made Hermann our sworn knight…"

"Did you call us all the way here just to say that?!" Confiel annoyedly exclaims, his nose beginning to scrunch in distaste.

"But it also means that we've invested too much in him and his training," Stefan boldly argues.

Confiel narrows his eyes and points out with a slow, deliberate tone, "Trading knights has been a common custom for thousands of years."

But Stefan's resistance is fierce. "No money can pay for the bonds that we've formed with Hermann," he fearlessly asserts.

Confiel leans towards me and covers his mouth as he hurriedly whispers, "They married Hermann to someone important, or he got someone pregnant."

"The former," I whisper back.

Confiel snorts softly, but then he instantly shifts and lets anger paint his tone. "If you resist, we can take him by force," the imposing elf threatens with a chilling tone, and the atmosphere in the room instantly changes.

Hermann, the other knight, and the mage servant seem like they want to cry while Ahren remains lifeless, but Stefan still holds on.

"My Lord won't be happy about that," the old mage defies him.

And his phrasing is just too curious to ignore.

Confiel leans closer to me again. "He's bound by a promise to the Gods, not an alliance."

And Yunia agrees. The wording "my Lord" is used by those directly under a Lord and commoners. A noble with even a hint of pride would say "Lord Ryder," or similar, but never "my Lord."

"And doubly bound due to the marriage," I point out.

"So he doesn't want to break the vows of either," Confiel speculates.

"Who's his Lord?"

Confiel replies dismissively, "Someone minor. No chance of retaliation if we force the issue."

Yunia suddenly takes over my mouth and questions, "Is he trustworthy enough to be made into an ally?"

Confiel's intense eyes narrow in suspicion of where "I" am going with this. "His reputation is average but spotless. I'd say he's reliable," he answers, forthrightly.

I give him a subtle smug smile as I propose, "Then we 'kidnap' them all, and you give us your support."

Confiel fully turns his head to stare at me in surprise. "That's… acceptable, and also unexpectedly bold, coming from you."

I grin. "Yunia's influence."

"Hm…" He hums in thought, then rebuilds his stern facade and turns to Stefan again.

"I declare that we're taking the Grosshil family under our care, forcefully," Confiel states in a firm, unyielding tone.

Confiel's knight draws his sword, with Klein and all of the Lordsguard following suit a second later, though the three Grosshils, the other knight, and the mage servant all remain motionless.

Stefan lowers his head and begs, "Lords, please do not separate us from Sir Hermann. He's very dear to our family."

Then Yunia takes control of me again to add, "We shall give shelter in Escanso to any Grosshil who wishes to come with us as long as Hermann is freed from his knightly duty."

Stefan finally shows some emotion. He suddenly stands up and grins creepily, like an anime protagonist that just caught the villain in their trap, then he states out loud, "Let it be known that I've resisted as far as I could, but I simply don't have the power to stand against the combined will of two Crown Lords, so I hereby relinquish the title of Dezen, relieve Sir Hermann from duty with full honors, and formally request that the Ryder family of Crown Lords gives the Grosshil family sanctuary so that we may watch over our dear Hermann."

Confiel and I share surprised looks.

He was threading the needle all along, juggling not breaking his vow with not offending us, keeping his family together, and hiding the marriage so that we wouldn't force a divorce. All so that he could make us sympathize with him just enough until we would finally force things to go our way while still being as fair as possible. He's like a Chihuahua that suddenly started barking at two Rottweilers, who are too confused and wary at the odd behavior to immediately react with a bite. An exemplar plot of what could be expected from nobles.

"It ends in our favor, but I feel like I lost a battle of wits," Confiel whispers with a begrudging smile.

"I wasn't fighting particularly hard, though," I wryly admit.

"You…!" He glares at me and stops himself from swearing.

But I just grin back and quietly praise, "Anyway, Stefan gambled high, and he got what he wanted."

Confiel grunts softly and lets his anger subside. "Yes, it couldn't have gone any better for him."

I turn to Stefan and state, "The Ryder family accepts you." Then I wave to the Lordsguard, and they resheathe their weapons.

Stefan's knight excuses himself and leaves the room, then the main course of our meal begins.

But won't the Gods know that he never had any intention of keeping his vow anyway?

Ciel explains, "He still did the best he could to fulfill his vow, whatever it was, but it seems that his desire to keep his family together gave him the will necessary to resist the vow."

"'No law is absolute,' a teaching from the God of Law," Yunia lectures.

"Just like with a Blood Slave contract," Hana comments.

Ciel agrees with both of them and adds, "It's risky to work around vows like that, so I'd only recommend it as a last resort, which kind of fits for this situation."

I guess the Gods aren't just automatons, then.

 

"So, who did Hermann marry?" I casually ask, and that finally catches Stefan off-guard.

"Me," Ahren energetically answers, and now it's Hermann's turn to seem like he just died. Ahren stands up and bows to us as he confesses, "I'm sorry! I took advantage of Hermann's weakness and loneliness, and I persuaded him to marry me in secret!"

Klein is shocked, her mouth hanging open as she finally realizes the true reason for Hermann's apology. It isn't very knightly to lose her composure like this, but she's excused this time for obvious reasons.

Stefan gives a sour look to his son, possibly blaming him for the lengths he had to go to in order to succeed with this risky gamble.

Did they think we'd be offended that Hermann got married without our consent?

"We're not the ones you need to apologize to," I point out, holding back my annoyance. "But you'll have time to deal with that later."

Ahren obediently sits down and replies, "Y-yes… I'm so-… I'm sorry."

Then I smirk towards Mimi and jokingly ask, "Is there anyone in your family who's actually completely straight?"

She glances at me and hesitates, then simply shrugs instead of answering.

"Congratulations on becoming a noble," Hana slowly gives her blessing to Hermann, her brain refusing to process the sudden development.

"I guess it'd be fair to let him sit with us," I suggest with a teasing grin, then I look over at Klein and soothingly order her, "Same goes for you. Sit down and have a drink."

 

Klein and Hermann are mostly quiet, so I think they'll need some time alone together to talk after this meeting is over.

Since we're taking the Grosshils in, we get them to talk about themselves. They're a typical family of Water and Fire mages, and though they have someone born with [Alchemicism], their younger daughter, she's more like a witch doctor, so she's not immediately useful to us.

Roxanne is quite prejudiced against [Alchemicism], so she grumbles to herself as she eats her meal back at the castle.

Stefan discreetly watches me for my reaction when he mentions his daughter, so I think he knows about my reputation, but unless his daughter herself shows some interest, I don't plan on giving her the D.

Then I realize that it's most likely because of me that his wife and daughter didn't attend this meeting.

Oh, well… I can't fault him, we are quite predatory.

Hermann is actually quite the talented warrior himself, which is likely due to his strong dragonkin blood, even though he's fully human.

He'd make a good knight, but now that he's married to a noble, the best we can do is to allow them into the clan.

 

The mood isn't right for a feast, so we quickly finish our meal and leave with the three Grosshils in tow.

As we take the lift up, Confiel approaches Hana and me. "With this, there's only Lord Hanafuria's father and mother to find, but it shouldn't be long now, not after I give them your revered name," he gracefully explains as he subtly smirks, and I smile wryly at the jab.

"Thank you," Hana breathes, honestly very grateful to him for his efforts.

"Just our part of the deal."

"Still."

He flashes her a gentle smile, then his expression becomes serious again. "Also, rumors have been spreading for some time that Vanea Anara is interested in your family. She's still ostracized by a good part of the imperial nobility, so be careful about how public you want your relationship with her to be," he somberly advises us.

I assume that's the real reason why she wanted a private meeting yesterday.

"I understand, thank you for the advice," I cordially reply and nod.

He nods back, then hesitates for a second before adding, "And… don't cross her. She's vicious."

I soberly nod again. I know very well how she is.

When we reach the middle layer again, we find Stefan's knight flanked by two women, Hana's new not-blood mother and not-blood sister.

The milf has curly, full hair and a curvaceous body, while her daughter has such a youthful face and kissable, full lips that I'll give her the D the very instant she asks me for it.

However, from the way that they both avoid looking me in the eye, it seems that she probably won't ask for that if I actively pursue her.