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Chapter 122 - Parlay
🕑 Added 2019-07-14 09:05:40 +0000 UTC
The sun rises over the slopes before the eastern gates of Erbilan's forward fortress. It looks like the beginning of the end, as a mass of cloth and steel covers the deforested wasteland as far as the eyes can see. Every last tree was felled over the course of yesterday alone and turned into building materials. Now, a fortified camp stands across the no man's land between the demons and the human army.
Estimates put their numbers at a little over the previously suggested one million - more than six times as many soldiers that made up the force that attacked Arkaim a little over a week ago. The empire intends to drop the hammer on the gateway to the capital, and take the rest of the Dominion in one go. For that, they have gathered not only all their human troops but added members of various other races from within their territories.
A host of Fatas is circling above the city-sized camp of the enemy, and a sectioned-off fort constructed in the only remains of the forest that used to cover the now open wasteland houses an army of elves. Massive humanoid figures, which are doubtlessly giants, can be seen working on assembling siege engines, and a large workshop made from stone has risen overnight in which dwarves are stoking furnaces. It's too late for them to be forging weapons, so they're surely concocting something that will be used to break the walls of the demon fortress.
The reason I haven't gone down there and put an end to all of this is that Zenlith arrived ahead of the army yesterday and appeared before me with the intention to talk. Under normal circumstances, I would have attacked him right then and there, but Kamii and Hestia were closer to him than they were to me. And he didn't try to hide his intention to kill them if I made a wrong move.
"You will not fight in this battle." He said in the most natural tone one could muster when talking to a hated enemy. Though it didn't even seem like he hated me as much as I thought he did during our last encounter.
"Why would I listen to you?" I spat out and glared at him, knowing that his positioning put him at an advantage. Exla wasn't with me at the time, or she would most likely have been able to do something about it.
"Because I hold this continent hostage." Zenlith looked down on me with a cold gaze that left no doubt as to whether or not he was capable of that. "You have disrupted this game enough. The Dominion will fall here, and in time, another nation of demons will rise from its ashes. It has been decided."
"By whom?" All I could do was keep talking, hoping that Exla would notice that her brother was here and come to take him out. I knew the extent of the control Old Humans had when using the Imagination Engine; when he said he was holding the entire continent hostage, he wasn't exaggerating. With a thought, he would be able to sink it to the bottom of the ocean or turn it into a sea of lava. The only reason none of the Old Humans have done so is that they were never threatened in this game of theirs.
But Zenlith decided that he had enough of my meddling. To him, it must feel like another player entering his sandbox game and messing up the scenario he built over a long time.
"By all of us." With a sweeping gesture, he suggested that all the remaining Old Humans were now focused on this. There weren't that many left, with Zenlith, Oinos, Shelnir, and Serent the only ones confirmed alive. And even then, Oinos might be on the sun with Areteniha and the doubtlessly heavily wounded Alverost, while Shelnir might still be out of commission from our encounter with her.
"I want a seat at the table." I announced with a determined expression. "I know about the Imagination Engine."
"I am well aware. That is why you will not fight in this battle." Unsurprised by my revelation, the self-proclaimed Lord of the Sky responded in a neutral tone. "And we will do the same. After this is over, we can talk again."
With these words, he disappeared like mist in a breeze before I could say anything else to him.
It seems like he's going about this differently compared to when he put an end to Aldeath and killed my mother openly in the capacity of a god. Back then, he could have easily held her down the same way he's doing now, by turning the entire Dominion into his hostage. But while he and the other Old Humans were treating her like a part of the game, they recognize that I'm outside of its confines now.
I doubt they will really let me join their ranks, though. I've done too much damage to their members already and influenced their game irrevocably.
And what was that about Zenlith not caring about the game too much, and Shelnir being the one controlling everything? He seemed fired up enough about this scenario that he would come out here personally to keep me from disrupting it any more than I already have. If that's not dedication to it, I don't know what is.
But does that mean I came all this way just to watch this war unfold without being able to do anything?
I grind my teeth and glance at the demon soldiers gathered on the walls around me. They look terrified by the sea of enemies that will soon wash against this fortress in destructive waves until it's ground down completely. Even with almost the entire remaining force of the Dominion gathered here, the defenders don't even number a hundred thousand, when compared to the million humans on the enemy side.
"What's the matter, senpai?" Exla's voice pulls me out of my gloomy thoughts, and I turn around to her. Kamii and Hestia are there as well, and Dregana is keeping in the background.
"Your brother." I reply dryly. Right after Zenlith left, she appeared next to me and muttered a chuunibyou line, saying she sensed something; a presence she hadn't felt in a long time. I discussed the matter with her, and she repeatedly assured me that I shouldn't worry about it.
"Oh come on, you still don't believe me?" Acting hurt, the cloud girl pouts exaggeratedly. Then her expression grows serious. "I'm not lying when I told you that I'm the strongest on Earth as long as the Imagination Engine is active. Alverost's mom holds the biggest stick, and Oinos would still be a god even without the engine, but when it comes to imagination, I can win against them all."
"In a battle with atomic bombs, nobody wins." I reprimand her hubris. She holds all the knowledge of humanity before its fall, and included in it aren't only anime or movies, but also historical records, so she should know this.
"And I'm telling you that's not what I mean. The only reason I can't defeat Alverost's mom is that she can pull the power plug. But everybody else can only push the reset button." She's using a console gaming analogy, and I get the impression that Areteniha is like the mother in the scenario of elementary school boys being sore losers when playing games at her son's home. "And my hand covers the reset button. As long as I'm here, nobody will make any changes to the world."
"Guardian of the Soil, huh?" I mutter her title. If what she's saying is true, then she's like a living anchor that keeps reality in place.
"That's just the leftover spot that Shelnir gave to me after we came here. In Armeria, people called me Tumanako, the All-Parent." Puffing out her chest in pride, she declares, sounding like a child who just got a good grade in school and wants praise from her big sister. "I'm not a parent, though; don't worry, senpai."
"There's nothing wrong with being a parent." I shrug, speaking from experience. Judging by Exla's confidence, it's safe to say that she can really stop the others with just her imagination alone. The fact that the humans of Armeria would consider her their primary god may be a testament to that.
"Oh yeah, you did say you had two little boys. They must be pretty cute." Grinning mischievously, she peers up at me with her galaxy eyes.
"Don't you dare lay a hand on them. They're still kids." The irony isn't lost on me, considering what I did with them moments after first meeting them. They are Cosmic Horrors just like me, so age is unimportant, but my motherly instincts tell me not to give them away so easily.
"I'm joking, senpai. It's you I'm looking up to." Her grin grows even wider, and I can't help but think that she's making fun of me now.
"Come back in ten years, when you've grown up." I pet her fluffy hair, which looks exactly like the clouds in the sky reddened by the dawn.
"Even if you're my senpai, I won't forgive you for making fun of my appearance." Exla pouts with a scowl, and I quickly let go of the matter in fear of incurring her wrath.
"[Chaos! Is the enemy finally coming?]" Suddenly, Korenga's booming voice echoes through the gatehouse. She went to sleep in there last night while waiting for the human army to start moving. Mataku's curse is still active in her, even though it's only part of the Imagination Engine's system. When we got the time, I'll ask Exla to undo it.
"[They're still preparing, but I think it's going to be soon.]" I reply to the Black God as she appears in the doorway and walks toward us. The Petsobek are the tallest among the demons defending the fortress battlements, but she still towers over them.
"[Can't we go out there and bring the fight to them?]" She asks impatiently while scratching the back of her head. I would have done that if not for Zenlith's warning, and even though I do trust that Exla is extremely powerful, a part of me still thinks it's better to listen to the self-styled god for the time being.
After all, the Old Humans could just go ahead and destroy other cities instead of upheaving the entire continent in retaliation, when they realize that they can't do anything too grand because of the Guardian of the Soil. I doubt she can know everything going on across this continent, so that's still a possibility.
"[That would be strategically unwise.]" I answer with a frown. She's much older than me and should have seen more wars than I have, but maybe they were never a siege like this, with a huge discrepancy in numbers on the two sides. In Arkaim, we were the reinforcements coming from the outside, but here, we're the defenders from the start. "[We'll let them break themselves on our walls first.]"
I turn my head to look at the demons near us. They don't understand what I'm saying, but their expressions relax when I'm around. Most have heard of my powers, so they believe that I'll solve this single-handedly. When they see me not fighting, they might lose heart then; they would be wondering why I'm sitting back while my soldiers die.
Then again, there's a loophole in Zenlith's demand, aside from the obvious fact that I can have Exla fight in my stead: He said I couldn't fight, but he never said I couldn't take command. Not like I'm great at strategy games - and this isn't a game - but at least my people won't think I'm just a passive bystander when I direct them from the front lines. I can't attack, but I can defend myself when I get attacked, so that should be fine. It just means I can't do flashy stuff as I did back in the siege of Arkaim and when I erased Pontis Daemonis from the map.
"With these numbers, it should be alright." Kamii suddenly comes up to me and states with an expressionless look on her face. I know exactly what she means even without her demonstratively clicking her crab pincer. Maybe today is the day we get to see the ceiling of her curse power - if there is any.
"Our business is with them." Hestia looks up into the sky with a determined gaze. The vulture-like white-winged people are her kin, but she feels nothing but contempt for them. After all, they're the ones who sent her to the academy to let her die from the buildup of corruption over time with no means of relief.
Dregana will join her in the sky this time, and fight in her dragon form. As the only dragonkin with wings, she's a special existence among her kind. They usually have a place in the militaries of this world's nations, but she was sold by her very own mother because she hated her otherness. I learned this from Hestia only yesterday when the topic of the dragonkin fighting on the humans' side came up.
To think Dregana had such a tragic past; I'm feeling some sympathy for her.
"What is it?" The dragon woman in question glares at me as if having sensed my thoughts.
"You're not cute at all." I grumble and turn away from her.
"I do not care whether you find me cute or not." She adds with a derisive snort, but then yelps in surprise when Hestia pokes her in the side with a pout.
"Do not disrespect Onee-sama." The angel girl says in feigned anger.
"Now that was cute." I comment with a laugh. Dregana's voice is always firm and level, but that little expression of surprise was several octaves higher than her usual pitch.
"Forget that ever happened." Glaring at me with clear killing intent, our former wind magic professor suppresses the urge to transform on the spot.
"[Oh, there's movement.]" Korenga points toward the human camps, and I spin my head around. Everybody does the same, and we look over the empty no man's land to find that the humans have opened their gates to let a flood of soldiers spill out onto the plains. The siege engines built by the giants are being pushed into their positions while cavalry troops line up in the front to preempt any forays from our side.
The giants and dwarves are still working, so this must be only to probe our reactions for the time being. But Chandra's orders are to hold the battlements no matter what until she spots an opening. For a muscle-head, she's unexpectedly sensible. Then again, even I - a high school girl from modern-day Japan with no experience in medieval and magical warfare - know not to go out and fight an army in an open field if you have walls to protect you.
"They're sending somebody to parlay." The Argos demon in the tower calls down to us. "There are six people, and one of them is Emperor Lucianus."
"The emperor comes personally, huh?" I mutter under my breath. I heard the reports about how he also personally led an army of elite knights to ravage the city of Arkaim while the gods fought my mother. He's the leader of all humans, so shouldn't things be over if he dies here?
Of course, Zenlith wouldn't let that happen. Even if Emperor Lucianus V died here, he would find a way to make the humans continue this war. In fact, they might fight with reignited hatred for the demons if he were to be killed while parlaying.
"Let's go down there." I gesture for Kamii, Hestia and Korenga to follow me. "[You come as well, but don't start anything unless I do.]"
"[Come on now. Am I a rabid dog or what?]" Acting hurt, the Black God shrugs with an exaggerated frown. She's being ironic, as she's well aware of the fact that people gave her the title that she has precisely because of her episodes of losing control.
"What about me, senpai?" Exla looks up at me with a pout, feeling left out once again.
"Are you sure you want to show yourself before the humans? It will ruin your image as the Guardian of the Soil if you side with the demons openly." Not like anybody would know who she is by seeing her current form. But I obviously don't say that out loud.
"You just thought something rude, didn't you?" Even then, she scowls at me as if it was written all over my face. Maybe it is; my body works in mysterious ways. "Nobody really knows me anyway. After all, I never appeared before the humans after leaving Armeria."
"Isn't that sad?" I shrug. If she wants to come, who am I to stop her. She could just come even if I tell her not to by flying after us, and I wouldn't be able to do anything about it.
Thus, I hop off the battlements and land outside the gates. Korenga does the same and causes the ground to shake on impact, while Hestia gracefully glides down on her wings with Kamii in her arms. Exla floats down on her cloud and joins us, but I notice that Dregana is missing. When I look up, I find that she's at a loss. In her current form, she's barely stronger than a human, so this isn't a drop she would be able to walk away from without injury. And transforming into a dragon is not an option, as it leaves her naked afterward.
"Here, I'll catch you." I hold out my arms and call up to her, and the dragonkin's face flushes red as her usual glare intensifies that I fear she could shoot out a death laser from her eyes.
Then her head disappears from the battlements, and moments later, the gate opens. Out of breath, Dregana walks through them. It seems she ran down the stairs as quickly as she could to not keep us waiting. When I smile at her, she shoots me an annoyed look. It seems that I'm really hated.
"Is it alright not to bring Chandra or Rhosk? She is the marshal, and he is the commander of Erbilan after all." Hestia asks while looking through the crack of the gate before it closes again. "And should we not ride on nightmares? They are coming on horseback."
"It's fine. Rhosk has handed command over to Chandra anyway, and she hasn't made a move to come out herself. This is only a formality anyway; I'm sure this will be a wholly fruitless parlay." I shrug while growing mass from under my feet. It quickly turns into an ornamental palanquin that floats half a meter off the ground with a throne at the center on which I place myself. "And why travel like a peasant when I can travel like a queen?"
"You have a great sense of aesthetics, senpai." Exla comments on my choice to emulate a certain Persian king's ride. She floats up to sit in one of the seats I created around mine, but I notice that she isn't physically lowering her body into it and keeps hovering on her own. Her mass must be extremely heavy due to all the mass she has. Even the Imagination Engine can't replicate the pocket dimension of a Crawling Chaos, so it's all in real space for her.
On the other hand, the moment Korenga steps up, the entire platform lists because I forgot about her weight. Even though I should be able to carry any amount of weight through imagination alone, I didn't account for it just now. But Kamii and Hestia take that opportunity when the platform is a little lowered to climb aboard as well and sit down on my left and right. Finally, Dregana reluctantly follows their lead and does the same.
With this, I begin to hover down the slope toward the approaching group of human riders. I'm sure they witnessed what I just did and must be wondering whether or not that was an illusion or some incredible magic.
Speaking of magic, I notice that one of the six people is Thorvadis, whom I last saw in the demon castle when he helped murder my mother. But just as I could suppress the urge to kill Rolan instantly when I met him again, I keep my seething anger down and let it simmer. There will be opportunity enough to get my revenge once the battle commences.
In the center rides a man almost as tall as Gram and with a similar physique. He's decked out in bluish-silver armor richly ornamented with golden runes and embellishments that make it look ceremonial rather than fit for battle. His massive horse is the same, heavily armored and of a sturdy build. The open helmet reveals a clean-shaven face on the handsome side, light-blue eyes filled with pride, and long blond hair spills out over his shoulders. The golden crown worked into the helmet tells me that this is Emperor Lucianus V.
To his side is a slender girl with leaf-green hair, emerald eyes and pointy ears. She must be Evelyn Adrasteia Velia, the elven queen that succeeded the throne after her mother died the day before I was reincarnated into my current self. She looks just like her mother, except for the color of her hair. Her expression is filled with hatred, which doesn't diminish her beauty in the slightest.
The one member of this group that catches my eye more than anyone though is the Fata, sitting side-saddle while wearing a stunning white robe. Quite the opposite of Hestia wearing her easy to move in black leather outfit, she seems to be the type that stays far from the front lines. Her light blue eyes are narrowed as if about to nod off, and just as every member of her kind, she has silver hair and possesses peerless beauty.
I still prefer my fallen angel though, and glance at her hoping to catch her staring at me to see my reaction at meeting another Fata. But instead, I find that her wings are trembling and her hands are balled into fists in suppressed anger. It would seem that they know each other.
"Who is that?" We're still far enough away that I can ask Hestia. It would be bad form to do that while engaging in a conversation with them.
"Apate Moirael. She is my father's wife." The angel girl replies without turning around, and I understand what has her so on edge. She got the title "Black Valkyrie" for swooping in and helping the demons, but the Fatas know her as the first among them that fell to corruption. It's no wonder that somebody from her past life would appear before her eventually. To think it would be the one person who most likely has the greatest interest in seeing her die.
"Don't worry. She won't dare to do anything to you." I state with a determined gaze. Even if she's a Fata, a being from before Mataku essentially reset the world, part of her setting is that she needs to chant to use magic. I can preempt that with a simple thought.
"Lucianus V is my brother." Exla suddenly announces on my other side while speaking Japanese so that only I can understand. I suppress the urge to express my surprise at not only her suddenly changing the language, but also revealing this hidden truth.
Then again, I remember that Zenlith had done the same twenty-two years ago. He had disguised himself as Lucianus IV to personally kill Aldeath and used a physical body. That's when my mother was able to wound him, and possibly the only time he could ever take damage.
Is this the opportunity to kill him that I've been waiting for? When he appeared before me as a god, he was always living lightning just like Tahiri in her storm mode. If he's hurt, he will most likely drop all pretense and discard his disguise, but as long as he's in that body, he can be killed.
At least that's what I think, but I may be wrong.
"The Saint of Luminosity..." Kamii comments, and I follow her gaze to see the small figure of Arcelia Crux riding on a horse behind Thorvadis. I don't doubt for a second that Basarab is also somewhere in the human camp, so we'll have a rematch with the Royal Academy crew very soon. Only this time, I'm not fighting alone anymore, and I won't be defeated by the limited magic that the gods imposed on humans.
"[Won't this be over if we just kill these guys?]" Korenga points at the group of six with an innocent expression.
"[A parlay is sacred. You don't kill each other during one.]" Exla replies in her old accent, and the Black God's eyes widen in surprise. The two of them haven't had an opportunity to talk yet, so she didn't know that the little cloud girl could speak her language.
"[Whoever decided that?]" I ask her, and she turns her head to me with a thoughtful frown. She must be searching her memory for books or stories.
"[History, I guess.]" She states after a few seconds.
"[And that's why it repeats itself.]" I assert with a shrug. "Anyway, keep it classy."
We're within earshot of the other party now, so I stop the chatter and let my eyes meet the human emperor's. His gaze tells me that he really is Zenlith, as his lips curl into a self-assured smile. He must believe that I won't try anything funny because he's holding this continent hostage.
But then his gaze moves across my entourage and gets stuck on Exla. His eyes widen in bewilderment, and his smile freezes when he recognizes her. He stops his horse, causing the others around him to do the same in surprise, and his confusion becomes almost tangible.
"What is the matter, Emperor Lucianus?" I call out to him with a malicious undertone in my voice. "It is as if you have seen a ghost."
"Oh, don't tease him so, senpai. Remember that he's just a boy in puberty acting out his fantasies. He just happened to realize that his sister is watching him." The cloud girl sounds so gleeful that I fear Zenlith could snap, but it seems that he doesn't dare to oppose her.
"What are you doing here?" Zenlith, in the guise of Lucianus, asks while pointing at Exla. He's still trying to keep up appearances, but his followers are wondering how he knows the cloud girl who is so obviously on the side of the demons.
"Who is that?" Evelyn is the first to ask, but only receives a glare that shuts her up. I know that those two are an item, as it has been the case for every generation of emperors from Terminus and queens from the elvish kingdom. Good to see that the woman is below the man here...
"Senpai told me a few things about what you have done in recent times." Exla gestures at me as if it wasn't obvious enough whom she meant by senpai. "It might be time to put an end to this game."
"You should not be interfering." Visibly grinding his teeth, Zenlith balls his fists. Thorvadis and the others are exchanging glances at the human emperor's uncharacteristic behavior. His image must be crumbling, so maybe I can deliver the final blow.
"If you didn't know that she has been with me for a while now, then you might also not know that just two days ago, Alverost's battle station was destroyed over Zohigal." I speak in all seriousness, not letting a smile blemish the veracity of my statement. "That little nerd is most likely dead, and Shelnir is mortally wounded too."
Staring at me with round eyes, he searches my expression to gauge whether or not that's a bluff. His lips tremble as the scenario appears to be crumbling all around him. But it seems that Exla was telling the truth when she said she could keep Zenlith and all the other Old Humans from pushing the reset button. Because if that were not the case, he would most likely have snapped and upturned this entire continent after learning what I just told him.
Then he suddenly regains his composure, closes his eyes, and sighs. But it doesn't seem like he has resigned himself. Instead, he must have considered all possible courses of action and come to a conclusion on his own. And the determination in his gaze tells me it's not something I'll like.
"Then that just means the playing field is even." He states with a carefree smile. Something doesn't feel right; he looks too confident for having just learned that his far more powerful sister is now standing against him. "Let us negotiate your unconditional surrender then."
