The Simulacrum - Chapter 81 - Part 1 (Patreon)

Normally this was the point where I'd say something along the lines of 'The silence in the room was palpable', except it wasn't. There wasn't even a long, meaningful beat after my declaration. Some were only whispering, like the knight mooks in the back, while others were letting out thoughtful hums, such as my self-described in-laws. And as for a certain Mr. Minotaur...

"Na pumpin' wey !"

"Brother Duncan, watch your language," Mr. Eagle whispered to his colleague, resulting in an indignant huff.

"Ye cannae expect me tae hawp this! This mist be some kind o' trick. Ah wis thare whin he wis tested, 'n' he wis fun unworthy by th' sword."

"That was back then," I told him in a level voice. "Things have changed, and so have I."

"Na wey," the big guy growled. "Thare ur na seicont chances wi' th' Sword o' th' King! Ye kin either pull it or ye cannae, 'n' ye coudnae."

"Yet here it is," I responded as I put my finger onto the pommel of Cal still on the table. "You can insist all you want, but the fact that it's right in front of you means you're still wrong."

"{I'm not so sure about that, young knight. I believe the current situation was brought about entirely due to your ability to shatter common sense.}"

"Hush, you," I whispered, then cleared my throat and continued the previous thought. "Makes you think, doesn't it? If you were wrong about this, maybe you're wrong about other things as—"

"Bollocks!" the big guy cut me off before I could finish the sentence and he put both his hands onto the table. "Ye cannae expect me tae hawp that ye'r th' King!"

"The facts are the facts," I responded a touch flippantly. "What are you going to do about it?"

"Ah... Ah will challenge ye tae an Arbitration!" he declared, but contrary to his words, there were no magical lights or unexpected stomach-cramps afoot, so he apparently didn't mean it.

"Duncan, stop," Penny cut in, seemingly embarrassed by the whole exchange.

"Dinnae huv a go tae haud me back, Penny-gurl! Ah will teach yer brother whit's whit!"

"No, you can't," the girl insisted, but the big oaf didn't get it and grinned fearlessly at her.

"Dinna fash yirsel, a wullnae hurt him awfy much."

"That wasn't what she meant," Roland interjected with a classic 'I can't even with these people' look on his face. "You literally can't do it, because you don't have your equipment. Furthermore, we've just had an Arbitration between Leonard and Penelope." He paused here, most likely for dramatic effect, and then dryly uttered, "She lost."

For some reason, that earned a longer beat of silence than my big declaration. Go figure.

"Hauld yer horses, haud oan! Penny-gurl, wur ye haudin' back oan him?"

She shook her head, and then Roland clarified, "Leonard made sure she didn't. Penelope fought fiercer than I've ever seen her, and she still lost."

"Is that true, sister Penelope?" the oldest Knight of the bunch asked, and when both Penny and Mr. Griffon nodded in unison, he gave me a meaningful glance, and said, "You must have trained diligently, my liege."

"Sir Arnwald!" Mr. Minotaur exclaimed in disapproval, but the older knight didn't take it to heart.

"I sincerely doubt that the two of them would lie about such an important matter, and as for Caledfwlch... I'm sure you have already felt Brother Leonard's aura for yourself."

"I've experienced its effects firsthand," Roland noted, though I didn't know what he meant. Maybe he mistook my tweaking of his armor for something more esoteric?

Anyhow, Mr. Eagle nodded along and stated, "As I would expect. It must've taken exceptional willpower and determination for Sister Penelope to stand up to him and face him in combat. As always, I'm in awe of your mental fortitude."

Said sister with the alleged mental fortitude was currently turning beet red and muttering to herself, but nobody paid attention. The Draconian side of the table was getting a little impatient though, so it was time to get back to the main topic.

"I gather we're now clear on my authority on this issue, so let's cut the chase: effectively immediately, I want all hostile operations targeting Draconians to cease. Permanently."

"Whit?" Mr. Minotaur exclaimed with a face so ashen you'd think I just ordered him to eat a kitten. 

Even Penny and Roland, who already heard the rough outlines of my plan, frowned in response, yet Mr. Eagle only gave me a curious glance before diplomatically stating, "My liege, while I agree that hostilities should be avoided due to the current..." He looked over to the other side of the table and carefully considered his words. "…circumstances, I believe—"

"Hold that thought for now and hear me out," I interrupted him with a raised finger. "Let me be clear here: the way you, or we, currently operate is nonsensical."

"What exactly are you referring to?" Roland inquired.

"Pretty much everything," I answered while my fingers absently played with the sword on the table. "Sneaking around, causing massive collateral damage and panic, trying to assassinate innocent people because of their heritage, wearing armor in public. In other words, everything."

"Thay arenae innocent," the big guy objected with an indignant huff.

"Aren't they now?" I asked back as I broadly gestured towards the Dracis couple. "Then please tell me exactly what heinous crimes these people have committed. Oh, and fair warning: don't just say 'they are Draconians', like having some conditional superhuman powers make them any worse than you are when wearing your armor. Are we clear? Good. Now please go ahead and wow us with your reasoning."

Mr. Minotaur remained silent with a blank expression, which told me that screaming 'They're wyrmbloods!' in his weird accent was his one and only trump card. After it was preemptively nullified, he was hit by a mental blue screen of death. Luckily for him, Mr. Eagle was there to pick up the pieces.

"They are involved in organized crime."

"Wrong," I declared with my hands crossed. "I've gone out of my way to look into the finances of the Dracis household. According to the ledgers, everything was accounted for and earned through legitimate businesses and investments. There's no sign of anything illegal."

"My boy. I don't remember ever granting you access to our business ledgers," Sebastian noted in the company of a critical look.

"It's because you didn't. I asked the princess to ask dad-in-law to let Judy take a look, and she double-checked everything for me."

"Oh, so that's what that was about," the Dracis patriarch whispered like he just had a small revelation, completely oblivious to the sideways look his wife was giving him.

Meanwhile, the old butler shook his head and told me, "So it was miss Sennoma after all. Did she really read and double-check our finances in a single sitting?"

"That's what she said, and I have no reason to doubt her."

"Is that so?" Saying so, the old man let out a gratingly grandfatherly chuckle and told me, "I can't help but still feel that she's wasted on you, my boy. Make sure you never take her for granted."

"I'm trying not to, but it's hard when she's so smart and convenient. And cute. And amusing. Anyhow, we're going off-topic. My point is that the Dracis family isn't involved in anything illegal, let alone organized crime."

"And we're supposed to just take this 'Sennoma' girl's word for it?" came the next question from Penny.

"Yes. Her word is in many ways more trustworthy than mine."

"Can you swear on that?"

"Um, sure, I can," I told her, and I was half-expecting some kind of magical oath to commence, but she just accepted my answer without any further objections. Since the rest didn't raise any either, I told them, "So, that's a swing and a miss. Do you have anything else?"

The four Knights shared an uncertain glance, and then Mr. Minotaur came forth with, "Thay uise thair gear tae manipulate folk."

"I've heard that one before, but can you actually give me a concrete example?"

There was another beat of silence, and this time it was Mr. Eagle who stated, "They use the wealth they accumulated to influence human society and exploit it for their own benefit."

"That... wasn't any more concrete at all." I let out a sigh and told them, "This isn't something unique to Draconians; people have been throwing around their wealth and influence since the dawn of humanity. You are aware that not every wealthy person on the planet has dragon blood in their veins, right?" The group remained silent, so I piled on. "If that's your criteria, what were your plans once the 'draconic menace' was eliminated? Start assassinating politicians and bankers for doing the same?"

"No, we wouldn't," Roland emphatically stated. "They are human."

"A distinction without a difference. Draconians are people just like you and me."

"Ah'ament lik' a wyrmblood!" the big guy protested, but fell silent the instant I glared at him.

"Really? And how are you different from Abram over there? You're both men made of flesh and bone, both think and feel, both can love and hate, both of you can bench-press a car after some prep-time, and both of you can be taken down by a well-placed .50 caliber BMG round fired from an anti-materiel rifle from up to two kilometers away. From where I'm standing, you have more in common than you have differences."

"Wasn't that last example a little too specific?" Emese whispered to her husband, but I pretended I didn't hear it.

"I understand what you're trying to say," Penny spoke up with a difficult expression.

"I can sense a 'but' coming," I interjected.

"Bu— I-I mean, if we don't keep the wyr— um… the 'draconians' in check, then who will stop them from enslaving humanity?"

That made me raise a brow and turn to the other side.

"Have you ever planned to enslave humanity?"

"I can't say I have," Abram answered like it was a philosophical question. The incognito dragon, on the other hand, let out a strained cough.

"I must admit that the idea had occurred to me a few hundred years ago, but I quickly realized it was considerably more trouble than it's worth," Sebastian admitted. "It was but a decade of youthful indiscretion, nothing more."

"You see, we have... erm... Half a precedent? Uncle, is it worth half?"

Hearing Penny's question, Mr. Griffon sneakily rolled his eyes and answered, "If you're unsure of your own point during negotiations, you're better off not bringing it up, to begin with."

"Don't be too harsh on her. She actually made a half-decent point," I told them, and my alleged sister's face lit up at once.

"I have?"

"Yes. It wasn't perfect, but more than anything else Duncan over there said today."

"Whit?"

Ignoring his protest, I addressed the whole room once again.

"I'm under no delusion that every single Draconian is as innocently wholesome as the Dracis family over here, and I also understand that due to their connections and superhuman nature, it's unreasonable to expect human authorities to deal with the bad apples. However, indiscriminate vigilante justice and acts of borderline terrorism aren't the answer either."

"And you believe you have a better alternative," Mr. Eagle stated while stroking his massive sideburns.

"Of course I do. I wouldn't have brought up the topic in the first place otherwise," I told him with a smirk. "I plan to reform the Brotherhood from the ground up into an actual peacekeeping organization, with proper laws, procedure, and a shorter name. Or a snappy acronym. One or the other."

My explanation left a long beat of silence in its wake.

"So, if I understand you correctly, you want to turn the Knights into a kind of... police force?" Abram spoke up, and I gave him a nod.

"You hit the nail on the head, dad-in-law. We can't police the Draconian families with only threats of violence alone; that would be no different from what these guys are already doing, and it obviously doesn't work and only led to radicalization." Especially since these guys were too indiscriminate, but I didn't want to repeat that. "What we need is a formalized system with due process and none of this 'guilty until proven innocent' nonsense. That is where you come into the picture."

Abram's brows rose in surprise, and I flashed him a smile to signal that he heard me right.

"We"re going to use the Dracis family's influence to establish an impartial organization tasked with cracking down on any supernatural folks who are threatening the safety of the public, go against the law, or just can't behave themselves in general. Our main targets are going to be the more disreputable Draconians, but there are enough Abyssal schemes, Celestial manipulators, and random monsters going around that I don't think we'll need any help to keep us busy. Of course, I don't expect everyone to just go along with this, considering these guys have been out for your blood for centuries, but I hope that we can reach a compromise where everyone gets what they want. Namely, the Knights get to investigate and raid unsavory elements in an official capacity, without having to skulk around in the shadows, while you would be free of the threat of an attack on you and your loved ones for the rest of your lives."

"Just a moment, my liege," the Eagle Knight called out. "Are you saying we would be subordinated to the Dracis?"

"Not really. It would be more accurate to say you would be an independent police force accountable to the alliance I plan to build around the Dracis family, my own forces, and any other factions willing to join it."

"That sounds nice on paper, but aren't you forgetting something important?" Emese addressed me with her arms crossed. "By doing this, you would put us at the mercy of our mortal enemies. How are we supposed to trust them?"

"I'll be serving as your bridge," I answered and picked Cal up again. "As the current leader of the Brotherhood, I'm going to make sure they won't overstep their authority, while at the same time I'll ensure that they remain independent and impartial without becoming just a group of enforcers. We can't erase the bad blood overnight, but so long as I'm around, I'll make sure that both sides will benefit from this arrangement and we can create a better, more peaceful tomorrow."

Sebastian stifled a chuckle on the side and muttered something along the lines of, 'Never would've thought you were an idealist'. I naturally disregarded him and swept my gaze around the table.

"So, just to summarize: the Dracis family will provide the authority and legitimacy needed to establish this new organization, the Brotherhood will provide the manpower and combat expertise, while the Kage clan and my information network will help to track down and gather evidence on the baddies. As for me, I'll mediate between the two sides. The question is, can we agree on the fundamentals of my proposal?"

This time the silence that followed after my question was more awkward than tense, and it would've probably lingered for quite a while if not for Papa Dracis exhaling a sigh.

"To tell you the truth, son, I've never in my strangest fever dreams imagined we would be having a conversation like this. I'm also not sure that I can readily trust the accursed Knights as far as I can throw them, yet… this offer? It's tempting. It's very, very tempting."

"It's an unorthodox way to go about resolving a centuries-old feud, but if it could work, even temporarily, it would be an unprecedented time of peace for the family, and one that could elevate our name and household to new heights," Sebastian noted next. "I agree with the family head. It is an offer that sounds too good to be true."

"I would be normally against working with the accursed Knights on principle, but…" came the third comment from Emese, and as uncertain as she sounded, it was still tacit agreement.

That meant I got the tentative approval of one side of the table, now it was time to see what I could get on the other side.

"Before anything else, let me see if I understood your plans," Roland halted the proceedings with a palm raised. "You want to integrate us into a new, as of yet unnamed police force, and we would be still doing the same thing as before, but only focusing on dragonbloods who are breaking laws and hurting the innocent."

"You wouldn't be doing 'the same thing', as you wouldn't be assassinating anyone, but as far as investigating whereabouts and raiding strongholds are concerned, you're mostly right. You'd just be doing it after going through due process and getting a search warrant issued by the organization."

"So that's how it is," he mused and turned to the knight with the amazing sideburns. "I believe that wouldn't conflict with any of our Oaths."

"I believe so as well, Brother Roland," Mr. Eagle solemnly agreed. "This would be a departure from the way our Brotherhood operated in living memory, but it wouldn't necessarily go against our tenets, especially if our liege will have the authority to prevent any abuse of power. The structure and purview of this new Brotherhood will naturally require further refinement, but as far as the basic concept is concerned, I don't think there are any irreconcilable obstacles ahead of it."

"I… I'm not sure, but what brother said sounded reasonable, so I'm… not against giving it a try?"

Roland gave a sideways glance at the girl that said, 'Of course you agree with him', leaving only the big guy for last.

"Whit am ah even suppose tae say 'ere? Tis nae lik' we hae a choice. Ye'r th' king or whit, 'n' even if ah disagree, you'd juist force this thro' anyway."

"Oh, no. You have a choice. You can say no, in which case you would be permanently stripped of your gear and thrown into detention for your crimes."

"Whit crimes? Whit th' heel ur ye talkin' abit!?"

"Conspiracy, vandalism, multiple cases of attempted assassinations, and the list goes on," I frankly told him. "And those are just the obvious ones. Unlike these people here, who are all law-abiding citizens, you have quite the criminal record and any jury would lock you up in a heartbeat."

"My boy, the judicial system of Timaeus has no jury system."

"My point still stands," I told Sebastian before addressing Mr. Minotaur again. "That of course applies to all of you, but if you cooperate, you would naturally receive general amnesty, and the mundane authorities would be none the wiser about your activities."

"Then thir's na choice efter a'!"

"Duncan…" Penny called out to the big oaf, and after exchanging a few wordless glances, he let out a loud 'Bah!' and theatrically crossed his arms.

Since he didn't protest anymore, I assumed he finally relented, so I took a huge breath and addressed everyone present.

"This went smoother than I expected. Now, before we discuss anything else, let's ask the obvious questions: who else can we bring into the fold, and who's going to oppose this tooth and nail?"

"We have close business ties with the Lohikäärme and Lotan families, so if we properly explained things to them, they'll certainly agree," Abram explained with a frown. "The Albions owe us a favor, so they should be easy to convince, but the Smoks and the Peludas are going to be harder to crack."

"The surviving branch families of the Sárkánys are under the Zomok clan. If we can convince them, we can use them to convince the Smoks," Emese proposed in turn.

I had very little knowledge about all of these Draconian clans, so I decided to leave it up to my in-laws and turned to the Knights.

"Brother Percival would most likely join you if you called upon him, my liege," Mr. Eagle told me at once. "However, I'm afraid I can't promise the same when it comes to the other Entitled Knights."

I expected as much, and tapped by fingers on the table to get everyone's attention again.

"Well, we might as well use this opportunity to move on to the second half of my question: what are the biggest obstacles in the way of this plan?"

"Forby it bein' ba'shit a bampot?"

I gave the defiant big guy a withering glare, but he held my gaze without looking away. Since he refused to get a clue, I proceeded to raise Cal and point it directly at his face, startling everyone around the table.

"Listen up, Duncan, because I'm only going to tell you once. I'm a patient man. You can disagree with me. You can even be a dick about it. I don't care. However, this is the best and potentially last opportunity to peacefully end this moronic feud and make my girlfriend's life both safer and happier. In other words, I don't care if you're throwing a hissy fit, because this train? It's leaving the station, whether you like it or not. Now, you either get on it like the rest of us and start contributing to its smooth operation, or get off the bloody rails. Did I make myself clear, or do I have to use simpler words for you?"

The two of us continued to stare daggers at each other, but it didn't take long for Mr. Minotaur to waver, and before long he averted his gaze with a groan and the words, "Th' mages."

"The what now?"

"Th' mages!" he raised his voice as he faced me again. "Th' Assembly insae aff tae allow anither powa tae rise oan th' island. Th' Arch-mage is aff tae shift tae halt ye."

"Oh, you meant that. You see, was it that hard?" After saying so, I let the glowing sword down (I didn't even notice when Cal started doing it) and told him, "Don't worry. Endymonion won't dare to move a finger against me."

"You sound confident," Penny noted, and I flashed her a smile.

"It's because I am. After what happened the last time he messed with me, he'll think twice before he'd get on my bad side again."

"What exactly happened between you two?" came the next inquiry, this time from Roland.

"Maybe I'll tell you another time. Now, let's focus on the main agenda: obstacles. What else do we have?"

"Brother Agravain and Sister Morgana," the man with the sideburns stated as dryly as a wind-swept street in a spaghetti western.

"I don't believe either of them would listen to you," came the next observation from Penny, and Roland nodded along.

"They are both old and stubborn," he bluntly stated. "They also have many old grudges, so rational arguments are unlikely to work on them. Even with your newfound authority, you might have a hard time convincing them to stand down."

"On our end, the biggest issue is the Feilong clan," Emese told me.

"That's right," Abram agreed with a series of nods. "They rose to be the leaders of the Eastern Bloodlines with the pretense of protecting the weaker families. Dismantling the accursed Knights in the way you proposed would undermine their position."

"Feilong? That sounds familiar. Isn't that the surname of Elly's unwanted suitor?"

"You're correct," said Sebastian this time. "They've been using the pretense of forming a united front against our common enemies for years to push for an engagement. They will undoubtedly continue to do so during the upcoming conference as well."

"Oh, right. That's a thing that's coming up in a few weeks," I mused as I lightly tapped the flat of Cal's blade against my shoulder. "But if we look at it from another perspective, since they are coming to the island, wouldn't it be the perfect opportunity to convince them?"

"Maybe," Abram whispered, though he didn't sound confident at all.

"In the worst-case scenario, you can leave it to me. I'll think of something." I only jested, but the way everyone was suddenly looking at me with full confidence made me feel uncomfortable, so I hastily cleared my throat and said, "So, are those all the big obstacles? That's fewer than I expected. Still, it's a lot to consider at once, so how about we end this meeting here, and iron out the particulars at a later date?"

"My boy, you can't end the discussion here," Sebastian warned me, and I couldn't help but blink at him.

"I can't?"

"No, you can't," he stressed. "You are planning to form an organization that might one day rival the Assembly of the Wingless Ones. You can't leave setting its foundation unfinished like this."

"I'm not planning to make it that big though…"

"Unless I misunderstood you, you are intending to unite the Draconian bloodlines under a single leadership, with the knights serving as internal law enforcement. That would make your proposed organization a worldwide alliance of some of the most influential people in the world of Mystics."

"He's right," Abram added. "When you're making a big deal like this, you cannot just explain the broad strokes and hope everything works out! You need to lay down the rules, discuss the details and, most importantly, negotiate the contracts!"

"If it's not written down, it's not worth anything," Emese piled on, and even Roland and Arnwald nodded along.

And just like that, before I could get another word in, my business-minded in-laws began a long, complicated, and very dry discussion with the two reasonable knights, leaving me almost entirely sidelined.

They weren't actually wrong though. What I proposed would take two supernatural factions that were keeping each other in check, and mash them together into a single new organization, effectively creating a new power bloc. My main goal was just to allow Elly to fulfill her dream while also bolstering the Dracis family, but as things stand right now, I might've fallen prey to tunnel vision and bit off more than I could chew.

… 

This will totally bite me in the ass later, won't it?

But then again, there was no sense crying over spilt milk, so let's worry about something more directly applicable. Like how I'd avoid getting pestered by Judy if the negotiations get dragged out and I can't get home by ten. Sure, it was a small thing in comparison, but I cared more about the certain short-term drama over the uncertain long-term doom. I was weird like that.