[TWS] Chapter 312 – Tough Negotiations (Patreon)

“I’m glad you could make it. Please, join us.” Althea gestured at the free chair with a kind smile.

The queen roamed her cold gaze over the small gathering and walked around the table to join the Dragon lady’s side. She spoke no words the entire time, only observing everyone intently. What Civienne lacked in her visible emotions, Althea filled with her almost motherly expression.

“How are things doing in the palace?” Asterios asked to break the stalemate, having a feeling that no one else would want to do it instead.

“For a change, almost everything is progressing rather well,” the queen answered calmly. “We’ve managed to solve most internal issues linked with the cult by now and started sharing newly gathered information with other nations. The headquarters might be gone, but there’s a chance that many other hideouts and labs are working under a directive to continue their research even in the event of the absence of any regular orders or communication.”

“Yes, there’s definitely a high chance of that happening,” Silvia agreed with a faint nod. “Does it mean that Father already knows?”

“We deciphered the locations of a few spots that might have been missed during our first joint raiding operation and sent them to him,” Civienne confirmed. “You don’t need to worry about taking them down. King Welrond assured me that they have enough men to handle the situation with ease. He seemed quite excited about heading into battle himself.”

Miria giggled. “No surprise there. He must have been itching to test himself after that duel with Silvia.”

“Definitely.” Silvia chuckled quietly with her. “I think the worst of the cult has already been dealt with by us here. They will do just fine on their own. It shouldn’t be as dangerous anymore. Especially since the other nations must have received the samples of toxins and antitoxins too.”

“Naturally.” The queen nodded at her. “Though, while we did defeat the strongest person and the leader of the cult, this action in itself might have put us in even more danger. The Matriarch was but a puppet in someone’s grand plan. If they are as tenacious as Althea implies, they might come and try to finish the job on their own.”

The Dragon lady assumed a thoughtful expression. “In my honest opinion, if they could, they would have already done so. There’s no doubt that the enslaved noctis woman shared what she knew about the realm with her master, thus informing him about the deterioration of this dimension’s defensive measures in the form of Spellslingers, which were the main force that drove the Dragons out of here. If her master was capable of traveling back, he would have surely taken the initiative rather than rely on something they consider a lesser being, unworthy of even a thought.”

“You did say that the ability to tear through the fabric of dimensions was somewhat rare,” Asterios added. “I guess it was a joint effort back in the day and the groups had split after the mass migration.”

“This in itself is good news,” Bryn joined in. “It means that whoever commanded the elf isn’t one of the strongest amongst their kin.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for us and everyone else to eliminate them too? Just to remove an unpredictable variable from this equation? They might not have given up after the recent failure. Civienne might be right by considering them a future threat to think about.” Selene rubbed her chin.

“Can we even do anything? Track that Dragon down somehow?” Tina furrowed her brows, directing her gaze to the queen’s friend.

Althea pondered her question for a moment. “It’s not impossible. We did recover some degraded remains of the woman and her sinister serpent. But, there’s nothing to be done until we can freely cross the realms, which as I believe, is something Asterios has yet to learn.”

“And which brings us to the core of this meeting,” Asterios continued after her, finding the emerald lady’s breathtaking eyes. “You believe you might be able to help me master that ability, and we have initially agreed to work together on that and some other draconic aspects while visiting you in your safeguarded lair. The last bit is no longer true. Unless you intend to repair the seals and improve them so that they don’t lack the energy the Tree had been fueling into them.”

“Since I do not possess that skill personally, the only thing I can promise is to share all my knowledge with you. Including the one coming from some True Dragons who might have wielded it. What I can’t promise you are guaranteed results,” Althea replied with a firm expression. “That said, even ignoring the fact that the Tree is gone for a moment, I have already considered my duty and oath mostly fulfilled before it fell, remaining next to it to offer aid to the elves and shelter my own person from the outside world.”

She turned her face to Civienne for a moment before addressing Ast’s group again.

“And I’m thankful that I remained here for a little longer to resolve this dangerous situation while we believed the Tree to be safe from any harm, and what might have hurt not only my pride and conscience but also my source as something could have happened to it a few centuries after I finally moved on and my oath was considered broken by the spirit of the Tree of Life during its last moments,” the Dragon lady continued with a shudder.

~I would have never done that,~ Tia whispered in Ast’s mind, letting the girls hear her too. ~That oath’s main focus was the period before we agreed to the plan of sealing me away. Althea definitely overstayed a lot. Now I can see that she took my place as the guardian of the elves and aided them similar to the way I did before falling asleep. If I knew that would happen, I would have relieved her of her word before that sad day. Maybe then she wouldn’t have holed herself in this prison for so long, free to experience the world again after it became safe for her once more.~

~I don’t think she would have,~ Asterios shared his thoughts. ~She seems like an honorable person. I can see her staying with you nevertheless her promises. If we hadn’t shown up and tried convincing her to come with us, she might have remained here forever. Or have done something much worse.~

~And I’m glad you did.~ He could feel the smile in the gentle Dryad’s voice. ~The development with the current queen is quite unexpected. It would pain me so much to wake up someday in the future and learn that Althea is no longer there because of something like this. Maybe I would have even blamed this person for it. I can’t be sure about that. It would definitely hurt.~

~Thankfully, it won’t come to that now,~ Asterios reassured her and refocused on the outside of his mind.

Thanks to their connection, the brief conversation happened in a blink and Althea was just beginning her next sentence where she’d ended a moment earlier.

“But, with my sanctuary destroyed and the subject of my oath soon moving away, there are fewer and fewer reasons for me to stay hidden, wasting away in this beautiful but limited space.” She showed a reminiscing smile. “As a conversation I shared with Asterios pointed out, the Elders know everything that needs to be taught to their future rulers. And Civienne does too in case any of her future children end up in that position while she still lives. With the cult eliminated, this might be the best moment for me to spread my figurative wings again and see how the world has changed over the past few centuries. Possibly, by someone’s side, making a good deed of teaching them a thing or two about what it means to be a Dragon. A True one at that.”

Asterios saw her flash him a delicate smirk and answered it with a soft smile. Taking a deep breath, he turned his attention to Civienne, who remained unfazed by the words spoken by her most precious person. He and the girls were expecting quite the opposition from the queen’s side. And definitely for a good reason too.

“And therefore, would you, Your Majesty, allow Lady Althea to leave her post and relinquish her role as the mentor of the future leaders of the Elf Nation?” Asterios asked tensely.

Civienne looked straight at him for a few seconds, holding his gaze without a hint of change in her expression, then turned to the Dragon lady next to her, sharing a glance with the emerald-haired woman too, and finally returned her face forward to release a quiet sigh through her nose.

“Althea is her own person and a legendary Lesser Dragon at that. I could never stand against one of our greatest benefactors who graced our race with an unending font of knowledge and magical guidance. She is free to do as she pleases and we will be eternally grateful for everything she’s done for us,” the queen stated without a flinch. “May she ever return to us, be it for a brief visit or to settle down amongst our people once more, we will always welcome her with open arms and greatest respects.”

A heavy silence fell onto the small guest room after her final words.

“That’s it?” Grea threw her arms up. “Where’s all the drama?”

Tina jabbed the rude demon lady in the ribs with her elbow and cleared her throat. “What she meant to ask was… Weren’t you going to insist for your dear friend and mentor to stay and continue guiding you and everyone?”

Civienne shook her head. “I could do no such thing as deprive Lady Althea of the happiness she deserves for the sake of our selfish reasons.”

~She’s on the verge of tears,~ Tia suddenly pointed out.

~What?~ Asterios frowned mentally, not noticing any signs of that happening.

~The tips of her ears have pulled closer to her head. She might be good at hiding her emotions, but she can’t fully control that little quirk her people have. Their ears react differently to various moods. I’ve witnessed it happening enough times to spot it right away,~ the Dryad explained.

~Let’s not push her any further, then,~ he quickly requested from her and all his mates. ~It looks like she is forcing herself to do the right thing. Even with how much she hates it.~

“Besides,” the queen continued. “With the Tree and the formations gone, there is now no safer place for Lady Althea than by your side.”

She turned her firm glare right at Asterios and his brows raised a little in surprise.

“The recent battle proved that better than well. While your group is capable of not only defending her and fighting suitably together, Lady Bryn can guarantee her wellbeing with powerful healing magic that has the potential to defy death itself,” she added, unexpectedly treating their Valkyrie friend with noticeable respect. “Therefore, I have only a single condition for you to fulfill that will let me part ways with her with peace of mind and heart.”

“Which is?” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.

“Take Althea as your mate,” she stated.

“What?” It was Tina’s turn to exclaim in shock as nothing was going as they had expected.

“I’m afraid I can’t do nor promise you that,” Asterios replied, ignoring the stunned states of a few of his ladies flowing into his mind after Civienne’s demand.

“Why?” The queen squinted at him with an even deadlier glare.

“Because it’s not a decision that belongs to me,” he countered. “As you’ve said yourself, she is free to do as she pleases. Agreeing to your condition would equal giving you word that I will force her into becoming one without any consideration of Althea’s wishes.”

Civienne continued to stare right at him as he returned her glare.

After a moment, its intensity faded a little bit. “You are right. I can only request you to take good care of her and have to trust your word.”

“I can always swear on my Hearts if that’s an option,” Asterios suggested while taking a peek at Althea for confirmation. “But, I would have thought that I have already proven that I would treat her well no matter the bonds we share. Was there really a need to ensure that she becomes my mate?”

“I was going to offer my position as your servant to attain the ability to converse with her mentally no matter the distance,” the queen revealed.

“Little Levander.” Even Althea looked at her with clear surprise in her emerald eyes.

It was becoming pretty much certain that nothing else could shock them even more during this conversation.

“I wasn’t going to take that decision lightly, Teacher.” Civienne turned to the Dragon lady. “From what you explained to me, the spirit of the Tree of Life now lives inside him, which means he already holds significant power over our race. I don’t know how much of its influence can he consciously extend, but he is now the vessel of the deity we’ve been worshiping since the day our people settled down in this region. If not equal to it.”

“You are not exactly wrong.” Althea looked between her and Asterios, most likely intending to keep Tia’s real identity secret for whatever reason.

~But she would learn about it right away after becoming one of your servants or even slaves,~ the person in question commented on his thoughts. ~Which might not be a problem if we figure out why Althea is being so secretive and have her little adopted daughter swear an oath on her bond with you to never reveal anything of that just in case.~

“You should be aware that there might be additional consequences of such an action, though,” the draconic lady continued. “As an official leader of this nation, you could potentially bind even your followers to him through your servitude. You didn’t forget the story of the Lizardkin village they visited during their stay with us, did you?”

“I did not,” Civienne answered calmly. “I thought about it deeply too. In the end, they seemed to gain more than they could potentially lose by following him. In the past, our ancestors bound us to the Tree of Life. Perhaps it’s our turn to make a similar decision in front of a powerful entity that could feel obliged to extend its protection to us and our descendants.”

“You really thought about it calmly?” Althea asked. “You aren’t saying all of this just because you want to keep in touch with me?”

It looked like the resolute silence that answered the question was enough in itself to prove the queen’s intentions.

“From what have I heard, the Human King is already sworn to him too,” she added after a moment.

“And not only,” Silvia added with a quiet, ladylike chuckle. “But I don’t think Father bound the entire kingdom to you yet, did he?”

Asterios scratched his head. “I don’t think so? It certainly doesn’t feel exactly the same as with the Lizardkin. But maybe that’s because of the scale? There technically are the other rulers too, just as you said. I think we might need to seek guidance from the expert on that topic.”

He turned his attention to Althea and the girls followed suit.

“It could be hard to judge that for an outsider. Especially with an inexperienced True Dragon. But, I think it’s manageable. Would definitely take a lot of time and practice,” she responded.

“If you would be interested, I wouldn’t mind offering you the position of an aide,” he added. “I assume a direct connection would be more than just helpful with our studies. Of course, it’s an offer with no other obligations that could come with such a role.”

“Hmmm…” Althea regarded him with a curious glance as she considered his words. “And that would additionally put Civienne’s mind and heart at ease as at least one if not both of her conditions would be fulfilled…”

~And there’s hope.~ Tia giggled. ~Look at how the edges of her ears flatten and slightly expand, making them a tiny bit wider.~

Asterios tried not to stare too much but he and everyone else on his side could not resist the urge to spot the difference on their own. He only hoped that the queen was unaware of this fact or did not spot their curious gazes.

~I really missed this. It reminds me of the reason why I immediately fell in love with these guys.~ Their Dryad friend sighed blissfully. ~They are so freaking adorable!~

~Let’s try to focus on the conversation for now, alright? This is quite serious,~ he admonished her.

~Sorry. I’ll tone it down right away. Please continue.~ She sent him a sweet smile. ~And you have my vote for taking both of them in. I wonder if she shares the same character traits as the first queen. That would be entertaining.~

He almost shook his head but stopped himself just in time. The girls offered him their silent support. They knew what it was like to share mental space with a mischievous person or entity. Grea had shown them enough. And Ast’s mom after joining in on the connection too.

“I agree that it would definitely benefit your learning experience and make it much easier for me to offer my guidance. Not to mention becoming even safer for me as Civienne noted,” Althea said. “I don’t think I have any reasons to distrust you after everything we have gone through together. Even if all of it happened over a short period of time.”

She made a respectful bow while remaining seated.

“If you will have me, it will be my honor to follow such a kind and unique True Dragon,” the Dragon lady added. “I’ve always been curious about the true experience of bonding with one, but as you can imagine, the prospect wasn’t too appealing in my time.”

Asterios chuckled openly. “Yes, I can. And it would be my honor. Being taught by someone this wise and experienced is a privilege. One I feel only a little bit bad stealing from Civienne and the elves.”

“Then I better do my best as your teacher and mentor to properly fulfill your expectations.” She smiled warmly. “Hopefully, you will be able to master your spatial ability in no time.”

“Perhaps I could be of some help in that regard.”

Everyone flinched as the already-too-familiar voice reached their ears. Right behind Asterios, the very mysterious and secretive mocha-skinned woman stood like nothing special happened. The faintest hint of a smirk twirling the corners of her plump lips.

She certainly knew how and when to make her entrance.