"Is that so? Anyway, without me knowing magic, I can't be of much use. Sure, I can protect the tribe using strategies, but ultimate power beats strategy sometimes. And this happens especially when we do not know or understand the enemy", spoke Reeve, ignoring Karim's monologue. Technically, it wasn't a monologue, but because Reeve wasn't paying much attention, it turned into one.
"So, what is your intent, oh messenger of the deities?" asked Karim.
"First things first, I need to come up with a defense strategy. You need to be able to protect yourself in my absence. After I make sure you're able to protect yourselves, I will go to Artemine Elemental College and learn magic. When I return, I will help to improve your livelihoods through inventions and whatnot", responded Reeve.
Karim bowed towards Reeve, and then said, "Thank you for taking the time, oh messenger of the deities."
Reeve didn't respond to that. He actually thought it was weird, that Karim called him a messenger of the deities, yet he had actually said he didn't have any magic. 'And what did he think about that purple black vortex? If they realized I'm not the one who made it, wouldn't they think I'm a fraud?' he thought.
After answering a few questions, Karim excused himself. Despite the chief of the tribe being his son, he was still the advisor. Therefore, he had to help run the daily affairs of the tribe alongside his son. When Karim had left, Reeve still had unanswered questions. There was the bit about the ancients, and then the foundation stones. Karim had warned him about those, but he couldn't help think something was wrong with whoever ruled this kingdom.
He knew most governments liked to sensor the media and take control of every data sharing platform. Politicians liked to be in charge, or at least to have the illusion that they were in charge. It seems this King Pectus had serious issues. How special was the foundation stones, that he would invade another country over them?
The more he thought about it, the more he realized that nothing made sense. He realized there was a lot of things he didn't know, and from the sound of Karim's voice, he knew this Pectus whats-his-name was really bad news. If he liked censoring information about foundation stones, didn't that mean he was up to something? Maybe it was world domination, or some other stupid grand ambition like that. As far as he was concerned, only politicians had such stupid ambitions.
Besides, the funny deity had said if someone gathers all the seven stones, they could summon a deity and have a wish granted. Wasn't this absurd? It sounded like a plot straight from some cartoon or anime. 'Well', he decided in his head, 'at one point I'm going to run into this Pectus nutjob. I better make sure I get prepared! Now that I'm rich, I can enter the college of magic. Once I do, I can protect myself as well as the tribe, without being an immortal burden!'
The question he had now was, what could he use to help the tribe protect themselves? There were so many ideas!
***************
The dining hall was silent, with a bubbling anticipation. The elders of the Southern Water tribe held their breaths, nothing could go wrong. Of course, the only one who wasn't concerned much was elder Astrid, after all, she never liked the plan her counterparts were proposing, to begin with.
Saedis didn't look happy. In fact, the frown on his face was so apparent that it made him look older than he already was. After a few minutes of silence, Saedis finally spoke, "I will not allow this plan!"
"WHAT?!" exclaimed all the elders, with the exception of elder Astrid, who had a smile on her face.
"Oh venerable one! Please reconsider! The vassal tribes are going to reb--"
"Enough of this charade! I know your intentions! What are you really looking for in the tribe? Is there some treasure that I do not know about?" asked Saedis, interrupting elder Mahkith, who was about to go on a lengthy lecture of cons.
The elders exchanged a glance, and Fal Mora replied, "You must be mistaken, oh venerable one. There's no treasure, it's just that--"
"You know what, leave! This is the last time I will hear of this issue again!" responded Saedis, harshly.
With the exception of elder Astrid, everyone else was disappointed. Seeing them remain standing, Saedis yelled, "Did I not make myself clear? Or is there anything else?"
The elders hesitated, until Astrid spoke, "Well well, I guess we should better get going then. However, I have a deal that can benefit both parties. Since none of you want to hear it, I guess we'll just leave. I mean you have nothing to lose right?"
Fal Mora turned and looked at Astrid, who had an enigmatic smile on her face. Saedis took a sip of tea, and then replied, "What do you want?"
"I had reservations against destroying the tribe, since none of us benefits from doing so. However, yesterday, when I heard the full story of what happened to our emissary, I went home and thought about things. I ended up coming up with an idea of how we can all benefit from this disaster. None of us can implement the plan without your help, and you can't do it without our help either. If the plan works, you have nothing to lose, and everything to gain. If it doesn't work out, you won't lose anything either."
"What is your plan then?" asked Saedis, growing more impatient. He thought he had already tolerated enough bull manure from these backwater idiots. Although he would have to admit that the old woman was very clever.
"It's simple. However, I'll be telling you the plan in phases. The first phase is to increase the amount of tribute the Southern Earth tribe pays, and pressure them into paying their arrears. What do you think?"
"How do you plan on … Oh, that's what you're thinking? Hahahaha, I have to hand it over to you, you're quite clever. Fine, I'll approve of your plans. Just don't go overboard!" warned Saedis, with a loud laugh.