I wanted to allow Times to continue his explanation when something suddenly took my attention away from the topic at hand. It's a small shrub that suddenly popped beside me; while I was gazing at it with wonder in my eyes, several yellow fruits emerged from all its leaves, making me chuckle for a bit.
'Is this a berry?'
'For real?'
'Fucking awesome, Dominion! I love berries.'
I took one straight out of its wispy branches and bit on it without peeling its skin off. The taste was absolutely divine! No pun intended.
"Right." I took another bite of the berry in my hand and spoke with a mouth filled with un-chewed fruit. "Tell me about the state of this here war, Times."
"Yes, my Lord Praeceptor," Times continued his interrupted words without even minding how happily I nibbled on the yellow berry. "Three years ago, a charismatic man emerged from the public forums in the Marshes. He spoke ill of the Keep and encouraged the kapres to rise up against the Vyurbornes to stop our supposed oppression of their race and rule the Keep for themselves."
"I imagine this man is Bismarck?"
"Yes, my Lord. It didn't take a year for Bismarck to garner enough following both in the commoners and the military personnel of the Marshes. Before we even knew it, thousands of well-armed soldiers had already threatened to trample the walls of Skystead Mountain Range." Times had begun to speak carefully at this point, carefully looking at my face to find any reaction. But I'm just here vibing with my second berry.
"What?" I pulled my third berry and nodded at Times. "Continue."
"Err… Yes, my Lord. Six months ago, our sovereign land had received its first attack when Bismarck himself presented his new invention to the public. He used his cannon-like weapon to attack a scout above the Marshes using an electric-infused net that immediately immobilized the poor scout. It is no surprise that such an unwarranted strike was not met peacefully by the other scouts in an area. That small skirmish ended with… no survivors from our side and 17 injured civilians and five heavily wounded soldiers for the kapres. I believe you've acquainted yourself with this weapon when you were traveling at the Edge of the World. We believe Bismarck left this weapon unnamed, but our elders had named it uhm… Bird Killer, my Lord."
I stopped chomping on my fourth berry and looked at Times with a bemused frown. "Bird Killer?"
"Err… Yes, my Lord."
"Couldn't you guys think of a better name than that? It's quite… premature."
"Admittedly, it was not our best linguistic efforts, but it was the name that stuck in our forces, my Lord." Times cleared his throat when he heard a few silent snickering behind him. It seems like the name Bird Killer is a bit of an inside joke in the Vyurbornes, one that Times most definitely did not enjoy. "We attempted to push the name Electro Infuser instead, but the rage that the name Bird Killer brings to our men undoubtedly helps keep our morale high. We didn't have much power to influence the masses."
"Hmm… I understand. I can deal with it later. So what did we do to stop Bismarck?"
"The Keep has been keeping a tight defensive strategy since the first attack, my Lord. We didn't wish to harm the kapres, so we decided to heighten our defenses, and—"
"Nah. I'm not talking about that. What did you do to stop Bismarck's influence?"
"Pardon, my Lord?" Times sounded a bit nervous now, but he definitely tried his darndest not to show a crack on his stern expression.
"You said Bismarck's following grew in less than a year, correct? So what did the Keep do to stop this?"
"None, my Lord Praeceptor."
"None!?" I stood up with a scoff before scattering the berry seeds in my hand into the stairway. "You just allowed him to do whatever he pleased, then?"
"Yes, my Lord Praeceptor."
I looked down on Times with knitted eyes and tight lips. I then descended the stairs without breaking eye contact with the Vyurborne warlord. The berry seeds that I threw towards the stone staircase suddenly bloomed into fully-realized berry bushes as I walked past them. I stood right before Times; I had already grown at a rate where my height would be higher than most human men, but I still had to look up at Times just so I could see eye-to-eye with him. I placed my hands on my waist and whispered at the Vyurborne warlord.
"And why is that?"
Times' lips quivered for a bit as if stopping himself from uttering the words in his mind. Silence took over the chamber as the Vyurborne warlord looked down at me with eyes that screamed of melancholy and rage.
I continued, "Is it fair for me to say then that your incompetence started this war?"
"I have no excuse, my Lord Praeceptor." Times decided to utter words of submissions instead, but I noticed that he didn't necessarily answer my words.
Haa…
There's a whole lot of dishonesty in my court right now, and the last thing I wanted is a warlord who doesn't want to be frank with me. I wonder if provoking him would get him to talk?
"Useless people have no right to stay in my chamber, Times." I leaned closer to him and whispered lower than before. "You're just like that fool Keizer and his general pals. I suggest you start walking away now and follow those other generals. I have an empire to rule."
I turned my back away from him and climbed up the staircase again. I sat at the top as usual and pulled a berry off the bush again. As I walked up, behind me, I heard Times walking away with silent steps. Shit, maybe the provocations didn't work?
BANG!
A loud noise erupted in the silence my words had incurred in the chamber. I looked at where the noise came from and saw Times leaning his back on the now closed double door with burning eyes piercing into my skull. With unblinking eyes, he huffed a deep breath and slowly walked towards me, climbed up the stairway, stopped before he reached the top, and towered over my figure once more.
Then, he began to speak.
"These useless people are the reason why you still have an empire to return to," Times spoke with a clear sign of annoyance in his tone. "my Lord Praeceptor."
"Are you gonna elaborate on that?" I said with a pleased grin as I took a bite on my sixth berry. This clearly irked Times more as his expressions darkened deeper than before.
"The Marshes are not my or the Keep's jurisdiction, my Lord Praeceptor. Lord Dominion reminded me of that lesson time and time again. But I did all that I could to ensure their safety without meddling in their political affairs. We faced increasing tension from our neighboring country, the Webs, and we also had to deal with the crisis on the human settlement near the Lake while Bismarck ran around the Marshes to garner support for his cause, but through all those hardships, we managed to gain an unprecedented amount of victories; the 'useless people' of the Keep finalized an official alliance with the people of the Rivers and even stopped seven preemptive attacks from Firmament. We drove back the barbarian monsters at the outskirts of the Marshes, established several new universities in the Keep, and created young professionals before your arrival, one of which is that smug noble boy who dared to undermine your authority earlier. All in a decade's work under 'useless people.'" Times' voice flowed naturally out of his lips like a sleeping rage slowly awakening because of my aggression. "I will accept any and all criticism you may have of my temporary rule, but my office and the Keep is not at all at fault at the events that unfolded in the Marshes nor are we taking any credit for all the glory they have done to serve the empire. We did more than exemplary in running your empire, and your people worked day and night tirelessly to fill the gap you left in your courts—all in your absence. You asked me, my Lord Praeceptor, if I did anything to stop Bismarck's rise to power, and I shamefully admit that we did nothing to stop him or his forces from inciting chaos in their home. You have all the right to label that as my greatest shortcoming, but for all my failings, I had compensated for a thousandfold of successes and glories. You asked me, my Lord Praeceptor, if I did anything to stop Bismarck's rise to power. No. I believe your question must be forwarded to the kapre's former warlord instead. Thankfully, we have that man here in the Keep as we speak; I can arrange to have you escorted to his lodgings at this very moment if you so desire. But I will not have you undermine my people's work and call them 'useless.' You and Lord Dominion returned in a war-torn empire after ten years of absence with well-fed citizens in barren rocky mountains, minimal casualties in times of hostility, and a healthy relationship with our neighbors in Dead Gardens. That, I take full credit of, my Lord Praeceptor. If my efforts to ensure the survival of the empire mean I deserve your comment about my poor performance, then I will more than willingly accept my title as THE useless general. But I will never allow you to label my people as a part of those buffoons who mocked you in your chamber."
I looked at Times with a clearly shocked expression before swallowing the mushed berries in my mouth. He mentioned many places and referenced several political and military achievements, but I understood none of them other than the one about Firmament's attacks. And if there's one thing I know about my time in the empire above the clouds, it's that their military is above anything I had seen in this place so far. And they managed to repel such advances seven times. I'll be sure to ask more about the Webs, the Lakes, the Rivers, and the barbarians, but for now…
A smile crept up on my face before laughter erupted out of my lips. But Times is clearly not pleased. And the other nervous generals at the foot of the stairway weren't laughing with me either.
"Walk me through our armies, General Times." I smiled, looking up at him with a relaxed smile as I took a bite off my seventh berry.
Times exhaled a strained breath; it seemed like he hadn't let out a single breathe after his "useless people" speech.
"Yes, my Lord Praeceptor."