Roy lingered just outside Luminous' private quarters of the new sanctuary they had just cleared of garbage and repaired, hesitation holding him in a vice grip. The news he was about to deliver was disastrous.
{ Will you come in already? It can't be worse than I imagined. } His mistress' voice pierced his thoughts with a start.
{ Lady Luminous… }
{ Roy! I'm in no mood for messing around. Enter and report the situation at once! }
He could feel the Demon Lord's aura seeping through the door before him. Luminous had barely been in control of herself for the last few days, becoming progressively depressed and secluded as time went on.
With a deep breath, Roy pushed the door open. Luminous lay sprawled on her bed, her gaze fixed on the ceiling, her belongings in disarray around her. It was most likely going to get even more chaotic with the calamity he was about to pronounce.
"Lady Luminous, Tempest has launched a series of assaults," he began, relying upon all his years of experience to maintain absolute composure.
"Out with it. All of it," Luminous grew quiet.
"The protective barriers have fallen. Given the speed and accuracy of the attacks, we have reason to believe that Hinata provided the locations of all the batteries. Louis is dead, along with most archbishops and cardinals. Ruberios as of now has stopped functioning as a country…"
"If you've absorbed Louis, I won't do anything," she interjected, her face betraying no emotion.
"I remain separate, my lady… Louis' soul was claimed by whoever killed him. Moreover…"
"Lay it all out," she demanded, sitting upright. "Roy, conceal nothing from me. Not now. Not ever!"
"The sanctuary suffered an attack as well. Only a mere seventy vampires escaped before the portal was closed, and Gunther perished while protecting the evacuees. The fate of the rest is not clear, but from what little we could discern, there is a fear of high casualties and mass captivity. Toltecatl is unaccounted for. She completely disappeared and we have no information on what she is up to," Roy reported, his words unflinching.
"Roy… do you wish to leave? To take the remaining vampires with you? Find your destiny?" Luminous questioned quietly, glancing down at hands that were twisted into knuckles.
"I swore loyalty to you my lady and I do not plan to abandon you. The enemy we face is beyond anything we could have imagined," Roy replied stoically. As cold as ever, he observed his mistress with an unreadable expression.
"...I've failed. This one decision… it has cost me everything," Luminous voice broke.
"I will remain by your side till the end. However, I must insist that you seek help wherever you can. This is not the time to cling to pride."
"You are right. I will talk with Guy, and if I have no other choice I will beg for his help. Contact Leon and make sure to get his agreement for the convening of Walpurgis," Luminous slowly got out of bed and made to fix her hair and straighten out her dress. It was the least she could do to regain at least some semblance of grace as she spoke.
"I have already done so. Leon consents to Walpurgis and he too might seek Guy's vote. From what little I could gather, he unsuccessfully attempted to infiltrate Tempest's inner sanctum and may be on their hit list."
"I shall address Guy first. I made this mess, therefore I must fix it. Tell Leon that I will request his aid should Guy refuse. With Guy's backing, I might find a way to communicate with Tempest's leaders and uncover our people's fate."
"As you command. If you'll excuse me, I will work on fortifications and ways to hide our presence, should Tempest find this location," Roy promptly bowed, exiting the room.
Luminous nodded, her gaze following him out. Once the door closed, she snarled and kicked the bed frame, immediately cracking it. 'Gunther, Louis, my Empire - I am losing everything! This is all my fault!'
She flipped around and went deeper into her living space, facing Chloe's casket.
"You lied to me! Everything you said was wrong. You promised I'd manage without you. I need you!" Her fist hammered against the casket, the skin of her fingers searing.
Chloe hadn't left instructions detailing the way her radiant prison of holy light could be broken. The naked unmoving figure within didn't respond to Luminous's rage in any manner, as still as it had been for the past few decades.
Her efforts to shatter the casket were in vain, even with all the power she could muster while doing so. She and Chloe were never in the same league, and try as she might, she could never destroy a barrier the chosen hero had created.
Exhausted, Luminous sank to her knees, resting her forehead against the transparent material, the heat scalding her.
"I need you. Please, come out," she whimpered. "Please return and aid me …I need you. I'm begging you. Chloe, if any part of you can hear me, please help me."
Mariabell savored her tea, her gaze sweeping across the United Trade Company's boardroom. Opposite her sat Peroroncino and his daughter Shalltear with an air of casual authority. To her right was Koby, the kobold representative who listened intently, while to her left was Mjollmile, a human-turned-majin who maintained a noticeable presence himself.
As of now, her skill could manipulate none present to any degree, thus all Mariabell could work with was her wits and keep an eye out for other weaknesses to exploit.
Peroroncino was a notorious woman collector, but he could just as easily sniff out honeytraps, with reports suggesting that he could also turn them to his side with the same ease. If the avian decided not to take any action with a possible honeytrap, his overly protective entourage would make merciless work of them and tear them to shreds. They were ruthless, she'd give them that.
His daughter, Shalltear, was the consort of Momonga himself. Any move against her would undoubtedly invoke the Overlord's ire. Koby was loyal to Peroroncino to an idiotic degree, defying common sense and logic. The mere suggestion of betraying his master in any way would make him run back to Peroroncino with a tail between his legs, barking up the trees that somebody had tried to do so. Mjollmile was a more interesting case due to his history, but he was also carefully monitored as the most vulnerable link and thus was difficult to get a read on.
"The situation with Ruberios is quite the conundrum," Mariabell commenced the dialogue. "Before I propose my suggestions, are there any intentions for the Tempest Hegemony to annex the fallen holy empire?"
"Not at the moment. We are still raiding the place for everything valuable, but Momonga wants to leave Ruberios to its fate - for now. Our goal was to destroy the church and that goal has been accomplished," Peroroncino responded, taking a sip of coffee through a straw.
"Are you familiar with the term 'corporatocracy'?" she probed with a follow-up question.
"In general terms. Do you have enough free operatives to accomplish something like that? We can't exactly neglect the rest of the West to focus solely on Ruberios," the birdman countered with inquiries of his own.
Shalltear, who until now was carefully listening, understood what her father was referencing. "Could you lay out your plan and not speak in circles this time? You aren't playing with school children here," the vampire interjected.
Her dislike for Mariabell was thinly veiled, though she refrained from open hostility.
"Very well. It is not my objective to hide any intentions. While I lack the manpower for total control of land as big as Ruberios, we can begin with eastern provinces. The military could handle the western part under the pretense of Demon Lord Dagruel's potential expansion. If Tempest prefers a hands-off approach there, I can pull some strings and have the western council swiftly integrate the emerging city-states," Mariabell explained, flashing the vampire a smile, and refraining from a jab back.
"Wouldn't we operate at a loss for at least a decade? The former economic system of Ruberios and the general lack of mining in the area has ensured that there isn't much to gain, at least, not counting the farmlands that Tempest now has in spades thanks to the annexation of Falmuth," Mjolmile pointed out.
While he was currently the lowest in rank among the company's directors, he still was part of the board. Since he was unfamiliar with how Mariabell operated, he wasn't about to pass the opportunity to get in her head.
"If we wish to keep the food prices decently high then it is paramount for the UTC to have complete control over the majority of farmlands. This in turn may increase our power over the masses. A single poor harvest could plunge independent farmers into debt, placing them under our dominion"
"Momonga won't let that happen to any Tempest citizen, you know. However, we could probably implement this in the western council territories. Draft a proposal so I can drop it by Albedo for approval," Peroroncino instructed.
'Momonga is too generous towards his subjects. How can one entity be so polarizing is beyond me,' The absolute ruthless brutality towards enemies and the soft caring attitude towards Tempest's citizens shown by the undead ruler didn't make much sense to her. Usually, effective rulers were just as ruthless towards their subjects to ensure they stayed in power, choosing fear over love as their primary method of control. Then again, Momonga's power was so overwhelming there wasn't anyone challenging his rule no matter where she looked.
Many dictators in Earth's past would've never dreamed of having such a loyal inner circle and a lack of backstabbing in the upper echelons of their Empires. Yet, Momonga possessed that, as well as the power to utilize it best to boot.
"I'll prepare a comprehensive proposal posthaste. If you agree to the general plan, I would like to start the operation right away. The more time we spend debating the matter and waiting for approval from Momonga, the more cleanup will be needed as the region falls into shambles," Mariabell pressed on the matter, using the time-proven tactic of exploiting urgency.
"Sure, you can proceed with it," approved the avian.
For now, it was hard to tell if Luminous planned to peek her head out from whatever hole she was hiding in, but it was for the best to avoid giving her any chance to rebuild the empire she lost. Dealing with the Demon Lord wasn't her problem. If anything, if she could get Luminous for Tempest, it would serve as extra assurance for her current position.
Editing by aidan_lo and Zprotu.
Proofreading by Sluethen, clagan, aidan_lo, Thea, Lightflan, NuggetLover, and Zprotu.
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