"Whoah... I can't believe we are now in an Alliance with the Elves. I definitely thought it would take longer!" The previously silent Bradford began running his mouth once more.
"I know, right?" Ivan, who had slowly gotten closer to the man responded.
The two of them usually kept each other company, so I didn't have to deal with any of them.
"I just hope there's time for sightseeing. It'll be such a waste if we didn't explore this place now that we're here!"
As they were slacking off and conversing, Maria was reading something in a corner.
Our eyes met for a moment, and we smiled at each other.
That night session we shared together made us a bit closer than before. At the very least, I could confidently call us friends now.
Serah was not present in our guest room at the moment, since she said she had some business to attend to.
Since she had been behaving herself, I knew she could be trusted not to make a major blunder.
But, at the same time, I was worried exactly because of that very fact.
'I hope she doesn't erupt...' A bad feeling crept up on me and I shivered.
Regardless, everyone seemed to be in some form of high spirits after the Alliance Treaty was signed without a hitch.
We had our respective documents as proof, and I held onto the parchment belonging to our end.
Afterward, we were told to retreat to our Guest Room to rest.
'Aurora is probably discussing with the other Royals right now. The Elf Kingdom will drastically change from this point on, but it'll be for the better...'
Some of the people could be skeptical about an Alliance with humans. However, after taking our contributions into consideration—including my end of the deal—their opinions would no doubt shift for the better.
Healing their land and resurrecting their people would score major points for the Humans.
That was the main reason why I didn't simply rely on mere rhetorics to win the hearts of the Royals.
'I could probably pull it off without the whole Resurrection deal.' A smile crept upon my face.
Once I deciphered their personalities, it was easy to manipulate my targets.
But, there was also the matter of public opinion.
I needed the citizenry to be satisfied with our Allied status.
What better way was there than to save an entire lost City?
I remembered how grateful Aloe Vida was to me when I rescued her from death. Even to this moment, she still held me in high esteem.
If I could do the same for the Elves, then they would no doubt have good impressions of the Humans they currently looked down on.
'Well, there's also the fact that I'm not a scumbag.'
If I could save people, I would.
It was only a matter of how to implement my ideal in a way that benefited my goals. At least, with the way everything turned out, everyone was benefiting.
'That's all that matters...' I smiled once more.
"Hey, Jared." A voice called out to me.
I looked in its direction and found two people walking in my direction. Their scowls were so obvious, and they didn't look very pleased with me.
But, of course!
After all, they were the individuals who weren't too pleased with the current turn of events.
"Get up. We need to talk."
I stared blankly at Fabian after he made that command. Damien Lawcroft was also confidently standing beside him, in support.
'These guys...'
It was clear that they wanted to confront me on the matters that had gone according to my will, and not theirs.
The bitterness on their faces gave away their emotions, so I didn't even need to sense their Mana wavelength to tell.
'They'll probably request for the Alliance Treaty document from me...' I sighed, still seated on the couch.
Perhaps it was time I put them in their place.
"What is there to discuss?" I crossed my leg and intertwined my fingers.
While properly resting my back on the couch, I crossed my legs and gave a condescending smile.
"Hey, don't test my patience, Jared!"
"Listen to your superior!"
Fabien and Damien respectively barked, but their voices didn't even faze me.
"If there are matters to be discussed, then let us talk here. I see no problems with that." I smiled, looking around the room.
Ivan, Bradford, and Maria were already looking in our direction.
The Prince and his assistant were currently in a tough spot. But, because they had come so far, their pride wouldn't allow them to back off any longer.
The two had probably realized the shift of power, and if they didn't address the issue soon, I would inadvertently become the leader of our group.
"Jared Leonard. Your actions are synonymous with insubordination. If you keep up this attitude, I'll be forced to dispense—"
"You keep talking about this whole hierarchy, but I'm slowly getting tired of this farce."
I didn't want to do this at all. I had avoided it for as long as possible in consideration of the Eastern Kingdom's Royal Family, but...
'... I suppose it's time to let it out.'
"Here you go." I summoned a parchment from my Dimensional Space and threw it at Fabian.
He must have thought it was the Treaty since he looked satisfied.
I watched as he opened the scroll to confirm his contents, partially curious about his expression.
And, as expected, he did not disappoint.
"W-what is... this...?!"
A smile formed on my face as I remained silent.
Damien watched the Prince helplessly quiver, and quickly grabbed the parchment to read its contents as well.
His expression afterward was more composed, but I could tell that he too was visibly shaken.
"T-this is..." He murmured.
"That's right. It's a decree written by His Majesty, King Albion Lestrome Indiavel himself. It even has the Kingdom's seal and everything. As you can see from what was written there, I have full authority over this expedition."
The fact that Fabian became our leader was because I allowed it.
