"I've returned, Grand Protector." The prime minister of the Atracaeca Kingdom kneeled on one knee before the Grand Protector and other Great Protectors.
"Mhmm. I believe you have brought good news for us, am I right?" The Grand Protector asked with a grim expression.
"Yes, Grand Protector. The connection with the Ardagan family has been established. The condition is actually much more favorable for us than anything we've imagined."
"Is that so? Can you recount everything for all of us here?" The Grand Protector asked.
"Yes, sir."
…
Ten days ago.
The prime minister and Noel were sitting in front of each other.
The prime minister felt pressured. He didn't want to mess up this meeting. At the same time, with his power as a Great Protector, he could see Noel's true strength. No matter what he did, he couldn't defeat Noel.
"I have read the official letter from the Atracaeca Kingdom. I'm looking at it positively…" Noel didn't beat around the bush since it would just make the situation more awkward.
"!!!" The prime minister's eyes lit up.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})However, Noel raised one finger. "But before we reach that point, shall we discuss the condition?"
"Ah, yes!" The prime minister nodded. As a great noble, there was no way Noel would just swallow the extortion from their second prince. In addition, the Atracaeca Kingdom is utilizing the trade ban because this would be their chance to settle their grievance.
The prime minister raised two fingers. "I've heard that your territory is currently in need of materials. So…"
Noel raised his hand, stopping him. "I apologize for stopping you here, but I'd like to decline your support regarding this."
"Mhmm?" The prime minister raised his eyebrows, not expecting that Noel would reject him so flatly. "What do you mean, Marquis Ardagan?"
"You're misunderstanding something. My territory isn't really facing any trouble."
The prime minister couldn't help but frown. He thought, 'Is he underestimating us? No. He might stop me because it's rather useless to send those materials because the cost will be much higher. This place is located in the very north of the Muivell Kingdom, while our capital is located in the very south. They are the exact opposite and it'll take days, if not weeks, to travel.
'In that case, essential items would be useless. Is that why he stops me? We have thought about this problem before departure, but we don't have anything else to offer. The Atracaeca Kingdom is already lacking a lot of resources.'
The prime minister suddenly thought of something. He muttered, "Our specialty?"
Noel gave an answer in the form of a smile.
It seemed he had guessed it right. If they were talking about specialty, the Atracaeca Kingdom had three of them: slaves, glass, and silk.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})"Slaves, glasses, and silk… Are you asking us to hand over one of our specialties to resolve the conflict, Marquis?" The prime minister never thought Noel would be this greedy. He instantly raised his guard, not planning to agree to anything if it would just destroy the Atracaeca Kingdom.
However, Noel shook his head. "You misunderstand my intention. To resolve our conflict, you can just give me one of the few methods you have for preserving the food. It shouldn't be that significant for you, right? You can consider it a trade between that method and my teaching guide that the second prince got from me."
"!!!" The prime minister looked surprised. He had seen the teaching method and knew how effective it was. The kingdom also thought that if they could combine this guide with their enrollment in the Rune Academy, they would be able to surpass the rest of the students.
In exchange, the preservation method was quite simple. While it was important, it wasn't at the rune teaching guide's level. "Are you sure about this?"
"You see, I have killed a lot of demons recently. And because of that, I don't have any way of preserving their meat and have no choice but to dispose of them. You can see it as your preservation method has a higher value in my eyes."
"That's…" The prime minister contemplated. "…understandable. But isn't this more beneficial for us?"
It was a great deal for them, but it was so good that it felt like a trap. In addition, they wronged Noel in the past to the point where he almost lost his life. That kind of grudge was definitely hard to solve.
"I'd rather have one less enemy than be petty." Noel shrugged with a calm expression. "If the Atracaeca Kingdom can punish the second prince without creating a long lasting grudge between us, that's enough for me."
The prime minister was taken aback by the request. Noel simply looked too good as a human.
To probe his character further, the prime minister asked, "In that case, why do you mention our specialties?"
"That's the second thing. I'd like to purchase a huge amount of glass from the Atracaeca Kingdom."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"I see." The prime minister finally understood why Noel wanted to end their grudge on a good note. This way, they could form a trade as equals. "In that case, we can trade in the demon territory to avoid the Muivell Kingdom's royal family."
"No. Please enter through the formal channel. I will pay for the tax." Noel waved his hand, rejecting the idea.
This made the prime minister even more confused. "Please excuse me, but aren't you having a conflict with them?"
"I hate a lot of people, but it doesn't change the fact that we have a common enemy."
"The demon!" The prime minister finally understood what Noel was thinking. It explained everything if Noel focused on demons instead of all these political fights whatsoever.
"If you still feel indebted to me, you can just promise me that you will help me fight the demons one time."
"Do you perhaps notice something from the demons, Marquis?"
"I'm not sure yet, but… there is a chance that a calamity—
bigger than anything recorded in history—will come to this land."
The prime minister fell into deep thought. 'The biggest calamity in history… is it something close to the one that attacked him not long ago? No, if we're talking about the biggest calamity, it might be that calamity that the four kingdoms experienced during their creation. The record states that the Demon King brought chaos to this land by leading millions of demons. Don't tell me a Demon King is going to appear again?
'If I'm not wrong, that Demon King was slain by someone from the Muivell Kingdom, the one known as the only person to reach the level of the Spirit King. Wait a minute…'
The prime minister looked at the young man before him and added his wife to his imagination. Their growth was at unprecedented levels.
'Don't tell me… the Spirit King in the legend is related to the Ardagan family? If that's true, does that mean a Demon King will come to this land once again? A Spirit Transcendence can only fight an Ancient Demon, not a Demon King…
'So, in the face of imminent danger, he chose to prepare for it while having someone stabbing him in the back. Such a man…'
The prime minister saw Noel in a new light. In addition, he managed to connect another dot to Noel's words. 'The Supreme Devil Organization. They managed to control the demons… which only a Demon King could do. Judging the history between Marquis Ardagan and the Supreme Devil Organization, there's a chance that he has seen the potential of a Demon King hiding behind the Supreme Devil Organization.'
He ended up sucking a cold breath. He didn't know if this was true, but if he returned and proved his speculation, there was no way he would reject Noel's request.
The prime minister's expression turned grim. "If that's the case, I will pick the preservation method that you can easily replicate in this land. I will try to convince the king to bear half of the tax as a sign of our sincerity."
"The road to the nobles in the west is about to be completed. If we can extend it a bit more to the Atracaeca Kingdom, you can probably reach this place from that border in a day or two."
"Such speed?" The prime minister looked surprised.
"Yes. In addition, to solidify our relationship, what do you think about letting my rune technology enter the Atracaeca Kingdom? I happen to have a smaller version of the train that can easily drive around the city. I believe this is much more suitable for the people in the Atracaeca Kingdom than a train."
"Really?" The prime minister patted his chest. "I will try to convince the Grand Protector to give you the best response."
"Thank you." Noel smiled.
After recounting the story, the prime minister ended it by saying, "That's all, Grand Protector. From what I can see, he might harbor grudges, but he is a person who always sees the bigger picture."
"At first, he sounded so rude, don't you think?" A great protector frowned.
"But we wronged him in the past. By seeing all those offers, we could see that he stopped being rude soon. Maybe his message is that the grudge ends after that," Another protector interjected.
The Grand Protector put his chin on his palm before noticing one Great Protector that had an extreme reaction compared to the rest.
It was an old protector. He fell down on his butt with a terrified expression.
"What's wrong, Old Rain?" The Grand Protector asked.
The old protector opened his mouth, his voice was shaking. "Demon King… It was said that the battle between the Demon King and the Spirit King crushed the entire mountain and turned it into a valley, their clash split the sky, and the shock wave razed the entire forest."
"Ah. If I'm not wrong, you are our record keeper!" The Grand Protector raised his eyebrows. "Does that Spirit King have any connection to the Ardagan family?"
"I don't know. However, he indeed married the princess of the Greenwood Kingdom in the past."
"Mhmm?!" The Grand Protector gasped. "Is that the reason why the Greenwood Kingdom is trying to get a hold of him? But his grandfather was the teacher of the current king. Or is it not enough? Their approach is rather excessive."
The Great Protectors in the hall couldn't help but agree. One of the Great Protectors couldn't help but ask, "By the way, do we have a record of that man's name?"
"Yes. There are a lot of records of his name, but it's rather confusing."
"What do you mean?"
"He has one name, but three different family names. I don't know if there are three different families claiming to be his descendants or if it's just a mistake in the translation." The old protector raised three fingers. "His well-known name is Alexander. However, according to one record, his family name is Samuel. In another record, we know him as Alexander Simeon. But if you dig deeper, there is another language that pronounces it as… Sirius."
