Valkyrie's Shadow

The Tiger and the Dragon: Act 12, Chapter 2

The Tiger and the Dragon: Act 12, Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“This is all steel, ain’t it? Won’t it rust up?”

“We have models that won’t rust, but the suite of enchantments that they come with increase the price of the frame and whatever attachments it comes with twenty-fold.”

Liane’s legs dangled over the edge of the crate she was seated on, her heels thumping lightly in a disjointed rhythm. Nearby, one of the representatives she brought in to showcase and promote her new vehicles was speaking to a small group of Merchants. The prolonged occupation of the Draconic Kingdom did a number on anything that required more than simple maintenance, so it turned out to be even more of a golden opportunity for sales than she initially expected.

“Twenty-fold?!” One of the Merchants recoiled, “They better fly for that price.”

“They don’t fly…yet,” the representative smiled. “It’s simply the reality of enchanting anything. The vehicles that I mentioned are made for long-range, high-speed routes that go for extended periods without maintenance, and they’re overkill for the routes in the Draconic Kingdom. A good old coat of paint is more than enough for the conditions here.”

Beyond the showcase pavilion, the rain pattered over the city street. She never knew it could rain so much. Her travels had taken her through Karnassus to the Great Northern Steppe, but it just got more arid as they went further east.

The models that the representative mentioned weren’t specifically for climes that were harsh on vehicles, but for the domestic routes in the Sorcerous Kingdom where Soul Eaters endlessly moved goods and people all over the Duchy of E-Rantel. They just happened to be immune to rust, everyday wear, had adequate suspension for high-speed movement over rough rural roads, plus had heated seats and a bunch of other conveniences.

“On top of that,” the representative said. “If anything rusts up too much or breaks, our system of interchangeable parts allows anyone to replace anything quickly and cheaply. One can find anything they need in any of the company branches we’re opening across the Draconic Kingdom.”

“You can guarantee that those parts will fit in any vehicle?”

“Any of our vehicles,” the representative nodded. “All one has to do is pick up the appropriate replacements right off the shelf. If there do happen to be any defects, we’ll replace the part free of additional charge. If you’ll just follow me to the yard here, our staff will show you exactly how simple and convenient our system is.”

The woman led the Merchants around to the lot just inside the Sorcerous Kingdom’s exclave in Oriculon. Most of the area was still pretty bare, and proper construction of its warehouses, offices, shops, parks, and residences would take a few years. For the time being, their cargo containers worked as temporary storage and a small ‘plaza’ facilitated the beginnings of their efforts to establish a commercial foothold in the capital.

Liane slid off of her crate and went to see what else was going on. A pavilion had been set up by Zu Chiru’s company, creating a wide, dry area that he put together with several other Merchants. They did what they could to brighten up the place, hiring a few Bards, some Cooks to run food stands, and the staff was dressed to encourage a more lively atmosphere. It was an uphill battle, however, as the rainy season was traditionally quiet in the Draconic Kingdom and the people otherwise had their hands full with local recovery efforts.

That being said, the Merchants could easily afford to keep things going. Most of their profits came not from the goods they brought with them, but from the commodity contracts they had slipped into the local markets. The first wave of traders from the Sorcerous Kingdom made money hand over fist, including Liane and her friends.

She found Florine leaning on a tent post to the side of the pavilion’s main clearing, listening to a song that made the rain seem even rainier. Rather than dampening the mood, however, the mild strain created a sort of cosy comfort, as if inviting those outside to enjoy the fellowship within.

“You didn’t stay for the demonstration?”

“I’ve seen it a jillion times already,” Liane said. “How are things goin’ here?”

“I think most of these people came with those Merchants looking at the wagons,” Florine replied, “it’s been a trickle, otherwise.”

Things looked pitiful compared to a bustling city market, but it was still worth it. They just had to keep working to bring people in and things would eventually get better. No one would come to do business if they didn’t know there was business to be had, after all.

They left the pavilion under umbrellas held up by Rose and Tierre, making their way back to the palace quarter. With the Royal Army’s big push well underway, the Draconic Kingdom’s administration was preparing to deal with the aftermath of their long occupation. There wasn’t anything official from Queen Oriculus’ court yet, but the reports from the Royal Army were grim enough.

“Such a long face,” Florine said with a slight smile. “Do you miss Carillo that much?”

“Well,” Liane said, “since he’s stuck in Phelegia, that’s one less courtier on our side here. I’m sure that Soruel will come up with something new and boring to torment us with.”

“I think Queen Oriculus’ court is shaping up very nicely,” Florine said. “It’s nowhere near as ham-fisted as it was before.”

“How do you even know that? They won’t even give us the time of day.”

“They won’t give you the time of day, perhaps,” Florine said. “I don’t see why you would expect them to with your endless poking and prodding.”

“Hmph.”

According to Florine, it was good that she was doing what she was doing, yet it was still her fault that she suffered the consequences. Not that she cared. The Draconic Kingdom could do whatever it wanted so long as the Sorcerous Kingdom also got what it wanted.

“So,” Florine said, “do you miss Carillo that much?”

Liane gave Florine a look.

“He’s a nice guy to have around, but if you’re suggesting what I think you’re suggesting, it won’t work. He’s Count Carillo now, which means that he’s off-limits.”

Florine reached out and patted her shoulder. Liane wasn’t sure what the big deal was. It wasn’t as if she and Zoren had gotten anywhere. The situation of the Draconic Kingdom doomed any chance from the start. At best, he was a connection that was pleasant to keep company with.

Bringing a spare back with her was perfectly fine, but two title holders didn’t mix. This was already the case within a country’s borders, never mind between different countries. The products of any union between them would be the heir to House Wagner and House Carillo, meaning that they would both be subjects of the Sorcerous Kingdom and the Draconic Kingdom.

This was a legal headache and a political taboo which led to any number of problems. The worst case was if the title holder decided that they favoured one sovereign over the other and suddenly there was effectively a chunk of the Sorcerous Kingdom or a chunk of the Draconic Kingdom inside one or the other’s borders.

In every case that had happened in history, it meant war, which was why any sovereign would never allow any such proposal. Feelings didn’t matter; neither did the will of the couple in question.

“I suppose we’re back to fishing for consorts from the Empire,” Florine sighed.

“Are you really going to try to rush it?” Liane asked.

“I don’t think so,” Florine answered. “But if the right person comes along…”

Yeah, right.

The chance of the ‘right person’ coming along was next to nil. She and her friends were always away somewhere busy doing things and they would only get busier. Time would run out before they realised it.

“How’s that thingy that you got from Lady Shalltear coming along, anyway?”

“It may as well be a paperweight for all that it’s done,” Florine replied.

Florine hadn’t sucked anyone’s soul out as far as Liane could tell, so that wasn’t a surprise. Trying to figure out how to make any progress without Florine noticing what was going on was also proving to be impossible. They weren’t exactly in a target-rich environment…or were they?

“How long do we have until we get going?” Liane asked.

“I haven’t heard anything from Clara,” Florine answered. “Honestly, I don’t look forward to this.”

“Did Lord Demiurge reply to your letter?”

“He did. Most of the information he has is from closer to home, and even that doesn’t look good. He asked if I could report the details of what we observed here.”

Something that a Devil would be interested in, huh…

Maybe it would make Florine so mad that she would go on a killing spree. Did Demihuman souls count? It would be nice if they could get all ten done at once.

They entered the palace and went straight to their state room, where they found Clara sitting behind a small pile of books. Liane turned her head sideways. It looked like she was reading up on the local history.

“Anything useful?” Liane asked.

Clara looked up from her book.

“I was just checking some things from the palace archive while we were still in Oriculon. It’s not directly work-related, but it’s eye-opening nonetheless.”

“Oh? What did you find out?”

“When you learned the language of the Draconic Kingdom, did you find anything odd about it?”

“Uh, yeah,” Liane sat down across from Clara. “It’s not like the languages up north. The writing is all weird too. Since the Draconic Kingdom’s close to the Theocracy, I always thought it should be close to their language and script, but it isn’t anything like it.”

Florine sat down behind her, picking up one of the books and leafing through its pages.

“I always figured it was from somewhere else,” she said. “It’s a beautiful language; there’s a nearly otherworldly quality to it.”

“The reason is that it’s not even Human,” Clara said. “Not fully, at least. It’s a form of Draconic meant to be employed by races with Human-like physiologies.”

“Sweet,” Liane said. “So we learned how to speak Dragon without realising it?”

“It’s not Dragon Draconic, but yes. The most interesting thing is that it’s structured in such a way that those fluent in any other ‘dialect’ of Draconic can understand all other Draconic speakers.”

“…but anyone can do that.”

“In Draconic, I mean.”

“Oh, I think I get it,” Florine said. “That’s very interesting…”

“Isn’t it?” Clara smiled.

Liane looked between the two with a frown.

“Get what?”

“Structuring language like that isn’t required,” Florine said. “Obviously, knowing a language allows one to play ‘tricks’ with it, but it’s unnecessary for everyday communication because the world translates what we say to anyone who doesn’t understand anyway.”

“Okay,” Liane said, “so why would they come up with a language like this?”

Clara picked up a sheet of paper on the couch beside her.

“This language also does the same thing,” she held it up between them.

Liane and Florine leaned forward to peer at the page. It was one of the passages from the book Ludmila found in the Katze Plains.

“There are actually pieces of Draconic that fit into this language,” Clara told them, “and some realisations related to both helped me fill a lot of holes that were stumping me from before. They’re still distinctly-different languages, though. Based on the development of language in the surrounding countries, the one from Katze is clearly native to our region. What may explain why their languages work like this is the fact that they’re both old.”

“You lost me,” Liane said.

Clara set down the paper, leaning forward with an excited gleam in her amethyst eyes.

“What if they work like this because they needed to?”

“That would imply that this convenient translation thingy didn’t exist back whenever they originally did.”

“Exactly!” Clara smiled, “In order to facilitate communication between countless different races, special forms of language had to be developed.”

“But that’s so sad at the same time,” Florine said.

“It is,” Clara’s smile slipped away.

“I hate you two when you get like this,” Liane grumbled.

“If Clara’s conjecture is true,” Florine said, “it means that the people of ancient times created a common language so that the races of the world could communicate with one another. The civilisation in the Katze Plains had many Humans, but also plenty of other races, too.”

“That doesn’t sound very sad to me.”

“The sad part is that we don’t need that language anymore,” Florine said. “If I want to talk to a Goblin, then all I have to do is speak in a language that I know and the world will translate it into something that they can understand. A monumental effort was made by the people of the past to bring the races of the world together into a single society. The people of today can achieve a similar result with no effort at all, yet they’ve all become segregated into their respective racial groups.”

“You mean the people of today here,” Liane said. “The people in Karnassus and those further east get along just fine aside from wars or invasions, and those are just a fact of life.”

Now that she thought about it, it was pretty weird. It was as if someone had drawn a line and said ‘everyone past this point acts as if they live in a deep, dark hole’. Well, almost. The Sorcerous Kingdom aside, both the Draconic Kingdom and the Holy Kingdom of Roble got along just fine with their aquatic Demihuman neighbours. Demihumans from Karnassus could visit the Empire, too, though they rarely did.

“So, uh, what did we get out of this?” Liane asked.

“It’s just something valuable to know,” Florine answered. “We should already understand this from our work in the Great Forest of Tob, but this is just more proof that the world isn’t as hostile a place as we grew up imagining.”

“Well, the neighbours here are about as hostile as I grew up imagining,” Liane said. “Do we have an itinerary yet, by the way?”

“We’ll be in Rivergarden by sometime tomorrow,” Clara said. “On that note, Queen Oriculus has disappeared somewhere.”

“Hah?”

“We lost track of her in the morning. Lord Tian has no clue where she went, the Shadow Demons can’t find her and attempts at divination have turned up nothing. Her courtiers don’t seem worried at all, so I can only assume that they know where she is and they aren’t telling us.”

That wasn’t mysterious at all. In terms of her physical capabilities, Queen Oriculus wasn’t much different from the average Human. Giving her escort the slip should have been impossible.

“Let’s take the time to put together an advisory for the court, then,” Florine said as she reached into her Infinite Haversack. “These are the documents that Lord Demiurge provided when I asked about the potential effects of Laira on the Draconic Kingdom’s population.”

The source of Florine’s trepidation over their work in the east became readily apparent as they pored over the documents. Even with the weakened cultivar of Laira in Re-Estize, the effects of prolonged exposure were dire.

Permanent brain damage, birth defects, miscarriage, stillbirths…babies born with the addiction? How did they figure that out?

Before, Liane could at least quip about the way the Beastmen were ‘herding’ Humans would result in a strong bounce in the Draconic Kingdom’s population. Now, she wasn’t even sure if they could expect even that.

“The Royal Army’s reports say that the distribution of Laira by the Beastmen has a high variance in effectiveness,” Clara said, “but no matter how you look at it, this is still a tragedy.”

“I don’t think there’s any nice way to summarise this,” Florine said.

“Never mind being nice about it,” Liane said, “what are they going to do? It says here that there are spells to treat the problems, but the Draconic Kingdom’s temples are totally gutted.”

“Could we bring in healers from the Sorcerous Kingdom?” Florine asked.

“Most places barely have enough to service their own populations,” Clara shook her head. “Even if we brought in the members of the Royal Court and the Royal Household, they’d be stuck here forever casting spells millions of times over.”

“We have healers in the Royal Army, right?” Liane noted, “The Death Priests.”

“According to Ludmila, they’re specialised in supporting other Death-series servitors. Undead aren’t affected by diseases, poisons or bodily ailments, so the Death Priests similarly have no countermeasures against them.”

“Well, crap.”

A knock sounded at the door. They waited in silence as Aemilia went to answer.

“A Maid came to inform us that we will be departing in two hours,” Ludmila’s lady’s maid said when she came back.

“I guess we’ll just have to have our audience on the boat,” Liane muttered.

“We’ll be in Rivergarden by tonight,” Clara said. “We may just have to wait until a formal audience tomorrow.”

They split up to put their things together before heading down to the Royal Pier below Oriculon Palace. There, they found several members of the court – they were working as members of the palace staff, she supposed – already there preparing the barge for the trip. Directing them was Salacia Soruel, who wore an outfit that looked like it would become utterly see-through if she was caught in the rain.

“Minister Soruel,” Clara lowered her head in a curtsey, and Liane and Florine followed suit. “Has Her Majesty returned?”

“Her Majesty has been in her chambers the entire time, Countess Corelyn,” the Minister replied coolly.

?She has??

?Not as far as we know. The Shadow Demons went everywhere trying to find her.?

?Grr…what are they playing at??

“We had some information that we wished to bring to Her Majesty’s attention,” Clara said. “Would it be possible to speak to her on the way to Rivergarden?”

“The Queen is tired, but I will let her know.”

A pair of footmen came up from behind them and the Minister – or maybe she was a lady in waiting at the moment – turned her attention back to preparing the ship.

?If she was in her chambers all day, then why is she tired??

?Liane!?

?Th-that’s not what I meant! See, Clara? Her lewd nature is coming out.?

?I don’t know, but I don’t think it’s worth pursuing for now. These people have a lot of work ahead of them and we shouldn’t distract them from their tasks.?

Followers of The Six sucked at being nosy. Everyone had a place and everyone respected everyone else’s place. Even Nobles like Clara and Ludmila just let their people do their thing, patiently awaiting the results.

One of the companies from Highfort arrived an hour before departure, dividing themselves between the two barges prepared for the trip up the Oriculon. The Queen and her entourage arrived thirty minutes later. Lord Tian accompanied her as usual, and his steely expression didn’t indicate that anything was amiss.

?Wow, she looks tired.?

?Well, Minister Soruel did say that she was tired.?

“Good evening, Your Majesty,” Clara made her greetings.

“Umu. Good evening, Countess Corelyn.”

“If I may ask, is everything alright?”

“It would be strange to say that everything is alright, but if you are asking about Our health, We are fine. A task demanded Our attention that took up most of the day.”

?Why couldn’t they just say that in the first place??

?Maybe they weren’t sure exactly what it was??

?Or maybe she went somewhere to do something she didn’t want us to know about.?

?Ugh, of all the things…why do you have to fixate on this??

?Sus things are sus.?

Who wouldn’t get curious? Especially considering what it took to elude the security they assigned to her.

“You three look like you’ve taken something extraordinarily bitter,” Queen Oriculus smirked.

“As a matter of fact, Your Majesty,” Clara replied, “there was something that we wanted to share.”

“We will hear it in the lounge, then. Hopefully, it is something that doesn’t require too much thinking.”

Clara only smiled in response. The Queen sighed and walked past them to border the ship.

Once they were underway, Queen Oriculus and her courtiers gathered in the hold, which had been converted by Liane and Florine in Corelyn Harbour. With the two dozen courtiers and just as many guards, however, it was cramped. Clara, Liane and Florine sat on a couch across the table from the Queen, and they were encircled by everyone else.

“Our delegation took the liberty of investigating the potential effects of the Beastmen’s actions against your citizens,” Clara said. “Given the trends reported by our forces, there seems to be no immediate solution to the problems they will bring.”

Without a single exception, the faces of the surrounding courtiers turned pallid as Clara spoke at length of the potential long-term outcomes of the Beastmen’s widespread distribution of Laira. Even Liane, who already knew the details, could only stare glumly at the table.

“What can We do but do what We can?” Queen Oriculus said once Clara completed her report, “The information you’ve shared with us is dire, to be sure, but standing around at a loss gains Us nothing. Your country has already helped in so many ways, and We can hardly burden your people with Our problems.”

Realistically, there was little more she could say. In more ways than one, Queen Oriculus was the personification of her country and her people. Small and constantly harried, they still resolutely faced whatever future lay ahead.

Liane idly wondered where the line lay for them. In Re-Estize and the Empire, families cut their perfectly healthy spares loose without a shred of remorse. The orphaned, crippled and afflicted were left to rot in the streets, invisible to the rest of the population.

Though they arrived in Rivergarden well past nightfall, the residents still showed up to greet their Queen. The people were supposed to be in Oriculon in a week, but they returned in half that time to tend to their fellow citizens. Men, women, and children lined up along the waterfront, cheering as the ship eased into its moorings.

Liane frowned at the sight. The Draconic Kingdom was facing a severe labour shortage as a result of the occupation and its long-term effects. Of those that would be liberated in the east, a not-insignificant portion would likely be liabilities rather than assets. She got that Queen Oriculus was a genuinely good person, but this wasn’t a situation where a ruler could afford to be good. Every person that was tied up by the effort was one less person getting things back up and running.

For the Queen’s part, she didn’t offer any words of encouragement as she usually did, instead walking quietly along the front of the crowd with Lord Tian at her shoulder. The people seemed to sense her mood and quieted down. At a certain point, she stopped to face a girl two or three years younger than Liane. The girl panicked, stumbling back into the crowd.

“Stop.”

The girl stopped.

“Why are you trying to run?” Queen Oriculus asked.

The girl’s mouth worked silently for several moments before she looked down, covering her face with both hands. As with most of the women in the crowd, she was visibly pregnant.

Harlot. Wench. Slut.

That was what people in the north would call anyone who was discovered to be with child outside of wedlock. While Liane wasn’t sure if it was the same in the Draconic Kingdom, the sheer sense of shame was certainly shared.

“I-I’m sorry,” the girl sobbed. “They just…I couldn’t do anything! I’m so sorry…”

Queen Oriculus reached out to take the girl by her shoulders. The Queen was shorter than the girl by half a head and possessed a more youthful appearance, yet, somehow, no one would mistake who was the child between the two.

“This is nothing to apologise for,” she said. “If anything, We should be the one apologising to you. The fault lies with Us. Are you frightened? Worried for the future?”

The girl nodded. Queen Oriculus smiled and drew her close.

“We cannot demand that you set aside your fears,” she said, “but We can say that you are not alone. All you have to do is reach out; let people know that you’re scared…because they are scared as well. Share your burdens with others and help shoulder theirs in return. The people of Our country have always done so, and that is how We have always survived. Just as one helps others, others will come to help them.”

Queen Oriculus separated from the girl. Her gaze swept across the crowd.

“That goes for everyone here,” she said. “We of the Draconic Kingdom will never forsake one another. Do not hate anyone for what happened – especially not the children that will come into your care. They had no choice in the matter, after all. As always, We will provide support to all who need it, so stand tall and work together to build an even better future than before.”

All around the crowd, expressions firmed and people nodded resolutely. Others embraced one another, sharing words of comfort. The malaise that Liane hadn’t even noticed was present lifted and was whisked away on the wind.

?Queen Oriculus never ceases to amaze me.?

Liane glanced at Florine, who was dabbing away her tears with a handkerchief.

?I dunno…?

?What do you mean, ‘I dunno…’? Have you ever seen the like??

?Nope, because no one can afford it.?

?I swear, Liane, you’re just so–?

?What, it’s a valid point! I can’t think of any way that she can provide the ‘support’ that she’s promising. This isn’t just a few people or even a single city: it’s millions of unproductive dependents. Her words are empty reassurances, at best. If she tries to go through with them, she’ll drive her country straight into a ditch.?

Florine gave her a sour look. Liane waited for her to come up with a valid counterargument, but she obviously couldn’t.