Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 710 - 709 - True Ties

"He is as you expected, Mistress?"  A maid was currently packing up a few items for Princess Giselle as she sat with her fan at the window looking down on the wonderful city still forming at the edge of her senses.

The clear planning and terrifying power made it clear the Sanctuary Empire was not a shallow beast at all but a true supreme power in the making.

"Actually, he was better."  Giselle smiled at the memory of her recent meeting.  The usual snobbery and double to triple talk had always been annoying to her but she now understood why that brat sent her.  Her nephew had been ruling for the last thousand years but the Fiend War had claimed her replacement.

Currently, he was quite busy creating another one but it had yet to be decided.  She had plenty of time left, yet if not for the very man she met today, their power may have crumbled.

Many powers, in fact, felt a deep debt of honor to Lind Frey himself and his former Moebius Sect.

She saw her maids nearly had her bags packed.  Another tired display of her status that grew tiresome each time she had to endure it.  Nobles were expected to come in caravans whether they flew or not, they clearly had to be full of luggage.

Her truly important items were in her ring and necklace but clothes and a few other items were packed in the large bags being set to carry out soon.

She relished the short and sweet meeting despite the long journey.  The closest teleportation arrays had been damaged in the last battle and only a few had been repaired.  Not many had experts that could fix the old arrays so easily.

The Sanctuary Kingdom also seemed disinclined to rush those repairs.  That was very wise.  It forced any potential envoy to approach from points they controlled.

Still, she suspected once the little whipper snapper was ready, all the arrays would be repaired nearly instantaneously.

A knock at the door made her sigh.  She rarely showed her face and many would be thrilled to try and make contact with her.

Despite her status as a guardian, she was still a royal and if she was replaced, the potential for a marriage still existed even with her age.

She still had a couple hundred thousand years left and her body was capable.  She found them irritating to the extreme.

One of the maids quickly cracked open the door and suddenly inhaled a shocked breath.  Giselle glanced over as her maids were veterans of meeting everyone from rising stars to Valkyrie herself!

"His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Frey, wishes to meet with you, Mistress."  Surprise bloomed over her face.  He had only just dismissed them and now he was trying to see her?  Why?

Giselle carefully checked herself in the mirror over the desk in her room and then nodded.  She kept her fan in the open but doubted she would need it.  It was a precious artifact from the foundation of Shanliang Peaks.

Lind Frey entered with a simpler set of robes and just a single guard joined hers outside the door.  He smiled warmly and bowed.  The imposing Emperor was absent clearly.

"It is an honor to meet you once again, Princess Giselle.  Could I impose on you for a moment?"  She nodded and the maids curtsied as they left.  Lind seemed caught off guard by their outfits.

Most servants simply wore the colors in their robes but hers had black dresses with white blouses and cuffs on elbow length sleeves.  Their skirts went just above their knees.

"I thought you were happily married?"  Giselle smiled as Lind looked back at her sternly.  She was joking because there was no lust in his eyes at all.  He just seemed surprised.

"Do you know where those designs came from?"  Giselle shrugged as it was a moot question.

"Like many things in the cultivation world, it simply is how some like their servants to dress.  The men also have some kind of 3 piece suit but they are not as popular."  Lind seemed interested in that as well which confirmed for Giselle he knew something!

"I wanted to thank you again for being direct but I was curious, why did you lie?"  Giselle's pale eyes narrowed at him.  He was not accusing her as he simply stood with her in the room.  She was curious about the mystery man in front of her.

The rumors on Lind Frey were numerous and varied but they all agreed on one thing.  He was still alive when far more powerful beings had tried to kill him over and over again.  Many cultivators had similar stories but not so many times as he had faced.

Still, she felt like he was more dangerous than his realm allowed.  There were recent rumors he was still recovering from some kind of Qi deviation but she felt none of the instability a cultivator would have going through such a thing.

"What do you mean, your Majesty?"  She saw him frown but then he turned and looked around the rather large room.  It could easily house 20 people empty but the large bed and archway to a courtyard made it ideal for a cultivator visiting his palace.

It was clear care had been taken to give even someone as strong as her a place to cultivate safely.  The wonderful amenities also made sure that even lower realm visitors could take care of themselves in the style they were used to.

"So you do dance then?"  Giselle smiled in amusement.  She liked this boy!

"I would have been forced into a tiresome affair if I was not able to dance with the best, Emperor–"  Lind held up his hand and simply looked tired.

"I am not here as the Emperor right now.  I officially retired for the day after 3 more meetings when I left all of you.  Food is becoming an issue but not a major one thankfully.  Still, there are so many issues that for each one I solve, 5 more spring up."  Giselle bowed in commiseration.

She had watched her sister and now nephew struggle with leading her people.  She did not mind that she had avoided that quagmire.

"I think you speak from experience more than recent issues, Lind Frey.  You are doing much better than many thought you would.  Also, you are taking the appropriate long term initiatives you should."  She gave honest praise and a very tired smile crossed his face.

"All right, let's try again.  I want the orphans."  Now Giselle was the stunned one of the 2.  She sat down a bit as she felt more terrified of his information network than anything else.  They had barely spent a little over 2 years rebuilding but they already knew so much?

"My wife Shoti laid a solid foundation but she does not hold a candle to my forces from the Law Binding.  We lived under conditions you cannot imagine and many of those lessons are still useful."  She was very curious about that part of his history but few knew more than his public statements.

"You know, you have a lot of Immortals now.  You are a supreme power in fact if not in name, yet you act like you are weak.  Why?"  She had noticed the strange actions.  All agreed the Sanctuary Empire was already terrifyingly strong so why was it so cautious with even small powers?

Lind smirked as he sat in another chair he pulled from a small table where one could have a meal if they wished.

"I destroyed a kingdom all on my own with just tenaciousness and luck.  It has been my experience that treating potential threats seriously regardless of strength is better than suffering horrific consequences.  Besides, any of you that think the Fiends are just hiding behind the defensive line are fools."  Giselle finally took him more seriously.

"And the orphans?"  Lind sighed as he looked out into the sunny courtyard as if a memory came over him.

"Lua was left to die and considered without talent.  She is only 45 years old."  Giselle felt all the blood drain from her face.  That girl was a peak Sky Realm!  How had she come so far so quickly?!

"They were not entirely wrong on the premise they tested her but I do not care about genius, I need people.  The war will start up again and I don't want the innocent being snatched up like meat shields again."  Giselle was surprised.

"And what would we get out of such a deal?"  Lind now smiled wide like a predator that had caught his prey.

"Why cultivators of course that are trained by my people in elixirs, Forging, and weaving.  We have a few pointers on the main professions but your power has better than good masters in that field."  Giselle was pleased by his praise as he was a grade 7 master in 3 professions himself!

It was not a small thing to have such a thing from him.

"My great niece would love to meet you, she is only 7 so no worries about an alliance."  Giselle saw him frown then turn contemplative.  So, he was not opposed to meeting children to teach them?  Interesting.

"I don't have time to personally teach any but Lua and Fey at the moment, but if it is a condition I could consider it."  Giselle smiled internally but then frowned.

"How exactly did you arrive at me for an ally?"  Lind smiled sadly at her.

"Too many have died and your family needs help yet you sent soldiers to defend the line while the wounded were pulled back.  You were one of the few powers that did so.  I like that and give my condolences as well."  Giselle was surprised and a bit satisfied with his choice.

"You want to pay a debt to us then?"  Lind shook his head and pointed at her.

"If you had come to me to try and make an alliance of marriage, I would have simply ignored you for now and come back to it in a few centuries, but you came because you wanted to trade me grade 7 recipes for professional masters trained by us."  Giselle sucked in a breath in shock.

He knew everything!

"So, I am willing to do so for the orphans and if required, I will take in your grand niece to teach as well.  Has she shown an aptitude?"  Giselle did not think so, she was only 7!

"She has only just reached the peak of the Body Refining Realm the last I knew.  Likely she is now a Soul Realm, but her talent is mediocre by our requirements.  She had a future but likely as a marriage alliance.  I want more for her."  Lind smiled warmly once more.

"I cannot promise much, but I will test her and we can see what she can do.  I cannot promise discipleship but I will give her personal lessons once a month if she is in one of my professions."  Giselle was ecstatic.

"I think I can agree to that.  Any age limits?"  Lind shook his head but paused.

"Even if they are crippled, I want them.  No exceptions.  If their caregivers want to come with them, that is fine as well but I do not want to shut down orphanages, just give them somewhere to go.  I will not force them."  Giselle was going to negotiate that very point so it saved time.

"Let us finalize this and then I will take the happy news to my nephew.  The little brat will be pleased!"  Lind arched an eyebrow at her word choice but shook her hand as he called in a few scribes and witnesses.

The Sanctuary Empire made its first true ally outside of the Heavenly Maiden Sect and the Divine Sword Sect.