Steel and Mana

Chapter 562 – Ending on an Opening (1)

Turns out, after sending out letters, Khulman, or their latest Khan, did not answer our invitation at all, not with an insult nor with apparent threats. There was not even a polite refusal or anything similar; they simply received it and then sent the messenger away without giving any answer.

As far as the report went, when I received it, the atmosphere in their Empire was pretty tense already... And all that was even without the people knowing what happened to the Gauntlets. In the end, about a week later, we did get a delayed response, but it was not really that. They simply suggested that further correspondence should be handled through intermediaries. It seemed to me that from their perspective, the world had just tilted toward my Avalon and that they were unhappy about it, even if they couldn't do anything to change that.

Maybe I should be happy that they did not accuse us outright of their destruction, but I guess that would have required proof, or courage, or desperation. Maybe all three... But then the truth would also be aired out, and I think they wanted it to stay hidden for as long as possible. What followed it, all of it happening pretty quickly, wasn't a surprise either... They began closing their borders and refusing entry to people who were part of the Union. In just under a month, most of our caravans from the east slowed to a trickle, then to nothing.

Oh well... So be it. As for how each member of the Union was to respond, I left them to that, not interfering with their diplomatic relations. On our part, I told Arthur there should be no retaliation, no high tariffs, no counter-embargo, and no show of force. He agreed, of course, because we would let them watch, let the regular people see everything, and make up their own mind. Mainly because they were already watching... Just like we were.

The Central Intelligence of Avalon finally had its very first mission at hand... To monitor the happenings within Khulman and keep us informed. Thankfully, we had friends inside Khulman, more than the Khan believed, I think, the most prominent one of those being Bakhi, who had returned to the Empire the moment they closed everything. So, through him and others like him, we learned that by just isolating themselves from us, the Khan's authority was already cracking.

The fact that he was no longer seen with the Gauntlets, even if he refused to tell his people what happened to them, had already shaken the basic foundation of the tribes under him. The chiefs weren't stupid, and even without being told, some of them already believed that the artifact had judged Khulman unworthy... Others were thinking that it had chosen a new bloodline, namely, it went back to Jila once again, which was a half-truth.

According to Bakhi's latest letters, different factions were beginning to form, and Khulman was slowly being divided into two parts: traditionalists and loyalists. The latter part demanded isolation, a return to the old ways, and the burning of foreign rails, followed by the rejection of our machines outright, because, as they thought, all of us do nothing but go against the Gods and their teachings or something. That it was we who brought the monsters upon our hands without inventions... On the other hand, there were now reformists who argued that Khulman was falling behind, that resisting the change would doom them to irrelevance or, at worst, to an outright conquest... Oh boy.

No doubt about that, humans, no matter in which reality, will always act the same way in certain situations. Smelling blood in the water, it was evident that several chiefs within Khulman were quietly consolidating support, some old grudges were resurfacing as perfect reasons to start demanding things, and there was an actual chance to end the ruling line at the 100th son and crown a new one... What a headache.

"You could shape the outcome," Mirian said to me privately one day, "Just a nudge, that is all that it would take."

"I know," I answered, "But why are you telling me this? I retired."

"You did?" She countered with a chuckle, asking me before the day she was about to return to Ishillia, "Can you actually do that?"

"Just watch." I smiled, and I meant it.

"Mmmhhh..." She just looked at me, chuckling, "I'll do just that. But... You do you. Before I leave, though, I will have to talk with my dear Fila." She added, walking past me, making me feel curious what she meant by that... Oh well. I will prove to her I meant it, so I am not even going to ask what her plans are for Khulman!

Yeah, we could intervene, we could destabilize the wrong factions and elevate the right ones. We could quietly ensure that when Khulman finally broke, it broke in a way favorable to us... Maybe even put Bakhi or my grandson on their throne, but I refused to make such a choice. Hmph! I simply told my kids that, whatever happened, they should no longer come to me about it.

"If it comes to civil war," I told Arthur, "you decide who we help. And how."

"Dad," He looked at me, raising an eyebrow, but I waved a hand, leaning back in my chair.

"Son, your Dad completed the main quest, okay?" I chuckled, looking at all of my kids, "I'm not going for a new game plus!"

"Just once, you could actually speak cleanly..." Leyla muttered, pursing her lips, but I just chuckled, "Your weird riddles make no sense."

"You all are grown up... Time for you to act like it." I clapped, "Work it out~!"

So, with that done, I could finally enjoy Avalon proper, like how I always imagined it. For the first time in longer than I cared to remember, there were no battles to plan, no world-ending crises demanding my attention, and no countdowns ticking in the back of my skull. Well, besides the Gods' possible arrival, but meh. I no longer cared much about that. So I did what I had always promised myself I would do if I ever survived long enough.

Nothing. And for the love of everything... How great that felt! I haven't even realized until now that, even in this second life of mine, I never really stopped, never slowed down; there was always something to do, something to go improve, invent, or bother with... Starting from that day on? I threw all that out of my mind. So, I slept in, then I walked the gardens, then the city, doing nothing, really. I was just strolling around, looking at the streets, the houses, the windows, seeing how the people lived compared to how my first trip to a small town went.

There was no more shit-smelling air, that's for sure... and it wasn't smog-filled from chimneys burning coal either. It was a perfect middle ground, which I was proud of. I watched my people being dressed in much more modern clothes, kids playing happily, buying toys and sweets, and to think that not even that long ago, most of the homes were made of wood... If that. It made me laugh, remembering that the only stone building was the church, or some of the local shot-calling' nobles,' doing nothing, really, besides sometimes chasing girls like Sasha into the woods. Heh! Going from a place that had literally nothing, to me watching a tram go by, hearing an arriving train's whistle coming from the far distance...

"You did well..." I told myself, smiling, and stepped into a simple coffee shop, ordering one, just to sit down outside and do nothing... just watch my people live their lives.

And to ignore the looks, making me feel like I was a celebrity... That part I still wasn't entirely used to.

...

....

......

"You should eat," Arthur said, standing before Ignis, who was still in her human form, held captive within the palace.

"I don't need food." She snorted, once again refusing the plate Arthur had put before her, not that it made him flinch; he simply sat down at the opposite end of the simple table and began enjoying his own dinner.

"Suit yourself." He shrugged, raising his fork and enjoying the meat melt in his mouth, "Even if I didn't need to eat, I would still give it a shot. You see, it still feels nice... You should give yourself a bit of enjoyment here and there."

"I will enjoy the day when I throw off your shackles and eat you." She snorted, her remaining eye looking at Arthur with contempt.

"I am trying to show you that things are different." Arthur answered, remaining just as calm as before, "Be happy you lived... The original plans were to kill you, but with everything that happened, you have a second chance. Why are you so adamant about throwing it away?"

"I don't believe in you at all." She answered plainly, yet maybe without thinking, she reached out, lifting a piece of chicken wing to her mouth and crunching it, eating everything, including the bones.

"Well, even if you don't believe me, at least try to see things as they are... Apparently, you are now just as much part of this world as we are."

"I always was." She retorted, sneering a little.

"I meant that the Gods' Formation let you through," Arthur answered, watching her eat, chewing loudly, letting crumbs fall all over her and only using her hands... Like a messy little kid.

"I am Ignis Primordia. Of course, it lets me through; this world is mine. I am not like the Vasas who got rejected by their own world!"

"No, it's not yours. It is ours." He corrected her at once, "Hopefully... I will be able to teach you that, haaah..."

"Say what you want, little human," Ignis continued, but her hand was already reaching for the second piece, trying to hold back from hurrying and eating it. "We... I was here before your kind. If ours, then this world is ours." She sneered, flashing her sharp teeth, "My kind predates yours..."

"Your kind can't even be called animals most of the time." He answered, rolling his eyes, "And don't get fake-angry with me, please. You brainmelted thousands of them, sending them against us like disposable puppets. You don't get to play any type of victim role here."

"I won't fall for your weird words, Vasa."

"I am not a Vasa... haah, whatever. I don't care." Arthur groaned, shaking his head, "It seems that my next project for the foreseeable decade will be domesticating you."

"I don't know what that means, but you won't be able to break my mind. I am Ignis, I-!" She began another rant, but Arthur very quickly silenced her... without having to use the chains.

"Maybe I will ask the Gods when they arrive to take you..." He muttered, watching her coldly, "Let it be a quick solution..."

...

....

......

"I'm pregnant."

"WHAT?!" That was my honest response when I heard it, almost choking on my morning coffee, while I looked at Fila, who was announcing it so openly and brazenly at the breakfast table. Then, my shout was followed by the utensils falling out of my wives' hands, then Yuri's loud laughter... and Jila's congratulations... then Lancelot's chortle, poking his stunned brother in the side.

"Last in line, eh? Big brother, you have fallen behind! Same to you, Sis!"

"Shut up..." Leyla pursed her lips, trying to kick him, but he was way further away.

"When?!" Luna asked, shooting to her feet, both happy and worried that she would become a grandmother.

"Yeah, when?" Morgan also asked, her eyes sparkling, looking at Galahad, who wanted to sink under the table because it was evident that even he was kept in the dark, and Fila just announced it... out of the blue. On her own decision.

"Since yesterday," Fila added nonchalantly, making me, for the second time, choke on coffee. I should stop drinking when such pranksters are around! "We did it, so I am pregnant."

"That's... not how it works... Mostly... Or... Well, it is how it works, but..." Mikan started, trying to explain, especially how it is for mages, but this time around, Fila was more in the know.

"I learned it from my Mom," She shook her head, "The Ishillian method doesn't fail, so... I am confident."

"Wait!" Galahad perked up, "That's why you said we should...?!"

"We are already married," She murmured, pursing her lips, "And I talked with Mom, and she was right... Now was the best time..."

"Damn...! You are properly Ishillian'd our Galahad! Bwahahaha!" Yuri chortled again, glancing at Sasha, who was glaring at our two eldest children... who were not only without their own kids... but without a partner. Holy hell... Stop it, Sacchy... We are becoming my mother!

"Well, congrats!" Morgan answered with a grin, rushing over and hugging both of them, trying to shake Galahad back into normalcy as the poor boy got totally stunned into oblivion... Ouch. With his perfect memory, whenever he remembers this morning, I guess he will have to relive the experience, over and over again.

Sorry bud... Not even I can teach you a technique to avoid that from happening. That feeling and memory will pop up, right when you least expect it. They just... do.

"If it will be a boy," Jila hummed, nodding her head, and I could catch a glimpse of the way she was throwing expectant looks towards Lancelot, "we can lend you Percy's old clothing!"

"But those are mine!" Little Percy yelped, suddenly paying attention to more than just eating his toast.

"And you can't even fit into them anymore," Lancy muttered, gently knocking the head of his son, who began pouting.

"Thank you." Fila nodded, already accepting the offer, acting perfectly normal... But I could still catch a mischievous smile at the edge of her lips. She was enjoying this... the little imp.

Mirian, you... I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. Of course, you had an important talk with your daughter, huh? Now I get it...