novelraw Chapter 464 – An Intricate Web.
Chapter 464 – An Intricate Web.
"Of course, please tell her that everything is moving forward according to plan. I'll be leaving for Kialru shortly, and if she wishes to speak in person, I'll be happy to make arrangements. I already intend to stop at the Dwarven Capital for other business anyway." Jacabey said to a writhing shadow in the corner of the room, which disappeared a moment later. "I'll never stop being impressed with how thorough those servants of hers can be. It's almost terrifying just how quickly they gather intelligence, and if I didn't know any better, I'd think they could read people's minds." He laughed as she shook his head.
{They knew intimate details about Hadrus' hidden facilities. It seems they've already infiltrated it. I wonder why the Demon Lord hasn't ordered their destruction? Does she have use for such things? I suppose that she does want a battle, and wiping out their forces beforehand would defeat the purpose of this whole charade. But... Hmm... If I didn't know better, I'd think she has something-} (Jacabey)
*KNOCK* *KNOCK*
"You busy?" Gildra's said as she opened Jacabey's office door.
"You do know that one should wait for a response before entering after knocking?" Jacabey sighed as he stepped away from his desk. "It sort of defeats the purpose if you don't."
"What, afraid I'll catch you in the middle of some secret meeting with party leaders?" Gildra chuckled as she closed the door behind her.
"If you'd been here a moment sooner, I could've introduced you to my contact in the Demon Lord's forces. She would've liked to meet you." Jacabey said with a sarcastic smile.
"Don't even joke about something like that." Gildra rolled her eyes, not appreciating what she presumed was a poor attempt at humor from the Halfling. "I shudder to think what would happen if you let your aid to that monster. The entire world would probably fall."
"I'd say you overestimate my ability. I'm nothing more than a humble merchant with a penchant for oration. Well and maybe I'm a bit better than most at poker." Jacabey said as he approached her. "But enough with the pleasantries, what can I do for you? It must be important if you took time out of your busy schedule. I figured that you'd be to booked up with Assembly meetings to do anything else today."
"I am, and I don't have long, so I'll make this quick." Gildra said as her eyes snapped onto the Halfling. "As part of your diplomatic tour you're preparing to head to Thin Ledhar to speak with the Dwarves, are you aware of the situation they're experiencing?" She figured that his own information network had clued him in to the dire situation that the Dwarves were facing. He'd been tasked with visiting potential allies within the Demon Kingdom, the Dwarves and the Whistlewood Elves to pull them into the budding coalition, and the hope was that each would contribute to the effort to expel the Demon Lord from Enoris.
"Yes, I'm aware that they're fighting some powerful underground monsters. A few Holds have fallen but it looks like they've stabilized things thanks to some external help." Jacabey said, summarizing what Akagi's Clansmen had told him. "Nothing they haven't dealt with before. I think the Dwarves are more than capable of handling this problem swiftly."
This wasn't the first time the Dwarves had to wage war in the underground with strange creatures and they'd always come out on top due to their mastery of underground warfare and advanced technology. Though Jacabey was well aware that this was not a battle the Dwawes were meant to win, thus why he'd been tasked with going to them.
"Yes, and it's that turnabout that has me worried." Gildra continued. "Intel was forecasting a collapse of Dwarven military resistance if the assault continued, and yet reinforcements popped up out of nowhere and stabilized things. Naturally, I became curious and then skeptical of these allies and had our people dig into them." She said as she pulled a packet of papers from a small bag at her waist. "Take a look at this."
"I can't find my reading glasses but I'll give it a try." Jacabey said as he took the documents and adjusted his glasses as he read the dossier. "Camilla Elfensford. Sex Female. Age unknown. Affiliation... Oh boy..." He sighed. "Fhoulun Imperial Intelligence Services... That's never a good sign."
{If Fhoulun is involved, that's only going to muddy the waters.} (Jacabey)
Fhoulun was the single largest nation on the Eastern Continent and practiced many strange and mystical arts. Their Intelligence Services were extremely effective at espionage and assassination, and there were well-founded fears that the organization had its claws dug deep into every single nation around the world. Finding out that one of their agents was helping the Dwarves fend off unknown monsters would make anyone nervous, especially since Fhoulun was quite vocal with its Imperial ambitions and had invaded the eastern coast of Northwind in the past.
{I wonder if Lady Akagi is aware of her origins already? I doubt it. Fhoulun is quite far away and plays no part in this war. She might know the name but likely nothing else about them, not to mention that the only reason we were able to pull this intel was because we've got spies of our own imbedded in Fhoulun's operations. I'll have to make sure I pass this information along post haste. Fhoulun's involvement, even if at arm's length, always complicates things.} (Jacabey)
"Do we know anything about her before she joined Fhoulun?" Jacabey asked as he continued to read the file. “I know they keep a tight lid on their agent's past histories, but we should've been able to find something.”
"Less than I'd like. We know that she was one of our citizens, but anything more than that is mere speculation at this point." Gildra sighed. "Fhoulun likes to cultivate its overseas agents by recruiting locals since they blend in better. I'd bet good money they scrubbed any trace of her life before joining to be on the safe side." She'd seen exactly that before and figured that prying too deeply would only risk their agents exposure.
"That would be their standard playbook from my experience with them." Jacabey nodded in agreement. "Be it merchant, courtier, or intel agency everything about Fhoulun is all business and they don't exactly do loose ends." He continued. "Do we know anything else about her? Or better yet, Fhoulun's motives?"
"I'm afraid that we don't." Gildra shook her head as she groaned in frustration. "And that's what has me worried. The Demon Lord is one thing. She's a known quantity that doesn't seem to do all this scheming and shadow bullshit. I can handle that, but adding Fhoulun into the mix just... We really don't have the luxury of dealing with their bullshit in the middle of a war to save the world."
"I'd tend to agree with you." Jacabey said with a wry smile. "I take it their permanent envoy with us is still refusing to discuss any joint ventures to strike against the Demon Lord?"
"His answer is always that he 'doesn't have authority' to make such an agreement and that 'he's sent a missive to the Emperor' for further instructions." Gildra rolled her eyes, understanding that such phrases were their polite ways of saying 'fuck off.' "The bastards probably hope that we're weakened by the coming battle just so that they can swoop in and conquer us."
"It's probably for the best anyway that we don't involve them. I don't think anyone wants a large Fhoulun force in our land. 'Ally' in war or not I'd be skeptical that they'd ever leave." Jacabey said.
"And on that note, I need you to do a bit of digging while you're out" Gildra continued. "Find out more about this woman. We need to know what her goals are. My agents tell me that a second woman was originally with her, but she has since left the city."
"Were they able to I.D. her?" Jacabey asked, noting that nothing in the papers said anything about a second Imperial Agent.
"All we know is that she is likely a Sun Elf, that's it." Gildra shook her head. “She didn't stick around long enough for our assets to get much more.”
"Great, today's just full of surprises." Jacabey shook his head. Naturally, he was aware of this second agent, though he couldn't let that slip out. "But I'll do my best to sort things out. Just don't go expecting miracles out of me. I'm a merchant and while I'm good at sniffing out rumors and finding secrets, I'm no spy. If Fhoulun really is up to something it's going to be hard to pin them down. I doubt we'd find their fingerprints on anything they didn't want us to."
{I was told that Lady Akagi's current theory is that these two interlopers are connected to the Dawn Order. But why would a defunct and discredited organization like that make an appearance now? The Gods condemned them to death alongside the Spirits during the War and honestly, I thought they'd long since perished. Hmm... While I have no idea what's going on here, I doubt it's anything good. We were told by Lady Cheofla that Lady Reflia was going to handle things with the Dwarves... Perhaps...} (Jacabey)
"Just find out what you can, but focus on the primary goal here. We need the Dwarves' cooperation if this coalition is going to have a fighting chance. Their magical and technological no-how is second to none, and I'd wager they have a better understanding of Eridal magi-tech than anyone, even the Gods." Gildra said. “If we can get them on our side, that will make a huge difference. I don't know how long the Gods plan on giving us to work things out, so we need to hurry. If we take too long who knows what will happen.”
"Don't worry, I'll do everything in my power to ensure that everything works out in the end." Jacabey said with a toothy grin.
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"Damage to the City was, taking everything into account, minimal." Bogram said as he delivered his report to the rest of the Council. "The death toll as of this afternoon was three hundred and forty-five. A number that we expect to rise in the coming days which, while high, is nowhere near as bad as it otherwise could've been."
"Then it would seem we owe the Demon Lord our thanks." Minster Earthbraids said as he ran his hand through his beard.
"Indeed I shudder to think what the damage that creature could've caused had she not intervened." Hezmal said. “Most of the Capital could've been leveled based on what I saw.”
"Yes..." Minister Sapphirebringer grumbled. "But now we have a problem on our hands..."
"The Demon Lord seems to have made a favorable impression on the public." Bogram nodded. "Many witnessed her effortlessly vanquish a creature thyat our soldiers fled from. Naturally, that has caused many to begin, not only questioning our competence but also asking why we're not requesting her help in driving the monsters back."
"Ironic that their hoping for a Demon Lord to bring salvation." Minster Saphirebringger scoffed at the idea. "If they only knew what she really was, I doubt they'd think that way."
"People flock to the strong during times of crisis. Our people are no different." Bogram noted that people tended to choose safety over all else. "But... This does raise a good point. I believe we must seriously discuss accepting her help. This incident served as a reminder that we're not safe from these creatures just because the front has stabilized. Not to mention that if there are more of those things I question if our ally from the Dawn Order can actually win."
"From what I was told, she managed to defeat the one that appeared as she was pushing toward Edur'al." Minister Earthbraids commented. “So they aren't impossible to kill by normal methods.”
"She did, but only barely." Minister Saphirebringer interjected. "From what I hear it nearly won and she was exhausted from the battle and was out of action for some time."
"That is correct." Bogram nodded. "I spoke to her briefly after the encounter and she had a few choice words for me when I said it was a close fight."
"I see..." Hezmal furrowed his brow as he leaned onto the table. "Then perhaps we need to explore all our options, especially with our people's future on the line. Let us discuss this matter further."