A stare bore into Nathan. The catgirl responsible didn’t make a noise, but she made her presence known.
Nathan pulled away from Anna, who gasped for air when he released her.
“Wow. I don’t see you for a couple of weeks and you try to kill me with a kiss,” Anna said with wide eyes. “Please don’t tell me that’s what tonight’s going to be like? I’ve heard from the others that you can sometimes be a little more impressive down there.”
“Oh, you haven’t seen it?” Fei crooned, her voice oozing with superiority. The smirk on her face spoke volumes. “Nathan’s best at his biggest.”
“Fei, enough,” Nathan said, rolling his eyes. “Be a good kitty.”
She clicked her tongue. “Fiiiine.” Her smirk didn’t vanish. “But I wasn’t lying. He’s totally better like that.”
“I’d believe you, but you also told me that he tasted great. Your opinions in the bedroom are a little lopsided, Fei,” Anna said.
Nathan and Anna dropped onto the sofas. As Fei had been cattier lately, Nathan avoided sitting next to either woman. He sat opposite Fei instead.
Not that it mattered. Fei jumped over the coffee table and sat next to him. Her tail curled around his back and she purred.
Anna rolled her eyes. “So, what do you think of Fyre?”
“I’ve met her twice. It’s hard to have an opinion of her,” Nathan said.
“Really? Because you seemed to form an opinion of Fei and the others pretty quickly.” Anna narrowed her eyes at him.
Damn, good catch.
Nathan had known Fei and most of his Champions from his original world. But to everybody else, his ability to judge people’s characters was uncannily good.
“I had reports on Fei from her meisters in the academy. Plus, she’s a young girl from the beastkin enclave near Gharrick. Fyre has fought for the Federation her entire life. She has… baggage here.” Nathan frowned. “I trusted her because Narime did. Have you gotten along with her?”
“Better than I expected,” Anna said. “I didn’t know if I’d be able to trust a Champion that isn’t yours, but she’s so starry-eyed about you it’s adorable.”
“Adorable,” Nathan said flatly.
Fei pouted.
“Yes, adorable,” Anna repeated. “There’s something different about her, compared to the other beastkin. Fyre seems almost pure when she talks about you.” She shrugged in response to his look. “I can’t put it in words, but it makes her easy to trust. She’s been reliable and a huge help as I try to settle in.”
Nathan winced. “I take it that’s been rough?”
“Rough doesn’t begin to cover it.” Anna huffed. “The desk in my office is piled this high with paperwork.” She raised a hand as high as she could for effect. “My calendar fills with meetings if I don’t fill it first. The only reason I eat with other people is because Fyre joins me for meals, because otherwise I’m eating while working.”
“What’s this, then?” Nathan asked, gesturing to the study that was noticeably empty of any work.
Anna coughed. Her cheeks reddened, and she looked away. She mumbled something under her breath.
Given Fei’s ears pricked up and the catgirl smiled, Nathan assumed it was something cute.
“I’m afraid I didn’t catch that,” he asked innocently.
“Are you going to make me say it?” Anna grumbled.
“Yes.”
“Bastard.”
He waited patiently, while Fei giggled next to him.
“I cleared my calendar when I found out you were coming,” Anna said, face red as a cherry. “Fyre helped a lot. Shooed away courtiers, rearranged meetings, and ensured my clerks were dealing with any important paperwork today and tomorrow. I should be able to spend some time with you, given I haven’t seen you for weeks, right?”
Well, that certainly explained some of Anna’s appreciation of Fyre. Nathan felt some in turn.
“We should probably discuss the situation despite that,” Nathan said. “But I’m glad we have some time to ourselves for… fun.”
Fei prodded him in the side.
“Can I get him to myself for a night, first?” Anna suggested, her eyes narrowing at Fei’s unsubtle attempt to inject herself into the situation.
“For a night,” Fei declared, taking a mile when offered an inch.
“Have you finished the move?” Nathan asked.
“I don’t think I’ll ever finish the move,” Anna said. “I’m beginning to realize how silly this whole duchy is. I spent my life being raised to take care of a little county, and everything I learned related to it and the Diet. Voting procedures, committees, laws, and fairly minor procedural matters. Now I’m one of the most powerful and wealthiest nobles, other than the archdukes.”
Both Nathan and Anna sighed.
Before he had invaded the Federation, Anna had been the countess he worked with as Bastion. She governed a moderately sized parcel of land called Gharrick County. It had been a border county that ran along the Gharrick Mountains, which separated the Federation and Empire.
When the Federation surrendered to the Empire and the regents were converted into dukes, the question had been what to do with High Lord Torneus’s former province. Most of it had been given to Anna, who had been promoted to duchess.
“Regretting your decision to become a duchess, rather than stay countess?” Nathan asked.
“Never,” Anna snapped, glaring at Nathan. She bit her lip. “You were right to call me out on trying to refusing to become one. It’s not like things would be better if I remained a countess. Milgar gave me all this land anyway. The only difference is that…” she trailed off.
Neither of them needed to say more.
Anna had almost chosen to step out of Nathan’s life a month ago. Nathan had confronted her over it, and discovered her true feelings. The result had been that she had negotiated with the Emperor and Milgar to become a duchess, instead of remaining as countess.
It was also the reason she was going to be curled up against him tonight.
“Has Archduke von Milgar given you a hand in anything?” Nathan asked, changing the topic. “If you’re so overwhelmed, surely he’d help a noble allied with him and the Emperor.”
“He’s handling a lot of the political bullshit. There are eleven new dukes plus me, the Diet has been in a constant state of chaos since the Emperor announced all the new nobles in the Federation, and—oh, right—there’s a war on.” Anna scowled. “I think I get a dozen threatening letters a day from Nationalist-aligned nobles about why I’m not sending you and all of my knights up to Trafaumh.”
“Fucking hell,” Nathan muttered.
The Nationalists were a powerful faction of nobles in the Empire that believed in Imperial supremacy over the rest of the world. Nathan’s father was a powerful member of the faction. They had been implicated in a lot of problems last year, and were the cause of a war with the Empire’s northern neighbor, Trafaumh.
“The letters get screened, so you don’t need to worry about any of them killing me. Fyre did bodyguard duty for Terrius and was in charge of protecting a portal, so she’s experienced.” Anna smiled. “I miss Kuda’s coffee, but there’s something nice about a knight who openly lusts for the man you’re sleeping with.”
Something told Nathan that most women wouldn’t share Anna’s opinion. Then again, most women weren’t in a relationship like Anna’s. Fei was far from the only woman that she had to share Nathan with, after all.
“Speaking of coffee, why don’t we have something to drink?” Nathan suggested.
Anna and Fei nodded in response. For some reason, he half-expected Fyre to burst through the door with a tray of drinks, but nothing happened. She either hadn’t penetrated the room’s wards or was smart enough not to give herself away.
He rose and found a table with refreshments. While he used the magic-powered percolator to prepare coffee for himself and Anna, he poured a glass of milk for Fei. While she’d drink coffee and t
ea, her preferences were for cold drinks. Given her alcohol tolerance, he added a glug of cream liqueur to the milk.
“Is the land the problem?” Fei asked while his back was turned.
How rare. Fei rarely spoke up during discussions like these. Usually, she dutifully listened and asked Nathan questions later.
“Not the land itself, but the variety,” Anna said. “I rule three distinct regions now. Gharrick County, Tartus, and the beastkin enclave that you grew up in. The enclave takes care of itself, but I’m split between Gharrick and Tartus.”
“Isn’t that normally why you have other nobles?” Fei asked.
Nathan chuckled. “Yes, that’s exactly why.”
“That’s easier said than done. My family ran Gharrick for years. It’s a tiny place in the boonies. Finding somebody to run the county is difficult, at least until my brother returns from the war against Trafaumh,” Anna said. “Whereas Tartus is just chaotic. The removal of slavery has thrown the economy into chaos.”
“I thought you said that lots of beastkin were coming here from the rest of the Federation?” Nathan said, remembering another conversation.
“They are, but they want to be paid, Nathan. Or to work for you. Or me.” Anna laughed. “I think I understand why Torneus wanted to invade my county. I’ve been looking at farmland for the beastkin, only to find out that half of the land on this side of the mountains isn’t arable. You can’t grow a damn thing without huge irrigation projects. But Gharrick is mostly wilderness. An untapped place that the rest of the Empire looked down on.”
Nathan blinked. He carried the tray of drinks to the sofas, careful not to spill any. Grinning at him, Fei snatched up her liquored-up drink. Nathan and Anna enjoyed their coffees at a more sedate pace.
“That figures. So there are lots of beastkin, but the local manufacturers and merchants don’t want to pay them,” Nathan summarized.
“Can’t pay them, they claim,” Anna corrected. “Practically the entire manufacturing and transport industry of Tartus ran on slave labor. Food seems to be unaffected, because the beastkin were kept in the cities.”
“The land belongs to the people. Being able to raise a family in a village is the right of citizens,” Nathan said automatically, remembering lessons drilled into him from childhood. “That’s a problem.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re talking about giving the beastkin farmland. How many of them even know how to farm?”
Anna stared at him.
“Eh? Even I can till a field, Nathan?” Fei said with a silly smile.
“Do you know how to farm, Anna?” Nathan asked.
The noblewoman continued to stare at him. “Shit.”
“You’re dealing with a huge population of urban slaves, Anna. The first time most of them left the cities they were born in was when the Empire freed them. I doubt many of them have even seen a field in their lives.”
“Well, that’s a new headache to deal with,” Anna said. She drained her coffee, then immediately rose and poured a new one from the batch prepared by Nathan.
“I hate to say this now, but given these problems, is it really smart to encourage the beastkin to wear those damn patches?” Nathan probed, feeling that he had enough leverage to bring up the topic.
“Oh, goddess, of course you raise this,” Anna said. He imagined that she rolled her eyes, as her back was turned to him. “Those are the one thing I’m not worried about. Half the damn Empire hates us, Nathan. Hates me. The beastkin call you Liberator.”
“I hadn’t noticed,” he drawled.
“Don’t be a dick,” she snapped. “Your father has a reputation as a violent warmonger who hates non-humans. Beastkin treat you as the literal opposite to him. Like it or not, the Empire is squaring off. We’re in the Emperor’s corner, along with Milgar. We should be making it clear that we have support among the people.”
“Some people,” Nathan said. “Look, Anna, how many people give a shit about the arguments in the Diet? Emperor Gorthal isn’t about to drop dead. All this does is scare some farmers and merchants.”
“The Nationalists aren’t going to wait for the Emperor to die of natural causes, Nathan,” Anna said. “There’s no rightful heir to the Arangar dynasty. All the Emperor’s children except Alice will be opposed by the Diet for one reason or another. And Alice is Milgar’s granddaughter, so the constitution forbids her from taking the throne. If we don’t prepare for civil war—”
“Anna,” Nathan said gently, and she stopped.
She grimaced and looked away.
After several long moments, she looked back at him. “I do think you’re right that the patches are antagonistic. But so is everything your stupid father is doing. We need to prepare, Nathan. You are going to help me, right? I know you have some personal hangups over this, but please.”
Part of him wanted to say no. The internal problems of the Empire frustrated him. The entire system seemed inherently broken, and ready to collapse at a moment’s notice. When he first arrived here, he had thought that he would stop the war, then immediately head to his homeland of Falmir, and worry about its problems.
But for some reason, he felt differently about the Empire now. He cared for Anna, who considered the Empire her home. Earlier this year, he had met Princess Alice Arangar, the Emperor’s granddaughter, and become attached to her. And, of course, Nathan cared about all of his Champions and the people he protected.
“Yes, I will help you. We’ll need to spend the next couple of years building support within your duchy and preparing my Champions and military for the worst. But that means not pissing people off early, simply because the Nationalists are swinging their dicks at us,” Nathan said.
Fei giggled at the image.
“I guess you’re right,” Anna said. “A couple of years, huh? That seems like a lot of time to prepare, but compared to how long the Nationalists have been trying to oust Emperor Gorthal…”
“It’s enough time to train Vera, get new gems for Fei and the others, and deal with any political issues,” Nathan said. “Our position is unstable right now.”
“Ah, right, Vera.” Anna nodded, then narrowed her eyes. “So, when are you going to break it to Fyre that you plan to assign her to Vera, instead of taking her on as your own Champion?”
Nathan winced. “I have no idea. She’s so smitten with me.”
“Honestly, just bed her and let Vera find a new Champion. There are plenty of beastkin you can find, including in the castle,” Anna said. “Where are you going to find a cute, loyal horsegirl like her?”
Nathan stared at the wall and didn’t reply.
He did, after all, already know of one such horsegirl. While he’d been avoiding thinking of her too much, she was still firmly rooted in his mind.
Ciana. The young unicorn beastkin training under Leopold, and who was currently in the Empire’s capital of Aleich. Compared to Fyre, Nathan found Ciana far more attractive. He had spent many years with Ciana.
A dark memory came to Nathan’s mind. He banished the thoughts, and remembered why he hadn’t been thinking of Ciana since the war with the Federation started.
“That look tells me it’s time to change the subject,” Anna said. “Why don’t we talk about what’s been happening in the capital lately? I bet you’re interested in what Alice has been up to. She tells me things that she doesn’t tell you.”
Chapter 3
Alice
A young woman strode through the upper levels of the grand hall of Aleich’s Imperial Palace. Her name was Alice Arangar, and she was the granddaughter of both Emperor Gorthal and Archduke von Milgar. Within her arms was a small bundle of paperwork.
She wore a stunning red and gold dress emblazoned with the emblems of both the royal family and the Empire. The only nod to her relation to the archduke was a tiny emblem woven into her collar.
Her long, thick golden hair billowed behind her as she made her way to the far end of the hall. The only other people present in th
e hall were royal guards. Plus Alice’s bodyguard, who shadowed her by a few dozen feet.
This hall was the official throne room of the Empire. A gargantuan throne built from steel, glass, and granite sat at one end. The wings of the hall allowed it to hold thousands of people at once, particularly given there were three separate levels. When the Imperial Diet was in session, nobles could be separated according to status.
Quite literally, the archdukes and other powerful nobles could look down upon the lesser nobles. Petitioners faced the imposing gaze of people they couldn’t look in the eye. Supposedly, the Emperor sat at the bottom as a sign of his humble service to the Diet and the nobility of the Empire.
The Emperor was, after all, an elected position within the Anfang Empire.
But the Diet wasn’t in session. The spring session had ended. Half of the nobles had been up north fighting Trafaumh anyway and couldn’t attend. Alice walked through an empty hall, surrounded by the ghosts of arguments she remembered from the past few weeks.
Once she left the grand hall, she slipped into a smaller chamber immediately behind it. Massive knights stood guard at every entrance to this chamber. Their armor and weapons glowed with imposing runes, and Alice knew that every one of them was a trained spellblade. These were the royal knights—the Emperor’s personal bodyguards.
“Good day, Princess Alice,” they greeted her, their breastplates thundering as they saluted her.
Their helmets and magical voice modulation prevented her from identifying any of them. They were measures to protect the families of the royal knights, so they might live normal lives outside their duties to the Emperor. Alice disliked the fact she could never grow to know any of the knights who protected her grandfather—and herself, indirectly—but she understood why.
She smiled back at the knights and curtsied. Then she entered the chamber.
“I don’t see any reason for me to waste my time in the Spires, Leo,” the deep baritone of her grandfather rumbled.
“It’s unprecedented for the Aurelian Council to invite a foreign ruler to help oversee a criminal trial, Gorthal,” Leopold said, his voice far gentler than it ever was when he spoke to Alice. “The dark elves are genuinely surprised by what happened to the portal, if we believe Ambassador Sureev’s words. We need to take their request seriously.”
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