Chapter 300
Chapter 300
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 300
Chapter Title: Shadowed Sky (5)
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The Serpent King's flagship could dock at any port city in civilized society without needing permission. Terms like border disputes or military standoffs held no meaning for the elves at sea.
An utterly lopsided asymmetry of power. No ground-based attack could destroy it, and even if damage could be inflicted, failing to completely annihilate it in a battle near the harbor would invite horrific retaliation—a force closer to a calamity than anything else.
Elves were utterly powerless on land. But at sea, they were near perfection in their strength. They claimed the entire ocean as their territory, thus deeming maritime trade routes illegal border invasions within their domain.
No human could deny this. They merely ignored it passively.
"We have been awaiting you."
Thus, when the Gaimeirn Dynasty—which had no geographical ties to Kirzart—docked unannounced at Sharza Port, the city administration had no choice but to send a delegation, bowing politely.
"You seem to know your manners well enough. Tell your master this: a distinguished guest of our kin wishes to dock."
"Great King, your guest shall soon be welcomed as our own nation's honored visitor."
In Queen Leia's audience chamber, the envoy cautiously lifted his head to gaze at the queen's face. More precisely, at the royal crests hanging behind her.
Gaimeirn, Malairn, Jerolen. The seals of the elven triarchy hung in the same position. The envoy's face paled slightly. The port city's administration, of course, was well aware of the elven dynasties hailed as the strongest at sea.
Gaimeirn in the east, Malairn in the north, Jerolen in the west. Lords of the three great oceans. The elven royal houses were famous for having no dealings with one another, so the presence of all three crests together meant—
'This is big trouble.'
It signified that all maritime trade routes in civilized society had fallen under one dynasty. At least on the seas, they firmly held the power of life and death over everyone, this nonhuman race.
The envoy mentally calculated slowly as he bowed respectfully.
"However, your kingdom's elite troops cannot set foot on land, so we fear your guest might suffer in the rough sea winds."
"No need to drag this out. Worry not. He's human, after all."
"……!"
"Cerned. Come forth."
The envoy raised his head in bewilderment. From the crowd stepped a young man with a commanding build. Youthful features—perhaps from an eastern kingdom. The sharp lines typical of nobility, the aura of a warrior. And scars covering the exposed skin of a striking man.
"I have no intention of causing a fuss. I only need a path inland, and if you grant us a day to resupply, we'll vanish as if we were never here."
"We dare not commit such an error in hosting our guest. Please rest at ease. I shall personally escort you from disembarkation to reception."
The envoy bowed deeply and slowly retreated. Leia chuckled with a huff and nodded toward him. The Wild Prince stepped forward and handed the envoy a small box.
"This is……?"
"A gift from the queen. I trust you'll handle things well, but Cerned is my close friend, our collective benefactor, and our highest guest. Consider this a personal request. Convey my words to your master exactly as I said."
"Of course."
The envoy accepted the box without opening it and exited the audience chamber politely. Fernandez waited until the doors fully closed before smiling at Leia.
"My thanks for the hospitality."
"Call it an investment."
"Investment?"
"I heard from Jerolen. You're searching for the ruins of the first lord humans once had. He called what your lord left behind a 'symbol.' Did you hear the same?"
"Indeed."
"Then it's an investment. If you succeed in unearthing the symbol held by that first lord, what greater legitimacy could there be? An investment in the new empire the future emperor will forge."
"……Regrettably, that won't happen."
"Ha!"
Leia smiled brightly and gestured. It was a farewell.
"I can't imagine you failing. And if you succeed, you won't remain just some eastern kingdom noble or a priest of a human god. You're in a hurry, so I won't keep you. Go."
Fernandez met Leia's gaze squarely and smiled. Her words were kind, but this was unmistakable goodwill. The most certain goodwill she could offer as a queen of one nation.
At the very least, a port city could not refuse an elven queen's 'request' or mistreat her guests. Though their actions bordered on unauthorized docking and illegal entry, no bold administrator would nitpick.
Fernandez gave a brief nod of acknowledgment and turned to leave the chamber.
"Fare thee well, Cerned."
* * *
When unidentified foreigners entered the country, they were naturally disarmed and subjected to identity verification. But those words did not apply to Fernandez and his entourage.
Everything proceeded smoothly. The envoy seemed to hold a higher position than expected, and merely his presence had the turbanned port soldiers bowing and stepping aside.
At that point, Fernandez grew curious about the man's identity. An envoy meeting a foreign king in person couldn't be a mere administrative noble, but the soldiers' deference differed markedly from how they treated ordinary nobles.
"What weighs so heavily on our guest's mind?"
The envoy gazed at him with an enigmatic smile. Fernandez turned from the foreign scenery passing beyond the carriage to look at the envoy.
"Are you the lord?"
"Haha…… And why do you think that?"
"The envoy responding immediately to the docking of the strongest naval power would naturally be a plenipotentiary ambassador, and your demeanor in the audience chamber felt less like an administrator's and more like a sovereign's."
"My demeanor, you say?"
He spoke with utmost courtesy. Naturally, not the arrogance or boldness typical of high nobles. Rather, something deeper and more subtle…… like the glint in his eyes or fleeting expressions, minor gestures.
"Your gaze brushed past Queen Leia, skimming each of the elven triarchy's crests before pausing briefly. You clearly know the seals, grasp the significance of all three together, and were already devising countermeasures. That's no mere administrator's poise."
"Impressive."
The envoy smiled softly and inclined his head slightly.
"Sahban Beile Eyal Sharza Al'Mukapa. Call me Al Mukapa for simplicity. Now, may I ask in turn? An eastern human noble granted lavish reception by the queen who united the triarchy…… What is your true identity?"
"I merely inferred. Shouldn't you do the same?"
"A riddle. The virtue of sages. Very well. It should make for pleasant diversion on the journey."
Fernandez nodded impassively and turned his gaze back to the window. Al Mukapa's stare clung to him with blatant intensity.
-Beile Eyal Sharza. Astonishing.
'Indeed. The lord of Eyalet personally bowing and playing the role of servant.'
Sharza was the city's name, Eyal that of Eyalet. Kirzart's term for a 'great domain.' Beile meant 'lord,' equivalent to a high noble like a duke or marquis in eastern civilized rankings.
For such a figure to meet an elven queen—who wielded power over life and death—without guards, concealing his identity and acting obsequiously like a servant held profound implications.
Subservience to elven naval might? No, that wasn't the vibe. Even then, he was strategizing how to secure maritime sovereignty.
-He doesn't trust my subordinates.
'And is prepared to make enemies of the elves if needed.'
-We must be cautious.
A lord personally disguising himself as an envoy. It bespoke boldness and confidence.
Pondering countermeasures from the audience seat implied readiness to antagonize elves.
Fernandez rested his chin on the window ledge and smirked faintly. A lord capable of such thinking might attempt assassination at any moment. Even with the Serpent King's guarantee.
'Night visitors will come.'
-We'll welcome them.
No cunning noble like that would simply host them and send them off quietly. From their position, needing to gauge elven intentions or future developments, contact was inevitable.
Thus, Fernandez had said 'find out yourself.' A lord of a province wouldn't approach him officially without preparation, so the visitor would be—
'Shaksi. Long time no see.'
Kirzart's infamous intelligence agency. Only Shaksi's involvement.
* * *
Al Mukapa sighed and rolled his shoulders. After escorting the elven queen's guests to their lodgings, his affable smile vanished as if it had never been. In its place remained only a noble with a cold, hawk-like visage.
"Shaksi?"
"I've requested intelligence support, Your Highness. The Sultan……"
"More certain, the better. It's not time yet."
The Serpent King's fleet docking was a major event for the port, but nationally, mere trivia. No damage to the harbor, no full-scale engagement—just a visit and departure.
However, the elven dynasties allying was different. This shocking intel mustn't reach the capital before grasping specifics. The current sultan, Al Hashr, was a war hawk upholding preemptive strikes as diplomatic policy. Even this clue could spark naval war.
Shaksi were the sultan's eyes and ears, so once their support kicked in, he wouldn't remain ignorant long…… but Al Mukapa needn't shoulder the burden personally.
"First, ascertain that man's identity and what he seeks here, having come all this way across the distant seas."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Never let your guard down. Keep your ears open at all times. He's no easy foe."
Al Mukapa replayed their brief carriage exchange. The man had noticed subtle gestures and fleeting expressions, deducing his identity from scant info.
No easy feat. Especially against someone like Al Mukapa, a foreign high noble.
'Traits of intelligence operatives or veteran nobles seasoned decades in politics.'
Merely mid-twenties by looks, with a classic warrior's build. Possibly a knightly war noble, but no politician. Just as Fernandez had pierced Al Mukapa's identity, he was sizing up Fernandez's.
Deeply trained in intelligence work. And that assumption led to the worst hypothesis. An agent from the east or Levantair Empire, guest of the elven queen……
'Elves allied with easterners. Even the newly emergent elven military bloc linking all three dynasties……'
Only two years since the 50 Years' War ended. If elves rode with easterners now, the next battlefield would likely be Kirzart proper, not the Great Wilds.
Beastkin tigerfolk held Great Wilds sovereignty, with signs of pacts with the Levantair Empire. Kirzart's eastern border was in quasi-wartime status.
If their sultan…… Al Hashr learned of this now.
'The next war won't end in 50 years.'
Al Mukapa sighed deeply and lounged on the sofa draped in long purple silk. To his deeply bowing subordinate, he said,
"Accompany him there too. Record every word of his talk with Shaksi, down to every breath. No matter what, war cannot be tolerated."
"And if he truly entered with ill intent?"
"With the elven queen's guarantee, we can't touch them within the city…… Act once they leave."
But he prayed it wouldn't come to that. A guest of the elven queen dying near the city would demand answers, and for a port city, her pursuit wouldn't end in mere diplomatic rebuke.
Gazing down at the port city peaceful until yesterday, Al Mukapa sighed deeply. Storm winds gathered from the distant sea. Though early evening, the overcast sky cast long shadows beyond the horizon.
"I hope it's just a passing shower."
Wishing the rain a mere downpour, Al Mukapa sincerely closed his eyes.