Obsidian and Willow walked down the halls of The Ark, a grin adorning one, anxiety marking the other.
'Finally, I thought we were gonna die of old age at this rate.' Obsidian rolled his eyes, annoyed by how slow the Consort was to meet with them properly.
Still, today was the day – the invitation was there, all Obsidian had to do now was find a convenient way to get Willow into the high society here.
The girl had failed to seduce anyone – for which Obsidian wanted to execute her – but his father would catch up to his plot if he did that.
That disappointed look his father always held, Obsidian wanted nothing more than to replace it with terror.
Willow on the other hand, knew precisely what her position was. And something inside her gut grumbled in irritation.
That thought – that her body was hers alone, it never quite died. She suppressed it, fled from it, distracted herself with anything at all, but its shadow always loomed over her mind.
'This is bad… I can't do this, I was already bad at… Seduction, and yet-'
Now she had a sense of self-ownership to contend with. It was anxiety incarnate for her.
Finally, the maid sent to guide them reached a pair of large onyx doors guarded by a pair of Paragons, who pushed the doors open for the guests.
The room inside was lavish and refined – plush carpets and comfortable sofas gilded with gold and emerald runes set beneath the finest paintings any mortal could buy.
Obsidian felt awed, for only a breath.
Willow on the other hand, gazed at none but the Consort – who looked at her with a humble smile.
His tiara was beautiful, his figure as ethereal as ever, but the relaxed hiss of her ring, the artifact Michael had granted her before, revealed the shift in his gaze.
It felt strangely relieving, compared to before.
'Its so much calmer… More inside him than outside?'
Before it was akin to a storm swirling around its eye, now, it felt closer to a clearer sky – brilliant and vast, but not inhumanly so.
'He must have done this out of courtesy.'
She reasoned as Obsidian walked deeper into the room, bowing his head before such a mighty man.
"Consort, you are as radiant as always." He praised, and the Consort paused before clearing his throat.
"Oh that's kind of you to say… Uhm, please feel free to take a seat, we have much to discuss."
The two did just that, and the negotiations proceeded smoothly.
Charice felt relief as trade was agreed upon, and prices were exchanged.
It was during this conversation that Charice realized that he hadn't considered what his city would even export.
'In the game when we were still a huge guild, a good portion of the NPCs were blacksmiths and priests – I'll have to ask Michael… Or maybe someone else for their thoughts.'
Reassured by his logic, Charice allowed himself to relax into the cushions, red and blue flickering in his sky-like eyes.
"To commemorate this occasion, I would like to propose that my sister remain here in the city for some time as an ambassador of sorts."
Charice blinked in surprise – Willow seemed to be quite inexperienced, and yet she was trusted to this extent? Maybe he had missed something?
"I don't see an… Issue with that. Yes, that sounds great."
Obsidian grinned. Now, Willow would have more time and be considered an ambassador.
'The Consort had organized no meetings with us, and no one of any powerful station has approached us. This is strange, so he likely suspects me. But his opinion of Willow seems to be better.'
She just couldn't fuck this up, and Obsidian would get his foothold.
He glanced at Willow, who shrunk ever so slightly. She read his plot without any words.
Even Charice noted the awkward air, and after two hours of tense negotiations interspersed with polite small talk, he took this chance to send them away.
They left, though Obsidian found great offense that Charice didn't consider this an event worth celebrating with a noble party.
'I did it!'
Not only did Charice successfully form diplomatic relations with a foreign nation – they have recognized his city as a nation of his own by placing an ambassador here.
Not to mention he talked with the Gods themselves, and got their blessing first and foremost! Now with these nooses no longer looming above him, Charice felt truly relieved.
And that relief was followed by anticipation.
'There is only one thing left to do now.'
Find his guild-mates, but Charice already had plans.
Merchants from his city and abroad would likely flock here, and he would instruct them to search for anyone who understands the term "MMORPG" and other earthly words nobody here should know.
If they did, they would tell them that Charice is a player, and wants to find other players and attract them here. It was on the nose and very simple, but it should be the fastest way to get word out.
"Yep." Charice sighed, closing his eyes to breathe slowly.
'What should I do now though?'
Was there anything that required his attention? He had created a constitution ,which included most judicial processes, and thanks to the tireless work of the Paragons, most work no longer required his oversight.
The city could do on its own now – There was nothing for him to do.
And beneath that ocean of warm relief, for the first time, Charice felt no comfort.