[AN: I'm currently in my first-semester final exams. I'll do my best to maintain daily uploads, but if I'm unable to, I will catch up on any missed chapters once I'm done with the exams.]
After a brief exchange, a meeting time was scheduled for a few hours later. Once everyone agreed, an imperial ship was selected as the meeting venue. The ship was promptly moved to the center, ensuring it was equidistant from all fleets.
“Please excuse our modest preparations. The original venue for this meeting is still under construction,” Lanesra said as she took her seat in the meeting room. Her gaze swept across the attendees, who fell silent the moment she entered.
A few offered polite responses to her apology, but most remained quiet, their expressions making it clear they wanted the meeting to conclude as swiftly as possible.
“I would like to know when the emperor will arrive and why he is late,” Dagos asked, his tone sharp. A member of the Valthorin royal family and the fleet's representative for this mana barter trade, he scanned the room, trying to spot where the emperor might sit. From the initial layout, there was no empty chair in sight.
“The emperor? No, he will not be attending. I will be representing him for the duration of this trade,” Lanesra replied calmly, adjusting her seat slightly forward.
“What? Are you telling me we are to deal with a mere representative? Is he so dishonorable that he won’t even show his face when I and many other royal family members from various civilizations are present?” Dagos’s voice betrayed his growing anger. The section of the table in front of him rattled under the force of his frustration, causing the utensils on it to clatter noisily.
"....."
The room fell silent as everyone observed the tense exchange. No one made any move to interfere—some refrained because their civilizations were weaker than the Valthorins, unwilling to risk drawing their ire. Others, who shared Dagos’s sentiment, waited to see how Lanesra would respond. Meanwhile, representatives from stronger civilizations than the Valthorins remained indifferent, simply watching the scene unfold.
“Why should the emperor be present at a meeting about trade?” Lanesra asked, her tone now devoid of any of the earlier pleasantness she had maintained. “You, like every other member here, are not the leader of your civilization but a representative. Why should the emperor abandon his official duties to attend this meeting when his response is equally valid through the representative he has chosen?”“Do you expect him to come and pander to you every time you come to pick up mana stones?” she added, her voice tight as she struggled to keep her composure. From this brief exchange, and the reactions around her, she had quickly concluded that it was common for leaders of weaker civilizations to meet with the representatives of stronger ones. The way the Valthorin representative spoke made it clear that they believed the Empire was weaker and expected the same treatment they were used to in the Astral Conclave.
“What? Just because you defeated some of our representatives and held us off for a short time, you think your emperor deserves Dagos began, his anger flaring as he slammed his fist onto the table. His voice boomed, the sound of it shaking the room as he felt his honor was being challenged by her response.
It seemed they had concluded that they could have defeated the Empire had they come fully prepared, rather than the rushed response they gave under short notice after signing the mana oath. Regarding the emperor’s victory over their representatives, they believed it was an anomaly—an exception to the rule. They reasoned that many of the fighters who had represented them in that fight weren’t the strongest individuals across each of the civilizations in the Conclave, but simply the strongest available at the time. Though rare, they had encountered outliers from their civilizations in the Conclave, and they were now treating the Emperor as one of those anomalies.
However, Dagos’s expression of anger was abruptly halted when the table he had hoped to shatter with a full-force strike remained unscathed. The thin shield that had materialized to absorb the blow dissolved moments later, leaving him to face the steady, unchanged table.
“Looks like you're really determined to tarnish my honor,” Dagos said, his anger flaring once more. The situation only served to heighten his frustration, feeding into the resentment that nearly all the Valthorins felt over the disgrace they had endured during the fight. A brief moment later, he stood up and pointed his finger at Lanesra. “I hereby challenge you
“Let’s move on. We’re wasting time needlessly,” interjected the Xor’Vak representative, cutting off Dagos’s challenge. He wasn’t interested in watching another fight, especially not under the guise of honor. He didn’t want to be here any longer than necessary. While he was intrigued by the mana stones, they would ultimately be handed over to the Grand Xor’Vak for his decision on how they would be used and distributed, leaving little benefit for him.
“You!!!” Dagos shouted, glaring at the seemingly disinterested Xor’Vak representative. However, that was as far as he went, reluctantly sitting back down in his chair. He didn't have the courage to challenge the Xor’Vak, fully aware that he would be defeated in such a confrontation.
“Now that we’re back to the main topic,” Lanesra continued, moving past the earlier tension as if it hadn't happened, “I would like to first express the emperor’s displeasure regarding some of your actions with the data we rightfully won. While the emperor had promised not to use mana stones for retaliation, he has decided not to negotiate the increase of quota for those who attempted backhanded tactics until they provide the decryption keys to the encrypted files.”
Her words caused several of the representatives to raise their brows—at least those who had them—clearly unsettled. Inside, their minds churned with turmoil, as the current meeting was supposed to focus on various aspects of the mana stones trade, including discussions about the increase in quotas. Lanesra, however, paid no mind to their reactions and moved on to the next topic without pause.
Yet, in her mind, she took note of the Valthorin representative’s behavior, already considering ways to retaliate against him. She knew that if she allowed such disrespect toward the emperor to go unpunished, it would set a dangerous precedent, emboldening even government officials from weaker civilizations to behave in a similar manner.
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