Steel and Mana

Chapter 132 – Shock & Awe

When Sasha and Elena arrived, I greeted them at the castle's gates, accompanied by Oleg and some of my guards. I calmly watched as she exited the carriage, looking me up and down before introducing herself. I was neither surprised nor annoyed by the initial silence and scrutiny. I also expected her to make some remarks, but that did not happen, and she bowed with the same type of decorum that would be between a duke and the Empress.

"I heard a lot about you from my Prime Minister." I said, opening our discourse and smiling at them.

"I'm in the same position." As we began walking, she answered, "If he were here, I guess he would be embarrassed again. Unlike at my place, Minister Merlin acts according to his age here!"

"Well, that is good news! Traveling could be taxing on the body, so he is confined to Avalon and told to rest until spring after what happened to him not that long ago. I am happy to hear he looks to be fine, but I want to ensure he doesn't overexert himself." As I said that, I saw her expression change, making me quickly wink at Sasha, who was curling her lips upwards behind Elena.

"What happened? I didn't notice anything... He looked uninjured!"

"We were attacked," I said nonchalantly, "And he overexerted himself, using magic that was either incompatible with his body and mind or simply above his current level. We don't really know, but for a few days, we were worried he wouldn't make it."

"..." It was cute how she fell silent, her eyes darting left and right, trying to think and hide her sudden worry. She would be suitable for Merlin, hm, hm. Good choice, little fella! "He didn't mention it at all..."

"Because he doesn't think much of it." Sasha added while we reached the stairs leading up to the wall.

"We... Aren't we going inside?" she asked us, probably realizing where we were heading. Her eyes quickly scanned the buildings, lingering on the spot where a tower looked to be missing as we neared the wall. I noticed her looking at where there were marks of heavy damage on it and where it smashed into the courtyard's floor. She was trying to determine if it had happened in the past or now, but she probably couldn't; that's why she was furrowing her brows. Still, hearing my explanation, I knew she was sure that it had been decimated recently. But by what? Well, if she ever asked herself that, it would be a matter of seconds for the answer to show itself.

"Not yet. The weather is getting cloudy, and we will have snowfall soon enough! I want to show you what attacked us before the visibility plummets. Do take care while climbing the stairs; they can be icy and slippery!" I exclaimed while holding Sasha's hand as we ascended.

"Thanks." She nodded, holding onto Oleg, who offered help, watching his giant arms before holding onto it, "You are bigger than my guard captain."

"I am His Majesty's General. I must be ready for anything in both body and mind." He answered simply and proudly, almost making me laugh; luckily, I was facing away from them. It was rare to see Oleg act so proud and pompous, but everyone needed a chance to act larger than life sometimes. "We are Avalon's first and last line of defense!"

"So, are you building an army?" Elena asked, raising her voice to make sure I heard her. "Are those vehicles I saw on your roads part of it?"

"The tractors?" I asked without hiding it, "No, not yet, at least. They are too cumbersome for military use, so we are making them for the farmers!"

"Oh!" she exclaimed, and I could tell she grasped the idea behind it immediately: "So they are going to end up at Baron Elliot's land..."

"Yes. My Uncle needs them the most; we are testing them this winter. So far, all of it is working as expected, so if everything goes smoothly, his food output will skyrocket, and we can start fulfilling our deals, Lady Elena."

"I assume there is no chance of me getting them, is there?"

"Sorry to say, but you are right. They are not for sale."

"Guessed so! I asked Lil' Merlin to let me see how they are being built, but he also refused me... Not even trying to tease his ego helped to annoy him into it!"

"The place is a restricted area; we are sorry." Sasha answered with a chuckle, finally making her give up on the topic.

"It's fine, it's fine! It's just my curiosity... By the Gods in the Heavens! WHAT IS THAT?!"

Her honest, shocked cry came the moment she reached the top and looked out into the distance. I think that her brain at first didn't even recognize the corpse of the defeated monster, not until it pieced together that there was a head, limbs, and a massive body encased in ice. She was not the only one who reacted that way. Sasha, standing with me, squeezed my hand, leaning against me, knowing how close we got to being separated by death.

"That is what attacked us." I said softly, waiting for her to take it in, standing beside her patiently. "We lost more than a dozen good men and a lookout tower to it. We will have to rebuild in the summer as soon as possible."

"How could you kill something... like that... That's... Impossible!" She gawked, leaning forward, shaking, but I couldn't tell if it was because of excitement, fear, or just the cold wind coming in from the Pass, howling like the ghost of the dead monster.

"We are not weak, Lady Elena." Sasha explained, pulling out a tiny CC and forming the basic spell that birthed the Dragonfire Cannons. Casting magic without incantations and by sheer focus alone widened Elena's eyes as the little firework flew out, hitting the frozen corpse in the distance with a small pop. "We have ways to defend ourselves."

"..."

"This isn't the first behemoth we have slain." I added after a short pause.

"There were... more?" She asked, gulping back her fear and astonishment.

"Not at once, luckily, or we would have died. But last year, we had a similar but different monster trying to come through. One or two could be an accident... but all the other little signs point towards the fact that stronger and stronger creatures are trying to come through the Pass year by year."

"And you want to go against the Empire and these creatures? Are you... mad?"

"I am not mad, and I don't want war if that can be avoided." I answered, signaling towards the castle, "Let's go inside and have a hot lunch. We can discuss it there."

As I spoke, snow began falling from the skies, covering not just us but the whole country with a heavy white blanket.

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At first, lunch went on silently, with my parents joining us at the table. I knew Elena needed a moment to process what she saw and its implications, so I didn't hurry her thoughts, waiting for her to ask questions.

"When are you planning to split?" she asked, breaking the silence after we had finished the soup and moved on to the second course.

"No firm date has been set into stone yet." I answered swiftly, taking a bite from my roasted chicken leg. "If possible, I want to do that as late as feasible. I don't want to announce it until totally necessary. I am not a warmonger, and I do not want to make my people lose their lives, but I also realize the current Empire won't stand by and let it happen. That would be a blow that could unleash a chain reaction, which makes the Empire implode from within, not to mention the current outside pressure it is feeling."

"I don't know how you would stand up to them... A few mages are not enough. The Imperial family has an artifact from the Gods themselves!" Elena added, sounding like she was trying to warn us not to do it.

"So I heard. Do you know what it is?" I asked, but she shook her head in answer.

"No. Nobody really does. The last time it was wielded was over a thousand years ago, and there are too many legends about it. Most of them point it out to be a spear, but who knows if that is true."

"Well, it was named the Spear of Death for a reason..." Sasha chuckled, wiping her mouth and making Elena tilt her head.

"Are you not afraid?"

"Not really," she answered confidently, and I let my wife shine because I always fell head over heels for her once again in times like this. "There is no reason to be afraid. We have already begun walking down on this road and can't turn around anymore. It will happen. We will deal with the problems as they come, and if we begin cowering in fear just because of some ancient artifact, we will never succeed! We built Avalon from the ground up, and we will fight for it... no matter what."

"She is right." My Father exclaimed, "No matter who comes, the monsters or the imperial family. They will meet death here!"

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The ride from the castle back to Avalon was the complete opposite for Elena. When they left, she had dozens of questions for Sasha, trying to pull as much information out of her as possible, yet now, she didn't know what to even ask. Until today, although she believed a lot that her Father and Merlin were saying, she still considered it a bit exaggerated. Dressing up in flair was the usual way nobles tried to look larger than life, so she took everything with a grain of salt. But now? She was no longer thinking that.

"Father has already thrown everything in with them... If they secede, he will join them and give nobody within the family a chance to resist his decision. And honestly... I start to get why. But could they truly do it?" She thought, looking at Sasha, who quickly noticed her glance and smiled back at her. "I need the technology behind your, um... what did you call it? Scanner?"

"Hm...? Why?"

"I am in control of a dying mine." Elena continued, sitting up straight, explaining it clearly without trying to go in circles. "Give me the tools to use it within its walls. I am fine if you send people over to oversee it! Since it was established, the people had been following the vein, going along wherever it led and branched out. But who says we didn't miss something? With it, we could conduct a better survey."

"A tempting offer." Sasha nodded, expecting it to come up, although she wasn't sure of it until now.

"Don't forget the black market. There are always smugglers, leaving with a little extra! With that, we could stop and take it away, sending you more than we agreed on initially. Then, there is the fact if we discover a new vein, who says we need to report it?"

"I'm listening."

"If we uncover more untapped reserves, it can be yours. All of it."

"All of it?" Sasha asked, blinking her eyes, surprised by Elena's candid offer.

"Without a piece missing."

"What do you want in return, Lady Elena?"

"A place in Avalon. As for what position? I will leave it up to you! I just want a guarantee that my family and I will have a spot here now and in the future. I also want a guarantee that you would do everything you can to save my family if something happened to them!"

"We can make that happen!" Sasha answered, beaming with happiness and she reached out her hand, which Elena shook with great surprise.

"That... that's it? Don't you need to discuss it with your husband? Or with a council of ministers? Or something?"

"No, I do not. CC falls under my jurisdiction as the Archmage of Avalon. Plus, I am Leon's First Wife, and he trusts me. If I deem it acceptable, he will not ask a question why."

"Huh... That's an admirable connection you two have..." Elena murmured, her voice having a tinge of jealousy mixed within it.

"It is how it should be~! He is the same way as the others, including Merlin, who is his right-hand man. I am sure you will find the same kind of love one day! Or friends~ Maybe you will do it here, in Avalon!"

"Tell me about it!" She laughed, leaning back, acting more like a young girl now than a noble guest, "Haaah, I was looking forward to it when I was little, but then realized it wouldn't happen... ugh. Then I was sent away, and I don't think I-"

"Yes?" Sasha asked, pressing on after seeing her falling silent all of a sudden.

"Nothing..." She whispered, turning away, a slight pinkish hue creeping up on her face because when she began speaking, Merlin's face suddenly appeared in her mind, scaring her. "Why...? Geez, he is just an annoying twerp... He is too smart for his own good, hmph!"

"I see~ Ehehe, I see~!"