Few things could compare to the beauty of the palace garden around them. The greenhouse in Dirracha that Elenore had been consigned to mightâve been a contender for natural beauty, but these gardens wove architecture and greenery far better. The cherry blossoms contrasted sharply with the marble walkways, yet there were so many other artfully placed plants that Argrave couldnât recognize in the slightest and they all evoked awe. There were large waterfalls flowing off aqueducts, filling lakes that contained fish that gleamed like jewels and precious metals. There were wooden bridges leading to pavilions in the center of these manmade lakes. These pavilions had floors of glass so that one might see the fish swimming beneath.
âBeneath the whole of this palace, there is an incredibly intricate enchantment. I daresay itâs the most intricate enchantment in the entire world,â Governor Zen explained as they walked through the imperial gardens. âAs far as Iâm aware, itâs the only enchantment in the world to employ shamanic magic. Itâs a closely guarded secret of the Great Chu thatâs allowed the imperial court to resist the machinations of deities for countless cycles of judgment.â
Argrave listened quietly with Anneliese and Elenore. âI think you mentioned something about that enchantment array to the emperor.â He looked at the governor. âBut I asked you what you wanted.â
The governor declared calmly, âI broke that array.â
Argrave cast a glance at Anneliese, and she nodded in confirmation he wasnât lying. Argrave said tensely, âYouâre the reason the Qircassian Coalition was able to all of this?â
âYou sound angry. It helped you, didnât it?â the governor sounded confused. âYour invasion never couldâve gotten this far without an attempted coup from the divine. Ji Meng wouldâve resumed his place as emperor easily, and crushed you. Which even now, heâs trying to do.â
âI can attest to that,â Empress Tai Si nodded, holding her fatherâs arm. âThe army is his crude arm. Heâs always had their loyalty. But he also had the loyalty of the administration, by and large⊠now, thatâs broken. Their trust in him is broken.â
âIâm concerned youâre collaborating with Erlebnis,â Argrave continued. âYouâre his type. Powerful, influential mage with a vast network of information and finances.â
âOf course Iâm not working with him,â the governor sounded offended. Anneliese didnât indicate that was a lie. âI didnât know Erlebnis was even involvedâI thought this was the Qircassian Coalition alone.â
Anneliese gripped Argraveâs hand lightlyâZen had been truthful of being uninvolved, but lied about being ignorant of Erlebnis. Argrave could guess thatâthe governorâs source was Sataistador, after all, and Sataistador knew of Erlebnis.
âI meant what I said back in the throne room,â Zen continued. âThe Great Chu would keep existing even if this palace was razed. I only set a fire in the palace, watched it burn. It made it easier for me to spread my roots as the divine blinded the emperor.â He gestured. âComeâlet me show you the hot springs.â
Argrave and followed the governor across a bridge, passing by a group of eunuchs in silence.novelbuddy .com
âYou made the empire lesser, breaking that array,â Elenore criticized.
The governor shook his head with a faint smile playing about his lips. âI can recreate it. Me, and only me.â
Argrave hoped Anneliese would spot some deception. She didnât, however.
âYou expect me to believe that?â Argrave shook his head. âWhy would you know, of everyone? Why not the emperor?â
âThe Great Chu emperors and their descendants once knew,â Governor Zen nodded, stopping in front of a cavern that exuded steam. âBut violent coups over the centuries killed off the original bloodline, until eventually that knowledge died out. I can tell you this secret, because you canât replicate it.â The governor raised his hands, freeing his arm from his daughterâs. âItâs tied to an A-rank ascension.â
âAnd how did you discover that?â Argrave pressed further.
âFocused, directed study. Nothing more. I donât lack for determination, talent, or perspective,â Zen put his hand on his heart. âNow, I could create such arrays anywhere. This palace. Your capital of Blackgard. Within these arrays, everything âranging from divine blessings, to the gods themselvesâwould cease to function properly. I say this to demonstrate my value before we talk about what I want. More than all I already have, I could give you one of the keys that allowed the Great Chu to exist as the greatest empires in the world for tens of thousands of years.â
Argrave stared at Zen. The governor had gone through great lengths to place himself in a position where he was too useful to be disregarded. Between his political clout and arcane knowledge, Zen alone offered enough to be an equal of any of their allies, even Law.
Given Argraveâs reliance on the Domain of Law and the Domain of Order, such an array for Blackgard was out of the question. But elsewhere? A zone that could disrupt the power of the gods? It cut away innumerable undesirable influences, and could ensure the safety of numerous places for millennia⊠just as it had here, in the imperial palace. It enabled the Great Chu to resist the godsâ treachery during the cycle of judgment. It might even enable them to win the fight versus Erlebnis and Kirel Qircassia.
But since Sataistador was looming behind Governor Zen, it also spoke of darker things. Perhaps the gods of the Blackgard Union had a trap in store, somewhere, set by this man before them.
âAnd whatâs your real price? The one youâve been teasing since the very beginning,â Elenore spoke up.
âIâll still insist on further marriage ties. Insurance, you see. But the big one⊠itâs humbler than you might expect.â Zen looked into the cave roiling with steam, then walked inside. âThe Great Chu has come so far because of meritocracy. Every administrator must pass a civil service exam, for example. Every general has to meet a certain standard of prowess, and they must know how to read and write. Someone like me, born of lowly origins, can guide foreign conquerors around the palace grounds if their talents are up to snuff.â Zen stopped. âThatâs no emperorâs doing.â
âYour point being?â Anneliese asked.
Zen took a deep breath of the hot steam in the cave, then gestured toward crystal blue pools. âShall we take a moment to relax?â
âLetâs just hear it,â Argrave prompted.
Governor Zen gathered himself, mustering some courage before he looked at Argrave with a gaze of steel. âThe Great Chu no longer needs an effective monarch. It no longer needs aristocracy of any kind. Both institutions, even though greatly diminished from their heyday, are a cancer that I intend to cut out.â
Argrave had expected many answers from the governor. This was not one of them.
âHave you been lying to us, Zen?â Anneliese asked, genuinely surprised. Argrave suspected it was because she hadnât noticed lies.
âNo, he hasnât,â the empress answered on his behalf. âMy father did intend to help one of you gain the title of emperor. But it would not at all be like it was, where the imperial decree is law. Instead, the governors would be delegated more power, with one elected as their head.â
âActing as governor, Iâve come to understand that laws handed down by the emperor cannot effectively govern the entire empire,â Zen continued. âLaws in one region can be popular in one, but wholly repulsive in another. De facto, many governors have already taken to this, selectively enforcing imperial decrees. And governors promoted by merit run the Great Chu with such efficiency weâve managed to reach the apex of our power.â
âI donât understand.â Argrave held out his hand. âWhy go through such lengths to seal an alliance by marriage if this is what you intended?â(f)reewe(b)novel
âBecause it works. Because I know itâll benefit my family to be tied to yours. Because itâs harder to betray those who become family, even if only through marriage. Itâs a simple strategy, but itâs proven to work.â Zen shrugged. âYou know I have a source that delivers me information on your people. I havenât been unsubtle about that fact. Theyâve told me of your exploits; the parliament youâve built, the methods youâve employed, like with the dwarves or the elves of the Bloodwoods. I wonât bare my sourceâs nameâI value their alliance, and hope to keep it.
âYour enemies are the Qircassian Coalition and Erlebnis. I am more than willing to ally with you to end them. The Great Chu will join your Blackgard UnionâI will be sure of it. Furthermore, trade can flourish between our nations when this test from the heavens is over.â Zen shook his head. âBut I will not give you our great country in anything other than name. You lack the men and the influence to hold it without my help. You may have the title; Iâll keep my agreement. But if Iâm right, I donât think you want it. You didnât come here to conquer.â
Argrave stood, agape, then asked the obvious question. âWhy not be honest from the beginning?â
âIt took some time for my source to gather all the information and deliver it,â Zen explained. âI couldnât be sure you were fully trustworthy. I didnât know your character, nor your aims. I thought you were a conqueror. Bluntly put, you would be forced to rely on me once you became emperor. And I intended to strip away your power, bit by bit. Now, things have changed.â
Argrave felt doubt festerâwas Zenâs source Sataistador, or not?
Elenore crossed her arms. âYouâd give up the opportunity to have an emperor in your pocket? To share absolute power?â
Zen nodded at her. âHaving risen so high by merit, I see its⊠well, I see its merits,â he laughed. âOf course, I place my family ahead of others. But my family has ascended because we stress merit, hard work, and the benefit of intertwined connections with other meritorious people. Like your family, Argrave. Despite how my kin may ebb in power in the long-term, I fully believe it will be better for this nation to change in this manner. And what is better for the nation is better for all, my family included. Our vast technology would never have developed without proper rewards for developing it. And besides⊠youâre intending something similar, arenât you? Iâve heard of your reforms. I think I see where you intend to take your parliament.â
Stunned into silence, the only noise for a few seconds was the sound of dripping in the steamy cave.
Anneliese grabbed Argraveâs shoulder, then said to Zen, âCould you give us a moment to speak?â
âOf course.â Zen nodded.
The empress and her father left the cave of the hot springs, and Anneliese conjured a ward to block out all sound.
âWhat in the hell did I just hear?â Argrave exclaimed at once in total surprise. âAnneliese, was heâŠ?â
âTotally sincere?â Anneliese nodded. âYes, he was, barring his lie about Erlebnis. But I think that was only to save face.â
âBut what he said⊠wasnât that⊠I mean, if we can get past his hatred of Ji MengâŠ?â Argrave babbled, seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. He thought there might be a beautiful union out of all of this.
âAm I the only one that sees it?â Elenore looked between them. âSeems so. Iâll say it plainly, as I see it. Sataistadorâs using him as a cudgel to entrap us.â
Argrave was thrown off balance for only half a second before her words put into focus so much of the confusion he had. That nonsense about the source âtaking some time to gather all the informationâŠâ it was Sataistador selectively feeding the governor information. Elenore gave voice to his thoughts as he came to them.
âZenâs been caught in the middle, strung along by Sataistador so that the god of war could influence how we move indirectly. That god knows, of course, how we fight, the things weâve done. He wouldâve known all along that weâd prefer an allied nation over a conquered one. But he chose now to reveal that information to Zen, suspecting weâd act in a way he wanted when Zen made the offer he just did. Thatâs my perspective.â Elenore looked off into the steam, gaze distant.
âBut Zen does believe in what he says,â Argrave pointed out. âIf we can bring him around, surely heâdâŠ?â
âMaybe we could.â Elenore crossed her arms and nodded. âBut at the same time, Iâve just seen a very clear route to getting a shot at Sataistador. If this is the god of warâs trap for us⊠to have us ally with this man, whoâll somehow unwittingly put us into danger⊠we can be ready to strike back.â
Anneliese nodded in agreement. âAnd if we loop Zen in, and things go awry somehowâeither he doesnât believe us, or acts in a way that draws Sataisdorâs suspicionâwe could lose that opportunity.â
Argrave looked between them, thinking deeply.
âWe donât need to betray Zen if we do continue to deceive,â Anneliese said. âAll we need is to play along until Sataistadorâs plan comes into vision, whereupon we end him.â
Sobered by their words, Argrave nodded. âIâm with you, for now. We play along to sus out Sataistador. But something about Zen, about the way he does things⊠we need to be prepared for the worst. I canât be enamored by the idea of an ally, here. Heâs been incredibly ruthless in the past.â He looked at Elenore. âWe have another option. But letâs keep preparing to uproot him. And letâs not get too comfortable.â
âAlright. That sounds⊠basically perfect.â Elenore nodded, almost proudly. âBut if itâs so, the matter of another marriage still hangs in the balance.â
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