Leveling up the World

Chapter 922: Archduke Gambit

Wed have thought youd have learned by now. The emperor cast a ray of light from his fingers.

The execution of the spell was infantilethe way children would do it while pretending to be magesyet also terrifyingly perfect. There were no spell symbols visible, no fluctuations in his magic threads, just a stream of destructive light that pierced copyettes one after the other. There also wasnt an ounce of concern regarding casualties.

Seven copyetes and one living armor remained. All of them were aware that they couldnt win, yet they had no intention of retreating.

Moon vows, Dallion thought. There could be no other force keeping them here.

How many times has it been so far? the emperor asked, while his guards managed to shred another of the slime-beings.

If Dallion wanted to, he could easily deal with the remaining living armor or even lend a hand with the common copyettes, but he chose to remain close to Abla.

Far above, massive lights filled the sky. Explosions so powerful and long-lasting that they took on the appearance of suns coming into existence. Euryale wasnt having an easy time, either. Despite their speed, the rocket bolts had a short range of effect. In order to take out one of the rockets making their way to the capital, they had to strike their targets with extreme precision; a task only fit for a gorgon and one with high enough trait levels to hit targets at great distances. Despite her best efforts, the explosions were getting closer and closer.

Seven, or maybe eight? The emperor mused, then glanced up above him. That must make this nine.

The final living armor thrust through the air, two massive blades pointing forward.

Dallions instincts took over. There was no doubt in his mind that the emperor could protect himself, yet on a subconscious level he couldnt get the image of the ruler getting skewered out of his mind.

A spiral attack spit the air, striking the massive armored suit, sending it up until it hit the domain shell. Caught between two forces, the copyette stood no chance. Alloys that were virtually unbreakable tore and twisted as the armor was flattened against the shell.

Nine, the emperor said. We have to give it to them. They are stubborn. A faint blue aura surrounded the incandescent purple glow coming from the mans very being. Even now, Dallion found it difficult to endure.

That was the reason people viewed Emperor Tamin as an infallible deity, a step away from Moonhood. It wasnt the strength alone, but the mans presence itself mixed with enough music spells to entice anyone into believing what he saw fit. Minutes ago, Dallion had claimed Duchess Elazni to be the greatest music user in the empire. He was wrong. The true greatest was the emperor himself.

You being here must mean that your declaration of war is no longer in effect? The emperor turned towards Dallion.

Uncertainty swept through Dallions mind. If it came to a fight between the two of them, could he succeed? With a lot of the emperors artifacts destroyed, there was a chance. To the common eye, the emperors outfit seemed no different than before, yet any skilled mage would be able to see it was vastly inferior to what it had been before the formation of the black sphere.

I could defeat him, a voice said in the back of Dallions mind. Nothing was stopping him from doing just that. Abla would still be alive. Not only would Dallion still be able to form an alliance with the Tamin empire, but he would have eliminated one of the three players competing for control of the world.

Youre right, he said. If it goes on, we both lose.

Were glad you came to the right conclusion. The balls of light above them kept increasing. Annoying, isnt it? One would have thought that they would have gotten the hint. Although, I must admitreplacing my overseers was an interesting move. Ill have to keep it in mind for the future.

Cheers erupted, although the vast majority of people had no idea of the reason they were cheering. Most outside of the imperial capital werent even aware of the dragon hunt until moments ago. Now, they felt as if that had been the main topic of conversation for months.

They have proven that we can rest at ease knowing that such heroes wouldnt allow the empire to be threatened by enemies, be they monsters, armies, or dragons.

Another deliberate pause took place, quickly filled with a new wave of cheers.

For this noble deed, we are bestowing the title prince onto Abla, the emperor continued. From this moment on, he is second after us, and the one who will lead our troops to victory over the nymph menace.

Good luck with that. Dallion couldnt help but pity the duke. It was bad enough that the emperor had made sure that he remembered every detail of the recent events, but had now turned him into a potential scapegoat. The only way to avoid execution was to lead the attack against the nymphs on the front.

As for our close friend, Dallion Darude, we are giving him the title grand archduke of the eastsomething he has long earned when he crushed the nymph invaders.

Grand archduke? Dallion thought. That was a bit over the top. The people seemed to like it. Among the noises of the crowd, Dallion was able to hear his wife being showered with fake compliments from rows of high nobles in her vicinity.

And that is far from all! While wise despite his years, we have chosen to give him a valued advisor to provide counsel when needed.

Internally, Dallion blinked. This hadnt been in the script. The agreement was that the ceremony would be done with quickly, and he could return to his domain. Leave it to the Tamin to sour the deal with a last-minute addition that he knew Dallion couldnt refuse.

Gritting his teeth, Dallion forced a smile on his face.

Another dear friend of mine, the emperor went on. And one with vast experience. A great spellcaster and a former archmage of the Academy.

Adzorg? Dallion thought.

Not in a hundred years did he expect such a turn of events. It was funny how the roles were suddenly reversed. Up until recently, Dallion had used Adzorg to learn what was going on in the imperial capital. Now, the emperor was going to use him to learn what was happening in Alliance; or would have, if the old mage hadnt made a Moon vow not to share information between them.

Dont worry, the emperor said, using the empath voice reserved for guardians. Well have another good friend to take his place. We just dont have the heart to dispose of your great-grandmother. Shes family, after all.

Of course, she is. Who better to use than her to find out about the archbishops plans?

Despite all the pomp and cheers of the ceremonies. The otherworlder with the glasses remained on Dallions mind. He couldnt help but feel that the attack wasnt over. The assassination had come far too close to being successful. For someone who prided himself on being able to see the future, it didnt make sense that things would end up there. There had to be some contingency plan that was put into motion. Or was this one big distraction? Destroying the rockets was too easy, even if it was Eury doing it.

It felt weird complaining to be alive, but if Dallion had organized the attack, he would have launched a number of rockets that exceeded the bolts he had constructed. Why hadnt the archbishop done so?

The storm before the calm, Giaccia said from Dallions domain. The archbishop has always operated in this fashion. He creates the impression that his plans have failed, then waits for the right moment to strike again.

A game of chess lasting centuries, Dallion thought. The question was when his next move would be and who would it be aimed against?