Drink in hand, the count downed the whole glass before turning to Taythes, “Is it true, is she truly the Consort of a dragon, a queen no less?”

  “She is our queen’s first at that. As such, I am here as her advisor and nothing more. That and our queen was unsure you would believe her unless a dragon was here to validate her claim.” Taythes calmly replied.

  “I can’t deny that, even now I can’t quite believe it,” the count said before turning back to Ves, “Is this related to how you were able to resist the brand?”

  Ves nodded, “It is, turns out becoming the consort to a dragon involves some pretty powerful magic. Not enough to remove the brand but enough to suppress it.”

  “Incredible, I never knew such a thing was possible,” he said.

  “It truly is, not to say it didn’t come with its own cost.” Ves leaned back before mumbling, “Figures it took binding myself in an even tighter bond to free myself from the brand.”

  The count looked conflicted as Ves said those words.

  “Don’t get me wrong, she treats me well and can even be very sweet. I may have sold myself body and soul, but I’d like to think I got my money’s worth.” Ves said with a self-deprecating smile.

  “I get the feeling this wasn’t your first choice,” the count said before looking at Taythes.

  “Now I think I need a drink,” the dragon muttered before speaking up clearly, “I won’t deny Consort Ves’nell’s words. While our queen does care for her consort a great deal, their marriage was not done for altruistic reasons, nor was the consort given a choice.”

  “May I at least know the reason, the reason a dragon forcibly married my granddaughter?” The city lord asked with a tinge of anger in his voice. Ves had to give the old man credit, to show anger towards a dragon required a lot of courage. To avoid the situation escalating further, Ves decided she should be the one to answer, “You may not. You may claim to be my grandfather, but you are still a stranger to me, and there are some secrets I would like to keep to myself.”

  The man opened his mouth to say something, but stopped himself, looking dejected. Now Ves felt like a bitch. The man may be a stranger, but it was also clear he cared for her. Enough to speak up to a dragon, which took a pair.

  “That was rude of me, I may tell you one day, but for now, please let me keep my secrets. I am grateful that you honestly worry for my well-being, so let me share something I can. I want you to know my wife truly does care for me. After our marriage, I was laid up in bed for several days with a fever. The one who stayed by my side and nursed me the entire time was Queen Senotraxia.”

  “Very well, that does put me a bit at ease,” her grandfather said before he straightened himself out. “Well then, before we continue, your companions waiting near the gate must be getting worried. Please let me invite you and yours to stay here in my manor for the duration of your visit. I can send a runner out to inform the rest of the party.”

  “That would be greatly appreciated.” Ves thanked him

  “Lyra, could you make the arrangements?” he asked.

  “Will do my lord,” Lyra replied before leaving the room. The woman honestly looked a bit relieved to have an excuse to leave.

  “Now then, may I know the reason you wanted to see me, especially if you were not aware of our relationship before now?” the count asked.

  “Farren, do you mind?” Ves asked the foxkin.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  Ves shrugged, “I’m pretty sure you and Xeeta know better than I do what we need. Aside from needing to visit the temple, I’m basically just here to smile and nod.”

  “Understood,” he said before turning to face the city lord, “Lord Varsray, my name is Farren, I hail from a family of merchants to the south.”

  “May I ask the name of your merchant group? I’m curious if I have heard of yours.”

  “Certainly, my lord, I am from the Gold Paw merchants,” Farren replied.

  “Oh, I have heard of you indeed, though correct me if I am wrong, but you’re from the Shuren region. Unfortunately, one of the regions most affected by the war.”

  “You are quite well informed, my Lord, and you are correct. My family was forced to flee, only able to take what we could carry on our backs. Goddess mercy, we were taken in by a clan of dragonewts also fleeing the war. Very long story short, we ended up in the great forest to the east. In return for permission to settle, we swore fealty to Queen Senotraxia and her dragonflight.”

  “You’re going to settle there, in the forest itself?” the count asked, a bit shocked, which was understandable. There wasn’t a single settlement in the forest, and a long history of failed attempts.

  “That is correct,” Farren responded, “Which brings us to why we are here. While lumber may be plentiful, there are still supplies we need, along with skilled labor. While it may take several years, our queen has tasked us with building a city in the forest from which her consort will reside. We also plan to conduct trade. Seeing as you rule one of the closest notable cities, we wish to establish close ties.”

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  “I see, and what did you want from me? Were you hoping for investment?” The count asked as he narrowed his eyes.

  Farren shook his head and smiled, “Funding is not an issue, our queen has provided our starting capital. As well as we brought unique goods from the forest for trade. What we need your help with is the required licenses and paperwork.”

  The count rubbed his chin before speaking, “Let me guess. You want to keep the fact that you’re building a city ruled by dragons a secret. The issue being if you can’t reveal your backers, any reputable groups will be wary to work with you.”

  “I still don’t understand why we must maintain this charade to begin with,” Taythes mumbled in annoyance.

  “What do you mean, we talked about this! You saw how these two, whom are seasoned fighters, reacted when they realized who you were. How do you think normal people will react?” Ves said in frustration.

  “I don’t recall hearing about anything concerning from your first encounter with the Queen.” Taythes countered.

  “Oh, please dragonewts don’t count,” Ves laughed as she could hear Ryuko mumble something about her being rude. “As to the rest of us, she had just literally just swooped in to save us from those men. It made for a considerable first impression.”

  “Fair enough, I will withdraw my protest for now,” the dragon reluctantly agreed.

  “Thank you, Taythes” Ves said before turning back to the count and trying to pull the conversation back on topic, “Anyway, you had the right of it, my lord, we need your help to put any potential business partners at ease. You have a good reputation, and your support would do wonders.”

  “I see, well, at a high level, I have no issue. If you pull this off, it would be a huge boost to my city's trade revenue. We can draft the paperwork and discuss the details tomorrow if that works for you.”

  “That is more than agreeable. I will leave Farren to handle the negotiations,” Ves said.

  With trade talks set up for tomorrow, Ves thought the meeting was over. How wrong she was.

  “Now with that out of the way, it's time for the more delectate topic,” Varsray spoke before downing his remaining drink in one gulp. Looking towards Taythes, he spoke up, “Lord Taythes, I have a question. If someone threatened Ves, what would you do?”

  Ves didn’t like where this was going, but she waited for the dragon to reply. “If it's something the Consort and her guards cannot handle on her own, I would step in, of course.”

  “And if that someone was her master, Senator Berkandis?”

  “I would make an example of him, to claim ownership of our Queen’s Consort is the height of arrogance, one that needs to be punished.”

  Ves saw Varsray sigh before the man slowly stood up and walked over to pour himself another drink, “I was worried you would say that.”

  “Lord Varsray, where are you going with this?” Ves asked.

  Sitting back down, the man replied with a question of his own, “To explain that I think it's best you have some context, how much do you understand the current political tensions and factions of Kohdessia?”

  “Very little, I know there is a dispute between the Royalist faction and others, but even that is only pieced together from my old master's rants,” Ves replied.

  “It may be best if you explained, I myself know very little,” Taythes chimed in.

  “Long story short, there are two major factions, the Royalists and the Aristoi, with the Aristoi being the more powerful faction. They have spent generations slowly whittling away the Royal family's power. If things stay as they are within one or two generations, the crown will be little more than a figurehead, effectively turning Kohdessia into an oligarchy.”

  “What are they waiting for? Why don’t they just take it by force? Nearly all the royals I’ve met are degenerate monsters. It would be doing the world a favor,” Ves nearly spat.

  “This country’s main source of income is trade and the taxes collected by the overland trade routes. A civil war would be too disruptive. As a result, the Aristoi are patient, preferring to take over in a bloodless coup. Also, don’t assume the Aristoi are any better than the royal family.”

  “Which faction do you belong to?” Ves asked.

  Varsray shook his head, “Neither, but there are too few neutrals, and we are not nearly united enough to count as a third faction.”

  “Fascinating as this all is, where are you going with this and why should I let it affect my actions?” Taythes asked.

  “All this is to say the royal family is desperate, and they have only one chance to turn the tide back in their favor, war.”

  “Go on,” Taythes said as Ves could see his eyes narrow—enough to cause the old man before him to flinch.

  “In war times, the King would regain a great deal of power, enough to hinder the Aristoi’s efforts. Even more so if he can use it as a chance to build goodwill with the populace. The problem is the King needs approval from the Aristoi controlled senate to declare war, with one exception, if the war is declared in response to an immediate threat.”

  The man took a sip of his drink.

  “Ah, I see, and you think if I, a dragon, took hostile action within Kohdessia that would be enough to give the king an excuse to declare war?” Taythes responded.

  “Correct”

  “I see your dilemma, but again I should ask, from my and my Queen’s perspective, why should we care?”

  “Because it’s become common knowledge, at least within the circles of people with the power to act on it, that your flight is not nearly as powerful as it once was. Add on the news of the undead invasion, and I can only assume your flight are in no position to go to war.”

  Ves saw Taythes’s hand clench hard.

  “I had not realized the information had spread that far already.”

  “Didn’t you already know that from the gnoll that attacked us?” Ves asked.

  “Myself and our Queen took his words to be closer to posturing. The gnolls have a deep-seated grudge against our kind, and it would make sense for them to learn of any weakness before others. But learning this information has truly spread this far, well, it is troubling.”

  “I noted that as well. The information also spread in a rather short amount of time. It is almost as if someone is trying to entice anyone they can to attack your flight. Thankfully, no one trusts the information enough to take the risk, but if someone takes the first step, say the King of Kohdessia, I don’t think they would have issues getting support. Powerful cultivators from across the continent would happily rally to their banner just for the chance to plunder your hoards.”

  “So you’re saying the moment myself or any other dragon decides to take action, we are all but guaranteeing to be inviting a conflict on ourselves we can’t afford?”

  “Correct”

  Taythes slammed his own drink down, “Ancestors, I wish you had something stronger right now.”

  “Anything strong enough for a dragon would likely kill a human,” Varsray responded with a chuckle.

  “Fair enough,” Taythes responded with a slight smile.

  “Now for the bit of news that prompted me to bring all this up.” Varsray looked Ves in the eyes with a grim expression, “Berkandis is in Corinth.”