This Lich Requests More Remuneration-Chapter 216 - 197 A Little Bit of Tacit Understanding
Chapter 216: Chapter 197 A Little Bit of Tacit Understanding
Chapter 216 -197 A Little Bit of Tacit Understanding
The tripartite talks were facilitated by Amberser in a rather peculiar way.
Brandir, being utterly taken with love, never suspected Amberser of ulterior motives. In his point of view, even if he allowed someone from the Fury Tide Kingdom to meet with Katherine, what could be the problem? It was absurd to think that the Silvermoon Tribunal and the Fury Tide Kingdom would ally to invade the Emerald Dream Forest just because of this meeting.
Thus, everything proceeded smoothly.
Brandir met Amberser at noon, and by dinner time, he had already notified them to attend a banquet specially prepared for foreign guests.
It wasn’t a formal occasion, but it was sufficient for Amberser to meet Katherine face to face.
Deep within the lush forest, a vast clearing was meticulously arranged.
Soft moss covered the ground, stepping on it felt like the most expensive velvet carpet. Moonlight filtered through the branches and leaves, casting a dappled glow and lending the whole venue an air of tranquil beauty.
The tables and chairs were grown directly from the ground, covered with soft and smooth animal hides, looking immensely comfortable.
Despite having many rules, the Druids, seen as extreme environmentalists by outsiders, were nothing like the environmentalists Amberser had encountered in his previous life.
They truly achieved harmony with nature, making reasonable use of everything in the natural world—a symbiotic coexistence, not unilateral destruction and plundering.
The Emerald Dream Forest operated under a council system. Their doctrine believed in the equality of all life forms as part of nature, so there was no distinction of rank in the seating arrangement. The tables and chairs were scattered throughout the venue in an orderly fashion, and squirrels carried trays of food to the tables and in front of the guests—it was unclear how many of these little animals were Druids under shapeshifting.
However, by the time Amberser and Airel arrived, the venue was already bustling, with few seats remaining.
Amberser glanced around and counted, including Brandir, a total of thirteen Druids. His instincts told him that all thirteen were Legendary.
And this was not even the full extent of the high-end power of the Emerald Dream Forest, the council had thirty Grand Druids.
Indeed, it was a longstanding and established kingdom, not something the upstart Fury Tide Kingdom could compare with.
Airel followed closely behind Amberser and asked, “Where shall we sit?”
The Princess had now learned to be smart, listening to Amberser for everything. Leave it to him and all would be well, any problem could be solved.
Amberser stretched out his hand and pointed, then said, “Is there need to think about it? We’re here to see the Elf Queen, of course, we’ll sit with her.”
Following the direction of Amberser’s hand, Airel saw an elegant figure. Hair that seemed to glow, golden and long, draped over a regal robe, Airel thought this hair was prettier than the exquisite patterns on the fabric.
Katherine seemed to radiate light from her entire being. There was no shortage of women at the banquet, and Airel herself was a rare beauty, but compared to Katherine… Even just comparing with her silhouette, there was a very clear difference.
Airel also exclaimed in surprise, “She’s the Elf Queen? She’s so beautiful.”
“Let’s go and greet the Elf Queen.”
Amberser, accompanied by Airel, walked over, having not seen Katherine for several days, he actually missed her a bit.
However, Airel felt somewhat hesitant to approach, the pressure from that figure’s back was immense. Indeed, it wasn’t just her; everyone at the banquet unconsciously maintained a distance from Katherine, standing next to her would only make one feel like a clown, awfully obtrusive.
Brandir did want to join in, but he was sternly stared at by the other Grand Druids, who were afraid he might really sell Emerald Dream Forest off, so they absolutely didn’t allow him to get near Katherine.
As a result, when Amberser walked towards Katherine, everyone’s gaze fell on him.
This Child of the Storm, who wasn’t particularly good-looking, was dark, plump, and old—how did he dare to approach this Elf Queen?
But no matter what others thought, Amberser calmly sat down in front of Katherine, his eyes levelly meeting those of Queen Catherine.
“Queen Catherine, I am Monger Greyriver from Fury Tide Kingdom, it is an honor to meet you here.”
A simple and straightforward greeting, which seemed impeccable etiquette-wise. But facing the Elf Queen with such a rudimentary introduction seemed a bit too unreverential.
Could it be that this man felt no awe at the sight of Katherine’s beauty?
That’s what Brandir thought, unable to understand how Amberser could remain so composed. He himself had been stunned for a full two minutes the first time he met Katherine.
It was nearly the same for Airel; her eyes widened upon seeing Katherine’s face, astounded by the flawless beauty.
As a woman herself, she too couldn’t recover from the shock for a long time.
This allure transcended appearances and charisma; it came from Katherine’s pure soul and the blessings of the Elven Gods.
Katherine hadn’t originally recognized Amberser; his shapeshifting was indeed foolproof, perhaps only a Paladin could perceive something amiss. But as soon as Amberser spoke, Katherine recognized him. He spoke with the intonation and habits characteristic of a Lich. Moreover, he was completely unaffected by her charm, something only the largely insensate Undead could achieve.
Katherine glanced at Airel beside him—had he really made off with a Princess? And now he was posing as an Envoy of Tide Fury Kingdom, this was utterly preposterous.
Katherine tried hard to control her expression, engaging in pleasantries with Amberser.
Their conversation was mundane; Airel, listening by their side, detected nothing amiss. Amberser was simply following the plan, discussing matters of kingdom cooperation with Katherine. As usual, cooperation between nations couldn’t be concluded in a few sentences, they only touched upon the intent to cooperate.
Although Silvermoon Tribunal was currently isolated from the world, Katherine’s visit to Emerald Dream Forest was precisely to seek allies. Though Fury Tide Kingdom was far from Silvermoon Tribunal, with the existence of the Teleportation Circle, cooperation was not entirely impossible.
Airel listened intently, feeling certain that Amberser must be calculating something again, just like how Brandir’s attitude had unexpectedly changed before. Perhaps this Elf Queen would also start to show a surprised expression as she talked with Amberser and then get swindled by him?
Airel looked forward to it, yet until their conversation concluded, Katherine maintained her original poise and calm without any alteration.
“So, let’s wrap up for today,” Amberser said. “It’s truly my greatest honor to have conversed with Queen Catherine, and here’s a small token of my appreciation.”
Amberser handed over a small box. Katherine did not refuse and thanked him before accepting the gift.
Katherine then took out a delicate little box and handed it to Amberser, saying, “It’s only proper to reciprocate. This is a spice from the Silvermoon Tribunal, I hope you like it.”
Amberser also accepted it with a smile, then rose to take his leave.
Airel was puzzled but had no choice but to follow Amberser.
Once they had walked a considerable distance, and Amberser began to munch on a piece of fruit, Airel couldn’t hold back any longer and asked, “Just now… didn’t you perform well?”
Amberser looked at her strangely and asked, “What do you mean? Didn’t I have a pleasant chat with Queen Catherine, and haven’t we already arranged to discuss a collaboration next time?”
Airel said excitedly, “No, shouldn’t you have used your eloquence to charm her until she fainted, making her obey your every command? Just like how you deceived that Druid.”
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Amberser: …
What on earth had this girl been imagining, and how had his image in her mind suddenly become so outlandish?
“Don’t talk nonsense, we’re conducting normal diplomatic negotiations. Don’t spread unnecessary rumors,” he chided her.
Airel agreed with a word but then continued, “But didn’t you promise that Druid you would inquire about the Elf Queen’s preferences? Yet, you didn’t ask about that at all just now, isn’t that deceiving people?”
Before Amberser could respond, Brandir had already appeared before the two.
“What did you talk about with Katherine just now?” Brandir asked eagerly.
His eyes were filled with anticipation and jealousy. Brandir could not even exchange words with Katherine, and yet Amberser had just had such a lengthy and jovial conversation with her. Brandir was dying to take his place.
“Don’t worry, I’ve already found out what you want to know,” Amberser reassured him.
Airel glanced at Amberser, thinking: Here it comes, he’s about to start his conning tricks!
Brandir, unaware of Airel’s thoughts, looked expectantly at Amberser.
Amberser said coolly, “From our conversation just now, I have a rough idea about her preferences.”
Brandir urged him anxiously, “Come on, tell me, what does Katherine like?”
Amberser replied, “She likes Elves.”
“Isn’t that obvious? She’s the Elf Queen,” Brandir retorted, wearing an angry expression. He began to feel that this Child of the Storm was fooling him. What was so odd about a queen liking her own people? That wasn’t what he was asking about at all.
However, Amberser explained, “What I mean is, in her heart, there are only Elves. For her, the Elf Tribe takes precedence over everything else, including love, even over herself.”
“What are you saying? Katherine would betray herself, how is that possible?” Brandir was completely incredulous.
Amberser asserted, “Believe it or not, it’s up to you, but I am one hundred percent certain that the Elf Queen would sacrifice everything for the Elf Tribe, including herself. If you want to gain the Elf Queen’s favor, don’t think about what you can do for Katherine, but what you can do for the Elf Tribe.”
After speaking his piece, Amberser didn’t bother with Brandir any longer, and, taking Airel, left the banquet.
Brandir wanted to teach Amberser a lesson, but as the latter was an Envoy of the Fury Tide Kingdom, he had to restrain himself. Once Amberser had left, Brandir calmed down a bit, yet he couldn’t help but recall the expression on Amberser’s face as he spoke, which didn’t seem like he was lying.
“Could it be true? Should I do something for the entire Elf Tribe? But what could the Elf Tribe possibly need from me, a Druid?” Brandir fell into deep thought, while Amberser had already returned to his original tribe with Airel.
Airel had been wanting to get to the bottom of what had happened that night, but Amberser fobbed her off with the excuse that he was tired and sent her out.
When Amberser was alone in the room, he opened the little box Katherine had given him, dug his finger into the spice powder a few times, and pulled out an exquisitely crafted Oak Ring, identical to the one Naomi was wearing.
Amberser mused, “This girl has indeed gotten a bit smarter.”
The last time Naomi came to see Amberser, she discovered that the Druids were treating him differently, giving him only a bracelet that prevented spellcasting. When Naomi reported this to Katherine, Katherine prepared this gift for Amberser.
The two had never discussed how to exchange items, but Katherine had thought of hiding the Oak Ring in the spice box and “reciprocated” naturally when Amberser produced his gift.
From this gesture, it was evident that Katherine and Amberser had already developed some kind of tacit understanding, where many details didn’t need to be voiced for them to cooperate smoothly.
Having received the Oak Ring, Amberser quickly slipped it on, then removed the bracelet and performed a simple Mage Hand spell.
The magical power flowed smoothly without any hindrance; the Oak Ring indeed allowed for uninhibited spellcasting within the confines of the Dreamweave Barrier.
With the ring, Amberser no longer needed to worry about his safety; he could flee from any danger at a moment’s notice.
More importantly, with his Spell Casting Ability restored, Amberser could now execute his plan to enter the dream.
But there was no rush; Amberser still waited for the right moment.
“Katherine, it’s time for you to go back, isn’t it? Go ahead and open the ‘gift’ I’ve prepared for you,” he said.
