Chapter 282. Gathering Of City Lords.

Inside Golden Sap City, in the main Town Hall, Flor was sitting on her chair, accompanied by Ignatia and Wert. It was early in the morning, so the rays of the sun were streaking through the window at the side, illuminating the room with soft natural light. 

Eila, Delia, and Taro were sitting right in front of them. The three leaders looked at Ignatia with cautious and curious eyes. Eila was even rubbing the hilt of her sword, prepared just in case something happened.

The tension in the room was high when Flor started speaking to these three leaders. “After Liu Shu started Fortuna’s assimilation, she has gone silent. How about Fortuna?”

Eila looked at the Flower Fairy, who had changed tremendously since the last time she saw her. The lightning Sylvan couldn’t help but comment, her tone clearly impressed. “The pace at which this city grows is incredible. Not only is the main World Tree a monster, talent-wise, but you are not far behind Rose Fairy Flor.”

Taro looked at Eila for a second before speaking about the… ant in the room. “I would honestly love to ignore some things I see out of respect for your power, Flor, Wert. However…” Looking at Ignatia, he asked cautiously. “What race are you, Lady?”

Ignatia looked at them and tilted her head. Her gesture felt as if she was unaware of why that question was asked. “Me~? Why are you asking?” Ignatia smirked, speaking in a mischievous tone. “Is Lord Taro interested in me~?”

Flor’s calm facial expression cracked, her eyes landing on Taro with a little bit more weight than before. The Flower Fairy’s hostile look made Taro feel a slight chill for a second. He cleared his throat before saying. “Don’t twist my words. I am sure that you’ve had people asking all of your life.”

Ignatia chuckled, extending a finger and coiling Flor’s long red hair around her finger gently. “Well~.” Ignatia smiled. “I am of a race that’s not hostile toward creatures who are allied with my little Liu Shu.”

Delia sighed, looking at everyone in the room. She blurted without care. “Okay, there are no stupid people in this room. Lady Ignatia, are you an Ant Queen?”

The room instantly descended into a heavy silence. What broke the silence was Ignatia’s laugh. The tone was soft and pleasant, like the melody of a seductress. Leaning sideways, she placed her elbow on the armrest and leaned her head on her hand. Her amused tone was clear to all. “So what if I am, so what if I am not?”

Ignatia’s lips were arched, but everyone in the room felt a slight menacing aura coming from her. “If I am, would that change how you see my little darling, Liu Shu? Would you change your alliances?” Ignatia’s gentle smile completely turned into a cold one. “If that’s the case, you are not worthy of receiving my girl’s buffs. Not only that, you won’t be allowed to leave Golden Sap City.”

“So it is the truth,” Eila spoke up, her tone calm and relaxed as she looked at Ignatia. Her words caught the attention of Taro and Delia. Looking at them, the Sylvan asked, curious. “Don’t tell me that you were not suspecting it after seeing the ant army’s stupidly high growth rate?”

Taro sighed, leaning back slightly, and looked at Ignatia. “Suspicion is different from confirmation. Lady Ignatia, I want to hear it so that I can rest my heart at ease. Liu Shu is the hope of our province for us to raise to providence. Hence, I wouldn’t change my plans even if you were the Tree Burning Demon itself. However, there would need to be some adjustments.”

Ignatia looked at Delia, who similarly nodded. “I do agree with Taro, Lady Ignatia.” Delia sighed. “Your presence is something that we need to keep under tight wraps. So, when we have meetings in the future, and we carry our trusted aides with us, we must always choose those who wouldn’t reveal or overreact at your presence.”

Flor was quite surprised. By now, she had understood that Humanoid Ant Queens were extremely feared. However, this level of fear was slightly outside of her predictions. Curious, she asked. “Why are Humanoid Ant Queens so feared? I remember hearing about how one almost conquered an entire continent. However, haven’t many races almost achieved that, including World Trees?”

Eila answered her, her cadence similar to that of when she gave classes to the Academy disciples. “Lady Flor, the thing that’s usually not told in common education is that ants, unlike other races, are extremely homogenous. When humans invade a place, there would be some cleansing, but if you adjust to their culture, many races will be spared. The same occurs for Sylvans, Beastkin, and other folk. However, the way we live and the way ants live is incompatible. Hence, there is no adapting and becoming part of the Ant Colony.”

Flor and the others listened closely to her speak, finding it easy to understand and assimilate. 

Eila continued softly. “Therefore, when an Ant Colony invades a place, all intelligent creatures that are able to threaten them are usually eliminated.” The Sylvan continued. “Nowadays, you could say that the world is basically controlled by Sylvan’s influence. That’s why everyone has such a common culture of respect toward nature. The Nexus was created, in a big part, due to a group of humans who feel that the World is not something to be protected, but a resource to be exploited for advancement.” 

Eila paused here for a second, making them feel a bit curious. Wert asked her with an intrigued tone. “It feels that there is more to your story, Lady Eila. Why would you stop?”

The keen look on those surrounding her left Eila slightly startled. ‘It seems that these new allies I’ve got are much more intuitive than I thought.’ After evaluating for a few moments, she decided to speak what she held back. “… The Nexus and other superpowers seem to have an extraordinary background, and their large influence and ability to hold the power is largely due to this.”

The other five were confused by her words; they felt obvious. Delia commented, “Lady Eila, they are THE world powers. It is natural for them to have a strong influence and background, right?”

“Beyond the world.”

Everyone paused. That sentence was uttered lightly, but the impact in them was large. Ignatia smiled faintly and commented. “We digressed, let’s speak about what we’ve gathered here to do… Oh.” Ignatia looked at them and confirmed their doubts. “Since you want verbal confirmation, I will clarify that I am indeed the colony’s Ant Queen.”

The three leaders sighed, feeling the burden on their shoulders increasing by a notch. The myriad of implications of collaborating with Golden Sap City became clear.

Eila broke the silence once more, guiding the conversation. “Either way, both our World Trees are currently unconscious. That’s dangerous. The people aiming for this province won’t stay silent.”

Flor blinked and asked, confused. “People aiming for our province? Like, in general?”

Eila smiled faintly and explained. “Before, the <White Flower Province> was going to be controlled by the Azure Rose Confederation. Now, Tianlian Liu Shu has proven to be gutsy enough to say no to them and take it for herself.” The Sylvan spun a feathered pen between her fingers and commented. “Now, this province has no background power covering it. We’ve become a prime land ready to be conquered.”

Delia spoke up. “Eila, aren’t you overestimating the other provinces?”

“Overstimating?” Eila shook her head. “You all don’t seem to understand the strategic value of our Province. I will ask. What do we have toward our west?”

Wert answered, curious. “The <Wall Forest>.”

“Correct,” Eila asked again. “What do we have to our south?”

Wert answered once more, his tone and face much more thoughtful. “The <Dark Aether Swamp>…”

“That’s right.” Eila clanked the tip of her pen against the wooden table. “If any army wants to attack us, they can do it only from the north or the east. We have just been united, so the other powers understand that we have yet to set up a defensive network on our domain’s edge. So, while we are in a powerful defensive location, we are also naked.”

Flor and the others understood Eila’s implications, and their faces were heavy. The Sylvan added with a faint smile. “Sirol and Mareful Cities are currently the first line of defense of our entire province, while Fortuna City is the last.” 

Everyone gave a side glance at Eila, their eyes clearly complaining. Taro added with a smirk. “While cities can’t be moved, personnel is easy to move. So, Lady Eila, I’ll be ready to receive your assistance in the city that you almost breached through a few years ago.“

The Lightning Sylvan rolled her eyes, but she had nothing against it. “Sure. I hope my troops are treated with respect despite our past conflicts if we ever go to your city.”

Taro understood the importance of this. Enmity had been growing for a few years between the cities, so cooperating together would pose many more challenges than usual.

Chirp~, Chirp~.

The sound of a bird entering through the window caught the attention of everyone in the room. Wert raised his eyebrow when he saw that there was a paper rolled on the bird’s neck. The bird flew around the room twice, and when Eila extended her hand, the bird landed. She patted its head twice and then reached into her pouch. 

The gorgeous hawk-like bird, with around one meter of wingspan, became a bit excited and waited for its reward. Those in the room silently waited as Eila took out a leaf-covered item, and when she unfolded it, a piece of raw meat appeared. 

Flor blinked curiously as Eila threw the piece of meat out of the window. The bird excitedly flapped its wings, accelerating at a ridiculous pace, and dove down, catching the piece of meat before it touched the ground and then flying to the sky.

“Wow. That’s so nice! Is that your pet, Lady Eila?”

The Flower Fairy’s question, Eila answered as she unfolded the piece of paper. “It is one of our ways of communication with the scouts at the edge of the province…” Then, she handed the small paper to Taro and commented. “Pass it around. We talk when everyone finishes reading.”

The message changed hands, and their faces would become serious every time someone read it. After it was passed around, Eila commented with a faint smile. “As we discussed. Quite nice to be able to predict these things.”

Flor answered with a sigh. “What’s so good about the armies that are coming at us from the north and the east? Also, the numbers are well over fifty thousand!”

Eila commented with a faint smile. “Above fifty thousand is the maximum report. Meaning, the enemy army might have well above fifty thousand.”

Delia’s eyebrow twitched in irritation. “Why would you order that?”

“To keep them alive,” Eila commented. “If the enemy numbers are over 50,000, spotting them ourselves later will be much easier. According to the note, they will arrive in three days, so we need to prepare.”

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