"On top of that, if a Thundercrash is mounted atop the walls, they would only need to turn it 180 degrees to blow up a castle and kill everyone inside." Meron said.
"Thanks, your Majesty. I have no more questions. If you don't have an assignment for me, I'll take my leave." Lith gave the Royals a bow and took a step back, waiting for their permission.
"I wouldn't call it an assignment, but I do have something for you." Meron raised his hand to stop Lith. "I'm glad to inform you that the Verhen Mansion is almost complete.
"Before commissioning the finishing touches, I need to know if everything is of your liking. Sadly, I'm very busy with state affairs but Peonia here kindly offered to accompany you."
At those words, the princess stood up and gave Lith a perfect curtsy.
'Oh, shit! Manohar was right.' He inwardly cursed.
'Do you still need to learn that the god of healing is always right?' Solus laughed at his expense.
'Well, at least this time you are not jealous.'
'I'm not jealous of Faluel!' Solus said with enough conviction to make a three-dollar bill look genuine in comparison. 'It's just that she's your mentor and workplace affairs rarely work.'
'Kami and I had no such problem, but if that's what you think, I'll respect your decision.' Lith said as Solus cursed her own choice of words.
"If you want something to be changed, you just need to ask." Peonia walked to his side, taking Lith's arm and forcing them to interrupt their telepathic conversation. "This way, please."
The Royal Guards escorted them to the Warp Gate as they walked. The Princess made small talk the whole way, but she dropped the act the moment they stepped through the dimensional corridor and got rid of the guards.
"Yes, my father is not-so-subtly trying to make us spend some time together. He even assigned me the duty to build your manor to give me plenty of pretext to talk with you on a daily basis." Peonia sighed deeply, letting go of him.
"You don't seem very happy about it." Lith was amazed seeing that the mansion already had a working Gate and that aside from furniture, there was little to add left.
The marble floor had been polished, making it smooth, and the white walls had been decorated with paintings, frescos, and tapestries. The Verhen family's coat of arms had been embossed on the door handles and the shields worn by the decorative suits of armor placed near the entrance.
"I'm a Royal Princess. My happiness is of little importance compared to assuring the loyalty of a genius Forgemaster who is also the second-best diagnostician of the Kingdom." She managed to say without making it sound like brown-nosing.
"Why you?" Lith asked.
"Because I'm the only one who didn't want the task and my parents think that I could use a powerful husband in the case I decide to try and follow in father's steps once he abdicates the throne." She stopped walking, drawing his attention as she looked him in the eyes.
"Like it or not, we both have a role to play in this charade but it doesn't mean that we cannot be friends. Hanging out with a Princess will spare you from petty palace intrigues while the backing of a genius will strengthen my faction in the Royal Court.
"It's a win-win situation." She offered Lith her hand.
"Let me guess, you'll cover for me and alert me in the case the Pelans or your uncle make a move against me. In return, I need to help you whenever you need me." He said.
"Correct."
"Then we have a deal."
***
Nestrar Region, city of Zeska.
King Meron had recommended Manohar to be swift and discreet, but when the god of healing was involved, things were bound to get messy. His reputation preceded him and the moment he stepped out of the Gate he was flooded with invitations.
"I thought my presence here was supposed to be a secret!" Manohar inwardly cursed not being able to shapeshift in the presence of witnesses.
"It was. We even Warped to several cities before coming here to hide the fact that we came from the Royal Palace. Someone must have bribed one or more of the clerks on our way here." The Royal Constable assigned to him replied.
The bored nobles' love for gossip played right into Thrud's hands.
Without their meddling, Manohar would have caught her Skinwalkers off guard. Yet the news of his arrival spread like wildfire, giving them the time to assign shapeshifters to tail him.
The Royal Constable had been warned to not disclose his orders until the last moment, but the information blackout was enough for Thrud to understand what was about to happen.
"It seems we have been discovered." She sighed.
"Are you sure?" Jormun asked.
"My shapeshifters hold all of the most important positions of power in Zeska, yet the Court didn't inform them of Manohar's arrival. Even the most covert missions require paperwork yet my men that have replaced the city clerks didn't receive a single memo.
"If you take into consideration the fact that forces from external branches of the Association and the army are swarming the city, there is no other possible explanation." Thrud said.
"The Royals know I have someone other than the Doppelgangers capable of replacing their retainers, but judging from the deployment of forces they don't know who nor how many."
"Have the Skinwalkers evacuate Zeska, then." Jormun said.
"To what purpose? Manohar would just move to another city and unless I get lucky again, I won't be able to alert them in time." Thrud shook her head.
"I can't have the Skinwalkers escaping because to do it they need to change their appearance. But if they eat another person, they'll lose the memories I need to control those cities.
"I only have two choices left. I can put my plan into action ahead of schedule or give up on the Nestrar region."
Thrud took her communication amulet, pressing the most annoying rune that belonged to the most annoying person she knew.
"Dead King, I have a job for you." Thrud always pronounced Orpal's title with as much mockery as she could, but this time she was serious.
'The only silver lining in this disaster is that I can finally put this arrogant fool to the test. If Orpal succeeds, I'll know that I can count on him. If he fails, I'll have a good reason to cut our ties and kill him at the first opportunity I get.' She thought while explaining the situation.
"Manohar." Orpal said while a huge grin appeared on both his and Night's face.
His head was split into two perfect halves, one feminine, the other virile. Night used that method to teach him magic and share her muscle memory even while he was asleep or apparently doing nothing.
"You have no idea how long we have waited for this rematch. We'll be happy to help you." He nodded. "Yet he is very strong and with all the troops in the city supporting him, we need to wait for sundown, when our powers are at their apex.
"You have to force your Skinwalkers to either commit suicide or escape."
