"What do you mean? You are already done?" Seth exclaimed, perplexed. He had just caught up with Fin and Mina, but when he came back to join the talks with Kutun and his people, Mary revealed that they were already done!
"Yes, things went very smoothly. Kutun and his people are very cooperative," Mary said with a bright smile. All the negotiations were already done, and the contracts were already signed, too. Seth felt surprised, but positively surprised.
He was honest with himself; this was his least favorite thing to do after becoming technically head of a state, or whatever you might call Minas Mar. Leader of a District? Yeah, that sounded accurate. Well, anyway, he really disliked diplomatic talks, so he was actually glad to have skipped that.
The blacksmith gave the contracts a once-over, confirming that Mary and Leana had done everything to his satisfaction. The Magma Spirits, or rather the Refugees of the Immolat Kingdom, were allowed refuge in Mount Robere.
In exchange, they would manage the Earthfurnace, to make sure that the volcano would never break out and the volcanic activity stayed below a certain limit. They also had not forgotten the the rich ore vein Seth found as he went through the mountain.
The magma spirits would tasked with mining these resources and they would be stipulated to deliver a certain amount of ores each month. The amount would be decided at a later time, once they had a proper estimate on the size.
But this was of lesser importance, as Minas Mar had enough mines across the districts they were operating. It was more like a rent for letting them use the mountain freely as a residence and hunting grounds.
Although he may not need it, Seth was looking forward to the possible supply of
That may not have been as good as a stable source of legendary
"This seems all fine. Well then, Kutun, on a good cooperation," he congratulated the chief and offered his hand for a handshake. The magma spirit hesitated for a moment, as a normal man's hand for vaporize if he grasped it, but Seth gestured to him to stop worrying and take it. They were both Kin of Fire, so nothing but a normal handshake happened, which surprised Kutun more than it should have.
"Since this is over, I'm returning home with Fin and Mina," he informed Leana and Mary before quickly leaving the meeting room. The moment he closed the door behind him, the three of them vanished and appeared back in Minas Mar, their magic tower.
The three had a lot to catch up on, so they spent the rest of the day isolated in their quarters, enjoying each other's company, mostly in the nude.
----
"Are you Kiki?" he asked the crying young woman. She was huddled into a niche of one of the ruins left after the battle of Delta. Her messy black hair hid her face, but her clothing matched the description he had gotten.
His voice interrupted her wallowing in her own misery and prompted her to look up at the man who had just spoken to her. Her reddened eyes ripped open wide, and she scurried deeper into the wedged debris.
It wasn't like he couldn't understand the reaction. Suddenly being talked to by a huge muscular man, covered in macabre bandages and a dangerous aura was shocking, probably frightening. Maybe she had even seen the tournament and knew who he was and what was below these bandages, making the encounter even more horrifying.
Nam understood, but it still hurt him a little, somewhere deep down. The cultivator looked forward to the day when he could completely drop the bandages. His situation had improved by leaps and bounds since the Tower Master created the Charm of the Ten Thousand Poison Valley for him, but it took time to heal.
He had spent decades with his cultivation suppressed to resist the poison eating away at his body. Even with the token his master had created, it had been too long, and he still needed time to heal. He was currently in the process of periodically expelling the poison that had infested every cell of his body.
Once this was done, he could begin reconstruction and healing of the parts eaten away; until then, he still needed the bandages, not to hold back the poison, but to hold together his body and cover up his hideous appearance.
"You have no reason to be afraid. Lady Mary has asked me to find you and invite you to the embassy," he spoke up again, his voice raspy and muffled from the bandages and barely having a functioning throat. The girl winced, cowering away from him.
Since he had gotten the charm form the Tower Master, his 10-year contract had started and he was now working for Minas Mar. This meant that, apart from his free time he used to heal and cultivate, he would spent most of the day in the embassy, protecting Lady Mary and the Princess while Luf was absent.
This time, he had been sent to located and bring back the girl called Kiki. As a consequence of the scene at the entrance, her name came up during the conversation with the magma spirits. Apparently, she was a trader and the only connection between Kutun's people and Delta, trading stuff like food for ores from the magma spirits.
She, or rather her outrageous fairy tales about Delta and Minas Mar, was also the cause of said scene. For a young woman, she had a lasting impact on Kutun's people and was originally very popular with them.
Despite her outbreak and confession, this had not changed. For one, Nam was supposed to bring her back, so she could talk things out with Kutun. Another reason was the tower Masters belief in her talent for propaganda. She really had to have a talent for talking and charisma, to have a whole tribe of non-human believe her every word.
"P-Please spare me. I- I just tried to make a living. I didn't mean any harm, I just...i just.." he tried to explain, but started crying and wailing. From her unintelligible talk that followed, Nam could roughly gather her life story.
In order, her parents died in Beta, and she came here with the first wave of refugees. She came of age soon after coming to Delta and was able to choose a class. She took the lucky draw, but ended up becoming a common merchant.
Unable to fight or change her class immediately, she tried to survive with what life dealt her, failing miserably. There was no competing as a merchant without a foundation or backing in the big city. She couldn't go to the dungeon or level up either.
She was barely able to make a living by risking her life and foraging for materials outside of Delta. Kiki met one of the spirits outside and managed to trade her meager herbs and food for ores she was able to sell in Delta for much better profit than what she collected.
"I onwy lied to dem becuz I wus afred sombody wood tek dem away frum mee..." she wailed tragically. Name actually believed her, that she felt guilty. Or she was a great actress. Either way, it was not for him to decide.
"Lady Mary just wished to meet with you. Nobody means you any harm," he assured her.
The solemn cultivator would spent another hour listening to her and consoling her, before he finally got her to the point that she got out of the debris and was ready to follow him hesitantly. In moments like this he questioned, whether he made the right decision to sign that contract.