E-Rantel, the forward, and foremost fortified city in all of the Re-Estize Kingdom! It was here the king sat on his throne, his young son on a smaller throne beside him. There was a messenger hailing directly from Baharuth, practically shaking under the powerful sneer of the king.
Damn he's impressive, no wonder why the Emperor's Army couldn't push forward. They had met this kind of resistance.
"I tire of your silence, state your business. Else I'll assume this is another one of that shitty emperor's horrible underhanded tactics, and slay you where you stand." The king, Ramposa Junior, grumbled. Furious because he'd become the king after his father was slain on the battlefield by assassins.
"I come bearing a sealed message from the Empress herself. She wishes for you to read it." The messenger trembled holding it out.
"Check it for any traps, if any magic activates, cut off his head and send it back to this emperor-" His brow shifted with wonder… "You said Empress, correct? Why is it not the Emperor? Surely your nation that would barbarically enslave the elves would never bestow a woman with such power as state messages."
"Everything is laid out in the message, your excellency. Our Empress has received the backing of Lord Fluder Paradyne. No one in the Empire would dare go against her wishes now. He's terrifying."
"Indeed… You there, read the letter."
Commanded to do so, a lord of the kingdom cleared his throat, and prepared to read.
"No, not you. The maid." The king said, clarifying his order. "This is a letter pen by a woman's hand. It's only right for a woman to reverse the process."
"I'll do my best, your majesty."
"King Ramposa Junior, I trust this message has found you well. My husband was found dead in his chambers. We are going to perform a fullscale withdrawal of all troops, and end our side of the conflict. I, with the aid of my benefactor, have discovered there was foul play from the beginning. The Slane Theocracy has been behind everything, they instigated my husband to action, offering unparalleled support as a result. And for this, he is responsible for the death, and sadness of so many. In the Lady Mother's words he was, and still remains evil, even in death. Let us discuss peace, and stop the blood shed. Signed, Empress Ruth, of Baharuth."
"Oh, forgive me your majesty, I shouldn't have read the last part in the same voice."
"No, it was good." His angry face said otherwise… "I'm furious that such a ridiculous message came to us. After all our people her's slaughtered, she actually wants to end this holy war?"
"Your Majesty, this could be our chance to give them a punishment they'll never forget."
"No, we should accept their plea for peace."
"What makes you say that? I'm of the mindset that we should punish such brazen actions."
"My king. We have no other choice now. However, we should still make sure they never forget this. So I propose that we accept their offer for peace. However, we should force them to pay out in war reparations for their actions. The amount I'll leave up to a general agreement." He paused. "My wife might have some more insight on this than I do, but what I do know is that this Empress of theirs is a follower of the Goddess herself, Lady Night Silver. It doesn't matter how far removed we are from magic, and the divine now, we shouldn't outright antagonize any gods… Especially that one. She's the reason the Emperor Dragon will never return to destroy this world. So she is at least strong enough to destroy the world."
"I see… Then let's discuss things further. I refuse to condemn my people to a preventable death."
It wasn't but a month later when the war came to an end. Baharuth's Empress looked over the reparations with a worried expression slipping out. This is quite a lot. But we are the ones who blinked first so we must pay up. We have enough to handle it, but if an emergency happens, we might be in trouble. Mother will help if it gets that bad, I'm sure… Maybe…
…
The Slane Theocracy was currently in uproar about the current happenings. So many people from the sea side cities had migrated away from the shores to escape the bombardments, and Demi Humans. This led to an issue of over crowding, and not enough jobs.
Their position was degrading rapidly. The loss of all their sea routes, the death of 30% of their population, and the deaths of many god-kin, and then the final hammer that hit them harder than anything else… The fact their neighbors were no longer fighting each other, had also coincided with the elven slave trade grinding to a halt.
"This situation… It's horrible. Their armies aren't enough to really threaten us right now, but that doesn't change the fact our resources are heavily limited, and already stretched thin."
"Indeed, this is bad."
"The elves are forming up a massive campaign too. Almost like, they're willing to die so long as they can kill us."
"Do you think they know?"
"I doubt it. Even if we have managed to live quite a bit longer than normal this time around. I doubt anyone could have seen who we were."
"No, there's one, and she might very well be behind everything. That damn bitch. She's grown so much stronger than she was last time."
"That's an understatement. And of course she's not going to let us off so easily now."
"It's a shame Undine didn't revive with us."
"She might have… Though I wouldn't be surprised if she was revived in Tus Nadair."
"Enough talk, we need to abandon all of the settlements the Demi Humans just took over."
"We should also reorganize everything for the final assault against the Elves. It's going to be a blood bath."
…
The war had reached its climax. A massive battle was soon to take place. The elves, poised to fight, their goal was clear. The Slane Theocracy's army of evil stationed to surround the elven nation.
"Heh, idiots, thanks for making it way easier on us."
"Seriously, they think our targets are their regular people? What kind of idiots are we dealing with?"
"Mother always said that fascists are about as stupid, and evil, as one could ever become… And it seems to be the case. Their gods may have reincarnated, but they aren't any better than the god-kin."
"Yep, it'll be rough these next few weeks, but with our friends from Robel having helped so much before, we saved so many of our brothers and sisters. Mother even said they were free to return home and rest while we finish up the last of the battles."
…