Negotiation (Part 1)

On a summer midnight, insects chirped incessantly.

In Ironforge Castle's watchtower, torches burned fiercely. The leaping flames crackled from time to time, sending tiny sparks and nearly invisible black smoke straight upward, scorching the already pitch-black walls even darker.

The stench of burning grease, smoke, and sweat mingled in the air, thick as if someone were roasting cured meat. Even flies and rats were unwilling to linger here.

Even so, a man sat before an old, grease-stained wooden table. His head was still covered by armor, and his black hair was soaked with sweat and plastered to his face. Despite his deeply sunken eye sockets, he remained focused as he examined each document.

His gaze swept over a sheet of parchment. After thinking briefly, he picked up a quill and tried to write something, but with that single movement, a bead of sweat as large as a bean fell from his nose. It landed on the table with a series of sharp plops, spreading into a patch of moisture.

"Phew..." The man opened his mouth to say something, but the dead skin on his upper lip immediately stuck to his lower lip, and a trickle of dark-red blood flowed out.

He licked his lips, only then realizing how dry his mouth was. He went to the wooden barrel of clean water in the corner and lifted the lid.

The inside of the old oak barrel was covered in moss. Although it had only been filled half a day ago, the water already stank badly enough to make one cover one's nose. The man did not care in the slightest. He scooped out a bowl with a wooden spoon and poured the greasy-tasting water down his throat.

Knock, knock, knock. Someone knocked on the door.

"Lord Judra, you have a letter."

After drinking the water, Judra put the wooden spoon back where it belonged. He returned to the table and sat down before saying, "Come in."

A knight in full plate armor entered, holding out a document in both hands and placing it respectfully on the table.

Judra picked up the letter. When he saw Denise's signature on it, he seemed to feel a breeze brush across his face, and his weary eyes became much clearer.

He cut open the envelope with a letter opener, took out the paper, and brought it to his nose for a deep sniff. He let out a blissful sigh.

After reading the contents, a joyous smile he had not worn in a long time appeared on his face.

The knight was quite astonished. Even when the young master had sent a letter back from Monen City a month ago, Judra had not been this happy.

"Yaden!" Judra raised his voice.

"Present, my lord!" The knight stood at attention and saluted.

Judra ordered, "Take men to survey Halberd Rock immediately, then remain stationed nearby. Unless you encounter danger, you are not to withdraw without my orders. Send someone to report the situation every three hours. If you cannot find me here, look for me at my home!"

"Yes!" Yaden accepted the order and left.

Halberd Rock stood on a hill at the border between Iron Furnace Territory and Eagle Territory. An artificially cleared platform occupied the mountainside. No one knew how old it was; all kinds of buildings had long since collapsed, and weeds grew everywhere.

Apart from several scattered stone tables and stools, there was only a gigantic rock thrust diagonally into the ground. It was over nine meters tall and about three meters thick, shaped like a halberd.

That was where the place got its name.

Yaden did not know why Lord Judra wanted them to scout this place, but whatever the reason, it was a good thing.

Ever since returning from Eagle Fortress three months earlier, Judra had been stationed on the walls of Iron Furnace Town as if he had been exiled. He was not even allowed to return to Ironforge Castle.

Those with ulterior motives had spread Anger's words: "Judra, as long as I'm alive, I'm still the baron of Iron Furnace Territory! You're only my son and have no right to agree to any promises on my behalf! Now get out and guard the city gate. Go think about what you did wrong. If you can't figure it out in one day, don't ever come see me again!"

Judra seemed determined to defy Anger. He really did spend three straight months sitting in the watchtower handling all kinds of affairs. When tired, he slept on the haystack inside the tower. He had gone home to wash only a handful of times.

In Yaden's view, the fact that Judra was willing to come out and do something was far better than sitting in the watchtower all the time.

With more than a dozen soldiers, he guarded the area around Halberd Rock from night until dawn, from dawn until noon, and from noon until midnight. At last, the soldier sent to deliver the latest report returned. "Lord Judra is here!"

Yaden quickly pulled himself together and organized the men. Before long, he saw a gaudy rooster slowly coming up from the foot of the mountain.

No, it was not a rooster. It was a person—and seemed to be... Lord Judra?

Yaden rubbed his eyes and confirmed what he was seeing. It really was Judra, but everything about him looked wrong.

He wore a leather soft cap decorated with exaggerated pheasant feathers. His face was covered in thick powder, which had even concealed the red blotches on his enormous nose. His lips were so red that he looked as if he had just eaten two children.

An intensely red cloak was draped diagonally over his shoulder, making his dark-green shirt look even brighter. A gold shoulder chain decorated with gems hung across his chest. Around his waist was the white-and-purple short skirt commonly worn by noblemen. Below it were tight-fitting pale-yellow trousers that fully emphasized the lines of his legs, and on his feet were black leather boots decorated with silver thread.

He walked up to the group and dismounted. "Well? Do I look good?"

Yaden wanted to laugh but did not dare. He could only say, "My lord, your taste is truly... unique!"

"Hmph, of course it is." Judra straightened his collar. "All right, withdraw. No matter what sounds you hear later, do not come up without my order. Understood?"

Yaden stood straight. "Yes!"

Although Halberd Rock was halfway up the mountain, the slope was not steep. After withdrawing, they could easily conceal themselves among the jungle instead of returning by the main road.

Just as they were about to retreat beyond sight of the mountainside platform, a carriage slowly approached. The driver was not an ordinary coachman, but a young woman.

She wore a blue dress made of woolen cloth, the sort of outfit servants wore, yet it could not conceal her beauty in the slightest. Under the moonlight, it instead revealed a pure, hazy allure.

The carriage stopped, and the door opened. A woman stepped down with the young woman's help.

Yaden finally understood why Judra had dressed like that.

The girl driving the carriage was already very pretty, but the woman who stepped down from it was as beautiful as an elf!

She wore a silver hairband that glittered beneath the moonlight. Her fair face made even the moon seem dim by comparison, giving her an aloof, distant air. A white dress draped over her body. Though her figure was full like a melon, she still appeared elegant, noble, and untouchably dignified.

Yaden did not dare look any longer. He lowered his head and withdrew.

Like a queen, the woman advanced step by step, and even the moonlight seemed to follow her.

Judra swallowed. His eyes blazed with surging passion. He dropped to one knee, took the woman's hand, and gave her a flawless hand-kiss. "My dearest Lady Denise, by the grace of the Lord of Light, I have finally seen you again."

"Mr. Judra, I..." Denise began.

But Judra immediately cut her off. "Denise, my heart, you need not say a word. You only need to remain silent and listen to the poem I have prepared for you."

As he spoke, he rose. Like a peacock spreading its tail, he extended his arms and danced two steps backward. His left hand rested against his chest while his right hand rose high. In the evening breeze between the mountains, he recited passionately:

"Love is like a mountain stream bursting its banks.

Deep water is silent; shallow water murmurs and rings.

Love expressed with pretty words is shallow and insubstantial.

If love must be expressed through endless chatter,

Then the speaker is unworthy of being a proper lover."

He gazed at Denise with deep affection, a faintly carefree smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Then he inhaled deeply, preparing to recite the second stanza.

Clap, clap, clap.

Just as Judra's emotions had reached their peak, rhythmic applause rang out. A voice came from inside the carriage. "Bravo, bravo! What a deeply moving recitation. If I were a woman, you might even have touched my heart."

The carriage creaked. Raven threw open the door and jumped out. "Long time no see, Mr. Judra."

Judra's face visibly changed from white to red, then from red to black.

His carefully prepared love poem had been interrupted by someone else—especially Raven. The embarrassment felt like being stripped naked and thrown into the street.

He did not even dare look at Denise. Like a chicken caught by the throat, he opened his mouth several times without managing to speak. At last, he gritted his teeth and asked angrily, "Raven, what are you doing here?!"

"Because I arranged this meeting in the first place." Raven walked naturally over to Denise. "Aunt, you weren't frightened, were you?"

Denise raised her brows slightly without answering him directly. Instead, she bowed to Judra. "Mr. Judra, this was indeed Raven's request. Men's affairs need not involve women, so I shall withdraw for now."

With that, she turned and walked back into the carriage.

The instant the carriage door closed, Judra growled, "If this is a joke, you have taken it much too far, Baron Raven!"

His expression was extremely ugly. His fragile pride could not accept being toyed with by Raven, a man from a gangster's background. In an accusatory tone, he said, "Taking advantage of a lady is absolutely not something a noble should do!"

"Ha, that's rich." Raven clapped once more. "What a righteous reprimand. I wonder, as a noble yourself, have you fulfilled your own duty?"

Judra's brows twitched violently. He drew several hard breaths through his nose and looked away.

In the presence of many nobles and priests of the Holy See, he had personally promised to return Eagle Beak Mountain Mine and Thousand Needle Jungle to Eagle Territory. Yet under pressure from his father, Anger, he had been unable to honor that promise. It had become the heaviest stone weighing on his heart over the past three months.

"I admit that was my fault. If you wanted to use this opportunity to retaliate against me, then congratulations—you succeeded!" Judra took a deep breath. "I value my reputation above my life, so I can forgive your rudeness today. But I do not want there to be a next time! Otherwise..."

"Dishonor to one's reputation can only be washed away with blood!"

He looked at Raven with hatred, then turned and headed straight for his warhorse. He did not want to stay here for another minute.

Raven mocked him. "Ha! A dignified Second-tier Flame Knight who only knows how to run away when faced with trouble. No wonder Baron Anger looks down on you!"

"What did you say?" Judra stopped and turned around, his brows twitching furiously.

"Oh? You didn't hear me? Then I'll say it again." Raven cleared his throat and shouted, "You, Judra Walton, are a useless coward—a coward who only knows how to evade problems, a pathetic worm whose nerve has been crushed by reality!"

"You!" A layer of fiery battle aura ignited around Walton's fist. He walked toward Raven step by step, leaving deep, distinct footprints in the ground. "Raven, my self-restraint is not a reason for you to act without restraint!"

"Then come on." Raven patted his own cheek, his face full of mockery. "Hit me. Give me a good, satisfying beating."

"After all, I'm the one who stopped you from returning those two territories to me."

"I'm also the one who would rather break a promise than let you trample your reputation into the mud like dog shit, making the name Judra stink throughout Nord Province."

"And I'm the one who drove a wedge between you and Anger, so you were exiled to the city wall to toil like an ox and a horse. A fine nobleman, living with less freedom than a dog!"

"I'll kill you—" Judra lunged forward. His thick fist, wrapped in battle aura, shot toward Raven's face like a meteor in the night.

Raven neither dodged nor evaded. His eyes were filled with contemptuous amusement. Just as the fist was about to strike, Judra stopped. The wind stirred up by the blow swept Raven's hair aside.

"Phew... phew... phew...!" Judra's breathing was as heavy as a bellows. He slowly withdrew his fist. "Stop with your tricks!"

"No matter what you say, I won't fight here today. I'm not going to throw away my future over a few little bees' 'buzzing'!"

Raven was a true nobleman, an Imperial Baron. If Judra beat him here, the Noble Council might strip him of his right to inherit. His father and younger brother would be delighted to see that happen.

"Bravo, bravo. I'm starting to look at you in a new light, Mr. Judra." Raven's smile held less mockery and more appreciation. "You can weigh the consequences at a moment like this and suppress your anger. You truly are a wise noble."

Judra sneered and rolled his shoulders. "I haven't fallen so low that I need your evaluation."

"Pride, my favorite original sin." Raven did not care about Judra's insult. "I invited you here today because I hoped to gain a steadfast ally. You haven't disappointed me."

Judra turned around again. "But I don't need you as an ally."

"That's a shame." Raven shook his head and sighed. "It seems the Gold Coin I prepared will have to go to Mr. Mark."

Judra's steps halted. He turned around, his eyes blazing. "What do you mean?"

Raven spread his hands. "I need a baron as my ally. Since it isn't you, it can only be Mark. Is that strange?"

The corner of Judra's mouth twitched. "Don't act as though you can do anything. You have no power to decide who will inherit Iron Furnace Territory!"

"Mm-hm, I won't deny it." Raven nodded. "But if things continue like this, Mr. Judra, you absolutely cannot become the next Baron Walton. That is also a fact."

Judra could not refute him. Over the years, he had cultivated some forces of his own, but because of Anger's favoritism, Mark's strength far surpassed his.

Iron Furnace Territory had six enfeoffed knights under its authority. Only Yaden supported Judra, while two supported Mark, one of them even being a Second-tier Knight!

Three knights remained neutral between the two brothers. But Judra knew that once Anger needed them, all three would immediately side with Mark.

Seeing Judra fall silent, Raven struck while the iron was hot and produced a prepared document. "There's still plenty of time, Mr. Judra. Why not read my proposal before making a decision?"

Judra took the document and unfolded it. By the bright moonlight, he read it word by word. His brows trembled more and more violently. In the end, he abruptly flung the parchment back against Raven's chest. "You're dreaming!"

"Raven, I'm not you, and even less am I Donald. Personal gains and losses aren't that important to me! Even if I cannot inherit the baron's title, I will never harm any interest of the Worton Family!"

Listening to his impassioned words and watching his unmoving feet, Raven's mouth, hidden behind the document, curved into a smile of assured victory.

After leading him around for so long, the fish had finally taken the bait!