Having taken a seat at the table they’d been using for the drinking game, Mavros pondered over the conversation he’d just had with the human lad. While half-listening to the dwarves arguing amongst themselves all around him, he carefully reviewed every single word that had been said. The human, Nero Walker, had snuck in several phrases and hints that he just couldn’t get out of his head.

  Had the other dwarven kings deliberately mishandled the negotiations for his clan’s new mountain? Was this more than just a misunderstanding? And if so, who was the target… the human lad… or him?

  He wasn’t old enough to remember when the humans here first decided to stop their constant wars and come together to found their kingdom, but his grandfather was. Ages ago, before the old dwarf joined the stones he often spoke to a young Mavros about that time. Mavros remembered hearing how surprising it was, and how pessimistic his grandfather and the other dwarves were about the human’s chances of success.

  Yet, he was old enough to remember when clan Shimmershield announced the first trading agreement they reached with the persistent human diplomats. Several dwarven kings had even come together to form their own ‘council’ in imitation of the human’s leadership structure.

  Dwarven clans grew slowly, but persistently, and he was a member of the council of kings when they first heard about the human’s intentions of cooperation. He’d thought it was a fanciful idea at the time, something to think about but not take too seriously. Now, after having suffered the shame of losing his clan’s ancestral mountain, he had been taken in by that dream… betting everything on it.

  Pounding his gauntleted fist on the table to grab everyone’s attention he growled, “So! You all seem to have your opinions about the lad’s proposal, and there’ll be plenty of time to discuss them.” Focusing his glare on Ironwick, he added, “But what I want to know is if there is any truth to what the lad said about someone interfering with our deal.”

  Ironwick, stroking his beard in thought replied, “I’ve been thinking about that too. While the lad was careful not to throw around any specific accusations, he did bring up a good point. I was the one who picked this city as the site of our first dwarven mountain in the human lands, and I recall the council of kings not being all that happy about it. I don’t know if they were just intending to stall… or if there was a larger plan they had that my decision interfered with, but I can tell ya that they weren’t too happy with me.”

  Mavros’ glare at Ironwick didn’t diminish in the least, as he and Ironwick had a long history of conflicts. The dwarf had been one of the generals who had refused to help his clan in their hour of need. He hadn’t been happy with the fact that Ironwick was here and believed he was only sticking around to keep an eye on him at the behest of the dwarven kings. But perhaps, there was more going on here than he’d known about. Was Ironwick here as a punishment and not a spy?

  Nodding in understanding, Mavros declared, “Well whatever the reason for the screw-up, we’re here now and we’ll just have to make the best of it. The council of kings has no power in the human lands, and going forward we can only rely on ourselves. Once my clan gets settled, I already intended to cut off our ties with them anyway, so it’s no great loss.”

  Crusher, thoughtfully added, “What we need to do is develop our own support structure here, just like we’d planned to.”

  Mavros nodded in agreement, replying, “That’s right. But we can’t assume the agreements we had with the capital will be of any help. The lad’s right about that at least. Our deal with the capital was for a mountain, and they didn’t deliver. So, as far as I’m concerned, none of what we agreed to is still valid. From here on out, we’ll have to play it by ear. If the human lad’s shipping company is as honest as he says it is, then I have no problem using them. It won’t be all that hard to verify their pricing lists.”

  Ironwick leaned forward over the table and said seriously, “The dwarven kings aren’t going to like that. They had an agreement with the city through the human kingdom’s capital. We’re supposed to adhere to it. No singular noble clan of humans should be in control of our trade, we’re supposed to work with a minimum of ten of their ‘houses’... and primarily with their local king… or city lord.”

  Grumbling sounds of unhappy dwarves filled the table before Mavros once again gathered everyone’s attention with a gauntleted slap of the table. “Well, they’re just going to have to deal with it. I don’t like being played, and I won’t be putting up with any political maneuvering by third parties. Whether it was their fault or not, they have no say in what I do. My agreement with them ended the moment they failed to procure me my mountain. Same with the human’s so-called ‘city lord’. As the lad said, they tried to sell me something they didn’t own… so I won’t be trusting them going forward.”

  Crusher and many other dwarves raised their tankards in agreement. Even Ironwick gave a singular nod of acceptance. Dwarves prided themselves on their honesty, and in the face of lies and politics, they always responded decisively.

  As a group, their conversation paused when they heard a commotion at a nearby table. Turning their heads in curiosity, they saw several fancily dressed humans arguing with each other.

  —--

  Nero returned from the surprisingly nearby bathroom in a good mood. While his thoughts were currently on Dorchester’s architectural brilliance in including bathrooms so close to their grand ballrooms, he was surprised to see the table where his house’s leaders sat being swarmed by angry nobles. Rushing over quickly, he intended to find out what was going on.

  Thinking quickly, he reached out through his link to contact Nick who’d be the one most likely to know what was going on.

  Feeling the connection established, Nero asked quickly, “What the hell is happening over there?”

  Nick replied just as quickly, “Vera and the others agreed to find out our options by contacting Lords Bennings and Brinks. One of them must have leaked your agreement with the dwarves. It seems the nobility of Dorchester has come over to voice their displeasure.”

  Nero, blinking a few times in surprise at the development replied, “Oh, really? Well, we’ll just have to see about that.”

  Cutting off the connection, Nero used his shorter height to shoulder through the crowd. On average, most people here were around 6 feet tall, so at 5’4’’ he had no trouble pushing his way forward.

  Emerging out of the crowd of observing nobles, he saw Vera and Cathleen in a standoff against the City Lord Cosgrave and the rest of Dorchester’s council of leadership. Nearby, he saw the rest of House Walker’s leadership standing in quiet support, their grim faces full of resolve. Between the two sides, the woman he recognized as Lord Bennings, the city’s resident law expert, was trying and failing to calm things down.

  Shouting loudly, unconsciously infusing essence into his voice, he demanded, “What the hell is going on here?”

  The two sides turned to look at him in unison, their argument forgotten for a moment.

  Before anyone else could speak, City Lord Cosgrave stepped forward with her typical imperious expression on her face. “You cannot sign an exclusive contract to act as an intermediary with the dwarven settlement. Dorchester and the kingdom have already come to an agreement with them. As a noble of Oglivarch, you will have to adhere to the law like everyone else.”

  Nero, pissed off by her tone, replied icily, “Oh? And did that agreement include anything about whose mountain it was that you were selling them? Or did you forget to consider that little problem?”

  City Lord Cosgrave smoothly responded, “Of course not. The kingdom has every right to transfer any of its holdings to another party. Furthermore, it has every right to buy out any noble’s property at market rates. Rest assured, you’ll be adequately compensated for your mountain as the law demands. Dorchester will buy back your mountain before selling it to the kingdom, and from the kingdom, it will be transferred to the dwarves. The agreements have already been handled.”

  Nero, stepping closer to the two groups replied, “So, you believe I don’t have a say in the matter? Laws of eminent domain and all that. That’d probably be true if you didn’t already sign the paperwork with the dwarves, and this was all still hypothetical. But the capital already did. In fact, from what I understand, the dwarves were told before they came here that the mountain in question was already theirs, isn’t that right Mavros?”

  The entire crowd, including House Walker’s leadership and the Dorchester council, turned to look at where Nero was staring. Standing there, surrounded by his armored dwarves was the dwarven king, King Mavros Mithrilsrike… who was looking particularly pissed at the moment.

  “Aye, that they did. I personally signed the receipt of the mountain. The first I heard of the mountain not being theirs to sell was when I arrived here. So, as far as I’m concerned, that agreement is no longer valid,” he declared firmly.

  Offering a grin, Nero held out his hands as if demonstrating his powerlessness. “See, it’s not my fault the kingdom screwed up. I’m just playing the hand that I’ve been dealt. If the kingdom wasn’t willing to pay me for my mountain, then why shouldn’t I sell it directly to the dwarves?”

  Lord Bennings, looking rather stressed, stepped forward into the middle of the now four-way confrontation. “Everyone please keep calm, this matter should be handled with appropriate decorum!”

  Nero, not interested in letting the matter be decided by backroom dealing, replied, “If I’m not mistaken, aren’t you the head of the Tower of Law? What does the law have to say about the kingdom giving away a citizen’s land before paying them for it?”

  Grimacing in annoyance, Lord Bennings replied, “Lord Walker, I’m sure this is all just a misunderstanding. By backdating a few things, all of this can be rectified by the end of the day. There is no reason for any of this to get out of hand.”

  Nero, unwilling to compromise, responded with feigned anger, “And why should I agree to that? I’m not the one who screwed up. The dwarves want a mountain, and I’ve got one to sell them. There are dates on paperwork for a reason. If the capital had done its job, and everything was already legal… then why would you need to backdate anything? I like the dwarves, so I’m selling my mountain to them.”

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  Sensing a chink in Nero’s argument, Lord Bennings replied, “You can’t. They aren’t citizens of Oglivarch. The paperwork granting them rights to own land in Oglivarch are the same agreements that you’re contesting as illegal. Only the capital and the royal family have the right to declare who owns property in the kingdom. As a private citizen, you must adhere to the laws of the land.”

  Nero, thinking quickly replied, “But I’m not a citizen of Dorchester, now am I? I’m a unique, and therefore a citizen of Oglivarch itself. I merely transferred control of my assets to my regional vassals, House Verena.”

  Lord Bennings quickly shook her head. “No, Lord Walker. When you became a unique, you not only transferred control but ownership to them. Uniques cannot by law own property or businesses outside of an estate in any city or land in the kingdom. You can have vassals and regional assets, but they must be under the ownership of local powers.”

  Nero, not having realized that he may have just been guilty of the same thing he’d accused the capital of was caught off guard by her argument. ‘This is why I hate politics… it’s all semantics decided by private interests,’ he thought to himself.

  Vera, seeing her Nero losing this very public debate, stepped forward. “While Lord Walker may not still ‘own’ the mountain, as his vassal his decisions dictate House Verena’s policies. If he wishes to sell the mountain directly to the dwarves for trading rights, House Verena is more than willing to comply,” she stated firmly.

  Lord Bennings, offered Vera a look of understanding tinged with sympathy before replying, “I’m sorry Lady Verena, but as I said previously, the citizenry of Oglivarch is not legally able to sell the kingdom’s land to outside powers. The dwarves will have to come to an agreement with the capital before anything can move forward. If they wish to invalidate the agreement they reached with the capital due to Oglivarch’s mishandling of the issue of the mountain’s ownership, then that is their right. However, none of this should be decided by local powers.”

  Mavros, having followed the discussion carefully, shouted, “So no one here can sell me my mountain? Then what are we even doing here? You humans and your politics are just a waste of time! I’ve half a mind to just call this whole thing off and find an unclaimed mountain of my own!”

  Seeing as things were getting out of hand, City Lord Cosgrave stepped forward to try and calm things down. “There is no need for that King Mithrilstrike. Dorchester has every intention of fulfilling the agreement our kingdom has reached with you and the dwarven council of kings. Lord Walker will be compensated for his mountain in due time through his vassal house, and we can put this unpleasant misunderstanding behind us.”

  While the heated argument was going on, Nero mentally took a step back to try and look at the situation logically. He wasn’t exactly being taken advantage of. If Dorchester… or the kingdom… or whoever ended up paying him what he was supposed to have received for the mountain, then he’d still be coming out ahead. All he’d be missing out on was the exclusive contract with the dwarves which had just been a spur-of-the-moment thought he’d come up with. The idea, though profitable, only existed as a theoretical concept for less than an hour.

  ‘The important thing is to remember the reason why I presented the idea in the first place,’ he thought to himself.

  Someone had tried to sow discord between him and the dwarves. He didn’t know why, or what their endgame was, but Vera had said it was happening. He had no real understanding of politics or laws here, so he couldn’t be sure as to how she’d come to that conclusion, but she had. Having taken her at her word, he’d tried to befriend the dwarves and then on a whim thought up the idea of the exclusive trading contract.

  He should have known that it wouldn’t have worked. In his old life on earth, powerful economic interests always trumped everything. Even if he somehow succeeded and got the contract, House Verena would probably end up suffering a noble war for control of it. The nobility would never allow only one house to control that much money.

  Having come to a decision on the best way to handle the situation, he interrupted the ongoing conversation. “Fine! I get it. The powers that be want the contract with the dwarves to go through, regardless of right or wrong.”

  Lord Bennings, looking insulted, replied swiftly, “It’s not a matter of right or wrong, it’s a matter of legality. The -”

  Interrupting her, Nero held up a hand and snarled, “Save it! I don’t want to hear the justifications. When it comes to complicated stuff like this, ‘legality’ is a matter of interpretation. Which rule is enforced with priority is a matter of politics, and I’m not going to get into a debate about it.”

  Now infuriated, Lord Bennings was about to go on a rant about the impartiality of the law and the history of Oglivarchian justice but was halted by Nero turning his attention to the dwarven king.

  “Mavros, I’m sorry, but the nobility isn’t going to let our deal go through. I’m sure you’ll still get your mountain, and I wish you and your clan all the best of luck with your city. House Walker will do all that it can to ensure that you get what you’ve been promised. Just know that whoever was behind this ‘miscommunication’ is probably still plotting something, so keep your eyes open,” he warned.

  Not giving anyone time to think too much about what he’d just said, he raised his voice to address the entire crowd who’d been watching, “Now, thank you all for coming to the oath-giving ceremony for my house, but I believe you’ve all overstayed your welcome. The party is over, and now you all need to leave. As I said during the ceremony, I’ve got a war to plan, and more important things to deal with than politics and backstabbing. So, get out!”

  Turning his attention back to the dwarven king, he added in a friendlier tone, “I hope you remember who your friends are. House Walker and its vassal house, House Verena, will always be there if you need anything.”

  Turning on his heel, he marched off as the crowd in front of him hurried to get out of the way. Over his shoulder, he added in a mocking shout, “Welcome to Dorchester!”

  Behind him, Nero left nothing but chaos as the nobility felt insulted and his house’s leadership was left to handle the fallout. He was sure that Vera could handle everything, despite knowing that he’d be getting an earful about it later. But, his lingering buzz from the beer he’d drunk was already fading, and he simply didn’t feel up to dealing with any of it.

  Seeing Ms. Davis rushing over to him, Nero said firmly, “Does this place have a big ass library filled with magic books? If so, I need you to lead me there and then bring me a pitcher of coffee and some finger sandwiches… I’ve got work to do.”

  Not put off by his tone at all, she replied quickly, “Of course, my lord. Right this way.”

  Moving through the halls, Nero’s mind raced through everything that he’d recently been through. A lot has happened since this morning. He’d founded a house accepting who knows how many people’s pledges of lifelong fealty, found out that he’d had a mining town that was being given away, met some dwarves, drank with some dwarves, realized how different species could be, and gotten into an even worse conflict with the local nobility than he’d already had been.

  Even worse, he’d found out that he’d underestimated what ‘transferring ownership’ of all of his assets had really meant. While he’d had the situation explained to him, it hadn’t sunk in as well as it should have. He no longer was in control of all that wealth he’d accumulated. Were the accounts he had emptied? Did he even have a bank account anymore? Who was currently in charge of his finances?

  Running his hands over his face as he walked, he groaned out loud in annoyance. He honestly couldn’t bring himself to care about all of this nonsense. While he knew it was important, it was just too much for him to think about. He would rather be focusing on magic and his upcoming adventure into the mountain filled with kobalds.

  Before long, Nero found himself being led into the library. Despite every book most likely having a copy of itself on the estate's private Thought Hub, he wasn’t surprised to find that there was, in fact, a big ass library full of books just waiting for him to explore it.

  The large doors leading to the library swung open easily, presenting him with an unobstructed view of the most amazing sight he’d ever seen. It was a scene right out of a story. The library had tables and comfortable chairs spread out all over the place, each with essence lights hovering over them. The walls were hidden by tall and imposing stand-alone shelves filled to the brim with books on what he assumed was every subject of study imaginable. The ceiling was so high that it was probably 4 stories. Landings and bridges were crossing from different areas, each with shadowed areas for privacy. It was more than a room… it was a spectacle.

  In awe, Nero walked forward slowly, drinking in the atmosphere, leaving Ms. Davis forgotten behind him.

  “Well, that could have been handled better,” said a stern but amused voice coming from his right.

  Surprised, Nero spun to see who was there. Feeling a grin of amusement, he couldn’t help but think he should have expected to see the old man popping up again out of nowhere.

  “Jennings, we missed you at the party. You should have come, there was cake,” he said lightly, greeting the man with an offhanded wave.

  Rolling his eyes, Jennings replied, “I was busy. But, don’t worry, I was watching. I saw you’re interaction with the dwarves and your attempt at hogging all their upcoming trade. You didn’t actually think that was going to work, did you?”

  Shrugging his shoulders as if he didn’t care, Nero’s attention returned to visually exploring the library he was in. “Not really, but I had to try, didn’t I? Besides, Vera said someone was trying to use me to piss off the dwarves. Now they’re pissed at the nobles and House Walker looks like a fellow victim. Good news for me, bad news for whoever was plotting against me.”

  Jennings, rubbing his chin in thought, replied, “Yes, in that regard you were successful. However, I’m not sure you didn’t play right into their hands.”

  Nero, not particularly interested in talking about this anymore replied, “There’s nothing I can do about people plotting and scheming. All I care about is how it affects me. If they’re using me for a plot I’m unaware of, and I end up coming out the better for it, I don’t particularly care if I figure it out afterward. Wasting time worrying about what other people are doing is for idiots who think too highly of themselves. Take everything as it comes… that’s what I always say.”

  Raising his hand to point off randomly in a direction, Nero changed the subject and asked, “You wouldn’t happen to know how this place is organized, would you?”

  Jennings, caught off guard by Nero’s question, as he’d been focused on listening to Nero’s life philosophy, replied in confusion, “Uh… what?”

  Gesturing again at all the shelves, Nero repeated, “The books, man. How do I find anything I’m looking for in here?”

  Blinking rapidly to mentally catch up, Jennings replied, “Use your link. Everything is categorized and recorded. How else do you expect your servants to be able to know where to return the books you take out?”

  Frowning, Nero opened his link to find the section on the library, quickly finding what he was looking for. Everything was listed, along with an included map and directions attached to a search function. He could even use the link to mentally open the individual books which had been transcribed into a format he could mentally review.

  Glaring at Jennings, Nero asked, “If everything is already on the link, then what’s the point of having a physical library at all?”

  Jennings replied with a smile, “Because links require mental energy to use, and aren’t suitable for most people to connect with all day.”

  Nodding in understanding, Nero recalled once having heard something about that. Having used the link to find the section on essence techniques, Nero was about to go find the answer to a question about his magic armor that had been bothering him when he realized something.

  Looking over at Jennings, he asked, “So, did you just stop by to give me shit about my failed plan to monopolize the dwarves, or did you need something?”

  Walking up to Nero, Jennings put a gentle hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes with a serious expression. “No, as much as I’d like to discuss how you got along so well with the dwarves, or debate the strategy you used to counter the hidden players plotting against you… I believe it’s time you and I had another serious talk about your future.”

  Tilting his chin up to stare at the ceiling, Nero released an involuntary groan of annoyance. The last time Jennings had sat him down for a talk, the man had widened his worldview and ruined his mental state for a week. If this ‘talk’ was going to be anything like that one, he regretted not having stored one of the casks of beer he’d gotten for the dwarves, because he was feeling that he might end up needing a drink… or five.