Chapter 372: Hospitality Among Allies

"Is this better, Emperor?" Bayle asked, in a voice so deep it made the ground vibrate beneath their feet.

Joseph tried to answer, but the words wouldn’t come. He took a step back, then another, until he bumped into Mark.

"By the goddess..."

Joseph spent a good while staring at the enormous dragon in front of him.

His mouth hung slightly open, as if his brain were still trying to decide whether what he was looking at was real.

Bayle, for his part, remained completely motionless, his head level with the emperor’s and two columns of smoke slowly escaping his nostrils.

"Everything all right, Joseph?" Mark said, trying to hide the small laugh that slipped out.

Joseph flinched and jerked away from him, as if he had only just realized where he was leaning.

He smoothed his clothes, ran a hand through his hair, and looked around for his cape, which had ended up on the ground several meters away.

"Perfectly," he replied in a voice that tried to sound confident. "It just took me by surprise."

"You look a little pale."

"It’s the light."

"I see..." Mark tilted his head toward the dragon. "So, what do you think? Will Mr. Bayle measure up to your nobles?"

"Yes...," Joseph answered after swallowing hard. "This will be more than enough."

"Glad to hear it." Mark turned to the dragon. "Thanks, Bayle. You can change back."

"As you command, my lord."

The dragon glowed again, and an instant later Bayle was standing beside the remains of the fountain in his humanoid form, straightening the collar of his suit as if nothing had happened.

All around him, the royal garden had been reduced to a crater of churned earth, broken branches, and crushed flowers.

From one of the doors at the back, one of the elven gardeners peeked out, contemplated the disaster in silence, and closed the door again without a word.

Mark decided he would apologize to them later.

Joseph took a deep breath and turned to Mark with his diplomatic smile back on his face, though somewhat stiffer than before.

"I believe Mr. Bayle will be more than enough to convince the skeptics of my court."

"Oh, I’m sure of that. Besides, I don’t intend to leave all the work to him."

Joseph frowned slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"That I’ll go to Eldia personally."

For a second, Joseph’s smile froze completely.

"Huh?" Joseph recovered at once, but not enough to hide his surprise. "Emperor, with all due respect... are you sure that’s prudent? Leaving your lands at a time like this, with your wives about to give birth and with--"

"I have business to attend to in the human territories," Mark interrupted. "And don’t worry about my wives. I don’t intend to abandon anyone."

"But the journey--"

"I can use teleportation magic," Mark explained. "So once I arrive in Eldia, I’ll be able to go back and forth between your kingdom and mine whenever I want."

Joseph kept his expression controlled, though not well enough to completely hide his discomfort.

The implication was obvious.

Giving him access to Eldia even once meant giving up, at least in front of Mark, a good part of the advantages that distance and borders provided.

No wall could stop someone who didn’t need to cross it.

Yet refusing the visit would have consequences too.

Joseph had presented this alliance as a relationship based on mutual trust.

If he now refused to receive Mark himself while accepting his resources and demanding his subordinates as proof of the agreement, he would be demonstrating exactly the opposite of trust.

He had built the situation himself.

And now he could only curse himself.

"...I understand," Joseph said after a few seconds. "In that case, it will be an honor to receive you in Eldia, Emperor."

"The honor is mine."

Joseph let out a barely perceptible sigh, resigned to a situation he clearly didn’t like, and clasped his hands behind his back again.

"Then we’d better depart as soon as possible," he suggested. "The sea voyage to Eldia is long. Even with good weather, it would take at least a month."

"No need to hurry."

Joseph frowned slightly.

"What?"

"We’ll fly."

Mark jerked a thumb at Bayle. The dragon placed a hand on his chest and bowed his head with perfect courtesy.

"It will be an honor to carry you on my back, Emperor Joseph."

All the color Joseph had managed to regain over the last few minutes drained from his face in an instant.

"On... you?"

"It’s quite comfortable," Mark assured him. "And much faster. I estimate we’d arrive in about a day."

Joseph looked at Bayle again, who gave him a kindly smile, which for him was not exactly reassuring.

"Take these days to rest and get to know the capital," Mark said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "We’ll depart in ten days."

"Is there any reason to wait?"

"My children are about to be born. I don’t know if it will be in a few days or within a week, but I’m not leaving without first holding them in my arms."

Joseph took a few seconds to answer, long enough for Mark to understand exactly what he was doing.

He was looking for an excuse.

"I’d love to stay, but... my entourage would also have to wait, and I can’t ask that of them. Yes, that. Besides, I need to return soon to prepare the court and the popula--"

"Then send them back," Mark cut in. "In fact, it’s perfect. They can go ahead, since even if they leave right now we’ll arrive long before them."

"But I--"

"You can stay here a few days. There’s no problem." Mark gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "You’ll be perfectly looked after, you’ll have everything you need, and you won’t have to spend a month stuck on a ship. We’re partners now, aren’t we?"

Joseph stared at him.

Mark held his gaze with his most innocent smile.

They both knew perfectly well there was no way to refuse.

Rejecting the hospitality of the Death Emperor, on the very day he had just sealed an alliance with him, would have been a monumental offense.

And Joseph was too good a politician to make a mistake like that.

"...Of course," he murmured, his eyes fixed on the ground. "It will be a pleasure to stay. Thank you for your hospitality, Emperor."

"Don’t mention it."

"If you’ll excuse me, I’ll go give my entourage their new instructions."

"Go ahead."

Joseph bowed, bowed to Bayle too with considerably less conviction, and walked off down the path toward the palace.

He walked with his back straight and his head high, as always, but his steps were a little faster than usual.

Mark watched him leave with his hands in his pockets and an enormous smile on his face.

Bayle stepped up beside him and followed Joseph with his eyes as well.

"My lord," he said quietly. "If you’ll permit the comment..."

"Mm?"

"You’ve destroyed him without even touching him."

"Shhhhh." Mark gave him a gentle elbow without taking his eyes off Joseph, who still hadn’t reached the door. "He can still hear you."