“Welcome back to DefenseToday, I’m Krist Jorgen! Woo! It felt good to be back with a field report! I’m currently on the outskirts of Anzuri City, where the Marine Corps is currently constructing their first long-term military garrison base.
According to a public statement put out recently by Rosemary Group, the first Azurian rifle regiment is currently being trained by their PMC service division. Progress is advancing quicker than expected, as many Azurian have passed driving tests earlier this month alone.
~boom!
Fucking hell, I can hear the artilleries’ echoes from here!
Duke Kalush ad Azuri have given more permissions to Rosemary PMC to expand the scope of their clean up operation in the Elvish Republic. From the field reports we have received so far, the company’s operations have been hugely successful as they’ve reported to have slain over ten to fifteen thousand goblins and dark orcs this week alone!
The Prime Minister of the Elvish Republic - Sir Ascal Venra - has expressed his full support for the eradication of the wild goblins and dark orcs who have killed and raped his people by any means necessary. Does this mean that he approved of the use of biological weapons against lower dark races? We’ll know soon enough once the information arrives.
However, Prime Minister Venra has also expressed some disapproval with the Elysian Federal Parliament’s decision to not exterminate more so-called ‘civilized’ dark races though. According to the Department of Health, these races include: vampires, dark elves, apsaras, centaurs and several others. The State Department has deemed these races not threatening, with enough intelligence, is capable of speech and already has established societal structures. Distrust and long-standing racism are still an issue, it seems to me.
Either way, I’ll be back again once the Elvish Republic has given me a traveling permit to their country. Stay tuned, soldier.
Krist Jorgen, DefenseToday, signing out.”
Freyra, Principality of Lior
Embassy of the United Federation of Elysia.
July 11th, 1427.
Located near the heart of the Liori capital city, a sturdy stone building stood out from the rest of the medieval-looking market. Fitted with antennas, electrical generators and an array of security systems, the Elysian embassy certainly looked the part, especially with the United Federation’s flag waving in the light wind.
A muscular, suited man stood next by the window, observing the long lines of merchants and excited travellers standing outside as they waited for their turn to potentially be issued an entry permit into Elysia to conduct businesses or tourism. Most of the merchants outside are from the Golden Stone Guild, while only a few are independents. A fancy wagon suddenly showed up as a man disembarked from it, walking past the waiting lines as several merchants bowed to him.
“Ambassador Reiker?” A security personnel called out for him. “You have a guest. It’s Sir Hywel again.”
The man turned to the security personnel. “Invite him into my office.”
– –
Meredith sat down on the small set of couches inside the Ambassador's room, tapping his feet in nervousness as sweat slowly dripped down from his head and onto his hand.
Cotris is dead, along with his son. Just after his visit a few days before. An explosion as well as a shootout followed in the Red Dragon Guild’s headquarters. The assassins had access to firearms and knew how to use them, quickly killing dozens on their escape on a truck no less. Normally he would’ve refuted ever ordering the hit on Cotris, if not for what was found at the scene.
Besides Elysian rifle casings, insignias - his guild’s insignia, normally given to outside adventurers - were found on the 6th floor of the Red Dragon Guild’s headquarters. From what was announced by elements of Cotris’s guild, the assassins poisoned Cotris and his wife while they were distracted with their affairs before moving to killing his son, but were accidentally discovered by the maids. They silenced them mercilessly with a burst of lead.
There were three suspects: The Elysians, Lanto and finally, Meredith himself. The Elysians were eliminated from the list of suspects, due to the fact that they couldn’t have known that Cotris had a son to kill him specifically.
Trystan was Cotris’s biggest disappointment, whom only a few within and outside the Red Dragon Guild’s inner circle knew about.
Even though only days have passed since Cotris’s death, dozens of higher ranking Red Dragon guild members have already begun to fight among themselves as many are currently trying to become the next guild master, claiming that they are worthy of leading the guild. There were talks of dissolving the guild entirely, but was shut down by higher ranking guild members wishing to uphold the status quo.
Despite the orders, it was clear to Meredith that their attempt at maintaining the status quo is failing due to lack of centralization of power. Already, hundreds of Overseers within the guild have begun to claim the guild’s mines as their own to sell ores and metal to the highest bidder - which were unsurprisingly, the Elysians.
Due to this, Meredith wanted answers. Did the Elysians orchestrate the assassination of Cotris? Or was it just merely a convenient coincidence for them?
“Good morning, Sir Hywel.” Ambassador Reiker stepped into the room, followed by several security personnel wearing caps, holding what appeared to be shotguns and PDWs. “What brings you here today?”
“I’m here to discuss the matter with the recent… rumors.” Meredith said.
“I see.” Reiker sat down, offering a cup of drink to Meredith. “Tea, Sir Hywel?”
“Thank you.” He took the cup, taking a warm sip. “I’m sure you have heard of what happened a few days ago in Dulbu.”
“Yes I have.” The ambassador leaned back on the soft couch. “Terrible, what’d happened.”
Meredith puts down the tea. “That’s what I’m here for. I’m a straightforward businessman, sir Ambassador, so I’m gonna ask you something directly.”
Reiker’s eyes turned serious as he sat upright, his fingers crossing between themselves. “My ears are all opened.”
Acknowledging Reiker’s cooperation, Meredith proceeds. “Did you people orchestrate the death of Cotris Llywelyn?”
“...”
Reiker paused for a short moment, before leaning back on the chair again. “Not that I know of. Although, his death has been proven to be advantageous for our grand goal of opening up Lior’s economy.”
“...’not that I know of’. Does that mean you do not know if he was killed by your spies or not?” Meredith raised an eyebrow.
“I do not, sir Hywel.” Reiker began to explain. “Now, I do know that you are under investigation by the Principality, and that the young prince ain't gonna let Cotris’s assassination go unpunished.”
“Cotris has a huge influence within the Principality.” Meredith states. “Without him, the guild is losing its relevance and itself from within. Which means, the boy on the throne is gonna lose his relevance as well.”
“But it won’t be for another short while, Sir Hywel. Usually with instability like this, someone would have to take the blame as soon as possible for the Principality to stay together. Seeing how Sir Lanto Heddwyn - Guild Master of White Tasset, still has a stronger influence within Opus Castle compared to you, Sir Hywel… I’m afraid you’ll be taking the short end of the stick. Worse, maybe even hanged.”
“That’s impossible, Ambassador!” Meredith yelped. “The young prince has no reason to kill me! Not without concrete evidence! Those insignias found in the Red Dragon Guild’s headquarters may have belonged to my guild, but that doesn’t mean I ordered the hit on Cotris’s life!”
“I may not be acquainted with the politics of Lior,” Reiker leaned forward. “But do you think that Prince Eirian, and especially Lanto Heddwyn, will let you live after what had happened after your visit? From what I understand, they have already had a strong distaste for you. This would be an excellent opportunity to get rid of a thorn on their side and solidify their power, especially before more information could be found that proves that you are not guilty of murder.”
“...If Lanto used his influence on Prince Eirian so he could have me killed,” Meredith pondered. “Then what will happen to me and my family? These men are no strangers to execution.”
“We can offer refugee status to you and your family. However, that would mean the Principality would be completely overtaken by Sir Heddwyn and his White Tasset Guild if left unchecked, potentially causing more problems for us back home as the man shared the same idea of export quota as Cotris. Your Golden Stone Guild doesn’t do much in the way of politics, so our options are as limited as your influence in the inner workings of the Principality.”
“Limited options, but not zero?” Meredith caught on, wondering what plan the Elysians have for him.
It is true that Meredith’s merchants aren’t powerful politically, many don’t bother to take part in the political process at all - as there were none, but that doesn’t mean he doesn't have widespread support across the country. The merchants, shopkeepers and many small business owners within the Principality have shown great respect to Meredith unconditionally, even without receiving benefits from his Golden Stone guild due to his guild’s open market policy and trade protection, while expressing much disdain for the other two mining guilds for their tight control of the material supply and destroying people’s lives through debt slavery.
“I have a question, Sir Hywel.” Reiker smiled as he stood up, walking to the table before picking up the table phone and typing a series of numbers in before offering the phone to Meredith. “How would you like to become a President of a Republic?”
– –
“... I understand, President Irwin. Have a nice day.” Meredith handed over the phone to Reiker, who quickly bid the President farewell before putting the table phone back.
“It’s a done-deal then,” Reiker asked him. “Sir Hywel?”
“I-I’m not sure if I can follow through with this.” He replied.
Reiker folded his arm. “You’re our President’s favorite person in Lior. I understand that it could be hard for you.”
What transpired just then would’ve made Meredith a traitor of the highest degree. By colluding with the Elysian in their subversion efforts, he could be hanged if this affair leaked out to Lanto and Prince Eirian’s ears. But it did confirm his theory: The Elysians had sent their spies to assassinate Cotris in order to destabilize his mining guild.
With the threat of a possible joint Elysian and Azurian invasion looming on the horizon should they fail to get him to become the new head of state for Lior, Meredith felt like he had no choice but to comply. The Elysians couldn’t tolerate extortion, afterall.
Lior is where he grew up, where he made fond memories of, and where he made his fortune. Seeing it burn in the hellish fire of war would’ve been intolerable to him and many others alike.
The Elysians, despite being superior in almost every way, pursued peaceful economic and political cooperation. An invasion and occupation for the sake of resource exploitation in Lior is within possibility for them, which they have already demonstrated through the short history books Meredith had read when he visited their libraries and archives while on a business trip.
Their invasion of a country called Yunna a few years before the Transference was used as a demonstration, wherein they had toppled a dictator named Jun Zhihao to replace him with an Elysian-aligned head of state. Their invasion of Yunna was spearheaded by the 5th Marine Brigade - who have helped Azuria defeat the Yarian in a swift victory just last month, who is now stationed near Anzuri City and ready to deploy at any time. It wasn’t a coincidence that they were stationed there, it was a threat. And a very clear one at that.
Lior’s current relation with Azuria is already at a historic low, no doubt the Azurian would've been happy to help the United Federation in their quest for more resources if that means they could profit as well.
Seeing no other option but to comply, Meredith had reluctantly agreed with President Irwin to help them overthrow Prince Eirian’s rule… along with anyone who gets in the way. Which would have to include Lanto Heddwyn as well.
“I’ll mobilize resources within my Guild. But I only have a single condition, Ambassador.” Meredith puts up a request.
“What might that be, Sir Hywel?” Reiker asked him.
“My guild is going to need protection using your firepower.” He answered. “Guns… we need lots of guns.”
Reiker’s lips curled slightly. “Anything you need, Sir Hywel. They're well on the way.”
Somewhere under the Elysian Embassy
“Looks like shit is working out for ‘em. Heh” Raptor patted the CCTV operator’s shoulder, who nodded in return. “Keep on the good work.”
The CCTV footage showed Meredith bidding Ambassador Reiker farewell as he exited the camera’s field of view, heading back to his fancy carriage.
As the leader of Red Team, he was assigned the task of orchestrating the death of - or just straight up killing - Lanto Heddwyn, the Guild Master of White Tasset mining guild. Unlike Kreuger, however, he preferred to take things slowly. By planning things out and passively collecting information, he could execute a clean strike before his prey knew what was going on.
According to the intel collected by Overwatch - whose crew is currently sitting in FSS’s (Federal Security Service) command room nearby under the embassy, Lanto has been spotted arriving near his vacation home as of yesterday. No doubt looking for a safe haven, no doubt, after what happened to Cotris a couple days back.
A complete ban on entry was placed on Golden Stone Guild members by Lanto, whereby merchants or adventurers who have any association with Meredith’s guild in the past were forbidden to even approach Lanto's residence or guild area. Thanks Kreuger.
Seeing the light bulb built into a powerful radio set next to the wall flickered in green, Raptor puts on a headset before flipping a switch on the control panel. “Sup, jackass.”
“Mornin’...”
“Did you fucked up again?~” Raptor said jokingly. “Just like in Yunna?~”
*Bzzz* “Shut the fuck up Raptor, before I tear you a new asshole so you can talk properly out from it.” Kreuger replied angrily over the radio.
“Aw… almost feel sorry for ya!” Raptor chuckled. “So who did you bail out this time?”
“Liv.”
“Oh… I see. Why do you guys even need a couple days off anyway? Too much heat after your ass by Cotris’s goons?” Raptor raised an eyebrow, barely containing a smirk slowly forming on his face. “...Or was something else?~ Hmmmmmmm?”
“Tsk. Liv needs some time off for recovery. AMRA’s Magical Gem device is still in the prototype stage, so it's not that effective, besides we ran out of Life Gem. I can’t really take her to a clinic or a healer since Cotris’s loyalists put up a bounty on our heads before fighting among themselves. Either way, they saw our faces. Hard to go outside right now.”
He continued on to Kreuger’s annoyance, producing a freshly picked wanted poster from his pocket and unrolling it. “Yeah… I must admit, they’re pretty shit in the art department. Thought I was looking at a monkey when I saw your wanted poster with all that hair on your face.”
*Bzzz* “Nobody asked for your opinion, Raptor. Besides, I shaved it off already.”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“Right… I guess your beard is just another collateral damage of yours.” Raptor tossed the wanted poster into the trash can, leaning on an office chair as he adjusted the microphone. “Where’re you right now?”
“Safe house. Same inn near the market. We’re heading out to Meredith’s place today, just to let you know. Liv’s body recovered enough so she should be fine on meds for a day.”
“Bet you miss bourbon.” Raptor jokes.
Kreuger sighs audibly. *Szzzt* “Well… the ale isn’t too bad either. Shit’s tastes like rotten milk mixed with chilly, but safe to drink. Can’t trust the water here one bit without purification tabs or boiling it.”
“You’re heading to the outskirts, Kreuger?”
*Bzzz* “Yeah. Go on and be done with your task. I’ve already sent the field report to the embassy’s servers, they should be getting it now.”
One of the CRT monitors in the room flickered up as sounds of whirring computers rose in pitch, memory discs rotated as the server processed and saved the new data arriving from Kreuger’s field computer.
“We’ll conduct a two-pronged strike with Meredith’s guild members once Lanto is out of the picture.” *Bzzt*
“Happy hunting, Stalkers.” Raptor wishes him luck. “And fuck you, for making our job harder than it have to.”
“That’s collateral for talking out of your asses. Tell Black Team to get ready to strike. Happy hunting, Stalker.”
– –
Freyra, Principality of Lior.
Tranquility’s Abode
Kreuger flipped off the field computer sitting on the table before opening its side cover, pulling out the lithium ion battery pack before inserting another one taken from the wooden chest.
He had requested a few days off on the mission to the FSS’s distaste to take care of Livna, who’s still hurt pretty bad from the beating Trystan gave her. The experimental Magical Gem device made by AMRA was decent enough, but the effects of the Life Gem died along with its arcane energy contained within. Due to the Life Gem being difficult to acquire and to synthesize, there’s no one in Freyra that sells the thing so he couldn’t get Livna back to full recovery quickly.
Sasha has been going out in disguise, collecting information as well as mapping out possible routes for insertion and exfil. Due to his very generic-looking aesthetic, he could very well be just another adventurer in even a small crowd. There is an advantage in not standing out, it appears.
Looking into the mirror inside the room, Kreuger rubbed his clean-shaven chin where his large beard used to be before splashing himself with water from a bucket to cool off.
“You still looked like you had just finished training back then.” A feminine voice chuckled as she spoke out from behind him, causing Kreuger to turn back. Livna laid peacefully on the straw bed as she pulled up the blanket. “If my memory is correct, you sent me to the medical bay the first time I looked at you the wrong way, didn’t you?”
“Whatever is in the past, stays in the past, Liv. No use dwelling on it.” Kreuger sat on the bed next to her, grabbing a paper bag from the table. “Time for your meds.”
“I've been feeling fine since early morning…” Livna pushed away the bag. “Besides, that thing is gross as hell. What’s in it?”
“Uh…” Kreuger checked the glowing luminescence herbs within the bag, sourced from Azuria and provided by AMRA for emergency uses. “I don’t think you’d like to know. But it’s good for recovery.”
“Hey, Kreuger.” Livna turned to him. “What are you planning to do after the mission is completed?”
“Same old stuff.” Kreuger answered nonchalantly. “Training new recruits for the 101st, beating them down until they make it…” He paused for a second. “… or don’t.”
Livna chuckled as a smile formed on her face. “You really haven’t changed. Still that same attitude when it comes to beating down recruits…haha”
“Well, everybody has a job.” Kreuger stood up from the bed, ready to gather his equipment for the next operation. “Not like we have anywhere to go outside the 101st anyway.”
Livna suddenly reached out, grabbing Kreuger’s T-shirt. “Hey um…”
“Hm? What do you need?” He turned around, taken by surprise a bit.
“If you don’t mind… um. If we make it through this… um.” Livna stuttered between words. “Can you ask the higher ups in the FSS to grant you a paid leave for a while? I know you’ve not been using your legal two weeks off this year.”
“I… guess? Why?” Kreuger asked her, puzzled by the sudden request.
“It’s just that... I just wanna try to do something, even just for a short while.” She said to him, dashing her eyes around as she tried to find the right words. “I want to go off-base this year. I want to try something new, and I can’t do it alone.”
A strange request, no doubt. From what Kreuger recalled from Liv’s profile, She didn’t really have anyone to talk to on base and usually spent her annual two weeks off alone inside their base’s R&R (Rest & Recuperation) area anyway. Not like anyone would like to talk to her, since many guys have been beaten brutally by her in hand-to-hand training and didn’t get over their silly pride. Since he really didn’t bother taking paid leaves during his service with the 101st Night Stalker Task Force, maybe asking for some time off after all this time wouldn’t hurt.
“Sure.” Kreuger accepted her request. “What’re you planning to do?” He asked, curious about what Liv had in mind that required someone else with her.
“It’s um… I’ll let you know eventually!” Livna answered stuttily, covering her face with the blanket. “J-just give me a moment. I’ll get up later.”
“Okay…” Kreuger responded skeptically. “I’ll follow your plan then.”
Knock knock.
A patterned knocking sound rang from the door. “I’m back, boss.” Sasha’s tired voice spoke up, prompting Kreuger to open the door.
“Are you fine?” Kreuger asked Sasha, finding him catching his breath.
Wiping away the showering sweat from his face, Sasha spoke up. “Yeah! Overwatch’s intel is good, just not good enough.”
“Got chased?”
“Yeah. A couple of ‘em guards recognized me and went on pursuit, I had to take a long detour on foot.” Sasha answered.
Opus Castle is where Prince Eirian resides, and where they have to strike next after Lanto is taken care of by Raptor’s team. For now, his team must contact and quickly train several of Meredith’s men on the use of firearms and explosives in order to storm the gates of the castle and take over. He would have had a week at most, and that’s nowhere near enough time to train people who have never seen a rifle or known of grenades in their lives, but they’ll have to make do.
Training revolutionaries and arming them was a task rarely assigned to him, since those are usually done by liaison officers and other agents of the FSS. Most of the operations of this kind aren’t authorized by the FSS unless under explicit approval from the President, but they are Stalkers, they get to play by their own rules to get things done without approval.
“Get a good rest, Sasha.” Kreuger patted his shoulder. “And a shower too. We’re going out again soon. Pack a lot of gears, we probably won’t be returning to this inn for a while.”
– –
Freyra, Principality of Lior
Opus Castle
Sounds of elegant music from string instruments continued to play within the council room throughout the day by several musicians as dozens of maids and guards stood by, awaiting order from Eirian.
The young prince sat on the thrones - distanced from his usual playful attitude - as several Cotris loyalists from the Red Dragon Guild and White Tasset Guild representatives argued among each other, with the representatives of the Golden Stone Guild taking the majority of the heat coming from both of them. Insults and accusations were thrown at the Golden Stone Guild’s representatives, whom many have taken great offense to as they refuted the claims.
“You merchants are plotting against us!” One of Cotris’s loyalists accused the representative of the Golden Stone Guild.
“We have no reasons to do so! Your claim has no basis!” A man in robes retorts. “Everything we’ve done is still within the boundary of the limited trade agreement that this council has signed!”
“Even if you say so.” A fit, long haired man stood up from his seat, adjusting his silvery-colored hair to the sides. “Your guild’s acquisition of Elysian firearms is against the law of this kingdom.”
“Those were legally purchased by outside merchants before they joined our guild, Sir Heddwyn. If we recall correctly, the purchasing of firearms within this kingdom is illegal but owning them is not.” The Golden Stone Guild’s representative explained his reasoning, exploiting the loophole within the law to acquire large amounts of Elysian firearms by traveling merchants coming from Azuria. “Banditry is still prevalent in many parts of this kingdom, our guild members need these firearms to protect themselves and their goods.”
The Red Dragon Guild’s representatives turned furious, but not Lanto himself. “We all know that’s a stupid legal loophole that could be patched anyday-”
“But it is not.” The man in robes cuts him off. “Until it is, everything we’ve been doing is within the legal boundary of the law.”
The young prince watched on as the men continued to endlessly debate, but couldn’t do anything about it. Ever since Cotris’s death a few days earlier, most people outside the castle don’t even listen to him anymore. Was he ever a ruler? Or was he just Cotris’s puppet all this time?
Lanto has pretty much taken over most of the power left by Cotris’s death, bringing his White Tasset Guild’s influence to new heights as he continued to export Magical Gems to both the wider Eastern Continent and Elysia. By quietly strengthening his guild in the shadows, many of Cotris’s men were bought out to bolster his guild’s power within Lior’s political system.
Despite this, many merchants and shop owners within the Principality still remained supportive of the Golden Stone Guild. As long as they don’t have weapons, Lanto’s White Tasset Guild would be the most dominant guild in all of Lior.
Cotris’s loyalists suddenly turned against Lanto, ignoring the other representatives from the White Tasset Guild. “What if you organized him and his son’s death, Lanto? You and Meredith as well as Prince Eirian are the only people who knew of Trystan Llywelyn - Cotris’s only son - before his death.
“Prince Eirian would’ve never done so, that leaves out only that merchant guild master and you,” He pointed at the silver-haired man. “Lanto Heddwyn.”
Lanto let out a confident chuckle before standing up from his chair to speak. “I understand that my personal relationship with Cotris wasn’t great. In fact, you could argue that we hated each other.”
“Then you must’ve-”
“HOWEVER!” Lanto yelled, shutting down Cotris’s loyalists. “The same cannot be said with my personal relationship with his son, Trystan. Out of all the people in this council, I was the only one who frequently conversed with him besides his little wannabe adventurer group called the Order of Scarlet.”
“Cheap lies, I’m afraid, Sir Heddwyn.” The robed man of the Golden Stone Guild comments, followed by several nods from many of those under him and even several from Red Dragon Guild members. “What evidence do you have to back this up?” he asked.
“Hmph.” Lanto snapped his fingers, summoning his servants forward as they brought up a mirror-like device and placed it on the round table with its back against the wooden table. “This is a magical projector I acquired five years ago, when the Celestial came here to trade and to gather magical talents at the fares. I have not been idle when it comes to acquiring their coveted magitech devices. This device has been in the living room of my mansion since, using its magical memory device to record conversations.”
He clapped for the servants to insert a rare Celestial Energy Gem cell into the device, turning it on. The magical projector roared to life, beaming several projections onto the floor before moving up, creating a one-to-one figure of Trystan and Lanto sitting around a table. Only a few who have yet to witness the height of magitech devices recoiled back from their chairs, thinking something bad was about to happen.
A series of ‘woah’ and ‘ohhh’ followed within the council room, many amazed to see such an advanced Celestial magitech device for the first time in their life, having only heard of them in hearsay and rumors while they were stuck with manacomn devices.
The two projected figures had almost a hazy look to them, but nonetheless viewable and undoubtedly advanced.
“My father is a jerk, he didn’t even give me two hundred gold coins this month despite making more money than ever. I blew it all in a week.” A holographic display of an injured Trystan surrounded by women appeared.
“What even happened, kid?” Lanto answered, giving him a cigarette before continuing to read a book. “Did you fight a wild wyvern or something?”
“Y-yea… well no. I didn’t.”
“Then who caused this… grave injury of yours?”
“I just got into a bar fight, that's all.”
“Really? Who did you fight, kid? You looked like you lost. Must’ve been a tough fight, no?” Lanto asked him again.
“It was a wolf-like beastman. A big one. I got jumped while drinking.”
A tall man in a bright red suit of armor stepped into the holographic recording. “Well, actually-”
“Shhh. Shut up, Owain. Don’t cut me off.” Trystan ordered him.
“Fine… whatever you say.” The man in bright armor answered him, followed by a long sigh.
Trystan stood up from his seat as Owain helped him up. “I’ll return to Dulbu now. Probably gonna spend the night there before going out again. Heard there’s a bunch of wyvern-related quests, let’s go there tomorrow.”
“If you’re going now. Then I have a gift for you.” Lanto said to him, throwing him a magical, glowing bracelet. “Got this from a travelling merchant from the far west. Should help give you strength for revenge.”
“T-thanks, Lanto. I’ll try it out.” Trystan left the recording distant as his holographic figure disappeared before the recording shuts off.
Satisfied with his display of wealth and claim, Lanto opened his arms with confidence. “As you can see, my claim bears unquestionable merits!”
Many within the Golden Stone Guild bit their tongues, frustrated that there is nothing they say currently that could disprove Lanto’s argument.
“Now that I’ve been proven to be innocent. There is only one suspect,” Lanto smiled internally, his arm gesturing at the robed man as he prepared to announce the name. “Your Guild Master: Meredith Hywel.”
Cotris’s loyalists, despite wanting to disprove Lanto’s words, can’t help but find themselves agreeing with him as they nodded with each other. “Makes sense.”
“WHAT?! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!” The man in robes exclaimed. “Our Guild Master has done no wrong!”
“Then why isn’t he here? In this place? Before all of us?” Lanto smirked, causing the Golden Stone representatives to withdraw as they shared nervous looks with each other, unable to come up with a proper answer. “He visited Cotris just an hour before the man’s death with his firearm-equipped guards. Cotris was poisoned with a complex poison known as ‘cyanide’ by the Elysian along with his wife, and the worst tragedy of all: The assassins shot their way outside with firearms, murdering dozens as well as Trystan before disappearing into the night. However, they left insignias belonging to the Golden Stone Guild, which proved that this was a sloppy hit on Cotris’s life.”
The robed man tried to deflect. “What about the Elysians? They’re proficient in firearms, the poison came from their land, and the assassins used trucks in their escape. It couldn’t be just us!”
“Couldn’t be.” Lanto states bluntly, wanting to cripple what little influence the Golden Stone Guild has over Lior’s politics. “Why would they want to frame the Golden Stone Guild - Their only supplier of the coveted oil, and one that they have the best relations with? The Elysians restrict their sales of firearms to us, but not Azuria, and certainly not to your Guild. From my perspective, framing the Golden Stone Guild provides no strategic advantages to the Elysians, not to mention there is no chance that the Elysians could’ve known that Trystan being Cotris’s son.”
“Which means,” Lanto paused before finishing his explanation. “It could only be Meredith who’s behind Cotris’s death.”
Cotris’s loyalists found themselves convinced, turning their gaze to the Golden Stone Guild’s members. “We do not like him. But his words do find merits.” One of the men states.
“B-but what if Trystan was just collateral?!” The man in robes desperately argued. “They clearly shot their way out and killed all the guards there! Trystan could just be at the wrong place at the wrong time!”
The young Prince stood up and raised his hand, silencing everyone in the room before turning to Lanto. “That’s enough. I’m tired of your continuous rambling.”
The Golden Stone Guild’s representatives' eyes widened, fearing what’s about to come from the Prince.
Eirian has no real power ever since the former king died early, everyone in the room all knew that. The power was supposed to be shared among the Guilds until he reached the appropriate age to rule, but that just did not seem to be the case anymore. Lanto and Cotris took advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to push others out of the political system.
Usually they would’ve had outsiders killed if they got too powerful, but Meredith had posed no threat all this time as he had no other aspiration besides making money. While slavery was officially banned in the Eastern Continent, the unchecked power of the two mining Guilds grew to the point that there was no one left to challenge them, and to enforce anti-slavery laws anymore.
The acquisition of firearms by Meredith’s guilds was nothing short of intolerable to Lanto as the most powerful man in Lior. If more of Meredith’s merchants armed themselves with advanced weaponry from the Elysians, then it would be exceedingly harder for him to take down the Golden Stone Guild.
It would’ve been nice if he could acquire these firearms for his guards, Lanto thought. But the red tapes of Lior’s laws prevented him from getting them legally in larger numbers. If he smuggled too many guns, the Elysians would place an embargo on his Magical Gems - effectively cutting off a large chunk of his revenue, but if he doesn’t get any, then eventually Meredith’s merchants and shopkeepers would be more well-armed than anyone else, effectively a loose end for him once he decided to assume total control of the Principality.
Meredith’s merchants and shopkeepers are loyal to their Guild Master due to entirely different reasons, one that is impossible for Lanto to compete with: Respect.
Cotris and him used the wealth available to them in order to buy loyalty, and to arm themselves. It would only be a matter of time before Meredith’s Golden Stone Guild would be able to effectively revolt. He had to strike while they were still vulnerable.
Lanto peered closer to the young Prince, whispering into his ears.
Eirian began to sweat nervously, before calming himself as he delivered the final decision. “T-The case is clear… Meredith Hywel will now be guilty of politically-charged murder. All members of the Golden Stone Guild will have their wealth forfeited unless handed over willingly, and that the Golden Stone Guild will be dissolved. Drag them away to the cells.”
The robed men’s hearts dropped as fear turned into panic as royal guards began to surround them. “WHAT?! NO! THIS IS NOT FAIR!”
Many of them were pinned to the ground or dragged away, with many other screaming for their lives but were cut down by swords and spears.
“You think you can get away with this, Lanto?!” The leading robed man said as he was pinned to the ground. “We’ll fight you until death if we have to! You can’t take what’s ours- AGH!”
Lanto turned to the Red Dragon Guilds’ representatives, eyeing their shocked reaction as many turned their gaze to him. Several of the Red Dragon Guilds’ member dropped their insignia, walking to Lanto’s side as well. One man, two men, six… thirteen.
“Do you swear loyalty to me, gentlemen?” Lanto asked the now former Red Dragon representatives.
The representatives raised their fists up. “We will.”
“Hmph. You may keep your former positions, but all of Dulbu Mine shall be placed under my new administration.” Lanto told them with good reactions, many handing out cups of wine to celebrate. He looked at the young Prince, who’s now trembling in fear before placing his hands on Eirian’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Your Highness. I’ll take care of everything from now on.”
RANDOM LORE CARD
DEPARTMENT OF WAR - UNITED FEDERATION OF ELYSIA [DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENT]
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MT-class Armored Fighting Vehicle
The MT-class (or Medium Tracked) is a family of Armored Fighting Vehicle (AFV) designed and built by Atlas heavy Industries for the Army of the United Federation (AUF) as well as the Elysian Marine Corp from early 1980 and continuing to be built.
The MT-class became the most versatile vehicle within the AUF’s arsenal, capable of performing the role of an Armored Personnel Carrier (APC), Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV), Self-Propelled Howitzer (SPH), Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun (SPAAG), Combat Engineering Vehicle (CEV) and featuring many more supporting vehicle variant.
The vehicle featured a protection level equivalent to STANAG 4 all around and STANAG 5 from the front, with add-on MEXAS (Modular EXpandable Armor System) armor kit elevating the vehicle’s protection level to STANAG 6 at the front as well as Socialist 73mm HEAT rounds to the sides with lightweight composites.
During many Elysian war games with their allies. The AUF discovered that tank desant tactics are simply too risky for the infantry as they could easily be ambushed and lose momentum on assaults upon dismounts, combined with the new threat of Yarikian’s BMP-73 (Boyevaya Mashina Pekhoty - 73mm, translate as “Infantry Fighting Vehicle - 73mm”) potentially providing additional support to Socialist infantry with the firepower of a light tank, made the development of the MT-class a necessary one.
Due to the rapid mechanization of the infantry in the Socialist Bloc on Elysium, the new vehicle has to be available quickly and capable enough to counter this threat. Due to this, early MT-class armored fighting vehicles are little more than a tracked hull with plenty of room for future rapid modernization.
Starting the life service as the MT-PC Camelya Armored Personnel Carrier, the vehicle was churned out at a large quantity of 600 vehicles a year before being bumped up to 1000 units per annum. The APC variants were eventually transferred to secondary line units for training and mechanization while the new MT25A Catalina Infantry Fighting Vehicle took over as the principal AFV for the United Federation.
Due to the introduction of the Aries II Main Battle Tank in 1986, the old Aries MBT was made redundant in fire support and reconnaissance roles, prompting the development of the MT105 Casmira Light Tank, mounting the same gun of the Aries on a much more mobile and lighter vehicle.
The vehicle eventually became the United Federation’s first domestically designed and built 127mm Self Propelled Howitzer (MT127 Catherina) and SPAAG (MT25-84AD Calysta), which expands into more support vehicles like the Camilla Armored Ambulance, Canyuza Armored Command Vehicle, Candera Armored Recovery and Repair Vehicle, and finally, the Cantarena Armored Logistic Vehicle.
The MT-class AFV is expected to serve for a long time, with no replacement program in sight.
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