“Gentlemen. As you are aware, we are going through a crisis at the moment, but fret not. It will soon be over. I have been talking with the Heldinotian king, and he has given me his full support to put an end to this madness, which has now been plaguing us for three months–Almost four… I would assume that everyone here is aware that the enemy we are fighting against is the kingdom of Beelmart”

  “Their inferior way of running an economy and refusal to change their ways is what led to this conflict in the first place–Which is also why I do not believe that this incident can be solved without enacting violence of our own. They are stuck in the glory days of the past. When the continental powers of today did not exist or were barely nascent, Beelmart ruled with an iron fist, and at the time, I suppose that their obsession with slavery was indeed the superior choice to grow their agriculture and other production domains…”

  “...Obviously, such a method only lasts for so long. Now that they are surrounded by nations with the means to deal heavy damage to them, it has become far less profitable to go to war and enslave their enemies. Nonetheless, as I already said, they refuse to adopt a new kind of economy, and so… Here we are”

  “They have conspired with what I can only describe as a creature from the darkest pits of Hell, and unleashed a plague of deadly nightmares upon both Rootriska and our ally, Heldinot… I believe it is important to mention that the problem has–Although to a small extent–Bled into other nations as well”

  “Malkazert, the Northern Wildlands, the Marshgloom Region, Aesther… And even further, in some cases. I do not believe that this was Beelmart’s intention, but this is what happens when they play with forces one does not understand. I am uncertain what or who exactly they got the services of, but it seems rather clear by now that they probably don’t care, or that the nightmare plague just does as it pleases”

  “Regardless, now that I am done explaining things that you SHOULD all already know, let us move on to the matters at hand… I am aware that a good portion of you were resistant to the idea of attacking Beelmart directly–I understand the concerns, as out of touch as Beelmart may be, it is still a powerful nation with what is widely considered as one of the largest military forces on the continent"

  Inside a room illuminated by light peering out of coloured windows, many men had gathered around a table. Some young, some old, some in between… What they all shared was a superior status within Rootriska.

  Naturally, seated upon a throne-like chair was the Rootriskian king–Algo Irmandelt Rootriska, often referred to as the ‘Young King’ despite no longer being so young, in terms of age, at least. Visually, he still looked incredibly youthful.

  Around the table were all of the significant, influential nobles of the kingdom.

  Lord Felgion Hulx, Hardene and Salael Vomhargon, Jorah Bombidour, Alldour Jinimalia… Only the greatest were present, even the likes of Lord Einhert Vont Tolten weren’t present–These nobles weren’t just in charge of great cities. They had a long history and secrets that made them powerful agents of the crown. No one present in this room was someone who could be taken lightly.

  “It is natural to worry about what taking the fight directly to the battlefield will result in–But I will not remain inactive for even a second too long. My subjects are being tormented and slaughtered in droves… Businesses are losing their competent leader and experienced workforce. Families are being torn apart in the most despicable manner possible. I understand that many of you don’t think much of the common folks, but I know that no one here is a fool. The civilians, the peasants, the farmers, and even the serfs…”

  “...They are an integral part of Rootriska’s lifeblood. Not to mention that our allies are impacted as well… Do you know how hard I worked to forge bonds with Heldinot and Malkazert? Producing offspring between humans and other sapient species is not nearly as entertaining as some might think it is”

  “Heldinot in particular has been hit especially hard. They have had to quarantine many to keep the death toll from growing exponentially. Their method of trading via the usage of large, flying beasts has also crumbled into the ground as many of these beasts were dragged into the nightmares and slain as well”

  One person present raised their hand slightly, and the king gave them the right to speak up.

  “If I may–Would this not be the perfect occasion to launch an invasion of our own and make Heldinot Rootriskian territory?”

  The king shook his head.

  “I am not saying that you are wrong, but that is shortsighted. What tells you that we can conquer this territory? And I don’t mean militarily, I mean genuinely absorb it and make it an integral part of our country. The answer is simple, we can’t just convince an entire population made of vastly different species of beastfolks to become Rootriskian without creating instability within our own borders”

  “It is best to keep them as allies. The royal lineage of Heldinot is strong, and the succession is clear. With my son’s marriage to one of their princesses, and the fact that she is currently pregnant with his child–Our long-term friendship is all but guaranteed”

  Salael Vomhargon, a man so old that he was pretty much ancient at this point, raised his hand.

  “Your Majesty, I doubt that you called for this meeting merely to tell us that we were going to war with Beelmart… I assume that there is a specific plan prepared to crush their kingdom?”

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “Of course, Mister Salael, and I was hoping that you would be willing to lend us your sword for it”

  “My sword is yours, Your Majesty. Whom am I to kill?”

  Algo Irmandelt Rootriska leaned back in his seat, smiling widely.

  “The plan is very simple, Gentlemen… In fact, it is so simple that an idiot could have come up with it!”

  ___

  Nara.

  Yes, Big Sis?

  My guts are speaking to me today–My imaginary guts, of course. I don’t have any real guts… Unless those things dangling in my abdomen are supposed to be intestines, I guess. Anyway, my instincts are talkative today, I can just feel it. The odds of me getting fucked up today are quite high.

  Is that so? I frankly do not feel anything out of the ordinary myself. Is it about the dark spectre?

  No idea. My instincts aren’t THAT precise…I am just getting the feeling that I might get turned into scrap metal–Again.

  We might get a good show… I do hope it isn’t too serious, though. I am quite enjoying getting fed, lodged, and clothed like this… I have been able to spend a lot of time with all of my little cuties, I have advanced my ghostly nature a fair bit, and although it hasn’t yielded fruit so far, I was able to cook a lot of curses.

  The only reason I didn’t get any new interesting ones is because I have been trying to create a better version of the ‘Minor Hide-Behind Curse’, and the results have been… Less than satisfactory, I would say.

  Most of the results are basically identical to what I started with, or added an effect that completely undermines the original point of the curse–Like, what is the point of a curse that hides itself, and one other curse if it causes the target to experience very obvious effects? Anyone would end up figuring out that something was off.

  So far, there has been no success at all in that department.

  However, after observing many warriors and knights training and sparring, I was able to acquire my very first, own special move as a knightess! It was a big event for me, it almost felt like my knight career was still fully in motion.

  The ability I had ‘copied’ was originally a very simplistic one, which was all about committing to attacks to receive a boost in exchange–It was used by a knight establishment where every single one of them was taller than me, were huge fellows, and wore some of the heaviest, most protective armour I had ever seen… And they only wielded two-handed, heavy weapons as well.

  So, although very simple, this trick suited them just well, especially considering that it was actually quite powerful, allowing them to plough through defences and obstacles with ease… These guys probably ate shields for breakfast with how many they had ruined.

  Due to how the ‘Evolving Warrior’ trait of my knightly form worked, though, I couldn’t actually just copy abilities directly. They would always be twisted to suit me. I hadn’t been certain what this meant exactly until I saw it for myself…

  From a move intended to promote standing your ground and using brute force to shatter your opponent’s defences–I had gotten this:

  Spectre Blade - Your manifested weapons can phase right through solid objects

  In a sense, I suppose the spirit of the original ability had been kept… I think. From the tests I had made, it couldn’t do what should be the most obvious thing about it. As in, it couldn’t actually ignore weapons and armour wielded or worn by someone to get directly to their flesh–Or better yet, ignore someone’s skin, muscles, and bones, to get right to their internal organs.

  No. It couldn’t do this. I suppose it considers what a person is wearing and carrying as an extension of themselves, and apparently, this ability is meant to stop phasing through solid objects once it comes into contact with anything it considers a target.

  Nonetheless, although I was a bit disappointed that I couldn’t split someone’s liver in half with ease, it was not to say the ‘Spectre Blade’ was a bad ability. Being able to attack through walls and the like was tremendous on its own. I just wonder why it was called ‘Spectre’ instead of ‘Spectral’...

  Regardless, with this nifty new skill, I was able to impress Elowen a great deal. I had rarely seen the tomboy with so many stars in her eyes. Her rough edge vanished and was replaced by the candour and excitement of a little girl in front of anything she liked.

  She was certainly imagining herself being capable of doing the same thing. Frankly, she could probably achieve it. She is a Vengeful Spirit who already has an affinity for hitting things really hard and who has a strong desire to become a knightess. I am no expert, but I am fairly certain that spirits tend to shape themselves depending on their obsessions.

  Due to being my little sisters, the adorable ghosts don’t really fit the ‘Vengeful’ part of their moniker, so normally, something else should take over to shape what their purpose is as spirits.

  It can already be seen in how their powers have developed so far.

  It makes me wonder… What kind of spirit is Ophelie supposed to be? She probably isn’t a Vengeful Spirit, considering that she was at peace when I took her soul in. This is probably why her set of abilities is so different compared to her older sisters… She just didn’t have the same starting point at all.

  I felt a slight tremor in the floor beneath my feet.

  Oh. What did I tell you, Nara? Something is happening! It feels like it's coming from… I think that’s about where the teleportation array is.

  The entire attic shook this time, a loud boom erupted somewhere below me.

  Damn. It only lasted about… What? Four to five months? I expected the response to be quick, but not this quick–In any case, I’ll try to see if I can get anything for myself amidst the chaos. I am sure they have goodies that they haven’t been giving me!

  I rubbed my steel palms together. I haven’t gotten a single new upgrade opportunity even since I came here, but I can feel it–I am close to getting one, and if there is stuff lying around that I can gobble up to get there, then I was going to eat it all!

  …While enjoying the show, of course.