“It has been confirmed now that a storm is building three miles outside Ranewal’s outskirts,” Helegar, the sub-sovereign of Ythar’s north canton, said.

  He was dressed casually in a sweater and vest, watching the view outside of his palace window and facing away from Veronica. The man was one of the three canton leaders of the surface, directly underneath Ythar himself on the hierarchy, a position which was above even the hunters themselves, though his authority spanned only across the north canton. He looked to be middle-aged with healthy black hair—a result of countless ethereal augmentations and makeup. In reality, he must have been closer to eighty.

  Veronica stood before the negotiations table. Her spirit sat on her shoulder as an added sign of authority, if her dress and reputation wasn’t already enough. The spirit took the form of a winged elf, since that was what surface-dwellers most commonly associated with reliable spirits.

  Entering the room, Veronica’s instincts as a hunter had immediately warned her of all the decorations present in the room—paintings, trophies, fake flowers—so abundant that they could be called surge hazards. The parlor followed the surface-dwellers’ newest aesthetic trend, which they called natural elegance. Lacquered hardwood was used on practically all furniture, from tables to picture frames. Everything looked old-fashioned, if not for the strings of locium embedded into every piece of furniture.

  “For the first time in centuries,” Helegar continued, “storms and surges brew on the surface. It is a peculiar storm season. And highly profitable as a result.”

  “I am well aware, Your Highness,” Veronica said. She kept her tone professional, despite her doubts regarding this man’s competence. “Since you have called, I can only presume the Lifeweavers are requested to protect the city.”

  Helegar turned from the window. “Protect? No, I have not called the best, most exquisite hunters for something so passive. I expect to have this storm fully obtained and collected.”

  “The Lifeweavers are available,” Veronica said. “As always, the profitability of the storm depends on circumstances and preparations.”

  “Such as?” Helegar asked with a tilt of his head. He spoke with authority, standing as if he had full control of the situation, despite the question being utterly clueless.

  “Preparations range from the surge forecast to the budget of host bones, all the way to the detailed properties of nature and the landscape around the storm zone. Everything must be discussed before an offer can be considered.”

  A slight frown appeared on Helegar’s face. “Each detail has been handled, of course.”

  Veronica wanted to sigh, but she contained her petty thoughts. Helegar was technically in charge as decided by the hunters’ pact and its founders. The sixth agreement stated that whichever city, or canton leader, was closest to a surge or a storm upon detection, would be held responsible for clearing it.

  In modern day, that rule was interpreted as, “The city where the storm spawns gets to keep the ether.” Or in Helegar’s case, as he lacked his own hunters, he was in charge of the negotiations regarding how this storm would be handled. He was free to sell the storm to hunting companies, or he could work together with hunting companies to protect his city.

  And considering Helegar was a surface dweller, Veronica was prepared to hear… interesting solutions.

  “To begin,” Veronica said, “I would like to know how much ether this storm is estimated to contain, as well as the number of ether sticks you intend to plant.”

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  “The forecasters’ wand regarded the storm as full red,” Helegar said. “The most profitable storm type—one that is guaranteed to drop skill wisps if treated correctly. This is why I’ve called you, Veronica, and not some small-timers. We will not use ether sticks, as their presence would lower the chance of obtaining skills.”

  “I see,” Veronica said calmly. “And do you have a map or detailed description of the surrounding area? Forgive me, but as hunters, the Lifeweavers do not spend much time on the surface, outside of the capital itself.”

  “Ranewal is a muddy swamp, as most surface cities outside of Surchester are,” Helegar said. “The city resides north of the storm three miles away. Lakes and wasteland span wide to the southwest. To the east are four of Ythar’s named towns, the closest of which is Swampsilk ten miles away, followed by Fellrain and Rainwater, and the furthest is Fellwater, at eighty miles.”

  Somehow, he managed to say each town name with a straight face.

  “To get this straight,” Veronica began. “A red storm—meaning that the storm is too concentrated for a forecasting wand to calculate, be it thirty million ether or a hundred million—brews three miles from the sixth largest city on the surface. The storm is also surrounded by Ythar’s named towns. You intend to deal with a storm of this size, in such a location, without ether sticks, and with the assistance of only a single hunting company.”

  “Can you get it done?” Helegar asked, now with a subtle frown, though he still forced confidence to his words.

  “This is simply not feasible,” Veronica said. “I can’t clear a storm worth thirty million, or more, by myself, especially not if the storm is wild and filled with surge hazards. Nobody can. Your plan would result in the destruction of Ranewal and the towns around it, and the damages would spread well into the north canton.”

  The subtle frown grew clearly troubled. Helegar faced the window again, upset, as if this was a fault of Veronica’s weakness and not his own incompetence.

  “There are two methods we can use to deal with this storm,” Veronica said. “The first, and the safest, is to collect it with ether sticks. The zone must be excavated, and filled to the brim with ether sticks and easy host bones. If this is done, the Lifeweavers can deal with it alone, and the ether gained would be split evenly with us, Your Highness.

  “The more dangerous investment is, of course, to fight the storm at full force. I would not recommend this, even if the hazards we spawn are curated carefully. This is simply because of the location. Storm breaks and the resulting battles can span for dozens of miles, and that is for mild storms, worth less than ten million ether. For a red storm of such size, the Lifeweavers will not be able to defend against it without damage to the surroundings.”

  “More hunting companies would have to be hired alongside you,” Helegar said. “Is that what you are implying?”

  “Assistance and teamwork is the least we would need for a storm as troublesome as this.”

  “Very well,” Helegar said. “I will call for two more hunting companies to work with you. Splitting the rewards further is cheaper than it is to invest in a warehouse of ether sticks. Once this storm season is over, the surface will be free of surges again.

  This ether blessed idiot, Veronica thought. “If I may suggest, loaning a stack of ether sticks is going to be more profitable for you than hiring two more hunting companies.”

  “I am looking for skills, Veronica,” Helegar said firmly. “As per the hunters’ agreement, the owner of the storm has the right to buy skills for half the market from the hunting company that obtains it.”

  “Your plan is a gamble,” Veronica said. “Skills will most likely drop, but the chance of good skills dropping is low. The danger to your cities, however, is high.”

  Helegar now fully frowned at her. “Can three of the best hunting companies not hold off a storm these days?”

  “Three hunting companies will be enough to deal with a red storm,” Veronica said. As long as it is on the lower end of insane. “I am only reminding you of the risks involved.”

  “Reminder taken,” Helegar said. “I will take your suggestion and call for two more interested hunting companies. I will hire an artist to build a boss monster, and we will earn the best skill to ever drop from the surface. Every hunter involved will, of course, be rewarded fairly.”

  Veronica faced him blankly. This was reckless. Stupid, even. Ranewal’s storm was far from the only one spawning in Ythar’s empire. If three hunting companies were preoccupied with just one storm, they’d quickly have a shortage of hunters to deal with smaller surges.

  This was a gamble… But if it paid off, an exalted skill could drop. “Very well,” Veronica said. “The Lifeweavers will lead the assault in collecting this storm.”

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