Chapter Twenty-Six: I Remember

  “Forty-five goddamn minutes,” Elijah grumbled in his room, fighting the urge to both burst out laughing and throw something on the floor. “How the hell did that boy last forty-five minutes holding me up?”

  Good upper body strength, but at least you beat him, Guide Amanda replied.

  “I had to,” he said. “You think I would lose that bet? I’m a princess, and princesses don’t back down.”

  That’s the spirit. Still wish you didn’t have to waste almost an hour on it.

  “Believe me, I was just as bored as you were,” he responded. “Bring up my Princess Duties.”

  Yes, ma’am.

  The glowing box appeared before him and he scanned its contents, reading through, trying to decide which of them he both wanted to complete and had the time that day to.

  Princess Amanda Gold

  Level 3

  Princess Duties:

  Research on Political Tension

  Assist Thomas by Attending More Balls

  Have the Orb Accept Your Bond

  Advance Relationships with Army and Advisors

  “I can’t really do the middle two right now,” Elijah said. “And I don’t feel like meeting anyone from the Queen’s advisors, plus, the army will be hard at work, ready to leave and defend Stormhold.”

  All that leaves is the research.

  Elijah groaned. “I already know I’m gonna hate this. Tell me, how am I supposed to research political tension?”

  Well that, and you should probably have a good knowledge of the court, considering you’ll be attending more balls soon. While I previously intended to have you read several books on the topic, I believe it may be more valuable for me to give you lectures that you must remember. You must have a good memory for this, but if you pay attention, then you will understand. I will also have you read some books, but they will be more about filling in the details than the broader knowledge that I can give you. Do you see the table on the right?

  Elijah turned, rising from the bed to walk over to the table. “What do I do with it?”

  There’s a small drawer under the head of the table. Reach inside and remove the map and book that I placed there when I was the Princess. It will guide you through my lecture.

  Reaching under the head, Elijah found the drawer fairly quickly, and rummaging inside, he pulled out a book and a small map resting atop it. The book had a simple black cover, nothing written on the cover and no hint of what it might contain. Dropping them on the table, he opened the book, and was surprised to find detailed pictures of what seemed to be creatures of every kind, on the left the drawing and on the right a description of them.

  A list of every monster, being, and animal found in the world, or at least, the most important ones, Guide Amanda explained. You can track what I tell you with the book and the map.

  Let’s start with something simple, so you understand the dynamic. Find the humans in the Bestiary and locate Advantia on the map.

  Having before located his new country on a previous map, he found it easy to once again find it on this smaller map which seemed to contain both continents that had been on the council room map. It was a more southern country, yet still in the middle.

  The articles in the Bestiary seemed to be in alphabetical order, so finding Human took him about twenty seconds, and the picture that stares back at him shocked him, and he recoiled slightly.

  While it was a very detailed picture of a human—humans really, one of both biological sex—that was the exact problem. They weren’t clothed, and with the level of care that went into each portion of the drawing, Elijah couldn’t help but find the need to look away.

  It’s just a person, Elijah, get over yourself. Although you have seen mostly humans since you arrived here in Advantia, we are not, in fact, the most populated race in the world. Humans occupy two different countries: Advantia, and Dragonpeak, where the Dragonriders live. The Dragonriders, although human, have heightened senses due to their thousands of years being bonded to dragons, and they also tend to live for double, sometimes even triple the amount of normal humans.

  Due to us both being kindred races, we have often looked at each other as family, and so have a strong alliance, Guide Amanda continued. Even on the map, their kingdom is just south of ours. That being said, the Dragonriders act more as police for the world, joining a battle when one of the sides has committed a war crime, or when one of their allies is under serious threat and demands their help.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Dragons are an essential part of the Dragonpeak nation. Not much is known about dragons or how they work, unless the person has a dragon. They seem to appear when called upon and vanish when they are not needed.

  The drawing of a dragon in the Bestiary was terrifying, a gorgeous violet-scaled beast, whose head was thrust in the air in anger and from whose throat fire split. A house was also drawn on for reference, not even reaching its knees.

  “And people ride these?” Elijah asked in astonishment. “That’s incredible.”

  Yes it is. In general, this is all you must know about the Dragonriders, because the rest is best experienced. They are friendly and cordial, yet they harden when they must attack. They are fierce, loyal, and independent.

  Another race you already know about is the Karthans. I need not explain who they are or where they live, because you already know all of that, but one thing must be said: Karthans hate Draginriders. Never put them in the same room, because one or both will end up dead.

  The ódauelegur you already know about as well, but I must explain more about them to you. They live in the land of Valínor, northwest of our country, but you’ve seen that, as we had the meeting over the border of Stormhold.

  The drawing in the Bestiary of the ódauelegur sent chills and a stab of guilt through Elijah’s heart, reminding him of the assassin he had killed. Its obsidian skin could’ve belonged to a Karthan, yet it looked more muscular and taller than a human, not to mention there was no decay. The yellow eyes pierced even through the book, as if it couldn’t wait to read Elijah’s soul and then steal it.

  The ódauelegur mostly keep to themselves, and have not expanded their kingdom in decades, but they have threatened to, and with this issue from Stormhold, it may just reach the tipping point.

  These four races: human, dragon, ódauelegur, and Karthans shall be the main ones you need to deal with as a princess and eventually a royal. They are the ones closest to you, and although there is one more country bordering you, it is peaceful and shy, scared of any interaction or war.

  “But what about Ulfír’s? Are they not important too? And the Bharghejn? I had to go through a lot of trouble just for the Bharghejn so I would like to know more about them!”

  I was getting to all of that. See, while the main superpowers are us humans, the ódauelegur, and the dragons, there are many other nations, races, and creatures that exist, some of whom have created more trouble for the world than even us, one of which is the Bharghejn. Not ten years ago, they started a war with every country they could. They are the biggest country, and thus they assumed they were just as powerful as any of the stronger countries.

  Looking at the map, Elijah found that the Bharghejn country was in fact the largest, being about twice the size of Advantia, which in itself was one of the largest in the known world.

  They were wrong, but their brutality and anger led us who fought them to lose plenty of men, and some nations are still recovering. One country, Glynn, was completely wiped out, and the few people of theirs that remain have been scattered throughout urban Advantia and the Redlands.

  “Sounds like I came here at the right time,” Elijah teased, flipping to the Bharghejn page in the Bestiary. The creature staring at him seemed like a creature from his worst nightmares, and knowing that it was intelligent was enough to make him glad he never needed to interact with him.

  The head looked like an octopus, with tentacles covering what should be its mouth extending down to the waist. Above the tentacles, it had four eyes, piercing golden brown, and atop its head lay a crest, sharp enough that he imagined it could cut through even a diamond.

  Its body, naked like all the other entries, was ridges, skinny yet muscular, maybe eight feet tall with a towering frame, and instead of two legs, it had four of them, ending in what seemed like another crest replacing a foot. One arm ended in a blade-looking curve, while the other ended in six claws.

  “You’re telling me this creature exists and started a world war?”

  Yes, and a bloody war it was. They spent decades, centuries building their people until they were strong enough to take on the world. But they had a weakness: while powerful, they had nothing going on up there.

  “They’re stupid?”

  Very much so. All they had was their strength, weapons, land, and numbers. When it came to strategy, they fell short, and it helped us win in the Battle for Freedom.

  “Wow,” Elijah breathed. “And we’re allying with them?”

  The Bharghejn are quite repentant, and their new ruler is nothing if not amicable. They are not quite the same people they were when the war started, and yet no country trusts them, for good reason. Still, Queen Evangeline decided it worth it to try to ally with them. If they ally with us, we would be stronger.

  Elijah’s Political Ease was running at full speed and he could help but look at the map and connect it all to his new home country.

  “This puts us in danger, though, does it not?”

  What do you mean?

  “Well, from everything you have told me, Advantia is in the middle of the political spectrum. One of the major countries, the Dragonriders, is our close ally. Another is our sworn enemy. A third, that you seem to not consider a superpower due to their being beaten down, yet they still control major land, is in talks to ally with us. And we control a fourth group. All the strongest countries revert to us. What happens if even one country wars with us? And, even worse, what happens if we fall? The world would collapse!”

  Queen Evangeline is an impressive monarch, she would not let the country fall. But yes, if even one country wars with Advantia, then the ramifications could spread throughout the rest of the world, and we could have a war worse than even the one the Bharghejn started. But this also makes us one of the richest and most powerful countries. And unfortunately, a sword hanging over our heads at all times is just a cross we have to bear.

  “So did I make the right decision? With Stormhold, I mean?”

  You are avoiding the war as best as possible without tipping the scales to the ódauelegur. I believe you have made the right choice, Guide Amanda affirmed.

  Laying down, Elijah felt a small knot of unease and panic growing in his mind. The ódauelegur seemed intent on regaining Stormhold, and maybe war was inevitable, and since the Bharghejn were not allied with them yet, they could turn to any side at a moment’s notice.

  “We’re standing on the edge,” he said. “And I can’t help but feel something will push us off soon.”

  I didn’t want to say this to you, but I agree. Tensions have been building since the end of the war with the Bharghejn, and the next major event seems closer than ever.

  Keep your head up, Elijah, but keep your eyes open. Catastrophe may not be far away.