Chapter 829 Disrespect
[AN: I''m currently in my first-semester final exams. I''ll do my best to maintain daily uploads, but if I''m unable to, I will catch up on any missed chapters once I''m done with the exams.]
After a brief exchange, a meeting time was scheduled for a few hours later. Once everyone agreed, an imperial ship was selected as the meeting venue. The ship was promptly moved to the center, ensuring it was equidistant from all fleets.
“Please excuse our modest preparations. The original venue for this meeting is still under construction,” Lanesra said as she took her seat in the meeting room. Her gaze swept across the attendees, who fell silent the moment she entered.
A few offered polite responses to her apology, but most remained quiet, their expressions making it clear they wanted the meeting to conclude as swiftly as possible.
“I would like to know when the emperor will arrive and why he is late,” Dagos asked, his tone sharp. A member of the Valthorin royal family and the fleet''s representative for this mana barter trade, he scanned the room, trying to spot where the emperor might sit. From the initial layout, there was no empty chair in sight.
“The emperor? No, he will not be attending. I will be representing him for the duration of this trade,” Lanesra replied calmly, adjusting her seat slightly forward.
However, Dagos’s expression of anger was abruptly halted when the table he had hoped to shatter with a full-force strike remained unscathed. The thin shield that had materialized to absorb the blow dissolved moments later, leaving him to face the steady, unchanged table.
“Looks like you''re really determined to tarnish my honor,” Dagos said, his anger flaring once more. The situation only served to heighten his frustration, feeding into the resentment that nearly all the Valthorins felt over the disgrace they had endured during the fight. A brief moment later, he stood up and pointed his finger at Lanesra. “I hereby challenge you...”
“Let’s move on. We’re wasting time needlessly,” interjected the Xor’Vak representative, cutting off Dagos’s challenge. He wasn’t interested in watching another fight, especially not under the guise of honor. He didn’t want to be here any longer than necessary. While he was intrigued by the mana stones, they would ultimately be handed over to the Grand Xor’Vak for his decision on how they would be used and distributed, leaving little benefit for him.
“You!!!” Dagos shouted, glaring at the seemingly disinterested Xor’Vak representative. However, that was as far as he went, reluctantly sitting back down in his chair. He didn''t have the courage to challenge the Xor’Vak, fully aware that he would be defeated in such a confrontation.
“Now that we’re back to the main topic,” Lanesra continued, moving past the earlier tension as if it hadn''t happened, “I would like to first express the emperor’s displeasure regarding some of your actions with the data we rightfully won. While the emperor had promised not to use mana stones for retaliation, he has decided not to negotiate the increase of quota for those who attempted backhanded tactics until they provide the decryption keys to the encrypted files.”
Her words caused several of the representatives to raise their brows—at least those who had them—clearly unsettled. Inside, their minds churned with turmoil, as the current meeting was supposed to focus on various aspects of the mana stones trade, including discussions about the increase in quotas. Lanesra, however, paid no mind to their reactions and moved on to the next topic without pause.
Yet, in her mind, she took note of the Valthorin representative’s behavior, already considering ways to retaliate against him. She knew that if she allowed such disrespect toward the emperor to go unpunished, it would set a dangerous precedent, emboldening even government officials from weaker civilizations to behave in a similar manner.