The name at the head of the Empire of Machines' forces might seem randomly chosen to those who didn't know him, but Zlato knew he was the highest-ranking official of the team conducting human experiments. This man, who saw his own race as the most superior race on the World of the Six Civilizations, didn't hesitate to see others as mere objects that could be used to serve him and his science.
What a great dilemma, isn't it? Some of the Engineers, developing by selling services and products to others, could see their customers as second-class and act in this way.
"Our scouts reported they didn't observe any activity near your facility, moreover, the Balsici Army is still waiting in front of their castle!"
Even though the Golden Leaf Guild Leader, who resembled a tree about to dry out, wanted to deepen the subject by giving a little more information following his guest's harsh words, Hubertus Strughold cut it short.
"My apprentice has already set out; when he sets up the necessary obstacles and traps on the roads the enemy army will pass through, their advance will be impossible. Our facility isn't a place just anyone can waltz into anyway; even if they discover where it is, they have to bypass the security protocols first!"
The man, wrinkling his face as if he had eaten the sourest thing in his life, pushed the cup forward, leaving it on the table after taking the first sip of his tea. It was obvious he wouldn't drink any more, he wasn't hiding his attitude, but Zlato was a seasoned merchant too.
"In the enemy ranks, there is also Master Leonardo, who doesn't leave the top spot of your civilization's red list to anyone. Do you believe your apprentice can cope with his genius and abilities?"
The Great Architect, who had been making his speeches from the skies, leagues above the others in the environment until that moment, quickly crashed to the ground. The muscles on his old face began not to listen to him, to contract and relax according to their own whims, and his lips were being harassed by his teeth.
"Who is that traitor to be able to best my apprentice? Master, huh! I will take back that title he received due to the ignorance of ignoramuses like you, along with his life!"
Hubertus Strughold got up in a huff and, together with his three subordinates behind him, left the garden surrounded by colorful flowers using the stone path. He was angry, so angry that he had lost his control enough not to be able to hide this while next to others he saw as beneath him.
Zlato, despite the tension, was living the most enjoyable moments in his times with the Great Architect. Some were motivated by gold, some by glory, some by honor, but for someone possessing all of these, the greatest motivation would be comparing him with someone else he knew to be superior to him.
Even though the Golden Leaf Guild Leader asked how your apprentice will cope, Hubertus Strughold knew very well that the real question was how will you cope. The whole world was aware of what Master Leonardo had done after joining the ranks of the Orc Empire and receiving strong support. He wasn't the weak man living in dreams somewhere in the Wild Swamp like before; if it's gold, gold, if it's manpower, manpower, if it's time, time, he had more of it than all the other Engineers.
Even though Zlato was worried about the Balsici Family Army, his real fear was him. If this Great Architect dedicated himself to finishing the Golden Leaf Guild, would it be possible to find someone to save them? That is exactly the reason Hubertus Strughold had to stop him; whatever the cause and consequence, the Golden Leaf Merchant Guild had to live.
Living was perhaps the most basic human instinct, it came before everything, but these days some people wandering in the Golden City with their radiant robes had other troubles too. The priests belonging to the Five Factions of the Lands of Light, hosted in the headquarters of the Diamond and Turquoise Leaf Guilds, weren't letting their surroundings as well as themselves see a peaceful face.
"How scattered the energy balance here is!"
"You're right, if I attempted to make an attack now, I'm not sure if it could be half as strong as in normal times!"
"Keep your opinions to yourselves. We are not alone here."
While the youths sitting under the gazebo in the far corner of the garden were arguing among themselves, they were startled by the voice coming from one step behind them. The youth, on whose cape the lights breaking off from the sun were depicted, was the superior of the others, and he too was saying these words due to the youths gathered on the other side.
"Don't say that Franz, we are all people of the same lands here. Even if the sunlight isn't as magnificent as in our homeland, the wind blows the same everywhere, and we can hear your subordinates' small talk even if we don't want to!"
Franz, leading the forces here on behalf of the Companions of Light, could see the green-haired girl a hundred paces away moving her lips and smiling, but her voice was in his ears as if she was one step away. This was what he meant; the Diamond Leaf Guild was hosting them too, and no matter how far away they stood, it was impossible to hide their conversations from them thanks to the element they dominated.
"Is that so Ventus? If it were in the past, we could converse from this distance without you needing to move your beautiful and full lips, but I see your situation is no different from ours!"
Before his words reached the Companions of the Wind group, the light overflowing from his body dazzled their eyes. When they had to cover their faces using their hands, they heard what Franz said, and except for the girl who was their leader, all their faces fell.
"You can look closely at these full and beautiful lips whenever you want. Just because we can manage it, there is no need for you to stay this far away!"
When the young girl's seductive laugh rang out in the large garden belonging to the Diamond Leaf Guild, this time the priests of the Companions of Light had to cover their ears using their hands. Otherwise, it was possible for them to lose their sense of hearing forever.
While the members of the two societies of the Lands of Light were bickering among themselves, without them realizing, someone was watching them from a distance their abilities couldn't reach. Dijamant, their host, was the youngest among the other merchant guild leaders, but he had children the age of the youths who were their guests.
Even if he lost one of them during Nafız's attack, this issue didn't seem to have upset him much; in fact, while the fate of the region was being discussed, he was the very one who put forward the idea of dying where they were without retreating.
Right now there was another youth next to him; someone who was the exact copy of Dijamant fifteen years ago, resembling him so much that you could think it was the exact same person unless you examined him very closely.
"What do you say Komad Dijamanta? How did you find the priests belonging to the two greatest societies of the Lands of Light?"
The young man, not taking his crystal-clear eyes off the two groups subject to the question, was carefully examining the others his age. For a while, about ten seconds, he didn't answer the directed question, but then why did he feel the need to hit the iron they rested their arms on using the mirror in his hand?
Another ten seconds that passed subsequently were filled with silence. After the times passed without Komad Dijamanta taking his gaze off the two groups hundreds of paces away, he could finally turn his attention to the Diamond Leaf Guild Leader right beside him.
"They are too green, father! I'm not one hundred percent sure whether they are acting or if it's their true nature, but the air they give off and their attitudes look like they are on a training trip, not a war. There is no doubt they are strong, I'm not going to underestimate those forming the cream of the crop of their societies, but I don't know how much we can trust these kids who haven't encountered orcs before!"
Dijamant, stepping one step out of the shadow he was hiding in, shone like a sun by the skill of the one-piece crown on his head and the diamonds gliding down like a flowing river from the chest part of his dress. At that moment Franz turned not only his head but his whole body towards him, and seeing it was their hosts who attracted his attention, he greeted him by slightly bending his arm.
"Even if the light reflected by a small mirror couldn't prompt them into action, the glitter of my diamonds was enough for this. Perhaps this is the intention of those ruling the Lands of Light, to shed their childhood and become men, they don't need the sound coming out of a metal pipe, but the battle cries of orcs!"