A life pondering the direction of growth.
In the Silva Empire, situated in the east of the world, Bramir was sensing the wind from atop a tree branch entwined with vines.
“Wait…… what is that?”
A faint movement had been detected from a region quite far away.
A small group from the Terra Empire had seemed at first to be moving northwest, but now they were heading north, where the Aqua Empire was located.
“Surely Terra isn’t trying to invade Aqua again?”
Yet there were parts that did not quite add up.
No matter how much stronger Terra’s earthen energy was than Aqua’s, the scale of the army now on the move could not possibly be seen as preparation for an invasion.
There was even Marinus within Aqua’s deep sea.
Could Terra truly be approaching Aqua without knowing that fact?
“I should report this for now.”
Bramir leapt down from the branch and headed for the fortress.
“Your Majesty, we have confirmed Terra’s movements.”
Empress Drian sat upon her throne and looked at him.
“Terra is moving?”
“Yes. However, their direction is Aqua. From Terra’s standpoint, Aqua would be a weaker opponent, so it seems they may be trying to threaten them again, but what is strange is that their scale is quite small.”
Drian glanced toward the northwest, where Aqua was located.
“Does Aqua not have Marinus?”
“That is correct. Even if Aqua had no dragon to begin with, Aqua would not so much as flinch at a force of that size. We have yet to determine why they are approaching Aqua.”
Drian leaned back against the tree trunk that formed the back of her throne and closed her eyes.
“Terra is approaching Aqua…… What is their intent? The size of their force is too small for an invasion.”
Tarban, who was beside her, asked,
“Aqua must surely be aware of it as well, yes? Are they preparing their defenses?”
“Of course.”
Drian opened her eyes again.
“In the past, Terra attacked our border, and this time they are approaching Aqua from the opposite side.”
Strictly speaking, it had been the will of the Yellow Dragon Montanus that attacked the border between Silva and Aqua, but had Terra not agreed with Montanus’s decision, they would not have sent troops to support it.
On the other hand, when Silva’s Blue Dragon Nemorensis had unintentionally moved to Ignis, Silva had withdrawn its army out of concern that they would become entangled in that battle.
Because of that, Silva also viewed Montanus’s attack as Terra’s choice.
Terra, which had attacked Aqua toward the northeast, was now approaching Aqua from the northwest.
After being lost in thought for a moment, Tarban said,
“I suspect that because Terra’s dragon was defeated by us last time, they may be circling around this time in a direction far from us. It is true that Aqua is weak against Terra, but at the same time, we are strong against Terra. They must know that if they touch Aqua, we will not stand by either.”
“So it is a ploy to approach Aqua while avoiding a clash with us.”
The leaves that made up Silva’s forest rustled in the wind.
After a brief silence, Drian rose from her throne and continued,
“What we are seeing may not be everything. Terra acts covertly, as though moving beneath the ground rather than upon it. We must think deeply about whether Aqua is truly not in danger.”
She headed toward the garden of council.
“Let us discuss this in greater detail among ourselves.”
Tarban and Bramir quietly followed behind her.
Drian, Tarban, and Bramir gathered in the garden of council.
Tarban tilted his head and said,
“Come to think of it, I understand that Aqua did not attempt a counterattack after Terra’s dragon invaded. Fortunately, the empire became stronger after that incident, so I do not think there is any need to start another war, but……”
Bramir added as well.
“It truly is strange. At the time, I thought the dragon had churned up Aqua’s sea along that border in order to cut off the passage connecting us and Aqua. But after that, did our relationship not instead grow even stronger? We even had minor grievances with each other at the time, but now we have forgotten them all.”
Drian opened her mouth.
“Whatever Montanus’s objective was, I am certain that he achieved almost none of it. In particular, we can be confident that our role was significant in bringing Montanus down. That may be why they are moving this time through a direction different from where we are.”
Tarban stroked his chin.
“Hmm, another strange point seems to be the very act of Terra approaching Aqua again. To be frank, do they even have a pretext? The reason we attacked Terra together with Aqua was because Terra invaded Aqua first. However, when they mobilized a dragon to attack Aqua, Aqua’s priority immediately after the dragon fell must have been to restore their own sea, so they put off retaliation. And…… afterward, because of larger incidents like the war between Ignis and Metallum, their feelings toward Terra seem to have naturally faded. Yet in this situation, Terra is coming to provoke Aqua again. Is that a logical course of action?”
Bramir responded to his words.
“Could they be trying to provoke Aqua? Perhaps they expected Aqua to come down for a counterattack soon, but since Aqua has not moved as much as expected, they are doing this.”
“Then could it be a trap?”
“If we consider it that way, reacting to Terra may instead be falling into their scheme.”
Drian began speaking slowly.
“Whether it is us or Aqua, we must not move rashly. What must be kept in mind is that Terra is only drawing closer to Aqua, and has not yet attacked. If our side moves first, we will only give them a pretext for invasion.”
The retainers nodded.
Bramir said,
“Of course, Aqua does not seem to be making any major movements either. However, judging by the large amount of slime cores they have consumed recently, it appears they are increasing their slime troops.”
Drian continued,
“Aqua knows itself very well. They are strong upon the water, but weaken outside of it. Even if they were to clash with Terra, they would not try to fight outside the water.”
Soon Tarban also said,
“If we look at Terra’s forces as well, the Terra force now revealed is strangely small. Of course, they are moving with troop types suited to deal with our guardian tree spirits. But with that amount, they naturally will not be able to obstruct Aqua’s waterways. On top of that, Aqua still possesses a dragon, does it not?”
“I see……”
Bramir nodded.
“Was that dragon’s name Marinus? Marinus has not participated in any battle, so he should still be in good condition. What is a bit strange is that Marinus is not reacting much to Terra’s approach.”
Drian answered his words.
“The reason Marinus is not moving must be because it is not worth doing so. Of course, we need not react either.”
Her voice was gentle yet firm.
“We stand with Aqua. Therefore, if Terra attempts to invade Aqua again, we will have no choice but to fight as well.”
Something suddenly occurred to Bramir.
The fourth-stage troop type of the slime core, the Bio-Absorber.
An existence that drew in earth while shifting its flaccid body, powerful but in itself giving off a grotesque atmosphere.
With that troop type, Terra would not dare to challenge Silva.
But conversely, if Bio-Absorbers were used for attack, would there be no problems arising from that?
Drian continued speaking.
“Let us keep watching. We may take our time. If they finally attempt to harm our forest and sea, then we will take up arms.”
The inside of the garden of council became quiet once more.
For now, the atmosphere seemed to settle on the conclusion that there was no need to concern themselves with Terra’s movements yet.
Drian asked her retainers,
“I just heard that Aqua has consumed a large number of slime cores. Is there no issue with the current situation at the research institute?”
“Hmm……”
Bramir answered cautiously.
“There is no problem, but there is a suggestion. The research institute has mainly been producing slime cores, but now the researchers wish to produce other kinds of cores as well.”
“Other cores……?”
Drian narrowed her eyes.
Tarban continued with the answer.
“Slime troop types are sufficiently powerful, but it seems there is a drawback in that the troop types we possess are too heavily concentrated in one area. For now, we may be considered strong, but if an opponent creates even more powerful troop types, we will need other troop types we can prepare in response.”
In truth, the discussion had begun for the trivial reason that the researchers had grown bored of producing only one kind of dual-attribute core, but Tarban added a somewhat more plausible reason before conveying the matter to Drian.
Drian’s expression grew a little serious.
“Are you saying it is difficult to protect the forest with slime cores?”
“Yes, I believe that could be the case. Terra is not our only enemy. Metallum is an even stronger enemy. Moreover, Metallum is a force that Aqua cannot keep in check, so we must respond on our own.”
Aqua and Metallum were not in a relationship of mutual opposition, so their primary attributes did not harm each other.
If Metallum were to invade Silva again, Aqua would not have many ways to support Silva.
That was precisely why Silva had once asked Ignis for aid.
After thinking for a moment, Drian said,
“What core would be best? If we are to oppose Metallum, should we produce ember cores?”
“Ah, yes, that is correct.”
“Have discussions with Aqua progressed?”
“We spoke somewhat with their researchers. The opinion has likewise narrowed toward studying Ignis’s cores.”
If Silva’s life core fused with Ignis’s flame core, an ember core would be born, and if Aqua’s wave core fused with a flame core, a geyser core would be born.
If flame cores could be supplied, they would produce different kinds of dual-attribute cores.
Drian slowly ran her fingertips over the table.
“If we can obtain Ignis’s cores, that would not be a bad thing. The problem is how we are to obtain their cores.”
At her question, Tarban and Bramir exchanged glances.
After hesitating, Bramir answered,
“Perhaps Ignis is still in a difficult situation, rebuilding internally. If we volunteer to help them, they may have no reason to refuse……”
At that moment, Drian’s eyes widened sharply.
“Have you not yet asked Aqua’s opinion? Not the researchers, but a conversation with Nereia must come first.”
“Ah, that is true. I was short-sighted.”
Bramir bowed his head.
Drian continued speaking.
“In any case, I will accept the researchers’ opinion. It is simply not a matter to be decided immediately. Aqua must also be concerned with Terra’s movements right now, so communication with us will be difficult. I will watch a little longer, then meet with Nereia.”
“Yes, understood.”
After the meeting ended, Drian entered the Chamber of Life alone.
In her hand was the ember core that had been delivered from Ignis’s side.
She silently gazed at the ember core.
Life and flame had fused together, burning as though fire had caught upon a tree.
“Is it truly a suitable substance?”
Because it was an ember core created with Ignis’s technology, it looked as though it possessed a destructive nature, but on the other hand, it also seemed to present trees with a new path of growth.
“After the fusion of life and water, now comes the fusion of fire……”
Drian remained deep in thought, her gaze still fixed on the ember core.