Chapter 24: Chapter 23 – Peace Offers

“What is this nonsense?”

The grand voice of the Duke reverberated within the tiny room. Disgruntled, Herak looked down onto the written agreement which had been negotiated between the Free Alliance of the Southern Cities on one side and the Kingdom of Borna on the other.

“It is the official document to declare peace between our sides, sire,” Bombasticus explained while he tried his best to hide his smug grin. He would be eternally grateful to Corco for letting him handle this last step of the negotiations by himself. “We all wish for peace, do we not?”

In response, the Duke of Balit jumped up from his chair and leaned over their shared table, to scream right into the alchemist's face.

“What nonsense! This war was fought between Borna and Etra! First, how come the other cities take any part in the negotiations at all, when they haven't killed so much as a single man? Second, I am not one of the combatants either, so how come the Balit Duchy pays the harshest compensations out of all the Bornish territories?”

Again, Ronnie did his best to remain calm and stoic. This little moment of privacy between the two of them was something he had looked forward to for a long time.

“This agreement is the result of the wishes expressed by the great nobles of Borna, in combination with representatives from the free cities. It is unfortunate, but since the Duke Herak was the main initiator of the conflict, and the one who insisted on its continuation even when the troops of Borna and Etra suffered heavy losses, locked in this pointless war, both parties have agreed that it would be up to the Duke to suffer most of the costs produced by the altercation. After all, the Balit Duchy has been getting rather rich in recent years. It should be simple for sire to stomach the cost of compensation.”

Gnashing his teeth, the duke sank back into his seat. Instead, he pressed the cup in his hands with more and more force. Although Bombasticus couldn't see the man's face, his vivid imagination presented him with the duke's twisted features beneath the mask. Suppressing a laugh, the alchemist pointed at the contract again.

“It is important that Duke Balit, as the enemy commander, ratifies the negotiated agreement. Otherwise, altercations between our sides will have to continue. No one wants any further conflict.” Another stab with an invisible knife hit right into Balit's exposed nerve. This was getting fun.

“Don't think I don't remember you! You're the quack who claimed to have a cure for my scarring! You're the one who almost killed me! You're only here to torment me once again, you bastard!”

Upon hearing his reputation smeared, the great Bombasticus frowned for the first time, and refuted the latest outburst.

“Trying to kill a Duke? This great alchemist has done no such things. Duke Herak began to develop a fever before I could provide any treatment at all. None of the later events can be blamed on my skills, and yet Duke Balit sent his men after me once his health had recovered. This great alchemist would have loved to stay behind, cure the fever and cure the scarring, however, with the Duke's delirious words, speaking of 'quacks' and 'executions', together with the Duke's vicious reputation, no man would have been noble enough to stay. After all, I am no physician. As an alchemist by trade, I have sworn no oath to put the life of my patients above my own.”

A series of stings hit the Duke, again and again. More knifes, aiming straight for the heart, the core of his anger. Herak reacted just as expected, just as planned. Fuming with rage, the man stood up once more, as the glazed cup in his hand began to crack. With great force, he threw the cup towards the alchemist's head. Fast, far faster than the uncultivated mortal could ever react, the object sailed towards him with deadly force. Before he understood what had happened, Ronnie felt a gust of wind rush past his left ear.

Like dew collecting on a field in the morning, his back was covered in sweat within moments, but his face was still unchanged. The great Bombasticus would never yield to fear. Furthermore, he knew that the Duke would never act upon his rage. The matter of today was far too important. Injuring the chief negotiator of the opposite side would only weaken Borna's position ever further. Even though the Duke had already suffered much and could risk an escalation, he still had to consider his brother, the king, so he would tread lightly. Still, if this tense stalemate went on for too long, even the great alchemist would lose his nerves, despite his better knowledge. Thus, Ronnie decided to reign in his inner Bombasticus and instead tried to be more accommodating. He had had his fun, so it was time to proceed with Corco's plan.

“Duke Herak, these are the events as they happened from my perspective, Arcavus be my witness. However, I assure you, sire, that none of the negotiations on Etra's side have been influenced by a petty sense of revenge. Instead, all we wish is to guarantee that Borna's aggression will no longer threaten the region in the future. If Duke wishes to blame anyone, he should blame the ones who were responsible for negotiations on Borna's side.”

He could see the duke think for a few seconds, before he sat back down. His hands opened and closed multiple times, grasping the invisible necks of the Bornish nobility, the ones who had voted against Herak at the last second and forced the negotiations into their own hands. Finally, the duke spoke up again.

“You're not aiming for me, are you? Neither you nor your little seer friend, is that correct?”

“Of course not,” Ronnie lied in response.

“Then what about this clause here: I have to hand possession of one of my salt mines over to the 'Fastgrade Merchant Company'!? I own the Fastgrade Merchant Company!”

“That is not how Master Corcopaca Fastgrade and the other members of the Company Board see it. According to our understanding, the company only moved location, relocating headquarters from Balit over to Etra. The so-called Fastgrade Merchants of Balit are not legitimate. However, this clause as well is unrelated to any past issues between the two sides. First of all, the Fastgrade Merchant Company has invested a considerable sum in the protection of Etra, and thus deserves an especially large portion of the benefits as well.”

“But there's no reason to include that into the contract wording! This is pure humiliation!” The angered duke banged his fist onto the table. Of course Herak was right. There really was no good reason to include the clause. According to the standard rules of conduct between combatants of Arcavia, both sides would have worked out the contract between themselves as consolidated blocks, while the details of the distribution of spoils would be decided between allied parties afterwards. Of course, this wasn't something Ronnie could openly admit. Luckily, Corco had anticipated this problem and prepared him an excuse for just this moment.

“It is unfortunate, but our allies are no men of noble repute like Duke Derak of Balit and the other lords of Arcavia. Since our allies are but simple merchants, greedy for profit, we thought it prudent to include the personal share of the Fastgrade Merchants in the peace agreement itself. It was the only way to guarantee a fair distribution and that no member of the Cities' Alliance would go back on his word.”

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“Still...” the duke tried to continue, but this time, Ronnie preempted his worries.

“We believe that the mighty Balit Duchy could live very well without the salt mine. Even though salt itself is of great value, the other lords of Borna have warned us that the salt produced from within this one in particular is of inferior quality, barely worthy to be mined and sold at all.”

“What!” The duke's anger showed itself once again, as red color rose up along his neck and into his hidden face. Ronnie wondered how long it would take the man's bronze mask to melt off from all that heat. “Who dares sell out one of their own? Which Borna man lacks loyalty to the throne!?”

With a small, sardonic smile and a knowing wink, Bombasticus gave the prepared answer.

“Of course this is not something our side can answer casually. However, it might help if we indicate that one of the servants who provided this secret information wore green on yellow.”

“Baron Laster, huh?” Behind the mask, Ronnie could see the duke's eyes narrow into slits.

“We did not say a thing on the matter. However, Duke Herak is a smart man. I am convinced he will be able to find the traitors all by himself, without help from anyone.”

“I'm not in the habit of thanking my enemies.” Ungrateful, the duke brushed off Ronnie's sign of good faith as if it had never happened. Still, Ronnie wasn't fishing for compliments, so he was unperturbed.

“Duke Herak should not speak with undue haste. Does sire not wonder, just why is it that the Fastgrade merchants would insist to include this piece of legislation into the contract? Why insist on this specific mine to be claimed as their own spoils, when through the work of spies, we are well aware of its low actual value?”

“Oh, why would that be?” The duke leaned back in his chair. Ronnie could hear the complacency dripping from the man's voice. Surely he would be convinced that their merchant's troupe was as terrified of the duke as everyone else, and that they had refrained from any greater claims out of fear. Even though Ronnie had no interest in correcting the Duke, he would at least present him with a different interpretation.

“Duke Herak, this might be a surprise, but I am not only here on a mission from the city of Etra, not only to make sure the contract is signed. No, I am also here as a member of the board of the Fastgrade Merchant Company. In the end, both of our situations are remarkably similar. Both of us see the future, and the challenges ahead. As we see them, we both try our best to prepare for said future, to profit from the changes it will bring. However, both of us are hampered by incompetence from within, Duke Herak by the other Bornish nobles, we by the greedy merchants of Etra. However poor our relationship has been in the past, there is no reason to continue in this fashion. Thus, the Fastgrade merchants are willing to offer a sign of peace.”

Ronnie paused for effect, and also to see if the Duke would go along with his charade. This was the most critical moment of his trip. There was no reason to rush it.

“I'm listening.”

“Master Corcopaca has decided to not claim the salt mine as compensation, but to purchase it instead for a fair price. The mine would give us the salt for the pickled beets our company has begun to sell in recent month. Acquiring it would reduce our costs in that area, so the mine would be a smart purchase even with the low-quality salt. At the same time, you, Sire, will gain additional funds to strengthen your position within the Kingdom of Borna. Both sides win and strengthen their relations in the process. As I said before, we believe that there is no reason to fight each other over the past. Not when there is so much future left uncovered.”

“Hah, words are cheap! Who knows whether or not you honorless merchants won't try anything sneaky once I'm not looking,” the duke scoffed.

Ronnie, meanwhile, did his best to remain calm. He really didn't like the duke's attitude, but he would swallow his own pride for now. This meeting's outcome was far too important and he was far too close to his goals by now. Just one more step.

“Why would we remain vengeful over the past matters? In the end, Duke Herak has not done any lasting damage to the Fastgrade merchants, after all. No one died in the process of the chase back then, only a bit of property has been lost. Even those belongings have since been regained through the abilities of Master Corcopaca. Wouldn't Sire find it much more profitable to work together, rather than oppose one another? In return, all Master Corcopaca prays for would be for Duke Herak to drop the name 'Fastgrade' from the merchants under his command, in honor of Corcopaca's deceased master.”

As he watched the duke sink into thought Ronnie could feel the sweat on his back accumulate again. He knew that it was important to at least make one demand, otherwise their offer would have been far too suspicious for Herak to take the bait. Still, expecting any concessions from the prideful Duke was risky business. After what felt like an eternity, Duke Herak looked up again, at last.

“Fine. I will consider your offer. You can go back now and tell your master. I'll make sure to sign the papers in due time.”

As he turned to leave, Ronnie's polite smile turned into a wide grin. A weight lifted from his shoulders, he was besides himself with joy. The duke had reacted almost exactly as Corco had expected. Finally, their revenge was one step closer to its conclusion. Finally, it was time again to make use of his great alchemic talents.