The Shatterplate War Chapter 30

The Shatterplate War Chapter 30

“Hello, sir.” The handsome human man stopped in front of Kay’s desk at something that resembled a position of attention.

“Sit.” Kay pointed at the chair in front of his desk.

The man sat down.

“I am Kay, Mayor of Avalon.”

“My name is Curcius Mapsight.”

Kay nodded once, “It’s nice to meet you.”

“And you as well, sir. I would also like to repeat to you that I had no knowledge of what Tiras was planning. We met on the road here, and he seemed like a nice enough person, but he didn’t say anything about trying to usurp you!”

“I believe you,” Kay reassured him, “Otherwise, you wouldn’t be having this meeting. It is good to learn his name, though,” Kay continued, “He’s been refusing to give it to us.”

“Oh, well, his name is Tiras Orenel. He claimed that the Orenel family is a powerful noble family in the Concord, but I don’t know that myself.”

Kay made a quick note on a piece of paper. “Thank you, that’s quite helpful.” He set down his pen and folded his hands on his desk. “Now then. You’re here because you’d like to become the leader of our military, correct?”

“Yes, sir, that’s correct.”

“Hmm.” Kay stared at Curcius for a moment. “I’m not blind to the fact that Avalon is strange compared to other new settlements that pop up. The fact that we’re even thinking about having a military as early in our development as we are, which isn’t even talking about how low our population is, is one of the things that makes us different. However, I know why we’re doing what we are, especially since I’m in charge.” Kay waited for a moment more, “But I don’t know why you are here. To most people, it probably seems like a strange idea to ask for an outsider to become the leader of our military at all. So why are you here? I need to understand your motivation before we continue.”

Curcius nodded before taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders. “I come from the Bannerthrust Empire. I am descended from the General Mapsight, who stood at the right hand of the First Emperor and led his armies as the First Emperor united the tribes and conquered the Encroaching Nations to form the Empire. Since that time, members of my family have served in the imperial military with honor in every generation that has passed. A majority of my family to this day are officers in the various departments of the imperial armed forces.”

Kay nodded along like he knew what Curcius was talking about.

Curcius shrugged, “It isn’t like they’re secrets. It would just be difficult for you to gain them without paying some other country quite a large sum of money.”

“Huh.”

“My final reason to chose me is simple. I am dedicated.” He leaned forward, his tone unyielding. “I desire to serve as a leader of some form in a military force that I feel is worthy of the honor of my name. I love the Empire as my homeland, but its military is one that would disappoint my honored ancestors. If you choose me, not only will you be giving me a clear chance at my dearest wish, but you’ll also be putting your brand new military into the hands of a man that will shape it into something to be proud of for generations to come. And that same military will serve as a deterrent to all your enemies due to its prowess.”

“... I’ve actually got one more question. You can probably figure out why we’re pushing so much of our government to develop as fast as we are.”

He nodded, “Because you’re expecting an influx of people to come because of your position as a Class Line Progenitor.”

“Right. There’s a good chance that Avalon is going to lead to quite the storm of turmoil in the future as we grow. What happens if we end up in a conflict against the Bannerthrust Empire?”

“That depends, really. If Avalon is a nation worth serving, then I’ll stand and fight against anyone out of the Empire. But if it becomes one that I cannot serve, I will leave.” Crucius paused for a moment, then shrugged. “But given that I would be the leader of the military, I’d most likely see any rot coming well before an actual conflict. So I’d either have done my best to fight said rot and failed or have left long before any such conflict.”

Kay leaned back in his chair with a smile. “Well then, Crucius Mapsight, how would you like to be the leader of the military of Avalon?”

“I would like that very much, sir.”

Kay reached his hand out over the desk and shook Cruscius’. “Then, after you read over ad sign all the Agreements that we have brought over, I have your first orders for you. Get all of your classes, except Crossbowman, to tier four, then we’ll get you into meetings to determine a budget while you work on recruiting and then training.”

“Very good, sir.”

Kay stood up and took a step towards the door before suddenly stopping and turning back to his desk. “Actually... I think we have enough people to really start working on one of our most important projects.” He reached into his desk and pulled out a thick sheaf of papers. “If we can get you done with those Agreements quickly, we can probably have our first meeting about it today.”

“What project would that be, sir?”

Kay tapped his papers with the back of his other hand. “Why, the shape our entire government is going to take, of course.”