An Understated Dominance by Marina Vittori

Austin smiled brightly as he ushered Jovian into the meeting room with surprising enthusiasm.

Jovian looked confused and somewhat unprepared. Before entering, he had already imagined many possible scenarios for their meeting.

He had mentally prepared for a range of reactions from Austin-whether he would be ignored, faced with cold indifference, or dealt with arrogance. He was ready for any of those. After all, the rumors about Austin painted him as a “hellraiser” who did whatever he pleased.

But, to his surprise, Austin didn’t give him any trouble at all. Instead, he was giving him a warm reception, which left him utterly confused.

Something felt off. He couldn’t make sense of Austin’s sudden warmth, and he had no idea what game he was playing.

“Bring the tea!” After inviting Jovian to sit, Austin gestured for the attendant to serve the tea.

The drink was a rare specialty from West Lucozia, a premium elixir tea not sold to the public but reserved for high-ranking officials. Its black market value was nearly a million per ounce, and demand far outstripped supply.

Compared to the tea Boston had been served earlier, the quality of this one was on a whole other level.

Once the tea was brewed, a rich, fragrant aroma filled the air and quickly spread throughout the meeting room. Just a single breath of it was enough to leave anyone feeling refreshed and alert.

Though Jovian wasn’t particularly fond of tea, he knew enough to recognize its quality, and this was clearly no ordinary brew. Austin’s attention to detail in offering such tea showed how much he valued this meeting.

this is our first meeting, I’ve heard so much about you. I’ve always looked up to

personally instructed him to handle this matter, and he had to make sure it

you flatter me. I’m just an ordinary general officer and not worthy of

eldest in politics,

out 3,000 rebels in Mount Cloudcrest. That feat made waves across the whole region.

“Oh? I didn’t expect

usual pleasantries, but it seemed he actually knew about his past

few standout moments. After that battle, his

not saying I know every detail of your accomplishments, but I’m certainly familiar with them. Your remarkable

already used

much in his life. Aside from the Mount Cloudcrest counterinsurgency operation, there wasn’t much worth mentioning. Austin

such a man of character, Your Highness.” He was so pleased with the compliments that his face was filled

name to open doors. But today, his charm and charisma had won Austin’s admiration. If word of this got out, it would be

I don’t have many hobbies, but one of my favorites is meeting heroes like you. Having someone like Mr. Jovian visiting my humble home is a

grinned from ear to ear. He was practically charmed out of his skin. “You

a hellraiser? He was

here, why don’t you stay with us for a while? Let’s have a drink